Di Daughter's Strategy - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Four years ago, she was only ten years old. At that time, she didn’t know she had traveled into a book. As the study companion of Princess Qingya, she often went to the palace. The current Empress was her maternal aunt. Although the Empress and Madam Chu didn’t get along, the Empress wasn’t favored, so she needed help from her maternal relatives.
Therefore, she naturally took great care of Luo Yi’er.

Due to some reasons, the Emperor also showed affection towards her. As a result, no one in the palace dared to bully her. Prince Jing was only sixteen years old back then. Since he and the Empress had a recorded relationship as mother and son among the many princes, she and Prince Jing should naturally be the closest.

However, it wasn’t like that. Fang Jinling had a cold personality since he was young. Even when facing the Empress, he showed indifference. Luo Yi’er got along well with Princess Qingya and the Fifth Prince Fang Jinyu, but her relationship with the Third Prince Fang Jinling was just acquaintances.

Until that day.

It was Mid-Autumn Festival, and officials of the third rank and above were invited to the palace banquet. The Marquis’s mansion was naturally among them. Luo Yi’er was only ten years old but had already gained a reputation as a talented young girl. She inherited her mother’s beauty, and at such a young age, it was clear she would be stunning in the future. That day, she wore a light blue dress and a delicate hairpin, following Madam Chu into the palace.

The Third Prince, who hadn’t been seen for a long time, appeared at the palace gate. He wore a dark long robe and brocade boots. His angular face was handsome and extraordinary. He walked slowly on the palace path, first going to pay respects to the Empress. As they walked together, he suddenly spoke in a low voice, “Yi’er, come here.”

Luo Yi’er was slightly surprised. If the person calling her was Fang Jinyu, she wouldn’t be surprised. She looked back at Madam Chu, who frowned slightly but didn’t say anything.
She pursed her lips and walked towards Fang Jinling.

Fang Jinling looked up and said to Madam Chu, “This Prince needs to talk to Yi’er, Madam, please proceed first.”

Without waiting for Madam Chu’s refusal, Fang Jinling had already turned his body aside. Madam Chu had no choice but to glance at Luo Yi’er and follow the palace maid towards the Empress’s palace.

Fang Jinling led her to another small path and stopped under an osmanthus tree forest. He stood under the osmanthus tree, silent for a long time. Luo Yi’er was puzzled and stepped forward slightly, “I don’t know what the Third Prince wants to say to Yi’er.”

The osmanthus flowers occasionally drifted down, and Luo Yi’er couldn’t see his expression clearly. However, she saw him take out a brocade box from his sleeve and hand it to her, his voice still flat, “Birthday gift.”

Luo Yi’er was taken aback, her eyes filled with surprise. Her birthday was on the 15th of August, which coincided with the Mid-Autumn Festival. Because of this date, her birthday was rarely celebrated grandly. The Marquis’s mansion was familiar with dignitaries and nobles, and compared to the annual palace banquet, her birthday banquet was insignificant.

She couldn’t understand how the Third Prince remembered her birthday.
After a moment of silence, she said softly, “Thank you.”

There were a few golden osmanthus flowers on the brocade box. Luo Yi’er reached out and placed her hand on the box. Her fingers, which had been pampered since childhood, were as white as jade, contrasting with Fang Jinling’s distinctively masculine fingers. He released his grip and lowered his eyes.

She pursed her lips, glanced at him quietly, and silently opened the brocade box. She was slightly surprised to see a flawless white jade pendant inside. At a glance, she knew the jade pendant was extremely valuable.

She didn’t say any words of refusal. She wrapped the red thread around her index finger, lifted her hand slightly, and the jade pendant swayed gently. She smiled softly, “It’s very beautiful, I like it very much.”

The sunlight shone on the jade pendant, radiating dazzling light. Her eyes sparkled brightly, and her lips curved into a gentle smile, accompanied by the fragrance of osmanthus flowers in the forest.

She seemed to see his brows slightly relax, and he said indifferently, “Let’s go, don’t make the Empress wait.”

He put his hands behind his back, his back straight as a ramrod. Luo Yi’er followed behind him, the smile on her lips fading slightly. Her gaze fell lightly on him, as if trying to figure out what he was thinking.

A jade pendant wasn’t enough to move her. As the granddaughter of the current Crown Tutor and the daughter of the Marquis, who was the Emperor’s confidant, she had received attention from many princes and princesses in the palace. However, she couldn’t understand why the Third Prince, who had always been cold towards her, would suddenly give her a jade pendant.
It seemed unlike him.

From that day on, her relationship with Fang Jinling seemed to improve slightly.

At the same time, something seemed to have happened that day, causing the relationship between the Empress and Madam Chu to deteriorate instantly, but due to familial ties, they restrained themselves and didn’t flare up. From that year on, Luo Yi’er no longer entered the palace to accompany Princess Qingya.

In November of the same year, the Emperor decided to hold a hunting trip in the imperial hunting grounds. Ministers were allowed to bring their families along, and Luo Yi’er was naturally among them.

As soon as she got off the carriage, Luo Yi’er was called away by Princess Qingya. The two of them, accompanied by a group of servants, took bows and arrows and headed into the woods.

Princess Qingya was eager to hunt a prey herself to serve as dinner, and Luo Yi’er smiled and didn’t refuse, but she wasn’t interested. She preferred to let others do all the work while she enjoyed the results.

The mountain forests of the hunting grounds had large game driven into certain areas, but they still retained some of their original state. The two of them wandered leisurely for half an hour, and Princess Qingya had long lost interest. However, just as they were about to head back, they heard some noises coming from the woods.

