Unyielding Spring Mountains - Chapter 19: Beloved

The boy’s warm breath brushed against her ear, and Wei Zhen couldn’t help but turn her face to the side, asking, “What’s wrong?”

His gaze lowered, sweeping past her brows, eyes, and nose, finally landing on her chin. The young girl’s lips were rosy, shimmering with a delicate sheen, like a cherry on a spring branch, waiting to be plucked. Her eyes were as clear as autumn waters, lively and full of charm. Even with just a touch of makeup, her beauty was already breathtaking.

Qi Yan averted his gaze.

Wei Zhen tilted her head up. “Earlier, the young general said that there has been progress regarding the annulment of my engagement. Is that true?”

Qi Yan walked to the side and sat down at the table. “Yes. This afternoon, the Empress Dowager met with His Majesty and persuaded him to retract the engagement between you and the Crown Prince. The decree for the annulment should be issued in the next couple of days.”

Wei Zhen hadn’t expected him to act so swiftly, and gratitude filled her heart. “Thank you, Young General.”

She stepped forward and said, “Actually, you could have just sent a servant to relay the message. There was no need for you to make the trip yourself.”

Qi Yan took a sip of tea. “I wouldn’t be at ease leaving it to a servant.”

Wei Zhen thought that his attendants must be highly reliable—surely passing on a simple message wouldn’t result in any mistakes?

Qi Yan quickly moved on from the topic. “After your engagement with the Crown Prince is annulled, what are your plans? Will you and Wei Ling remain in the capital, or are you planning to return to your fief?”

Wei Zhen was just about to answer when a knock came at the door.

“Miss, the Crown Prince has arrived.”

Wei Zhen asked, “The Crown Prince?”

“Yes, His Highness came looking for you. Upon learning from the servants that you were here, he headed straight this way.”

The Crown Prince had already reached the courtyard. If Qi Yan were to leave now, he would undoubtedly run into him. Wei Zhen pulled Qi Yan up from the table and pushed him behind a nearby screen, signaling for him to stay silent.

Outside, the Crown Prince knocked on the door. “Ah-Zhen, are you there?”

Wei Zhen took a deep breath, walked to the door, and slowly opened it. Jing Heng stepped inside with a smile. “Ah-Zhen.”

Wei Zhen curtsied gracefully. “Greetings, Your Highness.”

After entering, the Crown Prince exchanged pleasantries with her as they walked toward the table.

On the tea table sat a teacup—one that Qi Yan had just used. Wei Zhen was about to tidy it up, but Jing Heng had already picked it up, pouring a fresh cup of tea for her. Without thinking much of it, he set it down across from himself and gestured for her to sit.

Wei Zhen hesitated for a moment before sitting down and accepting the tea cup. “What brings Your Highness here to see me?”

Jing Heng’s face bore a gentle smile. “I merely wished to see you and have a conversation. Ah-Zhen, these past six months since you came to the capital, our interactions have been quite harmonious. We were about to be married soon, but I never expected things to take such a turn.”

Wei Zhen’s voice was calm. “If Your Highness has something to say, please speak plainly.”

“Yes, I came today to apologize to you. Before, I was momentarily foolish and made a mistake. I promise you, I will sever all ties with Wei Yao. I haven’t seen her once during this period. Ah-Zhen, could you give me a chance to make amends?”

The high and mighty Crown Prince—when had he ever spoken so humbly in apology to anyone?

Wei Zhen’s fingers tightened around the tea cup.

Jing Heng called out toward the hall, and a palace attendant entered, holding a tray. Jing Heng carefully picked up a jade seal from the tray and placed it gently in front of Wei Zhen.

“This is the Queen’s seal. My mother has told me that once you marry into the Eastern Palace, this seal will be handed to you. From then on, all matters of the inner palace will be under your management. I also promise you, there will be no other women in the Eastern Palace—only you.”

Wei Zhen shifted her gaze from the Queen’s seal to the Crown Prince’s face.

Jing Heng was refined and elegant, young and capable. No one would dispute that her marriage to him was an excellent match.

“But anyone can make empty promises. Your Highness claims I will be the only one in the inner palace—how do you guarantee that?” Wei Zhen asked.

Silence stretched between them. She didn’t wait for an answer and chuckled. “Your Highness was merely speaking offhandedly, wasn’t he? You yourself don’t know how to ensure it, do you?”

Jing Heng said in a low voice, “Ah-Zhen, once I ascend the throne, I can issue an imperial decree to declare to the world that you will be my only wife in this lifetime.”

Wei Zhen replied, “But what is true now may not be true then. When that time comes, won’t it still be up to Your Highness to decide? Your Highness, I am not so foolish or soft-hearted to be deceived twice by the same person.”

She rose from her seat, turning her back to him, and called for her maid. “See His Highness out.”

“Ah-Zhen,” the Crown Prince’s footsteps sounded behind her. “Why are you so heartless? I know you resent me for having had relations with another woman, but you don’t know how much I have done for you in secret.”

He stopped behind her and lowered his voice to whisper near her ear, “The assassination attempt on the Sixth Prince—I helped cover it up for you.”

Wei Zhen turned around, her eyes icy as she stared at him.

“That night, when the Sixth Prince was attacked—where were you, Ah-Zhen? And later, at the hunting grounds, why was Jing Ke suddenly mauled to death by a tiger? You played no small part in all of this, did you? I was the one who concealed everything for you and kept you safe.”

