Chapter 66: To Play Hard To Get

Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3614052
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too. 

"What, do you actually think that just saying 'I am sorry' will make her forgive you?"

He Changping was helping Young Master Meng sit upright on the couch. Before he could straighten up, Ye Wuyou's irritated, disdainful voice sounded from behind.

"You should know her temper. She certainly does not like others forcing her into anything. With what you did today, are you not afraid of breaking her heart? And even drugging her? How could you even think of that?!"

"I know. She will certainly not calm down so easily after what happened today."

Gazing at the Young Master’s tightly closed eyes, He Changping fell silent for a moment before speaking in a soft voice, "But I cannot afford to gamble."

Hearing the deeper meaning in He Changping’s words, Ye Wuyou immediately picked up her sword and walked over to the low table beside the couch. She struck the sword heavily against the table, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "What, are you actually afraid?"

That loud thud seemed to strike directly into He Changping’s heart.

Only then did He Changping turn to look at Ye Wuyou and calmly respond, "If it were only me alone, then of course I would not be afraid."

After speaking, He Changping glanced toward the doorway, waiting for the person he had invited to arrive.

After a brief silence, he murmured softly, "But now, with Chang'an here, how could I not be afraid?"

Hearing this, Ye Wuyou could not help but sneer, "If you were afraid, then why did you sell this girl to Li Qiubai in the first place? It is too late for regrets now."

The word "sell" struck a dull ache in He Changping’s heart. Yet he could not refute it. Clenching his teeth in frustration, He Changping finally admitted, "The only reason I agreed to cooperate with her and let her use Chang'an back then was because I firmly believed Chang'an did not like women."

No one would have ever thought that Young Master Meng, who had always sworn she would never fall in love with a woman, would, in just a few days, develop feelings for the Princess.

Thinking of this, He Changping felt even more upset.

"But now it is different. Chang'an... she has developed feelings. I know this girl's nature well. Since she was willing to risk her own safety for Her Highness this time, she will certainly do it again in the future, countless times..."

He paused briefly, then turned to look at Ye Wuyou and spoke earnestly, "Wuyou, I cannot afford to gamble. I do not want to see her disregarding her life for others anymore. After that prison ordeal last time, it took great effort to pull her out of that situation. There is simply no justification for dragging her back in, risking her life once again."

"So, in your eyes, nothing is more important than your sister, is it?"

Ye Wuyou gave a self-deprecating smile, then continued, "Including me, am I right?"

"Wuyou, I..."

Without He Changping saying anything more, Ye Wuyou could easily discern his true thoughts from his stunned, remorseful expression.

Indeed, to him, she was simply not as important as Young Master Meng.

After all, he had only one sister, but a wife, perhaps, did not have to be the only one.

Ye Wuyou was well aware of her own position. She did not argue with him as an ordinary woman might; instead, she merely gave a self-mocking smile. Before He Changping could offer any explanation, she stopped him, saying, "Enough, there is no need to explain. I understand."

By the time the two had finished arguing, Shen Lingyun and Shu Yao had already entered the room one after the other.

Ye Wuyou did not say anything more to He Changping. She simply stepped forward, lifted the unconscious Young Master Meng into her arms, and said coldly, "Then I will take her with me first."

He Changping only sighed softly and refrained from saying anything further. Instead, he clasped his hands in respect toward Shen Lingyun and said, "From now on, I will trouble you to look after Chang'an, Miss Shen."

Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3614052
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too. 

Shen Lingyun's brows furrowed slightly, yet she did not comment on their earlier argument. She only responded calmly, "There is no need for your instructions; I will take good care of her. If there is nothing else, then A'Yao and I will take our leave."

With no objections from He Changping, Shen Lingyun took Shu Yao's hand and followed Ye Wuyou out.

Only after boarding the prepared carriage outside Baiyun Inn did Shen Lingyun glance at Shu Yao, who was absentmindedly sorting through her belongings, and remarked, "If you cannot bear to part with your childhood friend, you can still get off now."

