Chapter 20 "The Crown Princess is naturally excellent, and I..."

"I beg my father and mother to grant my wish with Chengxiu!"

Pei Shang'er knelt upright on the gold bricks of the imperial study. Today, she had specially worn a high-waisted ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) to cover her belly, and her four-month pregnancy was faintly visible under the thin gauze.

Pei Lian slammed her hand on the table, making the teacups rattle, and said with exasperation, "You, a princess, are pregnant out of wedlock! What kind of behavior is this!"

When Pei Shang'er first saw Pei Lian get angry at her, she was startled and somewhat frightened.

Seeing this, Chen Xiang felt a pang of heartache and hurriedly helped her swaying daughter up, her voice trembling: "Shang'er, get up quickly, the ground is cold, be careful not to hurt yourself..."

"Mother, Chengxiu and I are truly in love!"

Pei Shang'er looked up, her eyes brimming with tears, "Have Father and Mother forgotten how Yang Mingkong tormented me in the past? If it weren't for Chengxiu, how could I have lived to see Father and Mother ascend the throne again!"

She paused deliberately, then began to subtly complain about Crown Princess Xue Yingyue.

"Only the Crown Prince and Crown Princess witnessed it that day. If they had been thinking of me and kept it a secret, how could the whole city have known about it!"

"Get up first." Pei Lian still couldn't bring himself to be harsh, and softened his tone.

Chen Xiang helped Pei Chang'er up, looked her over carefully, and sighed, "We're doing this for your own good, Chang'er. Do you think your father and mother would harm you?"

"His Majesty!"

Suddenly, a message came from outside the hall.

"The King of Huainan requests an audience."

Upon hearing that Yang Chengxiu had arrived, Pei Shang'er's eyes immediately lit up. Her delighted expression touched Pei Lian and Chen Xiang, who couldn't help but feel moved and softened.

They only have one daughter, and they'll give her anything she wants.

Yang Chengxiu, dressed in official robes, strode into the hall. Upon reaching his seat, he knelt down and kowtowed to Pei Lian, who was seated there, to beg for forgiveness.

"I know that my current status is vastly different from that of the princess, and I dare not presume to associate with her. I only beg Your Majesty to see the truth. This matter has nothing to do with the princess; it is all my fault. I have repeatedly threatened and seduced the princess, and I have committed the crime of disrespecting the royal family. I am willing to accept the punishment and hope that Your Majesty will make a wise judgment."

Pei Shang'er was shocked by what he said, her face filled with disbelief.

"Seung-soo, what are you saying? Get up!"

Seeing that Yang Chengxiu was genuinely pleading guilty and remained unmoved, Pei Shang'er went over and hugged him in fear, afraid that the emperor would really execute him.

“Father, if you intend to kill Chengxiu, then I will not live on my own.”

When Emperor Wen saw the army pressing in and the sun setting, and was about to kill Pei Shang'er, Yang Chengxiu held her tightly in his arms, preventing anyone from getting close and harming her.

From that moment on, Pei Shang'er was determined to be with Yang Chengxiu.

Pei Lian stared at Yang Chengxiu for a long time, then looked at Pei Shang'er, and finally sighed.

He recalled that fifteen years ago, he had knelt before Emperor Wen in the same way, begging her to agree to his decision to make the pregnant Chen Liniang his empress.

"Shang'er, how could you be so confused! Get up quickly." Although Chen Xiang was anxious, there was already a helpless compromise in her eyes.

"Both of you get up." Pei Lian waved his hand wearily. "Get up, Chang'er, listen to your mother."

Chen Xiang went over to help her daughter up again, turned her head to look at Pei Lian, and her tired eyes revealed her reluctance.

"Since you are so deeply in love, I will grant you permission to marry."

Although Pei Lian was unwilling, he eventually compromised.

Pei Chang'er, having achieved her wish, finally revealed a genuine expression of joy: "Your subject thanks Father Emperor! Thank you Mother Empress!"

"As long as you're happy, Father and Mother will do whatever you want."

Seeing her daughter happy, Chen Xiang felt cheerful as well, stroking her daughter's long, shiny black hair.

Pei Lian gave Yang Chengxiu many instructions, hoping that he would treat Pei Shang'er well, and Yang Chengxiu never failed to comply.

Soon, news of the princess's betrothal to the prince spread throughout the capital...

...

Ling Zhenli, who was playing the pipa for Pei Xuanlin in the backyard of the East Palace, suddenly stopped what she was doing after hearing the news.

