Although Cuihua had gradually grown accustomed to her identity as a princess, she still found it difficult to accept such grand kneeling salutes with ease—especially when someone knelt to her without warning or reason. It always startled her.
She instinctively took a step back, and before she could compose herself, she heard Pei Huaiche's deep, clear voice from the carriage behind her: "This place is near the market streets with many commoners about. The commotion just now has likely already drawn attention. Before long, officials will surely come to investigate. It would be better to find a quiet private room at a nearby tavern and invite the Third Prince to move there for a more leisurely discussion."
Cuihua had been back in Xiangjing for less than a month, so occasional lapses in etiquette were only to be expected.
Moreover, today's affair had ultimately been caused by Li Jing. Even if word reached the Empress's ears, she would only blame Li Jing—a prince she had never been particularly fond of—for acting so recklessly and dragging her hard-won beloved daughter into an unnecessary disturbance.
Thus, while Pei Huaiche's words appeared to be for Cuihua's benefit, they were in truth also considering Li Jing's interests, preventing the matter from escalating and incurring the Empress's wrath.
Whether Li Jing would appreciate this thoughtful gesture remained to be seen, but the young eunuch at his side was a perceptive one. When he saw Cuihua genuinely follow Pei Huaiche's suggestion to head to the nearby Chaogu Tower, a thin but visible layer of gratitude surfaced in his clever phoenix eyes.
Chaogu Tower was not the most imposing first-rate establishment in the bustling city of Xiangjing, but it was renowned for its quiet and elegant atmosphere, and its dishes had a distinctive flavor. According to Cuihua's original plan, this was precisely where she had intended to bring Pei Huaiche for lunch.
Though they had encountered some twists and turns along the way, they had still ended up here by a stroke of fate—which stirred a subtle, almost destined feeling in her heart.
When their carriage finally arrived at the tavern's entrance, having adjusted its pace to accommodate Li Jing's two-person-one-horse speed, and Cuihua was seen pushing Pei Huaiche's wheelchair out of the carriage, Li Jing could not help but show a look of surprise: "Just now… it was you who helped me stop the startled horse? You can't walk?"
It was hardly his fault for being astonished.
First, Cuihua was a princess who had recently returned to court and enjoyed considerable imperial favor—there was no reason for her to personally push someone's wheelchair when servants stood right beside her.
Second, he had clearly seen that it was this man in the wheelchair who had flung the horse bell with his arm, saving the old woman from beneath the horse's hooves. How could someone who could not walk properly possess such skill?
Pei Huaiche's expression remained calm, with not a trace of embarrassment. He merely gave a slight nod: "In answer to Your Highness, this commoner's legs are indeed disabled. That is why I could not descend from the carriage to pay my respects earlier. I beg Your Highness's forgiveness."
Li Jing waved his hand dismissively: "Ah, so I wronged you after all. I thought you were like those others who believed that taking one extra look at me would shorten their lives! Enough, enough—I thank you here for helping me catch that horse."
He spoke these words without much thought, but Pei Huaiche and Cuihua each felt their own stirrings upon hearing them.
Cuihua had seen many people in the capital who, before getting to know Pei Huaiche deeply, looked down on his origins and his leg condition. Now, seeing that Li Jing, as a prince, was willing to treat a disabled commoner like Pei Huaiche with courtesy, she found herself warming to this brother she was meeting for the first time.
Pei Huaiche, too, felt a pang of reflection. He had witnessed far more of the arrogant faces of the imperial nobility than Cuihua had.
Never mind that he was now merely a male concubine in the princess's chambers—even back when he had borne the title of prince and was nominally the late emperor's younger brother, his later-deceased imperial nephews had never hesitated to order him about like a servant.
He considered himself a keen judge of character, and after several exchanges, he had come to feel that this young prince, called the "demonic seed" by the world, possessed a surprisingly pure and kind nature—indeed, one could say it was rare in this imperial family where treacherous hearts were all but guaranteed.
This was also evident, once their party had entered the private room at the tavern, in how Li Jing treated the young eunuch attending him.
