Uрon heаring thеsе wоrds, Сonsort Chеn's smilе stiffened slightlу, and her gаzе tоwаrd Fu Yunхi hеld a traсe of disbelief. In her view, mеn wеre аll ficklе сrеаtures—thеrе wаs nо сat thаt wouldn't steal а tаste. Тhe idea оf a man rеmaining faithful tо оnlу оnе wоmаn for a lifеtimе was uttеrlу imрossiblе. Given thе сhancе, thеy wоuld surely seеk out many wоmеn in sеcrеt, espeсiаllу somеоnе likе Fu Yunхi, whо was ехcеptiоnally оutstanding. It wаs likеlу that соuntlеss nоble daughters wеre eager to thrоw themselves аt him. How сould suсh а man willinglу devote his life to just one woman?
"Your Highness must be joking," Consort Chen thought to herself, convinced that Fu Yunxi was merely feigning refusal. "With Your Highness's status, how could you marry only one principal consort in your lifetime? Besides, that Miss Zhuang is hardly remarkable. If Your Highness were willing, what kind of lady in this world would be beyond your reach..."
"This prince's consort is only one," Fu Yunxi glanced at her, the chill in his eyes causing Consort Chen's heart to tremble involuntarily. Before the Empress Dowager, he didn't even bother to address himself as "your son." He continued, "This marriage has already been approved by The Emperor. Could it be that someone holds greater authority than The Emperor?" His meaningful gaze swept over the Empress Dowager and Consort Chen, his tone carrying a hint of implication. "If anyone dares to covet the position of consort, this prince will show no mercy."
The Empress Dowager's expression darkened as she looked at the handsome young man standing in the hall. Tall and upright, his posture as straight as a sword, his demeanor was aloof yet carried an aura of killing intent and coldness. It was as if his words were absolute law, not to be defied—or else one would surely suffer the consequences. She couldn't pinpoint when exactly this prince had begun to distance himself from her, becoming increasingly difficult to control. Facing her, his arrogance seemed unrestrained, almost deliberate. What exactly was he planning?
Suppressing her thoughts, the Empress Dowager forced a smile. "This old woman is only concerned for you. You've always been strong-willed since childhood, but marriage is no trivial matter. You..."
"Your son has already grown into an adult," he said. "Your Majesty may let go now."
The Empress Dowager was startled, her expression complex as she looked at him. But Fu Yunxi merely cupped his hands in a salute. "The Emperor has summoned your son for matters of state. Your son takes his leave." With that, he turned and departed.
The two women in the Colorful Phoenix Hall remained silent for a long while. Finally, the Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes, her expression now fierce and terrifying, a stark contrast to her earlier affectionate and weary demeanor. She said lazily to Consort Chen, "You see, a wolf that has grown up can no longer be kept."
Consort Chen lowered her head. "Then... we must eradicate it at the root."
Meanwhile, Fu Yunxi returned to the Xuan Qing Prince's Mansion. Cheng Lei, upon seeing him, teased, "Did you go to see your little consort?"
Fu Yunxi ignored him and strode into the study. Sensing something amiss in his demeanor, Cheng Lei followed him inside and saw Fu Yunxi instructing Muyan, "Assign two guards to the Zhuang residence to protect the consort in secret." After a moment's thought, he added, "Also, send two people to keep an eye on those in the palace."
Muyan accepted the orders and left. Cheng Lei asked suspiciously, "You just returned from the palace?"
Fu Yunxi replied, "The Empress Dowager can no longer sit still."
Cheng Lei's expression turned serious. "All these years, you've had people monitoring the Empress Dowager. What exactly is the reason?"
"You'll know soon enough," he said without looking up."Yunxi, the Empress Dowager opposes your marriage to Miss Zhuang, doesn't she?" Cheng Lei looked at him. "I've also heard that the Empress Dowager previously intended to betroth Miss Zhuang to Wei Rufeng. It's strange, though—Miss Zhuang seems quite ordinary. Why would the Empress Dowager be so invested? Did your people find out anything?"
Fu Yunxi shook his head. "It seems someone has sealed their lips. Now that she opposes it, I'm even more suspicious."
Cheng Lei gazed at him thoughtfully. "For her sake, you've broken with the Empress Dowager. Is it worth it?" Seeing Fu Yunxi remain silent, he continued, "Besides, you've only met her a few times, yet you're helping her so much, even to the point of wanting to marry her as your princess consort. Not to mention she's only thirteen this year, still just a little girl. No matter how special she is, you're not the impulsive type to fall in love at first sight and marry on a whim. I really don't understand."
Indeed, Fu Yunxi was an extremely aloof person. Back in the military camp, subordinates had sent all sorts of enchanting women to relieve boredom—some seductive and charming, some innocent and naive, some aloof and proud, some bold and heroic. Those women, regardless of how much silver they received, would eagerly throw themselves at him upon hearing Fu Yunxi's reputation. A young, handsome, and dashing youth, heroic and invincible on the battlefield, noble and exceptionally charismatic—he truly possessed an allure of his own. Yet, in such harsh conditions, he hadn't even glanced at those women. At the time, Cheng Lei had admired his self-control to the utmost.
But now, he repeatedly broke his own rules for a little girl he'd barely met. Sometimes, looking at him, it was as if he had transformed from an immortal untouched by worldly desires into an ordinary person with human emotions. He would smile, get angry, shock everyone in the imperial court for her sake, and break with the Empress Dowager for her.
Was it worth it?
Fu Yunxi shook his head and chuckled softly. "At the palace banquet, it wasn't the first time I saw her."
Fu Yunxi remembered that afternoon seven years ago.
Back then, he was still an arrogant young man untouched by the hardships of the world. He had just learned a secret that would profoundly affect his life and, unable to accept it, had broken with his elder brother, the emperor, for the first time, requesting to go to war. His elder brother had no choice but to agree. Fu Yunxi's anger and grief did not diminish because of this. That afternoon, he left the palace, wandered almost all over the capital, and finally arrived at a hill in the western part of the city.
It was a very secluded place, surrounded by green mountains and clear waters. The weather was cold, and a heavy snowfall had just covered the grass and trees with a layer of white snow. He sat in a tree, the wind was strong, but his heart remained restless and agitated. Just then, he heard the sound of crying.
He had no intention of paying attention, but the crying grew louder and louder until it seemed as if the person was gasping for breath. He had come here for peace and quiet, only to find a nuisance disturbing the tranquility. Annoyed, he leaned over to look and saw a little girl of about five or six sitting beneath the tree where he was perched.
She was a grubby little girl with two round buns of hair, wiping her tears and crying as if her heart was breaking. Irritated beyond measure, he couldn't help but leap down and walk up to the little girl, saying coldly, "Shut up!"The little girl was startled to see an exceptionally handsome young man standing before her. Though his expression was unfriendly, she had never seen anyone so good-looking before and, in a daze, reached out to grab his hand. "Are you an immortal?"
Fu Yunxi had grown up admired by countless young ladies, but with his aloof nature and dislike of physical contact, no one had ever dared to tug at his sleeves. Yet here was this little girl, wiping her tears and snot, clutching his sleeve and calling him an immortal. Seeing the dark fingerprints on his pristine white robe, Fu Yunxi, who had always been fastidious, felt a surge of frantic anger.
He took a step back. "Don't touch me."
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