The night was deep, and a single lamp flickered dimly in the study.

Yun Zhuo rubbed his temples, thinking that Ye Qingxue hadn't been feeling well lately, and decided to stop here for today.

He planned to put all the booklets away and then leave.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Mi Rao entered, carrying a tray with pine nut and lily bulb soup and a pot of warm yellow wine.

She walked naturally to the table and placed the tray in front of Yun Zhuo: "This pine nut and lily soup is calming and soothing, and the warm yellow wine is good for your health without making you drunk. You've been busy until late at night, so eat something before you go to sleep."

It sounded exactly like Ye Qingxue's tone.

What Yun Zhuo saw at this moment was Ye Qingxue.

He sat in the chair, tilting his head back, his voice gentle: "You don't eat much for dinner, and you haven't been feeling well lately. Why are you still worried about me? If I'm hungry, I'll have Zhuang Xin get me something to eat. You don't need to go to so much trouble. Just rest and get better so I can be at ease."

"I'm not feeling well, but it'll only be for a short while. I'll get through it," Mi Rao said.

"But you, tormented by poison, still have so many things to do every day, and you haven't gone home yet even though it's so late at night. How can I sleep?"

She pushed the lily soup and warm yellow wine in front of Yun Zhuo, gazing at him tenderly with her eyes: "Eat quickly, then go back to sleep, or it will be dawn soon."

“Okay, I was planning to go back and rest anyway. I’ll eat after I finish collecting these books,” Yun Zhuo replied, and began to collect the books, pens, ink and other items on the table.

Mi Rao stood aside watching him. It was late at night, and as she looked at Yun Zhuo's busy hands, she thought they were really beautiful—long, fair, and with well-proportioned joints.

The light was dim, and Mi Rao's gaze fell on Yun Zhuo's body and face. He must have taken a shower after returning from outside, as he was wearing a black nightgown with a thin belt around his waist. The nightgown was loose and looked very casual.

But you can see his strong chest, his clearly defined and beautiful collarbone, his sexy Adam's apple, and his flawless facial features.

Mi Rao had never dared to look at him so closely before, nor had she ever had the chance to be alone with him in a room. Now, she finally understood what a "handsome man" meant!

Yun Zhuo is not only a crown prince of noble status, but also a true handsome man...

Mi Rao had a sudden thought and felt a little reluctant to kill Yun Zhuo.

Perhaps we can spare his life, as long as he has no heir. A crown prince who has been childless for many years will certainly not be able to hold onto his position as heir apparent.

If she were to consummate her relationship with Yun Zhuo tonight, she could not only stay by Yun Zhuo's side, but also sow discord between Yun Zhuo and Ye Qingxue.

She had been diligently developing new dishes these past few days, and none of them contained poison, all in order to dispel Ye Qingxue's suspicions.

Tonight, Ye Qingxue was unwell, suffering from severe acid reflux. Granny Xing and Chunqian were extremely anxious and forgot about testing for poison.

The late-night snack that Zhuang Xin sent would completely ruin Ye Qingxue's body, making her unable to conceive for the rest of her life. Not only that, Ye Qingxue's health would also deteriorate.

She became Yun Zhuo's woman and stayed by his side for a long time, making him gradually dependent on her... In the long run, Yun Zhuo will no longer have the ability to compete for power with Xuan Wang and the others.

Perhaps being a carefree prince would be just as good.

She removed Yun Zhuo and Ye Qingxue's wings for the Xuan Prince and his wife. If she pleads with the Xuan Prince and his wife in the future, they should allow Yun Zhuo to leave the capital and live a carefree life as a prince.

"Qingxue, Qingxue?" Yun Zhuo called her several times before Mi Rao came to her senses and hurriedly asked, "What's wrong with His Highness the Crown Prince?"

After asking, she suddenly realized that the way she addressed him was wrong, but she held back and didn't change it. She had eavesdropped on and watched Yun Zhuo and Ye Qingxue's interactions countless times, and Ye Qingxue would call him that when they were flirting.

When Zhuang Xin brought her back to the Prince's Mansion, she was mainly in charge of the kitchen, but at that time the mansion was in dire need of reconstruction and there was not much servant in Yunzhuo Courtyard.

Zhuang Xin then arranged for her to go into the courtyard to deliver meals and pour tea for Yun Zhuo, which is why she was able to enter the main courtyard.

Perhaps because Yun Zhuo had never had anyone to serve her, Ye Qingxue wanted to show her magnanimity after marrying into the family, so she did not prevent her from entering the main courtyard.

"You didn't eat much for dinner, would you like to eat some with me?" Yun Zhuo asked her, and as he spoke, he scooped up some lily soup and brought it to her.

Mi Rao was shocked; this contained deadly poison!

She glanced at Yun Zhuo's lips, which were free of any trace of lily soup. She breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, a truly charming smile.

She reached out and pried Yun Zhuo's wrist away, making him put down the spoon. She then walked around the table and leaned closer to Yun Zhuo.

Her voice was so soft it seemed to drip water: "Your Highness, I suddenly feel that eating late-night snacks is not very interesting. Why don't we do something else that's more fun..."

Her fingers landed on Yun Zhuo's belt, slowly, slowly pulling it open, and she sat down on Yun Zhuo's lap.

...

Ye Qingxue pretended to eat her late-night snack with chopsticks, without raising her eyes, but her peripheral vision kept watching the light outside the door.

Although Mi Rao left silently and deliberately concealed her presence, Ye Qingxue keenly noticed the slight movement of the light.

As soon as Mi Rao left, she raised her eyes, put down her chopsticks, and looked at Zhuang Xin: "Lord Zhuang, who made tonight's supper? It looks delicious and exquisite."

There are amber lotus seed soup, sturgeon seed pastry box, matsutake mushroom dumplings, and snow-covered pond. The most ordinary dish is the soft and fragrant chicken porridge, but even though it's ordinary, you can tell that a lot of care was put into it.

Zhuang Xin had been responsible for delivering dinner for several days, and this was the first time he had been asked this question. He had previously said that it was made by Aunt Xu, so Yun Zhuo and Ye Qingxue did not say anything more and just ate.

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