Chapter 497 Extra 16: Yu Yi is dazzling, his love is boundless.

Having excellent hearing is not necessarily a good thing.

The houses in the mountains and forests have very poor sound insulation.

This time, there was a rustling sound at his door again, and not long after, the door was gently pushed open.

Zhao Yuanheng closed his eyes again. The sweet fragrance emanating from the newcomer was overwhelming and immediately filled his nostrils, causing his Adam's apple to bob.

Hu Yiyi bent down, peeked through the crack in the door, and saw that the person on the bed was fast asleep. She chuckled and slipped in.

Holding a lamp in her hand, she blew it out after figuring out where the bed was. Then she tiptoed to his bedside, deftly climbed onto the bed, carefully avoiding touching him while maintaining the closest possible distance.

Hu Yiyi's movements were fluid and graceful, clearly not the first time he had done this.

At night, her almond-shaped eyes curved into a smug smile.

Although His Highness Prince Yu ignored her during the day, he was completely unguarded when he was asleep at night, and she always found a way to get close to him.

Hu Yiyi liked Yu Wang from the first time she saw him, and she even adored the small red mole under his eye.

However, Prince Yu has been in the Northwest for five years and is already twenty-three years old, yet he has not married a princess, while Her Majesty the Empress's little princess, Zhenzhen, is already two years old.

The people of the Northwest all say that Prince Yu is hard to please, but the more this is the case, the more determined Hu Yiyi becomes. Over the years, the girls who once coveted Prince Yu have long since given up, but Hu Yiyi only becomes more and more persistent, partly due to the deliberate indulgence of someone.

Hearing that Prince Yu was going back to the capital, Hu Yiyi asked him without much hope if she could go with him. To her surprise, Prince Yu nodded in agreement.

This was Hu Yiyi's first time going on a long trip. Originally, all three of her fathers disagreed, but her mother made the final decision—after smashing a table with her second father's meteor hammer, the entire Hu family unanimously agreed to allow her to go to Lin'an with Prince Yu.

Before leaving, Qi Peiyao gave her daughter some advice, such as playing hard to get and acting innocent...

But Hu Yiyi felt that her mother's advice was not good, and she still had to follow her own strategy.

Hu Yiyi was assigned to sleep in the most secluded room, but she was not about to waste this golden opportunity. After sneaking into Prince Yu's room, she successfully lay down next to him.

Now, she has a bold idea.

The person beside him was breathing evenly and deeply. Hu Yiyi whispered in Yu Wang's ear, "Your Highness?"

She called out again, "Brother Heng?"

After calling out this nickname, Hu Yiyi was so pleased with herself that she almost burst out laughing.

She calmed her excited emotions for a while, rested her face on his shoulder, and then closed her eyes contentedly, quickly falling asleep.

Zhao Yuanheng's eyelids twitched slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes, his dark eyes calm.

He thought she was going to do something.

The result was that they were content with just touching shoulders.

He glanced at the soft flesh peeking out from the little girl's cheek, and felt a little itchy to touch it. He raised his still-free arm, but stopped just half an inch from her face with his fingers.

Because Hu Yiyi was dreaming about something, her head moved, she even smacked her lips, and bit his index finger.

She looks like she's eating candy.

Zhao Yuanheng could have pulled his hand back, just as he could have stopped her from entering, just as he could have thrown away the thieves who broke into his room on many previous nights...

He could have, but his instincts told him no.

Zhao Yuanheng grew up in the palace and was best at hiding his true intentions.

The scheming Prince Xijin and the Hu family's background were just pretexts he needed to marry her as a concubine.

It's difficult for him to openly admit that he wants to marry her and desires her.

Beneath the surface of a little pretense lies genuine sincerity.

Hu Yiyi had eaten her fill of candy in her dream. It was a cold night in the mountains and forests, and she didn't cover herself with a blanket. Perhaps feeling cold, she crawled into a warm place, not only crawling into the blanket but also squeezing half of herself onto him.

Zhao Yuanheng took a deep breath.

The third wave of torment tonight is coming on strong.

He frowned, trying to push her away, but she clung to his arm, her sweet breath enveloping him.

