Xie Mio went to the Duke of Zhen's study.

The Duke of Zhen, who is over fifty years old, is slightly plump, with a small mustache on his chin, a few wrinkles on his face, and a pair of cloudy and deep eyes that seem to suck you in when he looks at you.

When he saw her come in, he sent his attendants away.

"During these days in the palace, you have become quite noble."

The Duke of Zhenguo still had a serious look on his face, just as she remembered.

Xie Mio lowered her eyelashes and did not respond.

He then said to himself, "Prince Rui will not be back for a while. You are seventeen now and have not received any favor. In another three to five years, you will be in your early twenties. By then, I am afraid you will not be able to compete with Jiang Muyu."

Xie Mio laughed at herself and said, "Then tell me, Dad, what can I compete with her for when King Rui is not around? She has children and a stable position, what can I do?"

"You are so stupid." Duke Zhenguo glanced at her and said coldly, "When I let you marry into the Rui Wang Mansion, my original intention was to have you monitor the Rui Wang and gain his favor so that you can pave the way for the Duke's Mansion. I didn't know you were so useless."

"Dad, do you think this is an easy thing to do? Even if Prince Rui is in the capital now, I will definitely not be able to defeat Jiang Muyu. She has been favored by the king for more than ten years and has a deep affection for Prince Rui. How can others easily interfere?"

The Duke of Zhen threw the brush at her face. The ink-stained brush left a noticeable stain on her fair cheek. The brush fell and scratched her luxurious clothes, leaving black spots.

"Don't think that you can come back and yell at your father just because you married into the Rui Palace! Who do you think you relied on to be able to be as successful as you are today?"

Xie Mio stared at the broken brush that fell at her feet, and suddenly felt that she was the same as it, just at the mercy of others. She could use it when she needed it and throw it away when she didn't.

Seeing her with her head down and not saying a word, it was just like a few years ago when he accidentally saw her being ordered by the maidservant beside the eldest daughter to pick up a handkerchief that had fallen into the lake. At that time, she was also like this, holding her hands, with her head down and not saying a word.

The tone of the Duke of Zhenguo suddenly softened a little: "Miao'er, you also know that the Prince of Rui is now powerful. The Emperor and the Queen Mother have to be wary of him. The Marquis of Jing'an Mansion is his greatest reliance. The Jiang family is indeed beneficial to the court. There is Jiang Chenyi in literature and Jiang Chenan in martial arts. The Emperor wants to use them for himself. Only by getting rid of Jiang Muyu and alienating the Prince of Rui and the Marquis of Jing'an can you be favored in the future. The Emperor and the Queen Mother will also reward you."

"Oh, Dad called me back today because he had a plan in mind."

Her tone was affirmative.

Duke Zhenguo didn't bother to beat around the bush with her. He took down a wooden box from the shelf next to him, opened it, took out a small porcelain bottle and threw it over.

Xie Mio just stretched out her hand and caught it steadily.

"Prince Rui will be recalled to the capital soon. You should find the right time to strike. It would be best if everyone could think that Jiang Muyu died at the hands of Prince Rui."

…

After coming out of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, Xie Lio held the porcelain bottle tightly all the way.

The carriage moved forward steadily, and Yunhuan took a wet handkerchief and slowly wiped the ink stains off her face.

Walking from the study all the way to the front door, many people saw her like this and laughed at her in person, but she seemed not to care at all. She walked out without stopping, looking away.

Yun Huan sighed: "My lady, it has been wiped clean, but these stains on the clothes have seeped into the embroidery. I am afraid they cannot be washed off."

"It's okay." Xie Mio opened the car window curtain and looked out. The sky was full of orange and red, and the twilight was gorgeous, with an indescribable tenderness.

She suddenly said, "Yunhuan, I don't know if I will ever have the chance to fly out of this cage in my lifetime."

Yunhuan didn't say anything and poured her a cup of tea.

She didn't want an answer.

After lowering the curtain, she couldn't help but gently stroke the small porcelain bottle in her hand.

She said slowly, "My mother is the daughter of Ma Yu. She was originally a carefree girl. When I was young, she would secretly take me out of the house to play at the horse farm outside the capital."

"She held me in her arms as we rode on the horse and ran up the tall grass slope to watch the sunset. At that moment, I felt that the sunset was the most beautiful scenery in the world."

"Later, she died in the afterglow of the setting sun. I never wanted to look up at the sky again. I felt that the gorgeous color seemed to be dyed red with my mother's blood."

Yunhuan was slightly moved and said softly, "My lady, don't worry about the past. Everything will be fine in the future."

"Will it be okay?" She seemed to be asking Yunhuan, but also seemed to be asking herself.

Yun Huan didn't know how to answer for a moment, and just repeated: "It will be fine."

She pursed her lips and smiled bitterly, but ultimately said nothing more.

The carriage gradually drove back to the palace, and Xie Mio was supported and walked down.

Yun Ping at the door had obviously been waiting for a long time. When she saw her, she came over and said, "Madam Xie, the princess ordered me to wait for you here."

As if she had expected this, she nodded and said, "Go in."

…

Jiang Muyu was overjoyed when she learned that Liang Qingchen was about to return to Beijing, and she began to prepare early.

However, this time he was secretly summoned back to the capital by the emperor and left after only three days.

That day, she calculated the time and waited all day, but no one came to report until the sun set. Fortunately, Xu Lang had brought her a message earlier, saying that the prince had to go to the palace to report on his duties and would be back later.

I didn't expect it to be so late.

Jiang Muyu sat at the table, propped up and drowsy, her hands resting on her chin, her head shaking, her eyelids twitching wildly. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer and fell asleep on the table.

In her dream, she felt as if someone was rubbing her face, and the frosted texture made her face a little itchy.

She slowly opened her eyes, and what she saw was a familiar handsome face. She was still a little dazed: "Why did I dream about you again?"

"Zhao Zhao, it's not a dream."

Liang Qingchen leaned over and hugged her from behind, tilting his head and gently sucking her small, snow-white earlobe.

Jiang Muyu felt the wetness and itchiness in her ears, as if an electric current was running through her body, and she woke up instantly: "When did you come back?"

"Just now." Liang Qingchen bent over, picked her up and walked towards the inner room: "It's getting cool in autumn. If you want to sleep, go to bed."

Jiang Muyu craned her neck to look at his face.

After such a long time of marching and fighting, his skin became much rougher, his complexion darker, his features more stern, and he looked more manly, but he was still as handsome as ever.

She was put next to the bed, and he squatted down and personally took off her shoes and socks, revealing a pair of white and tender small feet.

Jiang Muyu just looked down at him quietly.

He was wearing a newly made dark-colored narrow-sleeved brocade robe with gold thread embroidered on it. He must have changed his clothes to conceal his identity.

It seems that only a few people know that he has returned to Beijing this time.

"Zhao Zhao, I have asked my brother for a day off to stay at home with you." He tilted his head slightly, and her reflection was in his sparkling dark eyes.

"Okay." Jiang Muyu patted the bed and motioned for him to sit over.

Liang Qingchen did as he was told.

Just as he sat down, Jiang Muyu suddenly reached out and pushed him, but failed to move him. Seeing this, he fell on the bed.

She smiled brightly, sat on his waist and abdomen, and patted his chest: "Not bad, you have strengthened your muscles after going out."

He put his hands behind his head, looked at her with his eyes bent, and said calmly, "There are some places that may be stronger."

Jiang Muyu nodded in approval: "Yeah, you've become even more shameless."