The Princess Wei Yang Chapter 80 part1

Chapter 80 Part 1: Tit for Tat

The

beautiful melody ended; Yan Zhi stood up, bowed and left silently.

Li Min De

suddenly stood up: “Sanjie, I have forgotten my cloak, I’ll go out and get it.”

His cloak

was obviously in the carriage, so how could he have forgotten? Li Weiyang was

curious; she wanted to know who Yan Zhi was, and why did she attract Li Min De’s

attention?

She did not

reveal any change in expression in front of the two princes, but gently smiled:

“Go ahead.”

Jiu Gongzhu

jumped up: “I’ll go with you!”

Unexpectedly,

she gave out a shrill scream at the next moment. Li Weiyang said

apologetically: “I am so sorry Princess, I did not do it on purpose.”

Li Weiyang

had spilt her teacup onto Jiu Gongzhu’s beautiful skirts.

Jiu Gongzhu pouted

her lips; her lips were so pouted that one could balance an oil lamp from it.

“You are so clumsy!” She was oblivious to the fact that Li Weiyang did this on

purpose to prevent her from following Li Min De.

She left the

room to change into new attire. Aside from the servants, the only three left in

the room had weird expressions on their faces.

Tuoba Zhen

suddenly laughed and said: “The three of us seem to have a special affinity.”

Indeed, it

was affinity, but an accursed affinity. Li

Weiyang laughed coldly and turned to look at the river. “What’s that?” she

suddenly asked.

Tuoba Yu

followed the direction of her gaze: “Oh, that’s Jade Peak Pagoda, built on an

island at the heart of the river. It is especially beautiful at night. If you’d

like, we could visit the island another day to take a look.”

Li Weiyang

had a small smile on her lips, and muttered in thought: “It is a good

location.” Her words had another hidden meaning in it.

Tuoba Zhen’s

eyes flashed and he stilled for a moment in surprise. He asked blandly: “What

do you mean by that?”

She looked

at him and replied with a smile: “The terrain is good. This river is formed by

the merging of the mountain stream and Hu Po Lake. If one were to cut a long

canal at lowest point the watershed where the two meet, he could split the

river into two and obtain easy control of ship navigation and irrigation of

crops. You see, isn’t it a good place?”

Tuoba Zhen’s

face changed. He did not know how Li Weiyang found out, but this was his

original plan, which he did not get the chance to start yet. If he executed it,

he would gain complete control over the two rivers’ transportation; his wealth

would increase immeasurably, far better than Tuoba Yu and the others. He was

however, unable to think of a plan to obtain this land without alerting others

of his scheme. He definitely could not allow anyone else to make the first

move. In shock, he immediately replied: “If this idea could work, why hadn’t

anyone done it so many years past?” Xianzhu shouldn’t think unrealistically, this

is merely empty talk.”

Li Weiyang

had a small smile upon her lips: “San Dianxia should know best if it is just my

wishful thinking. In the past, there was the famous Xian Yuan Yan; the river was

split into inner and outer sections, and the flow of the waters was controlled.

For this river, splitting it could not only prevent floodings, enable trades

and irrigation, there is still the massive and gorgeous Dong Jiang Bridge

spanning the banks. These should not have been possible by human hands and yet

they exist, so what else could be impossible!”

Tuoba Zhen’s

smile, which was originally on his face, had completely disappeared.

He suddenly

felt coldness all over.

Li Weiyang

met his eyes, and it was as if she understood what he was thinking, like she

even knew of the next step in his plan. Having seen a gaze like this, it was as

if he was doused in a sheet of cold water.

Tuoba Yu

deftly detected the tense atmosphere between the both of them, and just when he

was about to speak, someone outside spoke: “Jiu Gongzhu says that her stomach

hurt, and ran out from the window!”

This playful

girl! Tuoba Yu didn’t think of anything else; he stood up quickly and said:

“Xianzhu, please remain here, I’ll go out to look for her.”

