Chapter 691: Chapter 691: Come into My Embrace Ye Zhenyu’s eyes suddenly narrowed. His father-in-law’s attitude made it unmistakably clear that he had failed to help Ye Zhenyu usurp Ye Yiheng’s position as Crown Prince. He had waited for this day for years. What went wrong? At this moment, Ye Zhenxian, Ye Zhenduan, and Ye Zhengmo left the grand hall in succession. Ye Zhenxian looked at Ye Zhenyu with a smile. During the morning court session, every Prince who had been granted a royal title was nominated to compete for the position of Crown Prince. Among them, Ye Zhenyu’s momentum was the strongest, yet he was the only one excluded. His heart felt cold at that time. Now, he felt he should thank Sixth Brother. Although it was very annoying that Sixth Brother had no hidden illness, the fact that Ye Zhenyu was out of the running for the Crown Prince title was quite satisfying to him. As for Sixth Brother, he had the distinction of being born from the Empress, which none of the other brothers could compare with. For now, he reluctantly accepted it. Ye Zhenduan maintained a smile on his face and, seeing Ye Zhenyu staring at them, he nodded to him: “Fourth Brother, you’re here to offer a congratulatory tea, right? Fourth Brother is still so solemn. Even the joy of the wedding day couldn’t lift the seriousness from your face.” Which Prince didn’t want to be Emperor? It was just a matter of how much this desire was revealed. Seeing that Ye Zhenyu did not respond to his question, Ye Zhenduan was not annoyed and still smiled: “Fourth Brother, last night’s celebratory banquet, Crown Prince’s Sixth Brother didn’t attend. We brothers should drink together another day and properly punish Sixth.” These words fully confirmed to Ye Zhenyu that the Crown Prince position remained with Ye Yiheng. His cold face twitched slightly: “That’s natural, Sixth Brother should drink a few more cups then.” Hearing this, Ye Zhengmo burst into hearty laughter, then shook his head: “Interesting, really interesting!” Just now, they, the Princes, had been arguing in the hall, each with their supporters, vying for the Crown Prince position. As soon as Ye Yiheng arrived, the situation instantly turned around, and their struggle was utterly futile. Although they were all enemies as brothers, now they started to play the part of fraternal harmony. Especially Ye Zhenyu, who had made all the preparations and had the thought of taking Ye Yiheng’s position as Crown Prince the day after his wedding. Now, realizing it was a fool’s dream, Fourth Brother must be feeling extremely uncomfortable. It was Fourth Brother’s own fault. Mother had told him repeatedly to support him, yet Fourth Brother wanted to be Emperor himself. How ungrateful to Mother, who had raised him for so many years! With that thought, Ye Zhengmo strode away, followed by Ye Zhenxian and Ye Zhenduan. After this exchange between the Princes, what else was there that Zheng Liqi failed to understand? She stepped forward toward Ye Zhenyu, and as she walked past Leng Yu Yan, her legs felt inexplicably stiff. She had hoped that today she would have Ye Yiheng and Leng Yu Yan kneeling before her, paying respects in reverence. Unexpectedly, her wish was in vain. With this thought, Zheng Liqi looked at Leng Yu Yan with eyes filled with barely concealed resentment. Seeing this, Leng Yu Yan tilted her head and said with a shallow smile, “Why does my sister-in-law look at me like that? It’s quite frightening.” “You’ve got it wrong.” Zheng Liqi forced a smile as the jealousy and resentment in her heart made it awkward and comical. She looked at Ye Yiheng and saw his face as cold as ever. Suddenly, she noticed that Ye Yiheng had removed his eye veil and the coldness in his eyes made her shudder, bringing a cold sweat to her forehead. What was with his eyes? Why had Ye Yiheng managed to hold on to his position as Crown Prince? As she kept staring at Ye Yiheng, Leng Yu Yan smiled widely: “My husband and I were in a hurry when we entered the palace, and my sister-in-law did not pay her respects. Outside the grand hall, we met again, yet my sister-in-law still did not pay her respects.” Her eyebrows lifted as she looked intently at Zheng Liqi, “The Crown Prince does not blame you, for he is magnanimous. As a woman, I’m much less tolerant.” Leng Yu Yan was clearly smiling, yet Zheng Liqi still felt an intangible pressure. Her