Chapter 78 Chaos (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
The fourth prince looked uneasily in the direction where Mu Xuexi and the Xia family girl had disappeared, unable to suppress his anxiety.
The sixth prince couldn't help but lean closer and ask, "Fourth brother, what's wrong with you?"
The Fourth Prince frowned: "Miss Xia and Miss Mu left together, didn't you see?"
The sixth prince was completely indifferent: "She can go wherever she wants, I can't control her."
The fourth prince felt a little disdainful. He glanced at the sixth prince and thought, "How could someone like him have such a background and be married to a lady from a high-class family?"
If he were to marry Miss Xia, he would not have to worry about the Xia family ceasing to support him in the future. Even if the Xia family were to support him for the sake of their own future, they would still do so.
Just then, he saw Mu Xuexi walking back alone.
The fourth prince's heart sank. He stepped forward and couldn't help but ask, "Where is Miss Xia?"
Mu Xuexi was taken aback, somewhat startled by the Fourth Prince's rudeness, but she managed to regain her composure. She quickly lowered her face and said softly, "Your Highness, I left something behind, so I came back to retrieve it. Miss Xia is waiting for me over there."
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince's gaze towards Mu Xuexi changed. That direction was the one Fu Mingzi had left in, and Mu Xuexi had used such a clumsy excuse to leave again. Could it be...?
The fourth prince dared not think any further and hurriedly ran towards the lake.
The sixth prince called out from behind, "Fourth brother! Fourth brother, wait for me!"
The Fourth Prince paused, and for some reason, an idea suddenly came to mind. He turned around and looked at the Sixth Prince: "You wait here. I'll go check on Miss Xia to see if she's alright."
Upon hearing that the Fourth Prince was going to see Miss Xia, the Sixth Prince's expression immediately changed. He nodded and said, "Then go and come back soon. Don't let her know I'm waiting here." His expression was one of complete impatience.
The fourth prince pursed his lips, suppressing his emotions, and quickened his pace, heading in that direction.
Mu Xuexi had no idea what tricks the Fourth Prince was up to, and she didn't want to stay there and stare at the Sixth Prince, so she left quietly.
When Mu Xueqing saw Mu Xuexi approaching, she finally stopped looking at the Fourth Prince's back and said in a somewhat unpleasant tone, "What were you and the Fourth Prince talking about just now? I didn't expect you to have a relationship with him." Her words were sarcastic, which drew the attention of everyone around them.
Mu Xuexi was somewhat annoyed, but she couldn't let it out in this situation. After all, she knew Mu Xueqing better than anyone else what kind of person she was.
"Sister, you're overthinking it." Mu Xuexi said with a forced smile, "The Fourth Prince just stopped me and asked me a few questions."
"What are you saying? Say it so we can all learn something." Mu Xueqing looked at Mu Xuexi gently: "Sister hasn't had much education since childhood, unlike her younger sister who is so knowledgeable and reasonable."
Although these words sound like they are praising Mu Xuexi, they are actually saying that she is not valued in the Mu family and that Fu Mingzhu mistreats her illegitimate daughter.
As expected, these words immediately drew many sympathetic glances, while the gazes directed at Mu Xuexi became cautious, after all, she was also a formidable enemy.
Mu Xuexi was furious, and her gaze toward Mu Xueqing grew even colder, but her tone remained gentle: "Sister has overstepped her bounds. How could I dare to speak so casually about what the Fourth Prince asked? If the Fourth Prince knew that it was you who forced me to tell him about him, I wonder what he would think."
Upon hearing this, everyone around was startled and dared not interfere any further. They quickly lowered their heads, pretending that they had not heard anything.
Mu Xueqing's face turned bright red. She knew that she had been manipulated by Mu Xuexi. Although she was angry, she did not dare to refute and could only suppress her anger and reply, "It was my mistake, sister. Thank you for reminding me."
Mu Xuexi smiled but didn't say anything.
She turned and walked toward her personal maid. Although saying she had left her handkerchief behind was just an excuse, she was absolutely certain that she hadn't brought it with her.
Seeing that Mu Xuexi was about to pass by, Mu Xueqing became a little anxious. However, she suddenly had a flash of inspiration and asked, "Where is Miss Xia? Why is it only you who came back?"
Mu Xuexi lowered her eyes: "I left my handkerchief behind, I'll come back to get it."
Upon hearing this, Mu Xueqing's expression changed drastically. She realized that the Fourth Prince had probably gone to find Miss Xia. This would not do!
Mu Xueqing had long regarded the Fourth Prince as her man. If another Miss Xia were to interfere, she was afraid she would suffer a great loss. She should know that Miss Xia not only had a very powerful family background, but she herself was also not someone to be trifled with.
Mu Xueqing was extremely anxious and disregarded all etiquette, immediately following in the direction the Fourth Prince had left.
Leaving aside the lively scene here, let's talk about Fu Mingzi's side. After waiting behind the artificial hill for a while, they saw Miss Xia walk over and stop by the lake, staring intently at the lake.
Fu Mingzi waited a little longer, until she heard another hurried footstep, before giving Zhou Xiaoyan a wink.
Zhou Xiaoyan then emerged from behind the artificial hill, leading Fu Mingzi casually towards the lake.
As the young lady Xia saw someone approaching from afar, she tried to hide, but there was no way to avoid it. When she got closer, she realized it was the Fifth Prince, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She gently bowed and said, "This humble woman, Xia, greets Your Highness the Fifth Prince."
