Un corazón puro en una vasija de jade

Capítulo 169

How could Murong Yan compare to Feng Yangxi—no, it should be Murong Yangxi? Li Tianyou had met Murong Yan, and he felt in his heart that Yongye would never fall in love with her. She was only forced by circumstances to marry into the country to maintain good relations between the two nations, just as he had married Luo Yu as his queen.

The reason Yongye was allowed to marry was because she was to marry the Crown Prince. Now that Murong Yan is no longer the Crown Prince, why should Yongye be obligated to marry him? And even if Murong Yangxi becomes the Crown Prince, would Yongye agree to a last-minute husband swap? Li Tianyou's heart began to pound at the thought.

Thus, an imperial edict arrived at the Prince Duan's residence from the capital: Emperor Youqing invited Yongye to the palace to appreciate the plum blossoms.

Having received the imperial decree, Prince Duan smiled broadly and said to Eunuch Wang, "Yongye is ultimately the Empress of Qi. Her entry into the palace cannot be hasty. Please have a seat in the mansion." However, once outside the main hall, Prince Duan's face darkened. His greatest worry was that Yongye had rejected the marriage proposal. The news hadn't spread, but he knew it all too well. Thinking of Li Tianyou, and seeing Yongye's graceful and alluring female attire, Prince Duan felt as if his backside was on fire, and he rushed into the inner hall.

Seeing that Yongye was still dressed casually, Prince Duan was at a loss. If Yongye wore a woman's hairstyle, he would assume she was Empress Qi. But she had refused the marriage proposal; how would she ever get married? "Father, I'll wear men's clothing." "What kind of decorum is this!" Yongye smiled slyly. "Isn't it perfect? No need for all that trouble." Prince Duan was taken aback, then chuckled, "Alright, men's clothing. Just say that entering the palace as Empress Qi would be too conspicuous, and it's inconvenient to make a scene." Empress Qi? Yongye felt a pang of sadness again. She finally understood what it meant to be destined to be apart; not everyone who loves each other can be together.

Moon Spirit hoped to live peacefully with her in the small town. Hatred filled her heart, and the image of another person also appeared. It could have been, but it was all in the past.

She could marry Feng Yangxi, which would seem like a perfect ending. But she couldn't get over her own conscience; even if she had feelings for him, it wouldn't work.

Donning her old purple robe, a golden cicada crown, and a silver fox-patterned cloak, her features were as beautiful as a painting, and she transformed into a dashing young man once more. She lifted her legs and walked, finally feeling much more comfortable.

She strode towards the front hall and heard Prince Duan sigh, "Reporters, please don't mention the broken engagement." "Father, was the person you were betrothed to Murong Yan or Murong Yangxi?" Yongye suddenly turned around, his gaze cold and sharp.

Prince Duan coughed and turned his head, his voice barely audible: "Didn't I say that the betrothed is the Crown Prince of Qi?" "Don't talk to me about the Crown Prince of Qi. You've been colluding with the Emperor of Qi for a long time, each getting what they want. You knew all along that Feng Yangxi was Murong Yangxi! You knew it all along!" Yongye roared.

Prince Duan nudged the Princess. The Princess glanced at Yongye and stammered, "If he's not the Crown Prince, then he's not himself." Yongye recalled the day she escaped from Li Yannian's clutches, when Feng Yangxi said they would meet again, and the pain in her heart resurfaced. She sneered, "Good, you kept it a secret! Everyone schemed against me, everyone!" She lowered her head and walked towards the front hall. Prince Duan was startled and shouted, "Yongye! Stop! Listen to your father one more time." "Listen to what? Listen to you say he's better than Murong Yan, that you knew he would definitely become the Crown Prince, so you happily married me off? And you even cooperated with him to keep it a secret from me, just to destroy Youli Valley?" Yongye grinned.

"But don't you like him too? What does it matter if he's the crown prince or not? You're just angry that he kept it from you. If he didn't become the crown prince and took you away to roam the world, wouldn't his father and I just have to watch helplessly?" Prince Duan rolled his eyes, feeling that what he said made a lot of sense.

"Liking him doesn't mean I have to marry him! I'd rather marry Li Tianyou!" Yongye was furious. She'd heard about it from the Qi Emperor. She thought her father was ultimately good to her, but he was still keeping it from her. He kept everything from her, ruining their grand plan, keeping it all from her alone for the sake of their scheme.

The princess sighed, unable to resist complaining, "How heartbroken Yongye will be." "What do you know? If we don't put him through this, how can he possibly be devoted to Yongye when he has a harem? I won't be at ease unless he resigns as emperor." Prince Duan glared, watching the direction Yongye had left in, his brow furrowing as he recalled her parting words. Yongye mustn't impulsively marry the emperor; Feng Yangxi wouldn't let that go. "Guards! Quickly send a letter to the emperor!" Prince Duan summoned a guard and hastily wrote a letter to deliver to Feng Yangxi. If it's too late, something truly terrible will happen.

