It was just that their daughter was even more stubborn and bold than she had been back then. It left him feeling helpless.
"Father," Tang Qingwan's voice choked with emotion.
Grand Tutor Tang was a tall man. Though already in his middle years, his stature remained imposing. Only his hair was completely white, astonishingly rivaling that of Old Madam Cui.
Everyone in the Tang Manor said it was due to his overwhelming longing for his late wife.
Grand Tutor Tang bent down.
Holding back the stinging tears in her eyes, Tang Qingwan climbed onto her father's shoulders to be carried out the door.
"Do not forget what your father told you. If you find yourself outmaneuvered, just come home."
Tang Qingwan gave a muffled murmur of agreement.
In the front hall, the Crown Prince was already waiting. Grand Tutor Tang stood at the doorway, pausing his steps instead of moving forward, and gave one final exhortation in a hoarse voice.
"You must... stay safe. Even if you have to retreat, you must come back in one piece, or else your father will have no way to face your mother."
Tang Qingwan's tears instantly fell.
The Crown Prince took the initiative to step forward, receiving Tang Qingwan from Grand Tutor Tang's back.
What followed was a series of farewell ceremonies. Grand Tutor Tang and Old Madam Cui sat in the seats of honor, their expressions forlorn, forming a stark contrast to the joy of the Crown Prince's entourage.
Before they left, Grand Tutor Tang only said one thing, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, do not forget the promise you made to this old minister that day."
The Crown Prince returned a bow as a junior and personally carried Tang Qingwan into the bridal sedan chair.
"Qingwan."
"Mhm."
"Qingwan." Standing not far from the sedan chair, Xiao Chen kept calling her name in a low voice.
Tang Qingwan lifted a corner of her veil and shot the Crown Prince a reproachful glare. "Stop calling me, you'll make the servants laugh at us."
Xiao Chen's lips curled into a bright, unbridled smile, showing a joy he hadn't felt in years.
As the Crown Prince, with capable adult younger brothers eyeing his position like tigers, he had spent half his life in immense hardship. "Thank goodness we didn't lose each other. Thank goodness you never abandoned me."
Beneath the veil, Tang Qingwan only gave a faint twitch of her lips.
Before getting into the sedan chair, Tang Qingwan had softly said, "Do you still remember the promise you made to my mother that day at Anshan Temple?"
The Crown Prince nodded, "Of course I remember."
Tang Qingwan said, "It is truly a pity that we could not go pay respects to her today and let her witness my wedding with her own eyes."
"When we have free time, I will accompany you there. As for the promise to my mother-in-law, it can only be fulfilled after we are married and living in mutual respect and harmony, isn't that right?"
...
The Crown Prince's wedding was grand and magnificent. Wherever the imperial carriage passed, the streets were emptied for miles around as crowds gathered.
The sound of gongs and drums filled the air endlessly.
Cui Yunchu stared blankly at the departing procession, unexpectedly meeting a pair of cold eyes. The man sat upright on horseback, dressed in a dark red brocade robe, his figure tall and broad.
He tilted his head slightly, his lips curving into an ambiguous smirk, his eyes narrowed.
"..." Cui Yunchu swiftly averted her gaze, pretending she had seen nothing.
There had been so many people just now that she hadn't even noticed he was part of the escort procession.
The scenes of being left all alone at the bottom of the cliff that night resurfaced in her mind, making Cui Yunchu gnash her teeth once more.
The Crown Prince took Tang Qingwan to the Imperial Ancestral Temple, while Cui Yunchu and Cui Yunfeng went ahead to the Crown Prince's estate.
When the two arrived, a highly luxurious pale pink bridal sedan chair was also slowly making its way in. Cui Yunchu turned her head to look; the procession behind it stretched as far as the eye could see.
The scene was so grand that, were it not for the color of the sedan chair, one who didn't know better might have thought she was the Crown Prince's official wife.
The sedan chair stopped at the entrance of the Eastern Palace. An older female servant walking beside it held a handkerchief in her hand, hurried up the steps in a few strides, stuffed it into the hands of the young eunuch guarding the gate, and whispered a few instructions.
The man only hesitated for a moment before ordering the doors to be opened.
"." Cui Yunchu was stunned.
There was such a maneuver?
Cui Yunfeng immediately said indignantly, "The official wife hasn't even entered the gates yet. Since when is there a rule that a Secondary Consort can enter first?"
A Secondary Consort was supposed to enter through the side door.
Besides, their older female cousin hadn't even entered yet. Cui Yunfeng pointed at the older servant and said, "She actually dares to overstep the ancestral rules, so blatantly overreaching and bribing people."
"." Cui Yunchu gave her a speechless look.
"This is the Eastern Palace. Without someone's tacit approval, would that young eunuch dare to take silver and let her pass? Cui Yunfeng, can you use your brain a little?"
Cui Yunfeng paused, then fell speechless.
She had only been acting smart for a few days.
"Are you saying the Crown Prince tacitly allowed this?"
Cui Yunchu replied, "That's not the point. The point is, she cannot go in today."
To so openly humiliate a daughter of the Cui family right in front of them, Liu Wanting was simply too arrogant.
Cui Yunchu pulled Cui Yunfeng up the steps and asked with a soft smile, "What is going on here?"
The young eunuch who was about to open the door, as well as the older servant directing the sedan chair, were both taken aback.
The young eunuch looked embarrassed and stayed silent. The older servant beside him immediately smiled and said, "Ah, it's the two young ladies of the Cui family. My County Princess suddenly felt unwell, so we are hurrying her inside to rest."
"Oh." Cui Yunchu stepped closer to the older servant, tilting her head to look at the sedan chair. "So that's how it is."
The older servant nodded.
She had emphasized the title County Princess quite assertively.
With her young lady's family background, becoming a Secondary Consort was already a grievance. Now that she had been granted the title of County Princess by the Emperor, entering through the main gate was something the Empress had also tacitly permitted.
When the time came, they could just find an excuse to brush it off. The Empress would give a symbolic reprimand, and that would be the end of it. But it would practically suppress the Crown Princess, making her feel disgusted every time she thought about it for the rest of her life.
Thinking of this, the older servant straightened her back a bit. "The two young ladies should quickly make way. If something happens to my Secondary Consort, and Her Majesty the Empress lays blame, you won't be able to bear the consequences."
Even if Cui Yunfeng were any more foolish, she would know that behind Liu Wanting lay the Empress's tacit approval and support.
Cui Yunchu said, "If she's feeling unwell, why not turn back and go home? Isn't she afraid of passing her sickness to His Highness the Crown Prince? If it's really that bad..." She leaned in close to the older servant and smiled, "She can just die halfway."
"Insolent!" The older servant's eyes widened, staring at Cui Yunchu in disbelief. "You... how dare you..."
Her young lady was now a Secondary Consort, a County Princess personally titled by the Emperor.
By this time, quite a few relatives of various officials who had come to watch the ceremony had gathered around, but no one stepped forward. No one wanted to interfere in the conflict between the Cui family and the Liu family.
Offending the Cui family brought no benefits, yet siding with the Cui family would offend the Emperor.
Cui Yunchu's voice was very low, so only the older servant could hear her. However, everyone saw the older servant's shocked and ferocious expression.
Cui Yunchu's lips curled into a smirk. Looking at the older servant, she said, "Yunfeng, your big sister is going to teach you a lesson today. Pay attention."
The older servant asked, "What are you trying to do?"
Cui Yunchu's expression suddenly changed. She stumbled two steps back, cried out in pain, and fell heavily to the ground.
