The girl continued to pray intently.

Prince Ding was speechless.

The second prince could not help but remind him: "Noble Lady Ji, your words are not semantically correct, and seem to have an additional layer of negation."

A double negative is a positive.

The prayer that Concubine Ji just said clearly meant that she hoped Qin Lixue would die soon.

Wu Qing opened his eyes and asked nonchalantly, "Ah? What happened?"

Her big eyes were twinkling, full of innocent light.

The second prince shut up.

She must have said it wrong on purpose!

Even if Wu Qing didn't say anything wrong, her thoughts were clear enough.

[Why didn't this stupid bird eat you to death? ]

Wu Qing gritted his teeth and cursed in his heart.

[Qin Lixue was successful in politics, so didn't he make any enemies? ]

[Qin Lixue's political enemies, can you stand up? Even if you have to pay a little money to hire someone to kill you, that's fine! ]

[Qin Lixue's wife, and Qin Lixue's confidantes. There are so many of you, isn't there a yandere among you? ]

[If you kill your brother Qin, won't you be able to be with him forever? ]

Wu Qing sighed, [… Stop, I can’t say any more. If I continue, my moral rating will drop again.]

The princes were stunned: ...So there is still room for the ratings to go down?

By the way, is Concubine Ji always so terrifying when he hates people?

The two were terrified.

They shouldn't have done anything to offend Concubine Ji, right?

[Let me think about it, is there still a chance to take revenge on him...] Wu Qing pondered.

The eldest prince stepped forward and interrupted Wu Qing who was talking in his mind.

"It's windy outside, let's get into the studio quickly to avoid catching a cold."

The second prince responded quickly, "Yes, my face is almost frozen. I won't say any more. I'll go first!"

He rushed up the bluestone steps and was the first to run into the studio.

As he ran, the coat that Wu Qing had put on his shoulders flew up and got tangled with the protruding part of the studio door frame.

Seeing this, Wu Qing immediately stopped thinking about anything else.

She couldn't help but yell, "Slow down, my coat is getting caught! Aaaahhhh!"

While shouting, Wu Qing hurriedly passed by Prince Ding and ran towards the studio following the Second Prince's back.

Prince Ding and the eldest prince stood side by side. When their eyes met, they both revealed a somewhat bitter smile.

The eldest prince coughed lightly and said to Prince Ding in a slightly awkward tone, "Your Highness, don't take it too seriously. Lady Ji...she is just this kind of person who speaks directly."

After saying this, the eldest prince finally realized it.

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, the eldest prince suddenly woke up. Why did he start to defend Concubine Ji?

Never mind, just consider it as a small compensation for knowing my second brother's secret.

Prince Ding nodded, showing a hint of approval.

"Indeed. It is rare for noble Ji to be so honest with others."

There was a faint smile on the corner of his mouth, and it was obvious that he was in a good mood.

...Huh?

The eldest prince looked at Prince Ding with a suddenly strange look in his eyes.

Could it be that... Uncle Eight can’t hear me?

Lady Ji was full of dissatisfaction and complaints in her heart about the appearance of her eighth uncle.

Prince Ding seemed to be unaware of this and remained calm and composed.

"Let's go. Don't stand here. Be careful not to catch a cold." Prince Ding said softly, turning around and walking away.

The eldest prince withdrew his gaze and responded.

Knowing that the princes' painting classes were held here, the servants of the imperial garden came here early in the morning to clean up.

The studio has been idle for a long time, but it does not show any signs of being old or decadent.

On the contrary, the utensils on the table are all complete and arranged in order, and the landscape paintings and calligraphy hanging on the wall have retained their original bright colors and have not turned yellow or faded with the passage of time.

Although the space is not large, only about ten square meters, it is filled with the atmosphere of painting.

In the northeast corner of the studio hangs a Western painting depicting a scene in the imperial garden. But perhaps because it was not appreciated by the studio owner, it was simply framed and became a less noticeable painting among the many paintings.

After Wu Qing finished dealing with the second prince, he stood at the door for a while.

The wind outside was getting stronger and stronger, and it hurt Wu Qing's eyes.

She took out her pocket watch and waited for a moment, but Xiyan didn't show up, instead Jinxiu showed up.

Wu Qing was a little surprised: "Why are you here? Is there something wrong in the house?"

Jinxiu's daily work is busy and trivial, and Wu Qing never asks her to be by his side all the time.

Jinxiu breathed slightly and supported herself on her knees for a while before raising her head.

She replied, "My lady, it's not a big deal. It's just that Princess Xiyan has sent a message saying that she is not feeling well recently and needs to rest for a while, so she won't be attending classes in the near future."

Wu Qing frowned slightly.

Why are they all sick, one by one?

This morning, Concubine Zhang and Concubine Zhou also said they were sick. It turns out that winter is the peak season for diseases.

Xiyan seldom exercises on weekdays. Perhaps she was too tired yesterday and her body could not support it.

Wu Qing thought for a moment and made a decision: "Well, I'll go visit her when I'm free in the evening."

"I'd also like to trouble you to prepare a bowl of Tremella soup. I'd like to bring it to her." She said with a smile.

Jinxiu nodded in agreement and gently reminded: "My lady, remember to wear more clothes. Don't take off your coat because it's too heavy, or you'll catch a cold."

Wu Qing smiled and waved goodbye to her, and only closed the door of the studio after she left.

Prince Ding watched this scene silently and asked, "Is this your personal maid? Why didn't she bow to you?"

"It's just an empty formality. I don't care about it." Wu Qing said.

"Rules cannot be abolished. As your personal maid, she should strictly abide by etiquette and it is her duty to salute you."

Prince Ding disagreed, "If you indulge your servants like this, you will suffer backlash and give others something to criticize you for."

Wu Qing was helpless.

Of course, she could explain many things to Prince Ding.

But there is no need for that!

"Your Majesty, you also know that those who want to harm me will not change their minds just because Jinxiu bows to me twice more."

Wu Qing casually said, "Besides, if she were in front of others, she would definitely do it. Isn't there no one else around?"

She didn't want to get entangled with this person any longer, so she quickened her pace and walked to the side of the princes.

Prince Ding was unexpectedly stunned by her words.

Wasn’t he included in the category of “others”?