Despite her protests, Jiang Yunche resolutely helped her to her feet.
“Who are you?” Chen Anzhi was furious.
Jiang Yunche’s gaze lingered on Lin Yingying’s injured hand before he turned to face Chen Anzhi, speaking softly, “Lord An, you’ve mistaken her for someone else.”
Chen Anzhi paused in surprise before saying, “It’s you.”
Chen Anzhi vaguely recognized Jiang Yunche. Back in their academy days, their teacher often praised Jiang Yunche. Once a destitute young noble, Jiang Yunche had now become a rising star in the court.
Still, Chen Anzhi felt that making a scene over his concubines’ affairs was disgraceful. Not wanting Jiang Yunche to know too much, he suppressed his anger and said, “I advise you not to meddle in my affairs!”
Jiang Yunche chuckled and replied, “Lord An, you’re mistaken. My wife is doing business here and was wrongly identified by you. This isn’t meddling.”
Lin Yingying, standing behind Jiang Yunche, tugged at his coat, hoping he wouldn’t get involved in this mess.
Jiang Yunche seemed oblivious to her plea, standing protectively in front of her, smiling at Chen Anzhi.
Chen Anzhi was convinced he hadn’t mistaken her identity. Even if someone looked identical, they couldn’t sound the same.
He found it absurd!
“Your wife? Lord Jiang, what a joke! She is my concubine! Before becoming my concubine, she was a courtesan! And you claim she is your wife? She must have tricked you!”
More and more people on the street turned their attention to the scene.
Chen Anzhi hadn’t intended to make such a big scene. The curious stares from the onlookers made him uncomfortable, but with Jiang Yunche’s sudden interference, there was no turning back. Embarrassed and angry, he continued to hurl accusations.
Lin Yingying felt utterly humiliated. Given her past, she’d heard plenty of hurtful words and had grown indifferent to others’ judgment. But with Jiang Yunche present, those same words suddenly became piercing. She clenched her injured hand, blood oozing from the scrapes.
“She is.”
Lin Yingying looked up in surprise, staring at Jiang Yunche standing before her.
“She is my wife, Jiang Yunche’s wife. What’s the problem?” Jiang Yunche’s face still wore a faint, polite smile as he looked at Chen Anzhi.
Chen Anzhi was taken aback by Jiang Yunche’s calm yet assertive response.
“What’s going on?” Cuiyu hurried out, her hands covered in flour from kneading dough.
Seeing Chen Anzhi, she paused, then quickly glanced at Lin Yingying and Jiang Yunche, piecing together the situation.
Chen Anzhi saw Cuiyu as his savior.
He didn’t really care about Lin Yingying’s fate; he was angry because she had supposedly run off with another man. But Jiang Yunche’s involvement complicated matters. Everyone knew Jiang Yunche was favored by the new emperor. With the political shifts, even a fool understood the importance of not causing trouble, especially for a lowly concubine. His father’s failure to seize the throne meant their family would soon be leaving the capital for their fiefdom. Now was not the time to create more trouble.
Spotting Cuiyu, Chen Anzhi immediately changed the subject. “I’ve heard about your situation. You Yuji punished you because you deserved it. Come back with me, apologize to the lady of the house, and ask for her forgiveness. Remember to mind your words and behavior in the future!”
“Why should I go back?” Cuiyu wiped her face, smearing some flour on it.
Chen Anzhi was taken aback, his posture haughty. “Allowing you to return is a favor. Why endure hardship here when you could live comfortably?”
Chen Anzhi glanced at the flour on Cuiyu’s face, his expression full of disdain, silently thinking how unrefined she was.
Cuiyu had no intention of returning. She now had her freedom and was enjoying her life. She snorted, “Thanks for your kind offer, but I’d rather you find someone else to live comfortably in your mansion! I’m quite happy running my business here! Who wants to be a concubine for you?”
Cuiyu’s loud voice carried her words to the crowd, drawing whispers and snickers. “The young master returned from the army to find his concubine had run off, and now she doesn’t want to go back.”
