Chapter 58
Lin Yi's first reaction was, "Who are you?" His second reaction was, "Why is this person in my house?"
However, her good manners prevented her from asking the question immediately.
Uninvited, and surely ill-intentioned. So she took a handkerchief from her sleeve, gently wiped the water droplets from the corner of her mouth, then straightened her clothes to ensure nothing was amiss. With a composed expression, she looked at the elegantly dressed young woman and asked in a clear voice, "Whom are you looking for, young lady?"
The newcomer wore a pomegranate red and gold-embroidered waist-cinching skirt, the hem of which was shorter than that of ordinary young ladies, making her appear light and agile. Her black hair was tied up high, and her small face had bright and flamboyant eyebrows and eyes, but the corners of her lips seemed to be smiling but not smiling. She looked like a meddlesome, active and difficult beauty.
While Lin Yi was observing her, the person was also sizing up Lin Yi.
The two stared at each other for a long time. No one knew what clue the noble lady had found in her, but she finally chuckled and said, "Miss Qiu looks more presentable than the rumors suggest."
This malice came out of nowhere. Although it was their first meeting, Lin Yi sensed a strange unease in her words. It was as if she shouldn't be acting like a pretentious, manipulative green tea, yet she insisted on putting on a jealous, petty woman's act.
In real life, there are often "green tea girls" who pretend to be innocent and pitiful, but it's rare to see a noblewoman deliberately acting like a "green tea girl." After all, truly powerful and wealthy people don't need to rely on, and are even ashamed of, such methods when they want to fight for something. Even someone as obviously wicked as Lu Yanran doesn't bother to bother to hide her true nature.
Either this person is deliberately trying to annoy her, or they genuinely harbor great resentment and dissatisfaction, which is why they speak in such an awkward manner.
The way she addressed Xie Chengnan as "Brother Chengnan" was natural and gentle, suggesting they were old acquaintances. If they were just ordinary friends, she wouldn't have shown such hostility towards his wife upon their first meeting. If they weren't ordinary friends… and given the romantic relationship, could this person be Xie Chengnan's old flame? Or someone he once unsuccessfully pursued?
If the above assumptions are true, then there are only two possible purposes for her to come here: either to snatch him away, or to have other things to do and take the opportunity to humiliate her rival in love.
Lin Yi's years of psychology training hadn't been for nothing; he guessed pretty accurately.
Next, we learn about her identity.
Judging from his attire alone, he must be of noble status.
Lin Yi had been here for some time now, and she had seen most of the prominent and lively noble ladies in Mingzhou City, from the time she ambushed Zhan Xian at the wonton shop to the free clinic opening. The woman in front of her was clearly not the kind of person who stayed at home and kept to herself.
Lin Yi had never seen or heard of her before. Either her family held high positions and disdained associating with ordinary noble ladies, or she came from the inner palace.
…! Lin Yi's heart skipped a beat. Could it be Princess Changning from the original book, whose power was enough to rival that of the Crown Prince?!
Lin Yi still remembers the description of this princess in the book: "[The princess born to Consort Zhen, and also the elder sister of the sixth prince Gu Shuzhang, was the third in line. She was exceptionally intelligent and had strong political views. She was given the title of Changning. She was skilled in both methods and intellect. Unfortunately, she was born a girl, which meant she was destined to be out of the running for the throne. However, this did not prevent her from standing on the edge of power and repeatedly testing the waters..."]
Princess Changning was wise and strong, but this person's temperament... doesn't seem like it.
But appearances can be deceiving, so just to be on the safe side, Lin Yi still bowed to her. "Why did Your Highness leave the palace? Is there something important you need to see Cheng Nan about?"
The woman's delicate eyebrows and long sideburns were furrowed together, her face filled with confusion: "When did I enter the palace?"
Seeing her brows furrowed, Lin Yi breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed she had mistaken him for someone else. Princess Changning in the original novel was a ruthless character, and Lin Yi really didn't want to cross paths with her. It was good that it wasn't her.