Zhao Yuanheng closed his eyes again and again, and even the calming mantra he used to recite was no longer effective.

In her dream, Hu Yiyi first ate chestnut cake, then felt like she was eating ice cream, and finally felt like she had become a milk cheese being tasted by someone.

But the diner refused to enjoy it properly and instead rolled and flattened it over a fire.

Hu Yiyi felt a stinging pain on her lips, forcibly waking her from her dream. She was still dazed when she met those pure, dark eyes.

"woke up?"

His lips brushed against hers.

Hu Yiyi opened her eyes wide and denied it.

"No, he's not awake."

She had never had such a thrilling dream before, and she didn't want to wake up.

But the touch on her lips was too real. She reached out and touched it; it was wet and hot. Was this what a kiss felt like?

Before she could figure out what was going on, she heard Prince Yu say in a low, hoarse voice, "After we go back, I will go to your house to propose marriage."

Hu Yiyi said, "Go ahead and bring it up, Your Highness. You can bring up whatever you want, I'll help you."

A moment later, a scream echoed through the stream and mountains.

The people in the two rooms next door were woken up by the noise.

Empress Chenzhao opened her heavy eyelids, and Xiu Ningchuan kissed her forehead, coaxing her softly, "I'll pat your head, it won't scare you, chu chu, go to sleep."

Ji Qingwu was startled awake and wanted to check on the situation, but Zhao Mingyan pressed her back onto the bed.

He said, "The sound came from Yuan Heng's room."

It's normal for a pig to root around a cabbage, but you can't force a young girl like that. Ji Qingwu was still worried, so she put on her clothes and got out of bed, only to hear an excited female voice again.

Hu Yiyi felt that happiness had come too suddenly, and said, "What did Your Highness say?! What do you want to do at my house?!"

Zhao Yuanheng sighed deeply. He didn't know what he would face tomorrow, but since things had already come to this, there was no way to salvage the situation.

"I propose marriage to you and take you as my queen."

Hu Yiyi felt dizzy with happiness, and she knew that her strategy was correct.

First you walk together, then you eat together, and finally you sleep together. Sooner or later you'll become hers.

*

The following day, Empress Chenzhao set off for the palace early in the morning, and her husband went back with her.

Prince Yu stayed in Xishan for two more days. Ji Qingwu accompanied them back to their fiefdom in the northwest, leaving Zhao Mingyan alone to guard the empty mountain.

Upon arriving at the Prince's residence, Ji Qingwu discovered that Prince Yu had already prepared the betrothal gift list. After adding two more items, she went to the Hu family's residence.

Looking at Hu Yiyi, who was dancing with joy at the entrance of the Hu family's house, Ji Qingwu understood why Yuan Heng liked her.

Straightforward and passionate, loving without reservation.

Perhaps because Hu Yiyi received so much love from a young age, she was generous in passing on that love to Prince Yu.

Given Yuan Heng's personality, it takes countless confirmations to verify the authenticity of his affections.

Ji Qingwu touched Hu Yiyi's face, and Qi Peiyao and the Hu brothers also came forward. She smiled and raised her hand to stop them from bowing.

Qi Peiyao no longer imitated the attire of noblewomen from the imperial city, but instead wore authentic northern clothing, which better suited her complexion.

After entering the room, Hu Yiyi deliberately lagged behind her parents and snuggled up to Prince Yu, practically clinging to him.

With Ji Qingwu present, the three elderly fathers of the Hu family tried their best to endure it and chose to turn a blind eye.

Hu Yiyi smiled and called out, "Brother Heng."

Zhao Yuanheng nodded and turned to look at her.

Hu Yiyi asked hesitantly, "Can we not propose marriage?"

Zhao Yuanheng almost missed a step, and the people ahead of him also slowed down.

He asked, his dark eyes narrowed, "What do you want?"

Hu Yiyi asked anxiously, "Our family doesn't have so many rules, can't we just get married directly?"

"If it's too late tomorrow, I can wait until the day after tomorrow."

Ji Qingwu couldn't help but laugh out loud.

The three good fathers of the Hu family all turned pale.