Zhou Xiaoyan smiled, a rare occurrence for him: "Miss Xia, please rise. I was just taking a stroll and didn't expect to meet you here."
Upon hearing this, Miss Xia's heart stirred. Could it be that the Fifth Prince had taken a liking to her?
Miss Xia mustered her courage and glanced at Zhou Xiaoyan. Seeing the smile that filled his originally cold face, her heart began to pound wildly.
"Your Highness..."
"Fifth Brother!" Before Miss Xia could finish speaking, a voice from afar broke the silence.
As Zhou Xiaoyan turned around, Miss Xia was startled and lost her footing. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Fu Mingzi moved and cleverly bumped into Miss Xia. Now, Miss Xia could no longer stand and fell into the water with a splash.
It all happened in the blink of an eye. By the time people realized what was happening, Fu Mingzi had already dodged to the side, making it impossible to tell that he was the one who had done it.
As soon as Xia entered the water, she was completely stunned and began to struggle desperately, but the more she struggled, the further she went and the more she sank.
Zhou Xiaoyan pretended to be anxious and hurriedly said, "I can swim, I'll save them."
But before he could even pretend to take off his coat, the fourth prince plunged into the water and swam toward Miss Xia.
Fu Mingzi, now in her dramatic mode, hurriedly shouted, "I'll go get someone!" What a joke! If no one witnessed this scene today, it would be a real loss.
The Fourth Prince also heard Fu Mingzi's voice, but he did not stop her. He knew in his heart what he really wanted.
Fu Mingzi jogged towards the crowd and happened to run into Mu Xueqing, who had come to check on the situation.
When Mu Xueqing saw Fu Mingzi, her heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition overwhelmed her.
"Fifth Uncle, what's wrong with you?"
Fu Mingzi thought to herself that it was good that they had come, but on the surface she pretended to be anxious: "The Fourth Prince and Miss Xia have fallen into the water. I'll go and get someone to come over. Don't make things worse." Without waiting for her to ask any more questions, she left.
Mu Xueqing's face turned pale. She thought to herself that she should stop Fu Mingzi from making a big fuss, but she couldn't stop him at all. She could only watch him leave. After thinking for a while, she gritted her teeth and ran towards the lake again.
Even if it's impossible to stop the Fourth Prince from contacting Miss Xia now, I can't just become cannon fodder for no reason.
Fu Mingzi went over to call for help. When the people there heard that the prince had fallen into the water, they all became very anxious and ran back and forth. Among them, the sixth prince was the most anxious, after all, he used to admire his fourth brother the most.
Seeing him like this, Fu Mingzi thought to herself, "I wonder what his reaction will be when he sees the Fourth Prince and Miss Xia embracing each other."
Fu Mingzi led a group of eunuchs and maids over, but by the time they arrived, the Fourth Prince had already rescued the person. Both of them were soaking wet. Miss Xia was pale as she was held in the Fourth Prince's arms, her clothes disheveled, revealing her fair neck and entire arm.
When the fourth prince saw someone coming, he hurriedly took off his clothes to cover himself, but this was just deceiving himself; he had already seen everything.
The sixth prince immediately turned pale. Although he didn't like his fiancée, being seen so intimately with his brother was a major blow to him.
Although the palace maids and eunuchs witnessed this spectacle, they were all shrewd and none of them dared to speak. They merely glanced back and forth between the fourth and sixth princes from time to time.
The fourth prince seemed to sense something was wrong and hurriedly said, "Sixth brother, I..."
"Fourth Brother, there's no need to say anything." The Sixth Prince interrupted the Fourth Prince, his face pale. "Fourth Brother meant well." He forced a smile. "My cousin's survival is all thanks to Fourth Brother."
This statement was quite tactful; by emphasizing the cousin, it completely ruled out the possibility of their marriage.
The fourth prince was in a state of great turmoil, feeling both happy and worried. He had lost a foolish younger brother who always obeyed him, but gained the complete support of the Xia family. He didn't know whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.
Zhou Xiaoyan stood aside watching this scene, a deep coldness in his eyes. In his previous life, the Sixth Prince, taking advantage of the Fourth Prince's influence, humiliated him severely after he was imprisoned. Although the Xia family was later discarded by the Fourth Prince after they had served their purpose, the Sixth Prince continued to live a good life.
Now he should taste the bitterness of this hypocritical, power-hungry older brother.
"Go quickly and summon the imperial physician! Go quickly and help Miss Xia up! What are you all standing here looking at?!" Fu Mingzi was the first to break the silence.
The eunuch who was ordered to summon the imperial physician did not resist at all and hurriedly left with his head down. As for the old woman who went to help the man, she glanced at the fourth prince with trepidation.
The Fourth Prince frowned, then nodded: "I'll leave Miss Xia to you."
Only then did the old woman dare to come over, and she hurriedly helped Miss Xia up, heading towards the Shou Kang Palace.
At this moment, Zhou Xiaoyan stepped forward and asked, "Fourth brother, are you alright?"
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince turned around and looked at Zhou Xiaoyan with a cold expression: "Fifth Brother, I really misjudged you before. I didn't expect you to have such ambitions. But I've ruined your plans this time. You won't blame me, will you?"
His cold demeanor was, for the first time, a mask of calm that he had torn off when facing Zhou Xiaoyan.
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