Chapter 287 Unbearable Heartache

So what if she saw Long Tianyu again? It was either this Master Bamboo or that mysterious Master Plum whom Long Tianyu had a relationship with.

Was she not supposed to be able to let go easily? Why did she feel a pain beyond what she could bear?

Putting her small hand on her chest, it was indeed difficult to withstand a heartache due to love. Fortunately, she was not too deep into it yet. If she were to withdraw from her emotions now, she would not be lost forever.

Trudging toward Prince Yu’s Mansion, tears started welling up in Lin Mengya’s eyes without realizing it. Qiu Yu who caught up with after much effort, tapped lightly on her shoulder.

However, he was met with an expression that indicated that Lin Mengya was about to break down into tears.

“You—”

The stunned Qiu Yu did not understand how an outstanding woman like her had a fragile side to her.

Lin Mengya turned around, quickly wiped her hand across her face, and pretended that nothing had happened as she faced Qiu Yu.

“I’m fine. Why did you not stay in Northern Tower to enjoy the plum flowers?”

Qiu Yu took out his handkerchief from his sleeves and passed it to Lin Mengya, giving her a tender and graceful smile.

“I can always enjoy the plum flowers at other times, but have you encountered any difficulties? Do you want to tell me?”

Lin Mengya took over Qiu Yu’s handkerchief, feeling embarrassed. She was not the kind to be overcome by emotions. Now that she had been caught shedding tears, she thought her image had been ruined in this instance.

“Nothing, it’s just the wind. Oh yes, you seem to be very familiar with Northern Tower. Are you also a gallant young man?”

She was surprised that she would one day be using such a clumsy excuse to cover up her reason for shedding tears.

Qiu Yu was an understanding and reasonable person after all. Sensing that Lin Mengya was not willing to reveal the reason for her misery, he just took her excuse as it was.

“The court of imperial physicians are full of stubborn old men. All I could do to ease boredom was to come out and find some interesting places to visit.”

Lin Mengya looked at Qiu Yu, who looked more like a frail scholar than the imperial physicians.

After they went on for a while, Lin Mengya was surprised to find that Qiu Yu was rather knowledgeable in medical science. As they chatted along the way, they actually found each other congenial.

“I heard that you’re going into the palace to treat the Emperor’s illnesses.”

Lin Mengya was struck dumb for a moment by Qiu Yu’s question, but she quickly nodded.

This was no longer a secret. Moreover, she was already the Emperor’s daughter-in-law. Be it publicly or privately, she was the best candidate.

However, Qiu Yu seemed uneasy about Lin Mengya going into the palace. Could he have known some inside information that Lin Mengya was not aware of?

“Things in the palace are not as simple as you think. You might encounter some dangers if you wish to enter the palace. Even as Princess Yu, you will still not be completely free from all these entanglements.”

Almost everyone, who had heard that she was entering the palace, had given her the same advice.

Lin Mengya had her own thoughts.

“I know your concerns. I suppose it’s not all peaceful in the court of imperial physicians.”

Qiu Yu chuckled casually as if he was not at all bothered.

“Everyone in the court of imperial physician has a tongue. You can’t control what others say. It would not be easy to repudiate what they say.”

As much as these words were plain and easy to understand, Lin Mengya reaffirmed her belief.

The Emperor’s illness was not as simple as it seemed.

“Don’t tell me the Emperor is not really ill?”

Lin Mengya wished to find out more about the Emperor’s condition from alternative sources. Despite Qiu Yu looking like a frail scholar, he remained tight-lipped.

“When you enter the palace, Princess Yu, you will naturally find out about it. Here we are. I’ll excuse myself from here on.”

Lin Mengya watched Qiu Yu as he turned to leave, then she went into deep thoughts.

She had thought that she would merely enter the palace to have a look at the Emperor.

Qiu Yu might not have revealed anything, but it appeared that there were evil plots everywhere. The choice of whether to enter the palace became a tricky one.

“You’re back, Mistress.”

A servant came up to welcome her once she arrived at the gates.

Lin Mengya nodded at her. Nowadays, her going in and out of the mansion was so common that no one dared question her or show disrespect towards her. The entire mansion was her territory by now.

In retrospect, what happened a half year ago seemed like a life time ago.

After Lin Mengya entered the front yard and rounded the corridor to make her way to the Liuxin Courtyard, incidentally she bumped into Long Tianyu.

As Lin Mengya stood in the corridor, she looked so elegant and beautiful. He, on the other hand, was clad in a black robe, looking valiant and mighty.

It had only been a few days since they had last seen each other, and Long Tianyu’s mind had been occupied by her images all this time.

When he was about to say something, he saw that she was holding on to a plain-colored handkerchief in her hands.

It was obviously a handkerchief belonging to a man.

“Who did you go out to see today?” asked Long Tianyu.

He immediately regretted asking. He had merely wanted to know her whereabouts, but the tone of his voice ended up sounding like he was interrogating her.

Given her temperament, he supposed she would be upset.

