On Our Wedding Night, I Discovered the Crown Prince's Hidden Illness

Chapter 85: Chapter 85 Waiting for You Alone

Ye Yiheng left the Imperial Study.

Jian Lecheng hurriedly approached, receiving the arm of the Crown Prince from Eunuch Ye’s hands, “Thank you, Eunuch Ye, I’ll take it from here.”

Eunuch Ye smiled, “Much obliged to you, Young Master!”

Jian Lecheng nodded his head, supporting Ye Yiheng as they left Xiande Hall.

The two men tacitly remained silent until they had settled into the horse carriage, and then Jian Lecheng finally spoke, “Your Highness, what matter did the Emperor summon you for?”

Ye Yiheng removed his eye veil, pinching the bridge of his nose, “He used Ji Qingyu’s marriage matter to observe which noble family factions would align themselves, asking for my opinion, merely wanting to use me to obscure his own aims.”

...

Jian Lecheng sneered coldly, “Those scheming for the throne have long since secretly amassed power. How could just a marriage reveal anything? The noble families, some have many daughters.”

Ye Yiheng replied coolly, “The old man gave Ji Qingyu a register of flowers, listing all the noble family’s legitimate daughters of marriageable age.”

“The number of legitimate daughters is finite after all.” Jian Lecheng finally realized, “Although Ji Qingyu is a Commandery Prince, he’s just the Emperor’s nephew. In this way, those originally planning to keep their legitimate daughters for the future Crown Prince would, more or less, give themselves away.”

Ye Yiheng laughed coldly, “Outsiders only think the old man favors Ji Qingyu, his nephew, made him a Commandery Prince, and frets over his marital matters to win over the noble families, but it’s not so!”

“This strategy of the Emperor, what a clever scheme!” Jian Lecheng clenched his fist and said, “The noble families already have their allegiances. To prevent being chosen by Ji Qingyu, they would have plans for the next step, enabling the Emperor to make his judgment.”

“The old man is both searching for the next Crown Prince candidate and guarding against those with power greater than his, while simultaneously using the opportunity to see whether the noble families are loyal to him or loyal to some Prince.” Ye Yiheng pinched his eye veil.

Unconsciously, the image of Leng Yu Yan removing his eye veil surfaced in his mind.

Her fingers were slender and fair, warm and soft; she had a faint, delicate fragrance, gently wafting into his nostrils; when she straightened up to tie his eye veil, she almost leaned against his chest…

Why would he think of her without any reason?

This restive woman was always thinking about escaping the Eastern Palace, escaping from him.

A coldness flickered in Ye Yiheng’s eyes.

—

Xinya Academy.

During the lunch break, Lai Jiajia excitedly proposed going to the Dance Society to practice, “I say, we need to practice seriously, the Flower Festival is just a few days away!”

Leng Yu Yan smiled and nodded, as they followed Lai Jiajia to the outside of the Dance Society.

Unexpectedly, they heard Cao Shu teaching dance inside.

Lai Jiajia pushed open the door, and what struck her eyes was Lai Manting, Xu Yaxiang, and the six others practicing the Flower Festival dance.

“Lady Cao, our team are the final performers!” Lai Jiajia complained.

Cao Shu glanced at Leng Yu Yan, then turned to Lai Jiajia, “As per usual practice, to prevent any mishaps, it’s better to train a few more people, so there are no mistakes during the actual event.”

Leng Yu Yan slightly raised an eyebrow, “May I ask Lady Cao if the Dance Society could be made available for us to practice?”

Cao Shu said, “During the last competition, you six danced well enough; I believe you don’t need more practice.”

“Does Lady Cao mean to deny us practice at the Dance Society?” Leng Yu Yan asked again.

Lai Jiajia, furious, burst out, “Lady Cao, such actions are unjust and biased!”

At that moment, Xu Yaxiang came shouting to drive them away, “The Dance Society operates by Lady Cao’s decisions. You came from whence; return thence!”

Cao Shu glanced at Xu Yaxiang, then lifted her hand to signal Leng Yu Yan and the others to leave, “What Yaxiang says might sound harsh, but indeed, it’s my decision to make about the Dance Society.”

