embassy.

The excitement at the Crown Prince's wedding became a hot topic among the people. Princess Yuexiu did not attend, not only because of her inappropriate status, but also because the shadow left on her by Fang Shan was too great.

"Judging from her pulse, everything is normal." The witch doctor who treated her frowned, indicating that he could not see anything else.

The Princess of Yuexiu said sternly, "Chen Liuliu clearly gave me something to eat at that time."

Witch Doctor: "It's possible he's just bluffing."

Princess Yuexiu still had doubts: "Chen Liuliu is not someone who acts without purpose. She must have been thoroughly prepared to be able to play along with me for such a long time."

Before the witch doctor could speak, the messenger's cold gaze fell on the Princess of Yuexiu Kingdom: "You are not capable of accomplishing anything."

The Princess of Yuexiu Kingdom lowered her eyes, hiding her dejection. This time she had indeed miscalculated. Not only did she fail to destroy Chen Liuliu as planned, but she was sold out by the other party. It was a great shame and humiliation.

The messenger turned to the witch doctor and said, "Let her bleed."

While more could indeed be extracted from the blood, the witch doctor hesitated: "I'm afraid it might leave a wound."

The Princess of Yuexiu was a woman, so of course she was very particular about her appearance. She hardened her heart and said through gritted teeth, "Bleed."

If Chen Liuliu really had hidden something inside her body, the situation would be even worse.

Seeing her resolve, the witch doctor fetched a small bowl and gently slashed her snow-white skin with a sharp dagger. Blood instantly flowed from her snow-white skin. Chen Liuliu felt the warmth in her body drain slightly, and her hatred for Chen Liuliu intensified.

The messenger ignored her emotions: "The prince finally married Chen Liuliu."

Princess Yuexiu turned her face away slightly: "It was my mistake."

"Forget it. You continue to find a way to contact Chen Yan. As for Chen Liuliu..." The messenger curled his lips and said, "The Crown Prince has just experienced lust for the first time. I heard that the Queen Mother has given him two beauties as a gift."

The Princess of Yuexiu pursed her lips and said, "That vixen might have already secretly dealt with the man a long time ago."

Chen Liuliu has a stunningly beautiful face, and her looks are unmatched.

"It's human nature to get tired of the old and love the new," the envoy said, looking out the window with a dark smile. "What's more, one of the beauties is one of ours, and we have plenty of tricks up our sleeves."

"Really?" The Princess of Yuexiu felt secretly delighted, as if she had already seen the scene of Chen Liuliu falling out of favor.

The messenger saw through her thoughts and smiled meaningfully: "But her purpose is not just to seduce the prince."

…

The summer heat is receding day by day, and autumn hunting will be here soon.

Emperor Chengyuan originally intended to leave the crown prince as regent, but after a wolf pack was spotted, the autumn hunt was moved to the nearby Nanshan Mountains for safety reasons. After careful consideration, Emperor Chengyuan decided to suspend court for three days, forcing Wei Sushen to join in.

Since the previous emperor, military power had been valued over civil service. In contrast, Emperor Chengyuan was more impartial, treating all equally, yet he still vigorously promoted the martial arts. The princes and princesses were required to learn horseback riding and archery from a young age, and he personally inspected them every year.

The air in the mountains was much fresher, so Chen Yan had sealed off the mountain a few days in advance and set up tents. The Imperial Guards were stationed in three layers, inside and outside, forming a tight defense.

Concubine Li was pregnant and couldn't come, but she whispered in Emperor Chengyuan's ear constantly, and he finally agreed. Concubine Li didn't want to come, but Emperor Chengyuan always brought a few concubines with him on his hunting trips. She hadn't spent much time with Emperor Chengyuan lately, and if things continued like this, she might lose favor before the child was even born.

Wei Sushen also brought a few people with him, to be exact, they were all brought by Fang Shan. It can't be said that he was surrounded by many beautiful women, but there were quite a few of them.

Fang Shan, always active, began to pay attention to his surroundings in the relatively relaxed atmosphere. Having just recently discussed Prince An with Wei Sushen, he subconsciously searched for any trace of Prince An.

Not long after, he saw the man communicating with Emperor Chengyuan and looked at him secretly.

Prince An's eyebrows and eyes are somewhat similar to Emperor Chengyuan. He is handsome and gives people a gentle feeling.

"Princess, do you want to join us?"

A sudden voice interrupted Fang Shan's thoughts.

The speaker was a beauty gifted by the Empress Dowager, named Yingyu. Fang Shan had initially found the two names difficult to remember, so he called them Xiaoyi and Xiaoer.

Most of the women who came here today changed into their fancy clothes. Some of them held bows and arrows and rode on tall horses to participate in the upcoming hunting competition.

"How can I miss such a great opportunity to show off?" Fang Shan glanced at the woman in a green dress beside him. "Waiter, peel some peanuts for me."

The woman in the green dress patiently helped him peel it: "It's difficult to guarantee absolute safety in the hunting grounds."

Fang Shan stood up and looked at the few horses in the distance that still had no one to choose. He smiled and walked over: "I can guarantee it."

He was not bluffing, he jumped onto the horse cleanly and neatly, attracting a lot of attention.

Seeing how skillful he was, several other noble ladies suggested that they set out together. Fang Shan did not refuse and chatted with them as they set out together.

On the other side, Prince An did not talk with Emperor Chengyuan for too long. Wei Sushen came over with a horse, and he left to talk with several familiar court officials.

"I heard there are many wild deer in the forest, so I want to go ahead."

