Li Yunrui's smile froze on her lips.
She slowly released Lin Wan'er's hand and straightened.
"Didn't you always want to call off the engagement?" Her voice remained gentle, but its warmth had vanished. "Have you... changed your mind?"
Lin Wan'er lowered her head.
"...There was a misunderstanding before."
"A misunderstanding? With Fan Xian?"
Lin Wan'er bowed her head even lower.
"...Yes."
Silence fell over the hall for a moment.
"If you've cleared up the misunderstanding, you must have seen Fan Xian. How did you meet him?"
Lin Wan'er hesitated, raised her eyes for a fleeting glance at Li Yunrui, then lowered them again. She answered honestly, "Third Brother arranged for me to meet Fan Xian."
"Li Chengcheng?" Li Yunrui's tone changed almost instantly.
"Yes. What's wrong, Mother?"
Li Yunrui quickly concealed her lapse in composure.
"Nothing, nothing. I'm just a little surprised. You two never seemed to have much contact before."
"We haven't," Lin Wan'er said softly. "The last time we met was a chance encounter at the Heir of Prince Jing's Poetry Gathering."
Li Yunrui fell silent for a moment, then a faint smile curved her lips.
"Tell me how Chengcheng arranged your meeting with Fan Xian."
Lin Wan'er nodded and recounted the previous day's events as briefly as she could.
Li Yunrui looked utterly speechless. "You're saying he had Fan Xian write an Engagement Cancellation Letter, then arranged for you to meet him?"
Lin Wan'er nodded.
Li Yunrui said nothing, but inwardly seethed.
Is he out of his mind?!
Though Lin Wan'er had put it delicately, how could she fail to hear that her daughter and Fan Xian were in love?
She looked at the faint blush on her daughter's face, at the joy that could not be hidden in those clear eyes.
Suddenly, she felt tired.
If Lin Wan'er had never met Fan Xian, she could simply have disposed of the boy. Clean, decisive, and over for good.
But now-
If she disposed of Fan Xian now, Lin Wan'er would inevitably be heartbroken.
Li Yunrui closed her eyes briefly, then opened them.
"So you don't want to call off the engagement, Wan'er?"
Lin Wan'er blushed.
She gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Li Yunrui drew a deep breath and took Lin Wan'er's hand. Forcing a weary yet gentle smile onto her face, she softly patted the back of her hand.
"That's good, then." Her voice was gentle and relieved. "It saves your mother from having to worry about it any longer."
Lin Wan'er raised her eyes, a cautious guilt lingering in them.
"I've put you in a difficult position, Mother." She paused, her voice tightening. "Did you... go to the palace just now?"
Li Yunrui's smile faltered slightly.
Then she sighed softly, letting just the right amount of chagrin enter her voice.
"Yes. I intended to help you call off the engagement."
She shook her head as though mocking herself.
"But when I reached the Imperial Study, I realized I'd left in such a hurry that I'd forgotten the Engagement Cancellation Letter. There was nothing for it but to come back."
She paused, smiled again, and reached out to smooth the stray hair at Lin Wan'er's temple.
"It's fortunate I was careless this time. If I'd actually called off the engagement, wouldn't you have resented your mother for the rest of your life?"
Lin Wan'er froze for a moment.
Then her clear eyes lit with a look of relieved delight that almost spilled over.
She gently clasped Li Yunrui's hand, her voice as soft as the first snowmelt of spring.
"Mother... what about the Engagement Cancellation Letter?"
Li Yunrui patted the back of her hand.
"Don't worry," she said warmly. "I'll have someone burn it shortly."
She paused, then gave a soft little huff, her tone carrying a mother's particular brand of criticism.
"Speaking of which, Fan Xian writes excellent poetry, but his handwriting..." She shook her head, looking as though she could hardly bear to see it. "It's truly an eyesore. When you have time, make sure you push him to practice. A commandery princess's husband writing like that would disgrace our imperial family if word got out."
Lin Wan'er's ears flushed crimson. Biting her lip, she nodded vigorously.
Mother and daughter chatted privately for a while longer. Most of it consisted of Li Yunrui's careful reminders: "Your health comes first," "Don't keep going out," and "Remember to dress warmly when it gets cold." Lin Wan'er agreed to each one, as docile as a little deer.
When she rose to leave, her steps were noticeably lighter.
Li Yunrui stood at the entrance to the hall, watching her daughter's figure disappear at the far end of the palace path.
The moment Lin Wan'er left, her expression darkened.
"That damned Li Chengcheng, jumping back and forth, hedging his bets on both sides! Does he take me for a fool? He deserves to die!"
Meanwhile, after his meal, Zhou Cheng changed clothes and took Sang Wen around to familiarize her with the household's affairs, intending to train her as the chief steward of the inner household.
Then he suddenly heard-
[Negative emotions from Li Yunrui +233!]
