Chapter 8
Learning the ropes
Yuan Song got the news that his sister was taken by a group of blackguards in the woods, but the witness told him they did not harm her, and the princess voluntarily rode with them on her white horse.
"Did you see their faces?" Yuan Song's tone was somewhat low and intense.
"I saw their leader's side profile from a distance. He has a long scar on his left neck," said the witness.
Yuan Song thought: Who would have such boldness and courage to show interest in his sister? Suddenly, he had an inkling of who the witness was describing, and he was sure of it.
"Let's ride to the northwest. We have to pass by Juwei Street!" Yuan Song started to whip his horse back to the road.
His personal bodyguard followed him, and the advance party went ahead to secure the prince and find the whereabouts of the princess.
Prince Yuan Song was unlike before, no longer very dependent on Yuwen Yue's intelligence reports or strategies.
He still felt some softness and childishness every time he thought of his favorite comrade and big brother, Yuwen Yue, and he felt sad that he was not able to help him with the little power he held at the moment. He also remembered Xinger, whom he fancied and dreamed about a lot for his future.
Though Xinger was of slave status, he could not simply propose to her and make her the future crown princess who would rule Wei with him, the crown prince of Wei destined to become the next Emperor of Wei.
A prince could only marry someone of equal status, and slaves could become concubines of the palace but not equals to a prince.
For this reason, Yuan Song would rather endure the pain in his heart over his feelings for Xinger.
He could not bear to see Chu Qiao become only a concubine in his time, relegated to the bedchamber at night and dismissed early in the morning.
Yuan Song could only hope for a miracle: that his father would allow him to propose to Xinger and make her his crown princess. Unfortunately, Xinger was presumed dead, but no body was found with Yuwen Yue in the frozen lake.
Yuan Song arrived at Huang Chen City, passed by Juwei Street, and it was customary for servants to pay respects at Carpe Myrtle Square.
Yuan Song's bodyguard paid his respects while the prince continued on the road to the Red Hills Courtyard.
"Greetings to the 13th Prince of Wei, Yuan Song. How may we assist the prince at this time of the night?"
The Green Hills Courtyard was quickly informed about the surprise guest from the Yuwen household. Yuwen Gao was a little nervous, wondering what business Prince Yuan Song had visiting their premises at night, which posed many questions in his mind.
"I need to see Master Yuwen Gao."
Yuwen Gao was swiftly transferred to the Red Hills Courtyard in his wheelchair, accompanied by his servants.
While Yuan Song waited, Yuwen Gao called out and greeted him from behind.
"Our pleasure to serve you, 13th Prince of Wei."
Yuan Song turned around and saw Yuwen Gao. Yuwen Gao, in his usual casual appearance, looked a bit older than the last time Yuan Song had seen him.
"I come in secret. No one must know I came here today, or else heads will roll."
Yuwen Gao gave a hand signal, and his servants left.
"Yuwen Gao, do you know why I am here?"
"I can only guess, my prince, but the information just came in. Our spies saw Princess Chun'er heading towards Yuwen Huai's secluded residence in the Red Hills mountains. It is not under my jurisdiction, so I can only report what we have gathered."
"You will take me there."
Yuwen Gao looked at Yuan Song. It was forbidden to visit Yuwen Huai while he was in "floating" status, and strict policies were to be observed unless an imperial decree ordered it.
"If this is the 13th Prince's wish, I will be dead by tomorrow morning," said the old man.
Yuan Song whispered to him: "Then cooperate with me. Assign someone to do the surveillance for me and report my sister's condition every day without the palace's knowledge. I will surely restore you to your former position and reward you."
Yuwen Gao thought for a moment, but it seemed he understood the prince's intentions.
Yuwen Gao agreed and asked for a secret token of authority in exchange for the covert service of reporting on the princess.
"You will report to me daily," Yuan Song said, leaving his royal jade sign with Yuwen Gao.
Yuwen Gao accepted it and assigned a servant to provide surveillance and report to the 13th Prince of Wei. Yuwen Gao saw Prince Yuan Song in a different light, saying: "The little prince is going to be a great king for Wei's future."
Chun'er and Yuwen Huai arrived at his residence deep into the night. Chun'er, very tired, fell asleep as soon as she dismounted her horse. Unused to this lifestyle without servants, she sat on the wooden stairs.
When Yuwen Huai finished putting the horse in the paddock, he found Chun'er sweetly sleeping on the wooden floor. Yuwen Huai smirked and smiled, a combination of his usual and unusual behavior. He approached the princess and saw her angelic face.
Yuwen Huai didn't know what to do, but his actions seemed spontaneous. He held Chun'er like a baby and carried her to her room.
The attendants were already asleep by this time, and Yuwen Huai had never been this close to Princess Chun'er before. Though he often held parties at the Red Hills Courtyard just to catch a glimpse of her, Chun'er rarely attended them.
Most of the time, Chun'er declined his invitations, and he was left to enjoy the company of his brother Yuan Song, Yan Xun, Wei Shu Ye, Wei Shu You, and his cousin Yuwen Yue, who was always a latecomer.
Yuwen Huai had never been this close to the woman he loved, and he wasn't afraid to find himself in this situation.
What he feared was his status and the princess. Would the emperor allow him to propose to her? And if she rejected him, they would never be together. His heart melted like soft cotton candy at that moment, and he also felt sad because the princess no longer had the childish face he first loved.
She had matured and grown bolder. He remembered how she had defended herself and was ready to kill anyone when he pointed an arrow at her earlier. Yuwen Huai couldn't help but cherish the moment. After some time, he took a quilt blanket and covered her.
