Shen Xiabai’s carriage had barely come to a stop outside the palace gates when the carriage dipped, and someone climbed inside.
Shen Xiabai raised his eyes slightly and looked at Prince An. “My lord, you really are impossible to shake.”
Prince An smiled. “Won’t you give some more thought to my proposal from the other day, Lord Shen?”
Back at the Shen residence, not long after Shen Xiabai had left, Cui Yunchu’s eyes slowly opened. There was not the slightest trace of sleepiness in them; they were perfectly clear.
She rose leisurely and called Xing’er in to help her change and wash.
“Miss, it isn’t even daylight yet. Why are you up so early?” Xing’er entered the room, caught sight of the disheveled bed, and froze for a moment before hurriedly lowering her head and pretending she had seen nothing.
Inside, her heart was in turmoil. The young lady’s boldness really did grow by the day.
Cui Yunchu’s expression remained calm. “I’m going home.”
She lifted the bed curtains without the slightest attempt to hide the marks on her body and let Xing’er help her dress.
Looking at the bluish-purple marks scattered across her mistress’s porcelain-white skin, Xing’er could not help asking, “Miss, doesn’t it hurt?”
Cui Yunchu glanced sideways at her. “No. It felt wonderful. Would you like to try? I could have you marry Yu Feng.”
Xing’er’s face instantly turned scarlet. “This servant refuses.”
“Then be quiet and hurry up.”
“Oh…”
By the time they had finished getting ready and left, a sliver of pale dawn had just appeared on the horizon. The wind cut through them with a bone-chilling cold.
Upon hearing the news, the steward hurried over in a panic. “Miss Cui, it’s still very early. Are you leaving?”
“I’m going back to the Cui residence.”
The steward hesitated. “In such a hurry? Won’t you wait for Second Master to return?”
Cui Yunchu gave him a sidelong look. “I’m only staying here temporarily. I haven’t married into this family. Do I really need to choose an auspicious hour to return home?”
“Things are rather rushed today. Please say goodbye to the old madam on my behalf.”
The steward nodded blankly. After escorting Cui Yunchu out of the residence, he hurried off to report the matter to Shen’s Old Madam.
Xing’er shivered from the cold and stared at Cui Yunchu’s face.
Cui Yunchu frowned. “Why do you keep staring at me?”
“Miss, you suddenly returned home. Are you planning to do something important?”
Cui Yunchu ignored her.
When the carriage stopped outside the Cui residence, she glanced at another carriage parked to one side. The Cui family steward was waiting there.
The moment he saw Cui Yunchu, he stood stunned for quite some time before stepping forward to salute. “First Miss, you’re back.”
“Is he still in the residence?”
“Are you asking about the Prime Minister?” the steward replied. “He’s still here, though he’s gone to court for the morning assembly.”
Cui Yunchu stepped into the residence and headed straight for Cui Qingyuan’s courtyard.
Inside, Cui Qingyuan had put on his official robes and finished preparing to leave. Then voices of greeting suddenly sounded from the courtyard, and the door was pushed open from outside.
Cui Yunchu entered with the chill of the morning clinging to her and bowed to him. “Prime Minister.”
Cui Qingyuan stared fixedly at her. “You still know how to come back?”
Cui Yunchu replied, “What are you saying? The Cui residence is my home, after all. You also said that without a matchmaker and betrothal gifts, it would be improper for me to remain at the man’s residence indefinitely.”
Cui Qingyuan snorted. “You poisoned your own father, and you still know what propriety is?”
She had even put up that kind of sign outside the Shen residence. Did she still consider herself a member of the Cui family?
Cui Yunchu smiled faintly. “But you’re standing here perfectly well now, aren’t you?”
“I’m in a hurry to attend court,” Cui Qingyuan said impatiently. “We’ll settle this when I return.”
Cui Yunchu merely curled her lips and cast a glance at Xing’er behind her.
Xing’er: “…”
She did not dare move.
Cui Yunchu glared at her.
Xing’er quickly lowered her head and pretended not to notice.
Cui Qingyuan grew impatient. “If you have something to say, say it. What sort of silent exchange are you two having?”
Cui Yunchu was furious.
Useless Xing’er. She was only good at ruining her momentum. Not even half of the swagger she had imagined managing to display had come through.
Cui Yunchu strode to the doorway and kicked Xing’er out. Then she slammed the door shut herself and planted herself in front of it.
