Chapter 62: Discovered by the Prince!
As of now, lunch has already been prepared. Ting Yue walked slowly to Yao Mowan’s side, lifted Fluffy from her knee, and carried her over to the chaise lounge before helping Yao Mowan towards the table.
“You’ve delivered the Esteemed Prince’s portion?” It had been two days since she last saw Ye Junqing, since the day she told him not to appear in front of her again while wearing white.
“Replying niang niang, I’ve sent it over,” reported Ting Yue.
“I got it. You can withdraw.” Sometimes Yao Mowan would recall what Yan Nansheng said. Had she really overdone it?
“Niang niang!” Ting Yue turned around to leave and saw that Ye Junqing was standing at the palace doors in an azure garment.
In that instant, Yao Mowan seemed to see the past Ye Junqing once again. His azure garment dazzled beneath the sunlight and framed his well-built figure well. This was the color that complemented Ye Junqing’s grace and pride the most. At this current moment, Ye Junqing’s handsome face radiated with health and vigor. The listlessness from before was nowhere to be seen.
Ting Yue, with great difficulty, shifted her gaze away from Ye Junqing. Intuition told her that she shouldn’t harbor any other emotions towards this man except for respect.
Yao Mowan only retrieved her gaze after Ting Yue left. She walked slowly to the table without saying a word.
“Ahem… There’s something I want to ask you, but you can’t get angry.” Although Ye Junqing felt a little awkward when Yao Mowan ignored his gesture of sincerity, he still walked over and sat down next to Yao Mowan.
“Try saying it.” Yao Mowan lifted the chopsticks with a calm expression. When Ye Junqing saw that Yao Mowan was being so agreeable, he thought that she was in a very good mood today and felt a little less nervous.
“What happened to the Imperial Noble Consort… was your doing, wasn’t it?” Ye Junqing watched Yao Mowan closely, only to see her suddenly put down her chopsticks and lift her bright flickering eyes to look towards him.
“You feel heartache for her?” Yao Mowan lifted her brows. It was hard to tell between the darkness and light in her eyes.
“As if. However, I think it probably wasn’t you. She’s your older sister and you three sisters have such a close relationship, so I think you probably wouldn’t hurt her!” Ye Junqing repeated the words he used to persuade himself in front of Yao Mowan.
“I wasn’t the one who put the saffron there.” Yao Mowan once again picked up her chopsticks as she spoke in an indifferent tone. Yes, it was true ah. She had once also thought that they were very close as sisters, but Yao Suluan had taught her the meaning of ‘wishful thinking,’ of ‘naively imagining that one’s affection was reciprocated’!
When Yao Mowan saw Ye Junqing involuntarily sigh in relief, she supplemented a sentence as the punchline.
“But, I was the one who told Yin Xue to put it there.” Right after Yao Mowan finished speaking, Ye Junqing abruptly stood up and looked at her angrily.
“Why did you frame the Imperial Noble Consort? She’s your older sister!” Ye Junqing could find a thousand reasons to explain why Yao Mowan would incite disharmony between Ye Hongyi and Huan Heng, but he couldn’t think of any reason why she would frame Yao Suluan. Moxin had once said that she loved her younger sister, Suluan, a lot.
“And you’re still saying that you don’t feel heartache for her?” Yao Mowan seemed completely unconcerned as she picked up a piece of fish and sampled it.
“Yao Mowan! This prince asked you a question!” Ye Junqing hated this unperturbed and carefree attitude of Yao Mowan the most.
“Yin Xue, it’s really noisy.” Yao Mowan’s willow brows creased slightly as she remarked in annoyance.
“Prince, if you will!” Yin Xue instantly dropped out of nowhere like a ghost and appeared in front of Ye Junqing. There was not a trace of emotion on her beautiful face which was cold as ice.
“Yao Mowan! This prince won’t tolerate you hurting Moxin’s younger sister! This prince will head to His Majesty’s place right now to expose your actions! You vicious poisonous woman!” Ye Junqing had fought Yin Xue before, so he knew very clearly that he wasn’t a match for her at all. Rather than being thrown out, it would be better to walk out himself in order to preserve some dignity.
“Yin Xue, withdraw!” Yao Mowan’s voice had turned frosty as she abruptly put down her chopsticks again. When Yin Xue left, she slowly got up and walked towards Ye Junqing without any emotion on her face.
