Chapter 66 Thoughts

The prince said this and looked at Qi Qiong.

Qi Qiong's heart sank.

What does this mean, Prince?

The rules that ordinary people see as important actually have little binding force on the prince. Although Qi Qiong was skeptical about the prince's words and actions, he couldn't help but respond.

"Miss Lin Er lives in the General's Mansion next door. She is my good friend."

After Qi Qiong introduced Lin Hao, he introduced Lin Chan: "This is Miss Lin."

Lin Chan lowered her head and knelt.

Not wanting to show his thoughts too obviously, the prince looked at Sun Xiuhua.

Qi Qiong said, "This is my cousin from my aunt's family. She just came to Beijing not long ago."

Sun Xiuhua saluted while holding her handkerchief, her whole body trembling with nervousness.

If an ordinary woman looked like this, the prince would just think she was petty, but it was different when a beauty looked like this.

The prince looked at the girl, who was as graceful as a willow in the spring breeze, and felt that she had a unique charm.

Of course, his greater interest was in the Lin sisters.

"Since she is my cousin's sister, she is also my cousin. No need to be polite."

The prince's gentle tone made Sun Xiuhua relax a little. After standing up, she couldn't help but look up secretly and glance at the prince.

This sight caused a ripple in her heart.

The prince in his early twenties was undoubtedly handsome, and because of his status as the crown prince, he developed a noble aura.

Noticing Sun Xiuhua's gaze, the prince glanced at her with a smile.

Sun Xiuhua quickly lowered her eyes and her cheeks flushed.

"Your Highness is here——"

The prince smiled and said, "I came to play chess with your elder brother, but he was out for a walk, so I came to see him."

After hearing this, Qi Qiong gritted his teeth and thought to himself that it was really a bad time for his brother to take a walk.

At this moment, a voice came: "Your Highness."

The smile on the prince's lips subconsciously disappeared, and he turned around to look.

Qi Shuo strode over.

"Your Highness, do you want to play chess with me? It just so happens that I'm addicted to chess too." Qi Shuo made a gesture of invitation and invited the prince to his residence.

The prince did not move his feet: "The weather is nice, why not go to the garden——"

"By the way, I just received a set of glass chess pieces. Your Highness, take a look at them." Qi Shuo seemed not to understand the prince's implication and enthusiastically took him to his residence.

Looking at the prince's back disappearing behind the flowers and trees, Qi Qiong secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Please sit down." Qi Qiong turned around and looked at Lin Hao and the other two, smiling.

"Princess, does the prince often come to the palace?"

Qi Qiong was a little surprised by Lin Hao's question and shook his head, "How could that be? He only came here for Mother's birthday."

"It's quite a coincidence today." Lin Hao said lightly without sitting down, "Princess, my sister and I should go back to the mansion. The prince is a precious treasure, and it would be bad if we accidentally bumped into him."

Lin Hao's suggestion was also Lin Chan's idea.

Qi Qiong no longer had the intention to keep them, and ordered the maid to escort the two sisters out of the house.

"Okay, I'll go to the General's Mansion to listen to your stories later."

Lin Hao nodded slightly: "Okay."

The two looked at each other and smiled in tacit understanding.

The pavilion was empty, with only Qi Qiong and Sun Xiuhua left.

"Cousin, let's go back to the house."

Sun Xiuhua hesitated for a moment and nodded in agreement.

Qi Qiong noticed Sun Xiuhua's hesitation and frowned secretly.

Although her cousin's reaction to the prince just now could be said to be too nervous, she still felt that something was wrong.

I hope she is overthinking it.

After returning to her room, Qi Qiong thought for a moment and instructed her maid, "Go and keep an eye on what's going on with the cousin."

Not long after, the maid returned to report, "I saw my cousin heading towards the main courtyard."

The main courtyard of the palace is the residence of Prince Jing and Princess Jing.

Qi Qiong frowned when he heard this.

It’s not the time to pay respects in the morning or evening, why is my cousin going to see my mother?

Thinking of the prince who suddenly appeared in the garden, Qi Qiong's eyes turned cold.

Could it be what she thought?

When the prince comes to the palace, he will definitely greet my mother. Does my cousin want to meet the prince again?

Qi Qiong knew that he shouldn't speculate, but the thought kept lingering in his mind.

She simply got up and went to the main courtyard.

The prince's mind was not on chess. He stared at the bleak situation on the chessboard and threw the glass chess piece away. "My brother is a master of chess. I can't compare with him."

"Another game?" Qi Shuo suggested with a smile, but his heart was cold.

The prince had never played chess with him before.

"No." The prince waved his hand. "I'll come back to play chess with my brother in a couple of days. My brother is so good at chess, I guess I need to come more often to hone my skills."

"Then I will take His Highness there."

"I came here so suddenly that I didn't even say hello to my uncle and aunt."

"My father is out today, I will accompany you to see my mother."

The two arrived at the main courtyard and heard laughter before they even entered the house.

Princess Jing was leaning on the beauty couch, with Sun Xiuhua sitting on her left and Qi Qiong on her right.

It was Sun Xiuhua who was chatting and laughing with Princess Jing, while Qi Qiong was a little silent.

When the maid reported that the prince had arrived, Princess Jing stood up.

"How is Auntie these days?"

Although the Crown Prince's attitude was gentle, Princess Jing did not dare to take it lightly and said with a smile, "All is well. How did Your Highness find time to come over?"

The prince glanced at Qi Shuo and said, "I suddenly felt like playing chess with my brother. My brother is very good at chess, and I plan to come here often to ask for advice."

Princess Jing suppressed the twitching of her lips and smiled: "Your Highness, you are too kind to Shuo'er. His chess skills are very average."

Don't come here often.

Serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. The crown prince is also half a king. It will not be good for the palace if he accidentally offends him or attracts attention. If there is an accident on the way to or from the palace, it will be even worse.

The prince smiled slightly and said, "Aunt, you are too modest. Just now, my brother defeated me completely."

Princess Jing: What an unfilial son!

After finally sending the prince away, Princess Jing glared at her son and said, "Shuo'er, just play chess. Why would you win against the prince?"

Qi Qiong spoke first: "Mother, my cousin and I will go back to our room first."

When the prince was around, she watched coldly from the sidelines, and her cousin secretly glanced at the prince at least three times.

Her mother didn't treat her cousin as an outsider, but she couldn't bear to see her mother talking about the prince in front of her cousin.

After Qi Qiong dragged Sun Xiuhua away, Princess Jing spoke without hesitation: "Why don't you give in to the Crown Prince a little? Now that his competitive spirit has been aroused, won't he come to the palace every other day?"

Qi Shuo smiled somewhat coldly: "Mother is wrong. The Crown Prince didn't come to the palace because of his competitive spirit. He just found a random excuse to come. If it's not to play chess, it will be something else."

"Why is this?" Princess Jing was puzzled.

"Maybe..." Qi Shuo said coldly, "Maybe he had some lustful thoughts. The prince went to the garden to look for me and passed by the pavilion. The Lin sisters and my cousin were both in the pavilion."

Princess Jing was shocked: "The Crown Prince has taken a fancy to Xiuhua?"

Qi Shuo was silent.

"No, I need to ask Qiong'er for the details. If the prince really has this intention, we must be on guard."

Princess Jing was so concerned that she was only worried about her niece. As soon as she glanced at her handsome son, she blurted out, "Shuo'er, what do you think of Xiuhua? If it's possible, why not settle your marriage first, so that the perverted Crown Prince won't keep thinking about you."