Two chairs covered with tiger skins and a brazier had been set up in the plum grove of the Imperial Garden. Yongye, seeing Tianyou's back, was filled with many emotions.

Come to think of it, Tianyou had always seemed to treat her very well, but people always have different feelings. Whenever she thought that he was her cousin, she felt a little uneasy about his closeness.

Yongye stared blankly at Tianyou, involuntarily thinking of Yuepo. After all the twists and turns, Tianyou was actually more sincere to her than Yuepo.

"Xiao Ye," Tianyou called her softly, but he didn't turn around.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Yongye bowed respectfully.

"Let me guess, will you be wearing the Empress's rank attire, everyday clothes, or... men's clothing?" Tianyou stared at the plum blossoms in a daze, then smiled faintly, "Men's clothing, right?" As he spoke, he turned around.

Yongye didn't know why he guessed so accurately, and chuckled dryly as she replied, "Yongye doesn't want to be ostentatious and will be returning to Qi in a few days." Tianyou, gazing at that perfect and exquisite face, already knew the answer. He nodded and said, "Sit down." Yongye thanked him and sat down, nestling into the soft chair, holding a hand warmer in her hands, and smiled, "The plum blossoms in the Imperial Garden are blooming beautifully this year." Tianyou dismissed his attendants and personally poured her a cup of wine, saying, "This is Qingzhou Red, sent from Qingzhou in Chen. I never imagined I would have another day to enjoy warm wine and admire plum blossoms with you, Xiaoye." Yongye picked up the cup, took only a sip, and put it down. “He doesn’t like me drinking, so I’ll just have a little.” “Is he Murong Yan or Feng Yangxi?” Tianyou took a sip of wine, toying with his cup. “I guess Xiaoye is talking about Feng Yangxi, right? I don’t call him Murong Yangxi because I want Yongye to know that I’m not a fool.” “Yes, Feng Yangxi is Murong Yangxi. The marriage that Father arranged with the current Emperor Emeritus of Qi only said that Yongye would marry the Crown Prince of Qi. Now that the Crown Prince has changed, Murong Yangxi has become the Crown Prince, so naturally Yongye is marrying him.” Yongye explained calmly, though she couldn’t help feeling a little annoyed. She always felt that Li Tianyou knew something. Was he still not giving up? When she told her father that she would rather marry Li Tianyou, it was just an angry outburst. Once the thought of marrying him arose, Yongye suddenly felt like she was being burned alive.

Tianyou stared intently at the plum blossoms, then smiled and said, “I am actually a very suspicious person. According to Xiaoye, she has already married Murong Yangxi, but how could the empress of a nation suddenly leave the palace? Xiaoye once got lost in the capital, and I heard that the courtyard behind the main gate where she lived was flooded. And since that day, checkpoints have been set up at the four gates of the capital to check people, and the methods are very strange…” His gaze intentionally or unintentionally swept over Yongye's feet, “Why don't you take off your shoes to verify their authenticity?” Yongye's face flushed instantly. She stood up, slightly annoyed, and said, “It's probably inconvenient for Your Majesty to see Yongye's feet. The plum blossoms are fine. Yongye has been outside for too long and feels cold and unwell, so I'll take my leave.” Tianyou remained seated, the crimson of Qingzhou shimmering in the white porcelain cup like a ball of fire. He quietly said, “Actually, Xiaoye has never truly loved me, has she?” Yongye shuddered, her hair standing on end uncontrollably. Knowing Li Tianyou's character, angering him would be disastrous. She straightened her back and said, "Even if it were true, it can't be true. Doesn't Your Majesty understand?" Tianyou shook his head and said, "If it were true, it wouldn't be forbidden. You didn't marry Murong Yangxi at all." "Not marrying doesn't mean I won't marry. I'm just upset about this, so I thought I'd come back to stay for a while." "Hehe, Xiaoye, you're very smart. There's no point in forcing you. It's just that sometimes, when I sit here, I keep thinking about the times we spent together. If you have nowhere to go, marry me, and I'll cherish you for the rest of my life. Since he's willing to let you come back, does he really have you in his heart?" Li Tianyou chose to let go. Since Feng Yangxi was Murong Yangxi, and they were engaged five years ago, he wouldn't make a strong enemy for Yongye's sake. However, if Yongye insisted, he wouldn't mind taking her as a concubine.

Li Tianyou's words made Yongye stop in his tracks. Yongye lowered his head sadly, wanting to say something but ultimately remaining silent, and strode away.