Since she wasn't from the palace, her status shouldn't be much more prestigious than that of the young mistress of a marquis's mansion. Lin Yi wasn't afraid that criticizing her would bring trouble to the Xie and Qiu families.
Lin said directly, "Have we met before? My memory has been a bit poor lately, and I'm afraid I've been rude to you. If you're looking for my husband's family, please give me your name first, and he will come to see me when he has time."
Lin Yi wore the standard, deliberately distant smile he always wore when greeting strangers. In truth, the smile wasn't aggressive; on the contrary, it was quite polite. But to the woman, it only fueled her anger. The woman became even more convinced that this smiling Miss Qiu was indeed a hypocritical and opportunistic person.
The woman gave a light hum, “I am the Princess of Chun’an, appointed by the imperial court, and my fief is Wuyang. I have been summoned to the capital to attend the Qixi Festival banquet, and my brother Cheng Nan has granted me permission to stay at his residence.”
After saying that, he looked at Lin Yi with a defiant glint in his eyes.
Princesses are usually granted fiefdoms in name only, without real power. It's extremely rare for someone as young as her to have a fiefdom, let alone in a strategically important place like Wuyang with its well-developed waterways and land routes. This princess must be very favored.
But Lin Yi always treated others the way they treated her. Ignoring the smugness in Princess Chun'an's words, she returned the favor by repeating the key points: "So you've come all the way from afar to stay at my residence for a few days. No problem, Cheng Nan isn't here, so I've granted your request on his behalf. Xueya, go arrange a room for the Princess—" She paused, "But there are too many people staying at the residence right now, so go see if there are any vacant rooms. The Princess is a distinguished guest, so we must make room for her no matter what."
Xueya quickly agreed.
So what if she's a princess? So what if she has a fiefdom? Her rival has already come to her doorstep and is practically begging for her attention. Is she still supposed to be magnanimous and pretend she didn't see him and greet him with a smile?
A smiling face is still necessary. Lin Yi's eyebrows and eyes always held a smile that did not reach his eyes. He was polite but subtly intimidating. His goal was to make sure that no one could find fault with him, but he would never let you have a good time.
As expected, Princess Chun'an's cheeks twitched with anger, but she had to maintain her dignified demeanor and refused to be outdone by Qiu Qingye. She was furious but had nowhere to vent her anger, so she had to endure it and almost suffered internal injuries from holding it in.
Xueya returned quickly. Although naive, she was quite perceptive and quick-witted. She knew that Lin Yi didn't genuinely want to settle this woman who kept calling him "Brother Chengnan" in the Marquis's mansion. Besides, there really wasn't enough room for her at the mansion right now.
Unexpectedly, after she reported the situation, her young mistress did not take the opportunity to settle her in an inn outside the mansion, but instead personally vacated a room for her.
Princess Chun'an looked at the room, which was not luxurious but was clean enough, and condescended to sit in a chair, instructing her maid to bring in her valuables.
Xueya pulled Lin Yi aside and whispered, "Miss, are you really going to let her stay here? She clearly has ill intentions... she's just trying to sow discord between you and your husband!"
Lin Yi showed no sign of anxiety, instead leisurely arranging the leaves of the camphor tree in the room. "Didn't you hear her say that the young master has already agreed? Regardless of whether it's true or not, she's a princess who has asked to stay at our manor. If I kick her out, people will think that our manor has always treated guests so harshly."
The leaves unfurled in the halo of light, their edges tinged with a thin layer of pale gold, their green a deep and gentle hue. Lin Yi lightly brushed his palm across the tiny, dense leaves, feeling a little better.
"Besides, if I really don't allow her to move in, wouldn't that confirm that there was something between her and Xie Chengnan that made me so resentful?"
"But if she stays here, she'll definitely cause trouble for the young lady."
Lin Yi withdrew his hand from stroking the leaves, his fingertips carrying the cool scent of the nanmu wood, and then gently took Xueya's hand in his.
"Do you think your young lady is so easily bullied?"
As it turned out, Xueya's concerns were not unfounded, but Lin Yi was no pushover either.
When Xie Chengnan returned, the two of them realized that Princess Chun'an's words were only half true and half false.
