It was him
Last time, Jiang Yan accepted Wang Qianqian's invitation to attend the banquet in the back garden, but took a different route, which was not far from Pear Blossom Residence.
But this time, the route she took was farther than that of Pear Blossom Residence.
According to Huang Ying, the newly built courtyard partially encroaches on the road, so it's temporarily impassable.
Jiang Yan walked intently toward the back garden.
Ginkgo trees are planted on both sides of the road. They look quite old, with thick trunks and a towering presence.
At that time, the leaves were already growing well, but they were not yet fully open.
Even so, the sunlight that could have entered the road was still blocked, so even though it was only evening, the road was already difficult to see.
Jiang Yan walked forward cautiously, her mind involuntarily drifting to the martial arts novels she had been reading. They said that in such situations, a man in black would suddenly appear and kill everyone he saw without asking any questions.
Shangguan Zeyu is a prince, and he probably has grudges against many people. If someone really sneaks into the prince's mansion, hides on the road she is going to take, and then suddenly appears and kills her, wouldn't she feel too aggrieved?
After killing her, can she return to her original world?
She really didn't want to die so inexplicably!
She had also promised Huang Ying that she would seek justice for her young lady!
Jiang Yan felt increasingly uneasy, as if someone was really following her closely, wanting to kill her with a single blow. So after only a few steps, she lifted her skirt and ran frantically, running out of the road in one breath.
That was terrifying! If she ever walks this road again, Huang Ying must accompany her!
Jiang Yan was still shaken. She gently regulated her breathing while looking around.
The banquet must be just ahead; the lights there are clearly brighter than elsewhere, and the sounds of musical instruments and women's laughter can be heard from there.
But should she take the left path or the right path?
Before her lay a lake partially hidden by low-lying flowers and grasses; this must be Emerald Lake.
It's clearly impossible for her to cross Emerald Lake directly!
Which path should they take? Jiang Yan was in a dilemma.
She carefully squeezed through the bushes and stared wide-eyed at the paths to her left and right.
It seems the road on the left is shorter; you only need to cross an arched bridge to get there.
Jiang Yan then prepared to walk to the left.
Just then, a gentle male voice reached her ears.
"Wait!"
Jiang Yan was startled and actually stood still.
The man didn't approach her. He quickly asked again in the same furtive tone, "Where are you going?"
Jiang Yan didn't know who he was, so she didn't answer him. However, she vaguely felt that she had heard this voice somewhere before.
The man fell silent. Jiang Yan, hearing that he hadn't left, tentatively asked, "Who are you?"
The man then asked, "And who are you?" His voice was still soft and slow, as if he was afraid that others would hear.
Jiang Yan suddenly remembered the voice; it was that meddlesome servant!
Not long ago, when she went to the front yard to find Huang Ying, she encountered that servant who questioned her about who she was!
She was no longer afraid and even raised her voice: "This concubine is going to the banquet." Then, without turning her head, she quickly walked to the left.
Jiang Yan was still feeling guilty, afraid that he would call out to her or yell at her to come after her, so she left as quickly as possible.
However, she was clearly overthinking things; the man neither spoke to stop her nor chased after her.
She was secretly delighted and quickened her pace toward the arched bridge.
Wang Qianqian leaned lazily against the back of her chair, holding a delicate red peony fan in her right hand, fanning herself intermittently.
Wu Lanyu sat opposite her, sitting very upright: "Sister, will the Prince be angry that Madam Shen didn't come to the banquet today?"
Wang Qianqian snorted coldly: "Why should Your Highness blame me? My sister is pregnant and was even hurt by our beloved concubine. What is she doing attending this banquet?"
Wu Lanyu lowered her voice: "What my sister means is... to ask the Prince..."
Wang Qianqian gave another sarcastic snort: "Of course, such an opportunity is something we couldn't ask for!"
Wu Lanyu: "But sister, the prince already said this morning at Haitang Garden that we should not mention this matter again."
Wang Qianqian burst out laughing: "Little sister, you're supposed to be the daughter of a high-ranking official, how come you don't even have this much thought in your heart?"
"What my sister means is..." Before Wu Lanyu could finish speaking, someone said, "The Prince has arrived." Everyone then tidied their appearance and knelt to one side to welcome Shangguan Zeyu.
"Get up, all of you." Shangguan Zeyu quickly walked over from the side path, followed by his personal guards.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Shangguan Zeyu glanced casually at everyone and sat down.
Wang Qianqian stood up and walked towards him: "Your Highness, where is the Princess Consort?"
"Thank you for your concern, Qianqian. The Princess will be there shortly."
Wang Qianqian deliberately stumbled and fell into Shangguan Zeyu's arms.
Shangguan Zeyu seemed to be blind, failing to notice her clumsy acting, and even took the opportunity to hug her and pull her onto his lap.
"Qianqian, have you been eating poorly again while I was away?"
