Luck Reliant Beauty – CH 108

Chapter 108: The Principal Wife

Jiang Mi was unaware of what was happening outside. She only knew that during the five days Prince Kang and Princess Qingyue had stayed, Cui Zi Xuan had been busy dealing with various state envoys. On the sixth day, when she woke up in the morning, she was shocked to find herself sleeping in a carriage, with a long convoy outside bearing the flags of Shu State and Later Zhou. In the distance, she could see Prince Kang and Princess Qingyue’s carriage among them!

Jiang Mi was stunned. She immediately stuck her head out and looked around.

A maidservant who had served her was riding by when she saw this and quickly rode over, asking with concern, “Does Young Lady have any instructions?”

Jiang Mi said softly, “Is this to Shu State? How…how did I get onto the carriage?” She had no memory of it at all.

Upon hearing this, the maidservant smiled knowingly, winked at Jiang Mi, and whispered, “It was Young Master who carried Young Lady onto the carriage. Young Master said that Young Lady has not been sleeping well lately, so he did not want to wake her.”

The maidservant then whispered a reminder, “When we were preparing to change Young Lady’s clothes, Young Master said he wanted to try them on, so…”

Jiang Mi’s face flushed crimson.

She froze for a moment, then stammered, “Where’s your young master?”

The maid replied, “Young Master is currently overseeing things. The road to Shu State is quite treacherous this time, and knowing Young Master’s personality, he will not feel at ease unless he’s keeping a close eye on things himself.”

As she spoke, the maid noticed Jiang Mi discreetly lifting the carriage curtain to cover her flushed face, and could not help but smile.

Thus, under the maid’s kind and smiling gaze, Jiang Mi finally could not bear to speak any further. She quickly pulled down the curtain and shrank back into the carriage.

Once back in the carriage, Jiang Mi rushed to the table and picked up the bronze mirror to examine herself.

Sure enough. Her face was clean, clearly washed, and her clothes—she was used to sleeping in only her undergarments, but now she was wearing both her inner and outer garments, though not neatly arranged… No, no wonder she said something was wrong; this inner garment was not hers. It was clearly a man’s inner garment!

The man’s inner garment she was wearing was far too large. It did not fit her at all, bunching up and making her outer garments look awkward.

At that moment, Jiang Mi summoned the maid again.

The woman huddled behind the carriage curtain. Jiang Mi opened only a small corner of the opening and whispered, “This undergarment I’m wearing…”

“Undergarment?” the maidservant said with a smile. “Young Lady’s undergarment was already placed by the bedside, but Young Master said it was not necessary… This undergarment Young Lady is wearing belongs to Young Master.”

Jiang Mi’s ears flushed instantly. She stammered, “He… why did he make me wear it? Wear his…”

The maidservant shook her head, saying she did not know.

Jiang Mi had no choice but to ask her to bring her own undergarment, and after changing in the carriage, she finally mustered her courage and peeked outside. Seeing that Cui Zi Xuan had not returned yet… She looked up at Prince Kang and Princess Qingyue’s carriage.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Mi leaned forward and instructed the coachman to move forward.

Soon, Jiang Mi’s carriage arrived at the front of the procession. Looking at Prince Kang’s carriage, Jiang Mi instructed the coachman, “Alright, stop here.”

The coachman respectfully replied, “Yes, Madam!”

What?

Jiang Mi almost thought she had misheard. She turned to the coachman, her face flushed, and asked, “What did you just call me?”

The coachman, a man in his thirties with a simple, honest face, chuckled and said, “I called you Madam.”

Jiang Mi said, “I—I’m not yet…”

As she explained, the coachman just stared at her blankly. As Jiang Mi spoke, she suddenly remembered that ever since she reunited with Cui Zi Xuan, he had declared her his woman in front of Emperor Nanping and the assembled envoys, made her tell everyone she was his fiancée, and today, even changed her clothes while she was still half asleep and carried her to the carriage… All these actions seemed to be telling everyone she was his woman. So, what was wrong with the coachman calling her “Madam”?

While Jiang Mi was pondering this, Princess Qingyue and Prince Kang also saw her. However, to Jiang Mi’s surprise, when their eyes met, Princess Qingyue abruptly pulled back the carriage curtain, while Prince Kang nodded at her and then turned away—his posture was incredibly polite and respectful.

Seeing this, Jiang Mi stopped pushing forward. She had half drawn the carriage curtain and admired the scenery outside.

…

It was unclear what Cui Zi Xuan had done, but despite everyone being extremely cautious, they had traveled hundreds of miles without encountering any danger.

When the caravan had left Jiangling for over five hundred miles, Cui Zi Xuan rejoined his unit.

He returned with over a thousand cavalrymen.

This was the first time Jiang Mi had seen Cui Zi Xuan in armor. He had a small wound on his cheek, which, against his already strikingly handsome appearance, gave him an indescribable air of awe.

Cui Zi Xuan had clearly not slept well for days; dark circles under his eyes and stubble on his chin made his eyes sharp as a knife.

After the soldiers returned to their ranks, Cui Zi Xuan relinquished command. Then, he rode his horse to the ranks.

