Cui Yunchu walked out from behind the folding screen, her face still showing slight traces of lingering shock and doubt. She looked at Tang Qingwan, momentarily speechless.
Tang Qingwan took a sip of tea and chuckled lightly. Scared?
Not exactly.
After all, she had witnessed the Crown Prince's affection for Tang Qingwan, as well as the bloody conflicts between the two of them in her previous life.
Cui Yunchu stepped forward and sat down in the empty seat below Tang Qingwan. A maid immediately served fresh tea. Is the most important thing to you, Cousin, truly just the two great clans of Cui and Tang? To the point of not hesitating to fall out with the Crown Prince over it?
Tang Qingwan cast a glance at Cui Yunchu. Otherwise, what do you think is the meaning of this engagement's existence, Cousin?
Cui Yunchu choked on her words. It was true; it wasn't that Tang Qingwan was abandoning the Crown Prince, but rather that this marriage arrangement with the royal family had always been a gamble.
Dictated by her birth, from beginning to end, Tang Qingwan was never allowed a choice.
The existence of the engagement is a struggle. Either fight, or die. Affection is the most worthless thing in this game. Tang Qingwan's voice was very low, so detached it seemed as if she wasn't talking about herself.
Cui Yunchu fell into a long silence.
Childhood sweethearts, a match made in heaven. Xiao Chen was gentle and noble, astute and skilled in power, while Tang Qingwan was dignified, generous, and exceptionally intelligent. With over a decade of mutual affection, how could they not be deeply in love?
Yet Tang Qingwan said that affection was the most worthless thing of all.
Cui Yunchu lowered her head. After a long while, she spoke sincerely, I am sorry.
For her foolish and awful self in her previous life.
Tang Qingwan turned her eyes to look at Cui Yunchu and smiled. Grandmother said that you and Yunfeng have grown up. Yunchu, we are the closest of family. Your cousin is alone and weak; I need your help and support.
But what could she do?
Since her rebirth, Cui Yunchu's biggest improvement was learning to behave, not causing trouble or being a burden to others. But to ask her to help Tang Qingwan fight...
She felt she was not up to it.
Cousin, I...
The words rolled around the tip of Cui Yunchu's tongue but were swallowed back down. She could not bring herself to say that she could not do it in front of Tang Qingwan.
Her cousin had endured so much for the Cui family; what right did she have to say that?
Tang Qingwan stood up, walked over, and gently wrapped her arm around Cui Yunchu's shoulders. People say we three sisters have bad luck, yet we were all born into the Cui family. They say we are lucky, yet we all lost our mothers at a young age. Grandmother is our shared relative. She is getting old, and we cannot always make her worry about us. Do you not agree?
Cui Yunchu could not stop herself from nodding, her eyes turning red.
Everything Tang Qingwan said made sense, yet it also made her feel very uneasy and suspicious. After all, having suffered too many losses at Tang Qingwan's hands, Cui Yunchu could not help but keep her guard up against her.
You have said so much, Cousin, but what exactly do you want me to do?
Tang Qingwan lowered her eyes and looked at Cui Yunchu, only feeling that this cousin of hers had suddenly become more than a little bit smarter, and much more vigilant.
...
Miss Cousin, Miss, Xing'er knocked on the door. Prince An has come to visit the Second Miss.
It is quite lively today, Tang Qingwan retracted her hand and smiled faintly.
Both of them knew that the elders in the family did not want Cui Yunfeng associating with Prince An. Tang Qingwan said, My status makes it inappropriate. You should go greet him, Cousin.
If he was visiting, he would go to Songhe Garden. With their grandmother there, it would not make a difference whether Cui Yunchu went or not.
Furthermore, Prince An... Cui Yunchu had relentlessly pestered him for two lifetimes, but deep down, she was actually somewhat afraid of the man.
Tang Qingwan said, Grandmother suffered a fright today and exhausted herself. She must have fallen asleep by now, so let us not trouble her.
Especially since Old Madam Cui lacked energy and relied on incense to sleep peacefully. Once asleep, she was very difficult to wake until the time was up.
Cui Yunchu sighed. Now she was not afraid of her clinging to Prince An and refusing to let go.
Yes. She cast one last glance at Tang Qingwan, turned, and left.
Tang Qingwan had as many schemes as holes in a sieve; she did not want to stay in her courtyard for too long anyway.
As long as Tang Qingwan did not state it explicitly, she would just play deaf and dumb. Cui Yunchu was very grateful to her, but unfortunately, her abilities fell short of her desires. It was not easy to get a second chance at life; she just wanted to live safely.
Leaving Tang Qingwan's courtyard, Cui Yunchu sighed heavily and suddenly turned back to ask Xing'er, Have I suddenly gotten smarter?
... Xing'er looked completely bewildered.
In the past, Cui Yunchu would never have had such an agile mind.
But why did she feel that it was better when she was silly and foolish before?
Left with no choice, she followed the bluestone path back to Songhe Garden, but did not see any sign of Prince An.
She could not help but ask Nanny Li.
A servant reported that he ran into the Crown Prince at the festooned archway, and the two are chatting.
Did this mean she had to make a trip and greet him personally?
Is Grandmother asleep?
Nanny Li nodded.
Cui Yunchu sighed again. Fortunately, Cui Yunfeng was settled in Songhe Garden, otherwise just anyone could come and see her.
Nanny Li said, This old servant will accompany the Eldest Miss to go greet him.
Afraid she would cling to Prince An and not let go? Cui Yunchu cast a sidelong glance at Nanny Li.
