In another house of the outer yard, Crown Prince Xieyue was sitting under a tree. The autumn wind was blowing, making him feel cold. The loose robe on his thin body made him look thinner and taller. He had just taken a shower, and his long hair was still wet and loose on his back, without being tied up.
The wind lifted the hem of his clothes, making him have an elegant bearing.
A guard stood beside him and reported to him, “Your Highness, I just asked Sir Mo. He does have a third daughter, Third Young Miss Mo. And she is not yet 15 years old.”
The fact that she was not yet 15 years old meant she had not gotten married. Crown Prince Xieyue could not help smiling slightly. The somewhat cold girl in his mind would always appear in his dream. If he took her away this time, it would not bad. It would be the fulfillment of his recent wish.
“Your Highness, you came to the Qin Kingdom to seek help. In order to stop you from coming to the capital, the Empress and the Third Prince didn’t hesitate to try to kill you on the way. Your Highness, you can’t lose the main goal because of small gains.” Perhaps because the smile on the Crown Prince’s face was too gentle, the guard tried to persuade him after thinking for a while.
They were all loyal subordinates of Crown Prince Xieyue, afraid that the Crown Prince would lose his goal for a woman. If he could marry the princess of the Qin Emperor this time, they would get the best chess piece. With the support of the Qin Kingdom, they would secretly suppress the power of the Empress and the Third Prince. Besides, there was Princess Caifeng.
Princess Caifeng came to the Great Qin for the sake of marriage to consolidate the connection between the Great Qin and the Southern Barbarian Lands. Although Princess Caifeng was not the biological daughter of the former Empress of the Southern Barbarian Lands, since her mother was the former Empress’s palace maidservant and had a good relationship with the former Empress, she was in one camp with the Crown Prince. If the Crown Prince married the daughter of the Qin Kingdom’s Emperor and the Princess married the son of the Qin Kingdom’s Emperor, then the position of the Crown Prince in the Southern Barbarian Lands could be considered solid.
“Don’t worry. I won’t act rashly.” Crown Prince Xieyue smiled slightly and narrowed his eyes, looking at the dark night sky in front of him. Of course, he would not act rashly now. But when the Princess married him, the one going with her could be the daughter of a minister. Even though Mo Huawen was the lord mayor, his rank was not high.
He tapped the stone table a few times with his pale fingers and asked leisurely, “Only the Sixth Princess is the dignified Princess of the Qin Kingdom, who is about to marry, isn’t it?”
“The Sixth Princess was born by Imperial Noble Consort Wen. It is said that Imperial Noble Consort Wen is very favored in the palace. There has not been any rumor of her falling out of favor for so many years. She also has a good relationship with other concubines. The Sixth Princess is virtuous and gracious. She is not an arrogant and rude girl. She is gentle to people and has a decent attitude. She is the most sensible one among the princesses.”
The guard sorted out the information he got and reported. He was relieved because of the Crown Prince’s answer. It seemed that the Crown Prince was just asking about Third Young Miss Mo. After all, she had saved the Crown Prince’s life. When they were about to return to their country one day, they needed to prepare a good gift.
As long as the Crown Prince didn’t take a fancy to her, that would be all right.
Although the lord mayor was not a high-ranking official, he was a person with real power, who was in charge of the public security of the whole capital city, so he could not be reckoned with.
“The rumors about the Sixth Princess are so perfect that it is rare among princesses.” Crown Prince Xieyue smiled and praised her softly. He was a Crown Prince, so of course he knew the princess’s character. They were all conceited and thought that they were great. He did not expect that the Sixth Princess of the Qin Kingdom had such a good reputation. It seemed that she had both good conducts and was worthy of him.
If the Crown Prince’s wife was kind and generous, it would benefit his reputation a lot.
“Princess Caifeng must have taken a fancy to King Xuan. You go and inquire about Consort Xuan later. It would be great if Caifeng could become King Xuan’s wife. I heard that King Xuan is the most doted on by the Qin Kingdom’s Emperor. He is usually lawless. But now, it seems that he is not so simple.”
If Caifeng could become Consort Xuan, it would be good for him. Crown Prince Xieyue certainly hoped that his brother-in-law was important in the Qin Kingdom and hoped that the current Consort Xuan would not get in the way.
“Yes, Your Highness. I’ll check it out right now.” The guard bowed and left.
The wind blew up the corner of Crown Prince Xieyue’s clothes, and a faint osmanthus fragrance came from the wind. Crown Prince Xieyue narrowed his eyes and the beautiful girl came to his mind. Her hand was gently placed on his wrist, which was so soft, almost like the hand of his mother in his dream.
He met such a beautiful woman! It could be said that they were fated to meet. In the future, he would give her all the good things except status. Since the Sixth Princess had such a reputation, she would not be harsh to her. At that time, he could go forward with her hand in hand and watch the world with a smile…
He thought about it carefully and coughed a few times while covering his chest. He no longer felt that life was miserable. With such a beautiful woman, no matter how hard it was, he would not be so tired!
While Xieyue thought about Mo Xuetong and could not fall asleep, he stayed in the yard alone for a long time before returning to the room to rest after the servants’ persuasion. There was also another person who was thinking about Mo Xuetong and could not fall asleep. However, when she thought of Mo Xuetong, she gritted her teeth and felt resentful.
