Chapter 493 You scoundrel, why are you holding my hand?

Sheng Sheng is still a young girl after all. She's great at watching others fall in love and even giving them advice, but when it comes to herself, she's still a bit naive and her mindset isn't stable enough.

What Zijuan and the others said wasn't unreasonable. Although she believed that Pei Ji wasn't that kind of person, but...

She was having some trouble controlling her thoughts; she was a little scared.

Yes, as the storybooks say, liking someone can make a coward brave, and it can also make a brave person cowardly.

Therefore, it is perfectly normal for her to have such thoughts.

"Hey, what are you talking about? Don't talk nonsense here, we're good friends!"

Sheng Sheng waved his hand haphazardly to shoo the two out, then slammed the door shut. He leaned against the door, lost in thought with a displeased expression.

"Hmph, if you dare not come to celebrate my birthday, I will never prepare a birthday gift for you again!"

She stamped her foot repeatedly, saying, "If you like someone else, then I... then I'll like someone else too!"

That's right!

She is the most beloved little princess of the Yu Kingdom, and she has no reason to be troubled by such matters of love.

If Pei Ji disappoints her, she can just marry ten or eight princes and be overjoyed. There is absolutely no way she would be sad for Pei Ji!

Therefore, she wouldn't give Pei Ji a friendly look until she was sure he felt the same way about her.

snort.

Having convinced himself of this, Sheng Sheng was too lazy to think about anything else. He casually tossed the secret letter aside and went out to play with Yan Hu and the others without a care in the world.

Yan Hu has been sick lately and isn't in good spirits. He has no energy to do anything, so she needs to spend more time with him and cheer him up.

...

June 16th was the coming-of-age ceremony for Xie Yunsheng, the most favored little princess of the time.

The current emperor was overjoyed and bestowed upon her the title of Yongle, meaning that she would enjoy a lifetime of happiness.

Logically, a princess should have her own princess residence after her coming-of-age ceremony, and the ceremony should also be held in the princess residence. However, Sheng Sheng was used to living in Yuqing Palace and was too lazy to move again. In any case, the princes and Princess Xie Yunjia were all outside the palace. Apart from Xie Yunchuan and his wife, there was only their daughter in the palace, so it was very spacious and there was no shortage of room.

So Sheng Sheng simply didn't want the princess's residence and stayed at Yuqing Palace, and her coming-of-age ceremony was held in the palace.

As the youngest sister most beloved by the imperial relatives, Princess Yongle's coming-of-age ceremony was naturally a grand affair, with the scale of the event being as large as possible.

The Jinyi Hall was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, with gilded palace lanterns stretching for several meters. Rare and exotic flowers bloomed in front of the steps, their fragrance spreading for miles.

It is said that every pot of flowers and every blade of grass was personally selected by the Empress—the sister-in-law of Princess Yongle—with utmost care.

Members of the imperial family, nobles, and officials arrived with their families in droves. The hall was filled with the sounds of music and congratulatory messages, making it even more magnificent than the palace banquets of previous years.

Sheng Sheng sat in front of the dressing mirror, letting Zi Juan and Huang Ying busy themselves with dressing her up. One of them combed her hair, and the other put on hairpins. In no time, they had dressed Sheng Sheng up completely.

Her black hair was loosely tied into a bun, with a golden phoenix hairpin slanted at her temple. The diamonds embedded in the golden wings shone brightly in the morning light.

A touch of bright red cinnabar between her brows softened her already delicate features, making her appear more graceful and gentle, shedding her former playful and childishness, and transforming her into a princess in the prime of her life.

Zijuan and Huangying excitedly applied lip rouge to her lips one last time, seemingly even more excited than she was.

"Our princess is so beautiful!"

"Yes, yes, even I, a woman, wish I could marry the princess!"

"You guys are so glib."

Sheng Sheng raised her hand and touched the hairpin in her hair. Her fingertips touched the cool golden phoenix, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously curved into a smile. "Is the time here?"

"We've arrived! Her Majesty the Empress has already sent a maid to wait on us. Let's go to the Golden Palace now."

"good."

Sheng Sheng straightened her skirt and, with Zi Juan's help, sat in the sedan chair.

The journey from Yuqing Palace to Jinyi Hall was not short. As she swayed in the sedan chair, Sheng Sheng couldn't help but hold onto the hairpins in her hair to prevent them from falling over, while also thinking about that person.

Today is her coming-of-age ceremony. In previous years, Pei Ji would always come two days before her birthday, but he didn't come this year.

What? Has he really forgotten his childhood sweetheart after becoming the king? Is he not planning to celebrate her birthday this year?

Ah, men.

Sheng Sheng pouted and angrily punched her thigh.

Zijuan noticed her movement and asked, "Princess, what's wrong?"

"Oh, no."

He coughed once, sat up straight again, shook his head, and stopped thinking about him.

As soon as the sedan chair turned through the hanging flower gate, it bumped into the crowd of people surging towards the front hall.

She looked up, her gaze passing through the swirling crowns and jewels, and unexpectedly met the eyes of one person.

The man stood under the corridor, not rushing to sit in the Golden Hall like the others. He was dressed in the most common moon-white robe, the hem of which fluttered slightly in the wind. He held a gardenia bracelet in his hand, his gaze deep and thoughtful, as if filled with the light of spring.

The moment their eyes met, the surrounding noise seemed to fall silent.

Sheng Sheng's mouth was slightly open, and she unconsciously straightened her body and leaned forward, wanting to see the person more clearly.

Pei Ji seemed to notice her movement, a faint smile appeared in his eyes, and he raised his hand to show her what he was holding.

The little girl stared intently until the sedan chair entered the side hall of the Golden Hall and could no longer see that side. Only then did Sheng Sheng belatedly raise a smile.

...

After Xie Yunchuan and Li Manyan finished preparing the coming-of-age ceremony for her, she repeatedly refused her brothers' suggestion to celebrate her again in private and rushed to Yuqing Palace.

She didn't even change out of her elaborate clothes; she just looked in the mirror, touched up her lipstick, and headed straight for South Lake.

The soft moonlight filtered through the leaves, and the radiant young girl, filled with joy, lifted her skirt and ran quickly towards her own moonlight.

As they drew closer, the man standing by the lake turned around at the sound, gently brushing aside the stray strands of hair from the panting girl's head, a deep smile on his face: "Why are you in such a hurry?"

Sheng Sheng paused for a moment, then deliberately pouted, her voice tinged with sourness: "Hmph, I thought His Majesty was too busy with state affairs to attend my little coming-of-age ceremony."

Pei Ji found it amusing and gently coaxed the young girl, "Coming of age is different. I want to see you on that day. Don't be angry, okay?"

Pei Ji placed the gardenia bracelet on her wrist, and the burning heat of his palm made Sheng Sheng tremble.

Sheng Sheng watched as he pulled her hand and put the bracelet on her wrist, but didn't let go. Her face flushed, and she glared at him: "You lecher, why are you holding my hand?"

Pei Ji wasn't annoyed by the scolding; instead, he gripped the girl's hand even tighter and raised an eyebrow at her, his meaning quite clear.

"If I'm a lecher, why don't you shake off those voices?"

Sheng Sheng didn't take the bait, shaking him off and angrily saying, "What's it to you? Brother Pei Ji, please don't be like this. We're all grown up now, not children anymore. Some things can easily lead to misunderstandings. You're the ruler of a country now, so you should be more careful."

Pei Ji feigned ignorance: "Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?"