Li Weiyang

gave a small smile: “Dianxia, Jiu Gongzhu must have gone to the carriage to

look for my San Di.”

Tuoba Yu

hestitated; he was not worried that Tuoba Zhen would have the guts do anything,

as this place was his territory after all. Just... was it really safe to leave Li

Weiyang here? “Pay attention to any movement in the room!” he ordered the

guards outside the door in a low voice.

Tuoba Yu

quickly went downstairs, and it was only Li Weiyang and Tuoba Zhen in the room

now. Li Weiyang stood up; she had no interest in sharing a table with such a

person.

Tuoba Zhen

suddenly said: “Xianzhu, have you ever heard of this story?”

Li Weiyang

turned to face him, her eyebrows quirking up. Tuoba Zhen poured himself a cup

of wine: “In the previous dynasty, there was a strong ruler who led his army

personally in the fight at the Southern Border. Sadly, after repeated attacks

and struggling to maintain the rear, many of his people tried to convince him to

retreat. Still, he insisted. The monarch paced up and down in front of his

tent, and wrote two words “Ji Lei1” in the sand. No one understood what it

meant, except for a smart man who immediately packed up and wanted to leave.

His comrades asked him why, and he replied: “The two words means that the food

is tasteless, but it seems like a pity to give up. Bixia is starting to

consider giving up, but he has yet to make a confirmed move. Since he

definitely will retreat, we should start off early. The others realised that he

had a point, and so started preparations as well. The emperor found out and was

shocked. What do you think he did to the smart man?”

鸡肋1 – Literally chicken ribs; used to

describe something as tasteless.

Li Weiyang

smiled: “I do not know what the ruler would have done, but I do know if it was

you, San Dianxia, you would definitely kill those people who are able to

speculate your intentions.”

Tuoba Zhen

did not even blink. “You are right. On the battleground, even before an order

is issued by the commander, the smart man tried to be clever and thus affected

the morale of the army. As a leader of the troops, only by killing the man

would he be able to demonstrate an example. Therefore, one should be smart, but

not too smart. One should not try to display her cleverness in front of others,

to prevent herself from getting killed. It would not be worth it.”

Li Weiyang

replied coldly: “Sorry, I do not have time to remain here to listen to

Dianxia’s stories.”

Tuoba Zhen downed

a cup of wine, a flash of coldness glinting in his eyes: “Li Weiyang, I was not

telling a story, I am recounting an actual event in history. History does tend to repeat itself; if you

were the smart man, do you think I would kill you?”

In the moment,

Li Weiyang saw the intention to kill in Tuoba Zhen’s eyes.

Tuoba Zhen

would definitely be panicking, because it was always his plan to cut the canal

in the future. Now that the Seventh Prince has found out, he would not be able

to carry it out. Li Weiyang knew of the huge impact her revelation would have

on Tuoba Zhen, but she did it anyway. Moreover, she did it right in his face,

just to make him angry.

Li Weiyang

felt like she was grabbing the scruff of a tiger's neck – filled with a sense

of achievement. Of course, it was a dangerous thing to do; a single misstep and

she could end up hurting herself.

She smiled

gently, her clear eyes dancing alight with sparks, and suddenly took two steps

forward. Her hands were folded on the table, and she faced Tuoba Zhen directly:

“San Dianxia, I’d advise you not to make any moves without careful

consideration, especially if you are thinking of killing me or harming the

people by my side. You definitely will regret making decision.”

Tuoba Zhen’s

voice froze like an iceberg: “Li Weiyang! Do you really not care for anything

at all?!”

Li Weiyang’s

lips curled: “Wrong, I care about much things, especially my own life. So

please do not scare me, San Dianxia, because I cannot stand to be frightened;

if I were to accidentally blurt out things I shouldn’t mention, I’m afraid that

San Dianxia would lose his head together with my own cheap existence!” She

released her grip, and turned around to leave.