You Yue’e was seated in her own courtyard. Her feet were carefully placed on a round chair by the maidservant. Her broken foot had been tied up, and the imperial physician said that it was not serious. It had almost recovered recently. If she did not use too much strength, she looked no different from how she usually did. However, You Yue’e was in a bad mood when she thought that this matter had something to do with Mo Xuetong. She suddenly picked up the teacup beside her and threw it onto the ground.
The tea cup’s fragments hit the maidservants who could not dodge in time. The two maidservants could not stand still under You Yue’e’s fierce glare. They knelt down one by one. One of them pressed against a porcelain shard, and her body tilted as she screamed.
“What are you doing in the middle of the night? Off you go.” Feng Yulei walked in with a frown. He looked at the maidservant who had fallen to the ground in pain and waved his hand impatiently. His hand was much better than You Yue’e’s foot. There were bandages hung from his neck, making him look a little awkward.
Knowing that King Yan had something to say to Consort Yan, the young and old maidservants on both sides quickly helped the two kneeling on the ground to leave quietly. Even the injured maidservant did not dare to say anything more. She limped out of the courtyard with the help of others, and the gate closed gently.
“Let’s talk in the room.” Feng Yulei stopped You Yue’e from asking. He reached out a hand that was intact and helped You Yue’e up. The two helped each other walk into the room. You Yue’e contained her anger and tried her best to focus on another leg. She looked at the bandages around Feng Yulei’s neck and her expression softened.
Although she had not been comfortable since she married Feng Yulei, because Feng Yulei was always at home, the relationship between them was a little better than that between a normal couple. They depended on each other and cooperated with each other tacitly. It was obvious that the two of them had been walking holding each other like this these days.
One of them had her leg injured, while the other injured his hand. Helping each other was much better than moving himself!
The lamps in the room were on. Feng Yulei helped You Yue’e sit down on the couch. He turned around and opened the window, letting the cool breeze in. The room was cool.
“Your Highness, is there any news from my Eldest Brother?” You Yue’e asked softly. A hint of gentleness flashing across his eyes as she looked at Feng Yulei. She picked up the teapot on the table, poured him a cup of tea, and pushed it over.
Feng Yulei returned to his seat and took a sip of the tea that You Yue’e handed him. He frowned and nodded. “Your elder brother said that the Crown Prince of the Southern Barbarian Lands is here and is living in King Xuan’s Manor. I heard that the Crown Prince is interested in marrying a princess. The Princess of the Southern Barbarian Lands who came with him wants to marry a prince.”
“What does it mean?” You Yue’e had a bad feeling. She frowned slightly. It seemed that none of this had anything to do with King Yan’s Manor.
“Your elder brother said that King Ning has planned to marry the Princess of the Southern Barbarian Lands as his legal consort.” Feng Yulei sighed. The Southern Barbarian Lands was indeed a good foreign aid. “I heard that not only King Ning, but also my elder brother has such an idea. Ling Rui’er exists in name only. It is for Ding General Manor’s honor that the imperial palace did not give her a direct death penalty.”
“You, you want it too?” You Yue’e asked in a trembling voice. She opened her mouth with a bitter look in her eyes.
“Yue’e, I don’t want to, so you’ll have to suffer. In the future, no matter whether it’s eldest brother or King Ning to take the throne, I will be a quiet and carefree prince, or they will leave a way out for us. At that time, you may be able to divorce me, so as not to implicate Mingguo Manor.”
Feng Yulei’s expression was grave but he still had a faint smile on his face. He reached out and patted You Yue’e’s hand to comfort her. But he looked down to hide the light in his eyes.
“No, Your Highness, I will not divorce you. Even if we die, we will still be together.” You Yue’e felt deeply grieved and her tears could not stop falling. She held Feng Yulei’s hand and refused to let go. Although she had heard that King Yan liked Ling Fengyan, You Yue’e had seen it that since they got married, Feng Yulei did not miss that woman at all. The manor was clean and he respected You Yue’e very much. You Yue’e really wanted to stand with him.
“But what could you do if you don’t do that? We still have a child. As long as you and the child can survive, it doesn’t matter to me.” Feng Yulei held You Yue’e’s hand and said in a choked voice. There was a sad smile on his face. “The royal family has always been like this. If I can’t take the throne, I’ll be a loser. But even if I’m doomed, I’ll protect you and our child.”
When You Yue’e was found out to be pregnant a few days ago, everyone in the manor was extremely happy.
“No, Your Highness, don’t leave us. Without you, how can we live?” You Yue’e retracted her hand and cried with her hands covering her face, as if she really saw Feng Yulei being taken to the execution ground.
“In the future, when I’m gone, I will let your elder brother protect you and our child. I’ve thought about it. A part of the property in the manor will be slowly transferred to your elder brother’s hand. After… we divorce, you will take the child away and take what I left to you from your elder brother. The property will be enough for you and the child for the rest of your lives.”
Feng Yulei’s eyes were red as well. He turned his head and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes. He struggled to lift his head and explained the matter in detail.
It would be fine if he did not say that. You Yue’e could not bear to hear it any longer. When she thought that the child in her belly might be born without father, and that Feng Yulei would die at such a young age and they would be separated forever, her heart hurt as if it was burned.
How could it be? How could it be like this? No, she would not allow such a thing to happen. She did not allow the child to be born without his father.
“Your Highness, if I were to give up my position as legal consort, would you be able to marry the Princess of the Southern Barbarian Lands?” She had made up her mind. She bit her lips and wiped away her tears. Then, she looked at Feng Yulei and said firmly.