The murmurs reached Chen Anzhi’s ears, making his face burn with anger. He pointed at Cuiyu, seething, “You ungrateful wretch! Have I ever denied you food or clothing? Yet here you are, flaunting yourself! You must be born lowly! Selling buns? I bet you dress up and sway your hips to sell those buns!”
Compared to the insults she’d endured in the brothel, Chen Anzhi’s words were nothing. She smirked, one hand on her hip, the other pointing at him. “Honorable young master, think what you will. But could you please step aside? You’re blocking my business! If you’re hungry, I’ll give you two buns. You can eat them over there, though I doubt you’d appreciate them, heh.”
Chen Anzhi glanced at the crowd, their attention making him feel even hotter with shame.
He had never truly respected Cuiyu or treated her as a true woman of his household. But she had once been part of the Jinnan Prince’s Mansion, carrying the name of his concubine.
Chen Anzhi imagined Cuiyu swaying her hips to sell buns, with lecherous men leering and thinking that this used to be the young master’s woman…
He felt nauseated.
No matter how much he despised Cuiyu, since she had been his concubine, he would not allow her to degrade herself and become a laughingstock for others!
Chen Anzhi stepped forward, grabbed Cuiyu’s wrist, and lowered his voice to warn her, “If you need money, I’ll give it to you. But you are not to sell buns here anymore!”
“Let go of me!”
Cuiyu shook off his hand. Chen Anzhi, caught off guard by her strength, stumbled and fell to the ground, dirtying his ornate robe with mud.
A child giggled, “Look, he fell flat on his face!”
Chen Anzhi’s face turned beet red. As Wangshan came over to help him, he angrily pushed Wangshan’s hand away and ordered, “Seize this wench and take her back!”
Humiliated, Chen Anzhi pointed at Cuiyu and cursed, “You ungrateful creature! You don’t know how to enjoy comfort, instead you choose to sell yourself to entertain others!”
The synchronized footsteps of soldiers approached from a distance.
The crowd, curious and confused, stretched their necks to see what was happening.
Cuiyu and Lin Yingying exchanged fearful glances—were they about to be thrown into jail?
Jiang Yunche narrowed his eyes, recognizing the soldiers as the princess’s guards, which puzzled him. From what he knew, Princess Huarong wouldn’t intervene on Chen Anzhi’s behalf.
Princess Huarong and her consort quickly dismounted and walked towards them, the crowd parting to let them through. Just as Cuiyu and Lin Yingying were about to kneel and pay their respects, Princess Huarong grabbed Cuiyu’s wrist. Before Cuiyu could process the sudden influx of uninvited guests, she was enveloped in Princess Huarong’s tight embrace. Cuiyu, afraid of dirtying the princess’s luxurious robe with flour, quickly raised her hands.
She blinked, looking left and right, unsure of what was happening. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw some flour specks fall onto the princess’s robe. She tensed up and carefully blew the flour off the princess’s shoulder.
“Yu’er, my daughter!” Princess Huarong, always strong, now spoke with a voice full of tears.
Cuiyu stood frozen in shock.
“What on earth…” she muttered, glancing at Lin Yingying for help. Lin Yingying was equally bewildered, unable to comprehend the situation.
Jiang Yunche, sensing the moment, spoke up, “Congratulations to the princess on the reunion with her daughter.”
Cuiyu widened her eyes, looking at Jiang Yunche in disbelief. She pointed to herself with a flour-covered finger, mouthing, “Me?”
Jiang Yunche smiled warmly, “Congratulations on your return home, young princess.”
Cuiyu shivered in fright.
Chen Anzhi, supported by Wangshan, stood up and watched the scene in astonishment. He turned to the approaching father and son of the Cui family with a touch of emotion, lightly coughing as he spoke: “Uncle, Ah Ling.”
Cui Xingxian nodded casually and immediately pulled Princess Huarong away, smiling as he said, “Look at you, you scared Yu’er.”
