Coming Kingly Son-in-Law: Don't Provoke the First Daughter - Chapter 158

Chapter 158 Bai Qirong and Bai Su

“To be honest, when I first saw you, I wanted to marry you. Do you know why?” Bai Su turned his head. His eyes narrowed as if he was smiling. He looked charming.

“Why?” The Empress asked casually. She was already immune to this man’s smile. She didn’t know when she first met this man, but this man acted as if he had known her for decades.

“Because you look exactly the same as Bai Qirong,” Bai Su said.

Bai Qirong, the woman whose name had been mentioned countless times tonight and who carried so many stories, who was she?

Now, the Empress was already not young. Although she was still extremely gorgeous and beautiful, she was no longer at the age when she would be evaluated by her appearance.

She carefully deduced, and a very melodramatic story appeared in her mind. She urgently needed to ask Bai Su for confirmation.

“Who exactly is Bai Qirong?” the Empress asked.

Bai Su sighed softly. It was clear that he was very averse to the name Bai Qirong and the sad story that came with her. There was also a sense of curiosity and obscurity. This was a complicated emotion. However, in front of the Empress, he wanted to say it.

The Emperor before the late Emperor was Shen Zhongbai’s father. He was a licentious man and inspected Jizhou City in the early years. It was scenic there with beautiful mountains and rivers, so he stayed there.

All of the ministers in the imperial court thought that the late Emperor stayed there because Jizhou City was an area of scenic beauty and prosperity, and he was freer than he was in the imperial palace, unable to part with that place. They believed that the late Emperor would stay there for only a few months.

Unexpectedly, he met Bai Qirong there.

Bai Qirong came from an ordinary family. When she met the heroic and extraordinary late Emperor, her heart was moved. They pledged to marry each other without informing their parents.

When the love was deep enough, promises came. When the late Emperor left Jizhou City, he took Bai Qirong’s portrait with him and promised to take her in after he returned to the palace and settled his matters.

Bai Qirong waited for a long, long time. She kept the promise, which had been made in such a passionate time, and finally gave birth to Bai Su.

In a flash, three years later, Bai Su grew up to be a very cute little boy. Together with the child, Bai Qirong lived a miserable life.

One day, when sorting out the books in the Imperial Study, the late Emperor happened to see Bai Qirong’s portrait. Only then did he remember that he had a child in Jizhou City and had fallen in love with a woman for a short period of time.

Life in the imperial palace was dull and boring. If there was such a woman coming from Jizhou City to bring delights to his life, it might not be a bad thing.

The men and equipage he sent got there after two months. When they arrived at the room where Bai Qirong lived, they were told that Bai Qirong had been killed three days ago.

The team that went to pick her up returned resentfully, but they couldn’t figure out who murdered Bai Qirong. In fact, Bai Qirong was killed by the men sent by Empress Dowager, who was the Empress at that time, after she knew in advance that the late Emperor was going to take Bai Qirong into the palace.

The portrait of Bai Qirong was later buried in her grave. It was the authentic work of the late Emperor and was considered a valuable item. It had always been kept well.

After Bai Su finished speaking, he reached out and took out the dagger that he carried with him like a treasure. He pressed a certain point on the handle of the dagger, and the dagger spread out. Then, the Empress was surprised to find that the middle of the dagger was empty. A painting popped out from it.

He unfolded the painting and handed it to the Empress.

The Empress took it. In the middle of the painting was a woman. The woman was wearing a white linen robe. Her hair was tied casually behind her head. Her eyes were bright, which also meant that the painter thought that her eyes were very beautiful. That was why the painter spent considerable effort depicting her beautiful eyes.

Her facial features were very graceful and imposing. She did not look like an ordinary woman who had a small and exquisite face and looked reserved and timid.

Bai Qirong had a very comfortable appearance on the whole. One would want to take a closer look at her after the first glance. They could not bear to take their eyes off her.

For a moment, the Empress even felt that the woman in front of her was herself. Through the painting, they indeed looked somewhat similar.

After looking at it carefully for a long time, the Empress finally retracted her gaze and handed the painting back. She asked helplessly, “Why is she called Bai Qirong? Qi represents misery. It sounds a little inauspicious.”

When Bai Su heard the Empress say this, he smiled. “Why don’t you relate it to ‘tragic and beautiful’? In my opinion, Bai Qirong had a beautiful face but lived a tragic life. Although she might be unfortunate, and the man she chose was also disgusting, she did not know that even before she died, her heart was sweet because she was waiting, waiting for her happiness to come.”

“But she didn’t get what she had been waiting for even when she died. Do you think this is happiness?” The Empress asked.

Bai Su shook his head. Obviously, he felt that the Empress’ words were not correct.

