Xie Qing looked out the window: "Have Miss Qin and Master Du woken up?"
The young eunuch bowed and said, "We just woke up too. Should we invite them over?"
Xie Qing waved his hand: "Just let them go to the banquet with me."
The young eunuch was about to send someone to pass on the message, but when he opened the door, he saw the maid still standing there.
Seeing him come out, the little maid said attentively: "If you have anything to do, please let me take care of it."
The young eunuch said, "Go tell Prince Du and Prince Qin to accompany His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to the banquet tonight."
"yes."
The maid agreed and knocked on Master Du's door. After opening it and explaining the situation and getting a reply, she went to check Qin Wan's door.
Yijia opened the door and let the girl in. The maid looked up and was stunned for a moment when she saw Qin Wan's appearance. Then she remembered what the prefect had said. Could it be that the prince was really as the rumors said, a homosexual?
It seems possible. The Prince Du we just saw was very handsome and upright.
Now this Young Master Qin is even more handsome, and even the servants serving him are very pretty.
The maid quickly lowered her head to hide her thoughts and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince asked Master Qin to accompany His Royal Highness to the banquet."
Qin Wan nodded and said, "I understand."
Qin Wan watched the maid leave with a strange look on her face. She raised her eyes to look at Yi Jia and said, "Her eyes make me feel creepy."
Yijia also didn't understand: "Maybe, he has never seen such a handsome young man like the young lady? What's on his mind?"
"Nonsense." Qin Wan glared at her in reproach and then laughed again.
After a while, Qin Wan took the two of them to the main room. Before they entered the door, Xie Qing came out.
He glanced at Qin Wan. The weather in Huzhou had become much warmer. Qin Wan had changed out of her thick clothes and was wearing a light blue gown and a white jade crown. She looked like a handsome young man.
Xie Qing couldn't help but joke, "I heard that the two daughters of the Huzhou prefectural government are still unmarried. If someone takes a fancy to you, why don't you stay in Huzhou and become their son-in-law?"
Qin Wan rolled her eyes at him, "Your Highness, why don't you take one back with you to fill the East Palace? You're still single at your age. It's so rare to find a young lady who doesn't despise you. Hurry up and get married and have children, or else people might think there's something wrong with Your Highness."
"Um?"
Xie Qing narrowed her eyes slightly and leaned towards Qin Wan. His breath hit her face, making her heart suddenly confused. She took a step back, turned her eyes away and was about to speak when she saw Master Du coming out.
Qin Wan suddenly felt inexplicably guilty and reached out to push Xie Qing.
Xie Qing didn't expect her to attack suddenly. He took two steps back without paying attention. He was tripped by the door sill and fell backwards.
Qin Wan subconsciously reached out to grab him, and they both fell backwards.
"Your Highness!"
The young eunuch was so frightened that he fell under the two men. The weight of the two men almost knocked his soul out.
"ah!"
Qin Wan screamed in surprise as she watched Xie Qing's face suddenly enlarge in front of her eyes. The two of them fell to the ground uncontrollably. Due to inertia, her head hit her head downwards. Fearing that she would hurt His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, she leaned back quickly, but the tips of their noses inevitably touched.
boom!
Qin Wan's head suddenly started buzzing and her face turned red as if blood was about to drip out.
Xie Qing's face also turned red. The two of them didn't dare to look at each other and turned away.
"Your Highness!" Prince Du quickly stepped forward and when he saw Xie Qing and Qin Wan falling together, he stood there, not knowing whether to pull them up.
“Help!”
The little eunuch cried, it was so painful.
Xie Qing hurriedly asked someone to help Qin Wan up, and cleaned himself up. He turned around and pulled the young eunuch up: "How is it? I'll ask someone to call a doctor."
The young eunuch grimaced in pain, but still said, "I'm glad your Highness is alright."
Seeing that he looked pale, Xie Qing quickly asked someone to call a doctor. Fortunately, the doctor came quickly and said after checking him, "There's nothing wrong."
Only then did Xie Qing feel relieved.
However, it would be difficult to serve him personally if he was injured, so Xie Qing did not let him rest: "He will be fine in Huzhou Prefecture."
Qin Wan also felt a little guilty and said to the young eunuch, "Don't worry, we will take care of the safety of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"Then I'll have to trouble Young Master Qin." The young eunuch was indeed in great pain, so in order to avoid failing to serve him well, he did not force him.
Xie Qing turned around and met Qin Wan's gaze, feeling a little embarrassed. He turned away and said to Master Du, "Let's go."
"Let's go, let's go." Prince Du pretended not to notice the quarrel between the two and turned around to walk out.
The banquet was held in the main courtyard. Originally, since there were no women in Xie Qing's group, only one table would have been needed, but unexpectedly two tables were set up.
Xie Qing, Qin Wan and Prince Du sat at the head of the group, accompanied by the prefect, governor, and deputy governor of Huzhou, as well as their sons.
The other table was occupied by the wives of the prefect, the governor, and the vice-magistrate, who brought their daughters with them.
This posture couldn't be clearer.
Even officials in the capital did not want their daughters to marry the prince, for fear that their families would be implicated if the prince was deposed in the future.
But these local officials were far from the center of the imperial court. In their eyes, the prince was the future monarch. What did it matter if he hadn't married yet? Wouldn't their own daughters have a chance?
After Qin Wan sat down, she glanced at the shy ladies across from her, nudged Xie Qing lightly with her elbow, and winked at him:
Look, isn't this waiting for you here?
Xie Qing glared at her and gently pinched her arm under the table. After getting a roll of the eyes in return, he finally behaved himself.
The interaction between the two could not be concealed from the officials and young masters who were staring at them. They looked at each other suspiciously, then lowered their heads and pretended not to see.
Even if the crown prince is a man of many years, so what? Can he resist it for a year or two, or for a lifetime? A crown prince must marry a crown princess to bear children for the Great Zhou.
As long as the position of the Crown Princess is secure, who cares if he's gay or not? It's fine if he's gay, because there won't be a few children popping up out of nowhere to compete with your own children for power.
They all had their own calculations in mind, so naturally no one would hint to their daughters/sisters not to flirt with them.
So, when the banquet started, someone started playing the piano and singing in the corner. The piano sounded melodious and pleasant, and the singing was also very gentle and moving.
The prefect of Huzhou raised his glass and said, "Your Highness, your humble abode is a great honor to you. I offer you a toast."
Xie Qing moved his wine glass away and said, "We've been traveling all the way and don't feel like drinking."
Prince Du said with a smile, "Bring some tea."
The maids brought back the tea. At this moment, a pretty girl holding a pipa came to the table and bowed gracefully:
"Your humble servant pays homage to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I will sing a song for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
After saying that, she sat down not far from the table, raised her jade hand slightly, and the sound of the piano was like pearls falling on a jade plate. Even her posture was very beautiful, and her slender fingers were like butterflies flying, which was dazzling to watch.
Qin Wan couldn't help but glance at Xie Qing. Seeing that he was listening intently, he hummed softly and picked up his chopsticks to eat. Wouldn't it be a pity not to eat such beautiful piano music with rice?
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