Prince Kang and Princess Qingyue looked at Cui Zi Xuan with overwhelming gratitude. Cui Zi Xuan rode up to them, chatted for a while, and then, around noon, rode to Jiang Mi’s carriage.

Without greeting, Cui Zi Xuan casually lifted the carriage curtain, and before Jiang Mi could react, he leaped from his horse onto her carriage.

Upon entering the carriage, Cui Zi Xuan pulled Jiang Mi onto his lap. He lowered his head, inhaling deeply the delicate fragrance emanating from Jiang Mi, whose body was stiff with desire. Then, in a hoarse, weary voice, Cui Zi Xuan whispered, “I have not dared to sleep for days. Have someone boil some hot water for me during our rest stops along the way; I’m going to get some sleep.” With that, he lay down on the couch, falling asleep with one arm still around Jiang Mi’s waist.

He actually fell asleep!

Jiang Mi had so much to say to him! For example, he could have woken her up, but he did not. Instead, he carried her onto the carriage in front of so many people, scaring everyone into calling her “Madam,” and he still had not given her an explanation!

Also, why did he not go back to his own carriage to sleep? Why did he have to squeeze into hers?

Jiang Mi had a lot of complaints. Although she was used to being easygoing and not fighting for anything, what Cui Zi Xuan was doing now affected her entire life, and she did not want to let him off so easily.

Jiang Mi’s face turned pale and then flushed. Several times she reached out to shake Cui Zi Xuan awake. Seeing him unshaven and travel-worn, this naturally clean and elegant Young Master had not even bothered to tidy himself up; he was clearly exhausted…

Jiang Mi’s hand reached out several times, but in the end, she withdrew it. She watched Cui Zi Xuan sleeping soundly, letting out a few soft hums, before finally pulling a thin blanket over him and resignedly sticking her head out to instruct the servants to remember to boil water while they rested.

Ever since Cui Zi Xuan arrived, Princess Qingyue had been watching them closely. Seeing the faint, sweetly sleeping figure of Cui Zi Xuan behind the carriage curtain billowing in the wind, and seeing Jiang Mi acting like a mistress, ordering the servants to boil water, her face darkened for a moment, then slowly turned deathly pale.

Just then, Prince Kang’s voice suddenly rang out, “Do not think about it anymore… Cui Zi Xuan told me yesterday that his purpose in going to Shu State is to formally ask Father Emperor for Jiang’s hand in marriage!”

Princess Qingyue abruptly turned to look at Prince Kang’s carriage, which had somehow become parallel to hers. Tears welled up in her eyes for a long time before finally streaming down her face. Choking back sobs, Princess Qingyue whispered, “Why? Why did he choose her?”

Prince Kang replied, “Cui Zi Xuan has always treated Jiang differently from the very beginning.” At this moment, Princess Qingyue quickly raised her head and asked urgently, “But he’s the legitimate son of the Cui Clan of Boling! This time, Young Master Cui will ask Father Emperor for Jiang’s hand in marriage, right? Isn’t that right? He’s only planning to take her as a concubine, isn’t he?”

Prince Kang looked at Princess Qingyue sympathetically for a long while before replying, “Although I’ve thought that way too, Cui Zi Xuan’s meaning is very clear: he intends to marry Jiang as his wife, his principal wife!”

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, Princess Qingyue’s sobs suddenly intensified.

Prince Kang fell silent. He looked up at the distant, rolling green mountains and thought to himself, “In this world, only women with nothing better to did would think about such things as love and romance.”

Jiang Mi was unaware of the conversation between Prince Kang and Princess Qingyue.

She had a slight headache.

Finally, it was time to rest, and the water was ready. Jiang Mi prepared to wake Cui Zi Xuan.

She had only nudged him twice and given a soft call when Cui Zi Xuan abruptly opened his eyes—just awakened from sleep, his gaze sharp and cold, unlike that of ordinary people. He stared coldly at Jiang Mi for a moment, then, realizing it was her, closed his eyes again and rolled over to sleep.

Jiang Mi, having just recovered from his startled gaze, was now faced with this man who refused to get out of bed. To be honest, Cui Zi Xuan, with his face buried deep in the blankets and covering his head when she called, looked completely different from how she usually saw him.

Jiang Mi suppressed a laugh and gently nudged Cui Zi Xuan’s back, asking, “Cui Zi Xuan, are you not going to take a bath?”

She nudged him several times, but Cui Zi Xuan started snoring. Helpless, Jiang Mi had no choice but to stick her head out and let the servants leave.

Once everyone had left, Jiang Mi pulled the carriage curtain back up and returned to Cui Zi Xuan’s side. She felt a warmth around her waist; he had wrapped his arms around her from behind.

Jiang Mi paused.

Just then, from behind her came Cui Zi Xuan’s low, indistinct voice, “Ah’Mi, when you were little, did you ever think about what kind of husband you would marry? What kind of wedding feast would he give you?”

Husband? Wedding?

Before Jiang Mi could answer, Cui Zi Xuan, now fully awake, rolled over and sat up. Without waiting for Jiang Mi’s reply, he leaped off the carriage. Then, when Jiang Mi saw Cui Zi Xuan, he had already bathed and changed, once again becoming elegant and distinguished.