Why did he back down?

Xie Chang'an reached out and put his hand on Ye Jingchen's shoulder, pushing him back a little, and said with disdain, "Sit properly! Don't get too close to me!"

"What were you thinking about just now?" Although Ye Jingchen had sat back down, he propped his head up with his hand and kept staring at Xie Chang'an with particularly bright eyes.

Looking into Ye Jingchen's smiling eyes, Xie Chang'an felt his heart skip a beat.

It was a very strange feeling, one he had never experienced before, neither in his previous life nor in this one.

Those eyes are so beautiful when they smile.

As he thought about it, he reached out to touch it.

However, he regained consciousness after twitching his fingers.

Was he possessed just now?

Why do I find a pair of eyes that look so much like Ye Shengping's to be beautiful?

His face instantly turned cold.

"It's none of your business!" he said coldly.

Ye Jingchen: ......

He witnessed Xie Chang'an's dramatic change of expression in front of him; in just a moment, Xie Chang'an went from looking somewhat stunned to having a cold and world-weary face.

Even the most amazing face-changing skills in Sichuan can't match how fast his face changes.

As expected of Miss Xie, when she gets angry, she can change her mind faster than turning the pages of a book. The key point is that Ye Jingchen doesn't even know what he did to offend her this time.

but--

These days, who doesn't know how to change their expression?

Ye Jingchen's smile vanished, and he stared at him expressionlessly.

The two stared at each other for a long time before Xie Chang'an turned his head away first, averting his gaze.

He recalled their previous conversation, but perhaps the shock of that moment was too great for him. It took him a while to remember that Ye Jingchen was asking him if there was any way to get the emperor to compromise and not force him to marry.

"The best way is to replace him and become emperor yourself, then no one can force you!" Xie Chang'an said coldly.

From the moment he said "take his place," Ye Jingchen wanted nothing more than to rush over and cover his mouth!

However, Xie Chang'an had a cold face, clearly unhappy, and he didn't want to provoke him anymore.

So he immediately covered his ears; it was better not to listen to such disobedient and insubordinate remarks.

"How come I didn't know you were such a coward?" Xie Chang'an mocked.

"I'm not cowardly, I'm just being filial!" Ye Jingchen defended himself, even though he had covered his ears but still heard Xie Chang'an's voice clearly.

Xie Chang'an scoffed, "Since you're so filial, why don't you obediently listen to the emperor and let him find you a noblewoman to be your crown princess?"

“A marriage without love is destined to be unhappy. I’m not happy, and the other person is pitiful. What’s the point?” Ye Jingchen said earnestly.

"Your Highness, at such a young age, already knows how to cherish and protect women. I imagine that whoever becomes your Crown Princess wouldn't feel wronged!"

Xie Chang'an's words were sincere and contained no hint of sarcasm.

In his opinion, Ye Jingchen is intelligent, thoughtful, and emotionally stable. He is especially attentive to those he cares about. If he were to get married, he would definitely treat his wife very well, so how could she possibly feel wronged?

"Even if others don't feel wronged, I will feel wronged," Ye Jingchen said casually.

How can a person be without flaws?

Before he transmigrated into the book, he was someone even his own parents disliked. If you asked his parents to name his good points, they probably wouldn't be able to name a single one.

But if we were to point out its drawbacks—

Lacking ambition, unmotivated, disobedient, unfilial, heartless, lazy, a homebody...

His parents could go on and on about his shortcomings for two hours straight!

He knows exactly what kind of person he is, and the personality traits he's displaying now are just what he wants to show others, not his true personality.

If he were to get married, he hoped to find someone who could accept his true nature. At least in front of that person, he hoped he could be himself, Ye Jingchen, and not the Crown Prince.

“You…” Xie Chang’an’s fingers twitched.

Although Ye Jingchen spoke casually, neither his voice nor his facial expression showed any disappointment or sadness, Xie Chang'an felt a strange pang in his heart when he heard him say, "I can feel wronged too."

Having known each other for seven years, he had never heard Ye Jingchen say anything so submissive.

He wanted to comfort Ye Jingchen, but he didn't know where to begin.

After all, he had never comforted anyone in either of his lives!

The atmosphere was inexplicably heavy.

"Xie Chang'an, why aren't you a girl? If you were a girl, I would definitely marry you!" Ye Jingchen's disappointment was only momentary. Seeing that Xie Chang'an's expression seemed to have softened, he couldn't help but start being sarcastic.

To be honest, apart from their genders being incompatible, he and Xie Chang'an were a perfect match in every other way.

They all have the appearance of youth but the soul of a weathered soul. If Xie Chang'an were a girl, he would not feel any guilt whatsoever, such as an old cow eating young grass or bullying a young girl!

They also know each other's secrets, so they can be together without any reservations or need to be wary of each other.

Moreover, Xie Chang'an's family background meets the standards for a Crown Princess. Marrying Xie Chang'an is equivalent to having 200,000 Xie family soldiers as a dowry, which is a great deal!

Most importantly, for the sake of the bigger picture, he has been putting up with Xie Chang'an's unpredictable temper all these years. He remembers how many times he has been met with indifference. If he marries Xie Chang'an as the Crown Princess, they will become a community of shared destiny. If Xie Chang'an throws a tantrum like that again, he can throw it back and not tolerate it at all!

He wanted to show Xie Chang'an that everyone has a bad temper!

Thinking of this, Ye Jingchen couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Xie Chang'an's slightly relieved expression instantly turned ashen, and he felt like strangling Ye Jingchen.

It's a good thing he felt a tiny bit sorry for him just now!

It would have been better to feed it to the dogs!

He stared coldly at Ye Jingchen, his eyes sharp as knives, one hand clenched into a fist on the stone table, veins bulging.

Ye Jingchen took out a birthday banquet invitation from his pocket, handed it to Xie Chang'an, and said with a suppressed laugh, "This is my royal sister's invitation to Uncle Xie and the Crown Princess to attend her birthday banquet. Please pass it on to them!"

Xie Chang'an didn't answer, but kept glaring at him, his fists clenched so tightly they made a cracking sound.

"It's getting late, I should return to the palace! Chenxi—" Ye Jingchen placed the invitation on the stone table, stood up, and called out.

Chenxi jumped down from the peach tree and landed in front of him, her gaze towards him quite subtle.

"Let's go, let's go—back to the palace!" Ye Jingchen said to Chenxi, taking three steps at a time, and fled from Chang'an Residence as if escaping.

Even after I had walked quite a distance from the courtyard, I could still feel the chilly gaze on my back.

"Hahahahaha!" Ye Jingchen laughed loudly as he left the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, amidst the puzzled looks of the gatekeepers.

Being sarcastic or mean-spirited might feel good for a moment, and being sarcastic or mean-spirited all the time might feel good.

Unfortunately, Xie Chang'an has a terrible temper; he can only be sarcastic for a moment.