MCSCPM -Chapter 306 Reading Prince Yi’s Mind

Sure enough, Chu Jingcheng was searching for her. He must be in complete panic by now. She knew exactly the position she held in his heart—and she understood it clearly.

But the situation now was delicate.

Suddenly, a young woman looked at Yin Qingyue curiously and asked, “Miss, where are you from? How did you end up here?”

Yin Qingyue lifted her head. Her face, disguised as ugly, was enough to make anyone recoil—but surprisingly, the other women didn’t laugh at her.

“I’m from Tuoshui County,” Yin Qingyue said. “There was a famine at home, so I came out looking for work.”

“I see. But miss, with your looks… life might be difficult for you in the future.”

Ugly means no future, they said? Yin Qingyue wanted to snap back, but she didn’t want to draw attention. She lowered her head and continued washing dishes. Yet, after thinking about it, she admitted—they weren’t wrong. She was ugly.

At that moment, one of the teahouse assistants hurried over, out of breath. “Prince Yi is here! And he wants to reserve the whole place. Look at the way he’s acting—it’s terrifying. Nobody dares to go to the front hall. What do we do?”

The maids washing dishes froze. Prince Yi? They dared not offend him. One careless mistake, and it could mean death.

“What do we do if no one goes to the front hall?”

“No idea. Even the owner is at a loss.”

Speaking of the owner, he hurried over, panic-stricken, pleading, “You girls, someone has to go to the front hall. Otherwise, no one will serve him, and we’ll all be in trouble.”

Of course, no one wanted to go. Everyone shuffled back and forth, unwilling to volunteer.

“We only wash dishes. Let someone else go.”

“Yes, yes. We dare not go.”

The owner tried another tactic. “Fine. Whoever goes, I’ll give a raise.”

“The owner, at this moment, life is more important than money.”

“Exactly. Without life, what’s the use of money?”

The girls hesitated, making excuses.

The owner thought: there has to be someone. Finally, he looked at Yin Qingyue. She didn’t seem unwilling, and her features were relatively refined—even if her face was dirty and covered in blemishes, it wouldn’t hurt to have her serve.

“Miss, though you just arrived, if you help out this time, I’ll raise your pay. How about it?”

Yin Qingyue didn’t refuse. “As long as the owner thinks I won’t mess things up, it’s fine.”

“Forget that now. Just serve him. Oh, wash your face quickly before going.”

Yin Qingyue replied calmly, “My face is naturally like this. Washing won’t help. If the owner thinks it’s unacceptable, then forget it.”

The owner gave up. There needed to be three people serving at the front hall; now one person was short, and she was willing to go.

“Alright, go quickly,” he said.

He pulled her along and reminded her repeatedly, “Miss, remember, Prince Yi is a royal. Be very careful. Do not make a mistake, or I cannot protect you.”

“Don’t worry. I know what to do,” Yin Qingyue replied.

“Remember! You must be careful serving Prince Yi.”

The owner’s repeated warnings made Yin Qingyue chuckle inwardly. What a coward! Afraid of Prince Yi so much—but she herself was not afraid. She had faced Prince Jing, how could Prince Yi scare her? Could anyone be more difficult to handle than Prince Jing?

When Yin Qingyue reached the front hall, she saw the two servants kneeling, apparently because they had spilled soup—shards scattered across the floor.

Prince Yi sat coldly, haughty, surrounded by his guards.

The lead guard scolded the two clumsy servants.

“Are you blind? Didn’t you see Prince Yi sitting here? If that soup had spilled on him, you two wouldn’t have lived to regret it!”

The two servants trembled violently, fearing for their lives.

“It… it wasn’t intentional. Please spare us, Prince Yi. We really didn’t mean it!”

Prince Yi remained expressionless, ignoring them entirely. It was his guards who lectured the servants—basically, they were punishing them on his behalf.

The guard said, “Your lives are worthless. Our prince doesn’t care about them at all.”

“Yes… our lives are worthless. Please spare us, Prince Yi! We won’t dare again!”

“Spare you? Too simple. Bring their tongues.”