Though the eunuch maintained his proper station and stood behind Li Jing with an air of deference, there was none of the usual stiffness between master and servant in their exchanges.
First, he reminded Li Jing that the seat of honor should be yielded to Cuihua. Then, when Li Jing moved to remove the copper-coin face veil, the eunuch directly reached out and pressed his hand to stop him.
The young eunuch once again wore a helpless expression and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, your Red Lotus Pattern… might startle the princess. It would be best not to remove the veil."
Though Li Jing's tone carried dissatisfaction, his words sounded less like scolding the eunuch for overstepping and more like frustrated grumbling: "I just want to take it off for a moment—can't I even have a sip of water? You keep me on such a tight leash whenever we're outside, making me feel like some maiden who cannot show her face before marriage."
Having been chided, the young eunuch first stole a glance at Cuihua. Only when he saw no displeasure on her face did he let out a breath and lower his voice: "Given your condition, Your Highness, even if you were fortunate enough to marry someday, I fear it would still be inconvenient to show your true face."
Li Jing was left speechless, grinding his teeth in irritation: "You're always finding ways to mock me. What do you mean 'fortunate enough to marry'? I have a childhood betrothal with Qingci—personally arranged by the Empress Mother herself!"
The young eunuch sighed and said, "Your Highness, you may jest with me in private, but you must never speak such words carelessly before the Second Prince. When the childhood betrothal was arranged, you had not yet been branded. If the Empress and General Sang still intended for you two to marry, they would have raised the matter again when you established your own household last year. Why else would they instead grant General Sang's request, allowing his second daughter to take the third young lady with her to guard the frontier in Shu?"
Li Jing could not argue with him, so he gave up and said indignantly, "In any case, you remember this—if I fail to marry Qingci, your peaceful days are over. Aside from this marriage, there is nothing left in Xiangjing worth my attachment. When that time comes, I'll take you roaming the martial world as a wandering hero. That would be freedom indeed!"
The young eunuch: "…"
Perhaps the eunuch's conflicted expression was too comical—that look of wanting to speak yet holding back—it suddenly amused Cuihua, who was watching from the side.
Seeing her suddenly laugh aloud, Li Jing looked over in confusion. Cuihua propped her chin on her hand, her apricot eyes curving like crescent moons: "Third brother, take off that veil. I've just come back from the common folk—I'm not so easily frightened. We're about to have a meal, and since I'm hosting, how could I let you just sit there watching us eat?"
After the meal, Cuihua, who had gotten along well with Li Jing, no longer minded the seemingly ferocious tattoo on his face at all.
Quite the contrary—after learning the origin of the Red Lotus Pattern, she felt that this younger brother of hers was also a pitiable soul.
It was merely that his baby teeth had been uneven in childhood. Yet everyone, including the Empress Mother, who had all prejudged him as a "demonic seed," was unwilling to wait two more years to see how things developed after his teeth grew in. They had resolutely carved this Red Lotus Mark onto his face when he was only six years old—a punishment more severe than penal branding.
From then on, this prince of noble birth became someone that all other imperial relatives and nobles avoided speaking of. His mother and father did not favor him, his sisters grew distant, and even the betrothal he had made with the girl of his heart in childhood became a joke that no one mentioned again…
Returning to the residence, the joy of first meeting her younger brother gradually settled. Cuihua lowered her gaze for a long while, unconsciously twisting the hem of her garment before Pei Huaiche, as if a thousand words were caught in her throat.
Before Pei Huaiche, she had never been able to hide her thoughts. When he asked gently, she poured out everything in her heart like beans spilling from a gourd.
Looking into his eyes, a hint of heaviness crept into her own: "Husband, now I'm even more certain—your worry for me is justified. This princess… is truly not so easy to be."
In the past, she had only vaguely sensed that certain matters might have hidden depths, but she had never imagined the truth behind them could be so cruel.
Only today, when she saw with her own eyes the glaring Red Lotus Mark on Li Jing's face and heard of his past experiences, did she suddenly realize that beneath this gilded splendor lay a chasm into which one could fall with the slightest misstep.
