A group of people from the Ye mansion had noisily boarded the carriages.
Granny Fang had already packed the bundles and followed Ye Luan onto the carriage behind.
"Miss, are you really going to marry? We're not leaving?" Fu Dai asked worriedly.
Ye Luan said lightly, "It is difficult to defy the emperor's decree. No one in this world dares to disobey, or they will lose their heads."
"But—but if Miss marries, then it will be—"
Ye Luan chuckled lightly, "Living widowhood?"
"Miss, how can you still laugh?"
"What's so bad about it? I'll be free from that madman Xiao Chi Zhan. My future husband has a high status, and he's a dying invalid."
"In the future, I'll have money and status. I can eat whatever I want, do whatever I want, and no one will manage me. I'll live my own life behind closed doors."
"You won't have to follow me, constantly hiding and being chased. As long as Xiao Chi Zhan has any semblance of decency, he won't bother me again."
"In the capital, such a prosperous place, I will definitely take you all to enjoy the good life and reach the pinnacle of your lives."
After speaking, Ye Luan stretched out her legs and sighed.
If only these things were true, she would actually like a life of wealth and power with a deceased husband.
The two were shocked by her words.
"But without a husband's protection, can such a grand mansion as the Zhen Guo Gong Mansion tolerate us?"
Ye Luan sipped her tea, "We'll deal with whatever comes our way."
Granny Fang saw that she had a plan and said, "Miss, with your actions today, you have offended the entire Ye mansion. The second young lady was also beaten badly by you. You will likely suffer before your wedding."
"Yes, I want Ye Xue to have a taste of hardship."
"----"
Qin Le Fang.
Long Yi pushed open the door to the Heaven-class room and saw the people inside. He walked directly to Xiao Chi Zhan's side and said, "Your Highness, Miss Ye has returned to the mansion."
"Oh?" Xiao Chi Zhan raised an eyebrow, "She didn't react?"
Long Yi said, "Ye Wensong took people to make a scene, and Old Madam Bai also went personally."
"What did they say?"
"They said they wanted to enter the palace and beg His Majesty to grant Miss Ye a proper title."
Xiao Chi Zhan smiled, his red pupils revealing an unfathomable meaning.
He gently swirled his wine glass and asked, "What did she say?"
"Miss Ye said she was willing to marry Young Master Lu, and Old Madam didn't need to intervene."
As soon as these words fell, Xiao Chi Zhan's smiling face immediately sank, and he drank the wine in his hand coldly, saying nothing.
"Chi Zhan, if you really like Ye Luan, giving her to Lu Feibai and waiting for her to beg you is utter foolishness. Aren't you pushing her into an abyss?"
Hearing Tai Tai Ye's words, Xiao Chi Zhan was furious, "What nonsense are you talking about? Which eye of yours saw me liking her?"
"Then why are you angry? If she wants to leave, let her leave."
Li Qiongyu fanned himself, grinned, and said, "Exactly. You've already ruined her, so just let her go."
"Heh, if she wants to run so badly, how can this Prince let her have her way?"
Liu Rong Ruo sipped her tea and said indifferently, "The Zhen Guo Gong Mansion is colluding with Northern Qi. Your Highness's actions this time will ruin Miss Ye's life."
"Tsk tsk, not to mention how the Lu family is, but Young Master Lu is a dragon among men. Xiao Chi Zhan, arranging such a rival for yourself is like lifting a rock only to drop it on your own foot."
"Rival?! Heh, does he even qualify!"
Tai Tai Ye scoffed, "Cut the crap, just admit it. It's not shameful to like a woman. Hey, I have an idea for you. Keep her confined in the mansion and get her pregnant, and I guarantee she won't think of running away again."
Li Qiongyu flicked a wine cup at him, "Enough, shut up. Don't spew nonsense."
"Li Qiongyu, you've spoken up for Ye Luan so many times, what benefits has she promised you?"
Xiao Chi Zhan had no mood to deal with their bickering.
As soon as he thought of Ye Luan's sickly appearance in the mansion, he felt very annoyed. To leave the mansion, she was truly resorting to any means.
He slammed down the wine jar, stood up, and walked out.
"Where are you going?"
"Back to the mansion."
The night was slightly cool, under the dark sky, a crescent moon hung high in the sky.
Ye Mansion, Yue Ya Yuan.
Ye Luan had just finished washing up and got into bed when she heard a rustling sound outside the window.
Her eyebrows flickered, and she lifted the bed curtains.
The man climbed through the window. Bathed in the moonlight, he looked as clear and elegant as a painting, but his enchanting face was like a Yama from hell, cold and terrifying.
Especially those red pupils, as he narrowed them slightly to look at her, they held a destructive killing intent.
She lazily draped a robe over herself and got out of bed, holding a hot water bottle, calmly looking at him.
"Your Highness staying up late at night and climbing into a young lady's boudoir is truly a joke."
Seeing him again, his piercing words from before she left the mansion suddenly flashed in her mind, causing her inexplicable pain and anger.
She quickly suppressed the emotions in her heart.
Xiao Chi Zhan slowly walked towards her, his eyes filled with mockery, "You don't want to live in a perfectly good mansion and choose to live in such a broken place. With your body, aren't you afraid of the cold?"
"Your Highness's body is precious. My humble abode is cold and shabby. Please return."
Xiao Chi Zhan's face darkened. Seeing her indifferent appearance, he wanted to choke her to death.
"As soon as you leave the mansion, you turn your back and refuse to acknowledge me?"
"How dare I?" Ye Luan looked at him with a faint smile, "It's not appropriate for a man and a woman to be alone."
Upon hearing this, his gaze swept her from top to bottom, a playful smile hooking at the corners of his mouth.
"A man and a woman alone? Heh, why didn't you say that when you were lying in this Prince's bed?"
She secretly cursed him a few times. To prevent him from saying anything unpleasant, she directly said, "If Your Highness has something to say, please say it directly."
What business could Xiao Chi Zhan have? He didn't know why he had come here himself.
He coughed lightly and walked to the round table to pour tea.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed, and he saw the wedding dress on the soft couch not far away. His gaze immediately sank.
"You really plan to marry someone who is about to die."
Ye Luan chuckled lightly, "Speaking of which, I really have to thank Your Highness for fulfilling my wish and completing my marriage."
Looking at the obvious smile on her face, Xiao Chi Zhan's eyes sank even deeper, inexplicably wanting to kill.
"An invalid, can he satisfy you?"
Fool.
Ye Luan rolled her eyes inwardly, but her smile deepened on the surface, "No need for Your Highness to worry."
Xiao Chi Zhan sneered, "It seems you are very eager to marry into the Zhen Guo Gong Mansion?"
"I am grateful that the Young Master does not reject me."
"Hmph, do you know that the Zhen Guo Gong Mansion is colluding with Northern Qi? Do you want to marry in and accompany them in their downfall?"
Colluding with the enemy?
Ye Luan's heart trembled, but her face showed no change.
"Beg this Prince, and this Prince will ruin this marriage for you."
His voice was very cold. The desolate moonlight shone through the window, making him appear thin and chilling.
He was always like this. Once something didn't go his way, he would use his power to force people to compromise and satisfy his selfish desires.
Ye Luan did not want to admit defeat, nor did she want to beg him.
"His Majesty bestowed this marriage, a golden and jade union."