They still couldn't fathom even a fraction of Tuoba Ze's thoughts.
Another maid rushed in to report, "Princess, Tuoba Ze has arrived!"
Upon hearing this, Mei Xiyuan snapped out of her reverie and began to ponder to herself.
"Speak of the devil, and he appears."
"However, I made an agreement with him that this place is very close to the Prince of Qin's residence, and he must not come here unless absolutely necessary."
"Besides, we just met today, why is he coming to our door again in the middle of the night..."
"Could it be that he has already discovered that it was I, the princess, who abducted that vile woman?"
"If that's the case, if he doesn't see her, he should be even more suspicious..."
After a moment's thought, he instructed the maid, "Let him in!"
However, the maid who had entered earlier hurriedly stopped her upon hearing this, saying anxiously, "Princess, you mustn't!"
Then, she said earnestly, "Tuoba Ze came so late, clearly to find that vile woman. This time, we must not let her go so easily again! Has the princess forgotten the lesson of letting her go last time? If you had known that this would be the outcome, you shouldn't have saved her from Lu Tianjiao's knife!"
These words were like a wake-up call, and Mei Xiyuan hesitated again.
But what she was really thinking about was not the question of whether to see her or not, or whether to let her go or not, as the maid had suggested.
She was suddenly reminded of the past, a long and profound memory. How had she gone from a proud princess to where she was today?
Over the years, she had even fantasized countless times that if her kind and benevolent stepmother had never left, then the fate of her, Mei Zhixuan, Yi Shangyun, and even the entire Dongning Kingdom would certainly not be what it is now!
But now, it's too late to say anything; she can never turn back.
For the rest of her life, it seemed that apart from hatred, she really didn't know what meaning there was to her life.
Seeing that she was indeed moved, the maid continued to speak to herself: "To be able to maneuver among all kinds of men and manipulate them all so skillfully, it is clear that her methods are truly remarkable!"
"I heard that Tuoba Hong's death was also related to that vixen. According to Tuoba Ze's nature, not only did he not kill her to avenge Tuoba Hong, but he also took good care of her. Who knows, there might be some unspeakable relationship between them. If we release her this time, wouldn't it be the same as letting a tiger return to the mountain?"
Finally, he earnestly advised once again, "Princess, you must never fall in the same place twice!"
At this point, Mei Xiyuan, whose soul had been consumed by hatred, finally began to emerge from her heavy memories.
After thinking for a moment, she said to the maid with certainty, "You're right. In the past, I was indeed too soft-hearted. Don't worry, this person absolutely cannot be released tonight. But I also cannot refuse to see Tuoba Ze!"
After saying all that, Mei Xiyuan still intended to meet this scheming person. The maid stared at her face expectantly, as if she wanted to say something more: "Princess..."
But Mei Xiyuan raised a hand, cutting off all the rest of her words: "Alright, I understand what you mean. You may leave!"
"Yes!" The maid sighed and retreated slowly and helplessly.
Then he instructed the maid who came to report, "It's late, and it's not convenient here. Tell him to wait for me in the front hall. I'll change my clothes and come over..."
Just then, a noisy argument broke out in the quiet courtyard.
"Your Highness, you must not trespass. It is far too late today. Our princess has already retired for the night. Please come again tomorrow if you have something to attend to!"
"Get out of my way!"
"I, the prince, dare to stop me?!"
"Tonight, I, the prince, must see her!"
"Your Highness, you mustn't..."
"Your Highness..."
Accompanied by a series of disordered footsteps, Tuoba Ze and his maid Zhu'er quickly entered.
Ignoring everyone's attempts to stop him, and with no one able to stop him, he stormed up to Mei Xiyuan.
After flicking their sleeves, they stood still and looked at each other.
Immediately afterwards, several maids and guards came in and knelt down to apologize to him.
"I'm sorry, Princess, we can't stop him!"
Mei Xiyuan's expression was extremely calm, not angry at all. She simply said, "It's alright, you can all leave now!"
"Yes!" After everyone left, Tuoba Ze still showed no kindness and gave her a cold snort.
Without even bothering with any preamble, he went straight to questioning her: "I ask you, did you have someone take her away from the street today?"
Mei Xiyuan calmly picked up a cup of tea from the table in front of her and took a small sip.
Then, feigning complete ignorance, he said, "Her? I wonder which 'her' the Crown Prince is referring to?"
Seeing her arrogant attitude, Tuoba Ze tried hard to suppress his anxiety and anger, and said, "Stop pretending in front of me. My patience is limited. Did you take Princess Qin away or not...?"
As expected, there was no suspense whatsoever.
Mei Xiyuan then smiled and said, "In the middle of the night, the Crown Prince is disregarding our agreement and coming to our door in such a accusatory manner. I thought something terrible had happened!"
