Chapter 6: Warning! If you can't control yourself, I'll kill you! ...
"Princess, it's the Prince Consort."
Shu Yun noticed this and immediately wanted to step forward, but Li Yunru stopped her.
She didn't let anyone disturb them any further, wanting to hear what the two were saying and get to the bottom of the matter, but there was no response. When she turned around, the two had vanished without a trace.
"??? Where did it go?"
"Who is the princess looking for?"
Yan Ning appeared behind her without her noticing, followed by Cui Wan, whose tears were still wet on her face.
We've been caught red-handed!
No, what's the panic? If anyone should be panicking, it should be the two of them, a man and a woman alone in the dark...
Thinking this through, Li Yunru calmed down. She straightened her back, glanced at the two of them, cleared her throat, and said calmly, "If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have known that you and Miss are so inseparable in private, even having to sneak a meeting at home."
"Oh, by the way, the princess has such a bad temper, my cousin has suffered a lot."
She said this while staring at Yan Ning, but Cui Wan felt as if she had been slapped in the face. Her face was burning. She had suffered a loss in the locust tree forest, and she thought of her aunt Cui Shi, who supported her. Therefore, she was more confident and went up to Li Yunru, saying, "If the princess wants to say something, I will. Why be so sarcastic and take your anger out on my cousin?"
"Yeah?"
"You're quite protective, aren't you? But on what basis are you protecting them like this?"
"Of course..."
"Is she the future legitimate daughter-in-law of the Yan family?"
"Liyang!" Yan Ning saw that she had gone too far in her speech and hurriedly tried to stop her, but what Li Yunru wanted to say and do could not be stopped by his words.
"What's the rush? We haven't even talked about you yet."
Thinking of what Cui had just said, Li Yunru felt increasingly uneasy. Cui Wan probably understood Cui's attitude, which was why she dared to be so bold.
Oh!
This family, she's not even dead yet, and they're already thinking about other things besides her, how despicable!
Thinking this way, her words became even harsher. She circled Cui Wan, hooked her chin with both hands, and sizing her up without restraint, saying, "Your looks and figure are good, but unfortunately, you don't know, your cousin, on the surface, is upright and virtuous, but in reality, he's no different from any other man. He likes women who are promiscuous and have fun. You can't be too reserved. Why don't you go to a brothel and learn from someone? Maybe..."
The young girl was still quite young, and had always been taught proper etiquette at home. She had never heard of such things before. Upon hearing this, she was shy and embarrassed, and began to stammer, "You...you...you shameless!"
These words were nothing compared to the humiliations Li Yunru had suffered at those aristocratic banquets; they didn't bother her at all, and people even took them as a compliment.
She put her arm around Yan Ning's waist, raised her eyebrows arrogantly, and said, "You're right. But, like I said, your cousin is a hypocrite. He likes people like me. You should learn from him. If you don't, come find me. Be nice to me. If I'm in a good mood, I'll take a loss and teach you a lesson."
Li Yunru wasn't exactly lying. Yan Ning was indeed not as well-behaved as he appeared. This wasn't just referring to their intimate moments, but also to his methods of doing things. When he really went crazy, she couldn't match him.
When they first got married, she was eager to break the jade pendant, while he was cautious and reserved. The two of them went back and forth, and didn't get along.
The more people acted this way, the more determined she became. Later, the news that Princess Liyang was pursuing Yan Ning spread like wildfire. Several poor young men from failed examinations who wanted to take shortcuts and curry favor with the emperor took the initiative to come to her to seek her favor, cursing Yan Ning for being ungrateful, saying, "The princess is of noble birth and so honorable, why should she suffer such humiliation!"
"Exactly! These aristocratic families are used to being arrogant and domineering. Now they even dare to disregard the princess. If it were a subject, they would definitely treat the princess like a star and the moon, and would not let her suffer the slightest grievance!"
They all spoke up for her, but everyone knew what they were really thinking.
Li Yunru initially didn't want to pay attention, but after several letters inviting her to join, someone suggested that they could be used to provoke Yan Ning, which might have a surprising effect.
She was willful and capricious at the time, and felt that she was right, so she agreed and spent several days in a row going to see flowers and boating on the lake with those people, chatting all night long...
That was the first time Li Yunru had ever seen the word "emotion" in Yan Ning, and also the first time she had witnessed his methods. When he pushed open the door of the Qunfang Pavilion in his white robes, everyone couldn't help but shudder and step back, letting him lead the person away.
