Li Youran lay on the bed, feeling as if her whole body didn't belong to her. Her lower back ached, her arms were numb and sore, and she lay sprawled on the bed, her mind blank, looking extremely exhausted.
The journey of nearly a thousand miles was undertaken at breakneck speed, causing Li Youran's inner thighs to chafe until they bled. Not only that, but her buttocks were jolted so violently that they felt like they didn't belong to her anymore.
Li Youran thought to himself, if things continue like this, he might collapse before he can bring down Hu Qinqin's shop.
"Xiao Hong, send a carriage to the Li residence and bring Second Sister-in-law here."
As the saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated." Although Li Youran had been busy at Mixue Ice Cream for half a day, she still needed to ask Zhao Lanzhi about the specific situation there.
"Princess, Young Master Liu requests an audience."
Li Youran forced herself to get up, intending to go see Liu Zhiyuan, but she simply couldn't muster the strength. Feeling that the two had a very good relationship, she decided to disregard the formalities and waved to Xiao Hong.
"Let him in."
Having been by Li Youran's side for a long time, Xiao Hong didn't feel anything was amiss. She turned around and instructed the servants waiting outside to bring Liu Zhiyuan over.
Liu Zhiyuan, who was originally waiting in the main hall, knew that it was already late at night and Li Youran was most likely to be resting, so he did not have much hope for her.
But when the visitor said that Li Youran had met him in her boudoir, his heart skipped a beat, and he felt inexplicably happy. He thought to himself that the reason Li Youran did this was because she didn't treat him like an outsider.
"You Ran, did everything go smoothly on your trip?"
Liu Zhiyuan had already met Tang Lei at the East Palace and knew that the journey had gone smoothly. However, seeing Li Youran lying on the bed so exhausted, as if she were boneless from exhaustion, he couldn't help but worry again.
"Everything is fine."
Li Youran leaned back on the soft couch, looked at Liu Zhiyuan, and asked.
"How have you been doing in the capital these past few days?"
It was just a casual greeting, but to Liu Zhiyuan it sounded like Li Youran's concern for him, which made Liu Zhiyuan, who was already excited, tremble again.
"Same as always."
After Liu Zhiyuan finished speaking, he looked remorseful and said to Li Youran with shame.
"The hot pot restaurant was hiring, but some unexpected things happened, and we had no choice but to close down."
Li Youran already knew about the hot pot restaurant, so she wasn't too surprised.
"The business world is like a battlefield, and it's normal for things like this to happen. You don't need to blame yourself."
Li Youran knew that Liu Zhiyuan was not familiar with these matters. The reason he reluctantly got involved in the hot pot restaurant was simply to share some of the burden with her, so this matter could not be blamed on Liu Zhiyuan.
On the contrary, Li Youran was very grateful that Liu Zhiyuan took the hot pot restaurant matter so seriously.
"By the way, Youran, a few days ago, Tian Alang got married, and His Highness the Crown Prince officiated at the wedding."
Upon hearing Liu Zhiyuan's words, Li Youran was taken aback. Although she had long anticipated that Tian Alang would be getting married soon, she hadn't expected it to be so rushed.
"Isn't the Duke of Protectorate on good terms with the Third Prince? Why has the situation suddenly changed? Has something unexpected happened?"
When Li Youran saw that it was the Crown Prince's wedding, she knew that this was not just Tian Yang's wedding, but also a marriage alliance between the Crown Prince and Huguo Gongfu.
"It's strange, but for some reason, the Duke of Huguo's mansion seems to have suddenly figured things out. Not only Lord Wu, but also the young masters below him have changed their ways and cut ties with His Highness the Third Prince completely."
When Liu Zhiyuan heard Li Youran talking about matters of the court, he became serious and began to tell Li Youran about the events that had occurred in the capital recently.
"His Highness the Crown Prince must be aware of the General's unusual behavior. Under such circumstances, his decision to still arrange the marriage between Tian Alang and the eldest daughter of the Wu family must be an attempt to turn the tables on him."
Upon hearing Li Youran's words, Liu Zhiyuan nodded. It is said that the emperor's mind is unfathomable, and Liu Zhiyuan did not dare to ask His Highness the Crown Prince what he was thinking, but he had also wondered why the Crown Prince Tianxia was doing this.
Hearing Li Youran's words today, he suddenly understood. It turned out that His Highness the Crown Prince wanted to turn the tables on him. No wonder His Highness the Crown Prince had been acting somewhat differently lately.
Unbeknownst to Li Youran, Tang Lei was outside while she was chatting with Liu Zhiyuan.
After settling Ajiu's family in, Tang Lei thought it over and over again, but he was still worried about Li Youran. So he volunteered to ask His Highness the Crown Prince to let him stay at the mansion so that he could protect Li Youran.
His Highness the Crown Prince naturally agreed, so Tang Lei returned to his residence after finishing all his business.
He had intended to steal a glance at Li Youran, but he hadn't expected that Li Youran and Liu Zhiyuan would be having an affair in the boudoir together. This made Tang Lei's heart feel as if it were covered with a thin layer of ice. He turned around and disappeared into the night.
"Second sister-in-law, you are really too capable. I never thought that you could open Mixue Ice Cream stores all over the city in such a short period of time, and the market is even more competitive than Lemon Ice Soup."
After seeing Liu Zhiyuan off, Zhao Lanzhi followed closely behind. Although Li Youran was exhausted, he was instantly energized upon seeing Zhao Lanzhi, after all, Zhao Lanzhi had done an exceptionally good job this time.
"Sister, please don't praise me. I made that decision in a fit of anger. Now that I've come to my senses, I'm really scared. One slip and the losses could have been huge. I don't know how to face the Crown Princess."
Zhao Lanzhi was embarrassed by Li Youran's praise. As she spoke, she attributed all the credit to the Crown Princess.
She believes that without the Crown Princess's financial assistance and the disclosure of so much useful information, she would not have been able to make Michelle so successful.
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