Reborn in the Cold Palace: The Emperor's lie

The three lonely carriages waited at the post station. Late that night, Cui Yi finally arrived, accompanied by Xie Yuchan, her maids, and Concubine Duan, along with several eunuchs and maidservants.

It had been nearly a year since they last met, and Xie Yuchan appeared more subdued. Though she wrinkled her nose in distaste upon seeing Chiying, she didn't scream accusations, indicating Concubine Duan's efforts had paid off somewhat.

Bai Li Zan recounted the events since receiving the confiscation decree. Cui Yi, exhausted from kneeling in the Ancestral Temple all day, listened silently and simply nodded, saying, "Let's head to Xuancheng first."

Everyone understood the implications of heading to Xuancheng first—when they left, the Wu Wangfei would no longer be Chiying.

Concubine Duan handed several boxes containing gold, jewels, and jade to Cui Yi, tenderly advising, "Gan Prefecture is far colder and desolate than the capital. Be careful, my son. Life has its ups and downs, but don't lose heart."

Cui Yi nodded, squeezing her hand, "I understand, Mother. Take care of yourself."

Concubine Duan's eyes welled with tears as she instructed Xie Yuchan to be careful. Regarding Chiying, given her sister's involvement in the incident and her father's role in the confiscation, Concubine Duan didn't give her a hard time. Chiying, overwhelmed by the day's events, didn't care either.

After Concubine Duan left, Xie Yuchan stepped forward, sincerely telling Cui Yi, "Brother Ying, rest assured. When we reach Xuancheng, my father will provide us with supplies, ensuring we don't suffer in Gan Prefecture."

"Just rest. We'll set off early tomorrow," Cui Yi responded indifferently, waving them off.

Nine people, with Xie Yuchan occupying a room alone, the others sharing. Chiying considered offering to step aside but immediately dismissed the idea—it was bad enough being humiliated by others without humiliating herself.

Even if she lost her standing in Cui Yi's camp, she couldn't give up. Chiying clenched her fists, "I'm not alone. I have Yan'er. For her sake, I must persevere."

Xiao Qiu came to wash up. During this time, Cui Yi remained silent. Once she left, Chiying fed her daughter, putting her to sleep before asking, "Don't you want to ask something?"

Chiying glanced at him, "What does Your Highness want me to ask?"

Cui Yi nodded, saying nothing, sitting on his bed.

"Alright, why is Miss Xie accompanying us?" Chiying knew he wanted to explain Xie Yuchan's presence but hoped she would ask.

At this point, however, it hardly mattered. She could foresee what would happen next.

Cui Yi clasped his hands, resting his forehead on them, sighing, "When I left the Ancestral Temple, she and Mother were waiting. She said... wherever I go, she will follow, even if I'm no longer a prince or a general."

Chiying silently smiled, placing her sleeping daughter on the bed, then blew out the lamp, plunging the room into darkness.

"Chiying?" Cui Yi's voice carried a hint of tension.

Chiying stood in the dark, watching him without speaking. Cui Yi swallowed, hesitant, prompting Chiying to laugh coldly, "Don't you want to ask something?"

Cui Yi paused, understanding her sarcasm, shaking his head, "I don't want to doubt you."

Not "won't," but "don't want to." Chiying didn't know how to react to her tragic self.

"You won't betray me, will you?"

Answering yes would be unbelievable even to herself. Thus, she could only bitterly avoid answering, "Get some rest."

In the darkness, both lay awake, knowing the other was also awake. Chiying gently stroked her daughter's face, struggling before finally speaking, "Your Highness."

Cui Yi responded, sounding very alert.

"If Lord Xie still wishes to marry his daughter to you, what... do you plan to do?" Ever since Xie Yong suggested passing through Xuancheng, Chiying had felt uneasy. Now, with Xie Yuchan's presence, her declaration of unwavering loyalty further confirmed her fears. If she were a man, she would be touched.

But touching emotions often lead to misinterpretations of love. In a time when even blood relations could turn against each other, loyalty was invaluable.

Cui Yi's response was vague and empty, "I don't know. I haven't thought about it."

Perhaps he hadn't thought about it, but it was clear he was deeply affected.

Instead of not wanting to think about it, Chi Ying said in her heart, the distance between "not marrying" and "not knowing" seemed so close, yet the gap between crossing and not crossing it was huge.

"Would Your Highness like to hear my thoughts?"

"Speak."

Chi Ying took a deep breath and said, "If Your Highness plans to retire into the mountains and stay away from worldly affairs, you can refuse the Xie family. Our little family of three can find a place to settle down, and from then on have no connection with the palace. Although I've never done any housework since childhood, I know some needlework and can sew clothes for others to earn some money. If Your Highness is willing to farm, then farm; if not, hunting in the mountains will also allow us to get by."

On the opposite bed, Cui Yi remained silent, clearly finding it hard to accept the drastic change from being a high-ranking prince to an ordinary citizen.

"As for the teachers and others, they can only return to their own homes or find new opportunities."

"If Your Highness is unwilling to retreat just yet..."

