Wedding Night

Chapter 72: Wedding Night

Li Wei again stood in the palace of the majestic Min dynasty. Just like the palace, the people living in it were no better than stones decorated with silk clothes and gems.

It was late morning, and Min Hua was seated inside the Royal carriage of Huang dynasty. The emperors of Min dynasty and Huang dynasty were discussing something outside and she knew it was all about business and profits where she was being sacrificed as a scapegoat.

Her body was aching and this reminded her of the previous night she spent with Jiang Yuan. She didn't know what she was feeling right now but whatever it was, she didn't like it. She just wanted to go to some isolated place and be herself. Atleast for few minutes where she could cry and shout. But her fate didn't permit her do that. She was a princess, and now a soon to be queen. She hated both of these.

Soon the carriage started moving and the king was travelling on a horse beside her carriage. They were supposed to get married in Huang kingdom and the journey would take a month to reach there.

Min Hua had few maids accompanying her from her maternal home, more like keeping an eye on her. She didn't speak much to anyone and the little she spoke was mostly with her aide, Lu Tang.

She trusted him, because Jiang Yuan always held him in high regards. It was also through Jiang Yuan that Min Hua got to know about Lu Tang. He was a military doctor and had many times met Jiang Yuan at the borders. Though a doctor, he was also a trained martial artist and was asked to join her entourage.

He was the only one who observed the painful darkness behind her calm composure. In that one month long journey, he figured out that Min Hua was forced into this marriage and wasn't happy with this at all. Well, he himself would never want to be in the hands of a king whose lustful thoughts never let the other party breathe comfortably.

Umphh.. uwwwhhh...

Min Hua, who was standing near the edge of the lake looking at the shining water surface frowned hearing the low whimpers coming from the bushes.

She walked towards the bushes slowly, making sure to not alert some predator and peeked to see what the sound was.

Looking behind the bushes she found a days-old pup struck inside a pit that was too deep for it to come out. She looked at the pup who in return gazed at her with a pleading gaze begging her to help him.

Min Hua didn't show any response as she thought how her situation was no less beautiful compared to this little animal struggling inside the pit.

She turned around to walk away and go back to her lake viewing but another pitiful whimper from the pup stopped her.

Though the past few days had rendered her apathetic to the world and everything around her, her heart still remembered the love Jiang Yuan made her feel. And though he wasn't here, her every thought was filled with him. It's not like Min Hua didn't try to forget him and start liking Huang Meng. It was simply not possible. She felt alien to herself whenever she tried doing that.

Going back to the pup, she got it out the pit and washed it at the lake.

"Alright, you are now clean. Go and enjoy your life." saying this, she gently nudged the pup away from her but the pup jumped onto her lap and refused to leave. Min Hua smiled for the first in days looking at the little animal clinging to her. She rubbed the pup's head adoringly but soon her eyes turned sad again. Her melancholy was so profound that even the animal on her lap could sense there was something wrong with her.

"I cannot take care of you. And also don't think that you would like the place I am going to. Now get down and go away." Min Hua told but the pup didn't budge. It still clung to her. Min Hua sighed looking at this. She liked this pup, but she knew she couldn't keep it. Especially when that hideous emperor looked at her more like a piece of meet rather than a woman.

"You know? Just like how I cannot take care of you, I couldn't take care of the person I loved the most too. Can you go and take care of him? Hmm?..." Min Hua asked as she stoked the pup. The pup looked at her keenly.

"Sigh.. He always takes care of others but forgets to care about himself. Can you go to him and be with him. He stays all by himself in Ji Jing. Hmm? He will take good care of you. Promise me. You should take good care of him too.. Hm?" Min Hua looked at the pup in her lap and waited for some time. Only then did she realize what she was doing. She was now speaking to animals and she felt her situation was laudable. A humourless chuckle escaped her lips as she reminisced the days when she laughed heartily in Jiang Yuan arms. She looked back at the little pup looking at her curiously.

"Go where ever you want and be safe." saying this the young princess got up and left to her carriage to resume the journey. She didn't want the king to come and annoy her because of her absence.

This time the pup didn't cling to her and left. Though Min Hua didn't have the chance to meet the little pup again, the pup really reached Jiang Yuan and just like Min Hua requested, he accompanied Jiang Yuan all his life. The pup was there beside him when he waged war, when he conquered kingdoms, when he sat on the throne, when he ruled the empire and witnessed all those when Jiang Yuan grieved for his love.

