Ye Wanhe lowered her voice and said, "I just saw him at the banquet. I didn't expect he was also in Chang'an City. It's a good thing that you have a family member who can help you."

Yun Xiangye whispered, "Sister, my cousin has also been hoping that you can leave the palace."

Listening to Yun Xiangye's words, Ye Wanhe seemed to be on the big ship coming to Chang'an at that time. The young man said with pure eyes that he would wait for her to leave the palace.

At that time, both of them were only thirteen or fourteen years old. In the blink of an eye, more than ten years had passed.

Ye Wanhe had long forgotten Su Zhan during these years in the palace.

Ye Wanhe smiled faintly and said, "When I came to Chang'an City, I spent more than a month with him on the boat. When I entered the palace, he said he would wait for me to leave."

Ye Wanhe took the water Yun Xiangye handed over and said, "After so many years, I thought he would have forgotten the promise we made when we were young."

Yun Xiangye hurriedly said, "No, my cousin does remember. He even collected a lot of treasures for you and is waiting for you to leave the palace..."

Ye Wanhe held Yun Xiangye's hand and said, "Xiangye, there's no need to say anything. After all, I have no chance of leaving the palace now, and he already has a wife. You should persuade him to cherish the people around him."

Yun Xiangye said, "My cousin has no one around him."

Yun Xiangye looked into Ye Wanhe's eyes and said, "My cousin hasn't married yet. He's waiting for you to leave the palace."

Ye Wanhe slowly let go of Yun Xiangye's wrist and said, "Then you should persuade him to find a daughter who can live a good life and get married. After all, I can't leave the palace again. There's no need to mention that he remembers me. It's better to forget it."

Yun Xiangye said, "Sister, what I told you last time about faking my death and leaving the palace..."

Ye Wanhe frowned and said, "This is a crime of deceiving the emperor. Once discovered, there will be endless troubles. Xiangye, I can't implicate my family and you."

Yun Xiangye said, "When His Highness gets married, there will be chaos in the Eastern Palace. If you faked your death then, it would be considered bad luck, and you would definitely not let anyone find out."

Ye Wanhe shook her head slightly. "Xiangye, just live a good life with Nuonuo and don't think about me anymore. I would never dare to commit the crime of deceiving the emperor."

Ye Wanhe whispered, "I can't bear the consequences, and neither can you. Don't even think about letting me leave the palace."

Yun Xiangye looked at Ye Wanhe and said, "Sister, is it because you can't bear to leave His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"

Ye Wanhe smiled bitterly: "It is indeed because of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, but it is not because I can't bear to leave him."

"I have been by His Highness's side for a full ten years. When I was fifteen, the Empress chose me to go to the Eastern Palace to look after His Highness the Crown Prince. He may appear kind and friendly to the outside world, but in reality, he is even more ruthless than His Majesty.

Not long after I entered the Eastern Palace, a gossipy eunuch sent a letter outside, and His Highness ordered him to have his ears and tongue cut off and be exiled to the bitter cold of Cangzhou."

Ye Wanhe said, "His Highness is not as kind as you think. If he finds out that we dared to deceive him, it will be a disaster for our entire clan. You should give up this thought and never mention it again."

Yun Xiangye said, "Sister, what if I can ensure that nothing goes wrong?"

Ye Wanhe whispered, "No one in this world can guarantee absolute safety."

Yun Xiangye looked at Ye Wanhe distressedly. Ye Wanhe smiled faintly: "Don't worry too much about me. Just live your life well."

Yun Xiangye said, "I originally thought that after you left the palace, I would accompany you back to Jiangnan."

Ye Wanhe asked, "What did Prince Ning do to displease you again? Husband and wife quarrel at the beginning of the bed and make up at the end. Prince Ning is indeed a good man. You should cherish him."

Yun Xiangye heard a knock on the door, she hurried to open it, and saw Run'er coming in with food.

Yun Xiangye looked at Ye Wanhe and said, "Just now I saw you taking care of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's meal. He must be hungry."

Ye Wanhe took the chopsticks with a chuckle.

Yun Xiangye ordered Run'er to go out and guard the door. She whispered again, "Sister, Cousin Su's feelings for you are truly sincere..."

Ye Wanhe said, "I never thought he would really keep his promise on the boat and wait for me to leave the palace. I thought he had already married and had children. Before today, I never knew he still cared about me. But even if I could really leave the palace, I would have no chance to be with him."

Ye Wanhe slowly put down her chopsticks and said, "After all, he and I are not destined to be together in this life. Sister, please tell him that he doesn't need to wait for me anymore. Tell him that I have already forgotten him. I stayed in the palace for the wealth and power in the East Palace..."

Yun Xiangye sighed, "Sister, why bother lying to Cousin Su?"

Ye Wanhe placed her hand on her lower abdomen and whispered, "I can't delay him... Even if I could leave the palace, I would no longer be worthy of him. It's better for him to give up as soon as possible and find a girl who is truly worthy of him to spend the rest of his life with."

--

Qingfeng Garden, in the study.

After admiring the painting, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince looked at Gu Yan standing before him and said, "Did you have any important matters of the court to discuss during the New Year?"

Gu Yan smiled and said, "Your Highness, Xiangye has been looking forward to meeting Aunt Ye outside the palace for a long time. I asked you to come to the study just to give the two sisters a chance to talk."

The Crown Prince didn't bother to argue anymore and just said to Gu Yan, "Does Yun Xiangye's cousin know Wan He?"

Gu Yan said: "I don't know about this."

Zhao Yun turned the ring on his finger and called the secret guard to go and investigate.

Gu Yan hurriedly stopped him and said, "Your Highness, what's the point of investigating this matter? After all, Aunt Ye is now close to you and cannot leave the palace. If you investigate a common merchant, others will think you care about Aunt Ye."

When Zhao Yun heard what Gu Yan said, he looked up at Gu Yan and waved his hand to let the secret guards retreat.

Gu Yan said: "Your Highness, if you really care about and love Aunt Ye, why not give her a status? She can't have children anymore anyway..."

Zhao Yun said, "After my father ascended the throne, my mother was the only one in the six palaces. If I took a concubine, there is no guarantee that other officials would send other women to my father.

Moreover, for Yu Wanhe, rather than being a concubine in the East Palace, it would be better for her to be a senior palace maid, where she would be more respected. A palace maid is not necessarily inferior to a concubine."

Gu Yan sighed, "After all, a female official is just a servant. It would be better to give Aunt Ye a title like Liang Di or Liang Yuan."

Zhao Yun looked at Gu Yan and said, "You've become bolder. It's time for you to have a say in my harem affairs."

Gu Yan listened to what Zhao Yun said, but he was not panicked. He chuckled and said, "I am afraid that you will regret it when you lose Aunt Ye in the future."

"How is that possible?" Zhao Yun sneered, "How could I possibly regret losing Ye Wanhe?"

At the study door, Yun Xiangye and Ye Wanhe came over and heard what Zhao Yun said.

Yun Xiangye couldn't help but frown in anger, but Ye Wanhe's expression remained calm.

Ye Wanhe couldn't help but smile at Yun Xiangye. Why should she be angry about this?

For His Highness, losing her was just like losing a palace maid for his entertainment.

How can I regret it so much?