The cool evening breeze, the sky full of stars, and the incessant chirping of cicadas, or perhaps the young master on the roof with his sleeves fluttering and his long hair slightly lifted by the wind, filled Xie Tao’s entire dream.
Xie Tao was awakened by the sunlight shining through the half-open curtains.
The sunlight in summer is always so scorching and dazzling.
She didn’t know when the thin quilt on her body had fallen to the ground.
The first thing Xie Tao did when she opened her eyes was to look at her right wrist.
A lustrous jade bracelet was on her wrist.
That signified that everything last night was not a baseless dream.
And he indeed mentioned something about a “betrothal ceremony.”
She touched the bracelet and couldn’t help but curve her lips upwards.
Then, she buried her head under the pillow and tossed and turned.
From this day on, the gold dust that could take her across time to the Great Zhou Dynasty had completely run out.
But at least, Wei Yun could freely travel between the two time periods.
Now, Xie Tao didn’t have to hustle for work or struggle for a living. The only thing she needed to focus on seriously was her studies.
Because next semester, she would be in her senior year of high school.
Perhaps because she was about to become a senior, the academic workload at school began to get heavier.
But Xie Tao felt that she was happier and more satisfied than ever before.
Perhaps Wei Yun’s encouragement had an effect on Xie Tao. She took his advice and found the joy in reading, and she even began to dislike classical Chinese less than before.
Gradually, her essays improved.
It was natural that her Chinese grades improved a bit, and her math scores also increased due to the consistent practice of doing lots of problems.
Her English and social science grades were also somewhat more stable than before.
On the day the final exams ended, Xie Tao walked out of the school gate and saw the familiar Maybach parked by the roadside.
Holding a red bean cake in her hand, Xie Tao ran over and opened the car door, only to see Wei Yun in the back seat.
He was wearing a dark green shirt paired with dark trousers. His black hair was casually tucked behind his ears, and the cuffs of his shirt were rolled up to his forearms. When he looked at her sideways, those indifferent eyes seemed to carry a bit of a casual laziness.
Xie Tao’s eyes lit up, “Wei Yun, when did you come?”
Wei Yun seemed to have been quite busy lately and didn’t come over often.
After getting into the car, Xie Tao also greeted Nian Jitang, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, with a smile.
Nian Jitang responded with a cheerful laugh and then raised the partition.
He had no interest in watching young people in love.
“Want some?” Xie Tao waved the red bean cake in her hand in front of him.
Wei Yun shook his head and then stretched out his hand to rub her head, “No need.”
Xie Tao had no choice but to bury her head and nibble on the red bean cake.
After returning home, Xie Tao saw many parcel boxes and shopping bags placed on the sofa in the living room.
She went over to look, and inside were either clothes or shoes, all of them for women.
“Did you buy all these things?” Xie Tao pointed at the pile of items and looked at Wei Yun.
“Mm.”
Wei Yun walked over on his own, starting to add charcoal to the stove to brew tea.
Even in such a hot summer, he never could give up his hobby of brewing tea.
“I already have a lot of clothes… You really don’t need to buy me any more,” Xie Tao covered her face and said.
She also didn’t quite understand why Wei Yun was always keen on buying her all sorts of things.
“You don’t like them?” Wei Yun said, tilting his head to look at her.
“…It’s not that,”
Xie Tao scratched the back of her head, “It’s just that you bought me so much, I can’t even wear them all.”
“That’s your problem.”
Wei Yun leisurely picked tea leaves and threw them into the teapot on the stove, his voice as slow and light as clouds.
“…” Xie Tao pouted and plunged into his arms, biting his wrist.
Like a small animal, she didn’t dare to use too much force after all.
“Xie Tao.”
Until Wei Yun lightly glanced at her.
Xie Tao paused, then obediently let go of him.
He timely brought the jade-colored teacup to her lips, “Try this.”
The cup still steamed with heat, Xie Tao glanced at him, then took a sip.
Though it was hot tea, the heat dispersed quickly in the mouth, even feeling somewhat cool, like mint leaves, but even more delicate and moist than mint, with a faint hint of sweetness.
Xie Tao couldn’t help but take another sip.
In the evening, Xie Tao prepared a table full of dishes, and they sat together for dinner.
“Try this.” Xie Tao placed a piece of braised pork in his bowl.
“And this.” Then, a piece of spicy chicken followed.
“This and this…”
Wei Yun helplessly curved his lips and sighed lightly, “Alright.”
Then, he very naturally picked up a piece of meat and fed it to her.
