When Cui Yunfeng hurried to the palace walkway, she saw Cui Yunchu hiding under the eaves, looking bored as she watched the palace servants coming and going.
She calmed her racing heart before walking over. "Eldest Sister, what are you doing hiding here?"
Cui Yunchu lazily raised her eyes. "What else would I do? It's not like I have a lover to chat with."
Did it have to be today? Didn't they know she was all alone? One by one, neither of them cared about her feelings at all.
If it were in the past, she definitely would have stirred up some trouble to mess things up.
Cui Yunchu felt that Tang Qingwan and Cui Yunfeng were increasingly not taking her, a drama queen, seriously anymore.
"..." Cui Yunfeng felt a bit awkward. "Cousin hasn't returned yet."
She consciously crouched down beside Cui Yunchu to wait with her.
Cui Yunchu glanced at her and frowned. "Why is your forehead sweating so much?"
"I was in a rush to come back and find you."
Cui Yunchu curled her lips. "You lie so easily. You were scared by that lunatic Xiao Yi, weren't you?"
"..."
Seen through once again, Cui Yunfeng felt a little deflated.
Cui Yunchu immediately found it amusing. "Hey, why are you afraid of him too? Isn't he completely obedient and accommodating to you?"
Cui Yunfeng had a very straightforward personality. She was especially kind-hearted and inflexible. In her previous life, after marrying, she was helpless against Xiao Yi's pestering and attempted suicide several times, almost perishing together with him.
With such a decisive and desperate aura, it was surprising that she would actually be afraid of Xiao Yi.
Cui Yunfeng really wanted to roll her eyes.
"A person who treats you like a treasure and won't kill you, but repeatedly kills people right in front of you to threaten you into being obedient, would you be afraid?"
"." Cui Yunchu automatically substituted Shen Xiabai's face into the scenario and immediately shivered.
"Sister..." Cui Yunchu opened her mouth and finally said, "...You are quite unlucky."
After all, she couldn't shake him off or run away. If she were Yunfeng, she guessed she would feel a bit of despair too.
"Then what do you plan to do?"
Cui Yunfeng rested her chin on her hands. "I want to marry him."
Cui Yunchu, "..."
She abruptly stood up and walked forward.
"Where are you going?" Cui Yunfeng looked up blankly.
"If I stay with a fool, I'm afraid I'll become even more foolish." Besides, she wasn't that smart to begin with, okay?
Cui Yunfeng felt a little wronged, her voice very soft. "But I really like him."
...
The Eastern Palace.
"Your Highness invited me here, what is it that you wish to hear me say?" Tang Qingwan looked calmly at the tall man in front of her.
"Should I congratulate Your Highness on your unparalleled strategy today, killing two birds with one stone, or should I congratulate you on successfully getting Prince An punished?"
Tang Qingwan's words were particularly sharp, but Xiao Chen remained silent, just looking at her steadily.
Tang Qingwan also held her head high and looked back at him. A moment later, she curtsied. "If Your Highness has nothing else, I will take my leave."
"Qingwan." The Crown Prince suddenly grabbed Tang Qingwan's wrist. "What I promised you, I wasn't speaking nonsense. I was planning to seek out my imperial father..."
"It's just that the opportunity has passed. It's too late. Your Highness can no longer bring yourself to speak of it."
Xiao Chen pursed his lips. "Qingwan, I am the Crown Prince. Some things must prioritize the greater cause."
"Yes, I understand," Tang Qingwan nodded, showing no discernible emotion.
The Crown Prince looked at her coldness, his brows furrowed tightly, feeling irritated and hesitant in his heart.
Was he wrong?
Standing in the position of a nation's Crown Prince, he was not wrong.
But toward this girl he had guarded since childhood, he felt guilty.
"Qingwan, since I was old enough to understand, I have known that as the Crown Prince, it is difficult to follow one's heart in many matters. To advance is to live; to retreat is to die. You grew up with me; you should be the one who understands my situation best."
The imperial palace seemed magnificent, but in reality, it was like an incredibly steep cliff. One wrong step, and you would be smashed to pieces.
His feelings could not be mixed up with his great ambitions. Or rather, for the sake of the greater cause, feelings were just an insignificant component.
It was just fortunate that the Crown Princess he was to marry was the girl he liked.
The two fell into a long silence before Tang Qingwan slowly raised her eyes and gazed at the Crown Prince's gentle face.
"Do you know, actually, there was a moment when I truly wanted to give up on you."
"Qingwan," Xiao Chen's voice trembled slightly as he reached out and pulled the woman into his arms. "You wouldn't bear to leave me all alone."