The footsteps faded, and Tianyou sighed, walking into the depths of the plum grove with his hands behind his back. A glimpse of a pale yellow robe flashed by. Tianyou smiled slightly, standing before Luoyu before she could dodge, and said teasingly, "Didn't the Empress say she was afraid of the cold and didn't want to accompany me to admire the plum blossoms?" Luoyu lowered her head, her face shrouded in the cloak as if she wanted to shrink into it. Tianyou chuckled and embraced her, "You're all frozen solid, let's go back to the palace. I'm quite interested in your elder brother whom I've never met since childhood, Empress, would you mind telling me about him..." Snow fell without warning, and when they woke up in the morning, the area outside Wanyu Courtyard was covered in a blanket of white.

Yongye took a jar to sweep up the snow from the plum blossoms. He thought of Mr. Beauty and the scene when he first came to the palace from Youli Valley. He lost all interest and lazily hugged his fur coat and the warm stove to admire the plum blossoms.

Yin'er warmed her hands to try and persuade her to come inside, but Yongye lazily said, "The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold; the colder it is, the more fragrant they become. To appreciate plum blossoms, the colder it is, the better." "But... you'll catch a cold," Yin'er sighed.

Just as Yongye was about to answer, the princess's voice came from the courtyard gate: "Yongye, I heard that the old plum blossoms at Kaibao Temple are in excellent bloom. How about we go to offer incense and admire the plum blossoms?" "Okay." Yongye thought of Qiangwei; she should go see her too.

Yishan was covered in a blanket of snow, and Kaibao Temple seemed rather deserted. Some grains of rice were scattered at the entrance of the clean temple, a gift for the sparrows. The little creatures chirped and chattered noisily, creating a lively scene.

Yongye lit three incense sticks in front of the longevity tablet for the rose and silently told her that the underworld is not scary. As long as you don't pick flowers or gather herbs, you can forget the suffering of this life by drinking Meng Po soup.

"Miss." Li Er stood quietly behind her and called out to her worriedly when he saw Yongye crying.

Yongye wiped away her tears and smiled. "Uncle Shadow, could you take me somewhere?" Li Er nodded.

After informing the Princess, Yongye and Li Er arrived at the Yishan Stone Platform. The winter sun shone on the snow, and Yongye recalled the words Li Yannian had spoken when he left the small building, gazing at the snowy landscape: "The land is like a painting!" The land that Li Yannian longed for could only give him a handful of yellow earth on the outskirts of the capital. However, he still had Lancui by his side.

The biting wind in the valley ruffled the white fox fur around Yongye's neck. She gazed down at the valley below, thinking of that bamboo house.

“Yongye, since you call me uncle, I must say a few words in his defense…” Yongye interrupted him: “No need. He’s hiding in the shadows, just wanting to see what kind of marriage he’s arranged for him. He’s only using me for his Great Qi empire, for his grand plan to destroy Youli Valley!” “Actually, that year, when you went to see Old Man Wang who sells noodles and he discovered you, I secretly saved you. I recognized his swordsmanship. I didn’t know he was the son of the Emperor Emeritus, and he didn’t know your identity either,” Li Er said slowly.

Yongye gazed at the distant sea of clouds, tinged with a golden hue by the sunlight, and whispered, "That was eight years ago. He knew five years ago." "Listen to me, Yongye. It was at the beginning of the year when I went to Prince You's mansion to rescue Yuepo. I brought Yuepo out of the river, and he saw me on the riverbank and recognized me. That's when he realized you were the Star Soul he was looking for. Before, he only knew you were a woman, not that you were a Star Soul, but even knowing that, he didn't intend to kill you. When you went to Chen, he told me to leave, saying he would stay by your side and that he had always liked you. Going to Chen was because he genuinely wanted to protect you, afraid you couldn't defeat Yi Zhongtian." Yongye recalled the scene in Chen where she instigated Feng Yangxi to fight against Yi Zhongtian, using her cleverness. She thought she had deceived him, but he had been watching her act all along, and the embarrassment welled up in her heart again.

Li Er sighed, "He returned from Chen with severe injuries, and it took him ten days for his fever to subside. I knew it was you who stabbed him in the back when I saw that knife." "Yes, I stabbed him in the back. Why didn't I finish him off? It would have saved us from another menace!" Yongye murmured.

If she had killed him back then, she wouldn't be in so much pain. She thought he was the honest and kind-hearted hero she admired, the one who gave her a sense of security, but in the blink of an eye, he turned out to be the one who schemed against her. How could she bear this? Li Er smiled gently, "He said the same thing back then." "Huh?" Yongye didn't quite understand.

