Tang Dynasty Hidden Guards

Back on the ship, Yuan Min whispered to Xue Wei, "Are you angry?"

Xue Wei put his arm around her shoulder and laughed, "You've already clearly rejected him, why would I be angry?"

"But... he keeps writing to me, he's still up to no good. The day before yesterday he even wrote to invite me to a spring outing today, but I ignored him and didn't reply to his letter."

"He just said, 'Did you tell him you didn't have time today?'"

"I didn't tell him I didn't have time today, but that I've never had time. Because once, when I was leaving in the morning, he was waiting outside the door and invited me to go on a spring outing with him. I politely declined, saying that I had been very busy these past few months and had no time to go out and have fun."

"Was he very persistent in pursuing you?" Xue Wei asked in a low voice.

Yuan Min nodded gently. "There's something I have to tell you. You may not even realize it yourself, but Wu Liankun's matter hurt me a lot. It hurt so much that I wavered in my choice. I felt that my devotion to you was a joke. The day I found out the truth, I cried all night."

My mother could also see it, and she repeatedly advised me to give up on you and choose Cui Shi. She even mobilized several of my sisters to take turns persuading me, saying how good Cui Shi was and how one in a million he was. Even my grandfather told me that if I chose Cui Shi, I would become the wife of a prime minister in the future.

For those three days, Cui Shi came to my residence every day to wait for me. He wrote me twelve letters and fifteen poems in those three days. Every evening when I returned home, my mother would place a thick stack of letters on my table and say, "Look at his sincerity!"

But I'm a stubborn person. I thought about it for three days and finally decided to give you another chance. I had the maid burn all the letters Cui Shi wrote to me.

"I really didn't mean to hide it from you!"

Xue Wei hurriedly explained, "I'm just afraid you'll be disappointed, afraid you'll think I'm not right for you."

"I know you've explained this many times. I'm just talking about what happened back then. Actually, I thought about it then too. Maybe you were hiding things from me because you didn't trust me. You just didn't want me to know that you killed someone, didn't want me to know how ruthless you were. But you have to remember, it's your fear and your concealment that will disappoint me. What I want is the real you, someone who won't hide anything from me or deceive me, someone I can completely trust."

"I promise......"

Yuan Min reached out and covered his mouth. "I don't need your verbal promises, I need you to actually do it. Lao Xue, stop creating opportunities for others."

Xue Wei remained silent, only now realizing what had happened during those three days.

Cui Shi was hailed as the most handsome man in the world. Not only was his appearance and temperament outstanding, but he was also exceptionally talented in literature. In particular, he came from a prestigious family and was young and promising, serving as a censor. How many women in the world could resist such a man?

Historically, there was a reason why Cui Shi was able to be the lover of both Shangguan Wan'er and Princess Taiping at the same time.

As for his despicable character, that's a matter for later. He knows the history, but Yuan Min doesn't. The current Cui Shi is very good at disguising himself; he is upright and sincere.

It's impossible for Yuan Min not to be tempted at all by a man like that; at the very least, she would feel a little vain, especially since her sisters all envied Cui Shi for pursuing her.

Even steel can melt under the onslaught of fire, let alone Yuan Min, who is not steel but a human being. Humans have moments of weakness and despair. In addition, her grandfather and mother create opportunities for Cui Shi. Once Yuan Min's mentality resurfaces, Cui Shi will seize the opportunity to take advantage of her vulnerability.

Xue Wei finally realized that he could no longer make such a fundamental mistake. His ex had hurt Yuan Min so deeply, yet she had forgiven him and was still willing to give him a chance. Now, it seemed that this chance was incredibly precious.

Xue Wei held her hand and said sincerely, "Thank you for still believing in me, and thank you for giving me another chance."

Yuan Min said in a low voice, "You hurt me so much before, do you know why I'm willing to give you another chance after you get out of prison?"

Xue Wei looked at her; this was also what he wanted to know.

"Because I'm not reconciled!"

Yuan Min gazed at him, her eyes shining. "I think I like you so much, why do you never look at me, not even once? So after you got out of prison, I approached you again, hoping you would look at me properly just this once. If you still don't like me, then I'll accept it. At least I tried, at least..."

Xue Wei suddenly hugged her tightly, his voice trembling with nervousness, "Amin, the old Xue Wei died in the Dali Temple prison. The current Xue Wei is his soul reincarnated after a thousand years. He cherishes you more than ever before, and he's more afraid of losing you than ever before!"

