Chapter 569: A Kiss Seals the Romance
The young kid nudged Su Man, who was next to him, with his hand and smiled mischievously and asked, “Dear Bai Ye, is your heart racing? For all you know, you might really want to hear Beauty Su confess to you.”
He seemed to hear somebody’s heart racing and deliberately asked that. While he actually should not be blamed for being less of a friend, such a situation was indeed extremely rare to come by. When did one see Bai Ye secretly plant his ear against the wall? That was a first.
When did one hear Beauty Su confess? That was as impossible as pigs flying. The young kid hence pricked his ears, afraid of missing even the slightest of the juicy conversation that followed.
Bai Ye doped-slapped him and wanted to pull him back by his collar. As though planting his ear against the wall to eavesdrop was not embarrassing enough, he was being this openly teased by the young kid. Bai Ye’s clean image was instantly tarnished, and he hence decided to go the whole nine yards.
“You’d better laugh as gently as you can. I will murder you if Su Man hears it.” Bai Ye gave a gesture and the young kid smiled even more mischievously. The young kid managed to make Bai Ye, a calm person, blush.
Princess Yashan did not seem to be able to get an answer, and she would not stop until she got one. Her persistent gaze landed on Su Man. He seemed a tad sad whilst looking at her somewhat hopefully. She was afraid that he really loved somebody else and hoped that he did not love somebody else.
While she could not wholly describe her complicated thoughts, her gaze said it all.
She really liked him, and it was since young! She got to know Su Man, who was distant and of few words, during a palace banquet back then. Although Su Man was a dignified person, he was much less popular than before and quietly sat at the furthermost corners of the room. His stunning looks were nothing short of unique.
And attention-grabbing.
While many royalty and dignitaries were hoping to hit him up because of his looks, they were intimidated by his coldness and did not dare to make further conversation. Princess Yashan was curious as to why this youth was so special. It was after asking her mother that she learned about the calamity, stemming from mistakes the royal family made, that befell the Su family and bereaved him. Despite his deep-seated grudge against the royal family and hence hatred for them, his identity meant that he had to avail himself, however unwillingly, for such occasions.
Princess Yashan, hoping to make up for the past, approached him. The closer she approached him, the more she was charmed by his character. Her heart, for all these years, was enthralled by him, and she hoped that he would return her gaze and take pity on her so that she would get together with him in the future.
Her parents, more likely than not to make up with Su Man, did not oppose Princess Yashan’s attempts to get together with Su Man. Princess Yashan patiently waited as Su Man did not actively approach women. While he did not have any women who would threaten her by his side, she was not worried that Su Man would fall in love with somebody and waited patiently for the day he would see the good in her.
As she waited whilst the seasons passed, she did not see him show feelings for her. Two other princesses who looked up to Su Man as much as Princess Yashan did and were extremely close to the latter sarcastically suggested that it was just her wishful thinking.
She had no intention to rebut them and allowed the rumors to flow. If it were all true, how could she handle it? She was unwilling to allow her feelings for him for all these years to go to naught.
“Su Man, yes or no? Is it that difficult for you to tell me that?” Seeing how Su Man remained mum for a long time, Princess Yashan’s hopeful gaze gave way to a sad gaze. It was extremely rare for Su Man to not answer her.
Unless he silently admitted and that she understood in her heart, she wanted him to be upfront about it so that she could give up on him out of heartache. When she gave up on him, nothing else hence mattered.
“Yashan, we’ve been friends for a very long time. You’re bright enough, and surely you can make sense of all this?” Su Man plainly said with a slight heartache. “I’ve always thought I could help you, but I am sorry I can’t.”
As a princess, Yashan rarely had her say in marriage as she would be married to a royalty, either local or foreign, for an alliance. She could never marry a commoner, and he knew that she wanted freedom.
He had thought about it and knew that he would not love anybody else. While marrying her and giving her freedom had some good in it, he did not thoroughly discard the idea nor call Yashan out on her intention.
It was just a shame that the best-laid plans of mice and men often went awry. Little did he expect himself…
“Yashan, if you do not like Prince Charles, you can let the fourth princess have him. Since His Excellency dotes on you this much, he will not insist you marry him. You’re still young, and you will meet somebody whom you really fancy in a few years. His Excellency will try his best to make your wishes his command,” Su Man replied in reason.
As a cold person, Princess Yashan was the only person he cared for as a sister. While he wanted her to live well, he could not provide it for her.
Princess Yashan smiled bitterly. Any girl who encountered somebody as eminent as Su Man would definitely yearn after him for their whole lives. Who else, save Su Man, could stir their hearts even more?
Like dragons and fishes, no other men could be compared side-by-side with him.
“Who is she?” Princess Yashan asked sadly as she bitterly thought about who else was better than her and more worthy of Su Man’s heart. Who exactly was she? She thought about everybody she knew and felt even bitterer as no names came to her mind.
Su Man frowned and gently said, “You don’t know that person.”