“Qiang, think about it. She didn’t get what she had been waiting for, which meant that she still had hopes for it. But if she knew that she would never get it, wouldn’t that be even more tragic? Even if she knew the result clearly in her heart, as long as it didn’t happen, she didn’t need to admit her failure.”

For a moment, the Empress did not know what to say. There was indeed no conclusion whether this was right or wrong.

“In this case, you are Shen Zhongbai’s brother. His mother is not kind, but…” When the Empress said this, she paused. Bai Su had never said anything about the late Emperor.

In his words, when he mentioned Bai Qirong, he always called her by her name, like she was a friend rather than an elder.

“Sometimes, I hate that man so much. He can’t even protect his own woman. But sometimes, I also understand that man. It was Bai Qirong who had wishful thinking and kept hoping for something she couldn’t get. She shouldn’t have longed for the man’s eternal love based on her beauty. She should have calmly accepted the truth,” Bai Su said.

Perhaps it was because he had already taken revenge that he was so calm.

The Empress got up. She had enough rest. It seemed that she should leave. Empress Dowager had passed away, and the world was bound to be in chaos. As the Empress, she had escaped, and Shen Qiangwei’s child was gone. All these things happened together. If Shen Zhongbai could not find her as the scapegoat, who would he choose?

She immediately thought of Shen Qianshan. Her back was instantly covered in cold sweat. She was pregnant with his child. She could not let her child’s father be in trouble.

Bai Su also stood up, turned his head, and said seriously, “I will walk with you down the mountain. Shen Qianshan should be in Xiaoyao Mountain now. Once you leave, the promise that you made to Shen Zhongbai will be broken. Then, he will definitely get even with Shen Qianshan for what Shen Qianshan has done.”

“What has Shen Qianshan done?” The Empress had always wanted to know about this matter.

According to the fact that she was in the imperial palace, she believed Shen Qianshan must have done something that could get him convicted. Thus, Shen Zhongbai used this matter to threaten the Empress to marry him.

What was the thing that made the Empress have no choice but to accept this threat?

Bai Su was surprised. He thought for a moment and asked, “Don’t tell me you don’t remember again.”

The Empress chuckled and looked at Bai Su expectantly.

“Shen Zhongbai destroyed the engagement between the two of you and wanted to rape you, so Shen Qianshan stabbed him directly. You know, Shen Zhongbai is the Emperor. If things got worse, Shen Qianshan and his whole family would be executed.”

“If that’s the case, how is Shen Qianshan now?” The Empress asked.

Bai Su smiled helplessly and sighed heavily. “I don’t know if Shen Qianshan is fine or not, but I have been by your side for so many years. Do you not see me?”

Stunned, the Empress did not reply. Bai Su continued, “Forget it, forget it. You were already pregnant with Shen Qianshan’s child at that time. He can’t just let his child grow up without a father. Naturally, he chose to stay in Xiaoyao Mountain to ensure the safety of you and the child. Maybe he will find a chance to pull Shen Zhongbai down from the throne. This is what a man will do.”

The sky gradually brightened. The fog around them receded, and all the scenery came into view. The Empress took two deep breaths and walked down the mountain, but Bai Su came up to grab her hand.

She struggled for a moment and seemed to want to let go. She heard Bai Su say, “Don’t move, okay? Anyway, you will need my help in the future.”

This mountain was Bai Su’s Yaomeng Pavilion. When they walked to the door, Gusu Liang and Ling stood there. They had already changed into clean clothes. The wounds on their faces and bodies had been treated. They were all smiles.

Bai Su sent the three people to the door and said to the Empress, “You guys should go down the mountain yourselves. I am so good-looking. If I rashly appear in the crowd, it will definitely cause a mania among people. You guys should take care of yourselves.”

This man was being narcissistic at such a time, which made the Empress speechless.

The Empress rolled her eyes at Bai Su and said helplessly, “I know. You’d better find a new place quickly. Shen Zhongbai won’t let you off so easily.”

After that, Gusu Liang and Ling came up to support her, and the three of them walked down the mountain.

At this time, Bai Su stood behind them and asked, “Well, Qiang, do you know my name?”

The Empress stopped and awkwardly scratched her head. In fact, she really had not asked for his name, and she did not care about it either. She took the care of Bai Su for granted, but she had never thought of repaying him.

There was no one who devoted himself but asked for nothing in return. Now she knew that she could do as she pleased in front of Bai Su because she looked like Bai Qirong.

“I don’t know. Tell me, I will remember it.” The Empress turned her head and looked at Bai Su sincerely.

Bai Su had his hands behind his back. There were traces of blood on his red clothes. How could he, who liked to be clean, stand it?

“My name is Bai Su. I named myself. I took Bai Qirong’s surname, not Shen. If you have time, come with me to see Bai Qirong. I want her to see that there is a woman who looks very similar to her in the world, like a gift from the heavens.”