Chapter 421: I’m Looking for Zhao Mingyan! Do You Hear Me

Only then did Princess Qingyun size up the person Huang Er had brought in.

Just as Huang Er had said, her looks were delicate and just barely passed muster, but her unique disposition was what truly stood out.

Even dressed in crude, colorful clothes, she was in no way inferior to the maids in their flowing robes.

Resting a hand on her maid’s wrist, Princess Qingyun slowly sat up. Seeing Qingyun staring at her, Ji Qingwu raised her eyes to meet the princess’s gaze.

Seeing this, Huang Er scolded her in a low voice, "The Princess did not give you leave to raise your head!"

However, Ji Qingwu not only kept her head raised, but walked straight to Princess Qingyun’s bedside.

A maid raised her voice. "How audacious! Such insolence!"

Terrified, Huang Er dropped to his knees and kowtowed. "This servant brought an unruly person before you! I beg the Princess not to blame me!"

Ji Qingwu, however, remained perfectly composed. She opened her palm, revealing a cloisonné enamel earring.

Princess Qingyun subconsciously touched her left ear and found that of the pair of earrings she had put on today, only one remained. The other had fallen off at some point.

A flash of anger crossed Princess Qingyun’s eyes. Just as she was about to lash out, she saw the woman in the peach-pink dress lean in and whisper with a smile by her ear.

"Princess, I hear it is the custom in Lin’an for the bride’s sister-in-law to place the phoenix crown and jewelry on her for the wedding."

Princess Qingyun froze. She had said those words before, back when she was trying to...

The woman held the earring and positioned it just below the princess’s earlobe.

Her tone was gentle. "I wonder, is it too late now?"

A maid had already reached out to grab Ji Qingwu, scolding, "Where did this insolent wench come from? How dare you touch the Princess’s esteemed person!"

Huang Er covered his head, wailing internally: ’This princess was born pampered and spoiled, and she has a terrible temper. I’m a dead man.’

Sure enough, Princess Qingyun shrieked, "You scoundrel! Get away from her!"

Immediately following, with a THUD, someone knelt on the floor.

"Princess, forgive me... This servant was only..."

Huang Er raised his head, only to see that the one kneeling was someone else entirely—it was the Princess’s most favored maid, Ye Yue.

Meanwhile, the "Chunhua" he had brought in held the Princess’s earring, her wrist swaying gently, her expression poised.

An image suddenly came to Huang Er’s mind: the scene before him was like someone dangling a toy to tease a cat.

Princess Qingyun’s eyes were glued to Ji Qingwu.

There were a thousand things she wanted to say. She waved her sleeve. "All of you, get out."

After everyone in the room had been dismissed, Princess Qingyun immediately sat up. This time, she didn’t care if Ji Qingwu was covered in dust and lunged forward to hug her.

Ji Qingwu shifted to the side, dodging her flying leap.

She said coolly, "What is the noble Princess doing? I am filthy; I mustn’t let Your Highness be sullied by the dust of the mortal world."

Princess Qingyun wasn’t the least bit annoyed by this. Instead, she giggled. "Fifth Cousin, I haven’t heard your voice in so long! I missed you to death! Quick, say something more."

Being so far away in Longzhou after such an arduous journey, seeing Qingyun warmed Ji Qingwu’s heart a little. Her eyes curved into a smile.

"Have you been well lately?"

Princess Qingyun shook her head vigorously. "No, no, I’m not well at all!"

"Fifth Cousin, you have no idea how awful this godforsaken place is! My clothes get dirty just from going out once. If I’m outside for a single hour, my face and even my nostrils are full of dirt when I get back."

Qingyun had only just arrived and was already overwhelmed by the harsh winds and yellow sand. It was a struggle just to leave her rooms.

Ji Qingwu laughed. "You call this a hardship? If I threw you into the Northern Border Camp, you’d realize what a blessed life you’re living now."

"In the camp, you don’t just get a mouthful of the Northwest wind when you go out, you get a mouthful of sand, too. And if there’s a sandstorm, even the tents get covered in a layer of dust."

Princess Qingyun pouted. "I don’t believe you. My Imperial Brother is obsessed with cleanliness. His tent is probably cleaner than my rooms."

At the mention of Zhao Mingyan’s tent, Ji Qingwu briefly recalled the first and only time she had entered it. Her heart fluttered slightly. ’It did seem quite clean.’

Seeing Ji Qingwu’s gaze flicker as she fell silent, Princess Qingyun looked her up and down, her eyes finally settling on her face.

"Fifth Cousin, why are you dressed like this?"

Ji Qingwu was just about to tell her about her plan.

But Princess Qingyun cut in first. "I know! You’re still the best to me, Fifth Cousin! You felt sorry for me and traveled a thousand miles to see me."

She herself liked to wear human-skin masks when she snuck out of the palace to have fun, so she didn’t find it strange that Ji Qingwu had changed her appearance.

Ji Qingwu gave a dry laugh. "Actually, I want to go to the Northern Border Camp."

Hearing her answer, Princess Qingyun’s face fell. A moment later, she realized who was at the Northern Border.

She asked in disbelief, "You’re going to look for—"

Ji Qingwu’s eyes widened slightly as she nodded.

Princess Qingyun’s eyes grew even wider than hers. She suddenly raised her voice and shouted, "Absolutely not!"

"Guards...! MMPH..."

Ji Qingwu clapped a hand over her mouth, frowning. "What are you shouting for?"

Qingyun’s eyes darted around. Ji Qingwu pinched her cheek and ordered, "No shouting. No calling for people. Speak properly."

Princess Qingyun nodded.

Only then did Ji Qingwu release her, her hand now covered in Jade Beauty Cream. A handprint was left across Qingyun’s mouth.

Princess Qingyun immediately put on a smug expression, as if she had seen through everything.

"Fifth Cousin, don’t even think about lying to me. It must be that our great-uncle is trying to cancel your engagement. You refused, but now that you’ve lost him, you’ve learned to cherish him. That’s why you ran away to find Wei Ting, isn’t it?"

Ji Qingwu had thought Qingyun guessed who she was really looking for, but she hadn’t expected her to cook up such a dramatic story.

She was impressed by the Princess’s storytelling abilities and said, feeling speechless, "What would I be looking for Wei Ting for?"

Princess Qingyun still didn’t believe her and pressed, "Then what are you going to the Northern Border for?"

Ji Qingwu said, "Of course I’m..."

She opened her mouth, but the words seemed to get stuck in her throat. It felt as if directly admitting her feelings was something to be ashamed of.

Under Qingyun’s "See? I was right, just as I said" gaze, Ji Qingwu said softly, "I’m looking for your Imperial Brother."

Princess Qingyun acted as if she had arrived in Longzhou only to have her ears clogged with sand.

She asked with a face full of confusion, "Who is my Fifth Cousin looking for?"

A fierce look appeared on Ji Qingwu’s face, but her hands moved with great gentleness.

She gently lifted Princess Qingyun’s earlobe and put the enamel earring from her palm on for her.

Princess Qingyun’s eyes lit up, and she stared at Ji Qingwu with a brilliant gleam.

But this gentleness didn’t last long. Ji Qingwu tugged her ear and spoke, enunciating every syllable.

"I’m looking for Zhao Mingyan! Do you hear me?!"

The woman’s voice was melodious and crisp, her pronunciation perfectly clear.

The name sounded both strange and familiar.

An image of the handsome, cold face that belonged to that name quickly flashed through Princess Qingyun’s mind.