The two servants went pale and begged hysterically. “No! Don’t cut our tongues! We know we were wrong! Please, spare us! We won’t do it again!”

No matter how much they begged, Prince Yi didn’t glance at them. The guards dragged the two out, and the front hall filled with their pitiful screams.

Chu Yifeng (Prince Yi) remained completely indifferent, sipping his tea with an impassive face.

One guard bowed and whispered, “Prince Yi, satisfied?”

Chu Yifeng raised a hand and slapped him. The guard didn’t dare retaliate, only enduring the fiery pain on his face while still bowing, showing no expression of suffering.

“I acknowledge my fault,” the guard said.

“What fault?” Chu Yifeng asked coldly.

“I… I don’t know,” the guard stammered.

Another slap. Blood appeared at the guard’s mouth.

“You fool! Do you know that I haven’t even spoken yet, and you’ve already decided to act on your own?”

The guard, terrified, didn’t kneel, only said, “Your Highness, I understand. It will never happen again.”

Chu Yifeng returned to drinking his tea, eyes cold.

Yin Qingyue watched this calmly. She didn’t fear him; she pitied the two servants. They only spilled soup, yet faced a threat of losing their tongues. If the soup had accidentally spilled on Prince Yi, would their families be killed too?

She had never interacted with Prince Yi before. Seeing him now, she pitied the emperor, having such a cruel son.

A young attendant came and nudged Yin Qingyue. “Go clean up the spilled soup.”

Yin Qingyue glanced at him. Fear was in his eyes. Who dared approach?

“I just arrived. I don’t know much. What if I offend Prince Yi?”

The owner, hiding behind her, said tremblingly, “You’re a woman. Prince Yi won’t do anything to you.”

“Being a woman gives me privilege?”

“Just go serve him carefully. Don’t break anything. Otherwise, the owner can’t protect you. Go now!” The young attendant practically pushed her forward.

In full view of everyone, Yin Qingyue’s appearance drew attention.

She kept her head low, carefully picked up the soup bowls, and didn’t dare look up.

Everyone thought, how could such an ugly woman exist?

Yin Qingyue ignored them. She was so ugly now that nobody would speak to her. They probably felt disgusted even punishing her.

After tidying the bowls, she wiped her hands and poured fresh tea for Chu Yifeng. She also observed him closely, trying to read his mind.

As she carefully poured tea, she watched Chu Yifeng.

Soon, she realized—this Prince Yi was sharp and meticulous, even quite cunning. He was devising ways to deal with Prince Jing.

She also learned something about the county affairs: Chu Yifeng was nervous because something about the county had been exposed.

Ah, so the county matter was related to Prince Yi. Now it made sense why Prince Jing acted unusually in the county—he thought it was all Prince Yi’s doing. Chu Jingcheng had already known that the culprit bore a mark but hadn’t mentioned it.

Furthermore, Prince Yi was a two-faced person. He had treated his younger brother like a brother all his life—but it was all a façade.

Noticing her gaze, Chu Yifeng looked up, saw her disguised face, and quickly averted his eyes. Apparently, Prince Yi was particular about appearances.

Just then, footsteps approached behind her. Yin Qingyue quickly shifted her gaze and stopped pouring tea.

Prince Yi laughed. “Second Prince, you finally came! Come, sit here.”

Second Prince? That was Chu Jingcheng. Yin Qingyue couldn’t believe it. Looking back, she saw Chu Jingcheng entering.

Why had he come?

Chu Jingcheng entered expressionless, not a hint of a smile.

Yin Qingyue immediately lowered her head, stepping back cautiously. Chu Jingcheng had seen her in disguise before; though she now looked even worse, she worried he might recognize her.

Luckily, Chu Jingcheng had no time to notice her.

Yin Qingyue now understood: she could not appear before Chu Jingcheng yet. Otherwise, with his strong-willed personality, he would clash with the emperor.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t resist, but the timing wasn’t right. Prince Yi intended to deal with him, and the emperor was suspicious of everyone, including her. She needed to remain hidden for a while, avenging Mei’er alone, while he bore many burdens. She could not let him face additional pressure.