Elder Crown Princess Consort

ECPC Chapter 1: That Timid Look

Ruan Tangling went to buy flour in the market.

Suddenly, a large group of people rushed out from the left and without saying a word, covered her with a sack and stuffed her into a strange sedan. The group then started moving forward with much fanfare, leaving Ruan Tangling bewildered. When she finally came to her senses, her only thought was: "We won't have any flour to eat tonight."

As the group of people marched towards a luxurious mansion, Ruan Tangling was dragged out like a puppet and brought inside for the ceremony. After the words "enter the bridal chamber," she was led back to the main hall and stuffed back into the sedan chair.

When she was finally able to open her eyes, she found herself sitting in a bamboo hut by a small river on the outskirts of the capital city.

Mr. Ruan waited for Ruan Tangling to return home, but when she didn't, he went out to look for her. He saw a bag of spilled flour near a flour shop and crouched down to examine it for a while before standing up and dusting off his robe.

The owner of the flour shop handed a bag of flour to Ruan Su and said, "Congratulations, congratulations. Your daughter has finally been married off."

There is a big problem in Luming Lane. Ruan Tangling, a senior unmarried woman, is nearly 24 years old and has not yet been married. Looking at the daughters of the neighboring families, the Zhaos, Qians, Suns, and Lis, all of whom have married off at the age of 16.

A group of villagers gathered around, congratulating Ruan's family for finally marrying off their daughter who had been dependent on them.

Without saying a word, Ruan Su picked up the flour and went home to make noodles.

The Ruan family lives in a row house at the end of Luming Lane. They have been in the capital for over ten years. Ruan Su, just like an ordinary person, works hard to earn some money by leaving early in the morning and returning late at night.

There is a light tapping sound on the roof, and Ruan Su hums a little tune while kneading the dough.

"Boss, do you think the miss will be okay?"

Ruan Su looked at the face appearing in the skylight on the roof: "She's fine, the family who kidnapped her is in trouble."

"Boss, I'll go and rescue the miss!"

"Don't." Ruan Su stopped him. "She's already 24 years old. Are you planning to make her unable to get married for the rest of her life?"

"But we can't just let that good young man be ruined!"

Ruan Su rolled up his sleeves and threw a ball of dough at him. "Get out of here, you little brat!"

……

Ruan Tangling stayed in the bamboo house in the woods for three days, where she had everything she needed to eat, drink, and relieve herself. The only downside was that she couldn't leave and she hadn't seen the person who kidnapped her for the wedding ceremony.

But there were benefits too. As long as she had any needs, someone would always be there to serve her immediately. However, these people never spoke, so she had to squat by the river alone and count the fish for three days.

On the fourth day, early in the morning, Ruan Tangling was still sleeping in her bed, when a person strolled out of the woods, like walking in the deep sea of clouds. It was faintly cool, like the wind blowing from the deep mountains.

The door of the bamboo house was gently pushed open. Ruan Tangling cautiously opened her eyes a little, rolled over to face inward, and went back to sleep.

The man frowned and looked at Ruan Tangling who was wrapped up like a twist. He walked quietly to sit by the bed.

This sleeping posture is not worth complimenting. The man stretched out his hand but then retracted it, knowing well that she was feigning sleep. He pulled the blanket, but it was immediately yanked back by Ruan Tangling.

"Wife, your husband here."

He spoke hesitantly as if it was difficult to speak, but his voice was as clear as a river in a bamboo forest. Ruan Tangling immediately woke up, but she didn't move and kept her eyes closed, pretending to still be asleep.

"Get up, I'll take you to see your future father-in-law." This time it went smoothly as if he had practiced it in his mind several times.

Ruan Tangling still didn't get up. She had seen everything good about her old man in the past 24 years. She knew that if she was thrown into a sedan chair and made a fool of herself, someone might laugh and say, "Hahaha, look at you, so cowardly!"

"If you don't get up now, I'll go to the brothel and drink flower wine." He lowered his voice, not necessarily angry, but just unable to find the right words to get her to get up.

Ruan Tangling rolled her eyes toward the wall. She didn't even know this person. Her silence was just to gather her strength and give him a powerful strike later. Was she mistaken for a sick cat from the neighbor's house? Ruan Tangling, who had been single for 24 years without any peach blossoms?

"Okay, then I'll go marry a concubine." This time he seemed very cheerful as if he would go out immediately.

Ruan Tangling jumped off the bed and exclaimed, "Stop right there!"

