On the fifth day of the fifth month, the sixth prince and the General of Agile Cavalry returned from their victory, and the people welcomed them at the gate of the city.

The sixth prince and the General had banded together to defeat Western Yi and had preserved land of Da Jing. They were the victors of Da Jing.

After returning to the palace, Emperor Yuan Hui personally hosted a banquet to invite the officials of the imperial court to celebrate with the sixth prince and the general.

The next morning, Yan Yu returned to the Qing Jia Palace. After sleeping for only two hours, he was awakened by the noise from outside.

The young eunuch Yuan Quan stood guard at the door, feeling awkward. He said to Yan Yao'an, "Princess, Your Highness has just fallen asleep ..."

"He endured the hardships of a long journey, he probably didn't even have a good rest."

Yan Yao'an was in a hurry, so she didn't care about any of this at all. She got someone to push him to the side, then pushed open the door and entered. "Sixth Brother, Sixth Brother!"

After all, there were some rules so that she didn't directly break into the inner room and bring him up. Instead, she stood outside the screen and called out a few times.

Yan Yu did not open his eyes. He raised the back of his hand to his forehead and said in a hoarse voice, "Speak."

All these years, she had been spoiled even more unruly due to her father's love for her. They were no longer children, yet she actually barged in without a care for the difference between men and women. It seemed it was time for her to be properly taught.

Yan Yao'an went straight to the point. "Take me out of the palace once more."

Yan Yu immediately refused, "I'm busy."

He had planned to get some sleep first, then take a shower and change his clothes to see Xie Zhen, but now it was impossible for him to get a good night's sleep.

He only wished that the last two matters would not be disturbed.

How could Yan Yao'an be so easily dismissed? If she wanted to go out of the palace, she had no choice but to beg him.

If he didn't agree, she would sit outside and waste her time with him. "If you don't take me out, I'll make a ruckus here!"

As she said this, she knocked the small black colored lid on the table, causing it to rattle loudly. "You agree or not?"

Yan Yu frowned and asked impatiently, "What are you doing for going out of the palace?"

She blurted out, "To visit Xie Zhen."

The room was silent for a long time. Just when Yan Yao'an thought he was asleep, he asked in a hoarse voice, "Why do you want to see her?"

Yan Yao'an let out a long sigh, looking extremely sorrowful. "A few days ago, I met second brother at Palace Zhaoyang."

The second brother wore scented sachet embroidered by Ah Zhen and said that he would take her as his concubine. I wanted to ask her personally if it was true, but why did she never tell me? "

After finish talking, it became extremely silent in the room.

"Sixth Brother?"

she asked softly.

After a while, Yan Yu's cold voice came out, "You said that second brother is going to take her as his concubine?"

Yan Yao'an nodded. She had heard the truth that day, so there shouldn't have been any mistakes.

That was why she was puzzled. Why did it happen?

"From what esteemed empress says, there doesn't seem to be any objections."

"If Second Brother tells father that, then I'm guessing that the next step would be granting the marriage."

Yan Yao'an heard the sound of something falling on the ground, which was extremely ear-piercing, causing Yan Yao'an to jump in fright. "Sixth Brother, are you alright?"

There was no movement from inside. Not long after, Yan Yu walked out from inside. He had already changed his clothes and was neatly dressed. His face was cold as he appeared in front of her.

His pupils were cold, his brow was low, and he carried a sharp sense of heroic spirit. He didn't say anything else, "Where are you going?"

"I'll take you there."

Yan Yao'an was overjoyed. She followed him and said, " Cuiying attic in the south. I have got someone to tell her about the meeting with her."

Yan Yu strode in front, not caring if she could keep up with him or not.

Within the Cuiying attic.

Xie Zhen came early and sat in the private room for a moment.

She did not know what was going on in the palace, nor did she know that the Crown Prince had already set his mind on her. Recently, she had heard the most praise the sixth prince's return, praising him everywhere for his rare deeds of honor.

