161 Untitled (1/2)
When Meng Fuyao was finally released and awoken by a certain someone, she only saw Zhangsun Wuji's back leaning against the bed as he stared at the moon, his long hair in ripples behind him and his breathing steady and calm. When he heard the sound of her sitting up, without turning around, he said gently,
”Fuyao.”
Meng Fuyao hardened her face, refusing to reply.
”Princess Lotus is not my fiancée.”
Meng Fuyao was stunned for a moment.
Following that, she gave a cold laugh and said, ”Zhangsun Wuji, you shouldn't be so stubborn even if you want to shirk responsibility. This is the Five Region Continent, you're the prince of the most powerful country, and she's the princess of the most powerful country. Based on her status, if that wasn't the truth, how could she have faced a complete stranger and said that she was your fiancée?”
The more she thought, the more ridiculous it felt and she laughed until her teeth were showing as she reached out a hand, grabbed Zhangsun Wuji's arm and bit down viciously.
”I'll bite you to death, you lying, black-hearted prince, who knows who you've cheated, number one crook in the Five Region Continent…”
Zhangsun Wuji let her continue biting him as he smiled mildly. ”Ah, it hurts.”
'Pain his ass!' Meng Fuyao simply couldn't bite down to begin with. Zhangsun Wuji's skin was not steel-like like Zhan Beiye's, but inner energy surrounded every inch of his body, and when Meng Fuyao bit down, she felt the inner energy rebound against her teeth and rubbing her sore teeth, she angrily let go of his hand and cursed, ”Do you really think she's just boy crazy, not caring about her pride and status to just grab a man and anyhow claim to be his fiancée…”
”She's really just boy crazy.”
A simple sentence elicited a response more shocking than thunder as Meng Fuyao instantly jumped up, her voice even changing as she asked, ”What?”
Zhangsun Wuji turned around. Although it was only a difference of a period, he actually suddenly looked somewhat exhausted, his face slightly pale under the moonlight, slightly translucent like jade. He replied mildly, ”Princess Lotus, isn't a normal girl.”
Meng Fuyao glared at him, not noticing his expression. She was thunderstruck by his reply earlier and asked again, ”What do you mean?”
”I should put it this way, Princess Lotus isn't a girl you can use ordinary girls in the Five Region Continent to compare with. She may look kind and benevolent, but actually, she's extremely petty and paranoid. Her religiousness is also more or less just to adjust her temperament,” Zhangsun Wuji raised his eyebrows as he continued, ”I still prefer to call her Feng Jingfan, and indeed I was once engaged to Feng Jingfan, and I once used a hand-drawn map of Xuanji as an engagement gift, but after that, I broke off the engagement.”
”Ah?”
”My breaking off the engagement caused quite a bit of trouble. Back then, Father was critically ill, and there was uncertainty within the nation. All the officials were uneasy, and I was still young and inexperienced then, not ready to serve the nation. The neighboring nation, Fufeng, was watching us closely and waiting for an opportune moment and I intended to head out to resolve the external problems. However, Father was afraid of offending Xuanji, worried that Xuanji would form an alliance with Fufeng and go against Wuji. Yet, I was adamant on breaking off the engagement, and hence used several tactics, forcing Xuanji's leader to finally agree to it, but he made a single request to me.”
”Mn?”
”He said, Feng Jingfan has been different from the others since young and adding on to the fact that she had a deep infatuation with me and would not marry anyone else, the blow from having the engagement broken off be publicly announced might cause her to want to end her life. Thus, we only agreed to break it off in secret and wait until Feng Jingfan got older and found someone else to fill her heart with before letting the princess announce it publicly to the seven nations. Before that happens, he requested that for the sake of the Feng clan and the princess's life, to keep it a secret.”
”Did you agree?”
”Firstly, it's because at the time the situation in the nation was unstable and we couldn't afford to offend Xuanji. Secondly, I was still young then; I felt that I was at fault and that the princess was pitiable, that a girl wouldn't be able to bear the burden so as a man I had to bear it, and agreed. I only requested that they return the map of Xuanji.”
”Did they return it?”
”No?” Zhangsun Wuji's smile looked slightly cold as he said, ”Xuanji's leader made many excuses, first saying that the map was with the princess and that she treasured it a lot, taking it back would harm her life. After that, they said that the map was missing and not in the palace, and they promised me that they would find it back. In the end, after searching for so many years, not even a shadow could be found.”
Meng Fuyao was biting her finger, still in shock, and she asked skeptically, ”Feng Jingfan really doesn't know that you've already broken off the engagement?”
”I doubt that she doesn't know,” replied Zhangsun Wuji, ”I tried testing her. From the looks of it, she probably already knows something, but pretends not to know.”
Meng Fuyao mumbled, ”You're twenty-six and still unmarried, and she's not young anymore either, yet she's willing to wait around like this, could it be that she's waiting for you to have a change of heart?”
Zhangsun Wuji smiled without saying anything. It was a silent consent.
Meng Fuyao rubbed her face, thinking, 'No wonder Zhangsun Wuji never mentioned about this matter. There was never a fiancée in his heart to begin with.'
She thought of another question and asked, ”You haven't said why you wanted to break off the engagement?”
Zhangsun Wuji fell silent for a moment before responding, ”I met someone else.”
”Nonsense!” Meng Fuyao immediately shot back, ”Don't use your feelings for me as an excuse, you hadn't even met me when you requested to break off the engagement.”
”That engagement was a mistake.” Zhangsun Wuji looked at her intently and said, ”Since it was wrong, I have to correct it no matter what.”