Gifted Bride of the Sinned Prince

“The Sixth Prince has appointed me as the personal bodyguard of the Princess Consort,” Feng Lao answered. “May I know who you are?” He had never seen Xiaolian before.

“I am Xiaolian, the Third Princess.” She pulled up a face and looked at herself. Did she not dress up nicely because of which Feng Lao could not recognize her?

“Forgive me, Princess, for not recognizing you,” he apologized and informed her that Li Hua had gone to her chamber. Xiaolian hummed and told him not to stay in Lóng Wei’s chamber.

“Yes. I was going out,” Feng Lao said, and they both went out of the chamber. Feng Lao locked it from the outside when Xiaolian asked him if he was doing good.

Feng Lao tilted his head and got confused by that question. He gave her a questionable look.

“I am good, Princess. Thank you for asking,” Feng Lao said, and told her that she would find Li Hua on the northern side. Xiaolian nodded and went to see Li Hua. Feng Lao walked after her and stayed outside Li Hua’s chamber. He asked the maidservant why Xiaolian had visited Li Hua.

“I do not know. The Third Princess did not say anything in front of me,” the maidservant said, and she left for the kitchen. Feng Lao knew that in the palace, not everyone was trustworthy, and Li Hua was kind enough to trust anyone easily.

Inside the chamber, Xiaolian informed Li Hua that Jingfei had sent her. “She could not come as the royal mother had come to her. The royal mother asked her to select a suitable man for herself. So, Sister Jingfei sent me to you. She wants to know if your brother had talked with Commander Huang Xi before his departure,” Xiaolian said, explaining the reason why she came to see Li Hua.

.....

“Pardon me, Princess Xiaolian, but I have no idea. I do not think that my elder brother has talked with Commander Haung Xi because of the Crown Prince’s marriage. Still, I will send a message to my brother and then inform Princess Jingfei.” Li Hua thought to send Feng Lao to ask Xu Zifan about it.

“Oh!” Xiaolian told Li Hua that she would deliver the same message to Princess Jingfei. She stood up to leave, but stopped. She turned to Li Hua and asked her about Feng Lao.

“What kind of person is Feng Lao? Can you brief me about it?” Xiaolian curiously waited for Li Hua’s answer. “I am a little curious to know why Brother Lóng Wei spared his life. I mean, Feng Lao must be a nice man. That’s why Brother Lóng Wei appealed to our father to not punish him. Am I right?” She arched her eyebrows.

“Feng Lao is a nice person,” Li Hua said. She was unable to form words to tell Xiaolian about him.

“Ah, never mind. I go now,” Xiaolian said, and walked out of the chamber. As she stepped out, her eyes fell on Feng Lao, who was standing near the pillar, looking outside.

“He is so tall and looks so-”

Xiaolian put a halt to her thoughts by shaking her head and walking away from there. Feng Lao saw her leaving and went inside the chamber. He found Li Hua in a blue hanfu dress laced with golden embroidery. She looked beautiful, but he came out of those thoughts when he heard Li Hua’s voice.

“I was going to call you, Feng Lao. Did my brother talk to Commander Huang Xi about Princess Jingfei?” Li Hua inquired.

“No. Why would Xu Zifan talk with Huang Xi about the First Princess?” He questioned her.

Li Hua thought that Xu Zifan had not told Feng Lao about it. She requested him to meet Xu Zifan and asked him about it.

“I cannot leave the palace, Princess Consort. The Prince has given me strict instructions to be around you all the time,” Feng Lao told her.

“But-”

“Forgive me, Your Highness,” Feng Lao apologized to her. “Also, Huang Xi does not have any feelings for Princess Jingfei. Xu Zifan had thought of talking to him about it later, but then Huang Xi left for Qijiang,” Feng Lao affirmed.

“Did my brother tell you about it?” Li Hua was shocked to know.

“Yes. Xu Zifan does not hide anything from me,” Feng Lao answered.

“Princess Jingfei will be upset to know this,” Li Hua said, and knitted her brows.

“The Princess Consort should not get involved in all this,” Feng Lao advised her.

“What do you mean?”

“I have heard from Xu Zifan how the First Princess troubled you. Also, Huang Xi hates her a lot. It will not be good if the Princess Consort gives hope to Princess Jingfei,” Feng Lao opined. “Huang Xi loves someone else and will propose to her for marriage soon,” he stated.

“What? How can Commander Huang Xi love someone else? Brother did not tell me about this.” Li Hua looked completely shocked to learn the truth.

“Xu Zifan has said that he would tell Princess Jingfei about this at his next meeting with her,” Feng Lao replied.

“That is so upsetting to hear. I thought that Commander Huang Xi would give a chance to Princess Jingfei,” Li Hua said with a troubled look. “Do you know whom Commander Huang Xi loves?” She asked.

Feng Lao shook his head. “Huang Xi told us that he would tell us after confessing his feelings to the woman,” he asserted.

“Brother should have said this in front of Princess Jingfei,” Li Hua said.

“Xu Zifan did not know about this. I had told him about this after he told me why his sister urgently called him to the palace,” Feng Lao clarified to her. “The day when we drank together, Huang Xi ended up saying it in his drunk state, but he refused to say the name to Prince Mingquan and me. Xu Zifan had fallen asleep as he had drunk too much wine, so he could not hear that,” Feng Lao explained to her.

Xiaolian, who had come back to give a jade to Li Hua which Jingfei had sent for her, ended up hearing their entire conversation. She decided to tell Jingfei about this and silently left the chamber.

“This is the best chance to punish Li Hua. Brother Lóng Wei is not here either to save her. This would be fun. When Brother Lóng Wei will return, and find out about it, he will surely be mad at Sister Jingfei. He will be punished then,” Xiaolian told herself as she descended the stairs and ran out of the manor to inform Jingfei.