She had previously sent a letter to Xie Chengnan, but the letter only mentioned that she wanted to visit his residence and did not mention staying at his place. Xie Chengnan agreed.
Xie Chengnan glanced at Lin Yi's expression and suggested, "I'll have Cang Xie send her away." With that, he got up and went to look for her.
Lin Yi grabbed him, her words surprisingly tinged with excitement: "Why are you leaving? Is there really something between you two, and you're feeling guilty?"
Xie Chengnan shook his head helplessly: "What else could there be between her and me? If you want to know, I'll tell you everything."
Lin Yi grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, put them in his palm, and started cracking them open: "Then tell me, I want to hear it."
Lin Yi wasn't worried at all. The two didn't seem to have any past affection, and even if there had been something in the past, it was all in the past. When Xie Chengnan wasn't around, the princess would call him "Brother Chengnan" in a sickeningly sweet and intimate way. But when she actually saw Xie Chengnan, she quieted down. It wasn't the awkwardness of being near home; Lin Yi could tell that she wasn't particularly enthusiastic towards Xie Chengnan.
But that didn't stop her from wanting to hear gossip.
"..."
Xie Chengnan's enunciation was slow and clear, as if he had picked up a rare piece of tenderness from a vast memory.
Lin Yi couldn't help but slow his breathing, following his voice.
"When Chun'an was little, she lived in Mingzhou City with Prince Duan. Prince Duan's residence was just across the street from the Marquis's residence. She was always active and loved playing with children her own age. She would also come to the Marquis's residence to see me from time to time. At that time, the old Marquis was still alive. He joked that when she grew up, he would ask the emperor to bestow a marriage upon us. Everyone knew that was just a joke, but little Chun'an believed it for a long time. Later, there was a war in the northern frontier. At that time, the Zhan family had just been raided, and there was a shortage of generals in the court. Prince Duan volunteered to quell the rebellion, but he died in battle outside the frontier. Prince Duan and the emperor had always had a deep relationship. He wanted to take his orphaned daughter into the palace to take care of her, but he respected her own wishes. That little girl actually liked me and wanted to take this opportunity to ask the emperor to arrange a marriage, but I only regarded her as a younger sister. So when she asked me, I simply refused. She didn't force it. Perhaps there was no one else in Mingzhou she wanted to stay with, so she asked for a fiefdom and went to Wuyang."
“She came back this time to attend the banquet by imperial decree. The reason she came to see me is probably because she thinks I’m ungrateful and didn’t want to accept her, but instead married you.” At this point, Xie Chengnan looked at Lin Yi with a mischievous and amused smile. “After all… your reputation was once incredibly famous. It’s understandable that people who haven’t met you might have some misunderstandings.”
"Did you misunderstand me in the same way before?" Lin Yi asked with interest.
"Of course, Miss Qiu's 'spoiled and domineering' and 'arrogance' are well-known throughout Mingzhou City."
Xie Chengnan smiled smugly and infuriatingly. Seeing that Lin Yi remained silent, he leaned closer to her ear and whispered, "What's wrong? Are you angry?"
A warm breath brushed against his ear, and Lin Yi couldn't help but take a step back: "You just said that people who haven't met me might misunderstand. After you've met me, do you still think I'm arrogant and domineering?"
Xie Chengnan recognized that she was joking because she used the same words he had just said.
"The rumored enemy's daughter is arrogant and mean. I scoffed at it, even thinking that what did it matter to me if they got married?"
Lin Yi raised an eyebrow, signaling him to continue.
Xie Chengnan continued, "But after getting to know you, I realized that since we're going to be together every day, it's impossible for us to be completely unrelated. You're doing just fine the way you are now."
Seeing the atmosphere gradually becoming more emotional, Lin Yi felt a little uncomfortable and quickly called for a stop with a laugh.
Xie Chengnan joked along for a bit, then suddenly sighed. "Ah Ye, Chun'an isn't a bad person. She's just angry for a moment. Don't bother with her unless it's absolutely necessary."
Lin nodded: "Of course, as long as she maintains the proper decorum expected of a guest, we'll keep to ourselves."
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