After the eldest princess came to discuss the matter, Qingyin genuinely agreed to marry Shendu, and the matter progressed rapidly, like a machine getting on a moving platform.

A few days later, Shen Du received the imperial decree from his uncle, the emperor, that he wished to grant her the marriage.

The wedding date is set for February 13th.

There are still more than half a month until that time. Qingyin was forced to stay at home before, but now she really can't go out.

The entire capital was abuzz with excitement over the marriage of the divorced eldest daughter of the Song family to the legitimate son of the general's family.

One is the eldest daughter of the Song family, who is divorced and has a daughter; the other is the only son of the princess and the general. The two have vastly different statuses, and coupled with their past scandals, their story spread like wildfire in ancient times when information was scarce.

It is said that this marriage was personally arranged by Young Master Shen of the General's Mansion, which makes everyone even more curious about this extraordinary woman who is still loved by Young Master Shen even though he has been divorced and has a daughter.

Curious onlookers from the capital gathered around the Song residence, with people everywhere hoping to catch a glimpse of Miss Song.

Faced with these curious people who had no ill intentions, the Song family couldn't find a reason to drive them away. After all, these people were only near the gate of the mansion, not inside, so there was no real reason to drive them away.

Song Yuebai couldn't do anything about these people, and neither could Shen Du. Even when he wanted to secretly visit Qingyin before the wedding, he was forced to stay at home because of the people, which made him extremely depressed.

When Qingyin received the letter written by Shen Du delivered by a servant, she couldn't help but smile.

Seeing her daughter smile, Song's mother couldn't help but relax a little.

I hope this marriage goes smoothly, as long as it doesn't end up like the Liu family... It definitely won't. Shen Du truly loves Qingqing. Besides, with Qingqing looking like this now, I doubt any man who gets her would be willing to mistreat her.

Thinking of Qingyin's appearance, Song's mother inexplicably felt genuinely relaxed.

If Qingyin knew that Song's mother was still worried about her and Shen Du's future, and that she only truly felt at ease about her future because of her current appearance, she would probably find it both laughable and absurd.

—

The Crown Prince's Eastern Palace.

Crown Princess Yu frowned. "The Crown Prince hasn't even entered the inner courtyard these past few days?"

"Granny Wu, the Crown Prince didn't even go to see Lady Li and Lady Jiang?"

Lady Li and Lady Jiang were both beautiful and had good figures; they had always been the Crown Prince's favorite concubines.

Wu Mama answered her mistress: "Yes, Your Highness, the Crown Prince has been staying in the main courtyard these past few days and has not visited any of the concubines' courtyards."

"Granny, something feels off."

Granny Wu hesitated for a moment. She also sensed something was amiss with the Crown Prince. He had never before been so abstinent, not visiting the inner palace for a whole month. But seeing the Crown Princess's inexplicable unease—though intelligent, she tended to bottle things up—Granny Wu ultimately suppressed her own anxiety and comforted the Crown Princess:

"Recently, the court has been very busy, and His Majesty has assigned the Crown Prince a lot of official duties. It is likely that the Crown Prince is staying in the main courtyard because of his busy schedule."

"Yeah?"

The Crown Princess suddenly realized, "Then I'll have someone send a few more bowls of nourishing medicinal soup to the main courtyard, so the Crown Prince doesn't overwork himself."

"The Crown Princess is very thoughtful."

There are quite a few who share the same idea as the Crown Princess.

Therefore, many young palace maids carried a wine cup to the East Palace Academy along the way.

The head eunuch, who was ordered to guard the study door, smiled as he looked at the palace maids. He bypassed the maids belonging to the concubines and faced a familiar face, asking, "Isn't this Miss Hongyu from the Crown Princess's side? And this is..."

Hongyu raised an eyebrow, glared at the envious and jealous palace maids around her, and said with a hint of pride, "This servant greets Eunuch Xu. This servant was ordered by the Crown Princess to bring His Highness a medicinal soup. The Crown Princess heard that His Highness was busy with official duties, so she specially prepared this nourishing medicinal soup."

Eunuch Xu's heart skipped a beat. Busy with official duties? As far as he knew, His Highness the Crown Prince wasn't always in the main courtyard because of official business.

Xu Gonggong may be thinking something, but his expression remains unchanged, making it impossible for anyone to discern his thoughts.

After exchanging perfunctory words with Miss Hongyu, Eunuch Xu hurriedly went to the inner room of the study.

Inside the study, the prince, dressed in an apricot-yellow robe, was meticulously painting a portrait of a beautiful woman.

The painting depicts a woman amidst bamboo groves, a stream, and grass, her beautiful face languidly turned to the distance. An ordinary scene is transformed into a dreamlike one by the woman in the painting.

The prince gazed at the woman in the painting with fascination, and couldn't help but reach out and touch her face...

Who exactly are you?

"Your Highness, Your Highness."

Eunuch Xu gently knocked on the door and asked cautiously.

The crown prince frowned and said coldly, "Come in."

"yes."

"Your Highness, the Crown Princess has sent over a pot of soup. Would Your Highness like to drink it?" Eunuch Xu asked respectfully, his head bowed low, not daring to look at anything in the room.

The prince snorted coldly, "Ha, compared to the women in the painting, these women are simply vulgar."

As he listened, Eunuch Xu couldn't help but lower his head even further.

He thought to himself, if the Crown Prince's words were known to the Crown Princess and the other concubines, they would probably tear up the indestructible clothes of the woman who had captivated the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince was furious. He was in poor health and couldn't help but cough a few times. Eunuch Xu was so frightened that he quickly brought over a pot of warm tea.

The prince drank a few sips before he finally calmed down completely.

After such an emotional outburst, he calmed down.

For the past two weeks, he hadn't gone to the inner quarters, which made the Crown Princess and the concubines prone to overthinking. He didn't want to expose his beloved to those vicious women for the time being.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!