She had never heard of the sixth prince before and only found out about his existence after she returned to the capital.

As Xie Zhen was thinking, the door of the private room was pushed open. Yan Yao'an poked her head around, and when she saw her, her eyes lit up and she rushed over to hug her.

Xie Zhen was frightened by her enthusiasm, she leaned back a little. "What's the matter with the Princess?"

Yan Yao'an let Qing Feng and Bai Lu stand guard outside the door. After closing the door, she pulled her aside and whispered to her, "Do you know my second brother?"

Yan Yao'an had always been straightforward. She was unable to learn how to be courteous, so she could say whatever she wanted to say. Therefore, when she began to speak, Xie Zhen was shocked a lot.

The current crown prince was ranked the second. It was precisely Yan Yao'an's second brother. How could she possibly know the crown prince?

She shook her head like a rattle. "No."

"Really?"

Yan Yao'an stared into her eyes and asked again.

She still answered that she didn't know him.

Xie Zhen really don't know him. Although Xie Zhen went to the crown prince's mansion a few times, she would always stay in the backyard with other wives. She has never met the crown prince in private, so how could she not know him?

Seeing that it didn't seem like she was lying, Yan Yao'an began to wonder, "That's strange. You don't know him, so how could he have a scented sachet of yours embroidered on him?"

Xie Zhen was shocked. "What is the scented sachet?"

Yan Yao'an repeated what had happened that day at the Palace Zhaoyang, describing it in a sonorous and colourful manner, making them feel as if they were in the scene of their lives. When she heard the words "second brother said he wanted to take you as his concubine", she froze.

If she remembered correctly, her scented sachet had only been sent out once. The other party's surname was Tao, and his wife was Madam Ling.

His wife couldn't sleep well at night, so she made a few scented sachets and sent them to her to help her sleep.

Her hands and feet were cold, and she carefully held Yan Yao'an's hand as she asked, "The scented sachet that you mentioned ..."

"Is there a jasminum flower on it?"

Yan Yao'an tried her best to recall it.

"It seems so. The fragrance of the scented sachet is the same as yours. It has a faint fragrance of lotus."

Xie Zhen's heart is like dead ashes. She sat back for a long time without saying a word.

She thought she was smart enough to think things through, but in the end she was fooled into a mess.

The crown prince's name was Yan Tao, so he said his surname was Tao.

The Crown Princess's name was Ling Xiangwu, so his wife became Madam Ling.

She thought that she had met a good person, but did not realize the man was clearly a fraud!

Too bad, too bad.

They had never interacted with each other before, much less said a single word. Could it be that just by relying on a scented sachet, he wanted her?

Xie Zhen clenched her teeth tightly, her little face became paler and paler, and she was about to faint out of anger.

She didn't want to be anyone's concubine, not even the Crown Prince's concubine. This was the thought that the Madam Leng instilled into her since she was young. It was deeply ingrained and would remain the same for a period of time.

Seeing that her expression was off, Yan Yao'an felt that something wasn't quite right. She walked over to her and asked, "What's wrong?"

"The scented sachets aren't what you embroidered?"

She was regretful and said, "I did."

Yan Yao'an was speechless.

Xie Zhen was to tear. She didn't expect it. She told Yan Yao'an everything that had happened a while ago, and then she held the last of her hope and grabbed Yan Yao'an's sleeve, "Can you tell His Majesty, please don't grant the marriage?"

"I don't want to marry the crown prince."

Yan Yao'an felt a headache. She shouldn't interfere in this matter either.

"If Second Brother mentioned it to Imperial father, then even I wouldn't be able to do anything ..."

Xie Zhen felt as if she had no hope at all.

Just as she was about to faint, the door of the private room was kicked open from the outside. With a bang, Yan Yu stood in the doorway, looking at Xie Zhen with a cold face.

Everyone outside and inside the door was stunned as they stared at him.

