The Crown Prince strode over and embraced Song Xibai.
Song Xibai was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously wrapped her arms around him and hugged him back.
"Your Highness, what's wrong?"
The Crown Prince sighed, "Seeing the Third Prince and his wife, I suddenly realized that meeting Qingqing was my good fortune."
Song Xibai thought of how the King of Wu and his wife got along, and couldn't help but look up and tease him.
"But the King of Wu has many wives and concubines, his queen is virtuous and generous, and they have many children. Isn't that what most men want? Doesn't Your Highness want that too?"
"However, Princess Wu has no feelings for the third prince."
The Crown Prince pulled up a chair and sat down next to Song Xibai.
He thought of many things.
I especially thought of the Crown Princess.
When he first married the Crown Princess, the two had some warm moments, but there was always a sense of distance between them, as if they were separated by a veil, and he could not see the Crown Princess's true thoughts.
According to custom, a prince would stay in his principal wife's quarters for the first month after his marriage. However, before a month had passed, the Crown Princess proposed to promote the two palace maids in charge of the prince's bedchamber, which immediately won their gratitude.
At the time, the Crown Prince thought that the Crown Princess was magnanimous and a good wife.
But now that I think about it, the Crown Princess never actually had feelings for me.
She always considered herself the "Crown Princess," not Yuan Shen's wife.
In Song Xibai, the Crown Prince saw what an ordinary woman looks like when she falls in love: she can be coquettish, tease, and get jealous. She is willing to compromise and accommodate him in certain matters, but if he is unwilling, she will also throw a tantrum.
Nevertheless, the Crown Prince felt that Song Xibai was incredibly real, making him feel that he was a loved person, rather than just an empty shell of the identity of "Crown Prince".
Overwhelmed with emotion, the Crown Prince embraced Song Xibai once more, tenderly and affectionately placing a kiss on her hair.
Song Xibai touched the top of his head and gave him a push.
"Your Highness, I haven't washed my hair for several days, it's dirty."
The crown prince chuckled.
"In my eyes, Qingqing is the most beautiful no matter what, and I don't mind."
As he spoke, he exaggeratedly grabbed a strand of her hair and sniffed it.
Song Xibai's face flushed slightly.
The Crown Prince's sweet talk is getting better and better.
After the warm moment, Song Xibai inquired about what was happening outside.
"Have the King and Queen of Wu left? Have the matter been clarified?"
The Crown Prince nodded: "I found out. The Third Prince originally wanted to keep it a secret, but after that old woman came out, Princess Wu got anxious, and in the end, the Third Prince had no choice but to tell the truth."
Then, the Crown Prince briefly recounted the story of King Wu and the maid Hongxiu.
Song Xibai raised an eyebrow.
If she hadn't met the King of Wu and confirmed that he wasn't so cunning, she would have suspected that the King of Wu was behind it all.
After a moment's consideration, Song Xibai said something.
"His Highness the King of Wu's temperament is truly..."
She didn't know how to describe it.
That's too indiscriminate.
The Crown Prince snorted: "The third son has been spoiled rotten by his mother since he was a child. He's so old, yet he still asks his mother for money. He's hopeless."
Song Xibai immediately felt sympathy for Princess Wu.
She married a spoiled mama's boy!
Just think about all those beautiful women in the backyard of the Prince of Wu's mansion. Only someone like the Princess Consort of Wu could keep things in check. If it were someone else, they would probably be busy fighting with the concubines all day long.
With so many women in the King of Wu's household, it was no easy feat for the Queen Consort to give birth to the eldest son.
Thinking this, Song Xibai couldn't help but say it aloud.
The Crown Prince gave a disdainful look: "That's all thanks to Consort Shu. Before the Third Prince got married, all the servants around him had to drink contraceptive soup. Once, a palace maid vomited up the soup afterward. When she was discovered, Consort Shu punished her severely, so naturally no one dared to do it again."
"Which child does His Highness Prince Wu care about most?"
The Crown Prince thought for a moment: "His eldest son is six years old and has already started his studies. He is very clever and well-behaved, so naturally he is his favorite. His second son is four years old and was born to that concubine Lin. He has a bad temper. That concubine Lin originally had another son, but he died of a sudden illness before the New Year."
Song Xibai was startled upon hearing this.
"How did they disappear? Were they murdered?"
"I don't know about that. I shouldn't pry too much into what happens in the backyard of the Wu Prince's residence. If you want to know, I'll have Commander Yue come in and tell you!"
The Crown Prince assumed Song Xibai was just curious and didn't think much of it. He went outside and sent someone to deliver a message to Commander Yue.
But what Song Xibai wanted to hear was not the gossip and infighting among the women in the Wu Prince's mansion.
She secretly suspected that Hongxiu was very likely connected with the concubines in the back courtyard.
After all, just because she slept in the King of Wu's bed doesn't mean she can become a concubine. In particular, the Queen of Wu clearly despises such private acts of sleeping together. If the Queen of Wu finds out, Hongxiu will probably be beaten to death.
If she wants to climb the social ladder, she'll have to cling to someone else.
That concubine, Lin, raised a son, so her status must have been quite high. Unfortunately, she fell out of favor before the new year because of her schemes against the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo. If the Prince of Wu didn't already have two sons, she probably would have already "died of illness."
As Song Xibai pondered, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.
She hurriedly grabbed the prince's sleeve.
"Your Highness, have someone investigate whether Hongxiu and Aunt Lin have any secret dealings. Although she is dead and the trail has gone cold, her actions will not leave no trace. There will always be clues."
The Crown Prince was somewhat surprised.
"Why is it Aunt Lin?"
"Judging from the way Prince Wu is, he's clearly not a man of lasting affection. Consort Lin isn't very favored, but she has given birth to two sons after all! Her status in the Prince's mansion must be second only to the Princess. Hongxiu can't rely on the Princess, so we can only turn to her."
Song Xibai's mind works quickly, and she speaks at lightning speed.
"Aunt Lin originally had two sons, and her ambition must have grown. She wanted to seize the position of heir, so she would have to win people's hearts. The two of them probably hit it off immediately. However, what she didn't expect was that one of her sons died unexpectedly. If other people also gave birth to sons, her status would plummet. That's why she was desperate and plotted to assassinate the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo before the new year."
"After Consort Lin lost power, Hongxiu lost her backing, making it even more difficult for her to become a concubine. So this time she went to great lengths to come out, firstly, to seduce the Prince of Wu, and secondly, perhaps to plot against the Princess Consort."
After finishing his speech in one breath, Song Xibai was so thirsty that he picked up the water bottle on the table, poured himself a glass of water, and gulped it down.
The crown prince seemed to be deep in thought.
"Indeed, there are two pregnant women in the backyard of the Prince of Wu's mansion. One is about to give birth, and the other is six or seven months along."
"So, the box that Hongxiu sent was meant to scheme against Princess Wu? What good could it be? What if it hadn't been opened? Or what if the problem hadn't been discovered?"
The Crown Prince still doesn't quite understand women's thought processes.
Song Xibai's eyes flickered.
"Perhaps this perfume also has a history."
The perfume powder had already been sent back to the Song residence in the capital by guards on horseback, and given to Song Xibai's two older brothers to study.
But the box is still there.
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