Chapter Ninety-Two: A Chance Encounter with Gao Yang

At the Hall of Great Splendor, Li Kong entered and bowed to the Empress, then stepped aside with a smile. “Auntie, you look better and better. It won’t be long before you are fully recovered.”

The Empress smiled and studied him for a moment before saying, “You’ve come back looking more spirited than before. Good. Still, you must be careful on the battlefield in the future.”

“I understand.”

“Good. So long as you remember. Before you set out, His Majesty said that when you returned, he would first bestow your coming-of-age ceremony, and then you and Lady Lijhi would be wed. Your father and I discussed it, and we have decided to have you two married before the year is out. The reason I called you here today is to explain the steps that will follow.”

Li Kong’s expression collapsed at once. He stared at the Empress in shock, then looked at Li Lijhi, and asked, “Isn’t that a little early?”

At those words, Li Lijhi’s shyness vanished in an instant, and her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

Even the Empress was taken aback. “You do not wish to marry Lijhi?”

“That is not it at all. I and the princess have mutual affection; of course I would not refuse to marry her. It is only that the princess is but twelve years old now—isn’t she still rather young?”

Only then did Li Lijhi finally let out a breath of relief, casting him a reproachful glance that was half anger, half embarrassment.

The Empress said, both amused and helpless, “A girl marrying at twelve is not considered early. There is no need for you to dwell on it. Besides, this is His Majesty’s command, and you must fulfill it. I have also discussed this matter with your mother. In two days, we will begin the necessary arrangements. However, with less than three months until the New Year, your residence still has not been completed, so you will need to keep an eye on that during this time.”

Li Kong remained in the Hall of Great Splendor for nearly an hour, and almost the entire time the Empress did the talking while he listened, with no room at all to object.

Thinking that he was about to establish a family and a household in the Great Tang, he did feel somewhat excited. Moreover, he was to marry the eldest daughter of the Great Tang’s most virtuous empress, the famed Princess of Everlasting Joy, Li Lijhi. Still, he had already made up his mind: before Li Lijhi turned sixteen, he would absolutely not touch her, lest her body suffer any lasting harm.

This was not Li Kong being overly cautious. Although history was not short of women who lived into old age, such as Wu Zhao, Li Lijhi was different. She already had the bronchial condition inherited from the Empress; though it had been kept under control over the past two years through Li Kong’s care and was now mostly stable, losing her virginity would still injure her vitality, and bearing a child might even take half her life. Li Kong could not gamble on that.

After leaving the Hall of Gentle Dew, his decision was completely set. Life was like this: since resistance was impossible, he might as well settle down and enjoy it.

“Hey, are you the one who saved my mother and me?” Just as Li Kong was preparing to leave the Imperial Palace and head home, a childish voice suddenly called out to him.

He turned around and saw a delicately beautiful little girl looking at him with bright curiosity, along with a kind of expectation that was hard to name.

Li Kong bent down in front of Li Ling and asked, “What is your name?”

“My name is Li Ling!”

Li Kong stood there speechless.

After being exiled to Ever Joy County by the Emperor, he had even forgotten that Princess Gaoyang existed. Even on his last visit to the palace, he had not seen her, and he had thought that perhaps he would never again have any entanglement with that Great Tang princess who pursued freedom and female independence.

Yet the scene before him made it abundantly clear what it meant for dreams to be full and reality to be bone-dry.

“So you’re the princess, then. Who told you all that just now?” Li Kong looked at Princess Gaoyang in some confusion. She was only a three-year-old child now—who would possibly tell her such things? Consort Ling? No, she should be called Noble Consort Ling now.

In ancient times, rules about modesty between men and women were taken very seriously. Such matters were usually only spoken of when a girl was about to be married. Consort Ling absolutely could not have told Princess Gaoyang about this.

As for the palace maids and eunuchs, they would not have had the胆 to do so either. Those who knew about it at the time were only a handful of people—who would dare defy the world and touch such a forbidden matter?

After all, this was not something that reflected well on the Emperor.

Princess Gaoyang giggled. “So it really is you? Father told me about it. He said that if not for Brother Kong, my mother and I might both have died. I could never see Brother Kong before, but now I finally have, so I wanted to say thank you for saving my life, Brother Kong. I have nothing to repay you with, so…”

Li Kong cut her off at once, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. This family was truly enough. Did they not know that one careless sentence from them could cost someone his head?

Princess Gaoyang rolled her eyes. “What are you thinking, Brother Kong? I meant that I have nothing to repay you with, so I can only treat you well from now on. Can I come find Brother Kong to play in the future? I’ve lived this long and never once left the palace. I’m already bored of everything here.”

Li Kong’s mouth twitched. He took a deep breath and said helplessly, “All right, you can come find me, but someone must be with you. Hmm, your Crown Prince brother can take you, and Everlasting Joy can take you too. No one else is allowed.”

“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” Princess Gaoyang pouted and asked unhappily.

Li Kong was speechless. What kind of logic was that? How had he done it on purpose? Unable to make sense of it no matter how hard he thought, he nearly broke his brain and still came up with nothing.

Luckily, at that moment Li Lijhi walked out. Seeing Gaoyang, she hurriedly called out, “Ling’er, what are you doing? Don’t make things difficult for Brother Kong!”

“Tch, boring!” Gaoyang lifted her little chin haughtily, then slipped away quickly while Li Kong and Li Lijhi were still stunned, like a pure little rabbit, leaving the two of them staring after her in speechless astonishment.

Li Lijhi walked up to Li Kong with a mixture of laughter and helplessness. Thinking of what she had just heard in the Hall of Great Splendor, her cheeks reddened again as she murmured, “Mother said that we may have the evening meal. Let’s go.”

Li Kong nodded, then glanced once more in the direction Gaoyang had gone. A light smile appeared on his face. Though she still seemed mischievous now, her nature had grown much simpler. Perhaps the bold, unruly woman of the future was already beginning to change.

But if he truly wanted to turn her around, he would still have to guide her slowly in the days ahead.

After sharing a not-very-lively dinner with the Emperor’s family, Li Kong hurriedly left the Imperial Palace. He had not seen home in nearly a month, and he had no idea what it had become. Without Li Ji’s suppression, who knew whether the Wang woman would have thrown the household into complete chaos?