“You… what do you plan to do?” Ye Junqing swallowed hard. He had never seen such a serious expression on Yao Mowan’s face before.
“Go ah! Go tell His Majesty that this consort was the one who put the saffron below Yao Suluan’s bed! Mowan doesn’t dare to guarantee this about other people, but Mowan definitely will not stop you if you want to expose Mowan! So go!” Her clear and cold voice was filled with unsuppressable sorrow and indignation. Waves of rage surged in Yao Mowan’s eyes and they glited with light that stabbed Ye Junqing’s heart like a sharp blade, causing him to feel baffling pain.
“You… Don’t force me…” With each step that Yao Mowan took, Ye Junqing’s confidence dwindled as he retreated until he was backed against a wall. However, Yao Mowan still showed no intention to stop. The two’s position made people’s imaginations run wild.
“It’s not like this prince said that this prince will definitely go…” For some unknown reason, though he had never felt any fear while overlooking the world in battle, when he was in front of Yao Mowan he would feel shorter by a chunk. At the same time, he would subconsciously indulge and pamper her. That feeling came from the depths of his heart, perhaps he himself hadn’t even become aware of it.
“You definitely have to go ah! Mowan would like to see how happy and relieved you would look once you betray Mowan!” Yao Mowan’s clear voice was filled with indignance and her eyes billowed with waves. The ripples visible in her eyes cause Ye Junqing’s heart to sink slightly, as if something was pressing on his chest uncomfortably.
“I just wanted to remind you… No matter what, Yao Suluan is your…”
“There’s no need for Prince to remind me what kind of thing she is. Prince probably knows the way to the Imperial Study? If you can’t find it, Mowan can take you there!”
Yao Mowan was close to Ye Junqing to the point Ye Junqing could count how many eyelashes were on each of her eyes. It was to the point he could feel the breath from Yao Mowan’s lips. Ye Junqing swallowed hard and suppressed his urge to just storm away.
“Ahem… This Prince can give you a chance.” Ye Junqing cleared his throat and tried to take a step back only to realize that he was already pressed against the wall. Hence he could only shift his body a little to make the position less filled with ambiguous meanings.
“Prince can come with Mowan to see His Majesty right now to reveal everything about Mowan.” As Yao Mowan spoke, she glanced back towards Fluffy who was sleeping on the chaise lounge. When she turned back around, a trace of mischievousness was in her eyes. “Or Prince can hold Fluffy and properly rest a little in Guan Osprey Palace to clear your head. Prince, choose for yourself!”
“You! You bully too intolerably!” Upon hearing this, Ye Junqing immediately glowered at her.
“Mowan has always been very reasonable. From the looks of it, Prince has already made a decision. Let’s go!” Yao Mowan shifted her cold gaze away from Ye Junqing, then turned and started heading towards the palace doors.
She only turned around when she was outside of the palace. When she looked back, Ye Junqing was still standing in his original spot, seething. After a few moments, he stomped towards the chaise lounge and unwillingly picked Fluffy up before sitting down. Then he shot Yao Mowan a fierce glower.
The image was beautiful and filled with warmth. A man that looked gentle as jade and beautiful as a celestial was holding a white-furred cat in his lap. It was an incredibly harmonious scene.
“This prince doesn’t like Fluffy!” Ye Junqing’s complaint-filled voice destroyed the harmonious moment.
“Then I’ll have to ask Prince to break away from his narrow-mindedness and learn to love without boundaries,” said Yao Mowan unhurriedly as she continued walking out of Guan Osprey Palace. A faint trace of warmth streaked through her heart. This warmth was like the refreshing wind after the rain; it gently caressed Yao Mowan’s ice-cold heart.
“This prince has already done as you asked, so where are you going now?” When Ye Junqing saw that Yao Mowan was leaving, he nervously questioned her.
“Shhh! Fluffy is a pregnant cat, Prince shouldn’t disturb the little kittens in her belly.” Yao Mowan placed a finger in front of her lips, then peeked at Fluffy carefully. Seeing that she was fine, she exhorted Ye Junqing a little before turning away and leaving.
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Credits: Translated by Chiyomira
[Chiyomira’s Corner]
