Meanwhile, Ruan Meiying sat in her room. She hadn't heard anything about Hongshi during this time. Reading her brother's and her own letters hadn't affected her at all. Could it be that her brother had been discovered? But logically, if he had been discovered, there was no reason for Hongshi to keep her by his side. But if he hadn't been discovered, then where had her brother been all this time? Ruan Meiying thought about it again and again but still had no clue.
Just then, Hongshi arrived. He saw Ruan Meiying sitting there, seemingly lost in thought. Without having anyone announce his arrival, he went to Ruan Meiying's side and asked, "Meiying, what's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
Ruan Meiying was startled when she heard Hongshi's voice. She hurriedly stood up, bowed to Hongshi, and said, "Greetings, Your Highness." Then she tidied her appearance and continued, "Your Highness is here. Why didn't you have the servants inform you in advance so that I could have made some preparations?"
Seeing her flustered appearance, Hongshi was even more puzzled and asked, "I saw you were lost in thought, so I didn't ask the servants to call you. What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Ruan Meiying replied with a smile, "It's nothing, I just miss my family, it's alright."
Hongshi became interested and asked, "You have family? Why haven't you mentioned them before?"
Ruan Meiying replied, "I haven't contacted my family for a long time, and my family members are all commoners. How could I possibly mention them in front of Your Highness?"
Hongshi then said, "If you really miss your family, I can send someone to your hometown to bring them over. By the way, it's been so long and I still don't know where you're from."
When Ruan Meiying heard him mention her hometown, she became even more frightened, afraid that he would discover she was from Geshan Village if she wasn't careful. She quickly changed the subject, saying, "Since I've followed Your Highness, I've severed ties with my family. As the saying goes, a married daughter is like water spilled from a cup, there's no need to keep in touch. Besides, my family are just commoners, not worth mentioning, so I won't trouble Your Highness. Would Your Highness like to hear a song? I can sing you one."
After hearing what he said, Hongshi stopped insisting.
Meanwhile, the Emperor reached out and put his arm around Lanqin's shoulder, saying, "Lanqin, that unfilial son Hongshi has truly disappointed me."
Lanqin knew that even though the Emperor wasn't usually close to his children, they were still his own sons, and he wouldn't be too cruel to them. Seeing the Emperor like this, she knew something serious must have happened, otherwise he wouldn't have shown such an expression. So she asked again, "What happened? Did Hongshi cause trouble again?"
The Emperor didn't want to discuss this matter with Lanqin in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, nor did he want her to worry about it with him. So he said, "Never mind, it's nothing. I'll tell you in detail when I have time later." Then he asked Lanqin, "Qin'er, what brings you here today?"
Seeing that he didn't want to talk, Lanqin didn't press him further. She knew the Emperor's temperament; if he didn't want to talk, he simply didn't want to talk, and no one could get anything out of him.
Lanqin said, "Your Majesty, I have come today for Hongli's wedding. I would like to ask how much money Your Majesty should spend on this wedding, and how much the betrothal gifts should be."
The Emperor said, "You decide how much it costs. I don't care. Hongli is our child. I'm willing to spend whatever it takes. Besides, when the imperial family gets married, the pomp and circumstance are naturally indispensable."
Just as Lanqin was about to speak, the Emperor stopped her and said, "I also want to hold a wedding for him in the palace. What do you think?"
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