Rebirth of the Excellent Daughter of the Marquis Household (REDMH) - Chapter 159

How could he be here?

At this hour, should he not be with the primary consort?

The book slipped from Gu Yu Qi’s lap and fell soundlessly onto the thick carpet.

Seeing Gu Yu Qi staring at him in panic, Yun Ke walked forward slowly. Clearly, his appearance still startled her.

He stopped before Gu Yu Qi and bent down to pick up the book. Glancing at the cover, he frowned slightly. So, if he had not come, was she planning to spend their wedding night, a night that ought to have belonged to the two of them alone, immersed in this book instead?

Damn Xiao Nan Lou.

Yun Ke was displeased, extremely displeased. How could Gu Yu Qi be reading a book gifted by another man on their wedding night?!

“This book belongs to this prince now,” Yun Ke said coldly. “In the future, this prince will give you a better one.”

“Your Highness, this item was a gift from someone else,” Gu Yu Qi quickly bowed her head and curtsied. “I beg Your Highness to show mercy.” After all, Yun Ke’s face was always stern, so she failed to realise that his expression was darkening further still.

“What if this prince refuses?” Yun Ke asked in a deliberately frosty tone.

“Please show mercy, Your Highness!” Gu Yu Qi raised her voice in urgency. “This book truly was a gift from someone else. This concubine really does not wish to give it away!”

She had actually raised her voice at him for the sake of Xiao Nan Lou!

“Who gave it to you?” Yun Ke’s displeasure deepened. He had already done so much for her. He had done his best to give her a grand wedding, even defied an imperial decree, refusing to receive the primary consort, refusing to kneel and bow in the ceremony, even prepared to fall out completely with the Virtuous Consort just to rid himself of this unwanted marriage. Why was she still reading a book gifted by another man on their wedding night?

She treasured that book as if it were a rare gem. Yet with all he had done, had none of it touched her heart?

Who was Yun Ke? He had once ruled the world, with everyone beneath heaven bowing before him, none daring to disobey.

He understood well that the Gu Yu Qi of this life must be won over slowly, gently. But her current actions were a blatant disregard for him. She had not taken him seriously at all!

“A friend,” Gu Yu Qi replied.

“Friend?” Yun Ke’s lips were wreathed in frost, and the depths of his eyes churned with dark undercurrents. He could not help but take a step forward, taking Gu Yu Qi’s wrist in a firm grip.

He had come with a softened heart, intending to speak gently with her, yet she had raised her voice at him for the sake of something from another man.

“You are already married to this prince.” He pulled Gu Yu Qi towards him until she was right in front of him. He stared at her with eyes that were as turbulent as a brewing storm. “From this day forward, you won’t have other friends. Your only friend is this prince. The only one you’ll look at, the only one you’ll love, is also this prince!”

Damn it! He had meant to treat her well. Truly, he had. But… but… he was jealous.

Jealous that she valued something from another man so dearly. Jealous that, on their wedding night, she still thought of another man’s gift!

And that man was none other than the future emperor of the Liang Empire, one of the very few people in this world who could stand as Yun Ke’s equal.

Yun Ke’s heart was in chaos. Unsteady.

He had come so far, fought so hard to reach this moment. In this life, even the throne no longer seemed to matter. So why did she still turn a blind eye to him? Was it that the mistakes of his past life, once committed, could truly never be undone? Even now, as she was by his side, she still clung to a gift from someone else.

“Understood,” Gu Yu Qi said softly, her lashes sweeping down to conceal her beautiful but absent-minded eyes. “This concubine understands, Your Highness.”

Gu Yu Qi’s obedience and the quiet defeat in her tone caused Yun Ke’s fury to evaporate in an instant.

An unspeakable sense of failure surged within his heart.

“This book, this prince will hold onto it for now,” Yun Ke said after a moment, a quiet sigh sounding in his heart. “If you like records of natural wonders, this prince will send others, as many as you wish. Just don’t read this one again.”

“Yes.” Gu Yu Qi, too, sighed silently in her heart. Forget it. Her mother still needed treatment. For now, peace was better than confrontation.

She had never really won when facing Yun Ke. No matter how much she cherished it, it was just a book in the end. It was a pity but… Just let it be.

Yun Ke’s grip on Gu Yu Qi’s wrist loosened, but he did not let go. He still held her slender wrist.

“Come in,” Yun Ke called out toward the doorway. Soon enough, palace eunuchs and maids entered in an orderly stream, each carrying food containers. In no time, the red-clothed table was filled to the brim with steaming dishes and elegant wine flasks.

Gu Yu Qi stared at the steaming dishes and wine flasks in astonishment. “Your Highness, this is…” Was he planning to dine here? That was against the rules!

She was merely a concubine. Even the ritual of sharing the nuptial wine should be performed with the primary consort. What did it have to do with a concubine like her?

“Eat.” Yun Ke did not let Gu Yu Qi say anything else and pulled her toward the table. He sat down first and then dragged her to sit beside him.

“This concubine will stand.” Gu Yu Qi rose and said. In their past life, the number of times she had dined seated at the same table with him could be counted on a single hand. That was the sadness of being a concubine. While others sat, she stood and while others ate, she merely watched.

“When this prince tells you to sit, just sit.” Yun Ke gave her hand a forceful tug, nearly toppling her.