Tuoba Zhen

totally could not believe it, he could not believe that Li Weiyang actually had

anything on him. He felt that she was just threatening him, scaring him, or

perhaps it was only a small spark of intelligence that just happened to let her

guess his plans with the river. He therefore, did not take this threat to mind,

and shot forward to block the door; her own exit route: “Li Weiyang! Stand

there!”

Tuoba Zhen

stared at Li Weiyang intently, as if his gaze filled with hatred would tear her

apart.

Bai Zhi, who

was in the room, was stunned with shock. Her far off position did not allow her

to hear their exchange, but seeing San Dianxia’s unusual behavior, an endless

fear surged in her heart. Zhao Yue, who was standing at the sidelines, had her

hand ready on her sword’s pommel.

Li Weiyang

looked back at him coldly. Tuoba Zhen did not know why, but her expression

caused him to have a moment’s difficulty in breathing.

He gritted

his teeth: “You dare leave without my permission?!”

Li Weiyang

smiled and stretched out her slim fingers to brush off a spot of wine stain on Tuoba

Zhen’s chest: “San Dianxia, you have your sunshine path, while I have my wooden

bridge to cross. Remember to stay far away from me, don’t follow me around all

day like a lost puppy. I hated you ever since Day One. Remember that!” She

gently tapped his shoulder and sashayed out of the room, discarding him like a

piece of smelly cloth.

Tuoba Zhen

was left standing there. A cold wind blew towards him, and he felt a shiver

from his head to his feet. Just now, he clearly saw how bone chillingly cold Li

Weiyang’s gaze was; it did not seem human, but as if she was a wronged spirit

who had crawled out of hell to demand for his life!

As she

walked past a room, Li Weiyang did not go downstairs; she suddenly pushed open the

adjoining door, smiling: “Qi Xianxia, did it feel good to eavesdrop?”

The man who

said that he was searching for Jiu Gongzhu was sitting there the whole time, smiling

without a trace of guilt. He raised his cup in salute: “Xianzhu has guts!”

Li Weiyang

laughed coolly: “Zhao Yue, keep watch outside. Kill any busybodies who dare to

step in!”

“Understood.”

Zhao Yue and Bai Zhi stepped back.

Li Weiyang

and Tuoba Yu were the only ones in the room.

Tuoba Yu

raised his eyebrows and gave a small smile: “How did Xianzhu guess that I was

next door?”

“The guards

will naturally be the ones looking for our runaway princess. Morever, since you

know that Tuoba Zhen is up to no good, you wouldn’t simply leave me to deal

with him alone, isn’t it?” Li Weiyang replied coldly.

“Xianzhu

knows me well indeed.”

“Too bad

that I was wrong about you!” Li Weiyang retorted. “I had thought that after the

previous incident, even if we cannot not trust each other fully, at the very

least we are still allies. Yet now you’re doing such sneaky things!”

A flush of

red appeared on Tuoba Yu’s cool face; he couldn’t help but admit that he still

could not believe in Li Weiyang with all his heart. “I did not mean this.”

Li Weiyang

suppressed her anger. Actually, it was not unreasonable of Tuoba Yu to not trust

her. In this fight between the princes, it wouldn’t be impossible if Li Weiyang

was actually a supporter of Tuoba Zhen, and her actions towards Tuoba Yu was

all an act to gain his trust! From her previous life as his bitter rival, Li

Weiyang knew that Tuoba Yu was not as naiive as that.

Hence, she

softened her displeasure and said in a low voice: “I know it will not be easy

to gain Dianxia’s trust, therefore I have already prepared a great number of

gifts to prove my sincerity to you.”

“For

example?” Tuoba Yu was suddenly very interested in what she had to say.

“On the

surface, San Huangzi is loving towards his brothers and respectful of the Emperor,

but in actual fact, he has an ambitious heart. He has not only secret ties with

court officials, but connections with people from the underworld. From his

large web of elites serving in his household, there is an honorable mention of

his four generals, three wise men, and two ladies.

