Seeing the bewildered Sixth Prince, the Crown Prince asked him nothing, only offering a few words of comfort. He then summoned servants to clean up the mess on the ground before taking Song Xibai back to the backyard.
When Song Xibai left the guest room, he pulled Dingxiang aside and gave her some instructions for a while.
Dingxiang said with a serious expression, "Don't worry, I will take good care of him."
Back in the backyard, Song Xibai's brows finally relaxed slightly.
The crown prince, however, kept a straight face, looking gloomy and indescribably downcast.
Song Xibai dismissed everyone else and held the Crown Prince's hand tightly.
"What is Your Highness thinking about?"
After a moment of silence, the Crown Prince raised his head and asked, "Tell me, is the Gu in Xiao Liu's body related to Father Emperor?"
Song Xibai sighed.
"Since Your Highness has already asked, you must already have suspicions. To be honest with you, I also suspect that it was the Emperor who did it."
The Crown Prince was puzzled: "But why? Xiao Liu's birth mother is not favored and was only promoted to Zhaorong last year. Neither she nor her son has offended anyone. Xiao Liu is also young, and his skills in archery and horsemanship, as well as his literary talent, are not particularly outstanding. Why would anyone still target him?"
Although he had been the crown prince for over ten years, had encountered numerous assassination attempts, and had many conflicts with the second and third princes, he didn't actually harbor much hatred for his younger brothers. Even when he considered ascending the throne, he only thought about diminishing their status, never about taking their lives.
The Crown Prince was influenced by Confucian scholars from a young age and learned Confucian thought. In addition, after the Empress Yuan passed away, he had no elders to guide him. In Song Xibai's opinion, some of his ideas were actually naive.
He showed the emperor both the respect and filial piety one would show to a father, as well as loyalty and awe towards the monarch; while he was wary of his brothers, he also tried to take care of them as much as he could.
It was the changes and pressures of the past few years that forced the Crown Prince to be patient, grow rapidly, secretly accumulate strength, recruit talents, guard against others' schemes, and prepare for his future great cause.
However, even so, he still retained a touch of "purity" in his nature.
Having been plotted against so many times, he has finally come to his senses. Even so, the Crown Prince still holds hope for his father, the Emperor.
Song Xibai pondered to herself: How come I never noticed the Crown Prince's "naive and innocent" side before?
But now, even if the Crown Prince is unwilling to believe it, he has no choice but to face this issue.
His father is acting very strangely.
Song Xibai did not disturb the Crown Prince's contemplation.
At times like this, no matter how much she says, it's not as effective as the Crown Prince figuring things out for himself.
Therefore, she simply stayed by his side in silence.
The two nestled together, and the room fell silent.
As dusk fell, Wei Hong quietly entered, lit a candle, and asked in a low voice.
"Your Majesty, would you and His Highness like to have dinner?"
The prince then snapped out of his daze, glanced out the window, and slapped his thigh in frustration.
"It's so late? Qingqing, are you hungry? Hurry up and serve the meal!"
Song Xibai didn't feel very hungry; she had eaten quite a bit that afternoon! But since the Crown Prince had finally managed to divert her attention, she wouldn't refuse.
Song Xibai nodded, took the Crown Prince's hand, and placed it on her stomach.
"Your Highness, feel my stomach. Does it look flatter?"
The prince's lips curled slightly, and he actually began to touch it seriously.
His hands were warm, and he touched her carefully, which made Song Xibai feel itchy.
She tried to hold back, but finally couldn't help but burst out laughing and pushed the prince's hand away.
"Your Highness seems to be in a better mood, so let's hurry up and go to the front!"
She stood up, stretched her limbs, and then instructed Wei Hong, "Dingxiang is with the Sixth Prince. Remember to have two extra meals prepared and sent over later."
Wei Hong curtsied in response and then said, "My lady, I heard from the servants at the front that Princess Wu has arrived. Do you think we should invite Princess Wu over?"
Song Xibai looked surprised.
"The Princess Consort of Wu has arrived?"
Then she remembered that King Wu had left in a hurry after lunch.
"Was that Princess Wu in the carriage that came from the Wu Prince's residence at noon? No wonder the Wu Prince's expression changed! They should be staying at the estate to the east, right?"
The following sentence was a question asked to the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince didn't care about the matter and even pulled Song Xibai aside to complain: "There's no need to go out of your way to invite him. That third prince is too useless. He can't handle the trouble he caused at his estate. He can only have his princess step in. It's utterly shameful."
Song Xibai wanted to laugh, but she held it in.
"Is the Princess Consort of Wu that powerful?"
As they talked, the two walked out.
As they stepped out of the backyard, they saw Yue Zhuangtou walking briskly towards them.
"Your Highness, the King of Wu and his wife have arrived. They have been waiting in the front courtyard for quite some time."
The Crown Prince and Song Xibai were both taken aback. After exchanging a glance, the Crown Prince asked.
"When did they arrive? Why didn't they send anyone to inform us?"
Yue Zhuangtou looked embarrassed and wanted to explain, but he opened his mouth and then held it back, finally only saying one sentence.
"Your Highness, you'll see once you go there."
His hesitant manner aroused Song Xibai's curiosity, so she hurriedly pushed the Crown Prince towards the front courtyard.
As soon as they reached the door, the two heard Princess Wu's angry shouts.
"I must have had the worst luck in my life to marry you! You're always causing trouble, can't you ever just give me a break for one day? Why are you running away? Stop right there if you dare!"
This furious voice was nothing like the dignified and elegant Princess Wu that Song Xibai had once met.
Song Xibai was stunned.
Then they saw Princess Wu with seven or eight servants standing in front of the screen wall, standing with her hands on her hips and cursing angrily.
And what about the King of Wu?
He pulled two servants to stand in front of him, not daring to even peek out, his face full of resentment, but he dared not speak out.
What's going on with this couple?
Song Xibai looked to the Crown Prince for help, waiting for an explanation.
The crown prince was also completely bewildered and did not understand what had happened.
He coughed loudly and took a few steps forward.
When the King of Wu saw him, it was as if he had seen a savior, and he rushed over in one stride.
"Brother, please stop this shrew! She doesn't respect me, the Prince of Wu, at all! She's gone too far!"
Song Xibai burst out laughing without realizing it.
The King of Wu was enraged and glared at him.
Song Xibai quickly turned her head away and covered her mouth, but her shoulders couldn't help but tremble, revealing her current mood.
This King of Wu was just a paper tiger all along!
He's actually afraid of his wife!
Song Xibai took several deep breaths to suppress her laughter, coughed a few times, walked over to Princess Wu, and curtsied.
"I was unaware of the Princess's arrival and failed to come out to greet her. I am truly sorry for my rudeness, Princess Wu."
Princess Wu felt somewhat embarrassed, as she was unaware that Song Xibai was on this estate.
The fact that she had been ridiculed by outsiders made Princess Wu even angrier, but her anger was directed at the King of Wu, not at Song Xibai.
She lowered her arm and politely returned the greeting.
"Not at all, it was my fault. We should have sent a visiting card first. It was presumptuous of us to come here so abruptly. Please forgive us, Lady Liangdi."
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