The frivolous smile on Gu Xuan’s face turned dark and venomous because of Cui Yunchu’s words.
He tightened his arm around the woman beside him, his fingernails nearly digging into her skin.
“Master Gu, it hurts,” the woman whimpered.
Gu Xuan shoved her away and stepped toward Cui Yunchu. “If your father weren’t the chancellor, I would have killed you back then.”
Cui Yunchu curled her lips. “Too bad my father is the chancellor. You didn’t kill me, but I nearly killed you.”
Gu Xuan’s gaze lingered on her face, filled with greedy, lecherous intent. “Don’t flatter yourself. Would the Cui family, as it stands now, offend my father and my aunt just for a concubine’s daughter like you?”
“Cui Yunchu, you really are just like a prostitute’s daughter,” he said, reaching his hand toward her face.
“How dare you!” Cui Yunfeng roared with fury, kicking at Gu Xuan.
He dodged swiftly, as if by reflex, leaving Cui Yunfeng’s kick landing on nothing.
When facing Cui Yunfeng, Gu Xuan showed a hint of restraint. “Sister-in-law, we’re going to be family soon.”
“Who’s family with you? Say one more disrespectful word, and I’ll cut off your hand! My elder sister may be a concubine’s daughter, but she’s still the eldest daughter of the Cui family and my only sister. Touch a single hair on her, and I’ll chop your hand off!”
Gu Xuan’s expression turned bored as he yanked the woman he had hurt back to his side. “Second Miss Cui is quite hot-tempered. Have you forgotten how you seduced your cousin back then?”
Cui Yunfeng was about to retort when Cui Yunchu stopped her in time. “No need to waste words with him. Let’s go.”
But Gu Xuan stepped forward again, blocking Cui Yunchu’s path. “Little Yunchu, we grew up together, after all. Since no one else wants to marry you, how about I marry you?”
“How about I kick you to death instead?” Cui Yunchu replied.
That remark clearly provoked Gu Xuan again, reminding him of something unpleasant.
“Once I set my sights on a woman, I never fail to have her. I’ll tell you, the emperor is already dissatisfied with the Cui family. Things are different now compared to before. Even if I do something to you, do you think your father would have the energy to seek justice for you?”
In other words, at this critical moment, adding enemies—offending the Gu family—would be like adding a death sentence to the Cui family.
As for Gu Xuan, if the deed were done, at worst he’d be beaten, but with his aunt, the Empress Dowager, backing him, who would dare touch him?
“I’m offering you the position of legitimate wife, which is already giving you face. Once I marry you, I’ll slowly destroy you. Let’s see how tough and stubborn your life really is.”
Cui Yunchu lifted her eyes. For a moment, a flicker of killing intent seemed to pass through them. Then, she suddenly smiled. “Fine. Then I’ll wait and see.”
With that, she pulled Cui Yunfeng and left the shop.
She had thought the memories from years ago were already forgotten, but seeing him again, that cold, damp feeling slowly crept up her spine once more.
“Elder sister,” Cui Yunfeng frowned as she looked at her. “Are we just letting him off like that?”
That wasn’t like her elder sister’s temperament.
Cui Yunchu’s eyes were calm. “There’s no point wasting words on someone like him.”
Gu Xuan’s womanizing and recklessness were notorious throughout the capital. Many daughters of lower-ranking officials had been harassed by him, but as the Gu family’s only son and the Empress Dowager’s sole nephew, his status was like countless amulets of immunity, enabling his arrogance for years.
Cui Yunfeng was furious. “He’s truly audacious, daring to covet and harass the young ladies of our Cui family.”
Cui Yunchu remained silent, her eyes lowered, her fingertips slightly cold.
“Elder sister, you seem… a bit afraid of him. What happened in the past? Back in our childhood—did he ever bully you?”
The young ladies of the Cui family were supposed to be noble and untouchable.
But Cui Yunchu had always seemed isolated; the truly noble ones never bothered to notice her.
She lifted the carriage curtain, turned her gaze outside, and didn’t answer Cui Yunfeng’s question. Instead, she said, “I want him dead.”
Cui Yunfeng froze.
In her memory, her elder sister had little to do with that man. That meant their interactions occurred before she, Grandmother, and Father returned to the capital.
At that time, her elder sister was only eight or nine.
A chill rose in Cui Yunfeng’s heart, and she felt her hands and feet turn cold.
Cui Yunchu’s voice continued. “Only when he dies can the past truly be buried.”
A smile curled at the corner of her lips.
“Elder sister, he’s the only son of the Gu family. Making him die… it probably isn’t possible.”
Cui Yunchu seemed to revert to her usual liveliness. She leaned against the carriage wall, her gaze fixed on some corner inside the carriage. “Impossible? I don’t think so.”
Cui Yunfeng frowned, as if settling some resolve within her heart, and nodded.
The two had lost all interest in continuing their shopping and returned directly to the Cui residence. As soon as Cui Yunfeng got back, she took her maid, Yun’er, and left again for the Prince of An’s manor.
The Prince of An had spent the past few days almost entirely in bed. It wasn’t that his injuries hadn’t healed, but his spirit had collapsed. Imperial Consort Liang had visited him several times, only to leave in anger.
She claimed she was going to wash her neck clean and wait for the Crown Prince and the Empress to come chop her head off.
She said it with utter despair, but it didn’t stir even a hint of fighting spirit or conscience in Xiao Yi.
Fortunately, the Crown Prince had recently lost interest in scheming, devoting himself entirely to the Crown Princess, and the court, thanks to both sides temporarily stepping back, had achieved an unlikely peace.
When he heard that Cui Yunfeng had arrived, Xiao Yi’s previously downcast expression finally shifted.
His stagnant heart seemed to stir instantly.
She was like a flower blooming in his barren heart, curbing his mania and bloodlust.
Footsteps sounded outside the door. Cui Yunfeng looked up and saw a man with long, embroidered dark boots stride in. His towering figure instantly blocked the light from the doorway; the light fell on him and his devilishly handsome face.
His appearance and figure had few equals in the capital, truly one in ten thousand. Each time, it stirred Cui Yunfeng’s heart—but now, that flutter lasted only a moment before being replaced by coldness.
“What brings you here?” His voice was gentle, inexplicably softening the sharpness of his bone structure.
Xiao Yi seemed to be in a good mood. “Tomorrow is our wedding day. They say brides and grooms shouldn’t meet three days before the ceremony.”
He sat down beside Cui Yunfeng, turning his head to wait for her response.
As long as it wasn’t about canceling the wedding, anything else was fine.