The other person actually stopped and turned around with a smile, his eyes were watery and his eyebrows entered his temples. Wearing a black robe embroidered with bamboo, his aura was like that of clear magnificence. Ruan Tangling almost fell off the bed, not because of the man's stunning appearance, but because...

"Are you Ji Weiming?"

Who is Ji Weiming?

The emperor of the Great Ji Dynasty is named Ji Xiao with the surname Ji. Ji Weiming’s father, Ji Zhou and Ji Xiao are cousins. Ji Zhou was appointed as the Junwang (King) of Xihuai County and given fifteen cities of the three provinces and the Black Desert to the west of the Great Ji as his fiefdom. Ji Weiming is the Crown Prince of Xihuai County.

Compared to other feudal lords who were also granted land, the land granted to the King of Xihuai is much more special. The three provinces and fifteen cities are very small, making it the smallest of all the feudal lords granted land. However, the Black Desert is very large, and the total area of the King of Xihuai's land is several times larger than that of other feudal lords.

Because the emperor was wary of Ji Zhou's abilities, although the Black Desert was vast, the conditions were harsh, and there were many desert tribes inside. After deducting a portion of the tribute, the annual tax revenue of the three provinces and fifteen cities was meager when handed over to Ji Zhou.

Furthermore, the late emperor, on the pretext of favoring Ji Weiming, confined Ji Zhou's only son Ji Weiming in the capital city, and he was unable to return to his fiefdom until the late emperor's death.

All the girls in the capital knew that the Crown Prince of Xihuai was handsome. Whenever he went out, he would be stopped by girls who pretended to fall intentionally and block him on the street. He didn't get angry and just waved his sleeve before turning back home.

Therefore, it's not surprising that Ruan Tangling knew he was Ji Weiming, but not knowing that is actually big news in the capital city.

The more Ruan Tangling thought about it, the stranger it seemed. How could Ji Weiming, a handsome and wealthy second-generation official from the prestigious Ji family in the capital city, marry her, an old leftover woman from a poor family?

Those who want to marry him have queued up from the prince's mansion to the outskirts of the city. There must be a conspiracy!

"Why did you marry me?!" Ruan Tangling held a pillow three feet away from him.

"Looks pleasing to the eye, and it's convenient to get married." Ji Weiming casually answered, rolling up his sleeves.

Ruan Tangling clicked her tongue a few times. She was dragged there by a group of wedding escorts that day, and Ji Weiming probably didn't know what she looked like until today.

"Do you know who I am?"

Ji Weiming naturally knew who she was. Even if he didn't know before, three days would be enough for him to investigate Ruan Tangling thoroughly.

"Ruan Tangling, 24 years old, father Ruan Su, mother deceased, arrived in the capital 16 years ago, and on March 18th, moved into Luming Lane. She rejected matchmakers for 38 marriage proposals..."

"Stop!" Ruan Tangling blushed and interrupted, "Can we not talk about such embarrassing things?"

"We can," replied Ji Weiming, "Let's go back to the mansion first."

After worshiping the altar, she was immediately carried out. Was she, Ruan Tangling, just a tool to use at will? She waited for three days just to beat up the person who inexplicably dragged her into the sedan chair, but the result was unexpectedly awkward: "I think the air here is fresh, the scenery is beautiful, and it's suitable for living, so...I'm not going back."

Ji Weiming shook his head slightly, and his eyes looking at Ruan Tangling had gone through countless rehearsals: "The emperor insists on arranging a marriage for me, and you are the main wife, so you must go."

Ruan Tangling became very anxious. Although Ji Weiming fell from the sky as a partner for her, she was not a person who would give in to lust, nor did she like sharing a man with others!

"Can we take a break?" Ruan Tangling looked at him with sadness. She was a person with great self-awareness. If he were just a street thug, she would have already beaten him up and left him armless and legless. But as the saying goes, the common people don't fight against the officials. Even if they did, it would be pointless. "You see, you don't like me, and I don't like you either. You just picked me up from the side of the road. Can you just throw me back like that?"

"Can't I?" Ji Weiming persisted, "I really like you!"

Ruan Tangling snorted. She knew better than to believe this nonsense. "Then why don't you refuse the marriage proposal?"

"Marriage bestowed by the emperor, going against the holy decree will implicate nine generations." Ji Weiming sat down with a smile, looking over at this confused woman with his hand on his chin.

