Chapter Sixteen

nor first and visit His Excellency Duke De. You haven't returned to the capital for seven years; it's only natural that he misses you dearly. It'll be just the same if you come to Cloud王府 tomorrow."Ni...Volume 1: Smiling at the Splendor Chapter Sixteen

Li Yun watched as Rong Jing approached step by step, like appreciating a masterfully crafted ink painting. She thought that such a person was truly a killer of all ages and genders; anyone in his presence would seem insignificant and outmatched.

In no time, Rong Jing stopped at a distance of one step from Li Yun, and with the clarity of spring water, his phoenix-like eyes scrutinized her carefully.

Li Yun had never been looked at so intently by any man before; it felt as though she were transparent in front of him. She momentarily couldn't handle it, her face involuntarily turning slightly red as she avoided his gaze and coughed lightly, "You... "

"Let's go!" Rong Jing didn’t wait for Li Yun to speak and turned around to walk toward the carriage. His voice was clear and pleasant, his steps still light and graceful. He said no more words.

Li Yun was taken aback, her eyes wide as she looked at Rong Jing's retreating back. Was he leaving like this

Rong Jing seemed to not notice the gaze Li Yun fixed on his back; soon enough, he reached the black carriage. The man in black standing by the front of the carriage immediately took the umbrella from him and lifted the curtain. Rong Jing slightly bent over and entered the carriage interior. As the curtains were drawn down, his figure was obscured.

Li Yun was completely dumbfounded this time. She thought to herself that great figures indeed had some eccentric natures.

While Li Yun was still stunned, the black-clothed guard had already sat in front of the carriage. Without even glancing at their direction, he flicked his whip and drove the carriage swiftly yet steadily out of the imperial palace gate.

Li Yun's mouth twitched. Such a master indeed commands such servants!

"Miss Since Young Prince Jing has left, shall we leave as well" Cai Lian withdrew her gaze and asked Li Yun with an inquiring look. Though she was unaware of the reason behind Young Prince Jing’s rescue of Miss, it was said that he never came within three steps of anyone. Yet just now, he had stood right next to Miss. That alone was enough to shock her.

"Mm-hmm, let's go!" Li Yun pouted.

Cai Lian quickly retrieved the reins and handed them to Li Yun, who then neatly mounted her horse. She looked at Cai Lian and asked, "Would you like a ride"

"Miss, really, it’s not necessary. It will do for me to run behind Miss." Cai Lian shook her head hurriedly. Today ever since she woke up, Miss had been acting strangely and treating her far better than usual. She was still struggling with the sudden change in treatment, feeling overwhelmed.

Running behind her horse Li Yun felt embarrassed for her. Even if the imperial palace is close to Cloud Duke Manor, it's still several streets away. At minimum, it’s about five li. To run back following a horse would be possible but tiring. She reached out and pulled Cai Lian up, saying, "Get on; I’ll take you home!"

"Miss, really there is no need for that. Where have we heard of a servant riding with her mistress Running will do..." Not only did Cai Lian not reach out to grasp the hand offered to her, she actually took a step back in alarm.

"Hurry up! If I say you can, then you can. Get on!" Li Yun frowned, her voice leaving no room for doubt.

Cai蓮trembled and didn't dare to take another step back. She looked at Li Yun as if she was about to cry. Seeing Cai蓮's tearful expression, Li Yun couldn't bring herself to scold her anymore; instead, she sighed helplessly, "You are my maid. Who cares if they see me carrying you Get on! We need to hurry back home. I haven’t eaten all day and I'm hungry."

The most important reason was that without Cai蓮leading the way, Li Yun might not be able to find her residence in the Cloud Prince Manor!

Upon hearing this, Cai蓮immediately swallowed back her tears. She looked around hesitantly before noticing the determined and encouraging look on Li Yun's face. With a bold step forward, she extended her hand toward Li Yun.

The moment Cai蓮stretched out her hand, Li Yun immediately grabbed it gently, pulling her to sit behind her on the horse. Without wasting any time, Li Yun kicked the sides of the chestnut mare, and the horse galloped forward like an arrow released from a bow.

Cai雲was so frightened that she hugged Li Yun's waist tightly, suddenly feeling unusually warm toward today’s young miss, as if she were long-missed family.

Li Yun smiled slightly upon seeing the small hand clutching her waist. For some reason, having this little girl around made her feel more at ease. Perhaps it was because Cai蓮was the first person she had met here; there was just something special about their relationship.

To catch up with Rong Jing’s carriage, Li Yun reluctantly pulled back on the reins slightly to slow down her horse and follow behind the carriage.

The carriage passed through the bustling main street, and it was almost evening. The streets were filled with many more people than before. Various rare items were displayed on both sides of the road, and vendors' shouts never ceased.

Li Yun found this interesting and thought that night markets were already popular in ancient times.

After walking a bit further, she noticed that two of the most prosperous taverns were charred black. The traces suggested they had just been burned down; she hadn't seen it earlier due to her quick pace. Could one of them be the Spring View Pavilion

Li Yun was admiring this scene when the curtain in front of the carriage was suddenly pulled open from inside, revealing Rong Jing's handsome face. He slightly turned his head towards the charred remains of the Spring View Pavilion and then glanced at Li Yun, who sat atop the horse behind him. With a faint smile, he said, "It burned well!"

