৪৮ রাজকুমার শক্তিশালী

ying qing smiles and looks at him: "missed me?"

yun heng hums, sits down beside her, and gently holds her hand: "tired?"

"not tired." ying qing shakes her head, her voice soft and warm: "the people carrying the sedan chair are the tired ones."

yun heng shakes his head: "not really."

ying qing naturally understands this as well, so she smiles: "thank goodness they are all martial arts masters, otherwise having them carry the sedan chair such a long distance is something ordinary people could never accomplish."

even though yun heng has entered the sedan chair at this moment and added extra weight, it makes no difference to the masters carrying it.

yun heng says nothing, pulls her into his embrace, and enjoys the serene atmosphere inside the sedan chair.

"what is it?" ying qing tilts her head to look at him, sensing that his mood doesn't seem quite right: "after returning to the imperial capital, did the emperor make things difficult for you?"

yun heng gazes into her peerless brows and eyes, is silent for a moment, and shakes his head: "it's not the emperor, it's the empress dowager."

"why is she making things difficult for you? is it because of me again?" ying qing frowns, her brows and eyes clearly tinged with a bit of anger: "i just don't understand, as an empress dowager who stands above all women, with supreme nobility and boundless glory, having everything she could possibly want—even the emperor must observe filial piety before her, and with so many people serving her in the palace—what else is she unsatisfied with? does she really need the prince to drag her son off the imperial throne before the two of them can learn to behave?"

the young maiden has always been gentle, and over the past month she has been utterly submissive to yun heng, never having lost her temper once.

it's not that yun heng has never seen her angry, but the reason for her anger today is different from the past.

this thought flashes through yun heng's mind, the depths of his eyes growing even softer as his slender fingers lift a strand of her dark, glossy hair, a smile at the corner of his lips impossible to hide: "don't worry, no one can make things difficult for me."

ying qing looks at him suspiciously: "really?"

yun heng nods: "really."

ying qing is silent for a moment: "but the empress dowager is an elder, after all..."

"when the late emperor was on the throne, i never took her seriously," yun heng says calmly. "now if she wants to put on the airs of an elder sister-in-law acting as a mother, she'll have to see whether this prince is willing to allow it."

ying qing nods; that is true indeed.

she knits her delicate brows again: "are you really not finding it difficult? if there is anything unpleasant, you must tell me, prince, and we will bear it together."

yun heng thinks quietly: for the rest of their lives, all joys and sorrows will be borne together by the two of them—no, there will be no sorrow or grief, from now on their lives will only hold joy and peace.

"okay," yun heng's voice is softer than ever before: "we will bear it together."

"when necessary, i can also help you vent your anger."

a trace of a smile crosses yun heng's face: "how are you going to help me vent my anger?"

"you don't understand," ying qing raises an eyebrow. "the empress dowager is your sister-in-law, and they say a sister-in-law is like a mother. if the prince treats her too discourteously, it will give people something to gossip about. even if the empress dowager is discourteous first, the world will still feel that the prince ought to be respectful."

at this, she sneers: "respectful my foot! for a sister-in-law who only wants to pick a fight, i think we should let her go stay wherever it's cool."

yun heng gives a low chuckle: "i think so too."

"then our thoughts as husband and wife coincide." ying qing hooks the corner of her lips, her brows and eyes brimming with a delightful smile: "furthermore, if a man bullies a woman, it also makes him look ungentlemanly. so if the empress dowager looks for trouble with you again, let me handle it. she and i are both women, and a woman's war should be resolved in a woman's way."

although the empress dowager holds a noble status, she is no pushover either. if yun heng can maintain a tough attitude before the emperor, what does she, the princess consort, have to fear from the empress dowager?

she refuses to believe that mother and son would truly dare to act arrogantly in front of yun heng, who holds the military power of four hundred thousand troops.

"anyway, i've never had a good reputation to begin with," ying qing smiles, maintaining an air of breezy detachment. "they all feel that my background is mercantile and that i am too vulgar to match you. since that's the case, i might as well become even fiercer and be a vulgar, formidable princess consort. most people in this world bully the soft and fear the hard; if i keep swallowing my insults, they will only become more emboldened. if i launch a prompt and brutal counterattack, they might be shocked into silence and not dare to utter a sound."

yun heng loves seeing this overbearing side of her and kisses her forehead: "you're right."

"prince, don't be fooled by those noble young ladies who usually look dignified and elegant; when they start mocking others, their words are far from elegant and pierce straight to the heart," ying qing says. "yet if someone is tougher than them, they will likely cower instantly. that is human nature."

yun heng completely agrees with her words: "everything my beloved wife says is right. from now on, your husband will back you up, and you can be as formidable as you wish."

caught off guard by this endearment, ying qing is momentarily stunned, and then her pretty face flushes slightly: "i never expected the prince to have such tender moments."

yun heng gazes at her, tender affection swirling endlessly in the depths of his eyes.

by evening, the procession arrives at wanning city, a mere eighty li from the imperial city. yun heng and ying qing dismount from the sedan chair to stay at a private courtyard and rest for the night.

early the next morning, they rise to wash and dress, paint their eyebrows and apply makeup, change into the luxurious and grand phoenix coronet and ceremonial robes, board the sedan chair, and resume their journey.

the nineteenth day of the fourth month, an auspicious day, suitable for weddings.

the noble prince regent of daqian welcomes his princess consort into the imperial city.

ten li of red carpets cover the ground, running straight from outside the imperial city gates to the prince regent's manor. gongs and drums beat thunderously along both sides of the streets, and bright red lanterns hang high everywhere throughout the capital. amidst the bustling, noisy crowd of onlookers, eight tall steeds lead the way ahead, and the magnificent soft sedan chair comes into view, breathtaking enough to leave people speechless.

