In the side courtyard next to the princess's, the family physician finished packing and reported: "Third Young Master, Miss Guyu's coma is caused by a high fever due to the invasion of cold into her body. I have already prescribed medicine. Boil three bowls of water down to one bowl, and give it three times a day. She will recover in less than three days."

Before Li Yu could speak, the princess asked in her heart, "But what about her head injury? She bled so much."

"It's a minor head injury with not much bleeding. As long as you don't get it wet, it will be fine in a few days. You might feel dizzy and nauseous, so you need to rest well for the next few days."

After the physician finished speaking, he left. The princess sat by the bed, holding Gu Yu's hand, looking remorseful: "It's all my fault. She looked so pale today, and I still asked her to come out with me."

Li Yu glanced at the bandage on the girl's head and said expressionlessly, "Let's go, don't disturb her rest."

The princess tucked her in, got up, and went out to call a maid to stand guard outside before following Li Yu back to the main courtyard.

The princess parted her lips slightly, hesitated for a moment, and then thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Third Brother, for bringing Guyu back."

Li Yu turned around, his eyes filled with emotions the princess couldn't decipher, and said coldly, "Think about the consequences before you act. You're not a child anymore."

After saying that, he went out and left.

Princess Liu turned away and wiped her tears.

"Princess, Young Master Xu is outside the courtyard and requests that you come out."

Hearing the maid's words, she turned around, wiped her tears with a handkerchief, straightened her clothes with a happy expression, and awkwardly went out.

A tall, thin man stood outside the door, smiling at her.

The princess blushed and stepped forward, calling out sweetly, "Brother Zijin."

Xu Zijing patted her head and asked gently, "What were you doing there just now?"

The princess blushed even more, and after a long while she couldn't explain why, she said in embarrassment and annoyance, "Brother Zijing, please don't ask anymore."

"Is Guyu alright?"

Speaking of this, the princess looked sad: "The royal physician has examined her and said it was caused by a fever. She fainted and fell, breaking her head. She needs to rest properly."

Xu Zijin comforted her, "It's good that you're alright. Don't worry too much. If the doctor says you're fine, then you're fine. Don't come to see me next time; it's not safe. I'll come to see you when I have the chance."

The princess felt a warmth in her heart and nodded obediently, "I understand."

Xu Zijin: "I have to go, the prince will scold me soon."

The princess looked up and urged him, "Then hurry up and go."

Back in the main dining room, everyone knew what he'd been doing there—his daughter/sister. Once she set her mind on something, nothing could sway her.

On the way back, Su Yi couldn't help but ask, "What were you doing just now?"

"Go see the princess. We've known each other since childhood and we're in love. The prince promised that if I make it into the top three, he'll come and propose marriage."

“Just now, her maid fainted and broke her head. She and her maid have been like sisters since childhood, and I was afraid she would be sad.”

After Xu Zijing finished explaining, Su Yi didn't ask any more questions. Since childhood, that wasn't her.

After a few days of rest, the emperor finally decided to send Su Yi to the Dali Temple, and the second and third place to the Hanlin Academy. All three of them would start as officials of the eighth rank.

Once everything was back on track and the hype surrounding the top three had died down, Su Yi finally went to keep his appointment with Lord Xu.

"Student Su Yi greets Your Excellency." Perhaps due to past reasons, Su Yi still referred to himself as a student.

Lord Xu praised, "Indeed, I was right about you back then."

"Oh, by the way, where's your sister? Didn't she come to the capital with you?" Lord Xu thought of that girl who was full of schemes, whose cooking was the most unique he had ever tasted.

“She’s not my sister,” Su Yi said calmly. “She’s my fiancée.”

Lord Xu hissed, "A child bride?"

Su Yi didn't like that title. He said, "We're childhood sweethearts, we grew up together."

Lord Xu felt a pang of regret and asked again, "Then why aren't you married yet?"

