Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 43. The Unluckiest Wedding in History (Part 2)
43. The Worst Wedding in History (II)
"Ye Li!"
In the garden of Prince Li’s Mansion, Hua Tianxiang was walking with Ye Li and talking when a tall figure suddenly blocked their path.
"His Highness Prince Li, may I ask what business you have?" Hua Tianxiang inquired, standing before Ye Li with her beautiful face raised. Since the incident at the Chuxiang Pavilion, Hua Tianxiang’s fondness for Prince Li had plummeted, currently nearing negative values. Seeing Mo Jingli appear before them with a sullen face, she intuitively thought he wanted to cause trouble for Ye Li. Mo Jingli frowned, displeased. "I am not looking for you." Hua Tianxiang retorted without yielding an inch, "Shouldn’t Your Highness be greeting the guests now? This garden is mostly filled with ladies from various households. It’s likely inappropriate for Your Highness to move about freely. Even if Your Highness doesn’t care about your own reputation, you should at least consider others."
"I need to speak with Ye Li. You, step aside," Mo Jingli demanded impatiently.
"Say whatever you have to say outright; Li’er can hear you," Hua Tianxiang replied.
Mo Jingli narrowed his eyes threateningly. "I said, step aside!"
As Hua Tianxiang was about to retort, Ye Li stopped her. "Tianxiang, go on and check whether Murong and the others have arrived. I’ll join you in a moment."
"But..." Hua Tianxiang gave Mo Jingli a worried glance. Ye Li smiled and said, "Don’t worry. Xiuyao will come looking for me after speaking with Old Madam Hua." Upon hearing this, Hua Tianxiang threw a playful wink at Ye Li, her tone teasing, "Xiu...yao, huh? Okay then, I’ll go find Murong. You... be careful." Before she left, she shot Mo Jingli a warning glance, then waved to Ye Li and departed. Watching Hua Tianxiang’s rare, childlike display, Ye Li was both amused and deeply touched. Hua Tianxiang is a truly well-bred lady of standing. She would never provoke Mo Jingli unless it was for my sake. As Hua Tianxiang’s retreating figure vanished, Mo Jingli’s already somber face seemed to darken even more, as if ink could drip from it.
When Hua Tianxiang disappeared around the garden’s corner, Ye Li’s smile vanished. She turned to Mo Jingli. "Prince, you had something to say?"
"Ye Li, you have some nerve!" Mo Jingli snarled through gritted teeth.
Ye Li looked Mo Jingli up and down, her voice still mild. "I don’t understand what the Prince is referring to."
"HUMPH! You think I’ll just let last night’s matter go?" Mo Jingli stared at her with a cold smirk.
"I thought... that isn’t something for the Prince to bring up, is it?" He was the one who had people kidnap me with malicious intent. Yet, his attitude now makes it seem as if I did something to wrong him. What is wrong with this world? Ye Li couldn’t help but feel perplexed.
"Or perhaps you intend to seek revenge on me?" Mo Jingli jeered disdainfully.
That won’t be necessary. If it weren’t a major issue, I, this young lady, would have already taken my revenge on the spot. "If the Prince has no further business, Ye Li will take her leave."
"Stay right there!" Mo Jingli commanded angrily. With a sweep of his arm, he dragged Ye Li behind a rockery. Ye Li glanced at the hand gripping her wrist, her expression hardening. "His Highness Prince Li, I ask that you conduct yourself with dignity!"
"Dignity?" Mo Jingli sneered callously. "Who do you think you are? Just a woman I cast aside. You think marrying Mo Xiuyao will save you? Suppose... if someone saw us now, would you still have the face to marry Mo Xiuyao? Or perhaps, even that useless Mo Xiuyao would reject you, wouldn’t he?"
A dangerous glint flashed in Ye Li’s narrowed eyes. "His Highness Prince Li, release me."
