Lu Baozhu, who was beside Qi Yuning, didn't like the smell of incense. Next to her was Princess Pingrou, who usually used the same orchid scent as Lu Ze.

That sweet fragrance was something Qi Yuning had never smelled before.

Qi Yuning looked at Shuangjiang behind him and said, "Lingling hasn't eaten yet. She loves to eat turtles. Pick up a piece of turtle leg for her and feed her before she goes to sleep."

Frost replied, "Yes."

Soft-shell turtle is a main dish and was placed right in front of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. If one wanted to pick up a soft-shell turtle leg, one had to go to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Frost walked forward and picked up a soft-shell turtle leg with the serving chopsticks.

Qi Yuning stood up and said, "I'll take it to Lingling. Without me, she won't eat well. She hasn't grown any taller in the past six months. I won't keep her company any longer."

After saying that, Qi Yuning went to look for Lingling.

Qi Yuning and Shuangjiang walked towards Lu Ze's courtyard. Qi Yuning lowered her voice and whispered in Shuangjiang's ear: "Is the sweet scent on your body the scent of opium?"

Shuangjiang shook her head and said, "Princess, I have only heard of the fragrance of opium, but I have never smelled it."

Qi Yuning said, "Well, in a few days it will be Qingming Festival, and the King of Jin will definitely take Princess Rong to the imperial mausoleum to pay homage to the King of Jin's wife. When the time comes, you should pay attention to the fragrance of Princess Rong."

Shuangjiang nodded and replied, "Yes."

…

After dinner, Zhao Chong asked Lu Ze to accompany him for a walk along the Xingyue Lake in the Princess Mansion.

Zhao Chong said to Lu Ze standing beside him, "Tell me the truth, do you hate me for not giving you the position of Dali Temple Minister?"

Lu Ze said: "I dare not feel resentful."

Zhao Chong looked at Lu Ze and said, "I don't know since when, our relationship as uncle and nephew is no longer as good as it was when we were little. When we were little, you were willing to tell me everything, but now..."

Lu Ze said: "My uncle is the king and I am the subject. When I was young, there was no king and subject. When I grow up, I have to follow some rules."

Zhao Chong patted Lu Ze on the shoulder and said, "Ze'er, since when have you become taller than me?"

Lu Ze just smiled distantly.

Zhao Chong looked at Lu Ze and said, "Besides my father and mother, you are the person I trust the most in this world. I am not giving you the position of Dali Temple Minister, but I am keeping you for important tasks. What Princess Qi said just now is very right. I am almost going to change my surname to Qin."

“Your Highness…”

Zhao Chong smiled helplessly and said, "When I was young, your uncle was already an adult. My father entrusted the Qin family with important tasks for me. However, it is not a good thing for the relatives to monopolize power. Your uncle is bent on power. We must be on guard against him in the future. Ze'er, you are the only one I can trust in the court. Are you willing to help me?"

Lu Ze looked at Zhao Chong. It turned out that Zhao Chong didn’t know his own identity?

Lu Ze could only say respectfully: "Everything is up to your Highness' orders."

…

When Lu Ze returned to the room, Lingling had already fallen asleep.

Qi Yuning patted Lingling gently, and when she saw Lu Ze, she whispered, "Why did you come back just now?"

Lu Ze whispered, "Your Highness pulled me aside and said a few words. It turns out that the Qin family did not tell the prince his identity."

After Qi Yuning asked the maids to leave, she whispered in Lu Ze's ear, "Do you smell a sweet fragrance on the prince?"

"Yes." Lu Ze said, "This fragrance seems to have just come out of Shengjing City. This sweet fragrance is common in the court nowadays. Your Majesty has also been smelling sweet fragrance recently."

"I see it often in the court?" Qi Yuning said to Lu Ze, "Do you still remember the opium you mentioned during the day?"

Lu Ze asked, "Do you suspect that sweet fragrance is opium?"

Qi Yuning nodded and said, "Yes. You said that His Majesty's condition has not improved, but has worsened, but His Majesty himself feels that his illness has healed. Isn't this symptom similar to the symptoms of opium mentioned by Shuangjiang? The Princess of Jin used it, which means that this opium may also be used on His Majesty."

Lu Ze said: "I will order the secret guards to investigate right away."

Qi Yuning looked at the dark night outside. The stars were dim, a dark cloud came, and a heavy rain began to fall.

Such heavy rains rarely occur in Shengjing City in spring.

The rain came in sheets and the wind was blowing hard.

Qi Yuning looked at the heavy rain in the dark night and frowned, "I have been feeling more and more uneasy these past few days."

Lu Ze held Qi Yuning's hand and said, "Don't worry too much. I'll take care of everything."

Qi Yuning threw herself into Lu Ze's arms and looked up into his eyes. "I haven't given you a birthday present yet."

Lu Ze lowered his eyes and asked, "So you prepared a birthday gift?"

Qi Yuning said: "Yes, but it is a jade pendant in the palace. It is not easy to get the jade pendant in such heavy rain."

Lu Ze smiled calmly and said, "It will be the same tomorrow."

"It won't be a birthday gift if you give it tomorrow."

Qi Yuning tiptoed and kissed Lu Ze on the lips, "It's only a month before the wedding. If today..."

Lu Ze held Qi Yuning's waist and swallowed the words that Qi Yuning had not finished saying.

"Turtle."

"Lingling loves to eat turtle."

Qi Yuning heard Lingling's mumbling in her sleep and was so scared that she pushed Lu Ze away.

I actually forgot where Lingling was.

Lu Ze looked at Lingling who was sleeping soundly and sighed softly, "I don't know when Lingling will leave. If she really waited until I was pregnant with Lingling before leaving, then you and I would never have a moment to be alone."

Qi Yuning smiled and said, "You are a father who is honored by his daughter, and you dare to look down on Lingling? It's a pity that Lingling treats you so well on weekdays."

Qi Yuning counted the days and said, "Even if she waits until Lingling is pregnant before leaving, it will only take eight months. You can't despise Lingling."

Lu Ze smiled lightly: "As you said, a father is honored by his daughter, so how can he dare to look down on Lingling?"

Qi Yuning gently touched Lingling's head and said, "Actually, I'm not worried about our future. Even if there is chaos in the court and the imperial power changes, the people I care about are still alive. I'm afraid Lingling..."

Lu Ze understood what Qi Yuning meant. Lingling came here in the Xinwei year, and both the prince's palace and the princess's palace were still there, which only showed that the change of imperial power did not affect their Lu family and Qi family.

Lingling recognized almost all of her relatives. Her uncle, aunt, and aunts were all safe. Even Lu Ze's cousins, Lingling was familiar with them all.

It can be seen that even if there is a dispute for the throne in the future, it is always stable for both families.

The only variable is Lingling herself. After Lingling came here in the Xinwei year, everything is unknown...

It is also unknown whether Lingling can return safely.

Early in the morning, when Qi Yuning woke up, she saw that Lu Ze had not yet gotten up to attend court.

Qi Yuning looked at the sky outside with a sleepy face, then looked at Lu who was frowning and asked, "Why didn't you go to court today?"

"Your Majesty will not attend court today."

Lu Ze said, "My informants said that sweet grass has been popular in the court and the public these days, and your majesty has also been using spices made from sweet grass in recent days. The source of that sweet grass is the Qin family."

Qi Yuning frowned and said, "I will go to Prince Jin's Mansion later. It seems that I can't delay it until Qingming Festival."

Lu Ze said: "I will go to Prince Jin's Mansion with you."