Fated Hearts [一笑随歌]

Chapter 32

A chill shot up from the soles of her feet to the top of her head. The intense pain burned from her throat down to her stomach like a fatal blow. Feng Xiyang couldn't help but tremble uncontrollably as she shouted fiercely, "Then why don't you marry her!"

Xia Jingshi also froze, and after a while, the fire in his eyes slowly extinguished. With a bitter smile, he said, "Often, fate is like that. Only the person who has gone through those experiences with you can settle in your life. After that, no matter how many others there are, missing those moments means missing a lifetime." He gradually calmed down, "This may sound cruel and selfish, but it's necessary for you to know—even without a deep love like hers, this political marriage won't necessarily bring happiness. However, I can promise you that you will be the only mistress here. As long as it's within my ability, you can have everything you need."

Feng Xiyang shivered and spoke almost inaudibly, "If that's the case, why did I come to Jinxiu? If it's just for a political marriage, I could have married the Emperor." She gripped the bedpost tightly, her fingernails breaking, but the pain was so slight it was negligible, "Does easily gained affection not deserve your cherishment?"

"Perhaps I should ask you, why are you so determined to marry me?" Xia Jingshi's voice grew colder, "In the wars between Jinxiu and Su Sha, thousands of Su Sha soldiers died by my hand, and tens of thousands of my soldiers fell in battle. Why are you so certain that I will treat you well, or even love you?"

Feng Xiyang widened her eyes, wanting to say something, but not a single word came out.

"Forget it, rest well," without giving her a chance to stop him, Xia Jingshi gracefully turned and walked towards the door.

Feng Xiyang stared blankly as his figure disappeared behind the closing door, her eyes filled with a faint mist of disappointment and a sense of being hollowed out. Why? She simply wanted to love him sincerely.

Exhausted, she closed her eyes.

In this pursuit called love, it turns out that whoever declares love first loses their heart first. Even before it began, she had already been deeply wounded, yet... she savored it like sweet nectar.

***

The rain splattered fiercely, pale-colored flowers were knocked off their branches by the streams cascading from the eaves. Inside the cage, a golden-threaded bird nervously fluttered in the humid air, while Fu Yixiao stood quietly in the corridor, watching the rain scene, her skirt swaying in the wind, her gaze profound and distant.

After the wedding ceremony, she moved into Prince Feng Suige's mansion. Here, various buildings stood in an orderly manner, featuring beautiful bamboo houses, pavilions, and towers, contrasting with the delicate style of the water-painted gardens but lacking much of the comfort and ease.

Feng Suige had not shown himself for several days. Servants whispered behind her back, speculating why the prince had ignored her on the second day of their marriage, spending his nights lingering with his former lover, the dancer who had caused a scene at the wedding.

Even Yunyi, who had caused a disturbance at the wedding ceremony, had only received a reprimand and was now freely coming and going from the prince's mansion.

Despite being neglected, leaving aside the warnings Feng Suige publicly declared on the day of the wedding, Fu Yixiao managed to rise from a humble prisoner to become the prince's side consort. The attention Feng Suige devoted to her was no less than what he applied to state affairs. Just because she wasn't favored recently doesn't mean she'll never have a chance to turn things around. Therefore, none of the servants in the prince's mansion dared to show arrogance in front of her.