As her thoughts drifted, she couldn't help but recall the story of his enslavement that Pei Huaiche had told her. The bitterness she felt for her younger brother had not yet faded when a dense ache rose anew, winding its way around the man beside her who always carried himself with such composure.
She gently took his hand and held it tenderly upon her lap: "You navigate the intrigues of Xiangjing with such ease, and you've long seen through all the complexity here… Did you also suffer greatly in the past?"
Pei Huaiche let her hold his hand, feeling the soft warmth of her touch. His gaze swept over her slightly furrowed brow, and his voice softened: "It was manageable. I was clever from a young age and rarely made mistakes that displeased others. If anyone schemed against me, I could always see through their intentions before they made their move. I never gave anyone a handle to use against me."
His words were not empty boasts. Looking back on his twenty-eight years "honored" as Prince Xuan—with a suspicious elder brother above and imperious, covetous imperial nephews below—every step of his growth had been like walking on a blade's edge.
Even when his brother, on his deathbed, entrusted him with the regency, he had still seen fit to appoint two co-regent ministers, intending for them to check each other, so that by the time the young emperor came of age, all three would have worn each other down.
Had he been the slightest bit careless along this path, he likely would not have gotten off as lightly as Li Jing with merely a branded face—he would probably have long since perished without a trace.
He was unwilling to speak more deeply, lest it cause her needless worry. He only soothed her gently: "It's fine. In the end, matters of the court are nothing but struggles for power. Since you seek none of that, you only need remember to be cautious in word and deed, and avoid inadvertently taking the wrong side and blocking others' paths. I can protect you well enough."
Cuihua nodded with partial understanding, the worry in her eyes not yet dispersed, but her tone carrying a hint of playful coquetry: "Then you must take good care of yourself—how else will you keep protecting me? I don't contend for anything else. I just want to live peacefully with you, and grow old together."
Warmth flooded Pei Huaiche's heart. He leaned down and pressed the kiss he had been longing for ever since leaving the medical clinic, a faint smile curving at the corners of his lips: "Rest assured. Since I pledged myself to you in repayment for saving my life, this life is yours. If my wife does not permit it, this husband dares not speak of death."
Cuihua was by nature easily contented. Seeing that he not only spoke with sincere affection but also expressed his intention to take good care of his health, the gloom that had been weighing on her heart scattered in an instant, and her brows curved back into crescent moons.
As dusk settled, the two finished their evening meal, and Cuihua pushed his wheelchair for a stroll around the courtyard to aid digestion.
The evening breeze swept through the corridor, carrying a hint of chill. Remembering the sight of Li Jing at noon, she took the opportunity to detour toward the storeroom.
Though her younger brother held the nominal title of prince, his household was truly austere.
Aside from the Empress's sparse bestowals, his reputation as the "demonic seed" had spread far and wide, causing the capital's elite to keep their distance—naturally leaving little room for social exchanges. Moreover, the tattoos on his face made it inconvenient to venture out often, so he'd had no chance to acquire any rare or curious treasures.
Cuihua thus thought to pick a few items from the Empress's gifts that he might enjoy, making up for the lack of a welcome gift.
She consulted Pei Huaiche, and he told her to give whatever she pleased—after all, even if the Empress held no fondness for Li Jing, seeing her maintain the dignity of an elder sister despite Li Jing's "offense" would only lead her to view Cuihua as magnanimous and kind, loving toward her brother, and certainly not fault her for "repaying injury with virtue."
In truth, in the days since returning to the residence, she had already made a rough inventory of the storeroom, selecting items she liked and needed for daily use to decorate her rooms.
She had also sent no small number of things to Pei Huaiche's chambers—celadon-glazed teacups, sandalwood calming pillows, silk-and-ivory mats… Yet no matter how exquisite the objects she sent over, he merely accepted them with an indifferent expression, treating them no differently from the old hemp pillows and straw mats of the past, showing not the slightest hint of delight or preference.
She had been browsing with her head lowered when this thought struck her, and she suddenly lifted her gaze to the man in the wheelchair: "Husband, is there anything you particularly like? Food, daily items, or playthings—anything at all."