Xie Tao bit the meat, her eyes curving into a smile.
After dinner, Xie Tao and Wei Yun sat on the sofa to watch TV.
As Xie Tao was beginning to feel drowsy to the sound of the television, she suddenly heard Wei Yun, who was beside her, call her name, “Xie Tao.”
“Hmm?” Xie Tao looked at him with half-open eyes.
“In the coming period, I might not have time to come over,” he said softly.
“How long will it be?”
Xie Tao snuggled into his embrace and looked up at him to ask.
“I’m not sure yet,” was all Wei Yun could reply.
He had to make a trip to the Yidan Kingdom.
The Emperor Qi He had awakened, but this news was yet unknown to Prince Xin.
Now, Emperor Qi He had lost everything he could rely on, as most people in the court had been won over by Prince Xin and Empress You. This meant that Emperor Qi He’s only support now was Wei Yun.
At this time, Wei Yun was the only one in the court who could stand up to Prince Xin.
Although Emperor Qi He had awakened, he still had to pretend to be in a coma. Otherwise, Prince Xin and Empress You would surely find a way to ensure he never woke up again.
After all, no one would willingly hand over the power that was about to fall into their hands.
Due to Emperor Qi He’s “serious illness,” the Yidan Kingdom was becoming restless at the borders of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Prince Xin had not yet fully consolidated his power and internal stability, so he absolutely could not afford to lose goodwill with the Yidan Kingdom.
Otherwise, a war could break out at any moment, potentially worsening the situation.
Therefore, Prince Xin considered sending Princess Heyu to marry the prince of the Yidan Kingdom to maintain peace temporarily.
This idea aligned with Emperor Qi He’s intentions, although he had not officially decreed it. Prince Xin hoped to use this marriage to stabilize relations with the Yidan Kingdom temporarily.
However, Princess Heyu was no longer the princess without the support of her maternal family or the love of an emperor as she was before.
Her reputation had grown, not only in the Great Zhou Dynasty but also in the Yidan Kingdom, where many admired and appreciated her.
The bookstore in the capital even had a special room for the letters and gifts sent to Princess Heyu from all over the world.
Even Prince Xin had not anticipated that Princess Heyu’s status among the people would reach such heights.
The news of the marriage had not been officially announced, but somehow it leaked, and rumors began to spread among the public.
Voices of opposition emerged, claiming that Princess Heyu, a treasure of the Great Zhou Dynasty, was to be sent to a foreign country to become someone from another land?
Moreover, rumors about the Yidan Kingdom’s crown prince described him as ruggedly ugly, burly, and crude, consuming raw meat and even capable of cannibalism.
How could Princess Heyu marry him?
Numerous “book fans” were indignant, declaring that they could not allow Princess Heyu to marry such a fearsome prince.
If it were put in today’s terms, these book fans would probably say:
“Please let our princess be beautiful on her own, thank you. The prince of Yidan Kingdom is not worthy of her.”
“Our princess is in her prime, beautiful and talented. What is that prince of Yidan Kingdom? Dreaming?”
“Whoever dares to marry our princess to that prince, I curse them!”
Prince Xin had never anticipated that his usually docile and obedient sister, Princess Heyu, would gain such prestige among the common people without him noticing.
He even discovered one day, when going to court, that someone had thrown rotten vegetable leaves and the smell of rotten eggs was lingering outside the gate of his mansion.
Despite thorough investigations, he couldn’t find out who was bold enough to do such a thing.
But it was clear that someone dared to do this for the princess.
For Wei Yun, the timing was perfect. Prince Xin had been acting as regent for some time, with continuous unrest in the court, and his treatment of Wei Yun had become increasingly confrontational.
Perhaps seeing that no amount of goodwill shown towards Wei Yun was useful, he was ultimately enraged by the Imperial Advisor’s attitude of rejecting a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.
Prince Xin also made multiple inquiries about Miss Biao in the Imperial Advisor’s residence.
Regardless of whether what Wei Yun said that day was true or false, Prince Xin did not want to miss this opportunity.
If Miss Xie truly was someone he cared about, controlling her would mean grasping Wei Yun’s weakness.
That would be more than ideal.
But if Wei Yun’s words that day were merely a bluff, then there was no loss to Prince Xin.
It was just the life of a Miss Biao at stake.
If Wei Yun did not care, neither would Prince Xin.
However, the Imperial Advisor’s residence was always guarded by Wei Yun’s personal guards like an iron barrel, and the people Prince Xin sent always returned in failure.