Pei Xuanlin, who had been listening intently with his eyes closed, knew she was angry and chuckled.

"Why isn't my beloved concubine playing anymore?" he teased.

"I only had the news leaked to give you some revenge!" Ling Zhenli pouted. "How come His Majesty and the Empress are actually doing them a favor?"

“I know you want to avenge me, but Ah Li, you’re underestimating Jin An as easy to deal with.”

Pei Xuanlin stood up and went over to comfort Ling Zhenli with a smile, "Even the officials in the court and the countryside bow down to Princess Jin'an. Isn't that enough to show how much His Majesty and the Empress dote on her? It's rare to see a princess who is allowed to act as regent, let alone the current princess. In everyone's eyes, she is the next Princess Wuyang."

"Princess Wuyang has committed many unjust acts, but Princess Jin'an is not as despicable as her."

The mere mention of Princess Wuyang ignited Ling Zhenli's fury.

Pei Xuanlin knew that the Prime Minister and the Eldest Princess had been at odds for a long time, and he did not suspect that Ling Zhenli was resentful when she heard the name of the Eldest Princess of Wuyang.

In reality, Ling Zhenli didn't care much about Princess Jin'an. She just felt that Pei Xuanlin was good to her, and she needed Pei Xuanlin to give her power, so naturally she had to do things for him that he couldn't do. Although the result was not satisfactory, at least she did it for Pei Xuanlin.

*

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. Xiao Chongheng, under the guise of the Duke of Yan's mansion, sent people to invite Ling Zhenli four or five times in private, but Ling Zhenli declined each time.

On this day, Princess Jin'an was getting married, and there was no way to avoid it.

Ling Zhenli had thought that her wedding had already exceeded the bounds and that no one in the court could compare to it. However, today, Princess Jin'an's wedding was conducted according to the rites of an empress, with her riding in a golden carriage. In terms of status as a woman, she was even a grade higher than Ling Zhenli.

The emperor and empress personally attended the ceremony and granted a general amnesty.

Xie Daojian, as Princess Jin'an's nominal cousin, accompanied her as a groomsman. Ling Zhenli stood on the city wall, ostensibly observing the ceremony, but her eyes were always following Xie Daojian.

On the city wall, Pei Xuanlin and Xiao Chongheng stood together, watching the ceremony.

The two were about the same age, grew up together, and were as close as brothers, sharing everything. Pei Xuanlin knew that Xiao Chongheng had a beloved woman, but he couldn't marry her because of her status as a courtesan. He also married Princess Roujia because of his brother's mess. Now that he saw Princess Jin'an getting married, he was afraid that he would think of the woman he couldn't marry again.

In the past, he comforted Xiao Chongheng, saying that there were plenty of women in the world and that he should cherish only one. Now that he had a wife, he realized that everyone in the world is unique and irreplaceable.

"Chongheng, are you missing that woman?"

Pei Xuanlin saw that Xiao Chongheng was staring blankly at the wedding procession for a long time, so he went up to comfort him.

"Hmm." He nodded slightly.

When Xiao Chongheng saw that it was Pei Xuanlin, a sour feeling of jealousy welled up inside him. In addition, Ling Zhenli had repeatedly rejected his invitations and spent her days and nights with Pei Xuanlin in the East Palace, which made him even more resentful.

Pei Xuanlin suddenly remembered that the Crown Princess especially liked cats. A few days ago, when he accompanied her to Yipinlou for drinks, she saw that the young lady from the Jingzhao Yin family was holding a cat that looked particularly cute. She called it over and held it, and couldn't put it down. She even told him that she had once secretly kept a cat, but the Prime Minister found out and threw it out, which made her feel depressed.

Since she liked it so much, Pei Xuanlin wanted to ask Xiao Chongheng how to raise a cat so he could send one back to the Crown Princess.

"I remember you had a Persian cat?" Pei Xuanlin asked.

"No way." Xiao Chongheng was furious.

"I didn't ask you for it, I just wanted to..."

"You can't even think about it, thinking about it is a sin." Xiao Chongheng said angrily without thinking.

Pei Xuanlin was stunned for a moment. He knew that he loved that cat very much and kept it in his bedroom to take care of it personally. He did not expect it to have come to this.

These cat lovers are really... well, the Crown Princess likes them too.

"I saw that the Crown Princess likes cats, so I wanted to get her one."

Upon hearing the words "Crown Princess," Xiao Chongheng immediately suppressed his anger.

He probed indirectly, "Crown Princess? Why do you two still address each other so formally? Don't you like her? Or is your relationship bad?"

