Chapter Sixty-Five: Unexpected Situations
Princess Kangning was led by palace servants to sit down next to the Empress Dowager. Although she dared not make a loud noise anymore, her reddened eyes were filled with resentment.
Kang Ning twisted the handkerchief in her hand tightly, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. She cried silently, but looked extremely aggrieved, as if she had suffered a great injustice.
Seeing her in this state, the Empress Dowager felt both helpless and annoyed.
She disliked such an arrogant and unrestrained nature to begin with, and today was Lin Ge'er's wedding day, so this whole scene was really unsightly.
She said gently, "Alright, stop crying. Today is your second brother's special day. How can you behave like this? Come back to the palace with me and let these young people be more at ease."
As he spoke, he was about to get up, wanting to take Kang Ning away from this place of trouble and return peace and joy to the newlyweds.
However, Kang Ning suddenly raised her head, grabbed the Empress Dowager's sleeve, and cried out, "Grandmother! I won't leave! I... I know I was wrong. I was disrespectful just now. Please let me stay. Let me... let me watch my second brother's ceremony complete. Then I can finally give up on this idea." Her words were pitiful and her tone was pleading.
The Empress Dowager narrowed her phoenix eyes and looked at her scrutinizingly.
Given this girl's personality, after suffering such grievances and scolding, she should have run away in a huff long ago. Why would she ask to stay? And what's with all this talk about "giving up"?
If she could truly give up, she wouldn't have gone to such lengths to get Kang Ning to leave the capital and travel.
As the Empress Dowager looked at Kang Ning's shifty eyes, her doubts grew stronger.
Having lived in the deep palace for so long, what kind of intrigues and schemes hadn't she seen? Kang Ning's quietness and persistence at this moment revealed something extremely unusual.
She decided to hold back and see what this girl was up to.
So the Empress Dowager sat down again and said calmly, "In that case, you should sit quietly. If you cause any more trouble, I will not let you off lightly."
Kang Ning lowered his head, concealing the ruthless triumph in his eyes, and obediently replied, "Yes, Kang Ning obeys."
But in her heart, a frantic scream was raging: [It's almost here! It's almost here! Li Bao'er, let's see how you turn things around this time!]
Li Yu was kept under Wang Qingzhi's control the whole time. Ever since this so-called Princess Kangning barged in, Li Yu couldn't control his desire to drive her out, and Wang Qingzhi was afraid that he would do something daring.
Li Yu's gaze was fixed on Kang Ning, and he cursed inwardly, "What face does this ugly woman have to make my sister leave? If she dares to say anything to insult my sister again, I will definitely go up and smash her mouth."
Li Bao'er was carefully supported by the matchmaker on both sides, and all she could see was a blur of red.
The phoenix crown was heavy, and the wedding dress was elaborate. Every step required extra caution, and my neck was already sore and sore.
Through empathy, she could vaguely sense the intense impatience and annoyance that Mu Cenlin suddenly felt while he was dealing with people in the front hall. This made her even more convinced that, for him, the wedding was nothing more than a necessary performance.
She gave a helpless, bitter smile, but then thought that if she changed her perspective, she would probably have more freedom in the Prince's mansion.
After walking for what seemed like a while, Li Bao'er gradually sensed that something was wrong.
Logically speaking, the new house shouldn't be too far from the main hall. But the path under their feet seemed to become more and more secluded, and the noisy voices around them could hardly be heard. Only the rustling of the wind through the leaves and the slightly empty sound of their footsteps remained.
The lanterns under the eaves seemed to have thinned out considerably, and the light filtering through the veils appeared even dimmer.
An alarm bell began to ring faintly in her mind.
"Has the new house not arrived yet?" Li Bao'er couldn't help but ask.
One of the wedding attendants who was supporting her immediately replied with a smile, "Your Highness, don't worry, we'll be there soon. His Highness specifically instructed that the main courtyard is too noisy and might disturb your rest, so he asked us to take you to a quiet, warm pavilion to rest for a while and clear your head."
"The warm pavilion?" Li Bao'er's doubts deepened. On their wedding day, the bride didn't enter the bridal chamber but went to rest in the warm pavilion first? This was against etiquette.
Would someone like Mu Cenlin, who values control over everything, make such an arrangement?
Another wedding attendant quickly chimed in, "Yes, yes, Your Highness is so considerate of you. That warm pavilion is beautifully decorated and quiet, perfect for Your Highness to rest in."
Li Bao'er quietly clenched her hand in her sleeve, her fingertips icy cold.
After turning through another corridor, the surroundings became almost completely quiet, with only the chirping of insects.
They stopped in front of a rather secluded courtyard. The matchmaker pushed open a door, and a dusty, long-uninhabited smell wafted out, mixed with a faint, overly sweet incense.
This is definitely not some elaborately prepared warm pavilion!
Li Bao'er's heart sank.
"Your Highness, please come in." The matchmaker helped her step over the threshold.
The room was lit, but the light was still dim. Through the gap under the veil, Li Bao'er could see that the furnishings inside were simple and even a bit old.
"Are you sure this is the place?" Li Bao'er stopped, her voice turning cold. "Is this truly the order from His Highness?"
The two wedding attendants exchanged a glance, their voices starting to sound flustered, but they still managed to maintain their composure: "Of course it was the Prince's order, how could we dare to lie? Your Highness, please rest here in peace, the Prince will come after he has finished dealing with the guests."
How could Li Bao'er feel at ease?!
She suddenly raised her hand, wanting to lift the veil herself to see what was going on!
However, at that moment, a series of messy and heavy footsteps suddenly came from outside the door, mixed with a man's indistinct mutterings and a guard's low words of comfort.
"Your Highness, please watch your step... Rest here for a moment..."
Who was it? But the thought had barely crossed her mind when a sharp pain shot through the back of her neck, her vision went black, and she fainted.
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