Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I gave Wei Zhao two choices.

One: take off the mourning clothes now, and I would let bygones be bygones.

The other: he could get lost and sleep in the back courtyard while wearing them. As for the wedding night-there was no need for it.

Wei Zhao did not disappoint; he decisively chose the second option.

He wanted to remain chaste for Kangle.

He strode away with long, eager steps toward the back courtyard.

Matron Zhang was stunned.

“Princess, are you really letting him go?”

“What else should I do?”

I gestured for her to help me remove the heavy, beaded crown.

I lowered my eyes to look at the deep red polish on my nails; under the candlelight, they looked exceptionally beautiful.

It was a pity.

This was the first time in my life I had dressed up so exquisitely, yet it wasn’t for that person.

I met Ning Ze when I was at Yunchu Temple.

He was the son of a farmer at the foot of the mountain, and he was blessed with a handsome face.

During my eighteen years at Yunchu Temple, I often snuck down the mountain to play with him. We caught loaches, raided bird nests, trapped cicadas, and caught butterflies-we did every naughty thing imaginable.

That lasted until my coming-of-age ceremony, when I became a young woman.

He suddenly became stiff and formal, saying that men and women should maintain a proper distance and telling me to visit him less often.

What a joke!

In the eyes of a Princess, there is no distinction between men and women, only between ruler and subject.

I commanded him to play with me, and he helplessly obeyed.

It wasn’t until he died in my arms that I realized someone like me shouldn’t have playmates. Having a playmate was simply sending him to his death.

I had said, “Ning Ze, as long as you don’t die, I can grant you one request. No matter how difficult it is, I will do it for you.”

“Really?”

A glimmer of hope for survival burst forth in Ning Ze’s eyes.

He grabbed my black monastic robes, pleading weakly.

“Then help me protect the Wei Family. If the Wei Family falls, the world will descend into chaos. If you can do it, do your best. If you can’t… then let it be.”

The Wei Family? What did he have to do with the Wei Family?

Ning Ze gave a bitter smile.

“I am an illegitimate son of the Wei Family!”

His mother was the descendant of a disgraced official. Chancellor Wei had secretly rescued her and settled her privately. Who would have thought that through their interactions, feelings would bloom, and he would be born.

But his existence would drag the entire Wei Family down with him. He had to be kept hidden, fostered by a farming family.

“When Mother died, she didn’t blame Father. I don’t blame him either. I just hate…”

Hate what?

I knew the answer in my heart.

My Imperial Father had ascended the throne by killing his own brother. Many ministers from the time of the Late Emperor could no longer be used.

At that time, Huajing was filled with disgraced officials.

While the Wei Family seemed to be thriving, they were actually just a tool for Imperial Father to stabilize the court officials.

Now that over a decade had passed, the Wei Family’s utility was waning. If I were Imperial Father, it would be time to pluck out this thorn in my side.

I gritted my teeth. “Fine. As long as you live, I promise you: as long as I live, the Wei Family will not fall.”

“Good… I will… live…”

Ning Ze died in my arms, his body gradually growing cold.

That year, I felt a bone-chilling coldness seep out from the marrow of my bones. Even though the sun shone brightly outside, my heart remained a frozen wasteland.

Not long after.

My Empress Mother finally remembered me and summoned me back to the capital.

On the way back to Huajing, I thought to myself self-deprecatingly: how could a princess like me-powerless, with even my parents’ affection being thin-protect the Wei Family?

The only way to link myself to the Wei Family was likely through marriage.

Taking advantage of the slight guilt Empress Mother felt when I first returned to the capital, I arrogantly and overbearingly demanded Wei Zhao.

Firstly, like Ning Ze, he was an outcast of the Wei Family.

Secondly, he bore a striking resemblance to Ning Ze.

When I first saw him, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.

Only upon closer inspection did I realize…

The past cannot be chased, and old friends are hard to find again.