Hearing this, Shu Yao felt a pang of guilt. She quickly rubbed her nose with an embarrassed smile and said, "How could that be? You are imagining things!"

Shen Lingyun couldn’t help but let out a light chuckle.

She could not forget the scene she had witnessed earlier in the Princess’ room. Regardless of the situation at the time or any misunderstandings that might exist, the natural closeness between this person and the Princess was undeniably genuine.

Yet, even after hearing Shu Yao’s evasive, self-deceiving response, Shen Lingyun said nothing more. Seeing that Shu Yao had no intention of jumping off the carriage, Shen Lingyun shifted her gaze to Ye Wuyou, who sat with her eyes closed, resting, and to the unconscious Young Master Meng beside her.

Recalling the argument she had overheard in He Changping's room, Shen Lingyun shook her head in quiet resignation. Noting that Ye Wuyou made no objections, Shen Lingyun called out to the driver outside the carriage door, "Let us go."

Shen Lingyun left decisively, without even formally bidding farewell to Bai Shuangyan. Without a sound, she took the others and departed from Baiyun Inn.

It was only after they had left that Yuechu belatedly received the news. As soon as she heard, she rushed in a panic to inform Li Qiubai, exclaiming, "Your Highness! Young Master He actually sent Young Master Meng away!"

When Li Qiubai heard Yuechu’s angry voice, she only paused for a moment before continuing to play with the teacup in her hand, answering calmly, "Mm, I know, Ye Wuyou already told me."

Seeing Li Qiubai's calm and composed demeanor, Yuechu finally reacted. "No way, Your Highness, are you really going to let her go just like that? Are you not going to bring the Young Master back?"

As the saying goes, the emperor is never as anxious as the eunuchs.

Looking at her maid's incredulous and anxious expression, Li Qiubai could not help but chuckle. She stood up and patted Yuechu on the head.

"Silly girl, if two people are meant to be together for a long time, what does it matter whether it is day or night?"

Having said that, Li Qiubai turned and walked to the window, gazing at the distant scenery. She smiled and continued, "He Changping is worried about her safety, and I can understand that, which is why I did not stop him. Moreover, if I kept Meng Chang'an by my side, I might never have her come to me willingly, no matter how long I wait. Sometimes, you know, letting go properly is not necessarily a bad thing."

Yuechu understood immediately and then suddenly realized the truth.

"So... Your Highness, are you trying to play hard to get?"

Li Qiubai only smiled without speaking. She reached out and gently touched the wound on her chest as if feeling the beating of her heart through the injury.

Play hard to get? 

Perhaps that was one way to put it.

She also wanted to see how long Meng Chang'an could endure before she couldn't help but return to find her.

Sometimes, Li Qiubai felt that she was despicable, unscrupulous, and full of schemes, just to firmly lock Meng Chang'an's body and heart by her side.

She knew this was very despicable and not truly sincere, but compared to the pain of losing the Young Master, she was willing to put in the effort.

Although these methods were far from honorable...

When Li Qiubai and her group left Baiyun Inn, the accompanying guards had already changed out of their usual attire and donned their official uniforms.

The disguised merchant convoy had transformed back into a military force.

While they had been traveling under the guise of a merchant group, they had faced constant minor troubles. However, now that they were leaving Baiyun Inn as a military force, they had attracted far fewer problems.

At first, those from the martial world who had aimed to take down He Changping’s head had tried to deceive themselves into pretending they didn't know the true identity of the convoy. But now, seeing the cold gleam of the armor, they were filled with a sense of fear. On the surface, no one dared to cause trouble as blatantly as before.

Still, despite this, there were plenty of assassins lurking along the road to Yuzhou, attempting to assassinate the Princess in secret.

Throughout the journey, no matter the turmoil outside, the Princess remained comfortably nestled inside her carriage, as if completely isolated from the world.

Lin Xingyang had long been ordered to lead a small team ahead to Yuzhou. Therefore, after the Young Master’s departure, the Princess’ safety was entrusted to He Changping and Yu Jin, who took charge of her protection.

