The girl earlier was even more stunning than Xinya a year ago. The beauty of Xinya had driven a wedge between brothers Ye Yuan and Ye Yong. Now there emerged a woman more exquisite than Xinya, what bloodshed and conflict would arise among the new generation of princes? But why should she care about the Ye Family’s mountain when it had nothing to do with her anymore? Meanwhile, Leng Yu Yan followed Ye Yiheng to the side of a small creek. Ye Yiheng stood silently for a long while. Gazing at her reflection in the creek, Leng Yu Yan ventured a guess, "Your Highness, do you want to tell me about something from the past?" "That old lady just now was Grand Princess Consort Wen, the mother of King Yong," Ye Yiheng finally spoke up. "King Yong?" Leng Yu Yan frowned. She felt she hadn’t heard of the title ’King Yong’ before. Ye Yiheng spoke with detachment, "Let me tell you a story." "Alright," Leng Yu Yan nodded. "There was a father who had many sons, two of whom were exceptionally close." "One of the younger brothers had a beloved girl. They loved each other, and their family naturally arranged their marriage." "But one day, the elder brother met his brother’s fiancée, and captivated by her beauty, he resorted to despicable means to take her for himself." "Not only that, but the elder brother also schemed to frame his brother and took over as the head of the family." Leng Yu Yan pursed her lips and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, the story you’re telling is actually about your own family. You could just say so directly; there’s no need to put it this way." Ye Yiheng sighed, "When the Imperial Grandfather was still reigning, King Yong, who was then a prince, was very close with my Father Emperor." "Ye Yong had a fiancée named Tao Xinya, but one day, Ye Yuan met Tao Xinya..." Having heard this, Leng Yu Yan understood. The Xinya Academy was founded by the Empress, which meant this Tao Xinya must be the Empress, and she was indeed Ye Yiheng’s mother. Ye Yuan, the current Emperor, was King Yong, and the old lady in the bamboo house was King Yong’s mother, Grand Princess Consort Wen. Ye Yiheng’s lips curled into a cold smile, "An emperor taking his subject’s wife, when spread abroad, tarnishes Tiancheng’s face. He then ordered someone else to marry in her place. After entering the palace, Tao Xinya did many things, such as founding the Xinya Academy and organizing calligraphy competitions, but she never vied for favor. Ye Yuan, feeling she still harbored feelings for Ye Yong, flew into a rage and one day, he..." Ye Yiheng paused, not finishing the account of that day, but simply said, "Yanyan, my birth was truly disgraceful." "Tao Xinya never wanted to bear Ye Yuan’s child, but for her family’s sake, she had no choice but to give birth." "Once the child was born, he received no love from his birth mother." "Ye Yuan was suspicious by nature. He suspected the child was fathered by Tao Xinya and her old love, Ye Yong, and thus disliked the child even more." "On the day of his birth, his birth mother tried to smother him with a pillow." "And his birth father, doubting his paternity, tested their blood several times. Even though the tests proved they were blood-related, the father continued to dislike him, repeatedly trying to poison him to death." Hearing all this, Leng Yu Yan’s eyes filled with tears. The world had many who desired his death, yet the ones who wished it most were his own parents. She hugged him tightly, "Your Highness..." Hearing this, her heart ached as if it were being cut with a knife. Her elder brother had once told her that Ye Yiheng was not favored by the Emperor because the Empress had been coerced into marriage. The Empress had no love for the Emperor and was unwilling to bear his children. Annoyed, the Emperor forced the Empress to his bed, and only then did she give birth to Ye Yiheng. But she did not know that he had nearly been killed by the Empress as soon as he was born, nor did she know that the Emperor even suspected his origins. The Emperor had poisoned the Crown Prince, and although she had guessed and heard him mention it, she hadn’t realized it had happened multiple times. Ye Yiheng rested his chin atop her head and murmured, "From the moment I was born, I have never felt what love is, nor do I understand what liking someone means." "Yanyan, I truly don’t know how to treat someone well. If I do something wrong to you, could you forgive me?" Leng Yu Yan sobbed uncontrollably in his embrace, "I understand, Li Yu, I understand! From now on, you have me, and you are no longer alone." Ye Yiheng gently stroked her soft hair, saying lowly, "I have brought you to see Grand Princess Consort Wen today to take the opportunity to tell you about the circumstances of my birth." Leng Yu Yan couldn’t help but ask, "What about King Yong?" "He’s long gone. There will be a chance to talk about it in detail later." She nodded her head, "Alright." Suddenly, Ye Yiheng grasped her shoulders and solemnly said, "You understand my situation now. Less than a month into our marriage, and it will inevitably be a path of swords and fire. Yanyan, I am giving you one more chance, it’s still not too late to leave!" Leng Yu Yan shook her head, her hands cupping his face, "I will not leave. Wherever you are, I will be there!" "I will accompany you through a path of swords and fire, and into the dragon’s den and the tiger’s lair." "Haven’t we already agreed that we will support each other in life? You protect the Prince Zhenbei Mansion for me, and naturally, I will protect the Eastern Palace for you, no, I mean I will protect your realm, Ye Yiheng!" A smile spread across Ye Yiheng’s lips; this woman still remembered their pact of cooperation. Could she not hear the confession in his words? Or did she not connect today’s events to romance? Well, with her words, and her company in the future, he was already quite satisfied. As for making her fall in love with him, it was only a matter of time! The two talked for quite a while by the creek. In the tranquil bamboo forest, Mo Chen, Song Guo, and Miao Zhu, standing not far away, heard their conversation. Miao Zhu cried miserably, "Wuuu, the Crown Prince is so pitiful!" "I thought it was pitiful enough not having a caring father and loving mother, but I didn’t expect that the Crown Prince had a mother who wanted to kill him and a father who did as well." "Wuuu, luckily the Crown Prince met our Commandery Princess; otherwise, he would still be a cold-hearted and brutal man!" The latter half of her comment had barely left her mouth when Song Guo quickly covered Miao Zhu’s mouth, and Mo Chen pulled Miao Zhu back, fearing that the Crown Prince might hear. "Mmmm..." Miao Zhu struggled desperately, kicking her legs about, "You guys, mmm..." After walking some distance, Mo Chen and Song Guo finally let Miao Zhu go. Miao Zhu put her hands on her hips and demanded, "What are you doing?" Song Guo, quite angrily, poked her forehead, "When has the Crown Prince ever been cruel and brutal to the Commandery Princess?" Miao Zhu smacked her lips, "Hasn’t he?" Mo Chen waved his hand, "Anyway, our Highness has been extremely good to the Commandery Princess! Didn’t he say it himself? He truly doesn’t know how to treat people well, and the way he behaves and interacts now is all self-taught." Miao Zhu grinned, "The kindness he found by himself for the Commandery Princess comes from deep within his heart, right?" Song Guo nodded vigorously, "You finally got it right!" "But with the Emperor wanting to kill the Highness, will our Commandery Princess also be killed by the Emperor after their big wedding?" Miao Zhu was extremely worried, "I’m afraid that the Emperor will not only depose the Crown Prince but also take his life and the Commandery Princess’s life together." At this point, Mo Chen and Song Guo fell silent together. The Crown Prince’s wedding was indeed a hurdle, and also a calamity!