The princess continued sleeping like a baby, while the overjoyed Yuwen Huai stayed by her side all night, unable to sleep. Was this sweetness overload?
The next day, Yuwen Huai slept all day in his room. Chun'er woke early and walked around. The maidservants, excited to see her, greeted her warmly.
"Where is your master?" she asked.
One of the maidservants answered, "Princess, I saw the master go into his room, and he hasn't come out since."
Chun'er thought about the previous night and could only remember sitting on the stairs.
"I see, thank you."
Another servant approached and said, "Before the master retired, he instructed us to prepare a hearty breakfast for you and to take you to your little brother."
Chun'er was pleased that Yuwen Huai was fulfilling her conditions on the first day of her stay at his residence.
"Very well. Let me have breakfast with my little brother, Hao'er."
The servants prepared breakfast and brought Hao'er, Yuwen Huai's nephew.
Yuwen Huai had hidden the fact that the little prince was alive, telling his half-sister that his son was dead. He had sent an empty wooden box with a toy inside to Lan'er's servant, but no body had been found.
Lan'er's servant had testified that he saw Hao'er locked in the wooden box by Yuwen Huai.
Yuwen Huai did this to his sister because Lan'er had forgotten their deal. She insulted him, even though it was he who had placed her in the palace, which led to her becoming the emperor's latest favorite concubine.
Yuwen Huai had done all of this to get the attention of Princess Chun'er, hoping Lan'er would elevate his status with the emperor. Instead, Lan'er became indifferent to him and did not help Yuwen Huai form a relationship with Princess Chun'er or her father, the Great Summer Emperor.
Princess Chun'er spent the day playing with her little nephew, Hao'er. When he became tired, she asked the servants to take him back to his room.
Chun'er noticed that Yuwen Huai had not left his room since morning, and by nightfall, as the sun set, she had dinner alone, indifferent to his absence.
When she was about to retire to her room, she was surprised to find beautiful dresses, not in the princess style but she was astonished at how Yuwen Huai had planned and prepared everything.
Out of pity, her heart ached. She knew Yuwen Huai had fancied her for a long time, but everyone, including Yuwen Huai, knew where her heart truly lay.
As she reminisced about their childhood, her heart was pierced with pain, especially when Yan Xun came to mind. She had truly loved Yan Xun, but now she was angry enough to want to kill him.
"I don't want to end my perfect day with these haunting thoughts…"
Chun'er selected a nightdress but stumbled upon Yuwen Huai's hoodie beside her wooden couch bed. She paused, realizing that Yuwen Huai might have stayed up all night guarding her, which explained why he hadn't left his room all day. She felt something stir in her heart and was afraid of it.
She dismissed her thoughts about Yuwen Huai and kept a cold face. But she took the hoodie and hid it under her bed, pretending she didn't know about the sweet thing Yuwen Huai had done.
Her heart wandered.
Their rooms were opposite each other. Yuwen Huai had intentionally stayed inside his room all day, knowing that he might not be able to control himself with Princess Chun'er so close.
Yuwen Huai's behavior had changed noticeably. He was no longer his usual ruffian self, and a softer side of him was beginning to emerge.
It was a reflection of his desire to protect the princess at all costs, now that he had no other duties. His only goal was to make her happy during her stay at his residence.
With their rooms so close, Yuwen Huai tried to listen to Chun'er on the other side of the wall, while Chun'er tried to shake off thoughts of Yuwen Huai's slowly unfolding good character.
They were facing each other, but neither could fully understand the other's feelings.
Yuwen Huai tried to sleep, but he couldn't.
"I'm like a crazy fool," he whispered to himself.
Yuwen Huai couldn't eat or drink, his happiness too overwhelming. But he didn't want to scare the princess, so he stayed in his dark, lonely room, trying to control his emotions and remain composed and cool in front of Chun'er.
When it came to Chun'er, Yuwen Huai's cunning abilities were disarmed. No one could understand why.
Yuwen Huai was an excellent events coordinator, planner, trendsetter, and master of diplomacy, able to work with different political factions due to his charismatic charm.
However, Yuwen Huai had lived in the shadow of his father, Yuwen Xi.
He cursed this role every day, but no one noticed except for his loyal followers and servants. One rainy day, Yuwen Huai finally let it out.
He was so angry with the role his father had forced upon him that he wanted to kill Zhu Shun with his bare hands at that moment.
He had to serve his grandmaster, who happened to be his father, which earned him the title of the vilest, most ruffian villain in the Yuwen household.
Anyone involved with him was either locked up in a dungeon or thrown into the Jile Pavilion.
This former way of life began to change after he was on the brink of death, which led him to live in his own residence, far from the empire and its politics.
Thanks to Princess Zama of the Batuja family, who helped him recover, Yuwen Huai had no reason to harm anyone anymore except for Prince Yan Xun, whom he hated most of all. Yuwen Huai believed that justice should be served for Princess Chun'er.
When he was granted furlough from his office of supreme court justice, he retreated to this secluded part of the empire, where he cared for his nephew, who reminded him of the princess every day.
Yuwen Huai wasn't a dreamer like Yuan Song.
Yuwen Huai focused on practical plans and actions, which made him the most fearsome master and earned the emperor's trust as supreme court justice for the western empire.
Now, living a laid-back life without national duties, his goodness occasionally resurfaced.
His cunning abilities rested while he enjoyed these sweet moments with Princess Chun'er, even though she was no longer a royal. Yuwen Huai never thought of diminishing the ex-princess's value.
Yuwen Huai believed that one day, Chun'er would see him in a different light.
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