Prologue One: The Crown Prince's Consort Selection

Yun Chi first saw Hua Yan's name in the register of women selected by the Empress Dowager for his consort selection.

He flipped through the pages casually and saw a lady, lazily reclined on a beauty's couch, with a book covering her face, rendering it invisible. A line of small characters beneath annotated: Hua Yan, the youngest daughter of the Hua Family.

He pushed the register to the Empress Dowager and said, "Let it be her!"

The Empress Dowager leaned over for a look and immediately frowned, "Hua Yan? Out of so many people, why did you have to pick her? No!"

Yun Chi raised his eyebrows, "Empress Dowager, aren't these the individuals you've selected? Why wouldn't she do?"

The Empress Dowager looked at him, a twitch in her brow, "It's true that I've made the selections, but I was unaware of the hidden affairs at the time. Now, you may choose anyone else, just not her. I've just learned that she has an affair with the son of the King of Anyang; modesty without virtue, unsuitable to be a consort."

"Oh?" Yun Chi looked at the Empress Dowager with a laugh, "An affair?"

The Empress Dowager nodded firmly, "Exactly. I was about to remove her from the finished register, but since the royal painter created it to prevent tampering with the consort selection, the pages were all bound together. To tear one out would ruin the entire register. That is why I kept her, thinking among so many entries, hers was towards the back. How could you possibly have picked her? Yet, you did. Regardless, she cannot be chosen."

Yun Chi looked at the Empress Dowager, "Which son from the King of Anyang's Residence? An Shuli?"

The Empress Dowager nodded, "The very one."

Yun Chi smiled, "If it were someone else, I might have let it be, but him..." He paused for a moment, his jade-like fingers tapping the table, producing a faint thud, "Being a son from the King of Anyang's Residence, raised by a famous mentor, he is not someone without manners and education, nor would he engage in such indecent affairs. Such rumors are likely slander thrown at the King of Anyang's Residence by those with ulterior motives. Empress Dowager, be wary not to fall into their schemes."

Taken aback by his words, the Empress Dowager furrowed her brows in thought and nodded, "There... you have a point." After a pause, she shook her head, "Still, she cannot be married. It's said that on the day the royal painter visited Lin'an to select consorts, she covered her face with a book upon hearing of it, not wishing to be included in the register. Clearly, she is unwilling."

Yun Chi responded again with a smile, his eyes cool and his demeanor chill, and with a sparse and indifferent tone, "When the Tian Family selects, whoever they choose is it. Is it for her to be displeased?"

The Empress Dowager hesitated, "That's true, but if she won't even show her face, she clearly does not regard the Tian Family, does not regard you seriously. Definitely not a good..."

Yun Chi paused, smoothing out his cloud-patterned water sleeves before standing up and interrupting the Empress Dowager with a cold voice, "Under the heavens, all land belongs to the King; by the edges of the earth, all are subjects to the King. Empress Dowager, send someone to issue a decree to Lin'an of the Hua Residence!"

Prologue Two: The Imperial Marriage Edict

Empress Dowager's Imperial Edict: Hua Yan of the Lin'an Hua Residence, gentle and virtuous, kindly and morally upright, humble and yielding, with unparalleled beauty, is indeed a perfect match for the Crown Prince. Thus, by this imperial edict, I bestow marriage upon the Crown Prince, to forge a splendid union!

Hua Yan was teasing a cicada in a tree when she heard the news, and her body slipped, crashing down the trunk.

Qiuyue let out an exclamation of shock.

Hua Yan landed and stumbled, barely managing to steady herself. Casually, she flung the cicada to the ground and scoffed angrily, "They're talking nonsense without even seeing my face, how do I resemble anything virtuous and kind?"

Qiuyue stared at Hua Yan, momentarily at a loss for words.

Prologue Three: Yun Chi and Hua Yan

Yun Chi traveled to Lin'an and found Hua Yan on a reclining chair next to the swing frame at the Hua Residence.

At that moment, Hua Yan covered her face with a book, lying there silently, as a gentle breeze came by, her garb of smoke-colored silk fluttered gently, softly billowing.

Yun Chi looked at her, recalling the page of the register he had opened, as the image of the lady on the scroll gradually came to life before his eyes.

He watched her for a while before stepping forward and removing the book from her face, revealing her visage.

The Little Eunuch immediately let out a high-pitched scream, "A ghost, ah!"

Hua Yan, with a hangman's face, bared her teeth in a grin.

The Little Eunuch promptly fainted away.

Yun Chi narrowed his eyes and tossed the book back onto Hua Yan's body, his voice deep, "Go wash your face!"