An Eight-year-old Princess

Chapter 192 The Return Of The Nightmare (Part Three)

Yun Shang stretched out her hand to wipe the sweat on her face. Huan'er! Her Huan'er... The

nightmare had shattered Yun Shang's heart. She wondered how her Huan'er was doing now. Did he

find a good family in his new life? Was he loved by his parents and siblings?

Taking the silk towel handed by Qin Yi, Yun Shang cleaned her face gently. Although she was no longer

asleep or in a daze, the Princess still stared blankly at the wall in front of her. Sensing someone else's

stare, Yun Shang suddenly raised her head to check. Prince Jing was frowning at her.

Prince Jing...

Yun Shang was surprised. She blinked her eyes to dispel the illusion. But he didn't disappear. 'Is the

Prince really standing in my room?' Yun Shang wondered.

Yun Shang turned to look at Qin Yi. The maid caught the Princess's confused expression. Qin Yi

explained with a smile, "Your Highness, Prince Jing has been here for a while. As Your Highness was

sleeping, we didn't wake you. The Prince intended to visit you tomorrow. But I told the Prince that Your

Highness had instructed the cooks to prepare dinner. So the Prince is waiting in the Hall for Your

Highness to wake up."

Did His Majesty indeed set Prince Jing free? As Yun Shang was still in her trance, she looked at Prince

Jing in astonishment. Prince Jing burst into laughter while seeing Yun Shang's expression. He walked

into Yun Shang's chamber and sat on her bedside. After touching Yun Shang's forehead, the Prince

asked gently, "Did you have a nightmare?"

Yun Shang nodded. Yes! It was indeed her most terrifying nightmare. Yun Shang thought to herself.

"What kind of nightmare was it? I saw that you were troubled in your sleep. And you woke up all of a

sudden. You even kept calling Huan'er in your dream. Who is Huan'er?" Prince Jing asked curiously.

Yun Shang was surprised at the Prince's question. She lowered her head after a short while, "I cannot

remember. I cannot even remember what I saw in my dream..." Catching a trace of suspicion in Prince

Jing's eyes, Yun Shang decided to change the topic to divert the Prince's attention. "Are you okay?"

Prince Jing nodded and said with a smile, "Of course. What would happen to me?"

Yun Shang was bewildered by the Prince's response. After a short while, she muttered, "It's all right. It's

all right." Then Yun Shang stopped to collect herself before speaking, "At any rate, it was dangerous. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

Master Wu Na said there would be more dangers waiting for you in the future. So let's marry. That's the

only way to protect you."

"Hum?" Prince Jing blinked his eyes in confusion. He only realized what Yun Shang meant after a long

while. The Prince could not help but burst into a fit of laughter. "It's a man's duty to propose marriage.

What a naughty girl you are! As the dinner has been prepared, let's dine first."

Yun Shang felt surprised at the Prince's response. She hadn't imagined that he would behave this way.

Yun Shang didn't refuse Prince Jing when he gently held her hands. Then she slid her feet into her

shoes, and walked toward the outer Hall.

Though things didn't happen as she had imagined, Yun Shang was too timid to mention their marriage

again. She sat sullenly by the table. Yun Shang found that she had no appetite in spite of the delicious

food.

It was true that she could never be a honey-lipped woman even if she was bestowed a chance to live

one more time. Had Hua Jing been in such a circumstance, she would definitely say something sweet

to make the Prince feel touched.

Hua Jing! Hua Jing! Yun Shang burst into a bitter smile while thinking of Hua Jing. That name almost

drove Yun Shang crazy. She could wait no more. She had to pluck out the thorn in her heart as soon as

possible.

Yun Shang ate as though she was chewing wax. She was in such low spirits that she sank into a trance

again. Noticing Yun Shang's melancholy, Prince Jing frowned. He wondered what nightmare had upset

the Princess so much.

Prince Jing didn't leave after dinner. He sat down next to Yun Shang, and asked Qin Yi to make a cup

of tea for him. Then he said softly, "Why do you want to marry me? What happened?"

The questions surprised Yun Shang as she thought that the Prince must have forgotten her proposal by

now. Yun Shang felt a little elated that he had not forgotten. But the questions were so unexpected that

she found she had no reasonable answer.

Yun Shang lowered her head to look at her teacup. As the tea leaves had unfolded in the teacup, the

tea water looked as green as emerald. "So, it was His Majesty who held you in custody, right?"

It was out of Prince Jing's expectation that Yun Shang would speak in such a straightforward manner.

He was surprised at first, but then, he burst into laughter. While looking at Yun Shang with interest, the

Prince nodded and said, "Yes."

A bitter smile emerged on Yun Shang's lips, "His Majesty... as the Emperor, His Majesty has to be

cautious..."

Prince Jing picked up his teacup, and squinted to study it carefully. A trace of coldness could be

sensed in his eyes. "Yes, I understand. If I were His Majesty, I would be suspicious as well."

"I don't hope... that one day you and His Majesty will become enemies. I don't hope..." Yun Shang fixed

her eyes on the green tea leaves in her teacup.

Prince Jing raised his head to look at Yun Shang. A complicated feeling was surging in his heart. "If

that day really comes, and His Majesty and I have to fight each other, who will you help?"

Yun Shang's expression froze after hearing the Prince's words. Then she stayed silent for quite a long

time.

Prince Jing looked away from Yun Shang and burst into a bitter smile. He said in defeat, "Oh, I forget

that you are His Majesty's daughter. Your mother is His Majesty's lady, and is pregnant with His

Majesty's baby now. You will of course help His Majesty..."

Yun Shang still stayed silent. But a feeling of uncertainty was surging in her heart. She had never

thought that the Emperor and Prince Jing would find themselves at odds one day. She had never

wondered about who she would help if the Prince and His Majesty were to become enemies.

Silence permeated the Hall. The rising gray smoke from the incense stove was the only dynamic thing

in the Hall. It was so quiet that the sound of a falling needle would be clearly heard.

"Pang..." The teacup lid in Yun Shang's hand slipped onto the teacup. Some tea water splashed from

inside the teacup. Yun Shang looked at the teacup, and said, "If..."

But Prince Jing interrupted Yun Shang before she could finish speaking. "All right. Let's get married. I

will request His Majesty to pick an auspicious day for our wedding."