Chapter 51: The Grand Wedding

“Has he said when?”

“Tomorrow noon at the tea house.”

Rou’er silently left the room and disappeared. Jun Huang sat on the bed, her head filled with thoughts.

She couldn’t sleep, so she brought a teapot and cup to the backyard. Above her was a stream of bright stars. The wind made her shudder. Jun Huang didn’t have a robe with her, and she was dressed in only a thin layer of clothes.

Under the moonlight, she poured herself a cup of tea and started drinking. Her face was obscured in the dark.

She drank the tea like she would wine. She wasn’t drunk, but her mind was falling into slumber. Supporting her head with a hand, she shifted her gaze to the tea inside her cup. But her heart was somewhere else, somewhere far, far away.

Late at night, Wei Qian woke up and saw Jun Huang drinking tea alone in the backyard. She was just about to tell Jun Huang to go get some rest when she saw the expression on Jun Huang’s moonlit face. She looked so sorrowful that Wei Qian didn’t dare approach her. So she watched from afar.

Jun Huang drank until the sun had risen. She finished the pot of tea. When she turned around she saw Wei Qian looking at her. Hurriedly, Wei Qian looked away. Jun Huang shrugged and went into her bedroom to change.

Afterwards, she left the manor for the tea house. When she arrived, Qi Yun had already been waiting for quite a while. Jun Huang was a little surprised. Qi Yun had never been so eager to meet her before.

Qi Yun came up to her with a frown and went straight to the point. “You said you wanted to help me, Jun Huang, but why did you let second brother marry Nan Guyue? You must know that after they get married, Qi Chen will gain considerable support.”

Jun Huang could see how anxious he was. She sighed. “Of course you’d ask me about that. I thought you’d understand me.”

“I don’t understand, Jun Huang. You don’t make it easy to do so.”

Jun Huang let out a quiet laugh. Qi Yun didn’t know what she was thinking. She took a deep breath and said in a cool tone, “I told you I never do things without reason. I thought you knew me the best, but still you suspect me. I suppose I’m too naive.”

“You know that’s not what I meant,” Qi Yun quietly said, his expression pained as he looked at Jun Huang. “I just don’t understand why you’re helping Qi Chen now.”

They had known each other for decades. They could read each other well.

When Nan Guyue entered the manor wearing a phoenix cap surrounded by a group of maids, Wei Lanying balled up her handkerchief with a dark expression. Her maid could see how bitter she was feeling. If looks could kill, Nan Guyue would have been dead.

Wei Lanying believed that the only reason Qi Chen favored Nan Guyue was because she was a princess. Otherwise, Qi Chen would never spare her a glance. She had neither talents nor character. In a few days, Qi Chen would be tired of her.

The maid couldn’t help but ask, “Are we going to just let that princess come into the manor, Lady Wei?” Some questions only serve to add insult to injury. They forced you to face the cold hard truth you had been trying to ignore.

Wei Lanying clenched her teeth, her nails biting deep into her palms. The anger in her heart was so strong she couldn’t feel the pain.

It took a long while for her to calm down. She looked around. This wedding was grand, but it was not hers. “What am I supposed to do?” she said bitterly. “The prince was determined to marry her. I can only let him. That’s the only way for me to stay here. I only have myself to blame getting married into the royal family. This is the way it is. I can’t blame my luck. I can’t blame him for being heartless.”

The maid felt even more disgruntled. The prideful woman was reduced to this by the reality. She felt sorry for her.

“Don’t say that, Lady Wei. The prince married you because he knew you were a good woman. He’s just blindsided by another woman.”

Wei Lanying didn’t want to see Nan Guyue in the manor. She didn’t want to see Qi Chen proudly taking Nan Guyue as his wife. She took a deep breath and turned around. At this moment, she was more aware of her own thoughts than she had ever been.

Her loneliness was in stark contrast with the lively energy on the other side of the manor. Nan Guyue was no ordinary woman. The moment she stepped into the manor, she excitedly took down the red veil over her face and looked around. Only when she saw Qi Chen did her expression turn shy.

Jun Huang saw everything. She walked up to her with a smile. “The princess is truly one of a kind.”