Leng Yu Yan smiled faintly, “It seems Lady Cao no longer wishes to stay at Xinya Academy, perhaps aiming to get married, hehe, and who knows if she has already lost both wealth and beauty?”

“You!” Cao Shu furrowed her brows, wanting to say something but found herself at a loss for words.

How did she know I have already been compromised by Xu Yaxiang’s brother?

“Those who teach dance, especially educators, must be strict with themselves, upright in behavior.” Leng Yu Yan coolly eyed her, “Cao Shu, your current behavior would deeply disappoint the teacher who taught you dance that day!”

“Teacher?” Cao Shu murmured, then sternly said, “I am older than you, you have no right to lecture me about ‘teacher’ in my presence!”

Ignoring her, Leng Yu Yan smiled faintly and turned to address her group, “Let’s go.”

He left the Dance Society.

Luo Meng’er whispered, “Yu Yan, where are we going to practice?”

Leng Yu Yan replied, “The usual place.”

Lai Jiajia clapped her hands in excitement, “There will be food and drink, the usual place is always best.”

“Aren’t you afraid of the Mountain Master?” Leng Yu Yan teased.

Lai Jiajia stuck out her tongue, laughing, “The Mountain Master is actually just a lovable old man.”

—

When classes dismissed, Leng Yu Yan didn’t want to step out of the academy gate.

The reason was simple, standing beside the Eastern Palace Carriage was a person.

This person’s eyes were covered by a white eye veil, yet those sharp eyes were intently gazing at her through the veil.

Seeing her emerge, Song Guo respectfully nodded, “Your Highness, the Crown Princess Consort is here.”

It was then that Ye Yiheng gave a slight smile, “Crown Princess Consort, I have been waiting for you.”

At this moment, the street was crowded with students from Xinya Academy and Imperial College, as well as various servants and attendants from different households.

Ye Yiheng’s action instantly made Leng Yu Yan the focus of everyone’s gaze.

Under the scrutinizing eyes of the public, the lips under Leng Yu Yan’s veil twitched slightly, and she slowly stepped forward, bowing slightly, “Your Highness.”

In front of everyone, Ye Yiheng regally took her hand, fumbling to lead her onto the horse carriage.

Some bystanders exclaimed, “The Crown Prince is blind but still comes to pick someone up, much better than some men with perfect sight!”

Immediately someone retorted, “If you want to marry the Crown Prince, it’s still not too late.”

Amidst the murmurs of the surrounding crowd, the Eastern Palace Carriage slowly began to move.

Inside the horse carriage, Leng Yu Yan tried to sit as far from him as possible, “Your Highness, your acting is rather impressive!”

Hearing this, Ye Yiheng was not annoyed, “The Crown Princess Consort cooperates very well.”

Not knowing what this blind man intended to do today, Leng Yu Yan turned to face him and got straight to the point, “The Empress’s birthday month is almost over, I wish to return to the Leng Family.” @@novelbin@@

Ye Yiheng slightly furrowed his brows, speaking to himself, “Today I came to fetch you to allow you to visit Ji Qingyu.”

She couldn’t help but confirm, “Really?”

Could this person be so kind-hearted?

Last night, when she thought of climbing over the wall to get out, she discovered that the guards around the wall had more than doubled, which caused her to give up on the idea.

“Of course, it’s true,” Ye Yiheng leisurely adjusted his robe.

“Then please, Your Highness, just drop me at the gate of Marquis Jiangyang Mansion.”

“The Crown Princess Consort might have misunderstood, I meant that we would go together.”

Leng Yu Yan shook her hands repeatedly, moving a bit closer to him, “I shall go alone.”

With him present, how could she check Ji Qingyu’s pulse?

Seeing her move closer to him for the sake of visiting Ji Qingyu alone, Ye Yiheng’s expression turned colder, “Together with me, are you afraid of exposing your identity, Li Yu?”

“I have nothing to fear, I and Ji Qingyu are completely innocent!”

Her voice lowered as she spoke.

Going with him meant the Eldest Princess would know she was both Leng Yu Yan and Li Yu.