The Changan Marquisate was adorned with lanterns and colorful decorations, a scene of extravagant splendor.
Luxurious and imposing carriages lined up one after another at the entrance of the Marquisate. Elegantly dressed noblewomen, leading their daughters and sons, arrived one by one to celebrate and attend the Hairpin Ceremony of the Marquisate's eldest young lady.
Amidst this lavish display, a spirited horse galloped forth, coming to an abrupt halt before the Marquisate's gates. A tall and graceful young man dismounted.
He wore a brocade robe and held a long whip in his hand, his complexion as fair as jade and his figure as slender as bamboo.
Truly, he was the jade-like youth of whose household? Turning his carriage to cross the heavenly ford. Gazing at flowers on the eastern path, startling the people of Luoyang.
"Ah! That's the Third Prince! The Third Prince has actually come too!"
"The Third Prince appreciates beauty the most. Mother, quickly check my makeup and hair—don't let the Third Prince find it displeasing."
A group of young ladies, some shy, some timid, some bold and open, all turned their gazes toward the Third Prince, hoping to earn a single glance of favor from him.
At that moment, a coarse-cloth carriage clattered slowly into view, appearing particularly conspicuous in such a setting.
The crowd at the Marquisate's entrance couldn't help but shift their attention to look, thinking to themselves: this is the Hairpin Ceremony of the Changan Marquisate's eldest young lady. All who attend are dignitaries and nobles. They wondered who could be so shabby as to arrive in such a manner.
Wei Shuye handed the reins to his attendant and prepared to enter directly.
A chorus of gasps arose beside him. Hearing the commotion, Wei Shuye stopped and turned to look.
The carriage's cloth curtain was lifted, and Changle stepped out, bowing slightly as she emerged.
Through the ages, there is no peerless beauty; what delights the eye is a fair lady.
With a countenance that could topple cities and captivate nations, she startles all under heaven.
Though Changle had no reputation for talent, her beauty was universally acknowledged in Shengdu as peerless—the undisputed top beauty of the capital.
She wore a pine-flower-colored, front-opening wide-sleeved gown. While others might appear dignified and graceful in such attire, on her, it was enchanting and breathtakingly stunning.
Wei Shuye looked at Changle like this, his gaze flickering slightly.
In the past, he too had thought Changle's beauty was unparalleled—that only someone with her looks was worthy of being his princess consort.
But that was merely the naive thinking of his youth. Now that he had grown, he understood that a person's most important qualities were temperament and talent.
And Changle's temper was too foul. She possessed great beauty but lacked talent—like brocade on the outside, rotten wood within.
The coachman set down the footstool, and Changle stepped slowly down from the carriage.
A young lady from an official's family, who happened to be wearing a pine-flower-colored gown that day, stamped her foot in displeasure. "How annoying! Why did I have to wear the same color dress as her today?"
Changle's beauty was so extraordinary that even an ordinary gown would be elevated by her graceful, well-proportioned figure, taking on a unique charm. No one could gain an advantage by wearing the same outfit as her.
Changle's gaze swept over everyone, naturally settling on Wei Shuye.
Wei Shuye did not avert his eyes either. "I thought you wouldn't come today."
"Whether I come or not is my business. It has nothing to do with you."
Wei Shuye stared at Changle, her expression mocking, and impatience flashed in his eyes. "Must you speak to me like this?"
He admitted he had changed.
In the past, not to mention Changle speaking to him like this, even if she yelled at him, hit him, or scolded him, he would have taken it gladly, finding Changle refreshingly sincere and utterly unpretentious.
But now, with Changle still acting this way, he felt she was unreasonable, willful, and rude—especially now that he had a basis for comparison.
Changle stared at Wei Shuye like this, tightening her fist within her sleeve.
She had only spoken a single sentence like this, and already he was growing impatient.
But it was he who had once said that she could always be this carefree, that he would naturally protect her for a lifetime.
Changle had never doubted it, because no matter what happened, Wei Shuye would never question right or wrong—he would unconditionally shield her behind him.
He would even call her Jiaojiao, saying she was his life.
He would hold her hand and say how much he wished she would come of age soon, so he could marry her.
They were childhood sweethearts, innocent and inseparable, with a young love that was honest and passionate.
Changle once believed that even if everyone in the world abandoned her, Wei Shuye never would.
But this belief crumbled when Changle accidentally witnessed Wei Shuye embracing and kissing another woman beside a carriage.
He was so absorbed and lost in the moment, treasuring the person in his arms like a precious jewel.
Pushing the image from her mind, Changle said, "Third Prince, even if one has no shame, they should still have some sense of reason."
"Did I speak to you first? Did I even acknowledge you?"
"If you hadn’t spoken to me, would I have even glanced your way?"
Wei Shuye frowned, disliking the tone Changle was using with him now.
"If you speak to me like this, it seems you haven’t realized your own mistake."
"Fine, I’ll wait until the day you realize your mistake before we speak again."
"My mistake? What have I done wrong?"
Changle laughed in anger. "Wei Shuye, I went to eat with dignity. It was your beloved who rushed toward me with a scalding bowl of meat broth. Was I supposed to stand there and let her pour it on me instead of dodging?"
"Were you really just there to eat normally?"
Wei Shuye didn’t believe Changle’s words at all. Lowering his voice to a volume only the two of them could hear, he scolded her, "You clearly knew Xinyan was managing Qingyu Lou and deliberately went to trouble her and humiliate her."
"Xinyan knew you were upset and wanted to apologize, to explain things to you clearly."
"She, a manager of the restaurant, took on the work of a waiter, personally serving you dishes. And what did you do?"
"You knocked over the meat broth, splashing it on her and scalding her entire arm. It still hasn’t healed."
"Hua Changle, I never knew you were such a malicious person before! I truly misjudged you."
Seeing the intense disgust and impatience in Wei Shuye’s eyes, Changle’s expression wavered for a moment.
Wei Shuye was much taller than her. In the past, he had loved standing face-to-face with her like this, leaning in slightly to gaze directly at her.
Back then, his eyes always held a doting, affectionate smile when he looked at her, as if trying to drown her in his gaze.
The young man’s gaze was like ripples on a spring lake, stirred by a sudden breeze under the warm sun, with waterfowl gracefully skimming the surface and alighting on drooping willow branches.
Now, tenderness had been replaced by disdain, and doting by impatience. What she once believed was unwavering favoritism had, in fact, been easily shattered by a few words, leaving everything changed.
Looking at Wei Shuye like this, Changle instead calmed down, "Whether you believe it or not, I’ve said it: I didn’t deliberately splash her, nor did I go to Qingfeng Lou knowing she was the manager there, just to order her around and humiliate her.""
"If I had known she was managing Qingfeng Lou, I would never have gone there to eat."
Qingfeng Lou was an establishment under Wei Shuye's name. Changle truly hadn't expected Wei Shuye to allow the woman he liked to serve as a manager in a tavern.
If she had known earlier that Lin Xinyan was at Qingfeng Lou, she would never have brought trouble upon herself by going there to dine.
"Do you believe the words you're saying yourself?"
"Believe it or not, that's up to you."
Changle was about to walk away when Wei Shuye stopped her. "Is this your attitude toward resolving the issue?"
"Then how do you want to resolve it?"
"I want you to apologize to Xinyan."