Gu Ziqi was ready to give this Crown Prince cousin a good talking-to, since they had only met once, and yesterday he had just said hello and left with Sister Lili. Gu Ziqi subconsciously felt that this cousin had a bad temper.

To everyone's surprise, Gu Ziyi didn't care at all. Gu Ziqi had only said a couple of sentences when Gu Ziyi impatiently pinched Gu Ziqi's mouth with two fingers, silencing him.

Bai Yu hesitated and said, "Your Highness, this..."

"Let him stay here. He's safe with Lili."

Gu Ziqi was overjoyed.

Although Lili also liked the little guy very much, Gu Ziqi was too young, and it would be inconvenient for him to stay here.

Lili said, "Your Highness, Ziqi is still young, and the capital is far from here. It might be inconvenient for Ziqi to stay here alone."

Bai Yu nodded: "That makes sense. I'm still a little worried if Ziqi stays here alone."

"It's alright. If Ziqi wants to return to the capital, I will personally arrange for the Red Eagle Army to escort him. In addition, I will return to the capital next Spring Festival, and Ziqi can go back with me."

Gu Ziyi paused for a moment: "What is learned in youth becomes second nature, and habits become second nature. Ziqi is still young, which is the time to cultivate his mind and correct his character."

Gu Ziyi's expression remained unchanged, but Bai Yu seemed to have sensed the deeper meaning in his words.

Yang didn't speak easily just now, not for any other reason than that she couldn't decide where Gu Ziqi would go, but because Lili seemed to like the little boy very much.

While others didn't see it, Madam Yang did.

Last night, during dinner, Gu Ziqi couldn't stand it anymore and ran around the prefectural government office looking for Lili. Lili patiently and gently led Gu Ziqi back.

Lili is easygoing and extremely friendly to others.

But Yang noticed something different: Lili would instinctively protect Gu Ziqi, just like an older sister protecting her younger brother.

Yang felt that Lili actually liked Gu Ziqi very much.

After Gu Ziyi spoke up, Madam Yang smiled and said, "Why don't we let him stay? Lili is the youngest in the family and keeps asking for a younger brother or sister. I see that the two children are very close, so why don't we let them keep each other company for a while?"

After thinking for a moment, Bai Yu glanced at the jubilant Gu Ziqi, smiled helplessly, and pinched his cheek: "I'm really defeated by you."

After saying that, he bowed to Gu Ziyi and said, "Then I entrust Ziqi to Your Highness's care."

"Um."

Gu Ziyi lowered his head and raised his left eyebrow at Gu Ziqi. Gu Ziqi was overjoyed and thanked this person and that person repeatedly. Finally, he reached out and fussed for Lili to hug him.

Lili was indeed happy.

It was strange, though. She had never felt this way before. So many people had loved her since she was a child. Why would she be so happy just because a child liked her?

This whole thing makes it sound like she kidnapped someone's child.

Bai Yu instructed someone to pack some things for Gu Ziqi, left Gu Ziqi's personal servant behind, gave him some instructions, and then left quickly.

Before the carriage set off again, Bai Weiwei turned back and glanced at Lili from afar, her eyes filled with an inscrutable expression.

Gu Ziqi waved her little hand, bidding him a reluctant farewell.

After Gu Ziqi left, Xia Ning was left alone in her carriage. Feeling bored, she decided to share a carriage with Bai Yu to chat and relieve her boredom.

"Please don't worry, Your Highness. Ziqi likes Lili so much, he'll surely have a great time here."

Seeing that Bai Yu was lost in thought, Xia Ning assumed that she was still worried about Gu Ziqi, so she said, "Besides, Lili is here, so you can relax. At the very least, His Highness the Crown Prince is here too."

Bai Yu shook his head, seemingly lost in thought: "I was thinking that yesterday I was so focused on the Crown Prince's grand plan that I didn't have time to think about anything else. Now that I have some free time, I've come up with something different."

"Different things?" Xia Ning asked curiously. "What things?"

Bai Yu hesitated for a moment. Xia Ning's mother, Fu Xiang, was the youngest daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo, and her elder brother, Fu Yue, was the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

In that case, if her sister's daughter were still alive, Xia Ning would have to call Fu Li her cousin.

"Ning'er, do you still remember your cousin?"

"Cousin?"

Xia Ning thought for a moment. Her mother had two older brothers. The eldest brother had a son and a daughter, and the second brother had two sons. The cousin she called Fu Li was Fu Li.

But Fu Li's cousin...

Xia Ning's face showed some sadness: "Of course I remember. When Li'er was born, Ning'er was only three years old. Although I don't remember much, I still remember the first time I saw Li'er when she was only half a month old. She was fair-skinned and very beautiful."

