Mistakenly Marked the Madly Beautiful Princess - Chapter 59

After returning to the Hall of Nurturing Nature, Ling Yue’s heart remained unsettled. She hadn’t expected that the pains of her past life would pale in comparison to the turmoil brought on by the lie she had told today.

Unconsciously, she seemed to care deeply about the Princess’s opinion.

Pacing in circles around her room, she paused by the bookshelf. Resting her hand on the shelf, she leaned her forehead against the back of her hand and began to lament once more.

“How could I have said such a thing?”

Ling Yue felt that her lie had caused trouble for the Princess. Although she intended to confess her mistake, she was still afraid of how the Princess would react after her admission.

Just imagining the possible outcomes exhausted her, and she couldn’t help but sigh again.

Wearily lifting her head, she noticed a book tilted at an angle on the shelf. From her vantage point, she could make out the title: Strange Tales of Pengzhou.

Pengzhou? Wasn’t that her mother’s hometown?

A sense of propriety made Ling Yue hesitate. Flipping through the book without permission would be impolite, yet her curiosity was overwhelming. Her hand reached out but paused just before the book.

She withdrew her hand. “I mustn’t.”

Ling Yue returned to her seat, but her ears perked up at the faint sound of footsteps in the night. Recognizing the familiar tread, she straightened her back instinctively.

A pair of white embroidered shoes stepped into the hall, followed by a soft chuckle. “Why are you here?”

Ling Yue’s room was in the side hall, and the Princess’s question was deliberately posed, as if she already knew everything.

Though she had rehearsed the scene countless times in her mind, when the Princess stood before her, Ling Yue was too nervous to speak. Her gaze remained fixed on the embroidered shoes, not daring to look up at the Princess’s face.

Closing her eyes, Ling Yue took a deep breath. When she opened them again, her eyes were filled with resolve. She spoke, “I am guilty, Your Highness. Please punish me!”

She had said it! She had finally said it!

Once she began, Ling Yue felt less tense. Without waiting for the Princess’s response, she rose and moved to the side, then knelt on the floor. “I have offended Your Highness. For my own selfish desires, I falsely claimed to be.”

She faltered, finding the words too shameful to utter. Bowing her head low, she resembled an ostrich burying its head in the sand.

The Princess looked down at her, sprawled on the ground, with an amused expression. “To be what?”

Ling Yue couldn’t see the teasing smile on the other’s face. Had she been braver, she would have realized that the Princess was merely toying with her, as usual.

She struggled internally for a long time, feeling as if all the blood in her body had rushed to her face. The burning heat was impossible to ignore. Steeling herself, she gritted her teeth and confessed, “To be Your Highness’s wife.”

After speaking, Ling Yue pressed her forehead firmly to the ground. She could hear the frantic beating of her own heart, a mix of tension and the relief of finally having spoken the truth.

She heard the familiar footsteps again, drawing closer until they stopped right in front of her.

Ling Yue’s heart raced even faster. She had witnessed the Princess punishing others in her past life, the crack of a horsewhip, the tearing of flesh, and the agonized screams, all while the Princess’s expression remained unreadable.

The Princess raised her eyes to meet Ling Yue’s gaze. A flicker of panic stirred in Ling Yue’s heart, and she clenched the reins in her hands tightly, trying to calm her unease.

But back then, the Princess had shown no interest in her. She had merely raised the horsewhip again, aiming it at the writhing, screaming figure on the ground.

At that time, Lu Weiying was also present. Frightened, she hid behind Ling Yue and said in a trembling voice, “My servant did nothing to provoke her.”

Ling Yue trusted Lu Weiying too much. She urged her horse forward and grabbed the princess’s whip before the second strike could land.

Meeting the other’s cold gaze, Ling Yue braced herself and stared back, her tone serious. “Why must Your Highness make things so difficult?”

The two remained locked in a stalemate. The princess glanced at Lu Weiying in the distance and suddenly asked an unrelated question: “Do you trust her so much?”

Ling Yue was taken aback, taking a moment to realize she was referring to Lu Weiying.

Before she could answer, the whip was forcefully yanked from her grasp. Caught off guard, Ling Yue nearly fell from her horse and had no choice but to let go of the whip, struggling to steady herself.

Then she saw the princess raise her hand, as if about to strike her.

Backlit, the other stood with her hand held high, her gaze icy. Under such a stare, it seemed as if all living beings were mere ants in her eyes.

Crack! “Ah! Your Highness, have mercy!”

The sharp crack of the whip rang out, but Ling Yue remained unharmed. The whip had brushed past her ear and landed on the servant who had just stood up.

A chill rose from the soles of Ling Yue’s feet, shooting straight to the crown of her head. She felt no anger at all.

She heard the princess’s frigid voice: “Ling Yue, do not assume everyone is like you. I have already been lenient enough with you.”

“Do not overstep.”

That searing whip seemed to strike the present-day Ling Yue. Compared to her past life, the princess in this life was so gentle it was as if she were a different person.

But would today’s events anger her? After all, they were merely in a relationship of mutual benefit, yet Ling Yue harbored desires for the princess. That, too, could be considered overstepping.

Just as she grew uneasy, a slightly cool hand lifted her chin. The princess raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly, “What? Are you so eager to become my wife?”

Past and present intertwined the same face, yet two entirely different attitudes. Only then did Ling Yue realize she might have been teased.

But this time, she felt no anger at being toyed with. Observing that the princess showed no signs of anger, she cautiously asked, “Your Highness, are you not angry with me?”

