Blindfolded

Chapter 1 - Wrong Bridegroom

The scarlet red scarf flaunted before my eyes for several hours, making my eyes sore, but no one came to remove it. It wasn't until the Hai hour, when the cheers and laughter outside the room had faded into silence, that my husband Liu Yu finally arrived.

Although I couldn't see anything, I could tell from Liu Yu's footsteps that he was very steady and had not been drinking much. He hadn't been drinking much because his true love wasn't me.

Liu Yu removed my scarf, and then unexpectedly tied a bright red ribbon over my eyes.

I thought Liu Yu was trying to humiliate me.

Our marriage was bestowed by the empress dowager, so Liu Yu had no choice but to consummate our marriage. However, if he were to sleep with me, he would be completely betraying his true love. Liu Yu must have had trouble reconciling this in his heart, which is why he chose to cover my face.

After Liu Yu finished tying the ribbon, he did not do anything.

Things turned out like this, why should I wait any longer? By the time I lay down, I was already feeling drowsy.

When the belt suddenly came undone, I was wide awake and shivering slightly.

The man who was mounting me seemed to dislike the red dress I was wearing, because I heard the sound of fabric tearing.

I felt a little cold.

But after a brief moment, I didn't feel cold anymore. Every inch of my skin felt hot and feverish after being deliberately kissed.

I felt a little uneasy, and the hand that was lying beside me felt stiff.

Liu Yu extended his right hand and intertwined his fingers with mine.

But I felt even more stiff.

The familiar, warm, and smooth sensation of the white jade ring between our fingers told me that the man who was with me right now was not Liu Yu.

I suppressed the urge to cry out "brother."

This situation is ridiculous, but even if everyone in the world knows it, I can't speak of it.

I am not the emperor's real sister, but I grew up with him. When I was seven years old, my biological father, Duke Wei, died in battle, and my mother died of shock when she heard the news. The current empress dowager, who was then the empress, felt pity for me as her niece's orphan, and took me in to raise me with other princesses. She also made me call all the princes "brother."

The sixth prince, Jingting, had the coldest personality, but whenever he saw me, he would smile.

When I turned fifteen, Jingting was already twenty-two years old and had ascended the throne. In his free time, he still summoned me to his study, teaching me calligraphy and letting me play the zither. But one time, when I quietly came to him and covered his eyes from behind, Jingting immediately recognized me, but didn't let me go. Jingting's hand slowly climbed up the hand that was covering his eyes, and he held it tenderly like that. Then the empress dowager happened to come in, and I could tell that she wasn't very happy.

Afterwards, I stopped going to Jingting's study, and instead stayed in the Empress Dowager's palace to transcribe Buddhist scriptures every day. One time when His Majesty came, I still hid in the back and quietly listened to Jingting talk about two things. The first was that there were some unruly examinees causing trouble in a neighboring province, and he needed to go take a look. The second was that he was going to crown Wei Yueyue as the Empress.

I almost shattered the inkstone, my heart filled with fear and trepidation.

Wei Yueyue is me.

The Empress Dowager agreed to the first matter, but naturally refused the second matter and said it was too hasty, and she would postpone it for now. However, as soon as Jingting left the capital, the imperial decree for me and Liu Yu's marriage was announced.

Jingting rushed back as fast as he could, but the imperial decree had already been announced throughout the city. It was too late to regret.

So now I am lying in the bridal chamber of the Liu mansion, but I never expected that the groom would be replaced.

Jingting didn't say a word, but his restless desire was conveyed through gradually deepening breaths.

It really was him.

I became more and more uneasy, but gradually lost consciousness in the midst of our repeated intimacy.

I don't know when Jingting left, but when I woke up, Liu Yu was lying next to me.

The next morning, after dressing up, Liu Yu and I went to the palace to express our thanks to the Emperor, but we remained silent.

Only when he was off guard could I glance at his expression hidden behind his stern face.

He seemed anxious too, but still chose to be "loyal" to the Emperor and to his own love.

When we arrived at the Emperor's palace, we heard that he had a last-minute matter and could not meet us.

I was relieved that he was busy, but when I went to see the Empress Dowager directly, Liu Yu was allowed to leave the palace, but I was detained because Princess Nine wanted to see me. I had always been close with Princess Nine, so of course I went without hesitation.

But when the eunuch led me to the study, I sensed something was wrong. Princess Nine hates going to the study and always gets a headache when she sees words.

Someone else wanted to see me.

That someone was the Emperor. When I saw Jingting sitting alone from a distance, I almost collapsed.

Jingting was rarely dressed in a red robe with golden trim. If it weren't for his familiar posture, I would have had trouble recognizing him.

I slowly walked over, forcing down my nervousness, and greeted him as usual. "Brother Emperor"

Jingting had been reading with his head down, and at the sound of my voice, he lazily turned the page without looking up.

When Jingting didn't speak, his handsome features took on a hint of coldness.

I didn't understand why he was ignoring me.

"Your Majesty?"

"The new bride has arrived," Jingting's tone was ambiguous, as if hiding his emotions.

"You said you were busy and couldn't meet anyone today, took me some time to find you."

"I don't want to see anyone, especially you." Jingting carelessly closed his book and finally looked up at me."

"Then why did you summon me again?"

"To punish you."

As soon as Jingting spoke, I suddenly remembered that when he first heard about the imperial decree, he only asked me once if I was willing to marry Liu Yu.

I said yes.