Chu Ning also went to participate in the Cuju (ancient Chinese football) competition, but he was injured and did not play personally.
He sat on the viewing platform, watching Chu Rui perform energetically like a peacock, glancing up at the stage every now and then.
Following Chu Rui's gaze, Chu Ning saw a woman sitting next to the Princess Consort of Chu.
The woman wore a veil, revealing only a pair of eyes as cold and clear as snow. She casually waved a round fan, and even though Chu Rui looked over several times, she remained unmoved.
The Queen Consort of Chu maintained a dignified demeanor and a constant smile, seemingly paying no attention to the beauty beside her.
But upon closer inspection, one can still discern some clues in that stiff expression.
At the end, although Chu Rui left with Princess Chu and that beauty, his eyes did not fall on Princess Chu at all, completely ignoring her.
Chu Ning snorted coldly, feeling increasingly displeased with Chu Rui.
The news that Chu Rui brought his concubine to the Cuju match quickly spread like wildfire. The news that Chu Rui neglected his wife and doted on his concubine also spread like wildfire, even overshadowing the news of the Crown Prince's serious illness.
The emperor was furious, feeling that Chu Rui disregarded brotherly affection and only cared about having fun, so he gave him a severe scolding.
The next day, Chu Rui reluctantly went to the East Palace to visit Chu Yi.
Seeing Chu Yi coughing weakly, he had someone place the ginseng and lingzhi mushrooms that had been brought on the table, and asked in a pretentious manner, "Is the Crown Prince feeling any better?"
"The same as always."
"It truly worries me, Your Highness," he asked with feigned concern. "Does Your Highness still remember the villain who abducted you? If I see him, I will surely kill him to avenge Your Highness."
"Of course I remember." Chu Yi slightly raised her eyes to look at him. "I always felt that he looked a lot like the guards around Prince Rui. I don't know if I'm mistaken."
Chu Rui's tone, which had been mocking, instantly changed. He panicked and said, "How could this be? The Crown Prince must have seen wrong."
"Perhaps." Chu Yi lowered his eyelids and pursed his thin lips. "Your Highness, please sit down. There's no need to stand."
Chu Rui approached and sat down in another chair next to him.
When Chu Rui entered, Chu Yi smelled a faint scent that didn't seem to come from Chu Rui himself, but rather from someone else.
Now that he was closer, the scent had become even stronger, and the more Chu Yi smelled it, the more familiar it seemed—it was like hers…
Chu Rui exchanged pleasantries for a while before leaving.
After he left, Chu Yi instructed Ye Ren in a deep voice: "She may have gone to Prince Rui's residence and followed him."
Nightblade silently followed Chu Rui.
However, Chu Rui also had bodyguards around him, so he couldn't get too close and could only follow from a distance.
After leaving the East Palace, Chu Rui went straight back to the Prince Rui's residence and then went to the Princess Chu's place, where he did not come out for a long time.
Just when Nightblade thought he would spend the night at Princess Chu's place, unexpectedly, in the early hours of the morning, he quietly opened the door, put on his outer robe, and went to another courtyard.
"My beauty, I'm late, please don't be angry..."
He coaxed for a long time before the door finally opened from the inside.
Nightblade missed Chu Rui, but inadvertently caught a glimpse of the woman's stunning profile and was momentarily stunned.
Why does it feel so familiar?
The woman's profile resembled that of the villain who had repeatedly visited the Eastern Palace.
The thug was dark-skinned, unlike this woman who was fair-skinned.
Nightblade thought he was seeing things and was about to look up again when the woman turned around and looked at him with a slightly cold gaze, as if she had already noticed him.
Nightblade was startled, almost revealing his presence.
He stood and listened for a while longer, until he heard Chu Rui's breathing, sometimes high and sometimes low, coming from inside. He realized something, didn't want to listen anymore, and hurriedly left.
Nightblade returned and reported everything he had seen to Chu Yi.
"That woman's profile looks a lot like hers, but it can't be her because she's a woman. When Prince Rui left Princess Chu's courtyard, he went to have sex with her."
A woman who looks very much like Nam Gyi?
Chu Yi tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, his thin lips pressed tighter and tighter.
Even if it wasn't her, the thought of someone who looked so much like her and was still pleasing Chu Rui was unbearable for him.
Just when everyone thought Chu Yi wouldn't make it, his health gradually improved.
They were even allowed to attend court.
Those princes and nobles who wished he would die quickly could only grit their teeth and smile as they exchanged pleasantries and expressed their concern, which Chu Yi thanked one by one.
This made them even angrier.
Especially Chu Rui.
The assassination attempt on the long street involved matters of the martial arts world. Although the imperial court had not yet uncovered the truth, the emperor had suspected all the princes, especially Chu Rui.
Looking at Chu Yi, who was still alive, he said with a forced smile, "The seventeenth of this month is my birthday. The Crown Prince has been ill for the past few years and couldn't attend my birthday banquet. This time, seeing that the Crown Prince is much better, you must come."
Let's see how he lives a life of luxury with a harem of wives and concubines, and see if we can make him so angry he dies.
Chu Yi, who would usually refuse, surprisingly agreed this time.
"Thank you for the invitation, Your Highness. I will certainly go."
Chu Rui watched his retreating figure as he turned and left, listening to his cough, and his brows furrowed slightly.
Wait a minute, why did he agree?
Did you want to die in his mansion so that he could be falsely accused and framed?
Chu Rui felt a pang of regret, but he couldn't possibly not invite him to his birthday celebration.
Right now, he was really afraid that Chu Yi would die in his residence, so he went back to find the Princess Consort of Chu.
His birthday banquet was organized entirely by the Princess Consort of Chu. Although he didn't particularly like her, she was quite capable and was also his mother's niece, which was why she was able to become the Princess Consort of Chu.
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