Unfortunately, in her case, the initial intention was to "make a deal".
In truth, it's even worse than "lust at first sight"; if Yunlie knew, who knows what he would think of her.
The more she thought about it, the more she felt that perhaps she should shed a tear of sympathy for her own infatuation, which was likely to end without fruition.
But before that inevitable and unfulfilled ending arrives, she wants to be closer to him.
****
"Hey, where are you going?" Luo Cuiwei, having recovered her senses, blinked blankly and called out with a smile, "Didn't you just say you needed to talk to me?"
Her soft, sweet voice, like viscous sugar syrup, immediately stopped Yun Lie in his tracks.
He stood there, his back slightly stiff, without turning around: "It's nothing important, I just wanted to ask you..."
Very well, he choked on his own words.
Earlier in the hot spring, although he responded to Yun Chi's well-intentioned advice in a lukewarm manner, upon reflection, he also felt that Yun Chi's words made some sense.
He was a prince, and if he were to propose marriage, he would have to ask his emperor father to intervene. However, his emperor father was the most shameless person in the world, and only if Luo Cuiwei clearly stated that she would agree to the marriage would that "unreliable old man" be willing to condescend to propose marriage on his behalf.
He had originally planned to tell Luo Cuiwei the truth directly, but after the interruption, he suddenly lost all confidence.
It's all because of that Xu "Yan" who appeared out of nowhere!
This gave rise to an uneasy suspicion in his mind.
Perhaps he had misunderstood before? Luo Cuiwei didn't...
Just as Yun Lie's mind was in complete turmoil, Luo Cuiwei walked up and stood in front of him, looking up at him with a mixture of doubt and worry.
"What’s wrong with you?"
Yun Lie quickly composed himself, pursed his thin lips, and did not answer, but simply lowered his eyes to meet hers.
The hour of Shen (3-5 PM) had passed, and the setting sun cast a gentle, early spring golden glow upon her, making her look even more beautiful.
It was as beautiful as a dream that would end the moment he reached out to touch it.
After not receiving a response from him for a while, Luo Cuiwei became a little anxious and waved her hand in front of his eyes.
"Yun Lie, what's wrong with you...?"
She suddenly fell silent, staring blankly at her hand that had been suddenly grasped.
The moment he grasped her hand as if by some strange impulse, Yun Lie's expression changed from dejected and anxious to bright and cheerful.
Her bright eyes were filled with him.
She blurted out his name.
Her hand was warm and soft, and he held it in his palm.
I wasn't mistaken; all of Xu's "annoyance" and "annoyance" are nothing to fear.
Luo Cuiwei definitely likes Yun Lie! Absolutely!
A joyful smile welled up in Yun Lie's eyes, but his handsome face, flushed red with embarrassment, tried his best to maintain a serious expression: "I've told you before, don't lay a hand on me."
"You..." Luo Cuiwei opened her mouth to speak, but didn't know where to begin.
Yun Lie held her hand tightly, then looked up at the clear blue sky. "You started it."
"I..." Luo Cuiwei remained dumbfounded, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "No, what exactly happened to you..."
After stammering for a while, she finally managed to utter a complete sentence, "What were you trying to say to me just now?"
Yun Lie chuckled softly, finally letting go of her hand, his ears turning red as he said cheekily, "I suddenly forgot what I wanted to say, I'll tell you when I remember."
The two red-faced people stared at each other in silence for a long while.
"Are you...too tired?" Luo Cuiwei took a deep breath, trying her best to appear calm. "After returning with His Majesty this afternoon, didn't you lie down and rest for a while?"
Yun Lie lowered his eyes and smiled, saying calmly, "No, my third brother talked to me about something."
How could he possibly be tired from just one polo match?
He was pleased by Luo Cuiwei's undisguised concern, so he went along with her and began to subtly play the victim.
Luo Cuiwei pretended that nothing had happened, and that she wasn't as red as a ripe berry.
She cleared her throat, looked up at the sky, and earnestly suggested, "The people from the Imperial Household Department said earlier that His Majesty instructed that dinner tonight would not be served until 7 PM; there's still more than an hour to go, why don't you go back and lie down for a while?"
"Forget it, it's quite a distance from here to my place in the East Garden. If I go back now, I'm afraid I'll have to get up again as soon as I lie down."
After speaking, Yun Lie raised his head and glanced indifferently at the courtyard closest to him.
Luo Cuiwei followed his gaze and immediately burst out laughing, though she couldn't help but feel annoyed.
The unspoken plea in his eyes seemed absurd, yet somehow, she found herself quite willing to indulge him at that moment.
****
The small courtyard arranged by the Shaofu for the two Luo sisters had four bedrooms. Luo Cuiwei and Luo Cuizhen each chose one to stay in, and the other two were empty.
Luo Cuiwei and Luo Cuizhen were not used to having strangers around to take care of them. When they arrived yesterday, they made arrangements with the officials of the Imperial Household Department to remove the two servants who were originally left in the courtyard.
Luo Cuizhen had not yet returned. The courtyard was quiet, with only the rustling sound of the gentle spring breeze brushing through the treetops.