An Eight-year-old Princess novel Chapter 212

"Shang'er?" Prince Jing frowned while looking at the pained expression on Yun Shang's face. He called to Yun Shang softly and shook her to wake her up.

Yun Shang suddenly sat up with eyes wide open. She wasn't completely awake until Prince Jing asked her in a deep and gentle voice. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Yun Shang turned to him and looked at him in bewilderment. It took her quite a while to remember where she was. "Uncle?"

Prince Jing nodded. "We are back home."

Still confused, Yun Shang looked around and noticed that she was in a carriage. Her mind gradually cleared. Today was her wedding day, but she had rushed back to the Imperial Palace upon hearing that Lady Jin had entered premature labor. Shortly afterward, Prince Jing came with a dependable midwife who saved Lady Jin and the unborn child.

Yun Shang gave a sigh of relief. "Are we back at your mansion?"

Prince Jing nodded as he opened the carriage door and alighted. He turned and offered the Princess his hand. Yun Shang gently placed her hand in his before climbing out of the carriage slowly. They continued to hold hands as they walked.

"The midwife said there was a strange scent coming from me today. Uncle, since you have offered to conduct a thorough investigation, can you send the makeup I used this morning to a reliable physician or someone who has good knowledge of this?" Yun Shang said softly. The wedding dress had been made and preserved by Lady Jin. Once Yun Shang had received it, she had kept the dress close by. It would have been impossible for anyone to tamper with it.

Prince Jing agreed as they entered the main yard.

While they were gone, Qian Yin had become anxious. She kept checking the entrance of the yard. As soon as she saw Yun Shang and Prince Jing, she rushed to them. "Your Highness, how is Lady Jin?"

"She is alright." Yun Shang answered before telling her maid. "I need to bathe. Prepare water for me."

Qian Yin cast a glance at Prince Jing. Though puzzled, Qian Yin nodded and left.

After bathing, Yun Shang dressed herself in casual clothes. As she was a new bride, all her clothes were red as the color symbolized joy and fortune.

"I'm still quite worried, Uncle. I need to return to the Imperial Palace. You must feel uncomfortable as you drunk a lot earlier. I'll ask Qian Yin to make you some soup that will ease your discomfort. Please do have some and rest well." Yun Shang looked at Prince Jing as she spoke.

After a short silence, Prince Jing said, "It's getting late. You might not even be able to enter the Palace at this hour. Moreover, you are married now. If you show up at this time, people might gossip. After all, Lady Jin's Palace is attached to Qiwu Palace. And the Empress always keeps an eye on everything."

Yun Shang paused. Certainly she understood the risk, but she was really anxious about her mother. Every time she thought about the possibility that Lady Jin was put in danger because of her, the Princess was flooded with guilt.

Lady Jin had never complained about anything. Yun Shang however, felt like an unfilial daughter. There were so many things that Yun Shang should have done, but didn't. Most recently, she hadn't consulted with her mother about the wedding date. Her mother on the other hand, had traveled all the way from Laifeng Palace to attend the wedding. But Yun Shang had failed to protect her loving and kind mother.

"I will sneak into the Palace then. I'll leave once I make sure my mother is alright. I won't do anything else." Yun Shang muttered.

A soft knock came from the window. Prince Jing walked to the window and opened it. Yun Shang saw a man in black standing outside respectfully.

"Your Highness, Lady Jin has woken up and taken her medicine. She is safe and sound in His Majesty's company." The man bowed. His hands were folded in front of his chest and he looked at Prince Jing.

Prince Jing nodded and closed the window. "Do you feel better?" He asked.

Yun Shang hesitated as she thought. She didn't know what to say.

After a moment, she heard a bird tweeting outside the window. She was finally relieved as that was how her people sent messages to her secretly. The message being relayed to her confirmed what the mysterious man had just told her and Prince Jing.

"His Majesty must be really nervous as well after the incident. I think he will take Lady Jin to Laifeng Palace when she is capable of traveling. And as for a dependable midwife who will attend to your mother, I will make the necessary arrangements. Your mother will be alright. Don't worry." Prince Jing comforted her patiently.

Yun Shang bit her lip and looked down. "I never thought that the Empress would take action against Mother through me. Neither did my mother. Under no circumstances would Mother be on guard when I am around her. I underestimated the Empress's shrewdness."

Prince Jing put his arms around Yun Shang and patted her shoulder in a gentle but awkward way. "It's not your fault. Nobody could foresee this. Moreover, I had my servants scrutinize everything you used today, but nothing was found. So we don't know how the Empress did this yet. You don't have to feel guilty. Once the facts are known, all questions will be answered."

Yun Shang nodded and noticed a strong alcohol smell coming from Prince Jing. She asked with concern. "How much did you drink, Uncle?" There was a hint of disapproval in her tone. Before he could answer, Yun Shang asked Qian Yin to prepare bath water and soup to help him sober up.

Prince Jing was left speechless and his lips curved into a frown. He was trying to console his wife, only to be cold-shouldered. He had no idea how much his subordinates made him drink during the celebration. Prince Jing smiled. Yes, he was overjoyed to be her husband, even though their marriage meant more than that. From today on, Yun Shang would be his wife. She might be too young and her love wasn't that strong yet, but she had officially become his wife. After the incident at the Imperial Palace, Yun Shang would understand that she could rely on him. This was progress considering how hesitant and defensive Yun Shang had been when it came to their relationship.

As Yun Shang requested, Prince Jing drank the soup and cleaned himself thoroughly in a long bath.

When he returned, he found Yun Shang sitting in front of a lamp. She looked like she was in a daze. Since she had a while to think over the day's events, Yun Shang could now see that her act of pointing out the alcohol smell on Prince Jing was just a way to mask her nervousness. Although she had been married in her previous life, the Princess couldn't help feeling nervous when facing Prince Jing.