Zhou Cheng paused at the notification.
It had been quite some time since he had received such a large amount of negative emotions from this woman. Usually, it was...
"What's gotten into her?" he muttered. "I only satisfied her yesterday, and she's already this resentful today. Is that woman out of her mind?"
Chapter 26: Ye Linger
The Imperial Villa.
It was a garden tucked away in the eastern corner of the imperial city, a quiet retreat amid the bustle, and private property bestowed upon Lin Wan'er by Emperor Qing when she was granted the title of Dawn Commandery Princess.
The garden was small, but exquisitely designed.
Rockeries built from Taihu stones were delicate and intricately hollowed. A stream drawn from Jade Spring outside the city wound beneath the covered walkways, while koi slowly waved their tails among the water-lily leaves.
Several Chinese crabapple trees beside the walkway were in full bloom. A breeze sent their pink-and-white petals fluttering to the ground, laying down a thin, soft blanket of fragrant snow.
Dressed in a plain white jacket and skirt, Lin Wan'er sat beneath the covered walkway, the wildly popular Red Chamber lying open halfway across her knees.
She was not reading.
She was listening to the girl in red beside her grumble on and on.
The girl was nothing like an ordinary young lady of good breeding.
She wore neither a jacket and skirt nor dangling jade ornaments. Her fiery red martial outfit defined a trim waist, its cuffs tightly fastened and fitted with cotton wrist guards. Her hair was not arranged in any elaborate style, either, but pulled into a high ponytail with an ebony hairpin thrust through it. Everything about her was neat, brisk, and full of martial spirit.
This was Lin Wan'er's close friend, Ye Linger-the woman Emperor Qing had chosen to be Zhou Cheng's principal wife.
"Why should I?!" Ye Linger curled up on the armrest beside Lin Wan'er, her chin resting on her bent knees and her face scrunched up. "Why should I have to marry the Third Prince? I've barely seen him a handful of times, and we've never even spoken! Yes, I know he's a prince, but so what? If I don't like him, I don't like him!"
The more she spoke, the angrier she became. She snatched the teacup from the stone table before her, gulped down half its contents, then set it down with a thunk. A few drops splashed out, spreading into little dark spots on the bluestone tabletop.
"Ah, life really is unpredictable! Just a few days ago, I was worrying about you, and then, in the blink of an eye-" She abruptly straightened and spread both hands. "An imperial marriage decree smacked me right in the face!"
Lin Wan'er gently closed the book on her knees. Her fingertips stroked the embossed pattern on its cover as she chose her words.
"Actually... Third Brother... might not be as bad as the rumors say. Some of those stories may not be true."
She had wanted to put in a few good words for Zhou Cheng, but when it came to it, she simply could not speak against her conscience.
"See! Even you only said he 'might' not be that bad!" Ye Linger saw through her guilty hesitation at once and began counting off his faults on her fingers.
"It's true that Li Chengcheng is mixed up with that Top Courtesan from the Drunken Immortal Residence, isn't it? And that woman following him around at the Poetry Gathering a few days ago-didn't she come from a brothel too? Never mind what he did before. Aren't those recent examples bad enough?"
Lin Wan'er pressed her lips together.
She could not refute it. She had seen Sang Wen following Zhou Cheng at the Poetry Gathering with her own eyes. As for Si Lili, Fan Xian had gotten into serious trouble because of that woman.
"Ah..."
Ye Linger let out a long sigh. Like a deflated ball, she flopped forward and buried her face in Lin Wan'er's lap, her muffled voice emerging from the folds of her skirt.
"Wan'er, why am I so unlucky?"
Lin Wan'er raised a hand and gently stroked the top of her head, over and over.
Ye Linger continued in a muffled voice, "You and Fan Xian have it so good. You fell in love at first sight, then discovered he was your fiancé. That kind of fate is straight out of a romance."
She suddenly tipped her face upward, her eyes sparkling with a young girl's longing.
"I want that kind of fate too. It doesn't have to be as perfect a coincidence as yours. Even half as good would do."
Lin Wan'er looked down at her, a bitter smile touching her lips.
"Fate... who can really explain it?" she said softly. "Things haven't all gone smoothly for Fan Xian and me, either. You know about that Engagement Cancellation Letter."
"But that was different!" Ye Linger immediately sat upright, looking as earnest as though she were arguing at court. "That was a misunderstanding. Fan Xian didn't know you were Drumstick Girl then, but he still dared to write an Engagement Cancellation Letter for you-giving up both a commandery princess and the Imperial Treasury. Wan'er, how many men in this world could do that?"
She paused, her voice falling, tinged with a hurt she did not even recognize herself.
"And Li Chengcheng? Forget being half as good to me as Fan Xian is to you. Even if he were only a tenth as good... I'd accept it."
But was that possible?
Lin Wan'er did not answer. She merely patted the back of her hand gently.
Before you continue