After Accidentally Marking the Cold and Elegant Eldest Princess - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Pheromones Out of Control

With the Eldest Princess taking a stand, the atmosphere on the viewing platforms was no longer so deliberately tense, and whispers gradually began to circulate. To Yuan Yuxiu’s ears, every sound felt like a targeted mockery.

“Your Highness, this gold-and-jade crown…” A guard cautiously held the shattered fragments of the crown before Yuan Yuxiu’s eyes.

The fury in Yuan Yuxiu’s heart reached its zenith. With his hair disheveled, he looked up and glared at Yan Yunti: “Yan Yunti! You dare to attempt an assassination on a Prince!”

Faced with such a heavy accusation, Yan Yunti instead laughed, her phoenix eyes curving brilliantly. “Whatever does Your Highness mean? Polo matches are always like this; accidents happen. You are a magnanimous man, Your Highness—before the match, you promised that if you were embarrassed, you certainly wouldn’t hold it against us. Surely you haven’t forgotten?”

“You! You actually dared to scheme against me!” Yuan Yuxiu snarled through gritted teeth. There was no longer any room for doubt; Yan Yunti had intended to humiliate him from the very beginning today!

The smile on Yan Yunti’s face slightly receded. She nudged her horse forward, drawing closer to Yuan Yuxiu, her voice dropping into a cold, sharp whisper: “Even if it is a scheme, I wouldn’t do something as filthy and underhanded as some people. If the heavens were to strike someone with lightning, it would surely hit them first. At that time, no matter how expensive a gold-and-jade crown is, it would still be struck to pieces.”

Yuan Yuxiu’s face turned a bruised shade of black, his gaze turning sinister. “Has the Marquis of Jingning thought this through? Do you truly wish to oppose me?”

Trying to use my mother to threaten me?

Yan Yunti gave a soft “Tsk,” sizing Yuan Yuxiu up before her eyes curved again. “If I were the Third Prince, I wouldn’t be in the mood to chatter away right now. Your Highness truly is lenient toward your own appearance.”

Blinded by rage, Yuan Yuxiu had nearly forgotten his current state. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he had to maintain his image of a broad-minded man. He forced the anger back, so hard he nearly suffered internal injuries, and spoke word by word: “Yan Yunti, you had better not regret this.”

Yan Yunti turned her horse around and replied lazily, “Rest assured, Third Prince, I am not the type of person to regret my actions.”

If her mothers knew about the drugging incident, they wouldn’t let it slide so easily. What she was doing now was merely child’s play. Having said her piece, she rode toward the seats of honor.

At this stage, there was no need to continue the match. Yan Yunti’s team was guaranteed to win. Since they won, the promised rewards had to be given.

County Princess Changyu gave Yuan Jingxue a meaningful look and said with a smile, “Since the Eldest Princess has praised your play, the rewards for this round shall be tripled. Let it serve as a good start for today’s matches.”

The five players below thanked her in unison. Yan Yunti accepted her tripled reward and was about to turn away when she heard Changyu call her: “Miss Yan, stay and sit for a while.”

Yan Yunti sat down as requested, her eyes respectfully lowered.

Yuan Yinyu was very interested in her: “I see your horsemanship and ball skills are excellent. Who taught you? I don’t recall seeing you in the capital in previous years. I didn’t know the Marquis’s manor had such a handsome daughter.”

“In response to the County Princess, my mother and mama taught me,” Yan Yunti answered with her head bowed. “In previous years, I traveled everywhere with them for business, so I was rarely in the capital. This is my first time attending a polo banquet.”

“I see.” Yuan Yinyu was full of interest and asked which places she had visited. Learning that Yan Yunti had even traveled overseas to the Eastern You, her eyes filled with even more admiration.

Yuan Jingxue did not join the conversation, but she couldn’t stop Yan Yunti’s answers from drifting into her ears. Yan Yunti’s experiences were far richer than she had imagined. Naturally, someone who had seen the vast world outside would not want to be confined to a back courtyard. It was no wonder she had rejected Yuan Yuxiu’s marriage proposal.

By the time the second match ended, Yuan Yinyu finally let Yan Yunti leave. Throughout the entire process, Yan Yunti and Yuan Jingxue’s gazes had not met once. One focused on the field, the other on answering questions; they appeared completely unacquainted.

Only they knew that the glands at the back of their necks were steadily rising in temperature. Being so close yet unable to touch was a form of torture for those in the Dependency Period. Thus, as soon as the ordeal ended, Yan Yunti quickened her pace to leave.

Yuan Jingxue looked up to see the Qianyuan leaving in a hurry. The image of the Qianyuan and Kunze laughing together earlier flashed through her mind, causing a slight discomfort.

“A pity she isn’t a Qianyuan,” Yuan Yinyu sighed beside her.

Yuan Jingxue looked at her aunt with a trace of helplessness: “Aunt.”

Yan Yunti had not publicly announced her differentiation, which allowed them to better hide their relationship.

