Chapter 107 Having finished speaking, she raised her hand and covered the back of his hand, then thought…

After saying that, she raised her hand and covered the back of his hand, intending to move it towards her heart.

No matter how hard she tried, the man didn't budge.

Not only did he not comply with her request, he even stood up straight and withdrew his hand...

Qi Fan stood with his hands behind his back in front of Jiang Zhuoying.

Jiang Zhuoying keenly noticed that he was different today than ever before.

She had anticipated his reaction before she said those words.

They might have a calm expression, or a sullen face showing dissatisfaction and a desire to educate her, or they might use actions to replace any budding thoughts.

But... it shouldn't be like this—

With her brows slightly furrowed, she seemed shrouded in a layer of cold mist. In addition to her usual coldness, Jiang Zhuoying could even see a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

She had never seen that look of disappointment on his face before.

He has always been confident and prepared.

She was slightly taken aback, and stammered, "Crown Prince, are you alright?"

The man had already turned his back; his figure was tall and slender, and at that moment, Jiang Zhuoying saw nothing but the shadow he cast upon her.

But she didn't hear a response from the man for a long time, until the door closed.

Qi Fan is gone.

Jiang Zhuoying frowned. Suddenly, the door opened again, and she looked over eagerly, but it wasn't the person she expected.

Xiangyue and Xiangxing strode in.

"Miss, His Highness said he has urgent business to attend to first, and left Guard Pei behind."

“Miss, is there anywhere else you would like to go? We’ve already left the manor, so we can go and have a look around.”

Xiangxing paused for a moment, then suddenly suggested, "How about going to Yuanbao Tower?"

"What's there to go there? Every time Yuanbaolou sends its best items over, Miss gets to choose first."

"Shall we go pick out a few winter outfits?"

"The embroiderer came to the manor to measure her figure a couple of days ago. Our young lady has no shortage of clothes."

...

Jiang Zhuoying listened quietly to the two maids offering their suggestions, and then denied them in turn, answering each other's questions.

Was he angry because of his answer?

No, no, no, it didn't mean angry, it was more like... feeling heartbroken.

Yes, it's heartbreaking.

She was just replying to what he said, so why should he give her a hard time?

Jiang Zhuoying glanced outside the door and happened to see Pei Yun standing guard outside.

It's unclear what's wrong with Pei Yun, but lately he's been noticeably more amiable towards Xiangyue and has been secretly trying to curry favor with her.

Just because she didn't expose it doesn't mean she was unaware of it.

Jiang Zhuoying turned her head: "Xiangyue, what have you thought about Jiang Li and Li Yun that I told you about last time?"

Xiangyue turned her head suddenly, her eyes slightly open, looking somewhat surprised.

“Miss? Why are you bringing this up again?” she asked in a low voice.

"What, can't I mention it? The two of them have already reported to His Highness the Crown Prince, shouldn't we send a reply as soon as possible?"

Xiangyue suddenly became anxious. What reply? Wasn't that reply sent a long time ago?

She glanced instinctively at the door and saw that Pei Yun, who had been standing further away, was now standing at the door.

"Go, close the door."

Just as Xiangyue was in a daze, she heard Jiang Zhuoying's instructions.

"yes."

Xiangxing suppressed a laugh and quickly went to close the door.

After the door closed, Xiangyue spoke softly, "Miss, didn't we agree on this last time? Why are you bringing up replying again?"

The young lady had already mentioned this matter when they were in the hunting grounds, and according to the idea at the time, the matter was temporarily put aside.

Let's talk about it when something more suitable comes along. Why bring up this old issue again now?

Jiang Zhuoying glanced at her and pointed towards the door: "Tell me honestly, what exactly happened between you and Pei Yun?"

She hadn't asked about it all this time, afraid of disturbing Xiangyue's attitude, but now it was time to ask.

After all, Xiangyue was someone she valued and wanted by her side; she couldn't let her be taken away by wolves without any explanation.

Xiangyue was stunned for a moment after hearing this, but quickly realized her intention.

She sighed softly and lowered her eyes: "Guard Pei has indeed changed his mind, but I no longer want to believe him."

Jiang Zhuoying immediately became interested. She gestured to the armchair beside her and said, "Sit down and I'll explain in more detail."

Xiangxing also came over at the right time to refill the tea and check the temperature of a few plates of pastries...

After Xiangyue's explanation, Jiang Zhuoying roughly understood the intricacies of the situation.

It turns out that the jade pendant that Xiangyue broke a few days ago was a gift from Pei Yun when she was young. However, because Xiangyue was too young at the time, she forgot the origin of the jade pendant.

Pei Yun came to Luoyang to seek refuge with relatives after his parents passed away due to a famine in his family.

However, the relatives the elders sought refuge with were unable to take them in, so they decided to sell Pei Yun to a slave trader to earn money.

Pei Yun later escaped and went to a village outside the city, where he survived thanks to food given to him by Xiang Yue's family...

In terms of age, Pei Yun should be five or six years older than Xiang Yue, but Xiang Yue was still a child at that time.

He said he wanted to find his savior to repay the debt of gratitude.

Jiang Zhuoying's eyes widened: "He thinks of marrying you just to repay a debt of gratitude? If this benefactor were someone else, would he marry someone else too?"

Xiangyue pursed her lips: "Therefore, I only feel heartbroken. In the past, I just thought I misunderstood."

"The husband I wish to marry must be someone who loves and cherishes me wholeheartedly! Just like the auspicious star awaiting a calamity."

Heartbroken?

Jiang Zhuoying pondered for a moment, then asked another question: "Are you heartbroken because you feel that Pei Yun doesn't truly like you?"