Wang Qianqian blushed and gently punched his chest twice: "Your Highness~ I didn't~" Her softness gave him goosebumps, but Shangguan Zeyu seemed to enjoy it.
He lowered his head, buried his face in the crook of her neck, and gently sniffed, saying with a laugh, "Qianqian seems to smell good again."
"Your Highness, how annoying~" Wang Qianqian murmured shyly again.
Wu Lanyu had already turned her back to them, unable to bear it any longer, when a maid announced, "Her Highness the Princess has arrived!"
Wang Qianqian obediently slid off Shangguan Zeyu's lap and knelt on the ground.
Xiao Yiqing's gait was light and slow.
As soon as she appeared, she smiled and said, "We're all family, get up."
"Thank you, Princess Consort."
Xiao Yiqing walked to Shangguan Zeyu's side and saw Wang Qianqian slowly getting up from his right side. His eyes suddenly turned gloomy.
"Your Highness has finally arrived! I've been waiting for you for so long!" Shangguan Zeyu said with a gentle smile.
Xiao Yiqing smiled and bowed to him, saying apologetically, "It is my fault for being late. Your Highness, please don't be angry with me."
Shangguan Zeyu stood up, took her hands, and pulled her to sit down, saying, "What are you saying, Your Highness? How could I be angry with you?"
When they said their last words, they were practically whispering sweet nothings to each other.
Xiao Yiqing immediately leaned shyly against his left shoulder.
Wang Qianqian was very sensible and had already walked to her seat and sat down.
Shangguan Zeyu and Xiao Yiqing were whispering something to each other. Shangguan Zeyu brought half of his face close to her right ear, chuckling and murmuring incessantly, while Xiao Yiqing simply lowered her head shyly the whole time, occasionally letting out a soft "hmm".
Wang Qianqian, Wu Lanyu, and the three ladies Minglan, Haoyue, and Qingshuang all sat quietly, looking at the colorful table in front of them.
After an unknown amount of time, Shangguan Zeyu finally parted ways with Xiao Yiqing and said, "Everyone is here, let's begin the banquet."
Wang Qianqian replied, "Your Highness, we are still short of people."
"Oh?" Shangguan Zeyu asked curiously, "It's been so long, who else hasn't arrived yet?"
Wang Qianqian looked at Wu Lanyu.
Wu Lanyu hesitated, then said, "Your Highness, Madam Shen..."
"I already know about Qianmei's matter, so I won't mention it today. If Qianmei doesn't attend the banquet, it's fine." Shangguan Zeyu's voice was still gentle.
Wang Qianqian added, "Your Highness, it's the concubine. She hasn't arrived yet."
"...A concubine?" Shangguan Zeyu was very puzzled. After pondering for a moment, he asked Xiao Yiqing, "When did I have a concubine? How come I didn't know?" He then looked at Wang Qianqian and the others in confusion.
Xiao Yiqing smiled and said to him in a tone that suggested she was "completely helpless."
"Your Highness, how could you forget about Sister Liu? She was the one you arranged to marry at the Empress Dowager's behest!"
"Sister Liu?" Shangguan Zeyu still couldn't recall Liu Ruyi.
Wang Qianqian laughed and said, "Your Highness, this is Liu Ruyi, the illegitimate daughter of Liu Xiangyi, the owner of the money exchange in the capital! We just got married a month ago, don't you remember?" Her tone was full of pride.
Shangguan Zeyu recalled carefully, and after a long while, he suddenly remembered and exclaimed, "Oh!"
"It's her! Let's not wait any longer! Let's begin!"
At this moment, Xiao Yiqing said, "Your Highness, you mustn't!"
Why?
"Your Highness, this is Sister Liu's first time attending a family banquet. We should wait for her and let her see you."
Shangguan Zeyu couldn't help but chuckle: "Look at me?"
Xiao Yiqing: "Your Highness, I've never met you before, so I'd like to take this opportunity to see you."
Shangguan Zeyu: "So, according to the Princess Consort, all these people are going to have to wait for her?"
"This isn't a prince; it seems my sister will arrive soon. However..."
Shangguan Zeyu maintained a gentle demeanor and spoke softly: "However, Your Highness, please tell me."
Xiao Yiqing seemed very reluctant to say it, and lowered her eyes.
Wang Qianqian kept looking at them, and then said, "Your Highness, the Princess Consort is kind-hearted and naturally does not want to punish Consort Liu! However, once this trend of not being punctual starts, it will be difficult to correct in the future, which is unfair to the Princess Consort and the other ladies."
Shangguan Zeyu looked at Xiao Yiqing with a pained expression: "The Princess is indeed kind. I was right about her. I will support all of the Princess's decisions. The Princess can punish her however she wishes."
"Thank you for your support, Your Highness." Xiao Yiqing was very grateful to Shangguan Zeyu.
Wang Qianqian laughed dismissively.
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