364: Given my Heart

Given my Heart

Nianzu was with his father in the chamber, regarding a discussion about his marriage. "Father, you already called the Princess of Huan. I still had one day left to announce my decision," Nianzu complained to Han Wenji.  1

"I did not call her here. Miss Huan Zhu Lin herself came here. She wants to marry you," Han Wenji stated. Nianzu furrowed his eyebrows, as it was unexpected for him. 

"She had a conversation with me the previous day and she told me that she could not wait for the reply, so came to Luoyang. The one whom she wants to marry, she would like to know about him before the marriage," Han Wenji proclaimed. Nianzu chuckled upon learning the truth. 

"What if I refuse this marriage!?" Nianzu asked his father. "Will you force me to marry her?" He wanted to know his father's wish. "I contemplated over this for the days you granted me to make the decision. Father, initially I thought that I would have to marry her because this is what I should do as a Prince! But my heart was restless. If I marry her, I will never love her because I have given my heart already to someone. But because of my status, I cannot marry her." Han Wenji's eyes grew bigger. He wondered who could be the woman whom the Fourth Prince adored. 

"Father, I have decided that I will not marry anyone. I do not want to break the heart of Miss Huan by marrying her. I hope my father will respect my decision," Nianzu asserted and waited for his father to respond.

"Who's the woman whom you love? And why has your status come between that?" Han Wenji demanded the answer from Nianzu. The Fourth Prince did not want to take the name of Chuntao as her life could come into danger because of his selfishness. 

"I am afraid, Father, but I cannot tell you about her," Nianzu stated, lowering his eyes. 

"Is she the commoner whom you brought to the Palace?" Nianzu lifted his eyes to meet the gaze of his father and refused. 

"That's good. Don't think about marrying a commoner," Han Wenji proclaimed. Nianzu curled up the fingers of his hands, which rested over his knees. He did not know that even his father would oppose that. He was relieved that he did not tell his father about her name. 

"You have to marry Prince Nianzu. Do you want to talk to people about you? I gave Prince Nianzu the time to think about this alliance, yet he did not come up with a decision. You cannot remain unmarried just because you love someone else. Love happens even after marriage!" Han Wenji stated.

"Love indeed happens even after marriage, but I am different," proclaimed Nianzu. Han Wenji knitted his brows upon hearing the arguments of Nianzu. Remaining unmarried throughout his life was not unacceptable to everyone especially when one was from a royal family. 

"Since Princess Zhu Lin is here so you shall spend time with her," Han Wenji pronounced. Nianzu was disheartened after hearing his father. How could he expect his father to stand with his decision? He was least interested in the talks of his father now. 

"She is with the Crown Princess at this hour. Eunuch Jin informed me that she is as talented as the Crown Princess. King Huan transferred all his traits to his daughter," Han Wenji delightedly said. Suddenly, Nianzu stood up from his seat and bowed in front of his father before leaving the chamber.

Eunuch Jin came inside as soon as the Fourth Prince left. "Where is the girl whom he brought to the Palace?" Han Wenji asked. 

Eunuch Jin found Han Wenji's mood had turned off. "Your Majesty, the Prince ordered her to leave the Palace. She is no more in the Palace," Eunuch Jin replied. "Apologies, your majesty, but what has happened?"

"Prince Nianzu loves the commoner. Arrange my meeting with her. No one shall find out about this," Han Wenji commanded with a stern expression. Eunuch Jin bowed, acknowledging the order of the Emperor. 

~~~~ 

Nianzu halted after reaching the bottom of the stairs. His eyes were misty and his heart was again uneasy. He walked ahead, taking gradual steps while contemplating over the conversation with his father. "Is there no way to escape this?" He wondered. Deeply lost in his thoughts, he did not realize where he was heading to! 

The day Chuntao left the Palace, he had lost interest in everything. Sometimes he would blame himself for getting close to her, for helping her but sometimes he would be happy thinking about the moments between them. Although they were limited, at least they were enough for his lifetime.

Eunuch Chung had informed him how Chuntao began working in her fields. The knowledge he departed to her, she used that fully. A local bookshop owner had given her the work to copy the contents at a reasonable price. Thinking all this brought a smile to his face. He had a deep urge to see her now to calm down his restless heart. 

He looked around and found himself near the Palace Grounds. His eyes met with the Crown Princess, who stood by Zhu Lin. They both came towards him when Ying Lili introduced Nianzu to Zhu Lin. He passed her a fake smile. The two bowed, looking at each other.

"Brother Nianzu, Princess Zhu Lin did not have any conversation till now. I feel Prince shall drink tea with Princess Zhu Lin," Ying Lili humbly said. 

"Forgive me, Crown Princess, but I need to go outside. My zither is broken and I need to repair it," Nianzu found a way to escape the conversation with Zhu Lin, who was bewildered to hear that. 

"Brother, I will call the-"

"No, Crown Princess. I also have some work in the Capital so, I need to complete that as well," Nianzu quickly came up with another excuse. 

"I would like to accompany you, Prince Nianzu. I also have work in the Police Bureau," Zhu Lin proclaimed. Nianzu clenched his fist as he felt stuck. He hummed, unable to refuse Zhu Lin. 

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