The four

generals are Li Jing, Mu Yang, Zhou Heng, and Lu Lu; they are knowledgeable in

the art of war, especially Li Jing, who has the title of ‘Heavenly dragon above

the skies’ amongst the soldiers, after he fought and killed 506 men in a battle

at the South border thirteen years ago. Once a grand commander who led

thousands of cavalry into battle, he was however, kicked out after causing

delay in the army due to his drunken state eight years ago. Tuoba Zhen later

helped him to create a false identity to re-enter the army, where he is now a

general.

Mu Yang

appears to be a weak scholar, with only a minor role as a censor in the

Imperial Palace, but at the young age of sixteen, he had already taken on the

role of sub-leader in a secret society.

Zhou Heng

was originally a family of court officials who served the previous Emperor;

however, his entire clan of 109 members was beheaded due to a trap set by their

enemies. As a newborn, he managed to

escape death and grew up in the wild. Tuoba Zhen took him in, and also under a

false name, inserted him into the royal guards, responsible for the personal

safety of the Emperor. He rose through the ranks and is now a sub-commander of

the Northern branch of the imperial guard.

Lu Lu comes

from a commoner background, but he has good connections due to his skills in communication.

He is also cruel without a doubt and loyal to the core; that is why he is

situated in the spy camp, specializing in silent assassinations.”

Li Weiyang

gave a small grin as she recounted. Tuoba Yu inhaled deeply, folding his hands

behind his back. He fidgeted, brought his hands to his sides, and changed

position yet again, bringing his hands into his sleeves. He was obviously

discomforted, as he did not know all the facts she had just said.

There were some

secrets that only Tuoba Zhen knew, that no one else should know about.

Yet Li

Weiyang had all these information. She continued: “The three wise men are Gao

Cheng, Jing Neng, and Sun Song. Gao Cheng excels at plotting, and is an aide in

the Crown Prince’s household. Jing Neng is knowledgeable in the etiquette and

practices of emperors; he is the Crown Prince’s teacher. Sun Song has the gift

of the gab; at this moment, he might not seem like much use, but at the crucial

moment, his silver tongue is bound to help his master win the hearts of the

officials and people.

As for the

two ladies, well... one has already won the heart of the Emperor as his new

favorite, while the other is now placed in Wu Huangzi’s home…”

Tuoba Yu

stood up, with a face full of extreme shock. “Do you know what you are saying?”

Li Weiyang

smiled: “I know you do not believe that Tuoba Zhen has such power, but it is

true that over the years, he has been making use of the Crown Prince’s wealth,

the Empress’ power, together with Wu Xianfei’s family background, to do things

for his own benefit. His acting skills are definitely good, so good that the

Empress and her son have been deceived by him for so many years.”

Tuoba Yu’s

intuition told him strongly that everything she had said was true; these pieces

of information would not have come out of thin air so easily. However, he still

felt that she might have been reading too much into it – after all, every

single prince would definitely have their own spies installed in their

respective rival’s palace. Tuoba Zhen --- he did not think that he could really

be this scary.

Li Weiyang

knew that he would have doubts; that he would not realise how dangerous this

group of individuals could be. “They are just the cornerstone of an iceberg.

Those who can be bribed will be bribed, if not, he would try to convince them.

If these two methods do not work, he’d kill them off. I know that every huangzi

has their own power and spies; those can simply be bought with money. However,

loyalty cannot be measured with cold hard cash. I dare say that nobody else has

the same amount of willpower and patience that Tuoba Zhen has. Not everyone

loves money; if you fail to buy someone over, would you be able to forgo your

sleep and ride for seven days straight to find your target’s desired treasure as

a gift it to him? Would you be willing to pay respects at someone else’s

ancestral tomb on his behalf every Qing Ming festival without fail, just to

convince him to join you? Are you able to demonstrate your sincerity to those

uncouth hooligans from the pugilistic world? To achieve his aim, he will stop

at nothing and fear nothing. Qi Dianxia, you are unable to do this, because you

are of high birth, you do not need to say anything and yet swarms of people

will offer their help to you. However, will they be unconditionally loyal, and

die for you if necessary? Just based on this alone, be it you, the Crown

Prince, or Wu Huangzi, there is no way you all can compare with Tuoba Zhen.”