Jing Heng’s lips curved into a deep smile. “I had Wei Zhang take the blame for you, ensuring that he wouldn’t expose your involvement. Because if Father found out, you would never have remained the esteemed eldest daughter of the Wei family. Ah-Zhen, do you truly not understand my painstaking efforts?”

He watched as the girl’s eyes reddened—not from tears, but from humiliation and anger.

“Your Highness is threatening me?” Wei Zhen asked.

Jing Heng shook his head. “How is this a threat? Our wedding is in twenty days. The palace has already made all the necessary arrangements. You should simply wait to be wed. Once we are husband and wife, I swear I will never reveal anything about this matter.”

Wei Zhen gazed at the man before her. He claimed it wasn’t a threat, yet his words were full of coercion, like a bloodstained blade ripping open the deepest wounds in her heart.

“Then go ahead and tell His Majesty,” Wei Zhen said softly.

“Ah-Zhen, do you want me to report this to Father?”

Wei Zhen stepped closer to him and looked up. “Yes, Your Highness, go ahead. But do you dare? That night, I nearly lost my innocence to the Sixth Prince. Do you think I don’t know who orchestrated it? Wei Zhang meticulously planned everything, but can you truly say you weren’t involved? At the very least, Your Highness knew who was behind it and chose to cover it up.”

Jing Heng’s eyes darkened. “Wei Zhen?”

Her beauty, exquisite as a blade, was cold and sharp. “From beginning to end, all I did was wound Jing Ke. Who truly killed him? If His Majesty learns the truth—that the Crown Prince and Wei Zhang conspired to murder the Sixth Prince—do you think your position as heir will remain secure? Did Your Highness believe a few words could deceive me and force me to submit to you?”

Jing Heng: “You…”

In his extreme anger, he gradually calmed down and instead let out a light laugh.

Yes, who wouldn’t know how to go all out in mutual destruction? If this matter were exposed, it would be a situation where both sides would suffer.

How calm and intelligent she was, able to turn the situation around. She was not the kind of woman who could be frightened by just a few words.

The Crown Prince smiled and said, “How did you come to know that everything was orchestrated by Wei Zhang?”

Wei Zhen remained silent.

Jing Heng narrowed his eyes. “Let me guess, was it Qi Yan? He was in charge of investigating this case. When did the two of you start being together?”

Wei Zhen said, “What does this have to do with Qi Yan?”

“How does it not? You are using my mistake before marriage as the reason for breaking the engagement. From an outsider’s perspective, all the blame falls on me, but who’s to say that during this time, you haven’t been secretly involved with another man?”

He had finally revealed his true nature. Wei Zhen shook her head repeatedly. “The Crown Prince commits disgraceful deeds himself, and now he wants to assume the worst in others, throwing filth onto me?”

The Crown Prince said, “Wei Zhen, if you insist on annulling the engagement, you should know exactly how I will treat your Wei family in the future. But as long as you marry me, I will grant the Wei family an important position. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement.”

He paused for a moment before continuing, “If you like Qi Yan, I will even allow you to see him under my nose in the future.”

Wei Zhen frowned slightly, thinking that he truly would stop at nothing to achieve his goal.

She said, “Your Highness, you are truly laughable. If I really had anything with General Qi, once the engagement is annulled, I would naturally marry him. Why would he need to be a secret lover under your rule? Your words insult both the General and me.”

Wei Zhen felt deeply offended. Must her Wei family be bound to the royal family?

The Crown Prince was completely indifferent, his tone becoming even more casual. “You have only been away from the palace for ten-odd days, and you have already developed this kind of relationship?”

“No need to deny it.” Seeing her cold demeanor, the Crown Prince chuckled. “Qi Yan and I have known each other since childhood, growing up together. I know that although he appears kind to everyone, he is, in truth, difficult to get close to. What methods did you use to bewitch him, that he would even persuade the Empress Dowager to help you annul the engagement, hmm?”

Wei Zhen said, “There is nothing between me and General Qi Yan.”

She turned her face away, her peripheral vision falling on the screen. She wondered how Qi Yan would feel upon hearing these words from behind it.

The Crown Prince had been expecting to see a flustered and exasperated reaction from her, yet from start to finish, she remained utterly calm.

The Crown Prince said, “Is that so? I will personally ask Qi Yan about this as well.”

At that moment, a faint rustling sound came from behind the screen.

The sound sent a jolt through Wei Zhen’s heart.

Another movement followed, like someone tapping their fingertips lightly against the screen, a crisp knocking sound echoing.

Jing Heng frowned. “Is there someone else in this room?”

Wei Zhen immediately denied it, but Jing Heng’s expression darkened, and he had already risen to his feet, striding toward the screen.

As he drew closer, the silhouette behind the screen became clearer—tall and elegant like a bamboo stalk. A bad premonition surged in the Crown Prince’s heart.

Jing Heng walked around the screen and stopped. The figure of a young man came into view.

Shock filled Jing Heng’s eyes. “Why are you here?”

A breeze drifted through the window, rustling the bamboo blinds, casting light and shadow over the young man’s tall, slender form. Qi Yan stopped the tapping motion of his fingertips against the screen and lifted his delicate, jade-like brows.

Their gazes met, and the atmosphere grew unbearably strange.

Qi Yan stepped out from behind the screen, the corners of his lips curling into a smile. “Apologies for interrupting the Crown Prince’s conversation with the esteemed lady of the Wei family, but just now, when Your Highness spoke of a secret lover—were you referring to me?”