Li Yun was taken aback and momentarily dazzled by his smiling face. Rong Jing had closed the curtain again; no more sounds could be heard from inside.

"Miss, it’s said that even though the Spring View Pavilion operates a certain kind of business, secretly it does some of the most despicable deeds. Especially in trafficking people and forcing them into prostitution. Sometimes when the madam sets her eyes on a virtuous woman or an attractive man from a good family, she will go to great lengths to take them away…" Dao Liannian whispered behind Li Yun.

"So that's how it is; they truly deserved to be burned down." Li Yun nodded. Did this mean she had done something good

"Yes, that’s true! People in the capital are secretly spreading such news, and I believe it's all true. The only reason no one has exposed them yet is because of their powerful backers who suppress any attempts to do so." Dao Liannian continued in a low voice: "This time when Miss burned down the Spring View Pavilion, although it seemed hasty from the outside, people secretly rejoiced about it but dared not speak up for you."

Li Yun nodded again, thinking that the little girl actually knew quite a lot. After some thought, she asked in a low voice, "Could it be that the patrons of Wangchun Tower are all officials from the capital Otherwise, why would they submit memorials to impeach me after I burned down Wangchun Tower"

Miss, think about it! Even if those officials aren't involved with Wangchun Tower behind the scenes, the men and women inside are all exceptionally beautiful. Many of them have admirers among the lords and young masters from various households who have romantic relationships with them. Now that you've burned everything down, wouldn't people naturally be resentful Of course they would band together to impeach you" Cai Lian's voice was so soft it could barely be heard.

Li Yun suddenly understood. She had become the target of collective resentment.

"Is the person behind Wangchun Tower the Crown Prince" Li Yun asked in a lowered voice.

Cai Lian was startled, immediately releasing her grip on Li Yun's hand as her face paled and she nearly fell from the horse. Fortunately, Li Yun quickly grabbed her to prevent her fall. She looked at Cai Lian's frightened expression with confusion and asked, "Could it be that I guessed right"

Cai Lian shook her head in alarm, saying, "I don't know either."

"If you don’t know, then say so. What are you afraid of" Li Yun looked at Cai Lian.

Seeing that Li Yun wasn't angry, Cai Lian took a deep breath and said with a bitter expression, "I just get scared when I hear the name Crown Prince.

"He is scary" Li Yun thought of the Crown Prince's relentless efforts to get rid of her, and her face darkened.

"Miss" Cai Lian was startled again. Meeting Li Yun’s probing gaze, she could only lower her head and softly admit truthfully: "Miss used to firmly forbid anyone from saying a bad word about the Crown Prince殿下……"

Li Yun realized once more that this was a lingering effect of fear. She steadied herself, turned back, and continued riding forward calmly, her voice indifferent and emotionless as she said to her: "It won’t happen anymore. I Li... Yun Qian will have nothing to do with the Crown Prince from now on. Our relationship is severed. And I definitely won't enter the Crown Prince’s mansion as a consort or the palace either. Listen carefully, remember this. You are my close attendant; I don’t want you to fear him anymore."

Cai Lian immediately widened her eyes at Li Yun, seeing only her straight back clearly indicating that she had made up her mind. Her eyes began to sting with tears, Miss must have completely lost heart towards the Crown Prince after this major change! Although before, Miss was known for a bad temper and not treating them well, the maidservants around her always changed one after another, and she herself had only been here for half a year at most. But as she got to know Miss better over time, she found that Miss is actually straightforward and genuine in character, except when it came to anything regarding Prince Crown’s affairs—then she would be completely different, able to do any crazy thing. How much Cai Lian had done secretly for the Crown Prince was unknown, unfortunately, and yet he treated her coldly or even with aversion. Now that Miss has seen through him, although Cai Lian felt happy, at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for Miss, thinking that Miss must be suffering terribly.

"Hmm" Li Yun noticed something was off about Cai Lian's mood and hadn't heard her speak in a long while. She turned back to look at her.

Cai Lian bit the edges of her lips and nodded, choking out: "Yes, Miss, your words are remembered by me. I am just glad for you that you will no longer suffer as before. Although His Highness Crown Prince is good in many ways, from my perspective, he does not seem to be a suitable match for Miss. It's only because of the Grand Ancestor’s ancestral precepts that I still worry for you; if the Emperor were to issue an edict compelling you to marry the Crown Prince, your resolve might make him even more unsatisfied. After all, you are the only legitimate daughter of the Cloud Prince Manor..."

Upon hearing this, Li Yun rubbed her forehead with a hand—this was indeed a headache. But she was broad-minded and currently still not firmly established in Cloud Prince Manor; how could she spare time for other things Whatever happens later will be dealt with then. Thus, she lowered her hand and shook her head, saying: "It's fine! There isn't just me as a daughter in the Cloud Prince Manor. Whether born legitimate or illegitimate, they are all daughters of the Cloud Prince Manor; what difference does it make No need to worry about this."

"Miss is right," Cai Lian wiped away her tears and smiled again, quietly saying: "I feel that Miss has become more cheerful after this major change, which is indeed a good thing. The old prince will surely be delighted by how Miss is now.that only Yun Qianyue could hear it. Rong Jing, however, suddenly paused mid-step, his gaze fixed on Yun Qianyue. He squinted slightly before relaxing again and approaching them with a calm demeanor.Y...