Fortunately, the pond wasn’t very deep and Guangfeng only had to stand up. Unfortunately, his clothes were completely soaked. He coughed a few times as he got to his feet and looked mournfully up at Yuelan. “This is how you treat your fiance?” he protested in a joking tone.

Yuelan’s cheeks were still a bright pink and she looked away from him. “I didn’t mean for you to fall into the pond…”

The servants had all rushed forward when Guangfeng fell through the railing. “Your Highness!” Guangfeng’s personal servant cried out as soon as he was within earshot.

Guangfeng waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. It was my fault. Just have someone go back to Heping Palace and bring me a change of clothes.”

Camphor reached the edge of the pond and turned to send Laurel to get blankets for the third prince only to discover the maid wasn’t there. She frowned. “Where is Laurel? Oh never mind. Willow, go and get blankets for His Highness. It wouldn’t be good if he caught a cold.” She then turned and bowed. “This servant will go and have Chung Soo prepare a room for Your Highness to rest until your new clothes arrive.”

Guangfeng nodded and got out of the pond. “Tell him the railing over the bridge will need to be repaired as well,” he advised as the two maids ran off.

Yuelan frowned a little as she watched the maids go.

“Something wrong?” Guangfeng asked as he started squeezing water from his robes and hair.

“Laurel has been acting strange lately,” Yuelan answered quietly. “I think something is bothering her, but she hasn’t said anything.”

Guangfeng’s eyes narrowed. “Strange how?”

“She disappears a lot, even if it’s not her day off.”

“When did it start?” A pool of water was starting to form beneath the third prince’s feet as he continued trying to get as much water out of his navy blue, silk robes as he could.

“A couple of weeks ago after she came back from visiting her family,” Yuelan answered.

“Have Shadow look into it. You can’t take any risks with your safety,” Guangfeng warned.

“I don’t think Laurel would do anything to harm me,” Yuelan protested.

“Yuelan, you can’t take risks. That woman will use anything to get at you now that we’re engaged. I won’t be named crown prince until we’re actually married, so if something happens to you before then her son will be able to keep fighting for the throne.” Guangfeng gave Yuelan a firm look. “Camphor’s mother is safe in my palace and Willow has no family that can be used against her. If someone is threatening Laurel’s family you could be in danger.”

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Guangfeng walked over to her and gently stroked her hair. “I don’t want anything to happen to you. Please listen to me.”

Yuelan blushed and looked down as he stroked her hair. Her right hand held her left elbow and she slowly nodded. “Alright…”

The third prince wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort her, but he sighed and leaned down to press his lips to her forehead instead. “If you need anything send Shadow to let me know,” he said gently. “I’ll assign more hidden guards to keep you safe as well, just in case.”

The kiss made Yuelan’s cheeks burn again, but she managed to keep from pulling away from him and nodded her head. “I’m sorry for pushing you into the pond,” she said quietly, changing the subject.

“It’s alright,” Guangfeng chuckled. “I should have expected it, given your tendency to lash out at me when you’re embarrassed.”

Chung Soo and Willow arrived then, both of them carrying blankets. Chung Soo offered the ones he was holding to Guangfeng, who took them and wrapped them around himself.

“If Your Highness will follow this servant, I will show you to the room that has been prepared for you.” Chung Soo informed the prince as Willow offered her blankets.

Guangfeng took those blankets too. It was fall and a cooler day. Pretending he wasn’t cold had started getting difficult. “Lead the way.”

Yuelan reached a hand out and gently tugged on a blanket as she looked up at Guangfeng. “After you’ve changed I’ll play the guzheng for you,” she said quietly. “If you want…”

The third prince’s eyes turned gentle and he smiled. “I’d like that very much,” he assured her. “Shall I meet you in your music room then?”

Yuelan nodded and turned to head away. The prince stared after her for a moment before turning to gesture for Chung Soo to lead the way.

***

After changing and listening to Yuelan play the guzheng for him, the third prince took his newly appointed bride-to-be out to Red Orchid Pavilion for dinner and informed the people who worked in the restaurant that as his future wife she was also their future mistress, so she would be permitted to use his private room whenever she wished and he would pay any expenses she incurred while there.

The gesture made Yuelan a bit happy. She liked the food, but hadn’t wanted to deal with the hassle of reserving a private room for herself previously. Now she could invite her friends to eat there with her and enjoy a quiet meal with them instead of always going to Red Orchid Teahouse.

In an effort to make Yuelan feel more comfortable around him, Guangfeng didn’t make any more advances on her while they were eating or while he was escorting her back to her residence. He asked her more questions about her home, trying to understand as best he could what she explained to him. 

While he didn’t understand much, he was at least able to learn that her home was a very peaceful place and even though she was good at reading people, she was unfamiliar with people scheming against her. The idea worried him a bit. Even if he would never take any concubines and she wouldn’t need to deal with schemes in his palace after they were married, there were still the machinations of the very skilled empress to worry about.