Chapter 101 Xi Yuan and Ling Jin Disappear Simultaneously
Li Yu, standing to the side, was dumbfounded, almost dropping her sword. Inwardly, she roared: Shameless! Utterly shameless! Mu Cenlin, you old fox! Could you be any more fake?! Sister, wake up! He's lying to you!
The three of them returned to the Prime Minister's residence together. Wang Qingzhi looked at her daughter, son-in-law, and obviously angry son who had returned with her. She was a little puzzled, but seeing that her daughter's expression was normal and her son-in-law seemed a little too clingy to Bao'er, she didn't ask any more questions.
They assumed that Li Yu had gone mad again, so they began to enthusiastically prepare dinner.
When it came time to arrange accommodations for the evening, Mu Cen shamelessly insisted on sharing a courtyard with Li Bao'er, claiming that his injuries had not yet healed and he needed the Princess's personal care. Li Bao'er couldn't refuse him and acquiesced.
"You stay here obediently in the courtyard, I'm going to Ayu for a while." Bao'er was still thinking about Ling Jin's matter, so she made an excuse to send Mu Cenlin away.
Filled with jealousy, Mu Cenlin said pitifully, "My chest hurts, I don't want to go."
"Stop pretending!" After saying that, Bao'er went to A Yu's courtyard.
"Ayu, where is Ling Jin? I've been back at the manor for half a day, and I haven't seen him at all," Li Bao'er asked anxiously.
Li Yu was also taken aback when he heard this: "That's right, no wonder I felt like something was missing! Ling Jin is always the first one to appear when I come back!" He immediately sent people to look for him, but the servants reported that Ling Jin had taken leave from the mansion yesterday afternoon and had not returned since, nor had he left any message.
Li Bao'er's heart sank. The eerie words and smile of Xi Yuan, the Western Region man from the black market, reappeared before her eyes.
She told Li Yu about her chance encounter with Xi Yuan at the black market yesterday, and how he knew Ling Jin.
"A Western Regions person? Looking for Ling Jin? He even knows about Ling Jin's relationship with you?!"
"Ling Jin would never disappear for so long without a reason! Something must have happened!"
“That Western Region man is being held in the Prince’s Palace. We’ll go and interrogate him properly first thing tomorrow morning!” Li Bao’er said decisively.
“Okay!” Li Yu nodded emphatically.
Having made up her mind, Li Bao'er returned to her room. She had just closed the door and hadn't even had a chance to catch her breath when she was suddenly pulled away by a force. In a dizzying moment, she was pressed down onto the soft bed.
Mu Cenlin braced himself on his arms beside her, trapping her firmly in his small space. His deep eyes were fixed on her in the dim candlelight, showing no trace of the weakness he had displayed during the day.
"Madam," he called her softly, his voice slightly hoarse, his warm breath brushing against her cheek.
Li Bao'er's heart raced at his sudden action, and she turned her face away, trying to push him away: "Get up! You're so heavy!"
Mu Cenlin not only didn't get up, but instead lowered his head, buried his face in her neck, and rubbed against her like a large dog, his voice muffled:
"I like you so much... no, I love you so much."
He raised his head, his fingertips gently tracing her cheek, his gaze burning and sincere: "Madam, over the years, the borderlands have been bitterly cold, and the capital city has been treacherous. I have seen countless people of all kinds, but you are the only one who can throw me into such a state of confusion."
“Perhaps you were already here many years ago, when you were trembling as you bandaged me in the bamboo grove of Jinfo Temple.” He took her hand and pressed it to his heart, where it was beating fast and heavy.
He looked into her slightly widened eyes, his tone growing softer, even pleading: "I know what happened yesterday hurt you, it was my fault. I promise I will never let anyone make you sad again. Please don't push me away, okay?"
“Madam…please have pity on me, hmm? My heart is now tied to you. If you don’t want it, it will truly have nowhere to go.”
Seeing the undisguised affection in his eyes, Li Bao'er finally couldn't hold back. She raised her hand and hugged him back, burying his slightly flushed cheeks in her chest: "Silly boy, I know... Get up, you're so heavy."
"No, I need my wife."
[Do not look! This system is automatically entering hibernation mode! Host, keep it up! Try to get the corruption value below 20%!] 001 screamed and ran away.
Li Bao'er: "..." All she wanted to do now was to find this broken system and format it!
The next morning, Yuan Ting went straight to the Prime Minister's residence in a panic.
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" Yuan Ting didn't even have time to bow, "The Western Region man who was imprisoned in the dungeon last night has escaped!"
"What?!" Li Yu was the first to jump up, her face instantly turning deathly pale. "He got away?! When did this happen? How did he escape?"
“The dungeon guards did not find out how he escaped; it was as if he vanished into thin air. I have already increased manpower to search the entire city.” He paused, looking at Li Yu and Li Bao’er’s expressions, and said with some suspicion, “Your Highness, this person’s whereabouts are strange and his skills are unpredictable. Is it possible that Ling Jin is his accomplice? Is this a coordinated attack from within and without?”
"impossible!"
Li Bao'er and Li Yu interrupted him almost simultaneously, their tone resolute.
"Ling Jin is not a subordinate to us, nor is he a suspect. He is family."
"No matter what happens, Ayu and I will believe him unconditionally. Unless he tells us the truth himself, any doubt is a betrayal of him."
Li Yu nodded vigorously in agreement: "That's right! Ling Jin would never betray us! Something must have happened to him."
Yuan Ting stared blankly at the resolute brother and sister, momentarily at a loss for words. In his world, rife with scheming and intrigue, only the prince treated them with such unwavering trust.
The more you spend time with the princess, the more you realize that she is not as brainless and foolish as the rumors suggest. On the contrary, she is a very kind and intelligent person, and those who are taken in by her will enjoy her love and trust without any reservations.
He could tell that although the princess had been bickering with the prince these past two days, she still trusted him completely.
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