“Cousin, Cheng Yin knows he was wrong! But that person nearly made it so I’d never have descendants!” he immediately began lodging his complaint.
“Miss Xiao, wasn’t that a bit too ruthless?”
No sooner had the words fallen than someone stepped out from behind a tree trunk ahead. Clad in pale azure robes, her long hair still bound with a silvery-white ribbon, her eyes held a faint smile, yet deep within them lay a dense, dark gloom. Who else could it be but Xiao Qianyin?
“Your Highness, the Crown Prince, you are mistaken. I have always known how to measure my actions. Otherwise, what he injured would not have been the root of his thigh, but his ability to truly leave descendants! As the saying goes, if a child is not taught, it is the father’s fault. Today he used his power to bully others. As his elder brother, shouldn’t Your Highness discipline him properly? Yet you’ve come to hold me to account?”
Lin Yi stared, utterly dazed. He only felt as though he were looking upon a lofty deity; even before the powerful and exalted Crown Prince, she did not yield an inch.
“Look at this young man, beaten into such a state. Tsk, tsk, that really was rather vicious. If someone were actually beaten to death, it would be quite detrimental to Lushan Academy’s reputation—and to Your Highness’s reputation as well.”
She spoke with a smile, seeming gentle, yet her words were threaded with cold glints, showing not the slightest weakness.
Wei Wuyin smiled faintly. He rarely smiled, and this smile was like a spring breeze brushing the face; his already outstanding features strangely gained a touch of softness. The attendants following him were instantly dumbfounded. Their Crown Prince was famously ruthless, cold-blooded, and unfeeling—when had he ever smiled so… so… tenderly? Mm, perhaps, probably, it was tenderness?
Xiao Qianyin was also stunned for a moment. Why had Wei Wuyin suddenly smiled? It looked extraordinarily strange. She had also heard of this Crown Prince of Xiliang—one who seldom smiled and was incomparably cold. Seeing him like this now was somewhat alarming.
“Indeed, Cheng Yin went too far. But he is, after all, my cousin. For the sake of the Empress Mother, I must protect him. How about this: I would like to have a contest with Miss Xiao. If I lose, I will certainly have my cousin kowtow to him respectfully and apologize. What do you say?”
“What does Your Highness mean by that?” Xiao Qianyin raised an eyebrow. “Compete with me? What do you wish to compete in? I am a woman; in every respect I cannot compare with Your Highness, who is a man. Besides, Your Highness knows my usual way of doing things. Everyone says I am ruthless and brutal. I merely saved someone on a whim. As for what happens to him next, what has it to do with me?”
If one did not act for oneself, Heaven and Earth would destroy them. She was no saintly believer. If there was no use in it, why should she force herself to stick her neck out? Though she had saved him, if not for Wei Wuyin, this unexpected interloper who appeared halfway and exposed her with a single sentence, she would not have needed to show herself.
The youth’s originally excited eyes dimmed. That was true. They were neither kin nor acquaintance; it was already good enough that she had saved him. Could he really expect her to offend the Crown Prince for his sake?
“When I heard Miss Xiao say those words earlier, they were forceful and resonant. Why is it that now you seem like a different person? However, competing with me would also be beneficial to Miss Xiao.”
“Oh? What benefit? Your Highness makes it sound so pleasant. You wouldn’t be trying to deceive me, would you?”
“Miss Xiao has long since passed the age of coming-of-age. Imperial Father does intend to have me marry Miss Xiao as Crown Princess. The legitimate daughter of the Xiao clan, the cherished jewel of the Marquis of Dingguo—enough to move even me.”
Xiao Qianyin’s pupils abruptly contracted. She lifted her head to look at him and said, “My reputation is already this notorious, yet Your Highness still wants to marry me? You are indeed no ordinary person!”
“If it were the former you, I would not have considered it. But the current you—I would. We compete. If you win, I will persuade Imperial Father to rescind his decree to marry you to me, and Cheng Yin will apologize as well. If you lose, you must willingly become my bride, the Crown Princess of Xiliang!”
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Second update delivered. I hope everyone will support, favorite, and recommend it lots!