His strength had been a bit much, his fault, but he would not apologise. He knew that the moment he let go, this woman would bolt without hesitation.

“You may all leave now,” Yun Ke said impatiently to the others in the room.

The group of eunuchs and palace maids all bowed low and retreated in unison.

His Highness is terrifying. The secondary consort’s life is so difficult… Outside the door, each of them bore the same unsettled expression.

Yun Ke picked up a silver wine flask and poured two full cups, one for himself, one for Gu Yu Qi. “Nuptial wine.”

“Nuptial wine?” Gu Yu Qi’s eyes widened. “Your Highness, have you perhaps come to the wrong room? Should you not be drinking this with Her Ladyship the Princess Consort?” She was just a concubine.

“Just drink when told to,” Yun Ke frowned, thrusting the wine cup into her hand. When she did not move, he took her hand and threaded it through the crook of his arm. He drew Gu Yu Qi closer, then tilted his head back and drained his cup in one go. His gaze, heated and unrelenting, locked onto Gu Yu Qi.

“Your Highness…”

“Drink. No more talking,” Yun Ke said in a low, muffled voice.

Why was it so difficult just to share a wedding toast with Gu Yu Qi… He really had to coax, lie, and even resort to brute force just to get her to drink with him…

Fine, then. She would drink. After all, had she not done far more disgraceful things in their past life? Gu Yu Qi was just a broken jar, as long as the boss was happy, then so be it. She tilted her head back and drank it all in one go. It burned.

Yun Ke liked strong liquor. She knew that.

Watching her drink the wine, Yun Ke’s lips seemed to curve ever so slightly upward, and his gaze began to soften.

She was beautiful. Especially under the lamplight, she looked more beautiful still. The dim glow softened the contours of her face, adding a hazy allure. Her lips, tinted with the wine’s moisture, were like a rose in full bloom under the cloak of night. Yun Ke felt his heartbeat quickening, his breath growing unsteady.

He could not help but lean toward her ever so slightly, inching closer. His heart thumped louder and faster, so loud it was as if he could hear it echoing in his chest, boom, boom, boom, boom. Every time it beat, there was a voice in his heart shouting, kiss her, kiss her, she is already yours.

Seizing a brief moment while Gu Yu Qi was caught off guard, Yun Ke brushed his lips lightly against hers, then instantly pulled back. He moved so quickly that Gu Yu Qi did not even have time to react.

Her lips were just as he remembered. Soft, supple, like the finest sugared jelly, with a breath that was subtly sweet.

Even such a quick peck made Yun Ke feel as though his heartbeat might burst from his chest.

He was not some adolescent boy anymore. Was he really this affected? Yun Ke inwardly berated himself. Yet he had to admit, that brief, delicate contact had made every nerve in his body spring to life. His bl00d surged, his skin tingled.

So this is what people meant in books when they wrote of heart-pounding feelings.

Yun Ke longed to pull her into his arms, to kiss her deeply and fiercely, to trace the contours of her lips again and again with his tongue. Not just her lips, but her cheeks, her eyes, the furrow of her brows, and her delicate earlobes. And then he would tell her just how deeply he loved her.

But Yun Ke lost his nerve…

After two lifetimes, this was the first time he had truly felt scared, and it was on the very wedding night he had dreamed of, with the one he truly desired. Yun Ke had already cursed himself a hundred times over in his heart. But still, he did not dare to do it.

Gu Yu Qi’s rejection of him was so obvious that even a blind man could see it. He was genuinely afraid that if he did this, Gu Yu Qi would be forced into a corner, with nowhere left to run, just like in their past life. If that happened again, even crying would do him no good.

“Eat,” Yun Ke picked up his chopsticks and selected a few dishes, placing them in front of Gu Yu Qi. He acted as though nothing had happened just now.

Gu Yu Qi bit her lip, a wave of bitterness surging in her heart. Was toying with her really that amusing to him?

And what was with the mountain of meat on her plate? Yes, she liked meat, but she could not eat that much. More importantly, her stomach had just been aching. Was he trying to make her fall ill again?

Seeing that Gu Yu Qi was reluctant to pick up her chopsticks, Yun Ke frowned and said, “It’s not good to be picky when eating.”

Picky eating, my foot! Gu Yu Qi cursed him silently. I spent a whole lifetime locked in the Cold Palace, do you think people like me can afford to be picky? Are you joking?! My stomach just got better, I can’t eat such greasy food!

“Thank you for the reward, Your Highness.” Curse him as she might, since he was determined to torment her, fine, let him. Gu Yu Qi picked up her chopsticks in despair, grabbed a piece of braised pig’s trotter, and shoved it into her mouth.

Only then did Yun Ke’s lips finally curl up ever so slightly. This girl is too thin, he thought. When he had held her wrist earlier, it had felt so fragile, as if he could snap it with just a bit of force. No, she still has to spend a lifetime with me, how can she go on like this if she’s so thin?

Oh, dear. Imperial Prince An had clearly forgotten that Gu Yu Qi was also a martial artist. Aside from the occasional stomach trouble and period pain, her body was in excellent health!

After the meal and once the servants had come in to tidy up and prepare for the night, Gu Yu Qi began to feel anxious. Judging by how things were going, was His Highness Imperial Prince An not leaving tonight?

If he insisted on staying here, then what was she supposed to do?

Could it be that they had to sleep together?