17 Your Highness, have you really forgotten me?
Since that day, the "Carefree Prince" had been living alone in Shuiyue Pavilion for two months due to Consort Liu's miscarriage. Liu Hanruo, on the other hand, was busy day and night, handling all the affairs of the manor during the day and racking her brains over the details of the Dragon Boat Festival feast at night. It was already past midnight, but the lights in Meixiang Garden were still on. Chunxiang, seeing Liu Hanruo's exhausted face, advised her:
"Your Highness, it's already past midnight. You should rest early. We can deal with anything else tomorrow."
"Chunxiang, I'll go to sleep after I've finished drafting the menu for the Dragon Boat Festival feast. It's very late, so you should go to sleep first. You don't need to wait for me!"
"Your Highness, I am not sleepy. I will stay with you. I will sleep whenever Your Highness sleeps!"
"Silly boy, go to sleep. I can manage on my own!"
Chunxiang stubbornly stayed with Liu Hanruo, refusing to go to sleep even when her eyelids were drooping. Whenever she felt her eyelids were about to close, Chunxiang would immediately pinch her thigh hard, relying on the pain to stay awake. After an unknown amount of time, Liu Hanruo suddenly put down her pen, glanced at Chunxiang sitting at the table, desperately trying to keep her eyes open, and smiled.
"I'm going to sleep now, Chunxiang, you should go to sleep too."
Chunxiang, struggling to keep her eyes open, helped Liu Hanruo to bed before going to sleep herself. Just then, Liu Hanruo, lying in bed, suddenly opened her eyes, got up, put on her coat, and said coldly:
"Now that you've come, why hide yourself? Do I have to invite you personally?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a black-masked figure appeared.
"Heh, I never expected that the legendary wicked princess would actually be such a hidden master." The man in black chuckled in surprise, holding his sword.
"Master, unfortunately, I am merely perceptive. However, dealing with a thief like you is more than enough for me!" Liu Hanruo scoffed, coldly mocking.
Enraged by being looked down upon by a woman, the masked man in black drew his sword and attacked. Several times he was about to stab Liu Hanruo, but she easily dodged at the last moment. This made the masked man even more frustrated. He felt that he had been played by a woman and lost face. His anger surged instantly, and he unleashed his killing moves, each one aimed to kill. Liu Hanruo remained unhurried and composed, and did not forget to utter some contemptuous words that were sure to infuriate him.
"Your Excellency, you are utterly useless. I haven't even put in any effort, and your breathing is already so disordered. How can I enjoy myself like this? Sigh, I don't know who was so stupid as to hire a half-baked assassin like you, who couldn't even last a quarter of an hour. I think you should quit being an assassin and change careers, hehe."
Hearing Liu Hanruo's words, the masked man felt his anger surge and he was furious. However, no matter how he attacked, he could never touch Liu Hanruo's clothes. One attacked fiercely, while the other remained calm and composed, dodging and weaving, constantly toying with the masked man. Finally, the masked man gradually calmed down during the fight, realizing that he was no match for Liu Hanruo. His attacks slowed down, and he waited for an opportunity to escape. Liu Hanruo saw through the masked man's intentions at a glance. Her eyes changed, becoming cold and devoid of warmth. She stopped toying with the masked man and, with a feint, directly placed her sword against the masked man's neck.
"Hmph, trying to escape from me? You'd better think twice before you try. You're just a clown; I don't even consider you a threat!" A cold, contemptuous voice rang out. "I never offend others unless they offend me. Since you want me dead, then why should I be polite? You only have two choices: one, die; two... still die. Choose whichever you prefer, I'll grant your wish!"
"Haha! Don't you want to know who wants your life? If I die, you'll never know who's trying to kill you! Haha!" At the moment of his death, the masked man in black suddenly laughed, as if he was certain that Liu Hanruo wouldn't dare to make a move and was just bluffing.
"Heh, is that so? No matter who it is, they can't escape the women in the backyard. Since you're going to die anyway, I might as well tell you that I'll deal with those women slowly. You don't need to worry about it!"
Liu Hanruo acted swiftly, killing the victim with a single sword strike without spilling a drop of blood. Looking at the fallen corpse, she found a bottle of her prepared bone-dissolving powder. In no time, white smoke rose and vanished without a trace, as if the incident of the night had never happened.
The next morning, since Chunxiang had gone to bed late, Liu Hanruo ordered that no one should disturb her and let Chunxiang sleep until she woke up naturally. After quickly washing up, she casually styled her hair, put on a plain-colored dress, and hurriedly went to the Shuiyue Pavilion library, hoping to take advantage of the absence of the Prince of Xiaoyao to look up the current laws and regulations.
When Liu Hanruo arrived at the library, she glanced at the books on the shelves and saw that most of them were about military and political affairs. There was only one book about the laws of the current dynasty, which she picked up and began to read seriously.
When the 'Carefree King' returned, he saw this scene: a beautiful woman, whom he didn't recognize, was sitting on the couch, engrossed in the book in her hands, occasionally making circles and dots with her pen, writing something without even noticing his return.
"How dare you! This is not a place anyone can come in! Get out!" the 'Carefree King' said sternly.
"Your Highness, you're back! I've been waiting for you for a long time." Surprised by the sudden arrival of the Prince of Xiaoyao, Liu Hanruo's lips twitched, but she could only smile and greet him.
The fact that she referred to herself as "this concubine" piqued the curiosity of the "Carefree Prince." He looked closely at Liu Hanruo before him, finding her face familiar but unable to place her. He assumed she was one of the women in his harem and casually asked:
"Yes, what is it?"
"Your Highness, the Dragon Boat Festival banquet is in five days. This is my first time organizing such a large-scale banquet, and I'm afraid I might not do it well enough and cause Your Highness to lose face. Just to be on the safe side, I wanted to ask for Your Highness's opinion and see if my arrangement is feasible?"
“As a concubine, you should keep to your duty and not dream of anything impossible. The Dragon Boat Festival banquet has already been entrusted to the Princess Consort. There is no need for you to say anything more! Get out!” The ‘Carefree Prince’ said coldly with a dark expression.
Upon hearing the words of the "Carefree King," Liu Hanruo was stunned for a moment, cursing the "Carefree King" in her heart, feeling indignant!
Damn it, even though I dressed plainly today, I shouldn't be unrecognizable. He claims to be his lawfully wedded wife. What man wouldn't recognize his own wife? It seems this man has never considered me his wife!
Liu Hanruo was filled with anger, but she forced it down. She took a deep breath, concealed her anger, and tears welled up in her eyes. She looked very aggrieved and on the verge of tears.
"Your Highness, I know you are busy with official duties, but... but... Your Highness shouldn't have forgotten me... I am Liu Hanruo, and it's only been a few days. Has Your Highness truly forgotten me completely?"
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