Quand l'amour approche, c'est comme la neige

Chapitre 114

Prince Duan pinched Yongye's face and said affectionately, "It's good that you're back. You've lost weight. Go back and rest. After this busy month, your father will talk to you in detail." He then shut Yongye out of the door again.

Yongye sighed, staring at the tightly closed door with a puzzled look. Could it be related to her? She returned to Wanyu Courtyard, and when Yin'er saw her return, tears welled up in her eyes.

"Don't cry, we will find Yihong."

"Miss!" Yin'er cried even louder.

Yongye was stunned for a moment, then asked incredulously, "What did you call me?"

"His Highness and Princess Consort have instructed that from now on, you must not call me 'Young Master' anymore; you can only call me 'Miss'!"

Yongye suddenly had a headache. Ignoring everything else, he rushed to the inner courtyard and pounded on the door: "Open the door! Open the door!"

Prince Duan, dressed only in his undergarments, opened the door in a fit of rage: "You little brat, what is it now?"

Yongye crouched down and entered the room, took off his shoes and outer robe, and quickly slipped into the princess's bed: "Mother, I want to sleep with you." He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Prince Duan was both amused and exasperated, and surrendered, saying, "Princess Luoyu of Qi."

Yongye laughed heartily: "The late emperor was wise! So he found such a powerful backer for Emperor Li!"

"Yongye, the matter is settled. You must revert to your female identity. The Emperor has bestowed upon you the title of Princess Yong'an." The Princess Consort smiled. Her long-cherished wish had finally come true. She stroked Yongye's long hair and coaxed, "Mother has prepared many beautiful clothes and jewelry. You can look at them slowly tomorrow."

Yongye felt relieved and finally free from entanglement with Li Tianyou. She felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction. All her scheming over the years suddenly vanished. A wave of weariness washed over her, and she hummed in agreement before falling asleep.

The princess looked up and saw Prince Duan standing blankly in the room, wearing only his undergarments. She chuckled softly, moved aside, and said, "Let's sleep like this as a family of three tonight."

A gentle smile appeared on Prince Duan's face. He got into bed, glanced at Yongye a few more times, and then blew out the candles and went to sleep.

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A variety of garments, including a pink diamond-patterned ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), a bright blue honeysuckle ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), a rushan (a type of traditional Chinese dress) with vermilion bird and gold embroidery, a light green silk skirt with scattered floral patterns, a colorful double-breasted narrow-sleeved blouse, a high-waisted pomegranate-patterned long skirt… narrow-sleeved and wide-sleeved ruqun, and waist-length dresses, were held in the hands of the maids. Yongye, yawning, was pulled into the hall by the princess. She glanced at them, somewhat dazed. The inner courtyard of the palace was indeed large enough; more accurately, the courtyard itself was large enough. Yongye followed the princess past the maids as if admiring flowers.

"Yongye, this is beautiful. It complements your skin tone perfectly. It makes you look not just fair, but radiantly fair!"

"And this one? The blouse is fitted, and the cinched waist makes her figure even more graceful!"

"Do you like this? Your favorite purple! This purple, flowing floral dress paired with a white, wide-sleeved top is just so comfortable!"

Today is the happiest day of all these years for the princess. She summoned thirty maids to present the clothes to Yongye.

"Mother, stop fussing. I want to go to the prison to see Lan Cui!" Yong Ye smiled, walked around, and after she finished looking around, she knew it was time to get down to business.

"Eternal Night!" the princess cried out angrily, her eyelids already brimming with tears in the blink of an eye. "I... I've finally waited for this day!"

Yongye sighed, walked up to a maid, and used two fingers to pick up a thin piece of silk to examine it.

In early May, these brightly colored clothes were almost all made of the softest, lightest fabrics. Yongye thought maliciously, "Are they worn specifically to seduce men?"

She glanced back at the princess.