Tang Qingwan had the Crown Prince, and Cui Yunfeng had Prince An. Although their paths of love were rocky, at least those men were sincere to them. She, Cui Yunchu, was also a daughter of the Cui family, missing neither arms nor legs. Why did she not deserve such a gentleman to treat her with wholehearted devotion?
When she arrived at the festooned archway, the Crown Prince and Prince An were still conversing, but the atmosphere was far from amicable. The gunpowder-like tension of their confrontation was very obvious.
Prince An's wicked and unrestrained features were unprecedentedly cold and heavy. In this world, not every case requires a joint trial by three departments with conclusive evidence to establish guilt.
Second Brother, are you threatening me? The Crown Prince's features remained gentle, but his eyes were filled with an icy chill.
Prince An smiled, his slanted eyebrows rising, revealing an even more untamed air.
I would not dare. I am merely reminding you, Imperial Brother, that you must keep a close eye on your people. Not only am I watching, but I fear our future sister-in-law is also glaring like a tiger watching its prey. Surrounded by a pack of wolves, I wonder if Imperial Brother can keep the beauty safe.
Xiao Chen's face was dark and cold. He looked sideways at Prince An, his awe-inspiring aura unintentionally spilling out, but Prince An showed not a trace of fear.
Imperial Brother need not look at me like that. I am only giving a kind reminder, fearing that Imperial Brother's backyard might catch fire.
Prince An was slightly taller. He bent down slightly, his lowered eyes looking seemingly respectful. I am just afraid that while one side of Imperial Brother's face is covered in Miss Liu's lipstick, the other side will be scratched like a painted cat by our future sister-in-law.
.
These words were no different from a sharp knife, accurately stabbing right into the Crown Prince's heart.
Cui Yunchu blinked, feeling somewhat bad for him.
The main thing was that if the brothers wanted to fight, they could beat each other to death outside the Cui manor gates and it would be fine, just not here.
Your Highness the Crown Prince. Your Highness Prince An.
Her voice, if not melodious and touching, could at least be called clear and pleasant.
Unexpectedly, the Crown Prince and Prince An seemed startled. They both turned their heads to look, their gazes... indescribably complex.
Actually... it was disgust. Especially Prince An, his face showed extreme displeasure, yet he could not just turn and walk away.
The two who had just been at each other's throats instantly forgot all their enmity. Crown Prince Xiao Chen even turned around and left, as if afraid that if he was a step too slow, he would be entangled by Cui Yunchu like a spider spirit.
But she just had to be Qingwan's younger sister. Qingwan was always protective of her own, so he could not do anything to her.
Prince An and the Crown Prince had completely different temperaments. The Crown Prince was gentle as jade, while Prince An was like a demonic cultivator from a storybook who had fallen to the dark path, both righteous and wicked.
Especially when he smiled at you, there was a bizarre creepiness to it.
But... Prince An never smiled at her.
"Eldest Miss Cui." Xiao Yi put on that deadpan face, his whole body exuding a vibe that screamed "stay the hell away from me."
"..."
If she hadn't been afraid of tiring her grandmother out, did he think she would be so willing to come here?
"My second sister has fallen asleep. It is inconvenient for her to see guests." In a bad mood, Cui Yunchu directly chased him away.
To put it bluntly, even if Cui Yunchu were a piece of crap, Xiao Yi wouldn't get to see Cui Yunfeng unless he played nice with her.
Suddenly, Cui Yunchu wasn't afraid of him anymore.
What was there to be afraid of? His lifeline was Cui Yunfeng, who was her, Cui Yunchu's, sister. Today, if Cui Yunchu didn't nod, Xiao Yi couldn't even step through the door.
Guest? Xiao Yi's mother, the consort, and Cui Yunfeng's mother had a deep friendship. If Cui Yunfeng's mother hadn't passed away so early, the two of them might have formed a marriage alliance early on, just like the Crown Prince and Tang Qingwan.
Even though Cui Yunfeng's mother was gone, Consort Liang still frequently brought Cui Yunfeng into the palace to accompany her, so she and Prince An could be considered childhood sweethearts.
With over ten years of affection, before the age of ten, Prince An freely went in and out of Cui Yunfeng's boudoir; he had never considered himself a guest.
But when it came to arguing with Cui Yunchu, Xiao Yi was more reluctant than if he were asked to touch a handful of crap. He frowned and gave the young eunuch beside him a push.
"Eldest Miss Cui, His Highness heard that Second Miss Cui fell into the water and was deeply worried, so he brought a lot of cold-dispelling medicinal herbs to visit her."
When visiting a patient, there is no reason to turn them away.
Cui Yunchu mimicked Xiao Yi's manner and shot a glance at Xing'er.
Anyway, with Cui Yunfeng acting as her shield, Xiao Yi wouldn't dare do anything to her.
Xing'er wasn't as slick as the young eunuch. "How about handing the medicinal herbs to this servant, and I will deliver them to the Second Miss?"
"..." The young eunuch remained silent, and Xiao Yi became even more displeased. His eyes narrowed, flashing with danger.
Cui Yunchu glared at Xing'er. "You are lagging far behind them in terms of intimidation."
Xing'er, "..."
After glaring, Cui Yunchu raised her head again and looked at Xiao Yi without the slightest fear.
As long as it wasn't Shen Xiaobai, the one who had stabbed her through, she wasn't afraid of anyone.
Since there would be no good outcome, why make Yunfeng suffer?
