Yu Nanqing looked at the Princess: "Has my message not been conveyed to Eunuch Liu?"
Upon hearing this, the princess's face darkened even more.
Liu, the eunuch leading the way, trembled, terrified that their anger would be directed at him. He quickly stood aside, head bowed, not daring to utter a sound.
Emperor Yuanhe softened his expression and chuckled, "My third brother is not feeling well, so I will wait a while."
Su Wanyan pushed Yu Nanqing forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I greet you."
Emperor Yuanhe waved his hand: "No need for formalities, everyone else, please rise as well."
"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Your Highness!" the crowd chorused.
"Today is a fine day for hunting. When Father Emperor was still alive, he would often take me and Tingyi to the hunting grounds for archery. My third brother went to the frontier when he was young, so he probably has never experienced this kind of fun. That's why I thought that I should invite my third brother to go with me today, no matter what."
The eldest princess replied coldly, "Now that they've arrived, we should act without delay and set off as soon as possible, or they might not be able to make it back in time."
"It's alright, everything should be done with Third Brother's health in mind."
With that, Emperor Yuanhe waved his hand, then rose from his dragon throne and came to Yu Nanqing: "Come on, with me here today, Third Brother, just let yourself have fun."
As soon as he finished speaking, a eunuch who was standing next to Emperor Yuanhe was about to take over Su Wanyan's position.
Just then, a palace maid stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, please."
Su Wanyan didn't know what this meant. She frowned, gripped the handle of her wheelchair tightly, and stood still. Just as she was about to say something, she heard Emperor Yuanhe laugh three times.
"Third sister-in-law, you're worried about your third brother." He looked at Su Wanyan with his stern eyes, a faint warning in them: "You will also be going with us, so there's no need to worry."
Su Wanyan glanced at Yu Nanqing, who then looked up and gave a gentle smile: "Since His Majesty has said so, what else do we have to worry about?"
Emperor Yuanhe did not give them the right to refuse.
Upon hearing this, Su Wanyan let go, and the little eunuch immediately took the wheelchair from her.
The palace maid curtsied and gestured for her to enter: "Your Highness, please."
Su Wanyan didn't know how long they had been waiting, she only knew that the princess had proudly raised her head, stood up and angrily boarded the imperial carriage.
Emperor Yuanhe appeared much more composed. Su Wanyan watched as Yu Nanqing was pushed forward, and then, guided by a palace maid, she boarded the carriage behind him.
The carriage was open on all four sides, and it was equipped with serving maids, heating supplies, and some food.
Only after getting into the carriage did Su Wanyan realize something was wrong.
In front of her were Emperor Yuanhe, the eldest princess, and Yu Nanqing, while in the carriage behind her was only her alone.
Looking at the honor guard in the middle, they were about ten meters away. If they wanted to do something to her, given the distance between her and Yu Nanqing, it would be easy for them to do so.
Su Wanyan glanced at Xiao Bu and Tian Zhong who were following the carriage, and then looked around at the hills all around, where there was nowhere to hide. She thought it wouldn't be so quick to make a move.
The ministers and noble families who remained in the camp behind Emperor Yuanhe breathed a sigh of relief after seeing him off.
Meanwhile, at the Yuan Ning Marquis's residence, Su Muqing quietly left the tent after the ceremonial guard departed.
Yu Nanqing is now with the Emperor and the Eldest Princess, while Su Wanyan has been left in the carriage behind.
Perhaps she'll have a chance to bump into Yu Nanqing alone.
"Tomorrow will be bright and sunny, and choosing today for the archery expedition was truly the right choice." Emperor Yuanhe seemed to be in a good mood, standing in front of the imperial carriage, raising his hand to shield his eyes from the midday sun, and remarked with emotion.
The eldest princess smiled and chimed in, "Last year, Your Majesty got a deer. I wonder what Your Majesty will hunt this year."
Many people's first target when hunting is deer, because deer are fast runners and very alert. If you can hunt a deer, it proves that you are a skilled hunter.
This can also be seen as an indirect way of showcasing one's abilities.
"I heard that they released wolves into the hunting grounds this year. I'd like to run into one."
The eldest princess suddenly looked at Yu Nanqing: "Yesterday, Prince Gong made a name for himself at the opening ceremony of the hunt. I wonder if he will have such good luck today."
However, Yu Nanqing paid no attention to what Emperor Yuanhe and the eldest princess were saying.
Yu Nanqing was sitting in a wheelchair, his attention fixed on the carriage behind him. He watched Su Wanyan sitting alone at the front of the table, surrounded and served by four palace maids, looking quite uncomfortable.
Su Wanyan was already worried about this guerrilla shooting, and this time it was him who wanted her to accompany him in making a big gamble, so she must be uneasy.
"Prince Gong?" The eldest princess was already dissatisfied with Yu Nanqing's lateness, and now that he was ignoring her like this, she was even more displeased and raised her voice with a cold face.
Yu Nanqing snapped out of her daze, but didn't even glance at Yu Tingyi, instead focusing her gaze on the cherries on the table.
He reached out and handed the silver vessel containing the cherries to the eunuch accompanying the imperial carriage: "The princess loves these, you can take them."
He didn't actually know if Su Wanyan liked to eat, but he couldn't bear to see her all alone.
Emperor Yuanhe: "..."
Princess Eldest: "..."
The eldest princess glanced at the carriage behind her. Wasn't Su Wanyan's table set with the same fruit as this one?
She chuckled coldly, "Prince Gong is truly devoted to Princess Gong, ignoring even the words of my brother and me."
"Eh." Emperor Yuanhe stopped him in time and said with a smile, "It's a good thing that my third brother is so deeply in love with his wife."
He waved his hand and said, "Someone, take all of this on the table to Princess Gong."
Yu Nanqing: "..." You don't need to worry about me!
Just as the serving maid was about to take all the fruit on the table over, Yu Nanqing stopped her, saying, "Your subject wants to eat these."
"..." He didn't appreciate it even when he went along with his wishes!
Emperor Yuanhe was puzzled; what was going on?
That's enough!
All we need to do is trick him into coming out.
Emperor Yuanhe did not dwell on it.
Before Su Wanyan could even touch the fruit on the carriage, another plate was brought over: "Your Highness, the Prince has asked me to bring these cherries to you. He said that Your Highness likes them."
"..." She didn't say she loves cherries.
Is this some kind of hint?
Su Wanyan looked up at the imperial carriage and happened to meet Yu Nanqing's gaze. He was holding a small cherry in his hand and smiling as he watched her put it in her mouth.
Sunlight shone on him, a gentle breeze ruffled his dark hair, and the gentleness on his face and the arrogance in his eyes blended naturally at this moment.
Su Wanyan wasn't sure if describing Yu Nanqing as a spirited young man was appropriate, but his vibrant energy was so dazzling that it captivated her.
The thought that such an outstanding person had been healed by her made Su Wanyan unable to stop the corners of her lips from turning up. With a smile, she reached out and picked up a cherry, waved it at him, and then, as if in response, put it into her own mouth.
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