But later, my father was promoted, and my mother was busy helping him with social interactions, so she never had the chance to return home to visit my little sister Li'er again. Little did I know that the first time I saw Li'er would also be the last…”

Bai Yu nodded, her expression somewhat grave.

She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but when Lili was holding Gu Ziqi earlier, she felt that Lili was familiar.

She felt close to Lili the first time she met her, and at the time she thought it was because she was pregnant and had a maternal instinct, and that it was normal to feel close to children.

But the more I thought about it, the more something seemed off. Lili's familiarity... clearly had nothing to do with anything else.

Now she remembered that Lili's profile was not exactly the same as her sister's when she was a child, but they were almost identical!

After Xia Ning finished speaking, she was also filled with regret and sadness and did not notice Bai Yu's unusual behavior for the time being.

Bai Yu thought about it more and more and felt that she had discovered the truth.

When she left the capital and returned to Nanlin County, Fu Li was just over a year old. Children grow up quickly and change every day, so it's not surprising that she didn't recognize him.

In addition, Lili was very thin at the time, which was very different from Fu Li, who had been raised in a world of luxury and was plump since birth. It was even more impossible for her to put the two of them together.

Looking back now, Fu Li was captured by the eldest prince. How could a child withstand such hardship? After traveling all the way to Nanlin County, she was already considered weak. If she had been more unlucky, she probably would have died on the way.

Oh, right.

Bai Yu muttered to herself, "There's no inexplicable sense of closeness here. It must be my niece..."

No wonder, no wonder Gu Ziqi was only close to Lili, it turns out that he and Lili were siblings!

Gu Ziqi didn't know, but the blood flowing in his veins had already shown him the way.

Bai Yu's eyes welled up with tears, and she almost shed one. She covered her mouth and her body trembled slightly.

Xia Ning finally noticed Bai Yu's unusual behavior. Seeing her reddened eyes and moist corners of her eyes, she hurriedly grasped her hand: "What's wrong, Madam? Are you worried about your brother Ziqi?"

Bai Yu was incredibly excited. Details she had never paid attention to before were now being used as evidence. The thought that the child everyone had been searching for for six years was right here, alive and well, and still kind and sincere, brought tears to her eyes.

Bai Yu wanted to tell her sister, Fu Li's mother, about this immediately.

And her parents, and everyone in the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

Fu Li is not dead, she is alive and well!

Could it be that His Highness the Crown Prince deliberately helped Gu Ziqi persuade him to stay by Lili's side because he knew something?

Then, he deliberately let Ziqi stay behind to cultivate a relationship with Lili, in preparation for Lili's return to the capital to recognize her family in the future.

Yes, yes, that must be it.

Bai Yu held Xia Ning's hand tightly: "Ning'er, I..."

Bai Yu almost blurted it out, but luckily she couldn't control herself.

Before she could finish speaking, Bai Yu calmed down.

But His Highness the Crown Prince never mentioned it; perhaps he was just hinting at it to her?

Judging from Lili's expression, she doesn't know anything.

What if His Highness the Crown Prince has other plans?

Or perhaps, Lili actually knew, but she and His Highness the Crown Prince were plotting something together.

If that's the case, wouldn't it ruin her precious niece's plans if she brought it up now?

After much hesitation, Bai Yu decided to keep the matter to herself and not mention it for the time being.

Anyway, she's doing well. Seeing how happy and successful Lili is now, she's at ease.

Yes, my niece is so capable, I, as her aunt, can't let her down.

She couldn't speak, she couldn't ruin their plans; she had to keep it to herself.

Xia Ning looked at the blank-minded Bai Yu with concern: "Young Master's wife?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

Bai Yuqiang suppressed his excitement and took a deep breath.

Bai Yu glanced at Xia Ning and changed the subject, saying, "Do you know why I brought you along to Nanlin County this time?"

Her original intention for coming to Nanlin County was to bring only Bai Weiwei.

Bai Weiwei is her niece from her maternal family, so it's perfectly reasonable for her to bring her along.

Xia Ning can be brought along... This is entirely His Highness the Crown Prince's intention.

Xia Ning was indeed puzzled and honestly said, "Ning'er doesn't know. Ning'er calls the eldest prince's wife 'aunt,' but she is not very close to the young prince's wife. When your invitation arrived at the mansion, my mother asked me about it for quite a while."

Bai Yu smiled and said, "His Highness the Crown Prince said in his letter that Lili and you are very close friends, like sisters. Unfortunately, you two are separated by distance. His Highness the Crown Prince specifically instructed me to bring you along on this trip so that I could take this opportunity to catch up with Lili."

