Recalling the emperor's restrained demeanor just now, Qingyin knew that the emperor, who held absolute power, was about to lose his temper.

Like a special incense burning longer and longer in a room.

The palace became increasingly oppressive due to various reasons.

Wu Yanmeng was unaware of the impending storm; in recent days, her father's gifts had been increasing.

Looking at the various precious herbs that had been delivered, she had the imperial physician brew them all for Qingyin.

As usual, the Tenth Prince, who had come to visit the Yasi Palace with great enthusiasm, looked at the bowl of bitter, colorless medicine placed in front of Qingyin and curled his lips in disgust: "Medicine pot, little mute, drink it quickly, I have some candied fruit here."

"Tenth Brother!" came the angry voice of a girl from the side.

The tenth prince blinked his unfocused eyes, not glancing at his sullen younger sister beside him.

“Ayu, don’t listen to your tenth brother. Father Emperor has sent another batch of medicinal herbs. This medicine contains a hundred-year-old ginseng. You will definitely be able to replenish all that essence and blood.”

Qingyin nodded and drank the bowl of terribly bitter medicine.

The next second, a candied fruit and a candy were placed in front of him.

Seeing the two eyes staring intently at her, Qingyin helplessly stuffed both excessively sweet treats into her mouth.

Fortunately, the candied fruit and candy weren't very big, otherwise it would have been really difficult to deal with these two people secretly competing.

Seeing that the older brother had eaten the candy she had given him, Wu Yanmeng glanced smugly at her brother beside her.

The Tenth Prince glared at his younger sister with annoyance and muttered under his breath, "You're imitating a ghost!"

"Ha! What did you say to me!" Wu Yanmeng, who had excellent hearing, didn't hear clearly, but she subconsciously knew that her tenth brother was cursing her.

The Tenth Prince looked pale and stopped talking, but subconsciously he remembered what his younger sister had said earlier and asked, "Does Father Emperor often send you medicine?"

When it came to serious matters, Wu Yanmeng knew her limits and nodded, "Yes, but Father Emperor didn't just send medicine; he also sent many beautiful clothes and jewels."

"Is that so?" The Tenth Prince subconsciously took his sister's words to heart.

Qingyin could tell what the Tenth Prince was thinking just by looking at his face, so she coughed to distract him.

"Ayu, why are you coughing? Are you feeling unwell?"

"Little mute, are you sick again?"

...

Seeing how easily the two shifted their concern to her, Qingyin concealed the smile in her eyes and continued to pretend to be weak.

The Crown Prince also heard about the Tenth Prince's recent frequent trips to the palace.

It was said that the guard had saved the princess and the emperor. The crown prince heard his confidant say in his ear, "Your Highness, the Tenth Prince, is of noble status, and he is trying to curry favor with His Majesty by ingratiating himself with that guard. We must be wary of him."

The Crown Prince frowned. "Given Tenth Brother's status, and with Father Emperor's high regard for me, how could this be? Don't say that again."

...

After this conversation, the Crown Prince never expected to run into the person his confidant had mentioned so soon—the guard who had saved His Majesty.

It's hard to say that the guard who saved the emperor would have such a fragile appearance.

The person before me was as fair as jade, and her misty, clear eyes seemed to be veiled by a layer of mist and rain, making her unrealistically beautiful.

The guard followed behind Qingyan, but no one could see the girl walking in front, who was as radiant as the sun.

The prince felt as if he were bewitched by a strange atmosphere, staring at someone so brazenly for the first time.

It wasn't until his rough and uninteresting twelfth sister noticed that he stood in front of the guard, blocking his view.

After what seemed like half a day, the Crown Prince finally heard his own voice: "Why has Sister Qingyan come to the Imperial Garden today?"

Wu Yanmeng looked at the Crown Prince warily and replied obediently, "The weather is nice today. My mother has recently taken a liking to rose cakes, so I thought I'd come and pick some."

"I see, Qingyan is so filial," the Crown Prince said with a gentle smile.

It is extremely easy for a high-ranking prince to genuinely please someone.

Qingyin watched as the Crown Prince flattered Wu Yanmeng with just a few words, and Wu Yanmeng, now off guard, sighed inwardly.

Indeed, none of the people in this palace are good at scheming.

Seeing the prince join in picking rose petals, Qingyin was wary, but she didn't forget to pick the petals that caught her eye. There was a beautifully blooming rose in her left hand, and Qingyin's eyes lit up. She reached out her left hand towards it, but her other fair and slender hand seemed to accidentally touch it.

Qingyin looked over and saw the Crown Prince's embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry, I bumped into you by accident. Are you alright?"

Qingyin: "..."

He shook his head and turned back without expression.

The crown prince watched this scene with a faint smile and said nothing more.

But his right thumb couldn't help rub it a few times, as if the smooth, delicate touch of that person was still lingering where he had touched them.

After chatting for a while, the Crown Prince chuckled as he watched Wu Yanmeng leave in a hurry with her entourage. His eyes gleamed with ambition, as if he had found some treasure.

In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Emperor Chongzhao felt a surge of anger as he listened to the report from his secret guards, word by word.

Simply placing him next to his daughter, who was still too young to understand love, constantly attracted butterflies and stray dogs.

The Tenth Prince, the Crown Prince, Xu Yanli... Ha, they really are his good sons, just like his own judgment.

That night, Emperor Chongzhao, who had summoned the Crown Prince, looked down at the Crown Prince, who looked exactly like him but was much younger, and couldn't help but feel intense jealousy.

He suddenly had some doubts.

Could her aged face win Ru Yu's heart, or would the young and powerful Crown Prince be more likely to win her heart?

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