Wrapped In Golden Branch - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Princess is beautiful but spoiled

“Princess is beautiful but spoiled, far less virtuous and eloquent than Qingqing…”

“When Princess ‘dies of illness,’ I will marry Qingqing as my principal wife.”

…

Li Kangning stared at the golden silk curtain on the top of the bed, her face stunned and her heart still frightened.

What a long dream.

She rem*mbered every fragment and every detail clearly as if she had experienced it herself.

Pei Yujin, the Heir of Huai’an Marquis’ Mansion, whom she was about to marry, a man of integrity and gentleness who did not even have a bedservant, had secretly kept a concubine just one year after marrying her!

After she discovered the matter, the couple tried every means to murder her, even bribing the maids around her to poison her food every day.

Li Kangning laughed in anger and sat up suddenly-

She was a princess of a country; why should these filthy things bully her?

“Is Princess going to get up?” the maid, Pei Lan, asked tentatively in a low voice outside the beaded curtain.

Li Kangning returned to her senses, “What time is it now?”

“Princess, it’s already past Si hour (9-11 am).”

Pei Lan said again, “The Empress just sent someone to deliver the plum blossom sponge cake, saying it would be your breakfast. She also specifically ordered that if the Princess was not awake, we should put it in the steamer to keep it warm.”

Li Kangning’s nose suddenly felt sour when she heard this. In her dream, after the couple poisoned her, she began to stay on the bed. Her mother was worried about her and cried every day. Even her father, who always kept his emotions to himself, could not help but shed tears when he saw her sick and emaciated appearance.

Even though he ordered to find famous doctors in the world, he still could not find a suitable cure and could only use thousand-year-old ginseng to keep her alive every day. In less than half a year, she pa$sed away at the age of 20. Her mother, who lost her beloved daughter, also died of depression soon after.

After silence, Li Kangning ordered: “Pei Lan, I want to wash and change clothes.”

Upon hearing this, Pei Lan came forward to help the Princess get up.

The girl on the bed had black and shiny hair, and her delicate face was pale without a trace of blood. Her bright and sparkling almond eyes were watery, and her eyebrows were slightly frown, making her look particularly pitiful.

Pei Lan was worried, “Are you feeling unwell? I see you don’t look very well. Do you want to call the imperial physician?”

“It’s fine. No need to call the imperial physician.” Li Kangning shook her head.

Pei Lan was still worried, but she had no choice. She immediately called another maid, Zhi Lan, to come in and help the Princess wash and change clothes.

Zhi Lan was chatting with the maid outside the bedroom when she heard the call. She walked in slowly. She smiled and asked, “What bun style do you want today, Princess? How about a Yuanbao bun?”

Li Kangning’s breathing was slightly stagnant. She raised her eyes and stared at Zhi Lan, who was coming towards him. She clenched her fists and deeply sunk her nails into her palms.

That was her.

In the dream, the couple instructed Zhi Lan to put a small amount of aconite powder in her daily food. At first, she just felt dizzy and had an irregular heartbeat. By the time she realized something was wrong, she was already terminally ill and incurable.

Li Kangning wanted to order Zhi Lan to leave and replace her with someone else. But she felt it was too unreasonable to distance herself from someone who had served him for more than ten years just because of an inexplicable dream. Besides, she also wanted to see if Zhi Lan would murder her for some petty gain, as in the dream.

After a long pause, Li Kangning slowly said: “Let’s comb a single spiral bun; the Yuanbao bun is too complicated.”

After finishing her makeup, she led Zhi Lan, Pei Lan, and others to the Yaotai Hall, where the Empress lived.

Mountains, rivers, and lakes surround the Rehe Palace. Although it was a hot summer, the climate was refreshing and comfortable. Li Kangning did not take a sedan chair or wait for the palace people to pass on the message to save trouble; she just rushed into the Yaotai Hall.

At this time, Empress Kang was leaning on the golden soft couch. She didn’t put makeup on her fair and plump cheeks, but there was a fresh blush. Seeing her precious daughter coming, she put the notebook in her hand, smiled, and asked, “Why did Ningning come here at this time?”

Li Kangning suddenly threw herself into her mother’s arms and sniffed, “Mother, I miss you so much!”

The palace servants who had stayed in the palace retreated tactfully.

Empress Kang found it funny, “What nonsense are you talking about? Didn’t I have dinner with you yesterday?”

“I miss you after not seeing you for a night!” Li Kangning buried herself in her mother’s arms and acted coquettishly.

Smelling her mother’s unique fragrance, she breathed a sigh of relief, and the unspeakable pain in her heart instantly subsided.

Empress Kang poked her daughter’s face, and her eyes were extremely gentle, “You miss me after just one night; what if you get married?”

After a pause, she said, “It’s all your grandmother’s fault. She keeps talking about your marriage all the time. I’m reluctant to let you get married so soon. It won’t be too late in five or six years…”

Empress Kang gave birth to two sons and one daughter, so naturally, she loved her only daughter like a treasure. Even though her daughter was over eighteen years old, she still felt that her daughter was a little girl.

Li Kangning couldn’t help but think of the strange dream last night when talking about marriage. She didn’t have much affection for her fiancé, Pei Yujin. She chose him as her husband just because she liked him.

Grandmother Zhou’s health had worsened in recent years. Seeing that she was the only one left among the three grandchildren who had not yet settled her marriage, she would talk about it for a long time every time they met. Li Kangning was so annoyed that she chose a son-in-law from the sons of the noble families in the capital.

First, she could fulfill the elderly’s wish; second, she could leave the palace and set up a house after marriage, which would be much more comfortable.

Now that she had such a dream, she wanted to change her husband, even if it might not come true. Otherwise, it would be d*sgusting.

“Since Mother can’t bear to part with me, let me break off the engagement with Pei Yujin?” Li Kangning asked tentatively.

Empress Kang was surprised: “Why? What’s wrong with him?”

Ever since her daughter fell in love with Pei Yujin, the Heir of Huai’an Marquis, she ordered people to investigate him carefully.

Pei Yujin had already won the t*tle of Juren at 22, and he might be able to pass the imperial examination next spring. The most rare thing was that Pei Yujin was clean and self-disciplined. Only male servants served him from childhood to adulthood, and he never let maids get close to him.

Although she was reluctant to let her daughter get married so early, Empress Kang was quite satisfied with this prospective son-in-law.

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