Novel Full Chapter 1826: 1819: I, Xiao Yuntang, exchange for my brother
Chapter 1826: Chapter 1819: I, Xiao Yuntang, exchange for my brother
That day, I stayed at the Marquis’s Manor for the entire day, feeling hesitant and conflicted. Despite yearning for it, I was afraid and disappointed. When the time finally ran out, and the Crown Prince and the sisters returned, I was filled with regret.”
Her words drew Chu Heng into a memory.
At that time, they were all just children. Su Chenyang was the oldest, steady and responsible, leading them. He was in charge of making sure all the sisters had fun. However, Xiao Yuntang had just arrived in Jiang Du City and wasn’t used to playing with them. Bao Jun tried to pull her to join several times, but she stubbornly refused.
While the group of children played happily, Xiao Yuntang was the only one sulking alone in the house.
As the sun set over the western mountains, he should have returned to the palace. He remembered that all the sisters had given gifts, except Xiao Yuntang, who was hiding in the room. He sent her the peach blossom he intended to bring back to the palace.
Back then, he didn’t know if Xiao Yuntang would like it. But the next time he saw her, she had a flushed little face, timidly approaching him and murmuring, “Thank you, Your Highness.”
He smiled at the time, patted her head, and said she was a good sister.
“Does Your Highness still remember, right?” Tears welled up in Xiao Yuntang’s eyes, making her seem like a quickly blossoming peach flower, young yet already possessing a certain beauty.
She said tearfully, “I buried that bottle of peach blossoms in a flowerpot and took it back to Hangzhou. Later, I planted it in my courtyard. Every year when the peach blossoms bloom, I pick a bottle and place it by my bedside, as if seeing Your Highness every day.”
Chu Heng furrowed his brow slightly, his voice somewhat heavy, “Tangtang, I understand your meaning, but…”
“You don’t understand!” For the first time, Xiao Yuntang boldly interrupted him, “Your Highness doesn’t understand how much Tangtang likes you! Tangtang comes to Jiang Du every year, just wanting to see Your Highness once, to receive a reward from Your Highness, finding it as precious as gold; hearing Your Highness call my name, Tangtang becomes too excited to sleep at night!
Tangtang was born in the Xiao family, affluent and worry-free, but Tangtang has never felt that anything is so difficult for her! That is… my beloved Crown Prince brother, he has no place for me in his heart.”
The look in Chu Heng’s eyes grew heavier and heavier.
He remained silent, not stopping Xiao Yuntang’s tearful complaints, “But now, Tangtang must turn back in time. I can neither become the Crown Prince’s woman nor receive an ounce of love from Your Highness, right?”
Her eyes clearly held the answer, but still, she stubbornly asked Chu Heng.
Chu Heng is a person with a hardened heart. Despite his reluctance, he replied, “Yes, I am devoted to one person, and I will love her all my life, with no room for anyone else. As for you… if you wish to become a concubine, I can grant your wish, but there is affection, without love.”
Treating her with sibling affection, he would never give her any part of her.
Xiao Yuntang closed her eyes, the heaviest two tears rolled down from the corners, “Tangtang… understands!”
Her hands hung by her sides clenched tightly, resembling a battered pear blossom tree, but she still struggled with the last of her stubbornness, “Tangtang knows, even if becoming a concubine is only a means for Your Highness to control the Xiao family. But Tangtang wants to exchange with brother, use me as the Xiao family’s hostage, and let my brother return to Hangzhou City.”
Chu Heng’s eyes showed slight surprise, “You want to exchange your brother?”