“Who is it? I want to know!” Princess Yashan had a persistent gaze that reflected her insistence and determination.
Given who Su Man was, nobody could force him to talk.
Princess Yashan, as though she was on the Siberian plains, felt a chilling cold run down her heart that froze her blood over. She, who had her whims and fancies since young, was never so badly affected.
It felt like a living hell.
She felt utterly terrible and wanted to find somewhere where she could cry it all out. Seeing his calm face, however, stemmed her tears and stifled her breathing despite the visible heartache and agony she experienced.
Everybody could tell how despondent Princess Yashan had become.
“Yashan…” Su Man gently said.
“Enough! Why don’t you tell me who that person is? I just want to know where I have fallen short. I will not do anything to her, so why don’t you tell me who she is?” Princess Yashan sadly asked and looked at him dejectedly. A gentle grudge emanated from her brown eyes.
As though Su Man was in thought, he frowned harder and fell silent. Seeing as he eventually did not speak, Princess Yashan laughed hopelessly. “Su Man, are you lying to me because you deliberately want to turn me down?”
“Absolutely no!” Su Man frowned. “I will not lie!”
Su Man would rather tell the truth at the expense of utterly disappointing somebody than hide anything unless there were things he did not want to say. If he spoke, he was definitely telling the truth. That was Su Man’s strength.
Precisely because she knew that Su Man was such a person, Princess Yashan realized that her words were so laughable to the point she could not convince herself. If she still remained as hopeful, she would not hurt as much.
Her heartache would not be that suffocating.
“Since that’s the case, the questions stop with me. So be it,” Princess Yashan closed her eyes in agony. As a princess, she had her dignity. She closed her eyes so that others would not see her cry.
Her pride would not allow her to shed even the slightest tear before him.
“Would you still marry Charles then?” Su Man asked.
Princess Yashan gradually opened her eyes and calmly said,” I don’t know. My feelings are in flux, and I need to really think about it.”
While she came with a hope that Su Man would be the knight in shining armor who would free her from this grandeur cell of a palace and lead carefree lives forever, she did not expect herself to become this emotionally battered.
Her heart was utterly aching, and her thoughts scrambled by him. She did not want to think about anything.
Su Man was not in a rush to find out and slowly said, “Give it some thought and be more self-focused when making the decision. Do not force your hand.”
Princess Yashan nodded and smiled bitterly. Since she was never going to marry Su Man, then so be it. Any decision she would make from this point would be forced, the question being how forced.
“Are you really planning on not telling me?” Princess Yashan asked in a last-ditch attempt. “We’ve been friends for so long, and you are still unwilling to come clean with me?”
Su Man raised his eyebrows and looked at the corner silently.
Princess Yashan finally gave up and smiled bitterly before taking a sip of flower tea.
The young kid did not hear Beauty Su confess and was slightly disappointed. “Bai Ye, Beauty Su did not admit his feelings for you.”
Bai Ye gently smiled. “You’re still young, you damn rascal. You’ll know when you grow up.”
While those on the sidelines would never be as clear of these convoluted thoughts as those in the thick of it who felt every bit of it, his heart was clearly beating to a different beat and took a while to slow down.
Even men have their emotional weaknesses.
He jabbed the young kid’s arms and plainly said, “Time to back off you rascal.”
“Why?”
“Go back and tend to your sister,” Bai Ye said. The young kid knew that Bai Ye wanted to speak to Su Man alone and could not help but praise him. Damn, he quickly made sense of the situation.
Bai Ye looked at the young kid disdainfully, who then said, “Since that princess has not left yet, why should I? I’ll hang around.”
Bai Ye gritted his teeth.
As Princess Yashan stood up and bade farewell, Su Man also stood up and walked up to hug her. He whispered some words into Princess Yashan’s ear, and her face suddenly changed. “How could you…” Her voice slightly trembled.
“So… I’m sorry Yashan,” Su Man slowly said.
Princess Yashan seemed to be relieved, and then saddened. She closed her eyes and slightly looked up to prevent her tears from falling. She eventually opened her slightly teary eyes and congratulated him with gritted teeth. “Be happy!”
“Thank you so much!”
Despite her immense unwillingness, she endured it and turned to walk away.
As Bai Ye hurried for the young kid to get up, the young kid suddenly pushed Bai Ye forward. Bai Ye did not expect the young kid to pull that off and was caught off guard. He almost knocked into Princess Yashan, who was coming out.
Both of them were caught off guard, and the young kid gestured for him to keep up and laughed as he went away. F***! Bai Ye gritted his teeth. He played into the young kid’s hand again. He would settle the score with him later.
Princess Yashan looked at Bai Ye, and then at Su Man with a weird look.
“What are you and Ning Ning doing here?” Su Man asked.
“Strolling around!” Bai Ye calmly replied.
Su Man coldly harrumphed. Given how huge the Su mansion was, it definitely took some effort to stroll to the corner of his room to listen in.