Pei Huaiche raised an eyebrow slightly. "Aren't we picking out a gift for the Third Prince? Why ask about me?"
Cuihua casually spread out a brocade mat and sat down on the ground by his feet, propping her chin on her hand. "Doesn't Third Brother also find you strange? You eat everything so slowly and deliberately—no matter how delicious the food placed before you, you only take a couple of casual bites. He said that when the two of you sit together, you look even more like a proper, noble prince than he does!"
Pei Huaiche: "…"
He fell silent for a moment. Speaking of which, he had to marvel at how precisely Li Jing had hit the mark with that offhand remark.
And how the Empress's neglect in raising this "demonic seed" son was truly beyond ordinary—not only did his civil and martial skills show no sign of tutelage under a good master, but his manners in dealing with others were even inferior to Cuihua's, who had only received rough training from palace matrons for half a month. After two cups of warm wine, he paid no heed to the frantic eye signals from the young eunuch behind him and would say anything that came to mind.
If Li Jing regarded princes that way, how could he, Pei Huaiche, afford to be any less princely than him? Ten years of regency—if he couldn't even outdo such a prince, the kingdom of Yuan would have been breached a dozen times over by internal strife and external threats long ago.
Seeing him remain silent for so long, Cuihua grew displeased: "Doctor Qu said you need to keep your spirits up to help your recovery. I only wanted to cheer you up—why won't you cooperate?"
Pei Huaiche let out a low sigh, a helpless smile rippling through his eyes. "I'm not refusing to cooperate. It's just that clothing, food, shelter, and travel—these external things—I truly care little for any of them. As for what I particularly like… we've been husband and wife for two years now. Do you truly not know what I like best?"
Now it was Cuihua's turn to fall silent.
What he liked best—of course she knew. What he liked best was her!
But in the past, she had assumed it was because their family had been poor, and he was confined to a small courtyard all day, with no choice but to love her—he simply had no other options.
Yet it turned out he was genuinely "faithful to the end"—even now that he had seen wealth and splendor and could venture farther afield, his eyes still held only her.
She realized he had managed to lead her around in circles. She had been focused on selecting a gift for Li Jing, yet after a moment of exchanged gazes, her heart inexplicably stirred. Seeing the night deepening outside the window, she somehow found herself pushing the wheelchair back to his room. As the door bolt fell softly into place, just as he wished, a lingering kiss prematurely unveiled the tenderness of the night.
But just as their passion ran high, with clothes half undone, a knock sounded at the door.
Cuihua hastily rose, and the two straightened their garments. When she opened the door, it turned out to be Baodian standing at the threshold, holding a medicine bowl.
Seeing Cuihua's disheveled hair bun, Baodian naturally had a good idea of what she had been "busy" with moments ago. Her expression turned awkward, and she lowered her eyes deferentially as she handed over the medicine bowl along with a prescription: "Princess, this is the medicine Master Huai needs to take tonight, along with the prescription Doctor Qu wrote… The kitchen has noted down the preparation method. This servant noticed some precautions attached to the prescription and brought it back for you—you and Master Huai… might wish to look it over more carefully."
Baodian finished speaking haltingly, then hurriedly withdrew.
Cuihua took the medicine bowl, casually stuffing the prescription into Pei Huaiche's hand while testing the temperature of the medicine. She muttered, "Isn't it just telling you to worry less, rest more, and watch what you eat? I already noted it down when Doctor Qu said it. Come now, husband, drink your medicine first, and then…"
As she spoke, her eyes already shimmered with allure, a natural charm emanating from her very being.
Pei Huaiche's gaze, however, inadvertently swept to the end of the prescription, where the words "moderate conjugal relations" were written in bold characters.
Without betraying any reaction, he set the paper aside on the pillow, took the bowl of medicine and drank it in one go, then reached out and drew her back into his embrace.
He thought to himself—since she had not asked, he could hardly be accused of deception.
As it stood now, his past decision never to teach her to read could not have been more prescient.