No wonder she was so greedy for power and so worldly. Growing up in such an environment, it was inevitable that she developed such a character. Power was just a way to protect herself.
The Fu family was her bane. No matter how hard she tried to avoid the bane, as long as she was the adopted niece of the Fu family for a single day, this entanglement would never end. Unless one side died.
With this thought in mind, he suddenly understood why she was so eager to get close to Murong Xiu and Lord Xia. Indeed, only the backgrounds of these two could protect her.
And he was just a target.
Thinking of how Li Xinyue had described him in such a way, he couldn't help but feel both angry and amused. He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "If you say I'm a target, aren't you one yourself!"
He tucked the quilt in tightly and leaned against her for a while.
The next day, dawn broke.
Li Xinyue opened her eyes happily. She had had a good dream. Although she couldn't remember what she had dreamed about, the feeling of happiness was deeply engraved in her mind.
Moreover, her nose didn't seem to be blocked anymore, and she was in high spirits. She excitedly turned her head to look at the pillow beside her, but it was already empty. Only a ray of sunlight leaked in through the crack of the window, shining on the empty spot.
Her heart felt empty too.
"Princess." Lian'er pushed the door open and came in.
Li Xinyue withdrew her distracted gaze and turned to look at Lian'er.
Lian'er handed over an invitation. "Princess, this is an invitation from Young Master Murong in the name of the Fourth Miss. She invites you to go to the manor to enjoy tea."
"Got it." She really didn't want to go.
However, there were still things she needed to say, so she had to go even if she didn't want to.
Thinking of someone who had already set off for the south of the Yangtze River at this moment, and then looking at herself who was about to go to the manor, Li Xinyue inexplicably had the illusion of having an affair.
She felt that she was acting abnormally.
"Achoo!" Chu Junyi, who was on his way to the south of the Yangtze River, successfully caught her cold.
Her cold was more severe than any cold he had ever caught before. Although he had taken medicine before setting off, he still had a runny nose and kept shedding tears along the way. Coupled with the fact that he had hardly slept all night, he felt a bit weak.
"My lord, if it really doesn't work, find an inn and rest for an hour." Qin Feng, a master from the Imperial Guard, rode his horse forward.
Chu Junyi firmly refused. "I have a royal order. I can't afford to delay!" The earlier he went and the earlier he came back, the better. He didn't want to be away for too long and let that brat Murong Xiu take advantage of the situation.
"Giddyap!" With a whip, the horse galloped even faster.
Li Xinyue arrived at Murong Xiu's manor in a flurry of nerves.
As soon as she saw the familiar gate of the manor, the illusion of having an affair disappeared the previous moment, and instead, she began to feel reluctant.
Because she was about to reject the white moonlight she had loved for many years.
That was a little bit of beauty buried deep in her heart.
When she met him, she had just emerged from the shadow of her mother concubine. She was wearing a little monk's robe and had become a little nun to chant scriptures and copy Buddhist scriptures for the Empress Dowager.
He and the Duchess of the State came to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager.
She peeked at him behind a screen not far away. While the adults were talking, the two of them sneaked out. Unknowingly, they went to the Cold Palace and discovered an abandoned hot spring.
They had a great time in the hot spring. She even gave him her little silver bracelet with a bell on it, making an appointment to recognize each other in the future.
However, later on, he really didn't recognize her. He didn't mention the little silver bracelet with a bell either, and he didn't even know about the hot spring.
He seemed to have changed into a different person, or it was as if he had lost his memory.
Nevertheless, that was the first ray of light in her gloomy life, so she cherished it especially.
Thinking about having to say goodbye to this ray of light now, she wondered if it was a bit hasty.
Should she think about it some more?
"Your Highness the Princess!"
Li Xinyue stopped in her tracks as she was about to turn back. She steadied her mind and turned around, calling out, "Young Master Murong."
"Just call me Zisheng."
Li Xinyue opened her mouth but failed to call out his name.
She suddenly became curious about what Chu Junyi's courtesy name was.
This guy was really mysterious. She still knew nothing about him!
The sound of tea falling into the cup was crisp. Murong Xiu glanced at Li Xinyue and was happy that she had come as promised. "Is your cold getting better?"
"A bit better." Li Xinyue absent-mindedly stared at the lake outside the pavilion and the green lotus leaves on the lake.
She remembered that it was right here that she had confessed her love to him last time. As a result, she had been rejected. Now, at the same place, it was her turn to reject him. The feeling was really indescribably complicated.
"I..." She took a sip of tea and told the truth.
Hearing this, Murong Xiu suddenly stopped the teacup that was about to reach his mouth. He looked at Li Xinyue, who was nervously looking at him, with a complicated look in his eyes.
She really didn't even want to lie to him.
Should he say that she was honest and kind, or cruel?
He smiled bitterly and stared at the patterns on the teacup.
"So, Your Highness the Princess is in love with Lord Chu?"
"I'm not sure, but I don't dislike him."
"Then why am I already out of the picture before it even starts? Does Your Highness the Princess dislike me, or did something happen between you two?" He put down the teacup and looked up at her.
Li Xinyue nervously stared at his teacup, wracking her brains to find an excuse.
"Young Master Murong is as noble as the bright moon in the sky. You are the number one young master in the Great Yan Dynasty. I... I'm not worthy of you."
Murong Xiu was so angry that he laughed, and he was even choked by the tea in his mouth.
Li Xinyue blushed with guilt. To ease her conscience, she got up to pat his back, but he avoided her.
"Sit down, Your Highness."
"Doesn't Your Highness find this sentence familiar?" This was exactly the excuse he had used to politely decline her back then, and she had retorted.
Now, he also wanted to retort in the same way. "The number one young master in the Great Yan Dynasty. Does Your Highness think you're not worthy? Is it that you're not worthy, or do you think too highly of yourself and think that I'm not good enough?
I remember that day, Your Highness didn't say so. You thought you were a perfect match for me. Now you're going to abandon me? Or do you think you've found someone more suitable?
I remember that back then, I wished Your Highness would find a celestial being. You wished me to be beautiful alone. Now it seems that both wishes have come true."
He smiled bitterly and looked at the tea in the cup. He really wished it were strong liquor instead.
Li Xinyue opened her mouth but suddenly couldn't say a word.
What should she do?
Should she just follow the example of the elder princess and have both of them?
Forget it. If her harem was full of powerful people like her father's, it would drive her crazy.
Anyway, neither Murong Xiu nor Chu Junyi was an easy person to deal with. If they were put in the same courtyard, they would probably tear the courtyard down.
Moreover, they probably wouldn't agree to such a request.
Collecting her thoughts, Li Xinyue came back to her senses. She suddenly remembered the question she had wanted to ask when she had invited him for an outing last time. Because he had interrupted her, she had forgotten about it. Now that she had nothing to do, it was just the right time to ask.
"I'm really curious. That day, you clearly rejected me. Why did you suddenly change your mind? And it is rumored that Murong Xiu, the number one young master, is kind and generous, and always leaves room when getting along with others.
Why did you reject me so firmly when I confessed my love to you that day?"
"I really rejected you, and I really agreed to you later. I rejected you because before that, we weren't familiar with each other. If someone suddenly came out to confess their love to Your Highness, would you agree?"
The image of that crazy Chu Junyi popped up in the princess's mind. She really hadn't agreed.
"Then why did you change your mind?"
"Because I was moved.
In my dull life, your impulsive confession was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, causing ripples.
The moment Your Highness won the argument against me, I was already moved.
I just needed to rationally analyze whether it was really a feeling of being moved and whether I really liked you."