Pei Xuanlin chuckled: "The Crown Princess is naturally excellent. My marriage with her is harmonious, so how could I possibly like or dislike her?"

That's good.

Xiao Chongheng was relieved.

Since Pei Xuanlin doesn't love Ling Zhenli, and Ling Zhenli can't feel Pei Xuanlin's love, she naturally won't fall in love with him.

He still has a chance. If he makes amends to Ling Zhenli, she will choose to forgive him in time. Besides, she has always harbored feelings for him, and Xiao Chongheng doesn't believe she will remain hard-hearted forever.

Most importantly, they had children, children...

The thought of his unborn daughter caused Xiao Chongheng's heart to ache.

He must find Ling Zhenli.

Just then, the emperor had important business to attend to and summoned Pei Xuanlin. Pei Xuanlin disregarded everything else and went with the others to meet the emperor.

This was a golden opportunity, and Xiao Chongheng certainly wouldn't let it slip by. He walked up to Ling Zhenli's side, and when Ling Zhenli saw him coming, she was about to dodge when he grabbed her sleeve.

Fortunately, most of the people on the city wall were watching Princess Jin'an's grand wedding procession, and no one noticed what the two were doing.

Ling Zhenli's face turned cold, and she shook off his hand without saying a word.

Her skin was fair, and when she shook him off, Xiao Chongheng noticed the scar on her palm.

"What happened to your hand?" he asked, frowning, his tone tinged with concern.

When Ling Zhenli heard Xiao Chongheng's concern for her, a wave of grievance welled up in her heart. She wanted to complain that he had abandoned her and married someone else when she needed him the most. Why was he coming to find her now?

Ling Zhenli didn't want to answer him or talk to him, so she didn't say anything and just looked at him calmly.

Seeing that she remained silent for a long time, Xiao Chongheng asked anxiously, "Ali, why have you been avoiding me these past few days?"

I don't want to see you.

Ling Zhenli was upset and tried her best to suppress her emotions, while Xiao Chongheng was eager for quick results and desperately wanted her to agree to be alone with him, to the point of being obsessed and resorting to any means necessary.

"Don't want to see him? Oh, why don't you want to? Are you busy spending all your time with Pei Xuanlin?"

"Don't try to be unreasonable. I just don't want to see you." Ling Zhenli said, turning her head away from him.

"Don't want to see me? Then do you spend every day with Pei Xuanlin? Look at me, I'm asking you a question." Xiao Chongheng persisted.

Enraged by him, Ling Zhenli blurted out, "Yes, I am his wife and he is my husband. Why can't we be together? It's only natural for us to be together. Who do you think you are?"

Xiao Chongheng was already jealous of Pei Xuanlin, and after hearing this, he was even more furious: "What am I?! You don't care about me anymore, is that it?!"

Seeing Xiao Chongheng's furious and aggressive demeanor, Ling Zhenli was practically driven mad by him and could no longer bear it.

"Yes! You're no longer a person! Can't you see how much I hate you? Why do you keep bothering me! Go away, go away now, go be with your wife, Princess Roujia, she's definitely coming to find you! You're all so annoying, don't let me see you again, go away! Go now!"

The last sentence was almost shouted out, and Xiao Yuzhen, who was standing next to her, heard it clearly.

...

Xiao Yuzhen turned around awkwardly and smiled, then pretended not to hear and tactfully made room for the two of them.

With no one around, I felt more comfortable talking.

"Roujia and I have nothing. Didn't I tell you that? Can't you understand me? I was forced to marry her!"

"What does this have to do with me! Why should I be considerate of you? Pei Xuanlin and I have already done everything, do you still want me? I belong to another man now, I have sex with him every day, do you understand? Are you satisfied now..."

Xiao Chongheng's heart pounded wildly with anger at Ling Zhenli's words, and he angrily interrupted her.

"You don't believe me? I'll go tell Pei Xuanlin right now what happened between us! Let's see if he'll still treat you the same way!"

Upon hearing this, Ling Zhenli felt dizzy and nauseous.

How could he treat her like this? Why did he have to ruin her life? What did she owe Xiao Chongheng? Wasn't losing her child for him enough? Now that she had finally had a few days of peace, he had to come and disturb her again.

In an instant, Ling Zhenli seemed to have all her strength drained away, her breath coming in barely a whisper:

“Tell Pei Xuanlin? You might as well just tell him you want me to die.”

"You know I didn't want you to die."

"So what exactly do you want, Xiao Chongheng?"