Ling Yue’s reaction seemed rather dull to the princess. She raised her other hand and gently touched Ling Yue’s forehead, which had been pressed so firmly against the ground that it was red.

Her intention was to comfort, but for some reason, her hand gradually drifted downward, finally resting at the corner of Ling Yue’s eye.

A sudden, dull ache struck her heart, and her vision blurred slightly. The Ling Yue before her suddenly transformed her face was the same, but her eyes were tightly shut.

When those eyes slowly opened, they were unfocused.

Before she could get a clearer look, the Ling Yue before her returned to her radiant self. Her eyes were beautiful, glowing with a faint amber hue in the candlelight.

The princess reached out and gently covered those lovely eyes, then closed her own. An overwhelming sadness surged within her, accompanied by waves of fear.

But what was she afraid of? The princess could not understand.

Ling Yue couldn’t help but blink. Unsure of what the princess intended, she whispered softly, “Your Highness.”

As if startled from a dream, the princess released her hand. Suddenly, she felt exceptionally weary, even though no incense had been lit in the room.

She sat back down, resting her cheek on her hand, her voice weary. “I already know about your matter. It’s nothing serious. Go back and rest for now.”

Unexpectedly, the matter was brushed aside so lightly. Ling Yue didn’t understand, but seeing that the Grand Princess was tired, she couldn’t bear to disturb her further. She rose and took her leave. “I shall take my leave, Your Highness.”

The moment Ling Yue turned away, the Grand Princess glanced at her again. In her eyes, the endless night transformed into swirling yellow sand, Ling Yue’s palace dress replaced by silver armor, her figure resolute as she disappeared into the dust.

The Grand Princess reached out a hand, wanting to call out, but where was the yellow sand? Only the deep, heavy darkness of the night remained.

She withdrew her hand, then stood and picked up that copy of Strange Tales of Pengzhou.

She flipped to the relevant section and glanced at it, but it merely gave a brief introduction to the story of rebirth, with no detailed explanation of the secret methods mentioned within.

Closing the book, the Grand Princess turned a cold gaze toward the door, where a head was peeking out furtively, none other than Qing Niao.

The Grand Princess snorted coldly. “Finished enjoying the night breeze?”

Knowing she couldn’t hide any longer, Qing Niao swaggered in unabashedly and sat down opposite the Grand Princess without ceremony, teasingly asking, “Why that expression? Shouldn’t you be happy?”

Then her eyes fell upon Strange Tales of Pengzhou on the table. Her expression shifted, turning serious. “Lately, have you been experiencing any hallucinations or hearing things?”

The Grand Princess shot her a cold glare. This person clearly knew everything but refused to say a word, leaving her to grapple with confusion alone.

But if Qing Niao wasn’t speaking, there was likely a reason she couldn’t. The Grand Princess pushed the book aside. “What? You have them too?”

It was an indirect answer to Qing Niao’s question.

Qing Niao shook her head in denial. “Of course not. Give me your hand.”

The Grand Princess placed her arm on the small pillow Qing Niao had prepared, watching as she took her pulse.

After a moment, Qing Niao withdrew her hand, an unconscious smile spreading across her face. “Congratulations, your health is improving. You can now make the world feel pain.”

The Grand Princess thought she was being absurd and said coldly, “Nonsense.”

Still, Qing Niao wasn’t entirely wrong, she held little affection for this world.

Watching Qing Niao pack her things, the Grand Princess casually asked, “Is Xiao Li Zi asleep?”

Qing Niao nodded, then immediately launched into an accusation. “Was it you who taught her martial arts?”

The Grand Princess remained completely unruffled, her expression unchanged and her heart steady as she replied with utmost seriousness, “She’s exceptionally talented. She learned just by watching us practice.”

Qing Niao gritted her teeth in frustration, but she didn’t dare lose her temper. She could only sigh helplessly. “You mustn’t teach her anymore.”

The Grand Princess wasn’t about to fall for her trap and continued to deny it. “It has nothing to do with me. And why are you so opposed to it, anyway?”

She claimed it was to avoid conflict, but they were already embroiled in it so what did it matter now?

Qing Niao let out a helpless laugh. She looked into the Grand Princess’s eyes and suddenly said, “Because I’m a coward, just like you.”

No one had ever described the Grand Princess that way before, but if Qing Niao said so, it likely had something to do with her past life.

Qing Niao’s face grew weary, as if weighed down by countless worries, and she asked the same question in return: “Is there anything you’re afraid of?”

This time, the Grand Princess answered swiftly and directly: “Of course not.”

“Yes, there is.”

The Grand Princess hated this feeling, the feeling of being kept in the dark.

Unconsciously, her expression grew increasingly sour, yet Qingniao didn’t seem as frightened as she usually would.

Lost in her own thoughts as if trapped in a nightmare she couldn’t wake from, she murmured, “I have them too, I’m afraid of someone telling me, ‘I don’t want to die.'”

The pain on the other’s face was so palpable that the Eldest Princess couldn’t help but forgive her.

She spoke softly, “What happened to you in your past life?”

Qingniao let out a long sigh, as if expelling all the pent-up gloom from her heart, and replied with a bitter smile, “It was nothing more than losing all my dearest ones in a heavy rain.”

The Eldest Princess seemed to understand something. After a moment of silence, she comforted, “Yunli is still here.”

But Qingniao’s response took the princess by surprise. “Yes, and you’re still here too.”

“Lu He, this time, don’t die again.”

Touched deep inside, the Eldest Princess ultimately responded with a haughty snort, “Of course.”

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