Gifted Bride of the Sinned Prince

“What’s the Crown Prince thinking?” Liu Jin Yu interrupted the channel of his thoughts.

“I did wrong to Brother Lóng Wei. I tried to frame him for something he never did. I wanted the woman with whom he got married. I never harmed anyone, but for Li Hua I did,” Xiaoming said. For some reason, he wanted to tell Liu Jin Yu the truth about his selfish side.

She lowered her arm onto the table and continued to stare into his eyes.

“Does His Royal Highness like the wife of the Sixth Prince?” Liu Jin Yu inquired.

Xiaoming refused. “I liked her before, but that was now in the past. For two months, I was scared to open my mouth because Li Hua would get harmed. However, I intended to take her to my manor and gradually approach her. But then, Brother Lóng Wei returned and claimed that he loved Li Hua. Many things happened within 2-3 days of his return. I was a coward at that time as well. I lied in front of everyone that I never liked a servant. But two days before Brother Lóng Wei’s marriage, I took a step. I decided to kill 30 servants and put a blame on Brother Lóng Wei. I wanted to send him to the Cold Palace. This is my biggest regret. The day we met on the bank of the lake, I was thinking about all this.”

Xiaoming’s eyes turned misty. Lóng Wei had forgiven him, but that wasn’t enough. From that day on, he wasn’t able to sleep well. Yesterday he met with those families in private, but that wasn’t enough either. He did not know what he should do.

“That was unexpected of the Crown Prince,” Liu Jin Yu could only manage to say.

After a while, she continued, “I feel His Royal Highness did it because he wanted Princess Consort Li Hua desperately. He made his decision in a rush. It has been four days since I arrived at this manor. I found out the Crown Prince is lonely and wants someone to understand him, and be with him. Indeed, it was wrong to take the lives of those innocent thirty servants, but the Crown Prince can repent for it. He can do something better for the families of those thirty servants.” She outreached her hand towards Xiaoming’s hand, which was on the tabletop, and patted it.

.....

Xiaoming looked at his hand, and then at her. He slightly curled his fingers.

“I advised His Royal Highness to look in the middle of his hand whenever he feels disoriented. That will help him guide. His hands have power that we will never have. Probably in the next birth, but not in this,” Liu Jin Yu said, and smiled a little.

“Jin Yu, I wish I could keep you by my side,” Xiaoming stated. “I think I keep losing my way among everyone. I wish you were from a noble family,” he said as he looked into her eyes.

Liu Jin Yu swallowed the lump that formed in her throat and withdrew her hand from his. Their fingers touched, and she continued to move her hand behind when Xiaoming caught her hand.

“Forgive me, Jin Yu. You are the only person in whose eyes I don’t want to fall. Do you want to hear more about me? I don’t know when we will meet again,” he said with anticipation. He let go of her hand because he didn’t want her to feel awkward around him.

“Does His Royal Highness not want to eat? He is late for his lunch,” Liu Jin Yu opined.

“I will do it later,” Xiaoming replied.

“His Royal Highness can tell me. However, I want to take a promise from the Crown Prince before I listen to him,” Liu Jin Yu said.

“Sure,” Xiaoming promptly agreed to her.

“His Royal Highness will never develop romantic feelings for me,” Liu Jin Yu stated.

“I promise,” Xiaoming answered without any delay, and it brought a smile to Liu Jin Yu’s face.

“My mother is the Queen and as the firstborn, this was fed into my mind, my soul, that I was supposed to lead the Kingdom in the future. I truly want to. But everything started to seem like a cage to me. My movements were restricted, and so were the people around me. I took as much knowledge as I could. At the age of ten, I mugged up fifty books on different subjects.”

“Whoa! The Crown Prince was super intelligent. He still is! How did he manage to read so much? I would have died if I had been buried in those books,” she said and praised Xiaoming.

“So, the Crown Prince studied all day here?” She asked.

Xiaoming shook his head. “Earlier, it was not my study place. It was near the library. From the window of the study room, I saw my brothers and sisters playing. Brother Lóng Wei wasn’t a part of them. I wanted to go out, make friends, and have fun. But I couldn’t.”

Liu Jin Yu was surprised to learn that the Crown Prince had been under restrictions from a young age. She started to love her life. Indeed, the palace had luxury, but there was no freedom.

“You are the Crown Prince. You should do what you want,” she ended up saying. “If not now, when? Whatever you want, just go for it. Don’t hesitate. It’s not like the Crown Prince will get punished for going out. When I am out, His Royal Highness can tell me where he wants to go, I will tour him around the town,” Liu Jin Yu suggested to him.

“I don’t think that’s feasible for me. People know me. Also, I generally follow those routes which aren’t made for commoners,” Xiaoming affirmed.

“But that day, the Crown Prince took a getup. He even had this fake moustache and that conical hat,” Liu Jin Yu stated.

“That was to nab you,” Xiaoming affirmed. “I cannot go out when I desire. I took a risk that day and even a day before that,” he stated.

“But you are the Crown Prince,” Liu Jin Yu stressed in her words.

“Where will I meet you?” Xiaoming inquired.

“On the bridge,” Liu Jin Yu suggested.

“How will you know that I want to meet you?” Xiaoming asked. Liu Jin Yu felt stuck. She hadn’t thought of this.

Xiaoming chuckled and told her that he would visit her place if he ever wanted to see her. “Though chances are limited. I may not come to see you ever again,” he said. He sounded upset and hurt.

“I will come to see His Royal Highness when he gets married. When the Crown Princess is chosen, then the Crown Prince will come with her. I will come to give him my best wishes,” Liu Jin Yu said with a broad smile.

Xiaoming nodded at her. “It will be tough for me to notice you in that crowd,” he stated.

“True. I will say loudly ‘Crown Prince’, then he may notice me. I will be in the front so that my voice easily falls in the Crown Prince’s ears,” Liu Jin Yu opined. Xiaoming nodded at her and told her that he would wait for that day.