The princess immediately said angrily, "Your father said that you can only leave the palace after the affairs in the palace are finished. Before Li Yannian is captured, I will not allow you to step out of the palace again."

“Then I won’t go out.” Yongye cooperated readily. “I’m going back to Wanyu Courtyard!”

"No! You must change into men's clothing!" the princess insisted.

Yongye said helplessly, "I'm used to wearing men's clothes."

"You're only going to change once, just for me to see? Just for me to see? All of you, get out!" The princess stared longingly at Yongye. She had never seen Yongye dressed as a woman before.

Suddenly, Yongye thought of Yuepo. He had asked if he would be the first to see her after she changed into women's clothing. For some reason, a bittersweet feeling welled up inside her, and she fell silent.

"Eternal Night?" The princess, sensing something was amiss, called out to her cautiously.

Raising his head, Yongye forced a smile: "I heard that the Emperor has changed my title to Princess Yong'an, so I no longer need to wear the title of Crown Prince. I'm not used to wearing women's clothes, so I'll change into them later."

The princess sighed and put her arm around her. Her status had been restored; if she didn't have to change her clothes, so be it. She would change them eventually. The princess couldn't help but feel happy again at the thought that Yongye would now be a princess: "I'll go cook you something delicious!"

Yongye glanced indifferently at the clothes and jewelry filling the room. From this moment on, she was a princess, no longer a prince, no longer the Marquis of Yong'an, and no longer the assassin Xinghun. A room with carved beams and painted rafters, fine clothes and sumptuous food. Why did she always feel so empty inside?

After being reincarnated as a human, she had to survive and adapt. Then came a series of conspiracies, and constant tension. Twelve or thirteen of the eighteen years passed like this. What should she do next?

It's May, and the courtyard is lush and green. Yongye lies idly on the soft couch.

"Miss, would you like to change your clothes and have some fun?" Yin'er asked softly. Although the princess always dressed as a man, she thought the princess would definitely like those beautiful clothes.

She wanted to, but she wanted Yuepo to see it first. Yongye remembered Yuepo's words and the ten days in the mountains. A glint of light flashed in her eyes. She thought mockingly, "How could I not find anything to do? I've encountered such a fun thing! And now there's Li Yannian still eyeing me covetously?"

Li Yannian is no match for his father, nor for Li Tianyou. Unless he goes into hiding and remains anonymous, he will only be captured and killed.

Yongye had previously thought that Li Tianyou would spare the Crown Prince's life and simply place him under house arrest. Unexpectedly, Li Tianyou showed no mercy to Tianrui, swiftly and decisively eliminating him completely. She shook her head and sighed, recalling her first encounter with Li Tianrui. Back then, Tianrui was arrogant and treacherous; he was probably the most wronged person among them.

The victor is king, the loser is villain; he can only blame his fate.

He truly loved Rose. She was probably the most important person in Tianrui's life.

Where in Kyoto is Li Yan hiding right now? Yongye pondered for a long time, and seeing Yin'er standing by his side, he smiled and said, "Go to the manor's ice cellar and bring me the jar of plum blossom snow that I hid in during the winter. I want to brew some tea."

After sending Yin'er away, Yongye got up and left Wanyu Courtyard.

The alley west of the Prince's Mansion is inhabited by the mansion's married servants and guards. Li Yannian and Lan Cui's courtyard is located here. Nowadays, soldiers guard every ten steps or so, checking waist tokens before allowing passage.

Yongye walked into the alley with her hands behind her back. A guard clasped his hands in salute: "Princess, I am ordered to guard this alley. His Highness has ordered that if Li the thief shows up and resists, he shall be killed."

Yongye nodded and instructed, "You don't need to follow me. I want to sit in his courtyard for a while."

The courtyard gate was tightly shut. Inside, the large locust tree was lush and verdant, with clusters of pure white blossoms nestled among the green leaves, their fragrance intoxicating. Yongye removed the seal from the gate, pushed open the wooden door, and went inside.