words left her eyes burning red with rage, Zheng Liqi lowered her gaze to hide the hatred in her eyes, and respectfully curtsied, “This consort pays her respects to the Crown Prince, Your Highness, and to the Crown Princess Consort, Your Highness!” Ye Yiheng looked on with amusement at Leng Yu Yan beside him, this woman truly lived up to being his wife, not lacking the boldness befitting her station one bit. Follow current novᴇls on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵✶𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮✶𝓷𝓮𝓽 Leng Yu Yan laughed again, her laughter clear and ringing like a cascade of silver bells, “Fourth Sister-in-law, please rise quickly, this palace wishes you and Prince Liang a blissful marriage.” With that, she extended her hand in a feigned gesture of help. Zheng Liqi rose promptly, eyes downcast, “Thank you, Crown Princess Consort, Your Highness.” Leng Yu Yan smiled as she glanced at Ye Zhenyu, then immediately clung to Ye Yiheng’s arm, speaking in a delicate, soft voice, “Your Highness, I’m tired, I wish to go back and have a nap, may I?” She was indeed tired, having yawned twice in succession. A smile formed at the corner of Ye Yiheng’s lips as he indulgently said, “Of course you may.” The words reached Ye Zhenyu’s ears, and the taste was unpleasant. Last night he had drunk quite a bit, aiming to fool himself into seeing Zheng Liqi’s face as Leng Yu Yan’s. But, contrary to his wish, the more he drank, the clearer his mind became, and as Zheng Liqi’s face remained unchanged, he had no choice but to steel himself and take her to bed. Now, seeing Leng Yu Yan genuinely fatigued, he could somewhat imagine her pleasures under Ye Yiheng, which drove him mad with jealousy. He used to think that all women looked the same after the lights were out. But having been with numerous women, he had gained some experience. The contours of a woman’s body differed, and even in the dark, they were distinguishable. Ye Zhenyu restrained himself as he glanced at the fading figure of Leng Yu Yan, her silhouette graceful and alluring, her waist too slight to encircle with one hand. A breeze blew by, clinging to her shape, outlining her straight and shapely legs, the curve of her hips tempting… Ye Zhenyu clenched his fist tightly, unwillingly withdrawing his gaze, and said to Zheng Liqi in a cold voice, “Let’s return to the estate.” Confusion still clouded Zheng Liqi’s mind as to how Ye Yiheng had managed to retain his position as Crown Prince, being forced just now to salute Leng Yu Yan had reddened her eyes, “Prince, why did we lose?” “Did you not notice the pace of Sixth, and how he was escorting Leng Yu Yan?” Pointed out Ye Zhenyu as he gestured with his chin towards Ye Yiheng, his gaze inadvertently sticking to Leng Yu Yan once more. Just then, a minister approached Ye Zhenyu, saying, “Prince, the Sixth Prince’s sight has been restored; this today’s failure in deposing the Crown Prince can be traced back to this reason.” Ye Zhenyu furrowed his brows, “How was he cured?” The minister lowered his voice, “According to the Crown Prince, it was through the harmonizing yin and yang with the Crown Princess Consort that he was healed. An expert once told the Crown Prince that if he could marry the right woman, his eyesight could be healed.” Zheng Liqi bit down on her knuckle with hatred; the cure for Ye Yiheng’s eye illness turned out to be Leng Yu Yan. No wonder he didn’t choose her, was it because she wasn’t the right woman for him? Ye Zhenyu, casting a glance at Zheng Liqi, whose eyes were still fixed on Ye Yiheng, said coldly, “What are you still looking at?” Ye Yiheng helped Leng Yu Yan into the Eastern Palace carriage. With a major event settled, Leng Yu Yan relaxed, and drowsiness soon flooded her. “It’s not easy to attend the early court; having to wake up so early,” she yawned again, her eyes suddenly brimming with sparkling ripples. Ye Yiheng opened his arms, “Come, sleep in my embrace.” Leng Yu Yan, without any affected demur, lay down on the soft couch, her head and shoulders resting on his lap, when unexpectedly, she heard him say, “You were up to mischief last night, why are you so sleepy?” Upon hearing these words, Leng Yu Yan felt provoked. She suddenly sat up, pinching the skin on the back of his hand forcefully, “It’s all because of these hands of yours, causing me to lose sleep.”