Chu Xuan, like his master, was also very suspicious.
I will definitely investigate Min'er and Hui'er if I encounter them.
But it's alright. Chu Xinxin used Zhou Huaichuan to arrange a flawless fake identity for the two girls.
Liu, the woman in the family, was sarcastic and sharp-tongued every day. After all these years together, she was no longer the unattainable ideal she once was.
Min'er and Hui'er were young, and knowing his identity, they served him even more carefully.
Chu Xuan then took the two women as his concubines.
After Qi Yi learned of this, he sent Min'er and Hui'er nannies who were skilled in bedroom arts. Chu Xuan felt so comfortable that he didn't even want to go back to the Prime Minister's residence.
"Miss, I encountered a major incident today."
Haitang turned in from outside and said to Chu Xinxin with a mysterious look on her face.
Chu Xinxin looked at her calmly, as if to say whatever she wanted.
Haitang: "This servant greets His Highness Prince An."
"What's the big deal about seeing him?"
Chu Xinxin said she didn't care, but she turned her face away.
Haitang proudly raised her head: "Miss, His Highness Prince An beat up the Third Prince on the street today."
Um?
Chu Xinxin's eyes widened: "Holy crap, how come I wasn't there when something this explosive happened?"
"The Second Prince, along with the Imperial Guards, tried to break up the fight, and he also took quite a few punches."
Why did they start fighting?
"I don't know, the fight had already started when I saw it."
Haitang glanced at Chu Xinxin, then hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.
Chu Xinxin pointed at herself: "Because of me?"
"Um."
This matter is also related to Chu Yun.
A drunken night and a moment of passion, though they displeased Emperor Zhou, were actually spared punishment thanks to the protection of the eldest prince.
Chu Yun was the most beloved daughter of the Prime Minister of Chu, and also a rare beauty, so the Third Prince was extremely proud.
To apologize to Chu Yun and explain that he had genuinely drunk himself into oblivion and acted rudely towards her that day, the Third Prince specially invited Chu Yun out today, intending to present her with several sets of precious jewelry to make her happy.
As luck would have it, when they arrived, the shopkeeper brought out his prized possession for Zhou Huaichuan.
Chu Yun said she liked it, so the Third Prince wanted to buy it.
Zhou Huaichuan naturally refused, so the Third Prince forcibly took it.
Not only did they steal it, but they also verbally humiliated Chu Xinxin, saying things like, "Even if you wear a phoenix robe, you're still just a pheasant... oh, not even a pheasant, but a charred chicken that even a dog wouldn't sniff, hahaha..."
Before he could even utter the third "Ha," Zhou Huaichuan grabbed him by the collar, threw him out, and beat him mercilessly.
If the second prince had arrived a moment later, the third prince would have been crippled or even rendered useless.
As Haitang spoke, she instructed Yungui, "Go and fetch Doctor Wang. It's been so long, and the injury on Miss's face still hasn't healed!"
"Oh, I almost forgot if you hadn't mentioned it." Chu Xinxin slapped her forehead and asked Haitang to bring over a bowl of water.
She picked up a small box from the table; inside were two unassuming pills.
"Miss, what is this?"
"Rejuvenating Pill".
Haitang blinked her big eyes: "What's the use?"
Chu Xinxin picked up a begonia and waved it in front of her eyes: "Rejuvenate youthful vitality and create unparalleled beauty."
Haitang immediately tucked the remaining one into her bosom.
That night, Zhou Huaichuan indeed came to climb through the window.
"The Third Prince knows martial arts?" Chu Xinxin was surprised to find several cuts on Zhou Huaichuan's face.
"The emperor smashed a teacup, and the tea splashed onto his face."
As soon as Zhou Huaichuan spoke, the wound began to bleed again.
The blood against his blue eyes made him look eerily sinister, like a male fox spirit from a folk tale who could bewitch women.
"Come here." Chu Xinxin beckoned with her finger, and Zhou Huaichuan bent down.
The cool ointment, applied to the skin by warm fingertips, creates an ambiguous sensation.
Zhou Huaichuan turned his head and kissed Chu Xinxin's wrist.
"The Emperor has punished me by sending me to Jing'an to manage the floods. I'll be leaving early tomorrow morning." Zhou Huaichuan reluctantly moved his lips to Chu Xinxin's. "I should be back by next month at the earliest."
After kissing for a long time, Chu Xinxin was almost out of breath when Zhou Huaichuan finally let go of her.
"You stay home and embroider your wedding dress, and wait for me to come back."
......
[Sigh, sister, what exactly is the problem?]
After Zhou Huaichuan left, the system looked at the 99% favorability rating and sighed deeply.
99, an eternal pain.
"I don't know." Chu Xinxin shrugged, looking helpless.
[Tsk.] The system has a headache.
Sister, aren't you tempted?
Chu Xinxin pointed to a small hickey on her neck: "What do you think?"
The system whimpered twice, saying "You guys are abusing us," and then went into seclusion.
Chu Xinxin lay back in the rocking chair, then closed her eyes to conceal the dark glint in them.
......
During the month Zhou Huaichuan was away, many things happened in the capital.
Qi Yi refused to leave the capital, and the Zhou Emperor, unable to tolerate it any longer, said he would bestow a marriage upon Qi Yi. Qi Yi was so frightened that he packed his bags and left that very night.
The two princes were also locked in a fierce struggle. Emperor Zhou gave the position of Minister of Revenue to the third prince's maternal uncle, and the third prince's mother, Consort De, also regained favor.
Emperor Zhou played the balancing act skillfully, making both princes feel that they were more favored by the emperor and thus more eager for the position of Crown Prince.
The court officials have already subtly split into two factions.
This became even more apparent after Emperor Zhou fell ill once again.
Liu finally discovered that Chu Xuan was keeping a mistress outside the marriage.
Or perhaps, Chu Xuan deliberately let Liu Shi discover it.
Because Min'er is pregnant.
Chu Xuan had not had any children for a long time. After Liu Shi discovered this, she openly brought Min'er and Hui'er back to the Prime Minister's residence.
With Chu Xinxin's help, Liu Shi suffered more and more defeats. When she tried to poison Min'er's unborn child, Chu Xuan finally confined her to her quarters.
Chu Yun is not doing very well either.
Although Emperor Zhou covered up her affair with the Third Prince, secrets can't stay hidden forever, and a little bit of it still leaked out.
Chu Yun was looked at with strange eyes wherever she went.
Later, he simply stopped going out altogether.
Chu Xinxin stayed in her Qiluan Courtyard, seemingly detached from worldly affairs. Apart from the occasional visit of Doctor Wang, she hadn't seen any outsiders for over a month.
A few days later, on the Emperor's birthday, Chu Xuan saw Chu Xinxin's name on the list and remembered that he had such a daughter.
"Tomorrow you will accompany your father to the palace." Chu Xuan glanced at Chu Yun beside him and gave her special instructions: "The palace rules are strict, so be careful not to wander around."
Chu Xinxin: "Oh."
Chu Xuan was speechless at that "oh".
Still wanting to maintain her father's airs, Chu Xinxin took out a scorpion to play with.
Chu Xuan turned and began to scold Chu Yun.
Liu was also released.
For such a grand occasion, his legal wife still had to step in to support him.
After this ordeal, Liu seemed to realize that she had lost her maternal family and could only rely on Chu Xuan.
Chu Xuan reprimanded Chu Yun, but she didn't stop him. She could also return Chu Xinxin's probing gaze with a faint smile.
Chu Xinxin's heart sank.
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