nucmednet I couldn't bear to part with it after Chapter 478.
I couldn't bear to part with it after Chapter 478.
The Crown Prince curled the corners of his lips into a sudden smile, a smile tinged with a nonchalant frivolity: "Just the Crown Princess, not the Empress. What I promised you was the position of Empress."
Ye Qing'an narrowed her eyes. She already had a Crown Princess, yet she was promised the position of Empress?
And before he ascended the throne, she had to hide in the shadows and become the crown prince's secret lover.
The Crown Prince has certainly come up with a brilliant idea.
Yi Yun Kui also knew that if he let her enter the palace and give her the position of a concubine, she could enjoy wealth, power, and status.
This Crown Prince, however, only thought of using the elusive position of Empress as bait to make her work for him and be used by him for this bait.
If the Crown Prince does not ultimately ascend the throne, then all promises will be null and void. Even if the Crown Prince does ascend the throne, she can be secretly eliminated, and then the Crown Prince can pretend that the promise was never made.
After much deliberation, it became clear that the Crown Prince hadn't contributed anything at all...
This is definitely a deal that won't result in a loss.
Ye Qing'an bit her lip: "I...I dare not think about it. My reputation is too bad, and I have had some incidents in the past. I also have a child. How can I be worthy of the Empress's position?"
The Crown Prince smiled gently, his eyes full of tenderness: "How could I not be worthy? You are exceptionally beautiful and a Supreme Being. I heard that on the day you were promoted to Supreme Being, all the birds paid homage. Legend has it that only a true phoenix can witness such a sight. You are that one and only phoenix, and the phoenix throne should belong to you."
The Crown Prince spoke these words with great familiarity, and it's unknown how many girls he's said them to.
Ye Qing'an chuckled inwardly. The way the Crown Prince spoke these words was extremely charming. If she were truly just an ignorant young lady, she would probably be easily seduced.
A faint blush rose to Ye Qing'an's face, her expression filled with bewilderment: "I... my mind is a bit muddled, I don't know."
The Crown Prince seemed to have anticipated Ye Qing'an's reaction, and his expression softened even more: "It's alright, you can think about it carefully. If you have an idea, you can go directly to Yong'an Restaurant and give your answer to the manager, who will then pass it on to me."
Ye Qing'an chuckled and handed it to the shopkeeper. So, she can't even see him?
That's true. After all, the Crown Prince only wanted her to be his puppet, a pawn hidden in the shadows, so naturally she had to avoid suspicion.
"Yes, I will think about it carefully."
The Crown Prince smiled and nodded: "Alright, go ahead."
Ye Qing'an returned to the mourning hall. Ye Zirui and Ye Weilan's gazes shifted to Ye Qing'an, their eyes filled with probing, as if they were trying to guess the reason why the Crown Prince had summoned her and what he had said to her.
"Your Highness..." Ye Weilan was about to speak when a report came from outside: "The Minister of Revenue and his wife have arrived..."
Ye Weilan gritted her teeth, swallowed the words that were about to come out, lowered her head and stared at the ground in front of her, but her mind was already racing.
What would the Crown Prince want with Ye Qing'an?
Could it be that you want to...?
Ye Weilan slightly lifted her eyelids, glanced at Ye Qing'an's face—a face whose beauty could not be concealed even when dressed in mourning—and gritted her teeth inwardly.
No, the Crown Prince does have a Crown Princess, and not only that, he also has a Consort.
Even if the Crown Prince takes a liking to Ye Qing'an, at most, Ye Qing'an can only be a concubine who cannot be brought into the public eye.
Thinking of this, Ye Weilan pursed her lips and straightened her back. She was just a concubine. If she really did it, that would be fine. She would never be able to hold her head up in front of her, the Fifth Prince's wife, for the rest of her life.
The Minister of Revenue had finished offering incense and burning two sheets of paper money before standing up.
"Condolences."
Ye Zirui led the Ye family in expressing their gratitude.
People came to pay their respects in an endless stream, and Ye Weilan never had a chance to ask her the question.
"The Fifth Prince has arrived."
Ye Weilan was immediately overjoyed; the Fifth Prince had arrived.
That's great. She should act sad and upset. The Fifth Prince will probably ask her to go for a walk in the backyard with him, just like the Crown Prince did when he called Ye Qing'an away, and then comfort her.
After all, she was the fifth prince's wife, betrothed by the emperor.
Then, she could take the opportunity to propose marriage to her as soon as possible, taking advantage of the 100th day since her mother's death.
The Fifth Prince entered the room, dressed in a plain moon-white robe.
Ye Weilan's eyes were slightly moist, and she looked at the Fifth Prince with her lips pursed, appearing as if she was about to cry.
The Fifth Prince acted as if he hadn't seen anything, and simply offered incense and burned paper money in a proper manner. While waiting for his family to express their gratitude, Ye Weilan's expectant gaze was almost tangible.
The Fifth Prince looked directly at Ye Qing'an and asked, "Miss Ye, would you mind accompanying me for a walk in the backyard?"
Ye Weilan's expression nearly cracked, her eyes filled with disbelief: "Fifth Prince, my sister..."
The Fifth Prince only glanced at her, his expression indifferent.
Ye Weilan forgot what she wanted to say for a moment and just watched as the Fifth Prince repeated himself.
Ye Qing'an was somewhat surprised. After a moment's hesitation, she was about to refuse, "If the Fifth Prince wants to take a walk in the backyard, why don't you let Second Sister..."
"It'll only take a moment." The Fifth Prince interrupted her directly: "There are some important matters concerning you."
Ye Qing'an's fingers curled slightly. Could it be that the Fifth Prince's purpose was similar to that of Yi Yun Kui and the Crown Prince?
Ye Qing'an remained silent for a while before nodding gently: "That's acceptable."
Ye Qing'an followed the Fifth Prince out of the mourning hall. Ye Weilan gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with hatred. Why? Why? She was clearly his fiancée.
He humiliated himself like that in front of himself and so many other people. Wasn't he afraid of...aren't he afraid of what others would say?
Night, may you rest in peace!
Ye Qing'an must die, he absolutely must!
Ye Qing'an had already followed the Fifth Prince to the backyard. The Fifth Prince's gaze was fixed on the distance, but his eyes held a somewhat empty look.
"What does the Fifth Prince want to say to me?" Ye Qing'an tilted his head, a smile on his face.
Yi Xiao pursed her lips and remained silent for a long time before saying, "Actually, you should know that I had an ulterior motive when I approached you before."
Ye Qing'an was taken aback by his opening remarks and simply raised an eyebrow: "Purpose?"
"Yes, the purpose is to use you to spite your sister, your stepmother, and even the Crown Prince and the Emperor. I plan to wait until I have a falling out with your sister before asking you for your hand in marriage."
Ye Qing'an lowered her eyes and remained silent.
"But later, I fell in love with you. So, I couldn't bear to let you become the target of public criticism and bear the reputation of seducing your own sister's fiancé."
Ye Qing'an couldn't help but lift her eyelids again.
"So, it's been like this until now. And then you became the Supreme One..."