This was the first time the father and son spoke calmly since Wei Sushen said he liked homosexuality.

Emperor Chengyuan said in a gentle voice, "Go ahead. Don't just focus on hunting; the scenery in the mountains is also rare."

Wei Sushen nodded, and several guards mounted their horses and followed him. Not long after, their figures disappeared into the dense forest.

Emperor Chengyuan watched him disappear, his smile gradually fading. "Do you think what I did was right or wrong?"

The old eunuch chose his words carefully: "Your Majesty is far-sighted."

Emperor Chengyuan shook his head and said, "Call Li Yuan."

Li Yuan held a high position and had many people fawning over him. He was exhausted from dealing with them when someone came to tell him that the emperor had summoned him. He breathed a sigh of relief.

As soon as he entered the tent, his heart, which had just been at ease, was lifted again. Every time Emperor Chengyuan summoned him alone, something bad was wrong. The last time was because the prince was drowning. He could be said to have witnessed the whole process of the prince's trick on Concubine Li with his own eyes.

"See..."

Emperor Chengyuan waved his hand before he finished his greeting and interrupted, "What do you think of the environment in Nanshan, Lord Li?"

Li Yuan: "The scenery is beautiful, surrounded by mountains and rivers, this place is..."

Halfway through his words, he saw Emperor Chengyuan's face darken, and frankly said, "Compared to the previous Zhongping Mountain, it's slightly inferior."

Emperor Chengyuan stood with his hands behind his back, saying, "When the late emperor was still alive, he would go hunting in Zhongping Mountain every year. For decades, he had never heard of a wolf pack."

Li Yuan followed his lead and continued, "It's a little strange, but it would be safer to send someone to check it out again."

Emperor Chengyuan said, "I have sent people to investigate privately beforehand, and there are no assassins in the mountains." He paused and gave a mocking smile, "However, there is a plant called the Heart-Frosting Grass."

This grass is very common in the mountains and has an unpleasant smell.

Li Yuan has not yet figured out why the emperor specifically mentioned this kind of grass.

Emperor Chengyuan didn't mince words and said directly, "Hanxin grass has many uses. For example, boiling it with jujube flowers can cure colds. Another example is that if you inhale a large amount of the scent of Hanxin grass and then smell Tianzhu orchid, it will induce desire."

Li Yuan was stunned, as if he had not expected that Emperor Chengyuan was also proficient in pharmacology.

But on second thought, the eunuch chief who was loyal to the emperor was good at these things, so it was not surprising that Emperor Chengyuan knew something about it.

Emperor Chengyuan: "If someone wants to take advantage of this, who do you think they are targeting?"

Li Yuan observed Emperor Chengyuan's expression and expressed his own judgment: "Crown Prince."

While answering, many guesses emerged in his mind, and he soon understood Emperor Chengyuan's concerns. On the one hand, he wanted to temper the prince, but on the other hand, he was afraid that the method would be too harsh and hurt the prince.

Emperor Chengyuan smiled and said, "My dear minister, you are always smart. When I am not careful, you should help the Crown Prince deal with emergencies."

Li Yuan nodded in agreement.

When he came out of the tent, he looked at the blue sky and sighed deeply. Emperor Chengyuan himself did not have the confidence to grasp this balance, so he handed the difficult problem to him.

While others were galloping on their horses, Li Yuan was squatting in an inconspicuous corner in a daze, looking very ungraceful.

“Amazing.”

Li Yuan heard the exclamation and looked up, just in time to see Fang Shan riding a horse, who had already returned ahead of everyone else.

He brought back a lot of prey, most of which were hares. Although they were not very conspicuous, they were already the best among the many noble ladies.

There was a constant stream of compliments for the Crown Princess. Fang Shan handed the prey to the guards to deal with and looked around.

For some reason, Li Yuan subconsciously had a bad premonition, just like when he was a child listening to a teacher's lecture and didn't want the other person to pay attention to him.

Don't look at me, don't look over here.

He was talking to himself while preparing himself mentally, but when he looked up, he met Fang Shan's gaze head-on.

Unlike Wei Sushen, Fang Shan had no private interactions with Li Yuan, but when he saw the evasive look in his eyes, his eyes narrowed slightly and he walked over.

Li Yuan had no choice but to stand up and bow: "Crown Princess."

Fang Shan: "Why didn't you go hunting, sir?"

Li Yuan: "I want to see more of the scenery."

Fang Shan smiled and was about to respond when he suddenly saw a dodgy girl in the distance, glancing over here from time to time. Her eyes rolled, and she asked, "Lord Li knows Concubine Li's sister?"

The real biological father of Concubine Li's sister is Li Shan, and Li Yuan also has the surname Li, which should not be just a coincidence.

Li Yuan didn't care much: "Yes, we are related, but not closely."

Fang Shan raised his eyebrows slightly. He didn't look like he was lying. There was even disgust in his eyes when he said they were not close.

I was about to dig up some more gossip, but Li Yuan suddenly said, "The Crown Princess should pay more attention to His Highness."

This was an abrupt statement, even a bit over the top, but Fang Shan didn't seem annoyed. He smiled and said, "It's true that some playboys are always entangled with you, but fortunately, Your Highness is not a person who indulges in lust."

Li Yuan knew from his reaction that the Crown Princess understood his hint. He admired her wisdom and said, "I'm afraid some people will resort to despicable means when they can't achieve their goals."

Fang Shan sensed something in his words and continued to smile, but there was a hint of contempt in his tone: "I'm looking forward to being a moth flying into the flame."