When they returned, Yan Ning warned her, "Princess, stop doing these meaningless things, lest you bring shame upon the Yan family and the royal family!"
Li Yunru was not someone who could be easily intimidated by a few words. She smiled and didn't take it to heart. She wrapped her arms around his neck and said coquettishly, "What's there to be ashamed of? What noble ladies can do, I, a princess, can't do? Besides, Young Master Yan is being a bit too nosy. Just because you have no feelings for me doesn't mean that others can't have feelings for me."
"Whether they have feelings for you or have ulterior motives, you know in your heart!"
"So what!"
Li Yunru said, "They have their own schemes, but doesn't your Yan family have them too?"
"At least they have ulterior motives and treat me with respect and courtesy, unlike you aristocratic families who put on airs, holding onto the benefits of marrying me while pretending to be aloof and treating me coldly!"
Li Yunru wasn't buying it. She told him clearly, "Either you put down your arrogance and submit to me, letting me have my fun, and I'll cooperate with you. We can be a loving couple. Or you can stay quietly in the inner quarters. Our interests are intertwined, so we'll live a respectful life and neither of us will interfere in the other's affairs. Who I associate with, how many male concubines I keep, and who I appoint to official positions are none of your business!"
"You want military power, you want the princess's loyalty, and you want to maintain your pure and unapproachable character? What, do you think you can have all the good things in the world? You're dreaming!"
She berated him, and he... said nothing, only saying, "Fine, but you must not associate with those people anymore."
"Spoiled and arrogant?" Li Yunru said, "That depends on your performance. I can't guarantee anything."
The moment the words left her lips, the atmosphere turned cold. Yan Ning stared at her with a sinister look in his deep eyes and said, "It's alright, I will make sure the princess does it."
A few days after these words, those unsuccessful scholars were expelled from the capital. It is said that they were stripped of their official examination quotas and were never allowed to enter the capital again.
It's obvious who did it, besides her father, the emperor.
This is a warning. These people are merely returning home, but who knows what will happen next time?
Li Yunru admitted that she was indeed a little frightened for a moment, but she became more obedient later, mostly because she found it more fun to tease him. So from the capital to Jiankang, she never used this unreliable method again.
It was precisely because she had witnessed Yan Ning's methods in dealing with those people that she was so particular about how she handled Chen Erlang's case.
Compared to her, the interests of the Chen and Yan families are more important.
He chose to sacrifice himself in front of the Yan family and her.
Seeing that Li Yunru was becoming increasingly nonsensical, Yan Ning quickly apologized on her behalf and told Cui Wan to go back.
"He's quite chivalrous, isn't he? He's already siding with her even before she's officially married into the family."
"The princess knows perfectly well who I'm helping."
Making a scene at the Yan family won't do her any good; it will only give them more ammunition to criticize her.
"I don't know!"
Li Yunru was still upset about what had just happened and turned to leave, but Yan Ning pulled her back.
"Don't speak, I don't want to hear it!"
“I wasn’t planning on saying that.” Yan Ning pointed to the road beside her. “I just wanted to tell you that you’ve gone the wrong way. It’s the outer courtyard. Go that way.”
Li Yunru was extremely shy, her face flushed red, but she refused to admit defeat and said angrily, "I know, I did it on purpose!"
Yan Ning seized the opportunity to speak, "Oh, so the princess is deliberately giving me a chance to show off?"
He reached out and tentatively hooked his little finger with hers. Seeing that she did not resist, he then covered her hand with his whole palm and took her hand in his. "It was my fault. I failed to understand the deeper meaning of the princess's words in time. Please forgive me, princess."
Li Yunru hadn't really intended to cause a scene with him, but Cui's words were still ringing in her ears, and she happened to witness his interaction with Cui Wan. Cui Wan had even said that being with him was unfair to her, and how bad her temperament was. All these things combined caused her to explode. Now that he had lowered his head, she didn't want to make things too tense, after all, she had no one to rely on in Jiankang...
So he said, "Good to know."
Li Yunru warned, "Yan Changjun, I don't care what others do, but I, Liyang, cannot tolerate such filth. Before I get tired of playing with you, you'd better be careful and mindful of your status. I don't want this to happen again, otherwise..."
She looked up, her gaze fixed intently on the man, her eyes cold, and gritted her teeth as she said, "What I can't have, I won't easily give to others even if I destroy it. If I can't control myself, killing you... wouldn't be difficult for me."
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