Tang Qingwan smiled faintly. "Yes, it is precisely because you know I wouldn't bear to that you repeatedly break your promises to me. You weighed the pros and cons regarding Liu Wanting, afraid she would be chilled and turn around to marry someone else."
The Crown Prince said, "You are different from her."
Tang Qingwan lowered her eyes and chuckled softly. "Your Highness has unparalleled wisdom. You did very well today."
Her praise was very sincere, accompanied by a smile.
The Crown Prince looked at her, always feeling that behind that layer of smile lay a touch of alienation, even coldness.
"As for anything else, please forgive me, Your Highness, but I truly cannot offer any more praise. I am very tired and wish to return to the manor to rest."
...The Crown Prince lowered his eyes to look at her slender wrist, which he was gripping. Perhaps he had used too much force, as there was a faint red ring on her wrist.
He abruptly let go. "I'll walk you out."
"There's no need. My two younger sisters are waiting for me." Tang Qingwan turned around, her back very crisp and devoid of the slightest hesitation.
A gentle breeze blew, slightly fluttering her dress. Her slender figure appeared incredibly desolate and lonely in this moment. The Crown Prince pursed his lips, a slight burning pain in his chest.
"Qingwan, I will make it all up to you, one by one."
Tang Qingwan left along the palace walkway. It wasn't until the gaze behind her completely disappeared that she stopped in her tracks and slowly turned around.
"Miss, what's wrong?"
"Seeing clearly the path I must walk in the future."
The little maid looked in the direction of Tang Qingwan's gaze. Over there was the Imperial Garden, and further ahead was the Empress's Fengluan Palace.
"He thinks he won a round against Prince An, little knowing that in this round, Prince An never even thought of winning."
Tang Qingwan's lips curled into a faint, detached smile.
The little maid felt very distressed for her. "Miss, look at how guilty His Highness was just now. The only person in His Highness's heart has always been you."
"Mhm." Tang Qingwan's voice was very light.
He was the Crown Prince who could help her ascend to the position of Empress. Naturally, she had him in her heart too.
After Tang Qingwan returned, Cui Yunchu knew that another relationship had cracked.
She couldn't help but sigh softly. The romantic paths of the Cui sisters were truly incredibly bumpy.
Sitting in the carriage heading back to the manor, no one spoke. Caught in the middle, Cui Yunchu could only accompany them in their gloomy silence.
Tang Qingwan seemed very tired, but her eyes were full of spirit, pondering who knew what.
Cui Yunfeng was the first to speak. "Cousin, are you alright?"
Tang Qingwan nodded.
She was fine. Although she was sad, the plan had gone very smoothly. After today, Xiao Chen's guilt would only deepen, making him want to compensate her even more.
Actually, Cui Yunchu wasn't too worried about Tang Qingwan.
Tang Qingwan wasn't a guileless, straightforward person like Cui Yunfeng. What she plotted was too grand; she was never bogged down by petty romance with the Crown Prince. As soon as she realized the momentum was wrong, she would immediately turn around.
But Cui Yunfeng's mind wasn't that flexible.
In the Songhe Courtyard, Old Madam Cui had already taken the opportunity to rest for a while and had gotten up. Looking at the three sisters seated below her, her expression was gloomy.
There were truly too many vexing matters; she didn't even know who to start with.
"I never thought there would come a day when Yunchu would be the one causing the least worry."
Cui Yunchu lifted her chin.
Of course. When she was well-behaved, she was always exceedingly well-behaved.
Cui Yunfeng seemed so used to bickering with her that her mouth moved faster than her brain, "What are you so smug about? Isn't it just because nobody loves you?"
"..." Cui Yunchu's smile froze. She felt as if a thousand knives had just been plunged into her chest, leaving her dripping with blood in an instant.
Cui Yunfeng said, "...Eldest Sister, if I said I did not mean it, would you believe me..."
Cui Yunchu gave a forced smile, "Compensate me with a new set of jewelry, and I will believe you this once."
Cui Yunfeng nodded immediately, not bargaining in the slightest.
Seeing that the two sisters were still in the mood to joke around, Old Madam Cui could not help but curl her lips into a faint smile.
There was nothing more to be said about Qingwan's marriage. The imperial decree had been issued and there was absolutely no changing it. Now, the one who worried Old Madam Cui the most was Cui Yunfeng.
"Qingwan, your wedding is approaching. It is time for you to return to the Tang Manor."
The Crown Prince's wedding involved complex rules and etiquette, and there were many things to prepare. It was no longer suitable for Tang Qingwan to stay at the Cui Manor.
"Yes, Grandmother. I have already asked the maids to pack my things."
Old Madam Cui nodded, her gaze falling on Cui Yunfeng once again.
