It's getting late.
Qingying and Lu Xingli walked out of the Xie residence together.
They should have parted ways then, but Lu Xingli suddenly climbed into her carriage.
"I have something I'd like to talk to Sister Liu about privately."
Qingying couldn't refuse, so she could only nod. Once in the carriage, she got straight to the point: "Sister Lu, please speak frankly."
Once the carriage was moving smoothly forward, Lu Xingli finally spoke: "That day at Qianyue Pavilion, I saw you with His Highness the Crown Prince. What... what were you doing?"
Qingying hadn't expected her to ask so directly, without any beating around the bush. So, she simply stopped trying to hide it and answered frankly, "It's exactly as you see it. His Highness and I are deeply in love."
Although she already knew the answer in her heart, Lu Xingli had always held onto a sliver of hope. But when she heard her answer in person, she couldn't help but feel a tightness in her chest. Her fingers clenched so tightly that her nails dug into the flesh of her palms.
Qingying hesitated for a moment, looked at her seriously, and said, "Sister Lu, I know you like His Highness the Crown Prince, but..."
Before she could finish speaking, Lu Xingli coldly interrupted her: "But what? You know perfectly well, you know perfectly well that I like His Highness, so why do you still compete with me!"
Qingying then noticed that her face was frighteningly dark, even with a twisted ferocity, and her eyes were filled with resentment.
She had expected Lu Xingli to be angry, but she didn't expect him to be this angry, looking like he wanted to devour her.
She frowned and raised her voice, "What are you yelling about? Are you trying to outshout me? Even if you had the loudest voice in the world, Wei Huaixu wouldn't like you!"
Lu Xingli was inexplicably taken aback by these somewhat childish words.
Qingying scoffed and said, "Lu Xingli, I never thought of competing with you for anything. In the beginning, it was Wei Huaixu who took the initiative to approach me."
"You're talking nonsense! Why would His Highness the Crown Prince lower himself to get close to you?!"
"What else could it be?" She gave a slightly provocative smile. "It's because he's in love with me, of course."
Lu Xingli's expression turned ugly, as if she couldn't accept it at all.
Then she broke down, covered her face, and ran outside crying.
"Hey, we're in a carriage!" Qingying reacted quickly and went over to pull her, grabbing her clothes but ignoring her own thin, bean sprout-like body. Instead, she was pulled down and fell flat on her face.
Lu Xingli headed straight outside and jumped out of the carriage without hesitation.
That's right, Lu Xingli jumped out of the car!
Qingying had no time to care about her sore arms and knees; she got up, grabbed her clothes, and ran outside.
A commotion arose outside, and people from the street gathered around. Lu Xingli lay unconscious in the middle of the road, while the coachman beside her looked on in astonishment and confusion.
The carriages and horses of the Duke of Lu's mansion, which had been following behind, also surrounded them.
Qingying immediately had Lu Xingli carried into the nearest clinic.
Fortunately, the coachman knew they were talking and deliberately slowed down, so Lu Xingli was not seriously injured. She only had several abrasions and her clothes were torn.
Sitting on a small stool in the clinic, Qingying rubbed her forehead and stared at Lu Xingli lying on the bed in front of her, still completely puzzled.
Tongxia, who had been sent back to report the news, walked in and called out to her.
She looked up, puzzled, and asked, "How come you're back so quickly?"
Tong Xia stepped aside, revealing the figure that walked in behind her.
She couldn't help but be a little surprised: "Why is His Highness the Crown Prince here?"
Wei Huaixu walked up to her, squatted down to be at eye level with her, and said, “I met your maid on the way here. She said you had encountered some trouble, and I’m here to support you.”
Upon hearing this, Qingying's expression changed. "Does Your Highness know why this matter arose?"
"I guessed something when I saw her." He glanced at the woman on the bed and sighed helplessly. "I've caused you trouble."
"You understand it yourself." Since the parties involved have arrived, Qingying simply gave up. "The people from the Duke of Lu's mansion will be here soon. I am not good at arguing with people, so I will have to trouble Your Highness to step in on my behalf."
Wei Huaixu nodded. "Alright, just tell me what happened, and I'll handle it. Just stay behind me."
So, Qingying gave a brief overview of the matter.
Wei Huaixu's eyes twitched as he listened. "Just... just because of a few words, she jumped off the carriage?"
"Yes, to be honest, I haven't known her for very long, but I didn't know she was such an extreme person. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been so quick to provoke her and ended up in all this trouble."
Before they could reach a conclusion, people from the Duke of Lu's mansion arrived at the clinic.
Madam Lu was still outside the door when she started wailing, "My daughter, how could you be so foolish!"
She came in clutching a handkerchief, sobbing loudly with every step, looking so pitiful that it moved everyone who saw her.
Qingying crossed her arms and shook her head, "If you didn't know better, you'd think her daughter had already passed away. This is no more mourning than this."
Wei Huaixu couldn't help but curl his lips, reached out and pinched her cheek, saying, "I hope you can still have this eloquence later."
"That won't do. I'm fine with myself, but I'm afraid she'll turn her attention to the General's Mansion, which would cause unnecessary trouble."
As she spoke, Madam Lu had already reached the bedside. When she saw that Wei Huaixu was also there, her crying stopped abruptly. With tears still on her face, she quickly knelt down and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
"No need for formalities." Wei Huaixu nodded slightly, his face showing his usual gentle expression. "Madam, there's no need to worry. Miss Lu has only suffered minor injuries and is fine."
Madam Lu stepped forward to examine Lu Xingli's injuries and immediately burst into tears. "Her face is scratched! My poor child, a woman's face is especially important. If she gets a scar, won't her life be ruined?"
Wei Huaixu said, "Madam, don't worry, the doctor said this small wound won't leave a scar."
Madam Lu was stunned for a moment, then looked at Qingying with an innocent and puzzled expression and asked, "Miss Liu, I really don't know why my daughter was perfectly fine when she left home today. The servants said that everything was also unpredictable when she left the Xie residence. How could she suddenly jump off the carriage without regard for the danger?"
She was innocent, but Qingying was even more innocent.
With her eyes still blurry with tears, her voice choked with sobs, she said, "Madam Lu, I don't quite understand either. Sister Lu was perfectly fine when she was talking to me, so why did she suddenly rush out and jump down like she was possessed?"
"How could that be? Our Xingxing has always been well-behaved and quiet. Did you...did you say something that embarrassed her?"
“I’m innocent, Madam Lu. Qingying is always cautious in her words and actions. She was just having a normal conversation with Sister Lu. I didn’t dare to say a single unpleasant word.”
"Is that so? Does Miss Liu have any witnesses?" Madam Lu glanced at Wei Huaixu and said, "It's not that I'm being aggressive, but my daughter is suffering this calamity for no reason. I believe His Highness the Crown Prince can understand the pain of being a mother."
Qingying pursed her lips. What witnesses? There were only the two of them in the carriage at the time.
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