This handkerchief—if she threw it away, it would seem like she felt guilty; if she didn't, it would be like evidence that Qiao Zhen had cheated on Lu Yuanchuan. Holding it in her hand, Qiao Zhen felt like Pigsy looking in a mirror—caught in the middle, neither side being a decent person.
The young man in dark blue noticed that Qiao Zhen had a handkerchief in her hand and that she looked conflicted. He immediately went into the cabin, eager to stir up trouble, and told Lu Yuanchuan the story with embellishments: "That princess is not easy to control. Just now, she was holding a handkerchief and looked conflicted. I'm afraid it was for Xu Li."
Lu Yuanchuan's impression of Qiao Zhen instantly plummeted, and his hands, hidden in his sleeves, trembled slightly.
Xiao Ling: [Wow! Lu Yuanchuan's affection for you has dropped to zero. Do you want to rush over and save yourself?]
Qiao Zhen directly poked through the two places embroidered with "Zhen" and "Li" with her fingernail, then put the handkerchief into Xu Ruan's hand. "Here, take it. I'm afraid that little girl will no longer be fond of you. You're welcome."
Xu Ruankuang took the handkerchief with two holes poked in it. He stared at it blankly, and when he came to his senses, he saw Qiao Zhen running by the lake. He felt inexplicably lonely.
Qiao Zhen rushed anxiously into the cabin where Lu Yuanchuan had just entered. As soon as she entered, she saw several young men laughing in front of Lu Yuanchuan. Some of their laughter was mocking, while others were sarcastic. In any case, no one paid attention to the coldness emanating from Lu Yuanchuan.
"My husband!"
As usual, she reached out her hand, wanting to hold Lu Yuanchuan's arm to warm him.
But this time, Lu Yuanchuan withdrew his hand directly, subtly avoiding Qiao Zhen's touch.
Qiao Zhen held onto Lu Yuanchuan's arm tightly without letting up. Touching the skin in her palm, she realized that Lu Yuanchuan's body temperature was frighteningly low.
Lu Yuanchuan's body temperature is not normal for him. Xiao Ling said that the main system set up a special effect that makes Lu Yuanchuan emit cold air, but it didn't take into account Lu Yuanchuan's own feelings. If his mood index is used as his body temperature, then Lu Yuanchuan will freeze himself to death sooner or later.
"Husband, I know I was wrong, okay? I won't eat candied hawthorns anymore, alright?" Qiao Zhen coaxed softly. There was nothing she could do; Lu Yuanchuan was like a tyrant now, she couldn't upset him or go against his wishes. "From now on, if you say go east, I will never go west. Whatever you say goes."
Lu Yuanchuan still couldn't control his emotions; he was still bothered by what the young man in dark blue had said earlier.
Qiao Zhen was never shameless, and seeing that Lu Yuanchuan was clearly acting strangely, she wasn't about to give up easily. She leaned forward and hugged Lu Yuanchuan's waist, nestling herself in his arms. She looked up into Lu Yuanchuan's eyes, "Husband, are you really willing to be angry with me?"
The young masters who had been watching the spectacle around Lu Yuanchuan gradually quieted down. They all looked at Qiao Zhen and Lu Yuanchuan with great interest in the development between them.
Lu Yuanchuan felt warm in his arms, so he reached out and put his arm around Qiao Zhen's waist as well.
Qiao Zhen felt a restraint on her back, and her tense heart relaxed a lot. She tiptoed and whispered in Lu Yuanchuan's ear, "Husband, are you feeling cold again? Then you can hold me."
She thought to herself that in this sweltering heat, to have someone as icy as Lu Yuanchuan to hold was something that made everyone green with envy and jealousy, which is why they had such dark thoughts.
Ignoring the astonished looks on everyone's faces, Lu Yuanchuan slowly tightened his arms around Qiao Zhen's waist. "Mmm."
