"Uncle Xie!" Ye Jingchen called out affectionately to Xie Shaoling, breaking the silence in the side hall.
Both sides were somewhat surprised by this form of address.
As everyone knows, the emperor is suspicious of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, and Ye Jingchen, as the crown prince, should not get close to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.
However, in front of Lin Hui and his wife, Ye Jingchen affectionately addressed Xie Shaoling as Uncle Xie. This was to tell Lin Hui and his wife that he was on good terms with the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, and at the same time, it was to tell Xie Shaoling and his family that Lin Hui and his wife were trustworthy.
After a moment of silence, Lin Hui and his wife exchanged a glance and walked over together.
"Brother Shaoling..."
"Sister Xu..." Lin Hui and Liu Lingxuan greeted Xie Shaoling and Xu Jingjing respectively, their smiles looking particularly sincere.
The four adults split into two groups and talked amongst themselves, leaving only Ye Jingchen and Xie Chang'an.
A day later, Xie Chang'an's aura seemed even lower for some reason, his complexion was not good, and he had obvious dark circles under his eyes.
"Xie Chang'an, did you go thieving last night?" Ye Jingchen leaned closer to him and asked curiously.
Xie Chang'an glanced coldly at the culprit, said nothing, and sat down on a chair at the very end.
"Uncle Xie, what's wrong with Chang'an—"
Ye Jingchen looked at Xie Shaoling, and before he could finish speaking, Xie Chang'an, who had been some distance away from him, rushed to his side, covered his mouth with his hand, and turned him around so that his back was to Xie Shaoling and Xu Jingjing.
He covered his mouth and turned around in one smooth motion. When Xie Shaoling looked over, he only saw the backs of the two children intimately hooked together.
"Xie Chang'an, don't you dare bully His Highness the Crown Prince!" Xie Shaoling warned without moving.
Ye Jingchen gestured to Xie Chang'an with his eyes to let go.
Xie Chang'an pulled the person to a corner of the side hall before letting go.
"Young Master Xie, you always say I have no sense of boundaries, but what you just did wasn't very nice either, was it? Are we that close?" Ye Jingchen teased him in a low voice.
"Shut up!" Xie Chang'an said coldly, his hand, which was tucked into his sleeve, shifted uncomfortably.
He had only wanted to stop Ye Jingchen from talking nonsense, but now he realized that the gesture of covering his mouth was indeed a bit intimate. He subtly wiped his palm on his sleeve, still feeling that the spot where he had touched Ye Jingchen's lips was a little warm.
"I advise you to be nicer, or I'll go and complain to Uncle Xie and the Crown Princess!" Ye Jingchen threatened him with a smile.
"How old are you? Aren't you childish?" Xie Chang'an glared at him.
"You're so childish! You were the one who ignored me first!" Ye Jingchen retorted.
"Who told you to talk nonsense!" Xie Chang'an couldn't help but glare at Ye Jingchen as he said this.
If Ye Jingchen hadn't talked nonsense, he wouldn't have had nightmares last night, waking up in the middle of the night and unable to fall back asleep, and waking up this morning with dark circles under his eyes.
Ye Jingchen looked at him with disdain. "You're not a child. Can't you even take a joke? Just because I call you 'little girl' doesn't mean you are."
"Shut up!" Xie Chang'an shouted angrily.
If Ye Jingchen hadn't made that kind of joke, how could he have dreamed of turning into a girl?
She was a girl who was forced into marriage!
This is absolutely awful!
In his anger, he lost his voice, and all four adults looked over.
"Xie Chang'an, what kind of attitude is this? Are you asking for a beating?" Xie Shaoling got up and walked over, grabbing Xie Chang'an's ear.
Ye Jingchen saw that Xie Chang'an clearly wanted to dodge, but his dodge was not as fast as Xie Shaoling's hand, and he was still caught by the knife.
No matter how arrogant Xie Chang'an was, he could only suffer in silence once his father grabbed his ear.
Ye Jingchen laughed silently, a laugh filled with schadenfreude.
Xie Chang'an glared at him through gritted teeth, his eyes seeming to spit fire.
"Uncle Xie, look at the way Chang'an looks at me, it's so scary!" Ye Jingchen, not wanting to miss out on trouble, added fuel to the fire.
With a loud "slap," almost as soon as Ye Jingchen finished speaking, Xie Shaoling slapped Xie Chang'an on the head.
Ye Jingchen shrank back. Xie Shaoling was indeed a man of action, having fought on the battlefield.
He didn't dare look at Xie Chang'an's expression at that moment, but little did he know that Xie Chang'an would definitely remember this slap on him as well.
"Uncle Xie, be gentle. What if you knock such a smart head silly?" Ye Jingchen muttered softly.
They hit him on the head every time, and with considerable force; it's entirely possible to make him mentally impaired.
The things in Xie Chang'an's mind are incredibly valuable!
Xie Shaoling was stunned for a moment, then laughed at Ye Jingchen's words.
Xie Chang'an laughed too, a laugh born of anger.
"Xie Chang'an, look how much His Highness the Crown Prince cares about you, and then look at your own attitude. Aren't you ashamed?" Xie Shaoling asked, pulling Xie Chang'an's ear.
Xie Chang'an forcefully pried his father's hand off his ear, looked up at his father's expression, and couldn't tell whether it was an act or genuine.
He didn't believe his father couldn't see through Ye Jingchen's little tricks, but every time, his father sided with Ye Jingchen, and he began to doubt whether he was even his biological son!
"Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Highnesses and Your Highnesses, ... have arrived from the palace and His Majesty's carriage has already left the palace!" Just then, Fanglan walked into the side hall and said.
The Princess's residence is not far from the palace gate, which means they should go to the gate to greet the Emperor.
The group came out from the side hall. Ye Jingchen, Lin Hui, and Liu Lingxuan came out first, while Xie Shaoling, Xu Jingjing, and Xie Chang'an waited for a while before joining the crowd surging towards the gate of the mansion to go out together to welcome the emperor.
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