Tuoba Ze was clearly losing his patience: "I'm warning you, stop with the sarcastic remarks!"
Mei Xiyuan, however, did not seem afraid at all. Having experienced too much, she was now all alone and had reached this point. What was there to be afraid of?
So she still gave an irrelevant answer: "Your Highness, please don't be angry! What I mean is, I wonder if the Princess Qin you are referring to is me, or that short-lived ghost who faked her death, or perhaps, the new Princess Qin, Lu Tianjiao, who will soon finally get her wish and marry into the royal palace as a concubine?"
Upon hearing this, Tuoba Ze completely lost his patience.
Suddenly, he slowly moved forward, approaching Mei Xiyuan.
Realizing something was amiss, the maid instinctively stepped forward, spreading her arms to block Mei Xiyuan's path, and warned Tuoba Ze, "What do you want to do? Your Highness, please refrain from such rudeness."
Tuoba Ze stopped abruptly, a disdainful smile playing on his lips. He said, "What makes you think that you, a mere messenger, can stand in my way?"
The maid was already trembling with fear, but she still said to Mei Xiyuan, "Princess, don't be afraid, this servant can protect you."
But just as the maid was speaking, Tuoba Ze simply reached out and gently pulled her, throwing her away.
With a loud crash, the maid bumped into a black lacquered pillar in the room, then slid down it and fainted completely.
Mei Xiyuan was immediately alarmed: "Don't hurt her!"
Tuoba Ze raised an eyebrow, and as he continued to approach, he suddenly bent down, spread his arms on either side of her body, and stared intently into her eyes.
He asked, "Mei Xiyuan, how dare you! You actually dare to mock me, the prince. Open your eyes and look carefully, do I look like a fool?"
Mei Xiyuan was genuinely startled by his action and finally shook her head slowly.
Tuoba Ze still didn't get up, and continued to stare at her for a while before pulling away from her side.
As I stood up, my gaze inadvertently fell upon a somewhat familiar golden cloak draped over a clothes rack in the corner, and lingered there for a moment.
He slowly walked over, flipped through a corner, and asked, "This cloak looks nice, as if it's different from the ones sold in the market. It's not heavy at all. Is it the one you wore when you went out today?"
Mei Xiyuan was still somewhat taken aback and blurted out, "This is exactly the cloak I wore when I went out today! This cloak is filled with the highest quality velvet and was meticulously embroidered by the best embroiderers in Dongning Kingdom. Only the royal family of Dongning Kingdom is worthy of using it. It is light and warm to wear. How could you possibly buy something like this on the market!"
After checking and confirming, Tuoba Ze withdrew his hand, walked back again, sat down with the corner of his robe in his hand, and warned her once more.
"The short-lived woman you mentioned, I have a reason for keeping her by my side. No matter what grudges you had in the past, you are not allowed to lay a finger on my people."
Upon hearing this, Mei Xiyuan let out a cold laugh and said, "Does the First Prince really think that she is more useful than this princess?"
As Tuoba Ze poured himself some tea, he said, "In this world, everyone's value is different. What's wrong with having another bargaining chip?"
Mei Xiyuan said angrily, "You just promised me today, and you've already forgotten? You really have no credibility! From beginning to end, you probably never intended to give that woman to me!"
Tuoba Ze disagreed: "That's not how it works. Once she's no longer of any use to me, I will offer her up to you."
Seeing that Mei Xiyuan was still hesitant, he continued, "Someone said that today on the street, a woman in a golden cloak was seen leading a group of people to take her away. So, where is she now? While I still have some patience, I advise you to obediently hand her over!"
Unexpectedly, Mei Xiyuan was also going all out this time, and after calming herself down, she insisted, "I really don't know what you're talking about?"
Suddenly noticing Pearl standing to the side, he said, "Doesn't your maid also have a golden cloak? You suspect me based on just a cloak? Why don't you ask if she took it?"
Pearl quickly protested, "I'm not a servant!"
Mei Xiyuan also asked, "Then how can you be so sure it's me?"
Before he could finish speaking, Tuoba Ze suddenly stood up and grabbed him by the neck, angrily shouting, "You wretch, don't you understand what I'm saying?"
In just a short while, Mei Xiyuan was squeezed so tightly in his hands that she seemed to be struggling to breathe.
While she struggled to break free from Tuoba Ze's hand, she continued to lie to him, her face flushed and her neck thick with anger.
"Let me go..."
"Let go..."
"It really wasn't me. If you don't believe me, you can have your people search for it themselves!"
Tuoba Ze roared, "You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences! If I, the prince, find out, see how I deal with you!"
Immediately, Tuoba Ze gave Zhu'er a wink.
Pearl then hurriedly went out and, with the guards who had come with her, began to search carefully in the other rooms and every nook and cranny of the courtyard.
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