Xiangyue nodded: "He changed his attitude, but it's only because of that jade pendant. I don't care for that kind of feeling."

Jiang Zhuoying nodded in agreement.

Is Xiangyue's idea the same as Qi Fan's?

Ke Xiangyue is just an ordinary girl, so it's perfectly normal for her to have such thoughts. Qi Fan is a member of the royal family, and now he has such a status. How could he have such girlish thoughts?

Jiang Zhuoying wasn't sure what he meant. Usually, she could just brush him off, but today she couldn't.

"Miss? Would you like to return to the manor or visit somewhere else?"

Jiang Zhuoying paused for a moment, then said, "Let's go back to the manor."

Her mind kept replaying the man's disappointed look in her eyes. She pursed her lips and looked up.

Did Your Highness go to see Miss Lin just now?

Xiangxing and Xiangyue shook their heads simultaneously: "Of course not!"

Xiangyue couldn't wait to add, "Not only His Highness, but even Eunuch Chu didn't go to invite Miss Lin!"

Jiang Zhuoying was slightly taken aback: "Chu Yixin didn't go either?"

"Yes, that's right." Xiangyue nodded emphatically.

Finally, she carefully added, "Eunuch Chu stayed at the door as soon as he left; he didn't come downstairs at all."

Jiang Zhuoying's heart was truly filled with mixed feelings.

"Alright, let's go to Yuanbaolou instead."

...

Jiang Zhuoying brought a hair ornament back to her residence from Yuanbao Tower. The hair ornament was for men and was made of jade inlaid with gold.

When he was still the second prince, he was very low-key and never wore this style. After becoming the crown prince, the Imperial Clothing Bureau took care of his clothes.

Perhaps knowing his temperament, the styles of his headdresses are mostly simple and understated.

Qi Fan had never worn such a gorgeous style before.

Upon returning to the Crown Prince's residence, Jiang Zhuoying was surprised to find Chu Yixin waiting for her at the main gate.

"Eunuch Chu?"

"Oh, Your Majesty, may I have a word with you in private?" Chu Yixin bowed slightly, her expression respectful.

Jiang Zhuoying nodded and led him to a pavilion in the backyard.

She dismissed the maids behind her and sat down on the soft cushions on the stone bench, somewhat dazed.

She remembered a similar incident at the Second Prince's residence, where Eunuch Chu sought her out for a private conversation, and at that time she mistakenly believed that Wu Jiu was her fiancé.

"Your Majesty, please forgive this servant's rudeness today." Chu Yixin bowed deeply, her waist bent low.

Jiang Zhuoying pursed her lips: "Get up, Eunuch Chu, just say what you have to say, there's no need to be so polite."

Chu Yixin slowly straightened up: "This servant dares to speak to you today about something concerning Master."

Jiang Zhuoying had already guessed that Chu Yixin was personally looking for her because of Qi Fan.

She nodded, signaling Chu Yixin to speak frankly.

"As Your Highness is probably aware, the prince's birth mother was Consort Wan, who was once renowned for her beauty in Luoyang."

"Yes." Jiang Zhuoying nodded; she did indeed know.

"His Majesty was deeply infatuated with Consort Wan back then, but Consort Wan... had her heart set on someone else."

Jiang Zhuoying suddenly opened her eyes wide. She subconsciously glanced around to make sure no one else had heard.

Chu Yixin shook her head and sighed softly: "The Empress is already depressed, and our master is the Emperor's prince."

"Actually, given how much His Majesty favored the Empress back then, it wouldn't be impossible for him to pave the way for our master."

Chu Yixin's tone was somewhat dejected and regretful.

Jiang Zhuoying was gradually drawn into that emotion as well. Yes, she was a favored concubine, yet she named the prince "Fan".

Her lips moved as if she wanted to ask about the origin of the name, but then she hesitated.

"The Empress suggested that His Majesty name the prince 'Fan' in the hope that he would find his sweetheart when he grows up and live an ordinary life together."

"But our master was exceptionally gifted from a young age, with extraordinary intelligence. When he was young, it was fine because of the late Crown Prince, but after the Crown Prince passed away, the differences between our master and the Empress grew larger and larger..."

"The master has always been competing with the empress!"

...

Chu Yixin had already left, but Jiang Zhuoying was still sitting in the pavilion, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

She seemed to have truly understood what Qi Fan meant.

In the past, she only thought that Qi Fan was like a stone in winter, cold and hard.

After hearing Chu Yixin's words today, it's likely that he's always been like this since childhood. Since his desires are not understood by his closest mother, he can only keep them hidden in his heart for a long time and have to plan for them slowly on his own.

Having planned this all this time, it's perhaps difficult to bring up matters of the heart between a man and a woman.

This is the unresolved issue between him and Consort Wan.

Suddenly, Xiangyue's voice rang in her ears: "Miss? This pavilion is drafty on all sides, shall we go back to the courtyard as soon as possible?"

Jiang Zhuoying nodded, lost in thought, and then let the two maids help her back to Kunning Palace.

She waited until midnight tonight, but Qi Fan still didn't return.

As expected.

The next day, Jiang Zhuoying thought about it all day but still couldn't figure out what to say to Qi Fan.

She was somewhat afraid of his gaze, afraid that he would see through her pretense.

Right now, she is finding it difficult to reciprocate the sincerity he demands.

Since I hadn't made up my mind, I naturally didn't go to see anyone.

Around dusk, Chu Yixin rushed to Kunning Palace and knelt down at the door with a thud.

"Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened to our master!"

Jiang Zhuoying's heart skipped a beat, but she was still somewhat skeptical. She tentatively asked, "What's wrong?"

That person was perfectly fine yesterday.