Chi Ying swallowed hard, her voice trembling: "Then marry Miss Xie. Your Highness has been schemed against, wrongfully accused, and even stripped of most of your wealth. In the end, it's all my fault. From now on, I will be a slave or maid and dare not complain. Or if Your Highness does not want to see me anymore, that's fine too. I will leave with Xiao Qiu tomorrow, but as for Xian'er—"

Cui Yi suddenly interrupted her: "Enough."

Chi Ying fell silent, her expression dim.

"As long as I am the Wu Prince, you will always be the Wu Princess. There is no need for further discussion. I have my own plans."

Chi Ying rubbed the corners of her eyes and whispered, "Yes."

It was a sleepless night.

The next morning, everyone got up. Cao Qian had already led the eight thousand soldiers appointed by Emperor Jianyuan to wait on the official road. When he learned that the Wangfu carriage had been detained by Changsun Tai, and the women and guests had walked to the inn on foot, he hurriedly hired three more carriages. However, the space was much narrower, and the carriages could only accommodate the masters, while the maids had to squeeze in with the drivers.

Xie Yuchan pouted, extremely disdainful of the shabby small carriage. Only after her maidservant persuaded her again and again did she reluctantly board the carriage with an air of condescension. Chi Ying didn't mind and got in with her daughter. Nong Yue let Xiao Qiu serve inside and sat outside with the driver.

In October, autumn had arrived. In the mountain-surrounded Zizhang City, it wasn't cold yet, but heading north to Xuanzhou, less than a third of the way, the temperature dropped sharply. Winter coats were taken out early and worn, but sitting in the drafty carriage still made them shiver.

Xiao Qiu looked at Chi Ying, who was feeding her child with her clothes half-open, and suggested worriedly, "Madam, why don't we ask someone to light a stove? It's too cold, and you might get sick."

Chi Ying smiled without looking up, "There's no room for a stove in such a small carriage. Don't worry, Xian'er is like a little heater. Holding her keeps me warm."

"Madam..." Xiao Qiu felt very uncomfortable seeing her calm demeanor.

At mealtime, the carriages stopped, and the soldiers started cooking. Cui Yi handed Jinwu to Cao Qian to feed and walked towards the carriage.

Xie Yuchan happened to come out of her carriage and greeted him with a radiant smile when she saw him approach, "Yingge...". But Cui Yi ignored her and walked straight to Chi Ying's carriage, lifting the curtain. Both master and servant inside jumped in surprise, and Xiao Qiu patted her chest, "It's just Your Highness."

"How?" Cui Yi glanced inside and understood immediately, "Are you cold? You're wearing too little."

Chi Ying picked up the baby and switched sides to continue feeding, "It's okay. This is the thickest coat I have. There's no wind in the carriage, so it's fine."

Cui Yi frowned, looking at her red, frozen hands, "Where's your sable cloak? Put it on."

Xiao Qiu lowered her head and whispered, "It was... Master... Lord Changsun detained it..."

Cui Yi's eyebrows furrowed, "What? Not even allowing winter clothes? Do they want people to freeze to death?"

Xiao Qiu trembled under his roar and quickly waved her hands to explain, "No, no, no, Madam's sable cloak happened to be in one of the three carriages detained by Lord Changsun."

Changsun Tai detaining the three carriages of the Wu Wangfu at the city gate had been mentioned by Bai Lichan before they left, but Cui Yi usually didn't care about household matters and hadn't asked what had been detained. Hearing that Chi Ying's sable cloak was gone, he remembered this and asked, "What else did he detain? What's in these three carriages?"

Although it was an exile, Emperor Jianyuan still symbolically gave him eight thousand soldiers and corresponding provisions, so they hadn't used the three carriages of the Wangfu much along the way.

Chi Ying replied, "He detained quite a few banknotes, rice, flour, cured meat, and several pieces of winter clothing."

Cui Yi nodded, put down the curtain, and ordered, "Nong Yue, go get my black sable coat from the box." Nong Yue went off to fetch it. Cui Yi thought it necessary to check what else was in the box and followed her.

Nong Yue opened a trunk, took out the black sable coat, and was about to send it to Chi Ying. Cui Yi followed and gestured, "You, give it to the Princess." A nearby soldier received it respectfully and went to deliver it. Cui Yi then asked, "What's in this carriage?"

Nong Yue pointed and explained, "These are mostly clothes, shoes, armor, and some relics left by Empress Dowager Xiaoling. The valuables are in the main compartment."

Cui Yi walked to another carriage and asked, "And here? What's in here?" Nong Yue followed and answered, "Gold, silver, banknotes, and some precious herbs like deer antler and ginseng."

The last carriage was the one Chi Ying checked daily. Cui Yi knocked on the boxes, feeling they were full, and asked, "These are your clothes? Why isn't the sable cloak stored together?"

Nong Yue hesitated but reported truthfully, "This carriage mostly contains books and some grain. Madam doesn't have many changes of clothes, but there are plenty of clothes and diapers for the little miss."

Cui Yi frowned, "Grain is understandable, but why fill a whole carriage with books? They look good but aren't useful."

Nong Yue didn't know how to respond, but fortunately, Cui Yi didn't pursue it further and turned away.