“I saw that knife and was afraid he hated you, so I tried to persuade him. He said you didn't stab him again, that you still had feelings for him.” Yongye was shocked; he was delirious. Did she have feelings for him? Yongye recalled the scene in the bamboo house by Sunset Lake. Her hand gently pressed to her lips; his beard prickled her, but she didn't get angry, she just stared blankly…

"When you came to the capital, he came to pick you up. You dressed as a man for that person... He was heartbroken. He had originally planned to tell you the truth once you arrived in the capital. The weather was scorching, and the journey was inconvenient, so as soon as we arrived at the post station, he ordered ice to be prepared for you to cool you down. Yihong and Commandant Lin were rescued on the way back to Qi. He was already seriously injured at the time. His Highness Yan originally didn't want to cause trouble, but he said that your personal maid and guards couldn't be left unrestrained. Along the way, he kept instructing His Highness Yan to try and get information out of Yihong, simply because he wanted to know more about your hobbies." Li Er wished he could pour out all of Feng Yangxi's deep affection at once.

Yongye closed her eyes, why did the bitterness in her heart grow heavier? She interrupted Li Er with a low growl: "He still refuses to say that he is the man I'm betrothed to!" "Yongye, are you willing to go to the palace? He can't be sure of your feelings, and if he tells you rashly, you'll only run further away from him. You left the post station and lived in the alley with that man; he actually wanted to grant your wish, if he hadn't discovered that the man was actually quite skilled in martial arts. He just wanted you to see things more clearly. Besides, even if he told you, would you believe him?" Yuepo's deception stabbed Yongye's heart like a knife once again. But on the mountain in Fubao Town, she no longer hated him. It was a sorrow that cut to the bone, a calamity she couldn't avoid.

She understood Yuepo, but the presence of Qiangwei and his mother separated her from him, preventing her from getting close to Yuepo again.

Between them stood people neither of them could face, and their hearts gradually drifted apart. Besides, there was someone else in their hearts. It was that simple.

Seeing her staring at the valley with a somber expression, Li Er couldn't help but say, "The Emperor Emeritus deliberately imprisoned him in the Heavenly Prison. If he still didn't agree to succeed to the throne, you would really have to marry Prince Yan. That's why he agreed to become the Crown Prince. He originally intended to let things slide and explain to you after you entered the palace, but unexpectedly, Youli Valley broke into the Heavenly Prison. Don't blame him; he kept quiet because he wanted to take you far away." Yongye remained noncommittal, taking a deep breath as she looked at the valley and said, "Uncle Shadow, take me to the bottom of the valley." Li Er looked down and asked in confusion, "What's at the bottom of the valley?" Yongye looked at the bottom of the valley and said as if in a dream, "My former home." Li Er didn't understand, but still carried Yongye and rushed towards the bottom of the valley.

"Home?" A gust of wind blew through the woods beside the stone platform. He gritted his teeth, watching Yongye and Li Er leave, trembling with rage. Did she truly only have Yuepo in her heart? No matter how Li Er explained, she refused to listen or believe, simply because she could never forget the person who had fled to the deep mountains? With the affairs of state somewhat settled, he received a letter from Prince Duan and immediately and secretly came to Anguo, having the Queen invite Yongye to this place, only to hear this? She had no longing for him, no affection whatsoever.

Feng Yangxi recalled the countless days and nights he spent hiding in the alley, fearing for her safety, yet she and Yuepo were deeply in love. He wanted her to see Yuepo's true identity for herself and didn't stop her from entering the An family, but she thought he was using her.

She's been gone for over three months, hasn't she figured it out yet? Feng Yangxi's eyes flashed with icy coldness. Given her condition, what wouldn't he do? He hadn't told her the truth; he had always hesitated. If Yongye truly didn't like him, he didn't want to force it. He silently stayed by her side, giving her freedom and space, dispelling her suspicions and concerns, wanting to win her heart. But what had he received in return? A cold wind swept over him, and Feng Yangxi stroked his chin, a cunning smile playing on his lips.

The snow was knee-deep. Yongye stepped down and struggled to pull herself up. In the past, her light-footed skills allowed her to walk through the snow without leaving a trace, but now she could only trudge through the snow, one step at a time.

Li Er wanted to use his light-footed skills to take her there, but Yongye refused.

She recalled Feng Yangxi's teasing smile when she ran away from Li Yannian that day. He looked at her with a smile and said, "Does a god have to walk dozens of miles of mountain road with one stumbling step to feel comfortable?" Yongye walked with difficulty at the bottom of the valley in a huff. She didn't dare to show off her skills then, and now she didn't have any skills. She felt wronged without realizing it.

The roof of the bamboo house was covered with glistening snow. Yongye blew on his hands, pushed open the door, and went inside.