Tuoba Yu

felt shiver down his spine, as if he was strung up from the roof. He originally

thought that Tuoba Zhen could not resist the temptation of ambition during the

process of assisting the Crown Prince. Who knew that he had plotted from the

start to use the Crown Prince and the Empress as his chess pieces? No wonder he

is able to be perfectly filial to the Empress and obedient to the Crown Prince;

he is utterly a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Tuoba Yu sat

silently. After a while, he spoke. “I believe you. I would also like to know,

how many people know about this?”

“Other than

the enraged San Dianxia who left in a huff, no one else but me and you.” said Li

Weiyang with a smile upon her face.

Some of

these people have not been used to their full potential as of yet, but at the

most crucial moment, these seemingly small characters would become the key to Tuoba

Zhen’s quest for the throne.

Tuoba Yu

took a deep breath: “Will you mention this to anyone else?”

Li Weiyang

understood his underlying message, so she shook her head. “Not a fourth person

shall know about this.”

Upon hearing

this, Tuoba Yu let out a sigh of relief. He did not know how Li Weiyang managed

to get the information. Everyone has their own secrets; so long as the content

is true, who cares how she found out? Most importantly, she could not reveal

these gambling chips to others.

He

subconsciously sighed again. “Other than this place, I have another eighteen

establishments to obtain news for me. Over the years, I have obtained a vast

amount of detailed information. But based on what you have told me, out of the

seventy scrolls of info regarding Tuoba Zhen, only two of them would be

reliable. The rest would be misleading clues that Tuoba Zhen had purposely

planted. This person, his motives are extremely frightening.”

Li Weiyang

could only smile. Tuoba Yu might be second to none based on his insight and

power of deduction, but in terms of patience in amassing information and paying

attention to details in plots, he could not hold a candle to Tuoba Zhen. This

was nothing out of the ordinary; no one, including Tuoba Yu, would pay much

attention to a Huangzi who did not pose as a threat. He had wasted much effort

on others and had neglected Tuoba Zhen. Tuoba Zhen, on the contrary, would not

leave any stone unturned; however careful Tuoba Yu might be, however big or

powerful his backer Luo Guo Gong is, there was bound to be traceable

information he could use against him.

“No one is

infallible; there must be someone who is bound to make you negligent. They are

too cunning and cruel, like a snake hiding in the dark, taking a bite out of

you when you’re not alert. So long as you have a hold on him, you have nothing

to fear.”

“I know all

these people you have mentioned, but I have taken them as figures who are

unimportant, and some of them are even my good friends. I have come to realise

that I have committed a grave mistake; much thanks to your advice. I will

remember this debt; if you ever find yourself in need, I will do my utmost best

to help you.” Tuoba Yu said calmly, as if he was just having a casual and

unimportant conversation.

Li Weiyang looked

into those piercing eyes, and she knew that it was a solemn promise. She sank

into silence, smiled gently and said: “Thank you.”

“What you

have said to Third Brother today..” he softened the hard look in his eyes, and

slowly continued, “It was not to agitate him, but to obtain my trust.”

Li Weiyang did

not give any reply in denial or confirmation, she just smiled, and glanced at

him after a long while. Suddenly, she realised that he was watching her

silently, with a hint of gentleness hidden in the depths of his eyes.

He did not

know since when did his interest in her transform into a strange sort of

liking. Tuoba Yu’s eyes took her in deeply, and he sighed: “You…” He seemed to

have wanted to say something, but from the corner of his eyes, he realised that

it was raining outside. “I’ll send you to your carriage.”

It was still

bright and sunny when they’d left the mansion, and now the pitter patter of

heavy rain descended upon them. The people who had been admiring the lanterns

were all searching for cover. As Li Weiyang stood at the entrance of the inn,

Bai Zhi spoke up: “Xiaojie, there is an umbrella in the carriage, Nubi will get

it for you.”