Xia Ning asked in surprise, "Really?"

"Of course it's true."

"His Highness the Crown Prince is truly outstanding. He is not only skilled in both literature and martial arts, but also meticulous in his thinking. Most importantly..."

Xia Ning was about to say that the most important thing was that she was only so gentle to Li Li when she realized that the person next to her was no longer Li Li, who could joke and tease her, but a court lady.

Xia Ning awkwardly shut her mouth.

Bai Yu found it amusing and took the initiative to continue, "Most importantly, you're also very good to Lili?"

Xia Ning nodded hesitantly.

Bai Yu smiled, neither refuting nor saying anything more.

She needs to carefully consider the details of her previous interactions with Lili.

She wanted to tell her sister every detail, even though her sister didn't know that Lili was Fu Li, or even that Lili existed. But she still couldn't help but want to reveal a little bit to her.

There's another one she needs to think about carefully: what exactly does His Highness the Crown Prince mean by treating his niece this way?

His Highness the Crown Prince is a good man; a childhood sweetheart wouldn't be bad, would it?

*

Gu Ziqi followed Lili back to Liucheng. Liucheng was lush with green trees, and in the height of summer, it was a verdant landscape as far as the eye could see.

Gu Ziqi was so excited that he clung to Lili the whole time, as if he was afraid that Bai Yu would catch him and take him back at any moment.

Lili was both amused and exasperated: "Ziqi, sit down properly."

"good!"

Gu Ziqi sat obediently, placing his hands on his knees, sitting upright, but his body was still pressed tightly against Lili.

Lili sighed helplessly, patted his head, and gave up.

Yang found it unusual; she always saw Lili being pampered by her older brothers, but this was the first time she had ever seen Lili dote on her younger brother.

Yang wondered if it was really time to give Lili a younger brother or sister.

The carriage was handed over to the driver, while Shen Yehe and Shen Jiahao rode side by side on horseback, chatting casually.

"Hey kid, I see you're really fond of Xia Ning!"

Shen Ye blushed and frowned, replying, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

"No?" Shen Jiahao leaned closer with a hint of teasing. "Then why did I see you fuss over something this morning? You were even wearing blue clothes?"

"Can't I wear it?"

"Oh, of course not. I just remember that last night when I passed by the garden, I vaguely saw Xia Ning and her maid admiring the moon there."

Shen Jiahao looked up at the sky as if deep in thought. Upon hearing this, Shen Ye stiffened and said, "Oh."

Shen Jiahao continued, "Oh, what a coincidence! I think I saw someone else's shadow before I left?"

Shen Ye's hands and feet stiffened this time.

"Who was it again? Hmm, I feel like I've seen him somewhere before, he looks so familiar..."

Shen Ye finally couldn't hold back any longer: "Nonsense, I just went to pass on a message to Li Li. Li Li wants to chat with Miss Xia, and I just went to Miss Xia to pass on a message!"

"Oh right, right, I didn't hear anything, not even Xia Ning's question, and I didn't hear your answer either." Shen Jiahao scratched his ear nonchalantly, laughing heartily.

What did you hear?

Shen Ye's face flushed as she thought of those two sentences; they sounded familiar to her.

But Shen Jiahao didn't answer; instead, he started humming a little tune.

Enraged, Shen Ye spurred his horse forward with a powerful kick.

"Hey, are you getting shy after I said something to you?"

Shen Ye wasn't shy at all; it was just that her two sentences last night were really inappropriate!

Xia Ning, Xia Ning, she she she, she actually asked him if he was married!

He was so scared that he stammered, but Xia Ning laughed generously and said, "Lili said that you won't find happiness if you're mute, so you should speak your mind boldly."

What happiness or unhappiness? Xia Ning looked gentle and dignified, but I never expected her to be so... passionate!

Shen Ye's face was as red as an apple yesterday, but luckily it was at night, so Xia Ning couldn't see it clearly.

Shen Ye remained silent, so Xia Ning smiled and said, "It seems that Ning'er has overstepped her bounds and frightened the young master? Indeed, we have only met a few times. Actually, Ning'er is quite strange. Ning'er has always been calm and composed, so how could she say such impulsive things?"

Shen Ye was taken aback and looked at her.

"If you don't mind, young master, you can just pretend nothing happened." Xia Ning said, turning to leave.

What did Chen Ye do again?

Yes, he grabbed Xia Ning's hand, then quickly withdrew it, saying, "No."

His mother said that in the Great Jin Dynasty, asking someone whether they were married was simply asking, "Do you like me?"