"It'll be soon; preparations are already underway at home."

Lord Xu stopped worrying and sincerely wished her well: "She is indeed a rare woman. Remember to invite me to your wedding banquet."

Thank you.

As soon as Su Yi finished his meal and left, Madam Xu couldn't wait to ask, "How did it go? Did you find out everything?"

Lord Xu sighed, "Give up on that idea. He has a fiancée. I met her that year, and her family is already preparing for the wedding banquet."

Madam Xu frowned. "You've seen her before, the arranged marriage? How can that compare to my Jiu'er? My Jiu'er is the daughter of a third-rank imperial censor. How can a country bumpkin compare to her?"

Lord Xu was displeased with these words, "What are you saying? I have met that girl. She is intelligent, quick-witted, and exceptionally talented. She is more than a match for Su Yi."

Madam Xu couldn't believe it. "You mean Jiu'er is inferior to her?"

Lord Xu was too lazy to waste words with her, so he left with the words, "Don't mention this matter again."

This infuriated Madam Xu, who flew into a rage.

A maid quietly left and went to a boudoir in the Xu residence.

"You mean, Brother Su already has a fiancée?" Xu Jiuyan slumped onto the stool, her expression blank.

The maid recounted their conversation word for word, and Xu Jiuyan stood up again.

She muttered to herself, "How could a country bumpkin like me be worthy of the talented Brother Su?"

Ever since she met Su Yi at the parade that day, she fell in love at first sight and vowed to marry no one but him.

Without further ado, he went to Madam Xu's room.

Upon hearing her daughter's suggestion, Madam Xu clapped her hands and exclaimed, "That's right! How come I didn't think of that? Since Lord Su values ​​loyalty and righteousness, it wouldn't be a bad idea to let a country girl be his concubine. I'll go and talk to your father about it, and he can handle it."

In the side courtyard of the Prince's Mansion, Gu Yu kept sneezing, one after another.

"Who exactly is spreading rumors about me?"

The princess asked worriedly, "Have you caught a cold? Should we call the royal physician to take a look?"

Gu Yu stopped her: "No, don't! My cold is all better now. I don't feel unwell anywhere. Someone must be cursing me."

A maidservant would frequently call the palace physician; the princess might think she was useless and secretly get rid of her.

She looked up and saw the princess's lovesick expression. She asked, "Princess, what are you thinking about?"

The princess smiled sweetly: "My mother said yesterday that the Xu family is preparing to propose marriage, but no matter what, we have to wait for my third brother to get married first, so that the order of seniority can be maintained."

After saying that, he sighed, "My third brother is really something. He doesn't like any of those noble ladies. I really don't know what kind of girl he's going to pick."

Gu Yu recalled the Third Young Master's appearance: aloof, detached from worldly affairs, and unapproachable. Indeed, very few women could be worthy of him.

Gu Yu concluded, "It's probably just that our time hasn't come yet."

The princess nodded, "Indeed, I can't just tell my third brother to marry anyone because I want to get married myself, or I would be unworthy of being his sister."

Looking at the princess's face, which seemed to be eager to get married immediately, Gu Yu couldn't really say what to do.

The person they were discussing was currently being interrogated by the princess.

"Yu'er, why won't you get married? Is there something you can't say?" The princess looked as if she was afraid her son would say something outrageous.

"Mother, what are you thinking? I just don't want to get married."

“But you’re not young anymore. When your brother was your age, your nephew was already three years old.”

"Besides, your sister is also of marriageable age. She can't possibly marry before you, can she?"

"With so many girls, isn't there one you like?"

Li Yu pursed his lips and hesitated for a long time before looking up at the princess as if he had made up his mind. "I have a woman I like."

The princess was overjoyed. "Whoever's daughter she is, as long as her family background is respectable, I will arrange a marriage for her."

Li Yu slowly uttered the name with trepidation. The princess's expression hardened, and without thinking, she said, "Impossible."