The royal carriage soon took off from their resting spot and entered the Huang kingdom. With in one month of the travel time, Lu Tang grasped that Min Hua had developed suicidal tendencies. Many times he caught her staring intently at the swords of the soldiers, at kitchen knives, gazing into the depths of the wells and standing at the edges of the building tops.

Even her own marriage passed in a blur for Min Hua. Everything suddenly felt foreign and repulsive. The revulsion and horror peaked when she stood alone in the middle of her bridal chamber and was told to wait for the king. No! She didn't want to wait for the king. She was not ready for this. Her heart was drumming crazy inside her chest and she could hear it clearly.

Though she was scared many times in her life, it was different since the second she met Jiang Yuan. The palace didn't repulse her as much as it did before since her Yuan frequently visited the place. But now it was back to square zero again. And she knew there will be no Yuan here.

She paced back and forth in the room thinking how to escape this night. With each passing second, her body started turning cold and her face paled. The new queen stopped pacing when she looked at a plant with black dots all over it's leaves and stem. She rushed to the door as soon as she found a way to escape this night.

The maids at the door bowed to her as soon she came out. Min Hua had already composed herself and was now back to her well practised cold mask.

"Why are there mosquitoes inside the chamber? Go get some lemon grass and put them in the room." Min Hua went back after giving the order and the maids obliged her. No matter what, Min Hua's presence now felt dangerous and the maids didn't want to face the queen's wrath. They soon beautifully arranged the lemon grass, which was used as mosquito repellent in the room and left the chamber. Min Hua, who was elegantly sitting on a chair and watching the maids movements got up from her seat as soon as they left and went to one of the lemon grass vase.

She removed some grass from it and made it into paste before drinking it with water. She gulped the whole glass in one go and sat on the bed with eyes closed as she waited for the lemon grass to work.

Few minutes passed and Min Hua started to feel itching and urge to scratch her skin on every part of her body. She smiled as the discomfort grew more and more and the skin started turning deep red and soon there were small pimples all over her body.

Li Wei, who was a silent and quite tortured spectator till now, was left speechless looking at her. Just by looking at those rashes and pimples he could tell how uncomfortable she must be feeling right now but Min Hua didn't touch her skin at all. Her fists were clenched and she was panting, but her lips still had a smile.

A maid who came inside to inform that the king would soon be hear was scared out of wits looking at the lady sitting in the room. Was she the same woman who looked a demonic angel few minutes ago? She rushed out to get a doctor, and passed the information to the king.

The drunk king, who was so high on excitement and liquor was extremely displeased hearing this. He was looking forward for this moment for more than a month. He wouldn't have waited so long but Min Hua was princess and he had important dealings with her kingdom. He was disgusted looking at her face covered with ugly pimples and rashes and left for the harem to find someone else to spend the night with.

Though the doctor came checked her, he couldn't pinpoint the reason because Min Hua had removed all the traces of lemon grass in the room and told him that she was not allergic to anything.

It was Lu Tang who found the reason three days later and asked her to stop drinking that liquid but she didn't listen to him. Though Lu Tang understood what she was trying to do, or rather evade, he couldn't believe someone can actually bear this discomfort for so long. Don't women like to look beautiful.

The next two weeks went in a blur and everyone who came to visit the new queen got repulsed looking at her. Min Hua didn't care and was quite happy about this outcome. She sat in the balcony of her chamber and was gazing at the floor absent minded. Suddenly a white pigeon entered her line of sight and sat on the floor.

These harmless animals looked pleasant compared to the intelligent humans around her. She gently took the bird and started stroking it. A small smile tugged at the corner of the lips but she didn't notice the other presence in the room. It was not until the footsteps walked closer to her did she became aware of another person standing behind her. Before she could see who it was, a hand came forward and griped her pigeon over her hand.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself quite a lot. Huh?" Huang Meng's voice reached her ears and his grip over her hand tightened, making the poor bird struggle.

"Your majesty. What are you doing?" Min Hua struggled to get her hand out of his grip and tried to release the bird but her strength wasn't enough. The poison she had been taking everyday had made her body weak and her struggle on elevated Huang Meng's irritation and he clenched his hands tighter. The pitiful bird tried to flap it's wings but slowly lost it's life and fell to the floor.