As he expected, Lin Mengya stuffed the handkerchief into her sleeve and a cold smile appeared on her face. The tender affection in her eyes towards him was absent.

“I suppose my whereabouts had nothing to do with you, Your Highness. Or do you think I should be reporting to you? If you’d like to know, you can send men to follow me next time. I’m tired. Please, excuse me.”

Lin Mengya purposely walked past Long Tianyu while revealing the handkerchief in her hand. Long Tianyu’s interrogation made her even angrier.

Why did he interrogate her just because she was holding on to a man’s handkerchief? In that case, why did he not think of how upset she would be when he was unfaithful to her?

In a flash, Long Tianyu, taking advantage of his long legs, went around Lin Mengya quickly and stood before once again.

Being much taller, Long Tianyu looked down at Lin Mengya with an intimidating look in his eyes.

Lin Mengya stared into his eyes without fear, her eyes larger than his. She had never really been intimidated by anyone!

The two continued staring at each other, as if they were challenging each other. Long Tianyu increasingly found her small, angry face adorable.

Her widened eyes, though filled with rage, were still so attractive.

Without further hesitation, he lowered his head to kiss those pouty lips.

Before he got what he wanted, pain shot up from his toes.

“You—”

He looked on as Lin Mengya, looking victorious and proud, turned and left. Long Tianyu felt as if his heart had been trickled by a little kitten.

“What? Good dogs would not block the way. If you try to block my way again, I will trample on your toes and break them.”

Her threats echoed from behind Long Tianyu. He stood there, stupefied. He was so used to seeing the gentle and intelligent side of her.

Somehow, today, there seemed to be an exception!

As he cursed Lin Mengya in his heart, Long Tianyu was unaware that Lin Mengya’s occasional sassy behavior had stirred up the secret fighting spirit in him.

However, she was truly provoked.

She had thought that Long Tianyu would at least become jealous or even guilt-stricken. Little did she expect that he would appear unraveled but started interrogating her. He even wanted to be intimate with her!

Bah! What did he take her for?

Lin Mengya returned to the Linxin Courtyard in rage. Pulling a long face, she said to Baizhi, “From today onwards, prepare spicy food for the prince for his every meal!”

Did he not fancy hot, spicy and sexy girls? Alright, he would be given hot and spicy food until he could not stand it!

Baizhi stared at the almond pastry in her hand, then looked to her mistress’ tightly shut door. Who was she angry with now?

Since her encounter with Long Tianyu in the courtyard that day, Lin Mengya had shut herself in her room and refused to come out. This was what other people thought.

In reality, Yunzhu had come to fetch her secretly to Sanjue on a few occasions.

It would be the New Year’s Eve in three days. All the people working at Sanjue Hall, regardless of the gentlemen or the horse legs, had to return home for the New Year. Lin Mengya had purchased many new year goodies for them, as well as bonuses for those who were making a trip home.

For those who had nowhere to go during the new year period, she had made arrangements for their accommodation. There were still many rooms in that courtyard that could accommodate them.

While the wind was chilly, her courtyard remained quiet.

No one from Sanjue Hall dared come into her courtyard. Violating that rule warranted a death penalty and nobody dared to challenge it.

Lin Mengya willingly downed a pot of sweet wine and was tipsy.

She lay on the soft mattress of her bed, drunk. She could vaguely make out Qinghu sitting in front of her, looking helplessly at her.

“I thought you hated drunkards the most. Why did you get drunk today?”

Qinghu picked up the wine jug from the floor and gulped down a mouthful of it. It was no wonder this lass was drunk. The wine was fragrant and deliciously sweet, but the after taste was strong.

“It’s a sin to be too sober. Didn’t you say you were going to be away for a few days? Why are you back so quickly?”

Last night, she had seen the sedan belonging to North Tower once again.

After a while, she gradually got used to the heartache. She had wanted to have a drink with Yunzhu since she felt bored during the winter day. Never did she expect herself to get drunk before Yunzhu did.

“Look at you, how could my mind be at ease? If I’m no longer by your side, lass, you’ve to take care of yourself.”

For the first time, Qinghu’s eyes told of his indulgence and his reluctance to part with her.

He thought he no longer had a future of his own, and naturally, he did not want to indulge in his emotions. At this juncture, Lin Mengya was his only care and worry in this world.

“Where’re you going? No way, you promised me that the rest of the time in your life belongs to me now.”

As Lin Mengya spouted words of a drunk person, she had gradually fallen asleep.

A helpless smile appeared at the corners of Qinghu’s mouth. He reached out his big hand and stroke her long hair. He knew she was not wary of him, like how a woman would towards a man. However, he could not be considered a man anyways.

Despite much sorrow in his eyes, he knew he would not have any regrets.

“Are you really going? You are putting your life in danger by doing so. If Hall Master knows what you are going to do, she will surely be saddened.”

Not too far off, Yunzhu’s slender and attractive silhouette could be seen tripping along down like a cloud.