Luo Yi’er’s eyes flashed slightly.
In her previous life, she had watched TV shows where scenes like this were perfect for plotting and schemes. She looked around at the servants she and Qingya had brought, only about ten people. Her brow furrowed slightly, and she said to Qingya, “Princess, we’ve been out for a while. Let’s go back.”

Qingya waved her hand excitedly and said, “Yi’er, listen to the noise. Someone must have caught a good prey. Let’s go take a look!”

Luo Yi’er pursed her lips, her expression fading slightly. She advised, “Princess, why should we go bother with someone else’s prey? Let’s go back quickly.”

“Oh, come on! It’s rare for us to come out. Don’t be so restrained, Yi’er!” Qingya said, not waiting for Luo Yi’er to respond. She whipped her horse and galloped towards the source of the noise.

Luo Yi’er’s face changed slightly, but she couldn’t let Qingya go alone. She controlled her emotions, frowned at the servants, and said, “Follow!”

She chased after Qingya on horseback. Suddenly, she heard Qingya’s surprised cry. Luo Yi’er frowned deeply. As she rode towards the source of the sound, she heard a whizzing arrow. Her face changed, and she instinctively dismounted. An arrow whizzed past her cheek. She looked up, still shaken, and saw a scene that made her face turn pale.

Just like in the TV shows, over a dozen masked assassins were attacking three people. She bit her lip, knowing she was in trouble. She saw Qingya, who was already frightened and tearful. Luo Yi’er frowned and pulled Qingya behind a tree. Both of them got some grass debris on their clothes.

Qingya burst into tears, sobbing, “… Yi’er, that was… the Third Prince…”

Luo Yi’er was also panicked. She tightly hugged Qingya, her lips pale. Her eyes darkened as she thought of the man she had seen. She closed her eyes slightly, her voice trembling, “I saw him, Princess. Don’t cry, don’t speak.”

She knew those people must have seen her, but she didn’t dare to move. Just as she appeared, an arrow came flying towards her. Who knew what would happen if she tried to escape now?

She opened her eyes and looked around. Some of the servants who had followed them had already fallen to the ground, while others had run away. She breathed a sigh of relief; as long as someone escaped, it would be okay. They just needed to wait for someone to take the news outside, and they would be safe.

However, reality was different from her imagination. Some people didn’t want to leave any witnesses alive. Even though they were just innocent bystanders, in an instant, the black-clothed, masked men appeared in front of them. Luo Yi’er saw the long knife coming towards her and turned pale. There was no time to dodge.

Qingya held her tightly in fear. Just as she was about to give up and close her eyes, she heard a loud clang, which seemed to be the sound of swords clashing. She opened her eyes abruptly and saw Fang Jinling holding a long sword, blocking the black-clothed man.

In the flash of blades, he cast a cold glance at her. There was no concern in his eyes, only indifference, just like when he looked at the black-clothed men.

In that instant, she seemed to relax. She stared at him blankly, and tears fell from her eyes belatedly. She held Qingya tightly, and the panic in her heart seemed to be released through this action. She couldn’t even say a word.

Fang Jinling saw her condition, and his eyes darkened. He looked at the black-clothed man with an even colder expression, making him seem intimidating.
The black-clothed men noticed that he seemed to care about the two women who had just run in. One of them shouted, “Kill those two women!”

The moment the words fell, Fang Jinling’s long sword flew out of his hand and stabbed straight into the black-clothed man’s neck. The man’s eyes were wide open in death, as if he couldn’t understand why he died so suddenly.

At this moment, Luo Yi’er finally heard Fang Jinling’s first words since arriving, “No need to leave any witnesses alive.” His voice was extremely calm, but it sent chills down her spine. It seemed that from the beginning, he never considered these black-clothed men as threats.

Luo Yi’er hadn’t even seen what happened clearly when arrows suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and the black-clothed men fell to the ground. Luo Yi’er opened her eyes wide, while Qingya buried her head in Luo Yi’er’s chest, not daring to look up.

Luo Yi’er’s face was still pale as she watched Fang Jinling walk towards her step by step. He frowned slightly, and there was a moment of silence between them.

Just as Luo Yi’er was about to say something, he suddenly leaned down and reached out to touch her forehead. He felt the cold sweat on her skin and asked indifferently, “Are you scared?”

Before she could answer, he continued, “You’re usually so clever, why did you come towards the sound this time?” His voice was calm, but there was a hint of anger underlying it, which was hard to detect.

He stretched out his hand and said flatly, “Get up.” Luo Yi’er put her hand in his, and he pulled her up. She forced a smile, “Thank you, Third Prince, for saving our lives.” Although they were implicated because of him, he didn’t have to save them.

The moment she finished speaking, Fang Jinling gave her a deep look, said nothing, and led them towards the camp.

That should have been their last meeting. After that, he left the capital in a hurry to head to the border. Three days later, the Emperor decreed their marriage. To this day, she still didn’t know why the Emperor suddenly issued such a decree.

…
“Miss?”
Linglong called out to Luo Yi’er, who seemed lost in thought.

Luo Yi’er returned to her senses, looked up at her gently, and said with a faint expression, “What’s wrong?”

Linglong lowered her head, “It’s time to go back for dinner.”

Luo Yi’er stood up, supporting herself with Linglong’s hand, and looked back at the pond. Her expression finally cleared up, and she smiled softly, “Let’s go back.”