Prince Jing, interestingly, found that Yun Shang seemed to be shivering. He raised an eyebrow. Wasn't she always perfectly cool and collected? What was she nervous about?

"It has been a long day. You must be tired as well. Let's get some rest." Prince Jing walked to her and looked into her eyes as he spoke.

Yun Shang hurried to lower her head and agreed. She stood up and walked to the bedside. Since she had dressed in casual clothes after her bath, Yun Shang now found herself in a dilemma. Before getting into bed, she would have to remove her outwear, which was alright since she was wearing her nightclothes underneath. But it also meant that she would have to undress before Prince Jing. Although they were married, she felt it would be too intimate to take her clothes off before him. And it was their wedding night...

Somehow Prince Jing was amused to see her struggle silently. He decided to lighten her mood using humor.

"Well. Are you are not sleepy anymore?" Prince Jing teased softly.

Embarrassed, Yun Shang bit her lip. She quickly slipped her feet out of her shoes and lay down on the bed. She placed herself as far from Prince Jing as she could.

Prince Jing smiled at her girlish embarrassment. It was rare for him to smile. He looked at Yun Shang and asked, "Is this what you usually wear to sleep? It seems... quite warm?"

Hearing his teasing and playful tone, Yun Shang blushed. She grunted, sat up and quickly took the outwear off. Then she lay down again and huddled under the quilt.

"Ha-ha..." Prince Jing laughed joyfully. Instead of going to bed, he picked up a clean towel and began to dry his hair carefully.

Qian Yin entered the chamber with a rather strange smile. "Well, Your Highness... Or should we call you Lady Jing now? Are you ready to get up, Lady Jing?"

Yun Shang cast an embarrassed glance towards Qian Yin. "Where is Prince Jing?"

Qian Yin grinned. "Marriage has worked its magic on you, Your Highness. You used to hate getting out of bed, but today you have woken early. And the first thing that you ask is the whereabouts of Prince Jing." Qian Yin laughed and covered her mouth with her hand. "His Highness said that he was going to the military camp outside the Imperial City. He left instructions that when Your Highness wakes up, please have breakfast first. He will return soon and will accompany you to the Imperial Palace to visit Lady Jin."

Surprised and moved, Yun Shang lowered her head. He knew that she would still be worried about Lady Jin. She smiled gently and got out of bed. "Get me dressed."

Qian Yin selected a bright red dress for Yun Shang and helped the Princess get dressed. Yun Shang freshened up before sitting in front of the dresser. Qian Yin said with a comb in her hand, "I'll make a Fairy Lady Bun for Your Highness today. Now that Your Highness is married, it will be inappropriate to continue with hairstyles for young girls." As Qian Yin combed Yun Shang's hair, she said, "Your Highness, do you know that there was no dresser or any other stuff for women in this room? His Highness asked the craftsmen to prepare this just for you."

Yun Shang looked around and indeed found things that belonged in a woman's bedroom, such as bead curtains, the dresser, and some delicate decorations.

Prince Jing's room used to be quite simply decorated. From her earlier visits to the mansion, she remembered that he barely had essential furniture in the mansion. Every room had felt quite soulless to Yun Shang. Now it was perfectly balanced by these feminine elements.

Qian Yin finished Yun Shang's hair quickly and put a gold hairpin in it. Then Qian Yin said, "I know you don't like jewelry, Your Highness. But you just got married. It would be inappropriate not to dress according to your status. I will make a simpler hairstyle for you in a few days."

Yun Shang nodded. She looked in the mirror and smiled. She looked quite different from her appearance in her previous life. Yun Shang attributed the difference to the change in her character. In this life, the Princess had a more stunning appearance and a more relaxed temperament. It was possibly true that her outward appearance was reflecting the calm and peace she felt inside. In this life, Yun Shang had more confidence in her abilities and she wasn't as distraught and depressed as she had been in her previous life.

Since there was no other order from Yun Shang, Qian Yin left the chamber and asked the servants to prepare breakfast. When she walked in again, Qian Yin murmured, "That's weird. There was a maid here yesterday. I thought she had been sent by Prince Jing to look after Your Highness. But why can't I find her today?"

Yun Shang's eyes widened as she suddenly thought of something. "What did you say?"

Qian Yin hurried to explain. "Does Your Highness remember the maid who delivered food to you yesterday? I was wondering why there had been a maid in the mansion as it is widely known that Prince Jing didn't keep any maids. I thought His Highness had sent her to serve you, but she has disappeared after the wedding."

Yun Shang frowned. She said to Qian Yin in a hurry, "Go and find the chamberlain."

Qian Yin was confused, but she did what was required promptly.

The chamberlain was nervous. 'Why did Lady Jing need to see him so urgently in the morning? Was she displeased with something?' He wiped the sweat from his brow. His Highness had emphasized that Her Highness would always be a priority.

The chamberlain didn't have to wait long in the living room before Yun Shang entered. Without greeting or even being seated, Yun Shang asked him, "Is there a maid in the mansion?"

The chamberlain didn't expect such a question, but he hurried to answer. "No, Your Highness. His Highness doesn't want maids around, so we didn't employ any maids." Inferring that perhaps Her Highness was offended by the lack of appropriate servants, he added. "I'm deeply sorry for my negligence, Your Highness. Of course, Your Highness could use a maid. I'll find some reliable ones as soon as possible."

Yun Shang shook her head. "No, I didn't mean that. Yesterday, His Highness said he would send some food to the chamber before he left for the toasts. Afterward, a maid came with a tray of food. I am asking because I know there shouldn't be a maid in this mansion."

The chamberlain frowned. He was pensive before he replied, "But Your Highness, there are definitely no other maids in the mansion except the ones who accompanied you..."