Xie Zhen didn't expect him to suddenly appear. Before she could call out the name that was hovering around her mouth, Yan Yao'an said in surprise, "Sixth Brother, why did you come in?"

Xie Zhen froze.

Yan Yu walked in step by step, finally stopping in front of Xie Zhen, looking down at her from above. He said to Yan Yao'an with an expressionless face, "You go out first, I have something to say to her."

Seeing that something was wrong, Yan Yao'an quickly got up from the mattress, her gaze sweeping over the two of them. "You two ..."

Yan Yu pursed his lips tightly and did not answer.

And Xie Zhen was completely dumbfounded.

Yan Yao'an couldn't resist her curiosity and wanted to stay behind and listen to their conversation, but was swept a cold glance by Yan Yu. She shrunk her neck and obediently withdrew from the private room.

Only Xie Zhen, Yan Yu and the two servant maids Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan are left in the private room.

It was no need to hide from Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan. They had been with Xie Zhen for more than ten years.

Xie Zhen stared blankly at Yan Yu as he sat down and stared back at him.

She was not even able to speak properly. "You, you are the sixth prince?"

Yan Yu glanced at her, "You don't believe it?"

Of course she didn't believe it!

Wasn't he Auntie Song and Li Xiqing's son? Why did he become the current sixth prince?

Xie Zhen thought she was dreaming, so she called Shuang Yu to her and twisted her so hard that Shuang Yu whinnied in pain, but she still didn't believe it. "What's your name?"

He looked at her. "Yan Yu."

The same name, just changed his surname.

Xie Zhen's frustration has long been overshadowed by a string of questions: "Why did you become sixth prince?"

"What about Auntie Song?"

"You left, just to return to the capital?"

"Why didn't you tell us? "

He could not answer any of these questions. Yan Yu interrupted her coldly: "Do you want to marry my second brother?"

When Xie Zhen was pulled back into reality, her mood sank to the bottom and she shook her head gloomily. "No," she said.

Yan Yu unconsciously clenched his fists under the table. He tried his best to sound calm, "You can marry me. I don't have a wife, so you don't have to be a concubine."

Xie Zhen was a little puzzled, "What did you say?"

He tilted his head and said, "If you marry me, second brother won't bother you anymore."

Now, at last she understood, and it was almost panic. "Wait a minute."

"Why do you want to marry me?"

"You, don't you hate me?"

He wasn't trying to take revenge on her, was he?

It occurred to Xie Zhen that if he married her, he could torture her.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but shudder.

Yan Yu suddenly turned around and glared at her, "I'm at the age of marriage. If I don't have someone I like, I can only marry you first."

"..."

He said, "Don't worry, I won't touch you."

Xie Zhen tried to understand, and stuttered, "Can you let me think about it for a few days..."

"Or maybe I could discuss it with my parents ..."

However, he stood up and spoke with a tone that was not gentle at all, "If you continue to think about it, you will have to marry second brother as his liangdi. It's up to you."

He raised his foot and was about to leave.

Xie Zhen scrambled to her feet, grabbing his hand in desperation, soft fingers digging into the palm of his hand and making him stand there.

She spoke in a conferential tone, "Then do you think you can marry me just because you want to?"

"Can the Emperor agree?"

She thought they could still hold each other's hands as they had when they were children.

It took a lot of effort for Yan Yu to hold her hand. "I'll find a way."

Xie Zhen looked at the side of his face, looked at him, suddenly a little sad, she sniffled, "Other than marrying you, there is really no other way..."

"She was still very unwilling?"

"He has wronged her?"

Yan Yu was a little angry, he turned around and stared at her, "If you marry me, you'll be the Royal's Wife, and your status will be much higher than the Crown Prince's liangdi."

She knew, of course, but she still felt a little unreal.

Just a moment ago, he was still the ordinary Li Yu, but how did he become the beloved sixth prince the next moment?

She had not yet accepted his identity, and was beginning to learn to accept another.