"Princess Consort Yi…"
Zhao Zhang Wei's eyes were sharp and cold as he stared at Xi Ying's indifferent face and continued
"The woman you are talking about, Prime Minister Xi is Benwangfei."
Zhao Zhang Wei's fists were clenched inside his sleeves. His voice expressed the rage inside his heart when he said his next words.
"She is solely Benwang's responsibility not anyone else, Prime Minister Xi."
Xi Ying's smiled mockingly at Zhao Zhang Wei's words and there was no doubt that his smiled provoked Zhao Zhang Wei. He didn't seem to care as he said in an equally cold voice.
"A responsibility that Your Highness didn't seem to take seriously before …perhaps that's why this Lord suddenly regretted his decision of suggesting this marriage proposal to Zhao Wang Lei after four years."
The coldness in Zhao Zhang Wei's eyes vanished suddenly and his clenched fists also loosened. His face was blank and didn't have any emotion but somewhere he seemed to have understood what Xi Ying was trying to say.
Zhao Zhang Wei's lips were pressed in a thin line and didn't say anything. What could he even say?
He knew that he ignored his feelings for Yi Huiqing for a very long time and in that time, it was Yi Huiqing who suffered because of him indirectly.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtEven after that, Xi Ying's cold and merciless words still stabbed his heart like knives.
"Your Highness, this Lord doesn't really know what you think of Princess Consort Yi. However, even on that day in the restaurant, this Lord had tried to convey to Your Highness that this Lord and Xi Clan would always be backing Princess Consort Yi. So if Your Highness tried to wrong her, it would be equally going against this Lord and Xi Clan."
Zhao Zhang Wei's fists were again clenched in anger.
He didn't like it at all. Someone else was warning him to keep his wangfei safe so that he could that person's favor in the future.
Yi Huiqing was his wife. Regardless of whether he will get the throne or not, he will protect her.
Seeing Xi Ying's firm eyes and face, he couldn't help but doubt Xi Ying's intentions.
Perhaps it was true that love could make a person blind. Perhaps that's why, even after knowing that Xi Ying liked Li Rui very much, Zhao Zhang Wei thought that he had bad intentions for his wangfei.
Rage clouded his eyes and just at that moment, Xi Ying spoke again.
"This Lord's wife cares for Princess Consort a lot, Your Highness. Princess Consort Yi had also cared for this Lord's wife a lot when she did have very few people around her who cared for her actually. This Lord would never want her to be sad because you made Princess Consort sad in the Imperial Palace."
The words calmed down Zhao Zhang Wei a little. He actually seemed to remember that Xi Ying had said these words to him before too.
A shaking breath escaped his lips.
The exhaustion from before and now the sudden change in his emotions was making him more exhausted.
However, when had Xi Ying been merciless to others except for his wife!
He attached Zhao Zhang Wei again with words that filled the young prince's heart with fear.
"That day, this Lord had asked Your Highness that if Your Highness became the Emperor then Princess Consort Yi will be the Empress. However, today this Lord had come up with one more condition included in this deal."
Zhao Zhang Wei frowned while Xi Ying continued
"If Princess Consort Yi ever wished to get out of this marriage then Your Highness will divorce her peacefully."
Zhao Zhang Wei's eyes widened and he said almost immediately.
"No!...Never!"
He stood up from the chair he was sitting on suddenly. The chair fell down abruptly and he paced around the room as if trying to relieve himself from the emotions that were messing up with his mind.
"I will never leave her…Qingqing …she is mine. I will never divorce her."
Zhao Zhang Wei murmured as he paced around the room.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHe remembered how in the morning Yi Huiqing was standing nonchalantly when Qin Wenya gave almost all the responsibility of Xinhe Palace to Concubine Shaolin.
He had not thought much about this before because he was too worried about Yi Huiqing's health.
However, after she told him that she was actually lying, Zhao Zhang Wei's heart was filled with fear from that moment.
He had not dared to visit Lantai Courtyard since that day because she had asked him not to show her his face…because he himself had said one day that he won't step inside Lantai Courtyard until she calls him by herself …he won't come without being invited even if she was dying.
However, now his resistance to visiting Lantai Courtyard was only because he didn't want Yi Huiqing to hate him anymore.
She was finally living happily. That was what Zhao Zhang Wei had concluded from her sudden change. However, this change was after she stopped caring about him. It hurt him very much.
Before he had thought that Yi Huiqing staying as his wangfei was enough. Even if he didn't visit her, she will still be there in Xinhe Palace completing all his responsibilities of a wangfei.
However, after this morning, he no longer believed so.
Because he seemed to realize that his Yi Huiqing was not like other women. She doesn't seem to care about her position as the main wife.
So even if she lost it, she won't care at all.
So she didn't really have any reason to stay in the Imperial Palace. It was just this marriage that was keeping her tied to him.
And if he broke this marriage too, then how would he live without her.
He suddenly turned around and looked at Xi Ying seriously as he said
"I won't divorce her. If Prime Minister Xi wants to break this deal then you can do so.. But Benwang won't divorce Benwangfei ever. "