In any case, it was impossible to continue painting.
So she simply ended the painting hastily and gave a sweet smile to the Prince of Cheng, saying, "I must offer my congratulations to her then."
Although Zhongli Shuoyi was a bit plump, he still inherited the excellent royal genes. His facial features were handsome and elegant.
Seeing that Yu Duanya didn't show any particular reaction, he said, "This prince sincerely wants to marry the princess. No matter what happened before, I will surely treat her with respect and courtesy."
As soon as the Prince of Cheng finished speaking, Yu Duanya silently recalled what that woman had said to her: "Learn to love yourself first, and then love others. Never waste this precious time."
She let out a charming laugh, looked up at the Prince of Cheng with joy in her eyes, and said, "Duanya is willing to hold your hand and grow old with you."
Treat each other with respect and courtesy?
Her father, the king, and her mother, the queen, had treated each other like "ice" all their lives. Now, she was also stepping into such a marriage. It seemed to be the first test after her rebirth!
The Prince of Cheng was quite satisfied with her reaction. Thus, this marriage could be considered a success. Once the power of the Prince of Duan'an's mansion fell into his hands, it wouldn't be long before he could enter the Eastern Palace.
After He Yi left the Noble Consort Jia's palace, she locked herself in the Frost Cloud Palace. She neither ate nor drank and remained silent. When the news reached the emperor, he didn't care at all. He sent some food to her and issued an imperial edict: If she didn't eat, he would kill everyone in the palace.
"Father..."
This imperial edict forced He Yi to eat. While stuffing food into her mouth, she shed silent tears. After all, she was only a twelve - year - old child. She thought of Song Jinyu and her fourth brother. The friendship among them was what she yearned for.
Whenever her fourth brother talked about Song Jinyu, his cold face would always soften and a smile would unconsciously appear on his face. The people in their royal family always had a different face in front of others, but the Prince of Yu was always his true self in front of Song Jinyu.
She thought that she would also meet a man who cherished her like Song Jinyu did. But the emperor's edict of the marriage alliance had completely shattered all her hopes.
"Princess, someone from the Prince of Yu's mansion has come to send you a gift." Wasn't her fourth brother in Liuzhou City? The gift turned out to be a jade bracelet, the one she had given to Song Jinyu.
She wiped away her tears messily and held the jade bracelet in both hands. Why did she send this to her? Suddenly, she thought of something. Had she come to the capital?
He Yi stopped crying immediately. She went to beg the emperor to allow her to go out of the palace to relax. The emperor pitied her for being in a bad mood for several days and granted her request as a kind gesture.
When she entered the Prince of Yu's mansion, she couldn't find Song Jinyu anywhere. Just as she was feeling curious, a young boy dressed as a page suddenly popped out from behind the Prince of Yu.
"You... Why are you dressed like this?" He Yi was amused by Song Jinyu's appearance.
Song Jinyu looked embarrassed and said, "I really didn't know what identity to use to come to the capital, so I had to disguise myself as his page."
He Yi looked at the "young page" with a blooming smile. The Prince of Yu beside her was looking at her with doting eyes. She couldn't help but feel envious. "I will never meet the man I like again."
Hearing her words, Song Jinyu also felt sad. She said, "I came here as soon as I heard your news. Don't cry, don't cry. Can you tell me what happened?"
He Yi told Song Jinyu about the marriage alliance aggrievedly. Zhongli Mingye didn't say a word and just sipped his tea silently.
"How outrageous! What kind of country is this South Sea country? How can they be so rude?"
Zhongli Mingye gave her a faint glance and said, "The Wo Country in the South Sea harassed our Xia Dynasty's sea area five years ago."
"I led the troops to fight and defeated them. After that, they submitted to the Xia Dynasty and paid tribute every year."
Hearing him say it so easily, Song Jinyu couldn't help but look at Zhongli Mingye more. So he was so amazing? Seeing her eyes shining, Zhongli Mingye patiently explained the relationship between the Great Xia Dynasty and the Wo Country in the South Sea clearly.
He Yi added a few words in time, "That's why the emperor conferred the title of the Prince of Yu on the elder brother."
"Then, who proposed the marriage alliance?"
Zhongli Mingye said, "There was originally no talk of a marriage alliance. It was proposed by several ministers in the court. The war with several tribes the year before last had emptied the national treasury. Since this year, the Wo Country in the South Sea has been restless. In order to quell the possible war, the idea of a marriage alliance came up."
Song Jinyu suddenly laughed. "Who proposed it? Why does it have to be the emperor's daughter for the marriage alliance? Can't the daughters of the officials do?"
How outrageous! To maintain the superficial peace by means of a marriage alliance was just for a temporary compromise. Whether the national treasury was empty or not was just up to people's words. Just as she was lost in thought, she suddenly met Zhongli Mingye's eyes.
She was also a daughter of a minister! Well...
He Yi felt much better. She wanted to invite Song Jinyu to the palace to play. However, Zhongli Mingye was not happy and said, "With her temper, it's better for her to stay in the mansion!"
The woman who was named by him angrily turned around. He always said that she caused trouble, but which time wasn't it the trouble that came to her?
"Don't let the people in the palace know that Jinyu has come to the capital." Zhongli Mingye secretly told He Yi.
Hearing his words, Song Jinyu knew that she would have to stay in his mansion for a while. "I should go and see the happy event in the Prince of Cheng's mansion, right?"
"You don't even like Yu Duanya. Why go?"
Strange! It was him who tricked her into coming to the capital, but now he didn't let her go out.
What was the logic?
Although the capital seemed peaceful on the surface, the situation was actually very complicated. Zhongli Mingye immediately decided to keep her in the mansion and watch over her himself. He just thought that when she was in Liuzhou City, she either drank and played with Yan Fei or went to the Lin family. Now it was good that she could stay with him.
Now, Zhongli Mingye had gotten used to the days with her by his side.
"Zhongli Mingye! Do you have a hobby of sharing a room with a page?" As soon as Song Jinyu heard that he hadn't prepared a guest room for her, she immediately got angry!
"A page should always be by the master's side. Besides..." Zhongli Mingye leaned close to her ear with a mischievous smile. "We've already shared a bed before!"
Just mentioning this matter made Song Jinyu furious. She lifted her foot and kicked him hard. "Hurry up and find someone to make arrangements. I want to sleep..."
The person who was kicked didn't show any self - awareness at all.
"Do you want people to know that you've come to the capital and are staying in your fiancé's mansion before you're even married?"
Well, it really wasn't appropriate. "Then... Where should I stay?" Zhongli Mingye adored her shy look. He pinched her face and said with a smile, "You'll sleep here..."
"What about you...?" Where would he sleep?
"I'll sleep in the study!" Zhongli Mingye said seriously. "A page should act like a page."
Song Jinyu: "..."
She should have known better than to come with him! "Don't peek, or I'll poison you..." She waved the ring with a mechanism in front of him.
Zhongli Mingye said helplessly, "You're not even grown up yet. What's there to look at?"
Forcibly suppressing the urge to kick him to death, she walked straight into the inner room. She could still feel Zhongli Mingye's smile even through the screen.