Only then did Princess Huarong let go of Cuiyu. She tightly held her daughter’s hand, her eyes filled with affection. Cuiyu glanced at her dirty hands being grasped by Princess Huarong, feeling very uneasy.
Cui Ling asked in confusion, “What happened here?”
While Princess Huarong was mobilizing people to search for witnesses and evidence, she had someone secretly protecting Cuiyu. A guard stepped out from the corner of the street, explaining the situation truthfully.
However, when it came to Chen Anzhi’s specific words, he hesitated, only saying, “Young Master An was angry and used some reprimanding words.”
This single sentence was enough to infuriate Princess Huarong.
Chen Anzhi lightly coughed and began, “Aunt, I didn’t expect such a coincidence. I…”
Before he could finish, Princess Huarong slapped him and pointed at his nose, cursing, “Who do you think you are, coming here to scold my precious jewel?”
Thinking about how her beloved daughter had once been a concubine to this capital’s biggest wastrel, Princess Huarong became furious and kicked Chen Anzhi.
Chen Anzhi’s face changed drastically, but Princess Huarong was his aunt. He couldn’t defy or avoid her and had to endure it in the street.
When Princess Huarong lost her temper, she didn’t care if it was in public or private. She kicked Chen Anzhi repeatedly, wishing she could kill him.
Cui Xingxian stood aside, feeling that this scene was unsightly, but Princess Huarong had grown up spoiled and arrogant, so he didn’t dare to intervene. He could only watch as Princess Huarong kicked and slapped Chen Anzhi for a quarter of an hour before stepping in to pull her away, soothing her, “Calm down, calm down, the main thing is to take Yu’er home.”
Princess Huarong suddenly stopped, turned to Cuiyu, and let go of Chen Anzhi’s collar, going back to embrace her daughter. She held Cuiyu’s face, crying as she kissed her twice on the cheeks. She continued crying as she tightly hugged Cuiyu, sobbing, “My poor Yu’er… if anyone dares to bully my Yu’er again, I will send their entire family to the King of Hell!”
Princess Huarong cried and lamented for a long time, while Cuiyu remained bewildered. She looked at Lin Yingying and silently mouthed, “Am I a princess?”
Lin Yingying slowly recovered from her shock and nodded at Cuiyu with a smile.
Cuiyu felt suffocated from the embrace. After thinking for a moment, she didn’t instantly feel a deep familial bond for her suddenly appeared parents.
She only thought—
She seemed to have become rich!
Chen Anzhi didn’t even know how he returned to the palace. He felt that he had lost all his dignity today.
“It’s not good!” A maid rushed over, “Concubine Chunxing has stopped breathing!”
“What happened?” Wangshan asked on behalf of Chen Anzhi.
The little maid shook her head, “Concubine Chunxing caught a cold a few days ago and has been sick. Today, her maid found she had stopped breathing!”
Chen Anzhi frowned, thinking to himself “bad luck.” The day’s events left him indifferent to a concubine’s death, so he casually said, “During the national mourning period, keep everything simple. Roll her up and bury her.”
Not long after, an old maid from Princess Huarong’s residence came to annul the engagement.
Seeing the princess’s arrival, Chen Anzhi realized he had lost control of the situation.
Not long after, a maid from Princess Huarong’s mansion arrived to break off the engagement.
Cui Ling and Chen Lingyan’s wedding was scheduled for next month. At this time, Princess Huarong sent someone to break off the engagement with just one sentence: “Young Master An is of bad character and not suitable to be in-laws.”
The Prince of Jinnan was very puzzled, but since the princess consort had just given birth and should not be bothered, he immediately inquired about the situation. When he learned what had happened today, he was so angry that his face turned pale.
Chen Lingyan was stunned for a while before she ran crying to find Chen Anzhi.
“How could you ruin my marriage!” Chen Lingyan cried, tears streaming down her face like rain on a pear blossom. The fire had left a scar on her chin. Cui Ling had never broken off the engagement, which made her extremely happy. But today, everything was ruined by her brother!
