Yi Wenjun 4
And so, amid the farce Yi Wenjun had set in motion, more than a month passed.
Over that month, the brothers Xiao Ruojin and Xiao Ruofeng were utterly overwhelmed. Yi Wenjun had drawn quite a crowd that day, and word that Prince Langya, Xiao Ruofeng, had slept with his own elder brother's intended secondary consort had spread throughout Northern Li.
Leaving aside how many people had helped fan the flames, and what Emperor Tai'an thought of the brothers and the Shadow Sect,
the two had already spent considerable effort simply reassuring their unsettled followers.
After all, Xiao Ruofeng had always been steadfast in his support for his brother's accession. Now that a woman had caused a rift between them, would the struggle for the throne also take a different turn? If the brothers truly fell out, which side should their followers join?
To reassure them, Xiao Ruojin had no choice but to swallow his bitterness at this critical moment in the struggle for the throne. Not only could he not be angry with his younger brother, he also had to play the good elder brother and comfort him as a fellow victim.
That was to say nothing of all the gossip provoked by his intended secondary consort's willingness to drug and sleep with someone else rather than marry him.
Xiao Ruofeng was miserable too. He already had a woman he loved, but she had rejected his confession because she did not want to marry into the imperial family. He had sworn to her that he would never marry another and would love only one woman in this life. But now he had lost even that sliver of a chance, because the woman he loved would never share a husband with another woman.
So this is what it feels like to be unable to be with the one you love? Yi Wenjun, you've taught me a lesson.
And beyond his private troubles, he still had to help his brother reassure their followers and explain his own innocence to him.
But the more kindly his brother smiled, the worse he felt. For he knew it meant his brother had grown distant from him, and they could never go back to the way they had been.
Only after the brothers had finally reassured the various factions behind them did Xiao Ruofeng have time to deal with Yi Wenjun.
That day, he brought Baili Dongjun, whom he had summoned back from Snow Moon City, to the Shadow Sect to see Yi Wenjun.
Yi Wenjun was as gentle and amiable as ever. She poured Xiao Ruofeng and Baili Dongjun each a cup of tea, and made a point of saying, "There's no drug in it."
Seeing that Baili Dongjun was a little embarrassed, Yi Wenjun went on, "Dongjun, hadn't you left Heavenly Revelations? Have you come back now to attend my wedding to Prince Langya?"
Baili Dongjun grew even more embarrassed. He drank cup after cup of tea without saying a word.
In the end, Xiao Ruofeng spoke first. "Miss Yi, I know you still can't forget Ye Dingzhi. And Ye Dingzhi won't care about your past. I called Dongjun here to have him take you away from Heavenly Revelations. I'll handle everything after that."
Baili Dongjun nodded. "Brother Yun was very worried about you when he heard the news. If I hadn't received Junior Brother's letter first and calmed Brother Yun down, he'd probably have charged into Heavenly Revelations again by now. You know Brother Yun's identity. He shouldn't enter Heavenly Revelations again."
Hearing Xiao Ruofeng's words, Yi Wenjun was stunned for a moment. Then she clutched her stomach and burst out laughing. She laughed for a long time, until she could no longer straighten up.
Though Yi Wenjun felt nothing but contempt, she put on an indignant expression. "Dongjun, tell me, isn't it funny? Back then, I wanted so badly to leave Heavenly Revelations and didn't want to marry. Even Brother Yun risked returning to Heavenly Revelations, but Xiao Ruofeng thwarted us at every turn.
"Now, all I did was sleep with him and become a thorn between the two brothers, and Xiao Ruofeng has suddenly become so righteous that he's willing to let me leave.
"So the only reason I was denied my freedom and had no control over my own life before was that I wasn't ruthless or shameless enough."
Faced with Yi Wenjun's mockery, Xiao Ruofeng had nothing to say. But no matter how much contempt he faced, he could not marry her, because as long as Yi Wenjun remained in Heavenly Revelations for a single day, the thorn between him and his brother could not be pulled out.
And as long as Yi Wenjun left for love, he and his brother would both be the ones she had abandoned. Given enough time, once no trace of Yi Wenjun remained in Heavenly Revelations, he and his brother could return to the way they had been.
Baili Dongjun had nothing to say either. Back then, Brother Yun had been willing to throw away his life, yet he still could not take Wenjun away. But now...
Yi Wenjun took out a letter and handed it to Baili Dongjun. "Dongjun, you and Brother Yun are among the few who have truly cared for me. I wrote this letter to Brother Yun. From the moment I did this, I never intended to leave. You want me to hide my name and slink away? Don't even think about it!
"Now you've seen for yourself how shameless the Xiao clan is. Leave, and tell Brother Yun never to return to Heavenly Revelations, or sooner or later, you'll both lose your lives here."
Without looking at the two men, who still wanted to persuade her, she instructed the maid behind her, "Go and tell Senior Brother that I'm carrying Prince Langya's child. Have him hurry to the palace and give His Majesty the good news."
Watching Xiao Ruofeng's face change drastically, Yi Wenjun smiled and asked, "Once I marry into the Prince of Langya's Residence, where won't I be able to go? Unless you kill me, whether I stay or leave is no longer up to you."
Baili Dongjun did not want Wenjun to ruin herself for revenge. After putting the letter away, he wanted to say more to persuade her, but when he saw Yi Wenjun's ice-cold gaze, he could not speak. He merely cupped his hands to Xiao Ruofeng in farewell.
He thought that if he had no need to, he would never return to Heavenly Revelations. This place turned people into ghosts.
Xiao Ruofeng did not leave. He asked Yi Wenjun, unwilling to accept it, "Do you hate us that much?"
Yi Wenjun shook her head. "Hate? I don't hate you. I simply don't want to be used as an object and looked down on anymore.
"Now you've finally truly seen me, haven't you? Life is long, and we have plenty of time to get along.
"All under heaven are faithless.
"I would rather betray everyone under heaven than let anyone under heaven betray me."
The next day, the imperial decree granting the marriage arrived. Though Luo Qingyang had done his utmost to secure better terms for Yi Wenjun, the affair between her and Xiao Ruofeng was so discreditable that she ultimately entered the Prince of Langya's Residence as a secondary consort.
Yi Wenjun did not care about her status. Even if Xiao Ruofeng gave up all restraint and took more women, what of it? Yi Wenjun knew he had a woman he loved and would not give the position of principal consort to anyone. As for children? The drug that night had done more than arouse desire. Xiao Ruofeng was destined to have only one child, the one in Yi Wenjun's womb.
Luo Qingyang, for his part, remained as devoted to Yi Wenjun as ever. Not only did he provide a great deal for her dowry, he also arranged for many Shadow Sect experts to protect her.
In the days that followed, Xiao Ruofeng never again entered the inner quarters of the Prince of Langya's Residence. After Yi Wenjun gave birth to Xiao Ruofeng's only child, Xiao Lingchen, Xiao Ruofeng established the Four Guardians of Heavenly Revelations, who gradually began to supplant the Shadow Sect.