Chapter 61 Can you stay with me for a while?

Qin Xin was stunned, unable to understand why she had said something so irrelevant. She stamped her feet anxiously, "Princess Consort, how can you still be concerned about whether it's raining or not? You should be concerned about the Prince! This is a perfect opportunity for you to take advantage of the situation!"

Shen Wantang: "I've been paying close attention to the young master, haven't I? I even exposed Chu Yanluo and the man behind her for him. He owes me a huge favor!"

Qin Xin shook her head helplessly: "Princess Consort, why can't you understand? It's not enough to just make the Prince owe you a favor. Right now, the Prince respects you more than he loves you. You have to make him like you, just like he likes Chu Yanluo, putting you first in everything and considering your needs in every way."

Shen Wantang smiled and said, "I am already very content that he respects me. One should not be too greedy."

She actually felt that her current relationship with Xiao Qingyuan was quite good and didn't need to be changed.

After finishing her sentence, Shen Wantang ignored the maid's anxiety and went back to reading.

After watching for a while, she became a little sleepy and went to bed to rest.

Du Juan always thought she read books to learn, but sometimes she also used obscure and difficult books to hypnotize herself.

And you know what? The more difficult the book, the better its hypnotic effect.

Shen Wantang soon fell into a deep sleep.

She didn't know how much time had passed before Qin Xin shook her awake.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw a bolt of lightning strike down outside, illuminating the entire courtyard, followed immediately by a deafening clap of thunder.

She regained some of her composure and asked her head maid, "What's wrong? What happened?"

"The Crown Princess, the Crown Prince..."

What's wrong with him?

"He seems to be drunk. He's sitting motionless outside our courtyard gate, completely soaked. No one can persuade him to stop. Why don't you go and try to talk to him?"

Shen Wantang immediately sat up: "Why didn't you say so earlier? How long has he been sitting here?"

"We've been sitting here for about an hour."

Shen Wantang couldn't help but rub her forehead: "Next time something like this happens, wake me up immediately, otherwise the young master will get soaked, and Mother will be heartbroken."

Qin Xin was very happy, feeling that the Crown Princess was finally starting to care about the Crown Prince. She said she was afraid that the Princess would feel sorry for the Crown Prince, but in reality, she was the one who felt sorry for him, but she was too shy to say it.

Shen Wantang had no idea that her maid was imagining so much. While putting on her shoes, she was thinking about something her maid had said earlier, which made a lot of sense. She couldn't ruin her relationship with Xiao Qingyuan, after all, he was her husband, and they would be spending a long time together in the future!

Moreover, Shen Wantang knew in her heart and was self-aware that no matter how well she did as a daughter-in-law or how much her mother-in-law liked her, she could not compare to Xiao Qingyuan. After all, Xiao Qingyuan was her mother-in-law's own son, and blood was thicker than water, which was only natural.

Don't be fooled by how good her mother-in-law is to her now; if Xiao Qingyuan gets caught in the rain and falls ill, her mother-in-law will definitely be heartbroken and angry.

After putting on her shoes, Shen Wantang didn't bother to change her clothes. She casually threw on a cloak, picked up a lantern, and hurriedly walked outside.

Qin Xin held an umbrella for her and walked with her to the door.

At the entrance, Xiao Qingyuan sat while Mo Ji stood, their umbrellas trampled to pieces and tossed aside.

Both of them were soaked to the bone.

Upon seeing Shen Wantang emerge, Mo Ji's face revealed a look of surprise and hope: "Princess Consort, please persuade the Prince! He refuses to take shelter from the rain!"

Shen Wantang sighed softly, "Your Highness, why are you sitting here in the middle of the night? Go back quickly, you'll get sick if you do this."

Xiao Qingyuan, who had previously refused to speak to anyone, raised his head upon hearing her voice.

A hint of vulnerability appeared on his incomparably handsome face: "Shen Wantang, can you stay with me for a while? I feel so uncomfortable."

Shen Wantang nodded: "I'll stay with you as long as you want, but please go inside first. It's a cold rainy night, and you'll catch a cold."

"What does it matter if I catch a cold? Right now, I feel that living is meaningless, and it would be better to die."

"I gave my heart, but all I got in return was betrayal. Why do people never cherish what they have? Why do they sleep with other men? I just don't understand."

"If I die, will Yanluo be sad? Or will she be happy? Will she feel that I'm no longer an obstacle, and she can be with Yuan Zheng openly?"

Shen Wantang was startled, fearing that he might really commit suicide, and quickly said, "If Your Highness wants to know the answer, then you must live well. Only by living will you have the opportunity to verify your conjecture."

"Besides, didn't the young master give Miss Chu a night to reflect? You can talk to her again after dawn tomorrow, and maybe you'll get an answer."

Xiao Qingyuan looked at her with a drunken haze and suddenly said, "Shen Wantang, you are very beautiful. You do resemble her somewhat."

Shen Wantang didn't take it as a compliment at all. She didn't want to look like Chu Yanluo, but unfortunately, her appearance was given to her by her parents, and she couldn't change it.

The heavy rain continued, and although Qin Xin held an umbrella for her, her shoes and skirt quickly got wet.

She didn't like the damp and cold feeling, and she instructed Moji, "Help the young master into the house."

Mo Ji had helped the prince up before, but the prince never got up. He thought the prince wouldn't get up this time either, but to his surprise, the prince stood up as soon as he helped him up.

Mo Ji breathed a huge sigh of relief. As expected, it was only when the Crown Princess intervened that things worked!

He helped the young master into the house, and Granny Chai quickly brought him a hangover soup and fed it to him.

Qin Xin took a handkerchief and wrung out the prince's hair, while Shu Xiang ran to Xinghe Courtyard to get a clean set of clothes for the prince to change into.

Qi Yu went to the kitchen to get some food, because the prince had only drunk wine tonight and hadn't eaten anything.

Huayi knelt down and took off the prince's soaked shoes and socks, then wiped his feet clean and put on new socks and shoes.

Looking at everything in the room, Mo Ji was almost in tears. In an instant, the scales in his heart tipped completely in favor of Shen Wantang.

He couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of the Crown Princess, she arranged everything so methodically and meticulously. Her care for the Crown Prince is so devoted and touching. Compared to Chu Yanluo, she's like heaven and earth."

No, that's not right. Chu Yanluo is not worthy of being compared to the Crown Prince's Consort at all!

Chu Yanluo didn't care about the prince at all. Usually, only the prince took care of her, and she was never seen taking care of him. Moreover, if the prince drank alcohol, she would only complain about the smell of alcohol on him and kick him out. She had no intention of serving him at all.

Clearly, it wasn't just Mo Ji who sensed the difference between the two; Xiao Qingyuan did as well.

He drank the hangover soup and his mind cleared up a bit. He was staring intently at Shen Wantang.