During this grand New Year celebration, unlike usual nights, it was not so quiet. Instead, it was exceptionally lively, with the sound of firecrackers being incessant and even the noises of children playing in the streets could be heard.
It was unclear how much time had passed before Gong Juechen turned his head to look in the direction of the Imperial Palace.
An Jing and Xiao Changyi had gone to the palace to celebrate New Year, and by all accounts, they were likely enjoying a harmonious atmosphere.
Thinking this, a sarcastic smile curled up the corners of Gong Juechen’s mouth.
That man’s hands were stained with so much of his own son’s blood, shouldn’t he be reaping his karma and die early? Yet, it seemed he might still enjoy his old age.
His gaze returned, and Gong Juechen once again quietly watched the night sky. After a long while, he spoke in a voice so low only he could hear, "Su Haoyu, you are older than I am, so even if I do nothing, you will die before me."
After a pause, his smile grew even more sarcastic, "I really want to see if you can truly enjoy your old age."
Unlike Gong Juechen, whose heart was filled with resentment and unable to fully enjoy the New Year, Meng Zhuqing was preoccupied with thoughts of Tobanya.
Her father and mother had taken the four children to the Imperial Palace to celebrate the New Year, and it was clear that Princess Tobanya, as a royal, would not join the servants of Prince Yi’s Mansion for the celebration. Evidently, Tobanya was spending the New Year alone.
And he, he dearly wished he could be by her side.
To ensure she was not One Person.
To ensure she was no longer alone.
After dining on the New Year’s Eve dinner at the General’s mansion and spending a good while talking with his mother, Meng Zhuqing finally made an excuse to return to Prince Yi’s Mansion.
After hesitating for a moment, he still went to the courtyard where Tobanya lived.
He did not knock nor climb over the wall, he simply leaned against the wall of Tobanya’s courtyard.
It was enough to just stay here.
He was already very close to her here; he could not be too greedy.
In the courtyard inside, Tobanya was still eating her New Year’s Eve dinner alone, without a maidservant attending to her; right now, she was the only person in the courtyard.
A table full of dishes was barely touched; the food had gone cold, yet she still sat at the table, occasionally taking a bite.
Red lanterns hung in the courtyard, candlelight flickering inside them, extremely festive, yet the cold moon outside and the solitary figure inside made both the courtyard and this person seem immensely desolate.
Unaware of the person outside, Tobanya just felt colder and colder from the desolate atmosphere, and inevitably, she put down her chopsticks and thought about pouring herself a drink.
Last time she had drunk too much, and her stomach was still upset. She had intended not to drink, but now, she wanted to drink again.
However, as her hand reached for the wine pot, scattered fragments surfaced in her mind, fragments featuring her and Meng Zhuqing.
"Would you care to join me for a drink?" she asked.
"Princess, you should not drink any more," he replied.
It was she who had crushed the wine glass.
"If you are angry, if you are sad, you can hit This General, you can throw things, but why hurt yourself ?" he held her injured hand, questioning her.
She grabbed him as he was about to get someone to tend to her wound, and said softly, "It’s because you won’t drink with me."
At that, the memory abruptly ended.
Although she had only recalled that much, it was enough to shock Tobanya. She had known that her hand injury was self-inflicted, but she hadn’t realized it was because Meng Zhuqing refused to drink with her that she had hurt herself so severely.
She withdrew her hand reaching towards the wine pot. The wound in her hand was not yet fully healed but had already scabbed over. Tobanya quietly looked at the scabbed wound in the palm of her hand. After a long while, she finally lowered her hand.