"And what if I don’t?" Mo Jingli taunted, looking at the seemingly fragile woman before him as if she were a small bird trapped in a cage. Unfortunately, he didn’t realize that beneath her delicate and graceful appearance was a man-eating goshawk. Ye Li’s lips curled up slightly. "Then how about this!" Her free hand shot out, swiftly and powerfully gripping Mo Jingli’s arm. With a slight exertion of force, a heart-piercing pain shot through him. Before Mo Jingli could even react, she executed a side throw, slamming him to the ground. To make matters worse, as they were standing at the base of the rockery, Mo Jingli’s head struck one of the rocks, and he fainted on the spot. Ye Li hadn’t anticipated this outcome, so she immediately halted any further action. She bent down to check Mo Jingli’s condition; finding no serious injury, she stood up and kicked his prone form a few times to vent her anger. My former profession made me more familiar with human anatomy than most, so I naturally know how to make someone hurt more without leaving any marks.
Once her anger subsided, Ye Li couldn’t help but frown. Knocking out Prince Li in his own mansion really isn’t good, especially on his wedding day. However, it’s not an irresolvable problem either. Glancing at the unconscious man on the ground, Ye Li calmly stepped over him and walked away composedly.
「」
Leaving the rockery, she rounded a couple of corners and saw Hua Tianxiang and Murong Ting waiting anxiously. Seeing Ye Li approach, they quickly rushed over. "Ah-Li, are you alright? Did Prince Li do anything to you?" Murong Ting asked worriedly, grasping Ye Li’s arm.
Ye Li smiled. "Don’t I look fine? What could he possibly do to me in broad daylight?"
Murong Ting chuckled, embarrassed. "You’re right, I was overthinking it. But you should still stay away from Prince Li."
Hua Tianxiang nodded in agreement, then asked curiously, "How come you finished talking so quickly?"
Ye Li shrugged. "There wasn’t much to say, really."
"Let’s not talk about such tiresome people," Hua Tianxiang said. "Let’s go sit down and have some tea. I really envy Zheng’er; Lord Qin never forces her to attend banquets she dislikes."
Ye Li nodded, and hand in hand, the three of them headed towards the more crowded area.
The wedding ceremony proceeded as scheduled. This helped alleviate the slight awkwardness caused by missing the auspicious hour for the bridal procession, and it seemed a successful conclusion could finally be anticipated—if one could ignore Prince Li’s expression, which looked more suited for a funeral. Ye Li, sitting next to Hua Tianxiang, noticed Mo Xiuyao looking at her with an amused glint in his eyes. She followed his gaze, which then shifted to Mo Jingli, who was walking alongside Ye Ying, both holding the red wedding silk. Almost instantly, Ye Li understood that Mo Xiuyao must already know what had happened to Mo Jingli that afternoon. But judging by Mo Xiuyao’s gaze, the matter is probably not over yet.
Thus, when the master of ceremonies loudly called for the bride and groom to exchange ceremonial bows, and then, with a THUD, the groom collapsed to the ground, unconscious, Ye Li wasn’t the least bit surprised. Instead, she had a strong sense of ’as expected.’ At this moment, I absolutely believe Mo Jingli will probably never want to hold another wedding ceremony in his entire life. Anyone who faints three times within a twenty-four-hour period surrounding their wedding would undoubtedly develop some kind of trauma related to them.
"How... how could this happen?" an astonished Murong Ting stammered, nearly speechless.
Hua Tianxiang was equally dumbstruck. "This..." I don’t know what to say. Actually, I’m starting to feel a bit sorry for Ye Ying. First, they missed the auspicious time for the procession, and now the groom faints during the ceremony...
"PHEW... Ah-Li, Prince Li’s constitution is truly too poor. Fortunately..." Hua Tianxiang trailed off, implying relief for Ye Li.
Everyone was stunned by this sudden development. It was Grand Consort Wise Zhao who reacted first, quickly ordering people to send the bride and groom back to their chamber and summon the imperial physicians. Although the groom had fainted, the wedding banquet had to continue, but the guests clearly had little appetite. The noblewomen speculated on the true reason for Prince Li’s collapse while mentally preparing for the latest gossip that would surely spread through the Capital City the next day.
Meanwhile, Ye Li mentally reviewed all the possible consequences of knocking Mo Jingli unconscious that afternoon. Concluding there were no major issues, she felt at ease and proceeded to enjoy the delicious food with Hua Tianxiang and Murong Ting. When she caught sight of a certain man in an inconspicuous corner, smiling triumphantly and raising his cup to her in a toast, she nodded slightly in return. This wedding... is indeed quite interesting.