Although several assassination attempts during this journey had passed without major danger, the delays caused by these troublesome individuals resulted in the group arriving in Yuzhou three days later than originally planned.

Those three days, however, were more than enough for the people with ulterior motives in Yuzhou to prepare their countermeasures.

Among the territories of Yuzhou, the wealthiest city was Yecheng. Yecheng gathered many major sects from the martial world, and sometimes even the power of the government was no match for the influence of these sects. Among them, the righteous sects, both large and small, were led by the Qingyang Clan.

When the Princess' group arrived outside Yecheng, it was already midnight. Entering the city at such an hour was quite inconvenient. After receiving the Princess' approval, Yu Jin decided to stop early and camp for the night in the mountains and forests outside Yecheng, intending to enter the city in the morning with the full group.

The shared battles along the way had brought Yu Jin and He Changping much closer.

As midnight passed, the guards had followed orders to set up camp and had gone to sleep, leaving only a few sentries patrolling outside.

Yu Jin carried two small jars of wine, climbed onto a tree branch, and sat beside He Changping. He tossed one of the jars toward him.

"Brother He, it is so late, and you still have not gone to rest?"

Although the appearances of the real and fake Prince Consorts were almost indistinguishable, Yu Jin had at least been in close contact with both Prince Consorts and could naturally tell the difference between them. Moreover, since the Princess had not kept it from him, and knowing who the Princess was closer to, Yu Jin was well aware of who the true Prince Consort was in the Princess' heart.

Therefore, when facing He Changping, he had never called him "Prince Consort."

"I have noticed that you seem to always have a furrowed brow, looking troubled lately. What is the matter? Do you want to talk about it?"

Only then did He Changping withdraw his wandering thoughts and shift his gaze from the distant mountains and forests back to the person beside him. He opened the wine jar, clinked it with Yu Jin, and took a sip of wine, followed by a forced smile.

"Sorry for worrying Brother Yu. It is just that the journey has been full of setbacks, and I could not help but feel worried."

Yu Jin did not know what was troubling He Changping, and he assumed that this was the real reason for his worries. He patted his shoulder and tried to comfort him, saying, "Then you should relax. We are almost in the city. Perhaps things will be peaceful for a while after this. After all, the high-ranking officials and nobles in the city would not dare to let anything happen to Her Highness inside the city."

He Changping did not respond directly. Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly noticed a shadow sneakily approaching the Princess' carriage near a large tree not far away.

He took it to be just another ordinary assassin, like the ones he had dealt with in the past. He immediately shoved the wine jar back into Yu Jin's arms, drew his sword, and leaped down, leaving Yu Jin with only one sentence: "Brother Yu, stay here and protect Her Highness. I will be back soon."

Unlike the usual inept assassins, the man in black tonight was much more clever. Upon realizing he had been spotted, he immediately turned and fled.

The man in black was skilled in Qinggong. He chased after him through the forest, leaping and weaving through the trees for nearly the length of a tea's time before He Changping finally caught up.

It was only because the person ahead had intentionally slowed down that he managed to catch up. Otherwise, he might not have been able to catch him.

Could it be a trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain?

He Changping tightly gripped the sword in his hand, his fingertips already pressing against the hilt, ready to draw the sword at any moment.

The wind rustled, sweeping up the remaining leaves as they danced through the air.

At this moment, the young man in white clothes was closely watching the black-clad figure's back, guarding against the black-clad person. At the same time, he had already bent his finger, slowly pushing the hilt to draw the sword from its sheath.

A faint sound reached the ears of the black-clad person. After a moment, she had already removed her mask and turned around.

As the moonlight revealed the seemingly smiling expression of the person before him, He Changping could not help but freeze for a moment. He then suddenly released his grip on the sword hilt, pushing the partially unsheathed sword back into place, helplessly calling out, "Chang'an, why is it you?"

Unfortunately, He Changping did not receive the response he expected from Young Master Meng. Instead, he received a punch to the face.

A punch filled with brute force, but devoid of any internal energy.

Author's Note:

Rehabilitation starts with breaking free from the monthly updates! If anyone is still here, remember to speak up!