Yuan Yinyu set down her teacup and chuckled. “Isn’t it because I rarely see you praise anyone? I thought I might facilitate a marriage, but…” She shook her head with a look of distaste. “The Alphas your Mother-Empress showed me aren’t a patch on her. To be so well-traveled at such an age—she has the spirit and vigor of youth. If she were an Alpha, her personality would pair well with yours; one cold, one hot—wouldn’t that be perfect?”

Yuan Jingxue rubbed her forehead, thinking to herself that she feared the heat would be too much to bear. “Aunt, I have a bit of a headache.” Her complexion began to look poor.

“Let me see.” Yuan Yinyu reached out to touch her hand. Finding it ice-cold, her heart sank. She quickly took a cloak from a maid and fastened it for her. “You must have caught a chill in the wind. I shouldn’t have let you come. Go back quickly and remember to have Physician Xu visit. Protect the Princess well; there must be no mishaps.”

As Yuan Jingxue was leaving, she instinctively looked in a certain direction. Compared to her own distress, Yan Yunti looked quite triumphant, surrounded by women and chatting happily. Even as a Zhongyong, she was very popular. Yuan Jingxue indifferently withdrew her gaze and turned to leave.

Sensing something, Yan Yunti looked up and caught the distant back of the Princess departing. She didn’t hear a word of what the people around her were saying; she only felt irritable. She thought of what she had said to Yuan Yuxiu—that she was someone who never regretted her actions. It seemed that wasn’t entirely true. For instance, right now, she regretted making the Princess angry yesterday, which had caused their parting to be on sour terms.

The gland at the back of her neck grew hotter, but fortunately, the cooling patch held it within a manageable range.

Yan Yunti had no desire to stay. She walked out of the Taxing Garden. It would take some time for her manor’s carriage to circle around. During this gap, a discreetly decorated yet expensive carriage pulled up in front of her.

The driver was a stranger. He leaped down and quietly showed Yan Yunti the token of the Princess’s Manor. “We need to delay Miss Yan for a few hours today. Someone will inform the Marquis’s Manor.”

Yan Yunti’s brow twitched. The words were vague, but she understood. Without a word, she stepped into the carriage.

The carriage moved quickly and steadily toward the Eldest Princess’s Manor, eventually stopping at the east side gate. Before getting out, Yan Yunti put on the veiled hat left on the side seat. The white veil, reaching her waist, completely obscured her face and figure.

Upon disembarking, she was met by Jinsi. Without a word, Jinsi led her toward the sleeping quarters. They encountered no one else; the entire manor was eerily quiet—so quiet that Yan Yunti could clearly hear her own accelerating heartbeat. Her body sensed the proximity to the Kunze, the gland at her neck throbbing urgently, her pheromones on the verge of erupting.

Outside the bedchamber, Bawei saw them approaching and went inside to announce her arrival. She stopped outside the inner room as the Princess’s voice drifted out: “Let her in. You all withdraw to the side hall.”

Bawei hesitated, fearing she wouldn’t be able to react in time if something happened, but the Princess’s mind was made up. As Yan Yunti approached, Bawei pushed the door halfway open. “Her Highness invites you in.”

Yan Yunti stepped inside. The heavy doors thudded shut behind her.

The bedchamber was sealed tight, the light dim. Yan Yunti took off her veiled hat. Her nose caught a familiar, subtle fragrance—faint and distant, yet it instantly triggered her body’s memory. Instinctively, she followed the floral scent inward until she reached the closed folding doors of the inner suite. She stopped, sniffing the faint scent seeping through the gaps.

Though the doors would open with a mere push, she didn’t reach out. She counted in her head; at the count of ten, a cold feminine voice came from within: “Come in.”

The corners of Yan Yunti’s mouth quirked up before she suppressed the smile. She pushed open the doors and stepped into the inner room. The heat from the floor-heating system hit her instantly. She was stunned. The weather was almost too warm for her today, yet the Princess needed the heating? Was her constitution truly that cold?

Suppressing her surprise, she closed the doors and looked up, her gaze landing on the hem of a plain white garment by the soft couch. She didn’t look further up, but bowed respectfully: “I greet Your Highness. May you be blessed with peace.”

Yuan Jingxue was sitting on the couch with her back to Yan Yunti. Hearing the respectful greeting, she was slightly surprised. She turned to the Qianyuan and spoke a single name: “Yan Yunti.”

Yan Yunti’s heart trembled. This was the first time the Princess had called her by name. The clear pronunciation swirled in her ear, making her look up. On the couch, the woman was dressed in plain silk, her black hair cascading down her back, tied loosely with a pale purple ribbon—the only touch of color. Such simplicity only emphasized her ethereal beauty.

Yan Yunti couldn’t look away. She watched silently as the woman’s pale fingers gathered her long hair to the front, then reached behind her neck to slowly peel off the cooling patch.

As soon as the patch was removed, the pheromones were completely unleashed. This was the most lethal aspect of an uncontrollable Dependency Period—pheromone collapse.

Yan Yunti took a deep breath. Her feet didn’t move an inch, and she asked in a low voice, “Your Highness, what do you want me to do?”

The young woman before her kept her phoenix eyes fixed on her, insisting on asking this question. Yuan Jingxue saw through her mood today. Her gaze toward Yan Yunti was cold yet misty as her red lips parted:

“Bite me.”