on one of the tall steeds guiding the front, a refined young man rides up to the sedan chair, looks toward the majestic gates of the prince regent's manor, and speaks in a gentle voice that everyone around can hear: "today is the day the eldest miss of the jiuhua pavilion leaves her maiden home to marry the prince regent of daqian. it is hoped that the prince regent will treat the miss well in the future, and also hoped that the subjects of daqian will all treat our eldest miss well."

isn't the bride married by the prince regent the eldest miss of the ying family?

the prospective princess consort the prince regent was going to marry was clearly the eldest miss of the ying family. wasn't the prince regent still fiercely defending the eldest miss of the ying family just a few days ago, vowing to marry no other? why has the bride suddenly changed?

amidst the quiet gaze of the crowd, the aloof prince regent dismounts and walks up to the sedan chair.

just as yun heng is about to lead ying qing across the threshold into the hall, a distant announcement rings out: "his majesty and her majesty the empress have arrived!"

"pay respects to his majesty, may he live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand years!"

"pay respects to her majesty the empress, may she live a thousand years, a thousand years, a thousand years!"

"rise, my lords," the handsome and refined sovereign says in a gentle voice. his gaze falls upon the pair of jade-like figures in the hall, and upon locking eyes with ying qing's peerless beauty, his breath catches for a fraction of a second before he resumes a calm, light smile: "the empress and i also came to join in the lively atmosphere and share a cup of wedding wine, to congratulate my little imperial uncle on his grand marriage and marital harmony."

ying qing lowers her eyes and tightens her grip on yun heng's hand.

the empress actually came today as well; she must have calculated that on such a joyous occasion yun heng would not make an example of her, and thus she wishes to seize the opportunity to lift her confinement penalty.

"many thanks for the emperor's blessing," yun heng says in a flat tone. because of today's great joy, his mood is good, and his voice lacks some of its usual aloofness, sounding somewhat warm: "someone, prepare a seat of honor for his majesty."

yun moyin smiles faintly: "no rush, i haven't yet toasted my imperial uncle a cup."

as his voice trails off, a nearby attendant respectfully steps forward holding a goblet of wine. yun moyin raises his hand to take a cup of fine wine: "this cup is a toast to my imperial uncle."

yun heng takes it and drains it in one gulp.

yun moyin pours another cup: "this cup is a toast to my imperial aunt."

ying qing smiles calmly, utters a "many thanks, your majesty," and reaches out to take the goblet.

however, a hand suddenly shoots out from the side, taking the goblet before her: "qingqing is not well-versed in alcohol; let your husband drink this cup instead."

a wave of cheerful uproar instantly ripples through the hall: "imperial uncle is mighty!"

"imperial uncle truly cherishes the imperial aunt to the very depths of his heart."

even if yun moyin feels displeasure in his heart, he will not show it in front of so many people. besides, he came today expressly to deliver blessings, and displaying an imperial airs here would only make him appear narrow-minded.

yet, lingering doubts remain in his mind, so he speaks up, his tone somewhat deep: "is the imperial aunt the daughter of the jiuhua pavilion? why have i never heard of this?"

ying qing smiles calmly and composedly: "after my mother divorced my father, i was fetched away to the jiuhua pavilion by people sent by my mother."

"so madam ying is the master of the jiuhua pavilion?"

the mother-in-law who is the master of the jiuhua pavilion can barely be considered a master figure, ying qing thinks as she nods with a clear conscience, showing not a shred of guilt on her face: "mm."

yun moyin grips his hands tightly.

"why has no one ever mentioned this over the years?"

ying qing says coolly: "my mother is low-key. originally, she only wanted to live a proper life with my father, but she never expected my father to be so unreliable. her heart was completely broken, and only after divorcing him and leaving did she send someone to tell me her true identity."

thinking of the jiuhua pavilion, yun moyin feels a surge of regret and wants to ask more, but hears yun heng speak: "does your majesty have many questions to ask?"

the expression on the emperor's face freezes, and he smoothly changes the subject: "on such a rare and joyous occasion, perhaps my imperial brothers would all like to toast my imperial uncle as well?"

yun heng's brows and eyes are cold and detached, a flash of biting frost sweeping through the depths of his eyes.

ying qing squeezes his hand in silent comfort.

"it's better for us brothers to share a few drinks among ourselves first. it's rare for our little imperial uncle to get married today, and we must not delay the auspicious hour for the newlyweds," a young man in the hall stands up, holding a goblet to draw everyone's attention. "there will be plenty of time to toast the imperial uncle later. isn't that right, third imperial brother?"

the speaker is none other than the current prince tai, yun moling, the seventh prince of the imperial lineage. he has just reached adulthood this year, has always kept a low profile, cares nothing for fame or fortune, and usually possesses a rather faint presence.

the emperor glances at him coldly, though in the end he says nothing more, merely remarking: "since that is the case, i will not delay the auspicious hour for my imperial uncle and imperial aunt."

the ceremonial officer immediately chants loudly: "enter the bridal chamber!"

the veil hangs lightly downward, covering the bride's peerless and beautiful face.

just outside the manor gates earlier, yun heng intentionally let people catch a glimpse of ying qing so that everyone would know whom he was marrying today, who the mistress of the prince regent's manor is, and who the young lady of the jiuhua pavilion is; thus the veil was only half-covered until this moment when it is finally let down completely.

yun heng takes ying qing's hand and accompanies her toward the bridal chamber.