The Tyrant's Beloved Empress

31

The Grand Princess was followed by a man with a muscular build and a handsome face. He was probably the Fu Ma1, Cai Yu.

An Chang Qing bowed, "Greetings to Grand Princess, Fu Ma."

Xiao Zhige also greeted, "Aunty, uncle."

A smile appeared on the Grand Princess's face. She said to An Chang Qing, "Your eyes are sharp. You don't have to address me so formally, just call me as Zhige does." She then turned to Xiao Zhige, "Go with your Uncle, I'll accompany Chang Qing. I won't let him be bullied."

The Grand Princess wanted to look after An Chang Qing for him but Xiao Zhige rejected the gesture. With the same cold look, he said, "I dare not bother Aunty, Chang Qing will come with me."

"I'm afraid this is uncustomary..." The Grand Princess was stunned.

"We're both men, what is wrong with Chang Qing coming with me? We'll take our leave." Xiao Zhige nodded at them before taking An Chang Qing to the other side.

Even after being brushed off, the Grand Princess did not feel insulted. Her eyes fell on their joined hands and after a while, she shook her head and smiled, "He's very protective of him. Oh well, I don't have the right to meddle in the first place."

Her husband scowled and said, "The Northern Warlord's temperament is simply unreasonable."

The Grand Princess's smile faded. She stared back at him and said sternly, "How did he turn out this way, do you not know?"

Cai Yu choked up and stopped talking. The Grand Princess gave him a look of contempt before turning around and leaving.

.....

An Chang Qing was led by Xiao Zhige to the other side while the maid who was supposed to lead the way hurriedly chased after.

Feeling the increased force on his wrist, An Chang Qing looked up at the man's face and saw that he was brooding.

"Wait!" An Chang Qing called out but the man continued to pull him forward as though he did not hear.

Seeing this, An Chang Qing sulked and deliberately said, "My wrist is hurting."

Only then did Xiao Zhige stop and loosen his grip. He stared sharply at the maid following them to chase her away before carefully rubbing the red wrist, "Sorry..."

"What's wrong?" An Chang Qing could sense his mood sinking. He asked with concern, "Does it have something to do with the Grand Princess?"

An Chang Qing had seen the Grand Princess twice in his previous life but they had never had any interaction. He only knew that she was quite popular during her youth. Many of Yejing's aristocratic bachelors had wanted her hand in marriage but she had refused them all to marry a fourth-grade general, and that was General Cai Yu.

The Cai Family was glorious generations ago but by his father's time, the family had declined considerably. By right, marrying the Princess meant that he would have to be banned from taking up any governmental position. However, after the marriage, he personally asked for the Emperor's blessing and managed to keep his post as a general. And after a few outstanding feats, he was promoted to a first-grade general by Emperor An Qing.

It is said that Cai Yu was deeply in love with the princess and vowed that she would be his only wife. After their marriage, he did not take in any concubines nor step foot in a brothel. Theirs had become quite a popular love story.

Even so, from the two times that he had met them in his past life, An Chang Qing noticed that the Princess's attitude towards her husband was very stale. They did not seem to be as affectionate as rumored. Furthermore, the couple had been married for nearly ten years but did not have any offspring. Some years later, Cai Yu died on the battlefield and the Princess stayed in her manor to worship Budha and meditate, refusing to take the next step.