"What do you want to say?" Luo Cuiwei did not turn around.
“Although I don’t know why you ultimately didn’t take any action, I guess His Highness Prince Zhao probably doesn’t know your initial plans,” Huang Jingru said with a hint of smugness in her laughter. “If he knew the truth, would your upcoming wedding still be possible?”
Luo Cuiwei frowned slightly and did not respond.
"Now, all the noble families in the capital are saying, 'If you're going to marry, marry Luo Cuiwei.' But if people knew how ruthless your initial scheme was, how you didn't even consider the catastrophic quagmire that would drag the Prince Zhao's mansion and the Linchuan army into if it succeeded..."
Huang Jingru turned around and looked at her stiff back, her smile complicated, "Even if the wedding goes ahead as planned, will His Highness Prince Zhao still treat you the same as before?"
“You, Miss Huang, never do anything without a reason,” Luo Cuiwei turned around and stared at her expressionlessly. “What good will this do you?”
“Among my peers among the merchants in the capital, the only opponent I could respect was you, Luo Cuiwei,” Huang Jingru said frankly. “I need to prevent you from becoming the Princess Consort of Zhao before I can bring you back to the battlefield where we are facing off.”
"I am honored by your high regard. I must have been a bad person for ten lifetimes to have become an opponent whom you value."
Luo Cuiwei chuckled and walked away.
****
After leaving the Xu family mansion, Luo Cuiwei told Xiahou Ling to return to the Luo family first, while she herself took a carriage back to the Prince Zhao's residence.
Once inside the carriage, Luo Cuiwei was taken aback to see Yun Lie lounging lazily on the couch.
Why are you here?
Perhaps Huang Jingru's previous unreasonable words had made her a little flustered. She suppressed her slight helplessness, walked over and sat down next to Yun Lie, snuggling into his arms.
Flattered by her rare initiative, Yun Lie hugged her back and joked, "You made the first move..."
Luo Cuiwei looked up at him without saying a word, and a layer of inexplicable moisture gradually rose in her eyes.
"I haven't even said I'm asking you for twenty cartloads of grain," Yun Lie panicked, quickly stopping his teasing, awkwardly tightening his grip on her arm, and patting her back reassuringly, "Were you bullied at the Xu family?"
Luo Cuiwei stared blankly at his unconsciously gentle expression, a pang of bitterness and pain gripping her chest.
She knew very well that if the story reached Yun Lie through Huang Jingru, he would probably embellish it and twist the truth. It was better to be honest herself to avoid future troubles.
But when the words reached her lips, it was as if something was stuck in her throat, and she just couldn't say them.
In fact, Huang Jingru was right about something she said earlier. When she was planning to use Linchuan as a route, she was very clear about the trouble that would bring to the Prince Zhao's Mansion and the Linchuan Army if the plan were exposed.
But at that time, Yun Lie was just someone she could leverage for mutual benefit; she truly didn't care about his life or death.
Although she later realized her mistake and stopped, and did not actually do it, her initial intentions were indeed improper.
If Yunlie knew the cold-blooded malice and scheming behind her initial approach, she wasn't sure if he would still embrace her with such tenderness.
Recalling the past between the two of them, she couldn't help but feel a self-deprecating sense of self-mockery, realizing that ever since they met, her unusual weakness, confusion, and panic all seemed to have been caused by him.
"Grandma Xu gave me a huge plate of pea flour cakes," she said, tears streaming down her face. "She wouldn't even give me a sip of tea; it was too sweet."
Hearing her recount such a trivial matter, Yun Lie felt relieved, feeling both annoyed and amused.
He gently stroked her cheek with his large hand, wiping away her tears with his thumb, and said with heartache, "Are you silly? Why didn't you just tell someone you couldn't eat?"
“The old man…” She climbed up, holding onto his arm, wiped her face, and let out a long sigh.
She thought that explaining that matter clearly wouldn't be something that could be done in just a few words, so she decided to wait until she returned to Prince Zhao's residence to discuss it further.
Perhaps noticing her dazed expression, Yun Lie's brow furrowed, and he leaned closer with a sly smile, teasing her, "I have a way to help you cut through the sweetness, as long as you agree not to deduct five cartloads of grain from my pay."
Those thin lips slowly drew closer, their warm breath carrying a faint scent of medicinal ointment, causing Luo Cuiwei's long eyelashes to tremble.
"Okay, no deduction." Luo Cuiwei, like a warrior facing death, her cheeks flushed like the sunset, readily agreed.
Her unusual reaction made Yun Lie's heart sink again. Knowing that she was stubborn, he knew he wouldn't be able to figure out why she was troubled for a while. So he became fierce and used his lips and tongue to entwine with hers.
----2018/3/15 19:17:33|52219371----
48. Chapter Forty-Eight
Perhaps because they were both filled with unease, and because they hid that unease in their kisses and entanglements, the scene became much more out of control than before.
It's unclear who started it, but the two passionate bodies unknowingly became entwined, their bodies intertwined like two strands of yarn, inseparable.
If Luo Cuiwei hadn't been so distracted that she accidentally touched Yun Lie's wound, things might have gotten out of control.
When the carriage returned to the Prince Zhao's residence and stopped, Luo Cuiwei stared intently at her disheveled and slightly open clothes, her face flushed, speechless with emotion.
She really couldn't bear to shift the blame onto Yun Lie alone, after all, she was truly an "accomplice" this time.
Seeing her glaring at his clothes, Yun Lie figured she was probably annoyed, so he quickly calmed himself down, lowered his eyes, and weakly protested, "I was just worried you'd get hot, so I loosened it a bit for you..."
Luo Cuiwei rolled her eyes at him sheepishly, lowered her head to straighten her clothes, and muttered with a sullen laugh, "Well, thank you so much."
It's easy to tidy up messy clothes, but Luo Cuiwei's swollen, luscious lips, her flushed cheeks, and her alluring eyes... those are things that can't be hidden away in a short time.
Although there was no mirror on the carriage, she could still imagine what she looked like at that moment.
“You go down first,” she said desperately, raising her sleeve to cover her flushed face. “I probably need a bit of courage to step out of this carriage.”
We'll have to cover our faces when we go out; that's the decision.
Yun Lie chuckled and grabbed her hand, dragging her out without a word. Then, amidst her soft gasp, he pressed her head into his chest, picked her up, and carried her away.
What a joke! How could he let anyone see her looking so alluring and charming right now?