Bai Ye then curtly turned toward Princess Yashan and bowed before introducing himself and exchanging a handshake with her. They somewhat knew each other since Bai Ye was the representative figure of the men in the terrorist organization. He was also known as the living book of international etiquette.
He was well-looking and well-mannered.
While he was cold and easy-going, he was affable should he want to be polite.
Princess Yashan formally curtseyed back and looked at him and Su Man before smiling in relief. “Su Man, it’s okay. I’ll head back myself. You should have a word with him. I’ll make a move first.”
“Dana will see you out,” Su Man gently replied.
“Okay!” Princess Yashan gently smiled and turned away. She secretly sighed. To think that such a man would… That tinge of unwillingness disappeared and she smiled. When she smiled, her pale face became less pale.
She had lived for Su Man for so many years, and it was time she experienced a rebirth and lived for herself. Whether she would marry Charles, she would live well for herself.
Su Man looked at him coldly and walked inside. Bai Ye followed him, but he did not have anything to talk about. “The seventh princess is really beautiful,” Bai Ye randomly rambled.
“All of Arabia knows that,” Su Man gently replied. While he seemed to be easy-going, he could not help but clench the fists below his long sleeves and calmly sat down. He took a jade cup and got some flower tea for Bai Ye.
“Were you looking for me?” he asked the obvious with a dull look.
Bai Ye, in deep thought, frowned and looked down. How should he begin the question? The courage he had mustered outside did not seem to be enough before Su Man. Bai Ye, feeling as though he was lacking his stand, was flustered.
It seemed that all the courage he had mustered, seemingly dismissed by Beauty Su’s cold gaze, was for naught.
Su Man was also extremely patient, and this was the second person to test his patience. A cunning smile flashed over the face that looked down, and he already found it difficult to observe it, let alone Bai Ye.
“Su Man, what did you tell Princess Yashan earlier?” Bai Ye pondered for a moment and gave up indirectly approaching the question and went for the chase. Third Young Master Ye’s suggestion was to directly approach the issue at hand.
“Didn’t you hear everything?” Su Man gently replied.
“I meant what she said before she left, what you said to her when you hugged her.” Bai Ye’s keen observation of Princess Yashan’s face left him guessing that he definitely told her something.
He definitely told her who she liked.
As he thought about the possibility of his guess, Bai Ye’s heart thumped uncontrollably and he shuddered. Like men who were never nervous until they came under fire, he experienced a nervousness he had yet to experience.
He could not wait to hear Su Man’s answer.
“Why should I tell you?” Beauty Su coldly frowned.
Bai Ye frowned as he looked at him. Beauty Su calmly looked at him without the slightest guilt. Bai Ye must have been dreaming to hope that he would admit without him saying anything.
Bai Ye felt a trepidation creep up on him as Su Man looked at him emotionlessly. Nobody, even him, had the courage to admit his feelings for him.
Beauty Su was getting impatient from the waiting and put down the jade cup. “I’m getting a little rest in the afternoon, so dispense with yourself,” he gently said.
Then, he stood up and seemed to be about to return to his room. Bai Ye, somehow muscling up his courage, suddenly grabbed Beauty Su’s arm. Beauty Su frowned and slowly turned around and looked at him quizzically.
Bai Ye’s palms were sweating. While he had known Su Man for a long time, the two of them rarely had physical contact. Save the few times they had unintentional physical contact, Bai Ye still kept a distance from him.
He tightly held onto Su Man’s hand for dear life as he gritted his teeth and stood up, facing him. One could not tell that Bai Ye was taller than Su Man unless they stood close to each other.
He was giving it all.
Bai Ye looked into Su Man’s eyes and calmly asked, “Su Man, do you like me?”
Su Man, not expecting such a bashful person to become this forthcoming this suddenly, was caught off guard. He was expecting Bai Ye to take his time. None of the ways he considered were able to address the sudden question popped before him.
He was, for a moment, a little taken aback.
Although Su Man was used to managing how nervous he was and making out how the situation developed, the situation at hand was a little unexpected. He had ways to manage Bai Ye and also have Bai Ye take the initiative.
This was a slight exception.
Beauty Su, in that instant, could not think of anything to say. He was calm as usual and this was no exception. While he was slightly taken aback, he recovered his cool and slowly said, “Why the question?”
Bai Ye gritted his teeth and looked at him dangerously, hoping to tease out the slightest unease or same nervousness in his gaze. It was to no avail.
Bai Ye was a little flustered. He already asked as such, and he dared to ask him what he meant?!
Damn it!
This pretty mouth said the things that left people utterly aghast. Actions, perhaps, would better express his thoughts…
Bai Ye’s parched throat gulped.
It was perhaps the fragrance of the flowers, or the charming beauty of the person before him that left Bai Ye in a trance. Bai Ye suddenly hugged Su Man’s waist and pulled him back before turning sideways and suddenly kissing him on his lips…