“Here.” Tuoba

Yu had already ordered someone to bring an umbrella to him.

Bai Zhi

stepped forward to receive it, but Tuoba Yu smiled and stepped away. “Allow

me.”

The rain

trickled from the umbrella to his cheek; Tuoba Yu lowered his head, his voice,

mixing with the raindrops, drifted to Li Weiyang’s ears: “Xianzhu should enjoy

a good rest tonight, after you’ve reached home.”

His side

profile appeared extra clear and handsome in the rain. Li Weiyang smiled. “I do

hope so.”

Li Min De

was waiting in front of the carriage. It had been a full two hours since he had

left, and he had not bothered to return. Li Weiyang did not question him, and

boarded the carriage.

Tuoba Yu

gave Li Min De a smile, which he returned coldly, and quickly stepped into the

carriage.

The carriage

headed back towards the Li Residence. Through the curtains, Li Weiyang could

see the tall silhouette still remaining in the rain. She did not understand why

he did not use the umbrella, and he seemed to be gazing at the carriage, deep

in thought..

Li Weiyang

paused, and let the curtains fall. Beside her, Li Min De spoke: “Sanjie --”

She turned

to look at him. “What’s the matter?”

“You’re not

going to ask me where I’ve been?”

Li Weiyang

lifted her hands to softly brush away the thin layer of rain on his shoulders.

“You went to see Yan Zhi?”

Li Min De

was stunned and could not utter a word in reply.

Li Weiyang

smiled: “You did not eat anything during the feast just now. I’ve ordered

someone to bring food and wine here. Bai Zhi.”

Bai Zhi

immediately responded to her name. She opened the purple sandalwood lunchbox,

laying out the dishes one by one. Li Weiyang took one look at Li Min De’s pale

face and said, “It is cold at night when it rains, why didn’t you at least put

on another layer of clothes? Never mind, have some Osmanthus wine, it’ll help

to get rid of the chills.”

Li Min De

froze. Li Weiyang observed him; this youth had a clear and defined facial

structure, blended with a soft beauty and strong willpower. A combination of

these two should have been conflicting, yet on his face, it was enrapturing.

Her eyes were filled with smiles: “Come over, quickly!”

He came to

her, but held on the chopsticks without touching the food.

“What are

you thinking of?” She reached over and flicked his forehead with her finger; Li

Min De clutched his forehead at the sudden pain.

“Drifting

off again.. It looks like you are defying me on purpose!”

“I was not

–” He opened his mouth to explain.

Li Weiyang

suddenly laughed, and although it was gone in a flash, he was captivated by it.

“Do not say

things like ‘sorry I cannot tell you the truth’, although I do not like

trickery…” She sighed. “Whatever the case, you need only know one thing: I will

not blame you, even though you refuse to tell me the truth…”

Li Min De’s

pupils narrowed, and a flash of gratitude appeared in the depths of his eyes,

only to be replaced by sorrow.

Li Weiyang

saw the changes in his expression clearly, and involuntarily, a surge of

heartache welled up in her. She also felt a sense of distance, which made her

feel sad. This child who had depended on her, was he growing up? It was getting

harder and harder to understand his feelings now.

However, at

the next moment, Li Min De suddenly laid his head on her shoulders.

“What’s the

matter?” Li Weiyang wondered, surprised.

Li Min De

did not reply her, and continued to rest on her shoulders. His eyes were

smarting on the verge of tears; every time he thought of the fact that he would

have to leave her in the end, his heart felt twisted up in pain.

“You said

that you’ve grown up, you’ll definitely have your own secrets. You should be

happy that I did not probe, because it means that I trust you.” Li Weiyang

pulled him up and stuffed the chopsticks back into his hands, and personally

fed him a slice of sweet and sour fish: “Eat.”

