After leaving the Shu Mansion, Wei Ying returned to the palace.
Before that, she bought three cakes in the city — one for Xiao Ning, and one each to honor her father and mother respectively.
At that moment, her father should be reading in the Imperial Study. Wei Ying took her maids with her to there, and as they walked, they saw the young scholar Cui Yu stepping out of it.
Wei Ying slowed down, a smile on her face.
Cui Yu naturally also saw the Third Princess on the opposite side.
He was thirty-three years old that year, and the Third Princess had grown from a little girl to a twenty-three-year-old.
In Cui Yu’s eyes, the twenty-three-year-old princess was still young and beautiful, even more so, but in the eyes of the courtiers and the common people, the Third Princess was considered too old — an unmarried woman delayed by the war.
Cui Yu didn’t mind, but he couldn’t bear to see her continue wasting her life away like this, especially for him.
He understood the intention of the Third Princess.
Since she was thirteen or fourteen years old, every time they met, she looked at him with a sweet smile in her eyes. At first, Cui Yu thought that she regarded him as a brother or a young uncle, considering he was close to the age of her eldest brother. The princess was playful, sometimes calling him Yu Lang like Shi Ziye and the others, and at times calling him Little Uncle after the Fifth Master. When Cui Yu realized the affection of the Third Princess, he knew he shouldn’t be moved, but he became emotional again.
He couldn’t control his heart, yet he knew it was impossible for him and her.
Cui Yu only hoped that as she grew older, King Yan would arrange a suitable marriage for her. She was still young, and relationships would change quickly.
But he never received news of her impending marriage.
When the Emperor was planning significant events, because he trusted him as a confidant, he had shared her dream with a smile.
The Emperor regarded her dream as a good omen, but Cui Yu’s heart beat like a drum. He vaguely felt that it was just the princess’s delaying strategy. The “most talented man in the whole capital” she made up might be referring to him.
Why was she so foolish?
Three years of war, no matter how occupied the prince was, as long as she didn’t tell him about that dream, he would find time to choose a son-in-law for her. Regardless of the distance, King Yan had several young military officers who were not inferior to Yang Pengju, Feng Teng, and others. But she craftily fabricated that dream, and King Yan considered it a good omen, so why would he be in a hurry?
Even being called an old girl, she could still laugh.
Cui Yu lowered his eyes and saluted the approaching Third Princess, his face frosty, displaying deliberate indifference.
Wei Ying didn’t mind. Since she was an old girl anyway, she became more courageous and greeted him nonchalantly, “Yu Lang, you came to see Father Emperor again, what’s the matter?”
Cui Yu whispered, “The Emperor ordered this subject to pay attention to the candidates entering Beijing, and if there are candidates who are both good in appearance and demeanor, they are to be listed as candidates for the Third Princess’s Consort (her husband).”
Wei Ying was startled, and then laughed.
During Cui Yu’s first expedition with her father, he left too quickly, so she didn’t have time to bid him farewell. It wasn’t until Pingcheng was captured, and her father brought troops to rescue them, that the army rested in Pingcheng until the Chinese New Year. Before the Emperor’s second expedition, Wei Ying finally found a chance to meet Cui Yu alone.
The battlefield was dangerous; he was a scholar, so Wei Ying was very afraid. She finally presented a handkerchief embroidered by herself, mustering up the courage to express her feelings.
He refused to accept it. With a sullen face and lowered eyes, he kept the conversation focused on formalities.
Wei Ying told him at the time that she didn’t have to be with him, but she just didn’t want to have any regrets, and she didn’t care if he liked her or not.
“That’s it, then Yu Lang, thanks for the hard work. By the way, I also heard from my father a few days ago that he is going to take advantage of this draft to choose a famous lady for you as your wife. Your marriage should be settled before mine. Maybe even before the Fifth Brother; I will wait to drink your wedding wine.”
Her voice was clear and pleasant, and her tone was cheerful, as if she genuinely thought so.
Cui Yufei took a quick look at her and said with a gentle smile, “I am also waiting to drink the wedding wine for the Third Princess and her consort.”
Wei Ying was still carefree, saying, “Then you have to wait. I have already decided to help the Empress with her book revision. Well, it will take about two or three years to complete the book. After finishing the book, I will go to places to understand the people’s conditions in various places on behalf of my father. Anyway, I am an old person now, doing some practical things for my father and the people is better than staying in the capital for nothing. Idle hands are strong. When I get tired from being outside, maybe I will come back and choose a consort. But before that, I, the old princess, will probably drink your wedding wine first.”
After finishing speaking, Wei Ying walked around him briskly to the Imperial Study.
Cui Yu kept looking down at the ground, paused, and continued walking forward.
The man and the woman walked in opposite directions.
In the Imperial Study room, Emperor Yongping had just opened a new memorial, and without looking at it for a while, his daughter came in with two boxes of pastries, smiling.
Others say that the Third Princess got old, but in Emperor Yongping’s eyes, his daughter was still that cute little girl. The other children respected and feared him, only the youngest daughter regarded him purely as a father.
“You left the palace in the morning and are only coming here now?” Emperor Yongping put down the memorial, pretending to be dissatisfied.
Wei Ying said, “Yes, this pastry store’s business is very good. In order to honor my father, I have been queuing up since morning.”
Emperor Yongping shook his head with a smile.
Wei Ying opened the pastry, took out a piece, and handed it over, saying, “You have been too busy recently and have lost weight, so eat more.”
Emperor Yongping was indeed busy, as the throne had only been handed over for less than half a year. He also had to monitor whether the new ministers got credit, coupled with the changes in people’s livelihoods and frontiers. In short, there were endless tasks.
However, no matter how busy he was, he would never forget his daughter’s lifelong event.
“The Imperial Examination will start soon, and I will definitely choose a handsome champion for you,” Emperor Yongping said to his daughter with a smile after eating two bites of pastry.
Sitting opposite the table, Wei Ying rested her chin on both hands and looked at her father frankly, saying, “Father, I don’t want to marry.”