Although she seemed absent-minded, her eyes were very clear. People in the Luming Lane said that Ruan Tangling was a foolish girl, but Ji Weiming felt that it might not be the case.

To be so calm after being robbed of a wedding ceremony, either she was a fool or too clever.

Ruan Tangling didn't know what Ji Weiming was thinking and only felt a little uneasy being looked at like this. "What does that have to do with me?"

"You are now the Princess Consort of Xihuai County," Ji Weiming answered calmly.

Ruan Tangling threw a pillow over, and it seemed that everyone would be implicated, including her! Ji Weiming made a great move in the game!

Although she didn't say it, she had already guessed that the emperor was wary of the Prince of Xihuai and his perceptive followers. Suddenly arranging a marriage was just a scheme to place someone by Ji Weiming's side. Ji Weiming was also twenty-four this year. According to the late emperor's intentions, if at the age of twenty-five, there were no anomalies with Ji Zhou, then his son would be released. Ji Weiming can pick up a girl on the road and marry her on a whim. He must have received the news of the emperor's intention to arrange a marriage in advance and wanted to use this as an excuse to refuse. As a result, the other party would refuse to be a concubine.

Although Ruan Tangling knew clearly in her heart, she still looked confused: "Who does His Majesty want to arrange for you?"

"Qin Fuyu," Ji Weiming didn't hide it, "the daughter of the current prime minister."

It must be said that Qin Fuyu was quite determined to become the concubine of the Xihuai County King's son, even though she had such a prominent adoptive father.

"Then I definitely can't go." Ruan Tangling blinked innocently and waved her hand, "Qin Fuyu is a match for you, while I am just a poor leftover woman from the slums. If I really follow you to the Prince's Mansion, wouldn't I be asking for trouble? No, no, I'll go back and find my father."

After speaking, she jumped off the bed and tried to run out.

Ji Weiming grabbed her by the back of her collar and asked in a low voice, startling Ruan Tangling and giving her goosebumps. "Wife, may I accompany you?"

Ruan Tangling was scared by the title of "Wife" and broke out in a cold sweat, "Ji Weiming, we have no grievances or grudges, no hatred or resentment, what do you want from me? Please let me go!" She looked pitiful with tears in her eyes.

Ji Weiming pretended to be aggrieved and reached out to touch Ruan Tangling's head, then suddenly lowered his voice, "Are you sure we really have no enmity?"

Ruan Tangling remained silent.

She followed Ruan Su to the capital for sixteen years. Although Ji Weiming had eyes and ears everywhere, he couldn't find any information about them from sixteen years ago. Just now, this sentence made her heart tighten involuntarily: "Forced abduction of a civilian woman, this is grudge!"

"Right!" Ji Weiming sneered, "As long as people live, they must seek revenge. I have already forcibly abducted a civilian woman, how can you not seek revenge?"

Ruan Tangling: "..."

After dealing with Ruan Tangling in the room, someone outside the door brought a horse. This horse was a Black Desert Warhorse, which was a head taller than ordinary horses and had a violent temperament that was difficult to tame. Officials in the capital all wanted a batch, but few could actually tame them.

“Just one horse, is that all you have?” Ruan Tangling looked at the Zhan Biao horse, nudged Ji Weiming’s elbow and asked, "Is your family very poor?"

"Ten ordinary warhorses are not as good as one Zhan Biao horse," Ji Weiming said. "I could bring out two horses, but can you ride them?"

Horses are creatures that Ruan Tangling, who had stayed in Luming Lane for sixteen years, had never had the chance to see. Horses were the darlings of the wealthy and powerful families, how could ordinary people afford to buy them?

Ruan Tangling shook her head and said, "As the future princess, can't we get a carriage?"

Ji Weiming jumped up and grabbed Ruan Tangling's shoulders, carrying her away as she screamed.

As they left the small forest, someone outside suddenly stood up and ran away.

On the roof of Ruan's house in Luming Lane, a face was pressed against the skylight: "Boss, boss, I saw Ji Weiming coming out of the small forest with the young lady!"

"What was the young lady's reaction?" Ruan Su asked.

"The young lady kept screaming for help along the way," the person replied.

Ruan Su was extremely frustrated: "Look at her cowardly appearance!"

===================================

Translator’s note:

Ji Zhou’s title is Junwang, which makes him Prince of Xihuai. But in order to not be confused with his son’s title of Crown Prince, I’ve changed it to King of Xihuai moving forward….