Cui Qingyuan watched her series of movements, his brows drawing tightly together.
Cui Yunchu straightened and suddenly said, “I know why you suddenly agreed to let me marry Shen Xiabai.”
She stared directly into Cui Qingyuan’s eyes. “You refused for Yunfeng’s sake, and you agreed for Yunfeng’s sake as well. The reason you’re so anxious for me to marry him is largely because of the child in Yunfeng’s womb.”
She did not ask it as a question. Her tone was one of certainty.
“Prime Minister, it’s too late for all that. The fairness I wanted will never come from you in this lifetime, and I no longer wish to pursue what happened in the past.”
If this had all been a scheme, if they each had their own motives and were merely helping one another for mutual benefit, then how could he sit back and reap the rewards without lifting a finger?
All Cui Qingyuan could see in Cui Yunchu’s eyes was calm—utter calm, as though nothing had stirred the slightest emotion in her.
There was no longer any anger, questioning, or sorrow she had once shown.
“What are you trying to do?”
Cui Yunchu smiled. “Nothing much. I merely want to tell you that you won’t be able to sit back and profit from both sides.”
Cui Yunchu looked away. She had no desire to look at the face she had yearned for over a decade. There was no accusation in her expression, only a calm assessment of the situation and a negotiation between two people who seemed almost like strangers.
“You cherish your legitimate daughter. As it happens, Yunfeng and I share some sisterly affection. If she ever needs me, I won’t stand by and do nothing.”
Cui Qingyuan’s expression softened somewhat. “We share the same family name. She’s always treated you with all her heart.”
“I know.”
Cui Yunchu tilted her head slightly, watching the back of Cui Qingyuan’s head. Then she suddenly said, “I slept with him.”
The back of his head jerked violently as he spun around, meeting Cui Qingyuan’s own incredulous gaze.
“Are you surprised?” Cui Yunchu asked with a light laugh. “Wasn’t it something you tacitly permitted?”
She was not a fool. She could see the meaning behind his actions.
Cui Qingyuan was so enraged that the muscles in his face trembled. He pointed at Cui Yunchu, but he could not form a complete sentence.
Cui Yunchu stepped forward, took hold of his pointing finger, and bent it back. In a soft voice, she said, “If you’re about to call me and my deceased mother shameless, save your breath. I remember it perfectly. You said it so many times that I’ve long since committed it to memory.”
Cui Qingyuan yanked his hand free and flung Cui Yunchu’s away. “You are a young woman, after all.”
“So I’m supposed to become a pawn in your hands, moved at your whim and used to pave the way for your legitimate daughter?”
He refused, and it was refused. He agreed, and it was agreed.
Cui Qingyuan squeezed his eyes shut. Just then, the steward hurried back and hastily tried to explain, “First Miss, you’ve misunderstood the Prime Minister. He only worries about you.”
Cui Yunchu kept her eyes fixed on Cui Qingyuan, her face utterly indifferent. “In any case, what’s done is done. Whether I marry him or not makes no difference to me. It depends only on whether you can afford to lose face, Prime Minister.”
“After all this talk, what exactly do you want?” Cui Qingyuan clutched his chest, his face turning ashen.
Cui Yunchu cast him a sidelong glance. “I want you to take action. I want to marry him, and I don’t want to wait any longer. He is a lone official at court, and he has lost the emperor’s trust. Every step he takes will be extraordinarily difficult.”
“Since you want to profit from this, don’t expect to sit back and reap the rewards.”
Cui Qingyuan stared at her for a long while. Then, without a word, he turned and walked out.
Cui Yunchu took two quick steps after him and said, “I’m your daughter in name, no matter what. Even for Yunfeng’s sake, Tang Qingwan, you have to do this. I don’t care about losing face, but as princess consorts, they cannot afford to disgrace themselves!”
The night was silent, and her words found no echo. Cui Yunchu stood there, panting as she watched Cui Qingyuan’s retreating figure, her eyes filled with satisfaction, anger, and a shimmer of tears.
“Why? Why do you get to treat me like a chess piece and move me around whenever you please?”
If he didn’t care about her, then she would care only about those who cared about her.
He wanted to reap the benefits without lifting a finger, letting her husband charge into battle while serving as a shield for the legitimate daughter he cherished above all else? He could forget it.
Cui Yunchu knew all too well that if anything happened one day, she could never abandon Yunfeng. Precisely because of that, she was even more determined not to let the old bastard Cui Qingyuan off the hook.
