Chapter 14 — The Crown Prince just got married, King Tinh is already waiting outside my room

At that moment, the hour had just struck, and suddenly there was a loud sound of gongs and drums and noisy people outside.

"It's here, it's here! The engagement ceremony is here!" A few maids happily ran in to report the news.

Mother quickly grabbed my hand and led me to the main hall to wait. His father had also changed into formal court clothes, his face was solemn, and he sat neatly in the chair position. Through the open lobby door, we can see outside the palace a dark sea of people and a long procession of people with a long ceremony that can't be seen at the end. The chests were covered with red cloth and hung with tassels, reflecting a dazzling light under the sunlight. The ceremony bearers wore neat uniforms, neat steps, and an extremely impressive aura. Tieu Dien wore the prince's royal uniform, his body was tall and straight, walking in the first position of the team. Today he seemed to have intentionally dressed up, his black hair was crowned with a golden crown, further accentuating his handsome, almost demonic face, sharp features, and imposing aura. He walked up the steps step by step, through the courtyard, straight towards the main hall and entered. His eyes crossed the crowd and fell straight on them, carrying an undisguised smile and the certainty of having victory in his hands. According to the rules, the ceremony of initiation was performed, marriage documents were exchanged, throughout the whole process, I was like a puppet being pulled on strings, only knowing how to follow the instructions of the mamas, not daring to raise my head to face him. Until the ceremony temporarily ended, the guests dispersed one by one, and father and mother also understood and left, leaving space for ourselves. In the hall, there were only me and him left, along with a whole courtyard full of dazzling bride-price gifts. He walked up to me, lowered his head and looked down, with a hint of teasing in his voice: "Tense?" I instinctively wanted to deny it, but the slight trembling of my fingertips betrayed me. He chuckled softly, held out his hand, and in the palm of his hand placed a piece of mutton fat jade that was completely white and flawless. The shape of the jade pendant is very special, not the usual auspicious dragon and phoenix, on the contrary it looks like... a piece of malt candy with a corner bitten off.

“This is…” I was stunned.

“One of the bride price.” He placed the jade pendant in my hand, his fingertips as if unintentionally but intentionally slid across my palm, causing a shiver, "It's a design you drew yourself."

Malt candy... I held that warm pearl tightly, as if I was holding the afternoon ten years ago, holding on to the small, insignificant bit of sweetness that that innocent girl gave me back then. It's also about embracing the ten-year obsession with loneliness of the man standing before my eyes right now. My eye sockets suddenly sting.

“Tieu Dien…”

I raised my head and, for the first time, actively called his name, my voice carrying a hint of choking.

“Ten years… must be very painful, right?”

He looked at my red eyes, the smile in his eyes gradually subsided, turning into a quiet gentleness, so deep that it could almost drown people. He raised his hand and used his fingertips to very gently wipe the corners of my eyes, erasing that wetness.

"If you can taste her," he said in a low voice, his eyes longing, "you won't have to suffer anymore."

"If you can taste her, you won't have to suffer anymore."

His fingertips were warm, his movements wiping the corners of my eyes were so light It's like treating a rare treasure in the world. That sentence was low, hoarse, carrying the sediment of years, bluntly hitting the softest place in my heart. Ten years of lonely watching. Ten years of patient waiting. All that bitterness seemed to melt away in that seemingly light and superficial sentence, turning into a gentleness wrapped around the fingertips. I tightly grasped that malt candy-shaped jade pendant, my fingertips clenched slightly, a warm feeling gradually spread from my palm, strangely soothing the last remaining trace of insecurity and confusion in my heart. The eye sockets are still a bit hot. I lowered my eyelids, avoiding his burning gaze, and softly said "yeah". That small response, like the buzzing of a mosquito, seemed like a promise that was not trivial at all. Tieu Dien's eyes suddenly flared up with a bright light, he laughed softly, that laughter carried undisguised joy and satisfaction. He didn't say another word, just stood quietly in front of me, his eyes were like a warm net, covering me tightly. Outside the hall was the bustling sound of people and dazzling wedding gifts, while inside was a piece of silence, only between the two of us silently flowing a vague but steadfast aura. After a long time, he lowered his voice and said: "Three letters and six gifts, one thing will not be lacking. You just need to wait with peace of mind for the day of marriage." I nodded slightly. He looked at me deeply, as if he wanted to engrave my current appearance into his bones, then turned around and strode away.