The

osmanthus wine did not have a high alcohol content, and Li Weiyang enjoyed its

sweet taste. There were outsiders at dinner just now, and she did not think it

wise to drink too much. Right now, with only Li Min De present, she could

slowly savour the wine. As she drank the osmanthus wine, she felt warmth

filling her entire body.

As she looked

at the thin ribbons of rain falling to the ground outside the window, Li

Weiyang thought of Tuoba Zhen’s furious state. She couldn’t help but laugh, and

downed her wine in one gulp.

Li Min De

paused and turned to look at her.

“Sanjie?” He

had never seen her drink, let alone with such a strange expression at this

timing.

Li Weiyang

paused and recovered her senses. “I won’t get drunk, don’t worry. It’s just a

small cup.” she smiled and said.

Li Min De

eyed the cup in her hands. “Didn’t you already drink three cups?”

He took her

cup from her hands and set it on the table, but as quick as lightning, she

grabbed his cup and drank it dry.

“Sanjie?!”

“Hmm?” Li

Weiyang smiled gently, a lock of black hair framing her clear face. Under the

candle lights in the carriage, her eyes were like smoke, clear and understated,

and her expression had a hint of impatience. “Since when did become so naggy,

Mr Caretaker!”

Li Min De lowered

his head, embarrassed. He saw that she still held the wine cup in her slim

fingers, and her eyes, though filled with a tipsiness like crushed jade,

remained staring at him clearly.

Li Weiyang

leaned back in her seat as if drunk, resting slightly on him.

The rich

floral smell of osmanthus, combined with the clear scent on her body, made a

strange fragrance that permeated from his nose, to his limbs, and to the bottom

of his heart.

He suddenly

wanted this moment to last forever, but a voice resonated in his head,

reminding him not to be greedy, not to sink into this warmth... your existence

will only drag her down, and even cause her immeasurable dangers. This is not a

place where you should remain, and you will never be able to pay the price if

you lose her completely...

Li Min De

dropped his head and suddenly reached out for the pitcher of osmanthus wine in

front of him. Using the glass cup that Li Weiyang had just used, he downed a

cup, but to him, the taste was completely different from what he had drank

beforehand.

Zhao Yue was

guarding the carriage outside, and within it, Bai Zhi was carefully selecting a

candle wick. In truth, her heart had a strange feeling within it. San Shaoye

seemed to be different from the past. He was a smart and clever boy, full of

innocence, but now, especially when he was silent, she did not dare to speak to

him. Somehow, he seemed to be radiating power and nobility, which was an aura

he lacked in the past. His eyes were also constantly darting about, showing a

looming indifference and coldness that usually was present in adults. Did San

Furen’s death really cause such a drastic change in him?

“Min De?” Li

Weiyang sounded as she really was drunk; she tilted her head, like she was

looking at a stranger, and called his name. Her hands reached up and pinched

his cheeks.

“Ah!”

“Smile, I

like to see you smile!” She had regained her fierce demeanour.

Looking at

his red stained cheeks and his eyes like summer waters, Li Weiyang could not

hold herself back from squeezing his cheeks repeatedly.

“Sanjie, you

are really drunk!” It was as if she had been swapped with someone else! Li Min

De was speechless, and his face resembled a bun after all that pinching.

Li Weiyang

murmured: “Wine can make you forget your depression and drown your sorrows. Min

De, you should also have some. You’re being so naggy at such a young age,

imagine how horrible you’d be when you grow older!”

She felt as

if the whole world was shaking, and tried to open her eyes, only to see Li Min

De as red faced as a tomato. She released her hands and adjusted her body to

find a more comfortable position to rest in.

Seeing her

sleeping face, Li Min De suddenly broke into a smile. He lowered his voice:

“This is good, so long as you are happy, anything goes.”

Tonight, he

felt that Li Weiyang’s feelings were in a terrible turmoil. Although he did not

know why, he felt that he would be willing do anything, just to earn a smile

from her.

Translator: Jaslynn

Editor: Panisa (In Progress)

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