"Tomorrow, I will send someone to pick you up and take you to my estate in the suburbs. We will have a good talk and clear things up," Xiao Chongheng said urgently.

"...Okay, I promise you, you won't tell Pei Xuanlin."

Ling Zhenli lowered her eyes, her gaze lifeless, a bitter smile still lingering on her lips. She dared not refuse, a helpless compromise with Xiao Chongheng.

She couldn't let Xiao Chongheng tell Pei Xuanlin about her past; she didn't want to lose Pei Xuanlin, who was so gentle and considerate towards her.

And the two of them really do need to sit down and talk things out.

Xiao Chongheng originally didn't want to force her, but he simply couldn't accept Ling Zhenli's indifference towards him. He longed for the Ling Zhenli who had eyes for him to return, and he was willing to use any means necessary, no matter how despicable.

*

Since many people only saw the Crown Princess and the Duke of Yan arguing, but did not know the content of their argument, news of their discord spread like wildfire at Princess Jin'an's wedding banquet...

Pei Shang'er married Yang Chengxiu as she wished, and the wedding was as grand as the emperor's wedding. Naturally, she was overjoyed and didn't care whether the Crown Princess and the Duke of Yan were on good terms.

However, at the banquet, Pei Shen'ai took it upon herself to have Xiao Chongheng and Pei Chanlian perform a sword dance together, which made Pei Shang'er see Xiao Chongheng and remember this incident.

Before the dance began, some people praised the handsome man and beautiful woman as a perfect match, but after the sword dance started, everyone fell silent.

The two of them were dancing their own separate dances...

Xiao Chongheng ignored Pei Chanlian's movements twice, focusing only on his own. Seeing this, Pei Chanlian could only dance with a cold face.

Xiao Chongheng's public humiliation of Pei Chanlian infuriated her so much that she wanted to draw her sword and kill him.

Pei Shang'er didn't particularly like her cousin Pei Chanlian to begin with. Seeing this, she secretly chuckled, but fearing it would be bad if others saw, she pretended to be nonchalant and adjusted the hairpin on her forehead.

He glanced sideways at Ling Zhenli, who was sitting in the Crown Princess's seat, and suddenly had an idea. He smiled maliciously again.

She stood up, clapped her hands, and stopped the dramatic sword dance. Then, dressed in a bright red wedding gown, she walked slowly towards the two performers on the stage, supported by palace maids.

Pei Chanlian glanced at Pei Shang'er, who was walking this way, puzzled.

Pei Shang'er smiled, walked up to Pei Chanlian, took the sword from her hand, raised an eyebrow, and looked slightly contemptuous.

"Princess Roujia seems to be drunk, this sword dance of hers..."

As she spoke, Pei Chang'er twirled her sword with one hand, her movements swift and powerful, carrying a hint of murderous intent, stunning everyone present, who immediately gasped in surprise.

Ling Zhenli, who was sitting below, was even more shocked. She had always thought that Pei Shang'er was just a brainless, good-for-nothing princess, but she never expected that she would actually be so capable.

“Sword dancing should be like this,” Pei Chang’er said with a provocative smile.

Pei Xuanlin sat below and chuckled.

Yang Chengxiu truly loved Pei Chang'er. Emperor Wen wouldn't let Pei Chang'er learn anything, but he secretly taught her everything.

The emperor and empress were both surprised and delighted, fearing that their daughter might have an accident while playing with the sword, but also pleasantly surprised by how well she had twirled the sword.

Pei Shang'er, who was holding a sword, suddenly turned her head and glanced at Ling Zhenli, preparing to avenge her for revealing her pregnancy.

Pei Shang'er took a few steps toward Ling Zhenli, stared intently at her, and smiled smugly, determined to win.

"I have heard that the Crown Princess was skilled with a sword when she was in the Prime Minister's residence, and even performed a sword dance to celebrate Madam Cui's birthday. I wonder if I am fortunate enough to have the Crown Princess perform a sword dance to celebrate this wedding banquet today?"

Seeing that she was making things difficult for the Crown Princess, Yang Chengxiu looked at Pei Xuanlin and couldn't help but frown nervously, worried that the Crown Prince would turn against her.

Ling Zhenli is not the real Xue Yingyue, so she wouldn't know anything about sword dancing.

She broke out in a cold sweat. If she refused Pei Shang'er, she was afraid that Pei Shang'er would not let it go. But if she did not refuse her, she was afraid that her true identity would be exposed.

Ling Zhenli was immediately caught in a dilemma.