She rushed over, grabbed Chen Anzhi’s collar, and sobbed, “What did you do to anger Aunt! I don’t care, go and beg for forgiveness, ask Aunt to forgive you! You can’t come back and ruin my marriage!”
Chen Anzhi, already harboring a fire of anger after losing face today, retorted, “Don’t blame everything on me. Maybe Cui Ling has long despised you for your scarred face.”
As soon as he said this, he regretted it.
Chen Lingyan’s eyes widened, “How dare you say that! Why do I have scars? Who’s to blame! It’s you! It’s because of you!”
Chen Lingyan cried and bit Chen Anzhi’s shoulder hard, wishing she could take a chunk of flesh.
Chen Anzhi gasped in pain and pushed Chen Lingyan away forcefully, reprimanding, “Don’t blame everything on me! If you hadn’t been constantly talking about cousin this and cousin that, I wouldn’t have gotten involved with Fang Qingyi!”
“You blame me! When you were sneaking around with that wicked woman Fang Qingyi in my closet, you were thanking me profusely!” Chen Lingyan stomped her foot, cried, and ran out. She vowed in her heart to never acknowledge this bad brother again, to never talk to him again!
Chen Anzhi sat down in embarrassment. Today’s events made his head throb.
— He had thought returning to the capital would end his suffering, but why did so many troublesome things come crashing down on him, suffocating him?
“Lin Yingyi ran away with someone, Cuiyu became a county lady, Chunxing died, and the princess disappeared…” The thought of Princess Que still missing, possibly dead, made Chen Anzhi’s heart ache.
“I know where Princess Que is.” Si Han stood at the door.
Chen Anzhi stood up immediately, “You know where your sister is?”
“At the You family, with You Yuji,” Si Han said coldly, crossing her arms. “Do you want to find her? If you go to the Yiu family now, you might see him. If not, tie up You Yuji, and the princess you miss so dearly will appear.”
Chen Anzhi frowned, remembering the rumors he had heard about You Yuji and Si Que being close like sisters.
At that time, he didn’t believe it. He thought the so-called sisterly bond was just because they were not favored by men and sought warmth from each other. In their hearts, they still yearned for the love of a man. Even if they were close, it wouldn’t affect their true feelings for him, their husband, in the future.
“Are you going to bring my sister back now?” Si Han asked.
Si Han watched Chen Anzhi’s departing figure and sneered.
She had once hoped that the New Year’s amnesty would release her father, but her hope was dashed. She had once hoped that her crown prince brother would come to save her, but that hope was also dashed. She knew she couldn’t force Si Que to save her. Since she was trapped here for life, doing things that harmed others but didn’t benefit herself was a way to pass the time.
You Yuji stood in front of a full-length bronze mirror, examining her pregnant belly. Although she was only five months pregnant, she felt that this baby was a bit large. She had read in medical books that a large baby was not conducive to delivery, and she worried that she might have been too indulgent in eating and not active enough.
The sound of a coin being tossed echoed behind her, and You Yuji curved her lips into a smile.
“Elder sister,” Si Que’s voice came from behind, “heads or tails?”
You Yuji glanced back through the bronze mirror and saw the coin lying on the ground with heads facing up. Deliberately, she said, “Tails.”
Si Que grabbed her hand, pulling her over to look at the coin.
“Elder sister finally lost,” Si Que said.
“Yes, I finally lost,” You Yuji replied with a laugh in her voice. She slowly lifted her eyes, looking at Si Que tenderly.
She had to lose once, otherwise this little trickster would never be satisfied.
Last time, she had drawn two little turtles on his buttocks, and he still remembered it, wanting to get his revenge.
You Yuji tilted her head slightly, the hairpin in her cloud-like hair trembling lightly. She asked softly, “Where do you want to draw it?”
Si Que bent down, his eyes shining as he stared into You Yuji’s eyes, asking seriously, “Can I draw myself on your heart?”