Qiao Zhen buried her face in Lu Yuanchuan's chest and giggled. Only when Lu Yuanchuan's body temperature returned to normal did she gradually release him. Her expression was self-assured, yet her tone was somewhat shy, "I'm sorry everyone, I've made you laugh. My husband and I are always this affectionate, please don't take offense. I think I heard you laughing about something just now, could you tell me so I can hear it too?"
The young man in dark blue closed his flamboyant peach blossom fan. "Speak freely. Now that the princess has married our young master Lu, shouldn't she avoid suspicion with Xu Li?"
Qiao Zhen wasn't angry at all; instead, she smiled with a sense of relief. No wonder Lu Yuanchuan's favorability towards her had dropped to zero just now—it turned out he knew the name Xu Li. "Why should we avoid suspicion? Ah Kuang and Xu Li have known each other since childhood. He treats me like a precious jewel, and I treat him as intimately as a brother. Your intentions are rather filthy, young master."
"Is it that I, this young master, have wicked thoughts, or that you, princess, are too unconventional? The emperor of Li Kingdom has only been dead for a short time, yet you and Young Master Lu are already so affectionate, while Xu Li has even devoted himself to Qi Kingdom, clinging to life. You two are quite like-minded." The young man in dark blue robes spoke meaningfully.
Qiao Zhen said casually, "I thought it was something serious. Husband, don't listen to his nonsense. Ever since my mother passed away, my father has been depressed all the time. If I weren't his daughter, I would be the first to send him to see my mother. His heart has left with my mother. Who does he want to offend by leaving an empty shell?"
"Besides, this young master probably hasn't experienced the feeling of being the sole favorite of his parents, and doesn't know how enjoyable it is to be unrestrained. That's why he's restrained by worldly conventions. Moreover, when my father died, hundreds of thousands of people from the Li and Qi kingdoms were buried with him. Such a grand funeral is something that even the emperors of your Qi kingdom have never had before, right?"
The young man in the dark blue robes was speechless, unable to refute what she said.
"Hahaha, good! As expected of Zhen Niang's daughter! She and your mother are like two peas in a pod, both in appearance and personality!" The emperor of Qi walked in from outside the cabin curtain and said with a melancholy expression, "Your mother was also a princess of a fallen kingdom, and she was just as indifferent."
Qiao Zhen retorted, "I'm different from my mother. She was barely surviving because she carried the expectations of her maternal grandparents. It was only after meeting my father that she found the motivation to live again. As for me, I don't think it's necessary to suppress my sense of humiliation. A person's life is only a few decades long. Why should I let those worries bind me?"
“My mother simply went through the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death, and my father followed her in death. When my father dismissed the harem and left my mother alone, he had already given up the throne for her sake. What sin is that? You are not a fish, how can you know the fish's joy?”
The emperor of Qi retorted, "You are not me, how do you know that I do not know the joy of fish?"
Qiao Zhen said cautiously, "Because no one knows a son better than his father."
The Emperor of Qi's expression changed slightly, clearly showing his fury. The young masters around him knelt on the ground, but Qiao Zhen stood there like a fool.
"Did your mother ever mention me to you?"
Qiao Zhen's expression instantly became complicated. So the original owner's mother was just as mischievous. "Yes, she would occasionally mention her prime years and tell me about them."
The emperor of Qi was somewhat relieved, but his eyes still held a hint of complexity. "After all, I am no match for your father."
Qiao Zhen nodded involuntarily as she listened, her eyes clearly saying: It's good that you have this awareness.
"Come on, call me 'Dad' and let me hear it."
Qiao Zhen looked at the emperor of Qi with a puzzled expression, and said bluntly, "My mother did not acknowledge you."
The emperor of Qi thought of the method that the former emperor of Li had used to fool Zhen Zhuxian, and he also learned one of his own. "As a person, you have to learn to be flexible. A wise man knows when to yield. I, the emperor, am not disgracing you, am I? Call me father and I will make you Lu Yuanchuan's legal wife."
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