Xue Wei pressed his forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes, and said, "I will make you believe in me again, through every little thing. I will make you believe that your unwillingness to accept defeat was the right choice!"

As Yuan Min received his embrace, the happiness she had always longed for surged into her heart again. She suddenly wanted to cry, but she desperately held back, holding Xue Wei tightly with both hands, afraid that this reborn Xue Wei would run away again.

"I assure you, I didn't see him for those three days, not even once. He came to the Yuan residence every day after court and didn't leave until the drums sounded at night. I went out early and came home late every day to avoid him. My mother kept nagging in my ear, 'Amin! He's really sincere, just meet him! It won't cost you anything.'"

But Mother made a mistake. Although I was angry with you at the time, it didn't mean I would choose Cui Shi. Those are two different things.

Xue Wei patted her on the back and laughed, "This Imperial Censor Cui takes the court's salary but doesn't do his job properly, using court time to write private letters. You certainly wouldn't like someone like that, and of course you wouldn't force yourself to!"

Yuan Min burst out laughing. She sat up, took out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and the air in the cabin became lighter.

"I hadn't realized it until you said it. He writes four letters a day, and he also has to rack his brains to write poems. After court, he goes to the Yuan residence and sits there like an idiot. He still has to sleep at night. Where does he find the time? He must be writing them secretly during court sessions."

"Maybe these are letters he wrote to other women before. He kept the drafts, then changed the name and gave them to you. It's the same with poems; he just changed the content slightly, like changing autumn to spring or something like that."

"I won't comment on his character, and I don't care about his letters. I only care about you. When are you going to write me a few letters?"

"Isn't it enough that I'm by your side every day?"

"That's different. You can deny what you said if you just say it, but it's different if you write a letter. It's in black and white, you can't deny it. We've agreed that you'll write me a letter every day. It's okay if you can't keep it up, but you have to draw me a cute and well-behaved portrait every day."

"Yes, my lady!"

"Who is your wife?"

Yuan Min laughed and punched Xue Wei lightly. Then she remembered something and said with some worry, "But my mother and grandfather both like him very much, and they've even decided on him. That's why he won't give up. I think there will be a tough battle ahead."

Xue Wei smiled slightly and said, "We are comrades-in-arms; we fight side by side!"

"Okay! Let's do it together."

Yuan Min suddenly realized what was happening, gently pushed Xue Wei, and said coquettishly, "You cunning little devil, I haven't agreed to marry you yet, my test isn't over!"

Xue Wei chuckled, reached out and put his arm around her shoulder, holding her tightly. "I know, I'm still trying!"

Yuan Min gently rested her head on his shoulder and said softly, "Thank you for accompanying me on this spring outing today. I'm so happy!"

"Me too!"

"Let's head back early today! You have your second elimination match tomorrow! You need to prepare well and can't be careless."

"good!"

At this moment, Xue Wei suddenly remembered something and said to Yuan Min, "I'll tell you a big secret!"

"Ah! I love listening to secrets the most."

Yuan Min quickly got up and sat opposite him, pretending to listen attentively.

Xue Wei shook his head slightly, "I'm not joking, this is a really big deal."

Yuan Min's smile slowly faded.

Xue Wei recalled, "It was last year. Before I was thrown into the water dungeon, I was probably given arsenic, but I didn't die. There was another young man next to me who was also given poison. I suspect it was Li Chongrun."

"What evidence do you have to suspect that he is Li Chongrun?"

"Because he was on the verge of death but not yet dead, he asked me to tell his father that he was the son of a prince."

Yuan Min nodded. "That should be Li Chongrun. Although there's also Wu Yanji in that case, Wu Yanji's father, Wu Chengsi, died long ago, so there's no way he could have passed on the information. But what's the secret?"

"He said the item was hidden in a secret room in the study, and the mechanism to open it was... under the bed, and that it would also be of good use to me."

"Ah! It really is a secret."

Xue Wei asked with some concern, "Li Chongrun is the Crown Prince; could that secret study room be located in the Eastern Palace?"

"no!"

Yuan Min shook her head with certainty and said, "Li Chongrun moved out of the Eastern Palace two years ago. The Emperor bestowed upon him a new mansion called Xinshao Prince's Mansion, and he has been living there ever since. This is common knowledge."

"That secret is hidden in Prince Shao's mansion!"

"I think so, but let's not rush this. I'll send Qingling to observe the situation at Prince Shao's residence, and then we'll discuss it further."

Xue Wei nodded. He had kept this secret for a year, so there was no rush.