Chapter 180 A Perfect Union
Xie Qingran just smiled faintly. The wound on her chest had not yet healed, and every move she made was accompanied by pain. Even breathing with a little force caused a sharp pain.
But she still hid all these feelings and forced herself to get into the carriage. The carriage swayed, and Xie Qingran gasped in pain. Her already pale face turned deathly white, and even rouge couldn't cover it up.
"Princess Consort, why do you look so pale? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Should we have the doctor come and take a look first?"
Baozhu looked at Xie Qingran with a worried expression.
Xie Qingran shook her head, leaned weakly against the cushion behind her, and said faintly, "It's nothing, just motion sickness."
They soon arrived at the lake, where the servants efficiently unpacked their carriage and led them onto the boat.
Just as Shen Wenyuan said, all the important people in the capital came today, including Zhao Yuanqi.
Although he was punished after his defeat, his family's honor remained, and even with a limp, he was still willing to go out.
When Zhao Yuanqi saw Xie Qingran, he stopped and deliberately waited for her to walk closer before speaking: "Sister Xie, it's been a long time."
"Young Master Zhao, you're too kind." Xie Qingran smiled faintly, took a step back to create some distance between them, and asked, "Young Master Zhao, how is your injury?"
As if oblivious to Xie Qingran's growing distance from him, Zhao Yuanqi took a step forward, frowning as he looked at Xie Qingran: "Sister Xie, you were never this distant with me before. Now that you're married, why do you look down on even your childhood friend?"
As he spoke, Zhao Yuanqi's eyebrows suddenly furrowed.
He was a complete psychopath, so he was extremely sensitive to the smell of blood.
When I looked at Xie Qingran, I saw her paleness and trembling beneath her bright red rouge.
"Sister Xie, what's wrong with you?"
"But where are you injured?"
Zhao Yuanqi's gaze seemed to wander over him, his left hand trembling slightly, barely able to contain his excitement.
No one understood that expression and that reaction better than Xie Qingran!
The unbearable memories of my past life surged back like a tidal wave.
"Get out of my way!"
Xie Qingran took a step back, as if she had lost all her strength, and screamed at Zhao Yuanqi.
Her voice was quite loud, and everyone around stopped and looked in her direction.
Zhao Yuanqi is a pervert, but he is also a pervert who cares about his reputation. In front of the powerful figures in the capital, he naturally wouldn't really do anything to Xie Qingran.
However, Xie Qingran's current reactions are constantly testing Zhao Yuanqi's limits.
He looked at the fear in Xie Qingran's eyes and smiled gently: "Sister Xie, you've misunderstood. I didn't mean to make things difficult for you; I was just concerned about you!"
At this moment, Xie Qingran belatedly realized what was happening. She bowed to Zhao Yuanqi and said with a smile, "Then thank you for your concern, Young Master Zhao. I'm fine."
After saying that, Xie Qingran grabbed Baozhu's hand, leaned half her body against her, and gritted her teeth as she walked toward the boat.
"Princess Consort, are you alright?"
Baozhu then realized that Xie Qingran was not in a good mood and immediately expressed her concern.
Once on the deck, Xie Qingran finally breathed a sigh of relief. She released Baozhu and sat down on a chair, panting heavily as the pain from her chest wound intensified, and beads of sweat dripped down her face.
"Princess Consort, what's wrong with you? Why are you sweating so much?"
"Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
"Say something!"
Baozhu quickly stepped forward to wipe her sweat.
This time, Baozhu was really anxious. She had noticed that Xie Qingran was acting strangely these past few days. She wouldn't say anything when asked, and she wouldn't even let anyone get close to her.
After leaning back in her chair for a long time, Xie Qingran finally came to her senses and said lightly, "It's nothing, I'm just a little seasick."
I was just talking about motion sickness, and now I'm talking about seasickness. The boat hasn't even left the ship, so why would I be seasick?
Even though Baozhu knew Xie Qingran was lying to her, she couldn't expose her. She could only sigh helplessly and say, "Then, Princess Consort, please eat something and calm down?"
"Okay, go get me some fruit." Xie Qingran nodded and pointed in the opposite direction.
Baozhu glanced at Xie Qingran before turning around and walking in the other direction.
Xie Qingran quickly took out some painkillers, put them in her mouth, and finally felt much better.
"What are you doing here?" Shen Wenyuan came over with a wine glass, smiling at Xie Qingran. "I've been waiting for you over there. Everyone was composing poems. Did you come and join in?"
Xie Qingran was exhausted and had no mind to write poetry, but she heard Gu Xiangyuan and Zhou Huai'an laughing from the poetry gathering. After thinking for a moment, Xie Qingran still struggled to get up and followed Shen Wenyuan to the poetry gathering.
Gu Xiangyuan was composing a poem, while Zhou Huai'an gazed at her with a tender expression.
This look confirmed Xie Qingran's suspicion that Zhou Huai'an wasn't just using Gu Xiangyuan; he genuinely liked this pure-hearted girl. After all, everyone around Zhou Huai'an was ruthless and cunning, so he must be very content to have such a simple girl who loved him wholeheartedly.
Xie Qingran suddenly felt that perhaps she could really let the two of them be together, but it would be unfair to Gu Xiangyuan.
Gu Xiangyuan was originally looking at Zhou Huai'an with tender affection, but after her gaze fell on Xie Qingran, she immediately came over happily: "Qingran, you're finally here. Take a look at my poem, okay?"
"I grew up on this estate, and I'm not good at such refined things, nor can I tell whether they're good or bad," Xie Qingran said with a cold smile, speaking the truth.
She was tormented day and night on the estate, learning nothing she should have learned, but spending over a decade learning rigid and dogmatic rules that she shouldn't have.
She learned music, chess, calligraphy, and painting after returning to the Xie family. The Xie family felt that her skills were not up to par, so they hired a tutor to teach her. Unfortunately, she had passed the best age for learning, so she was not good at these things at all.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Huai'an's expression changed, but he still stepped forward and said, "Miss Gu's poem is excellent!"
"Thank you for the compliment, Sixth Prince!" Gu Xiangyuan's cheeks flushed, and she then picked up the Xuan paper in her hand and handed it to Zhou Huai'an: "Since Your Highness likes it, then I'll give it to Your Highness, how about it?"
Exchanging calligraphy between a man and a woman is inherently an ambiguous and intimate act, so Gu Xiangyuan is openly telling everyone that she likes Zhou Huai'an.
Zhou Huai'an accepted it without hesitation, then took the paper and pen and wrote down: "May the flowers be in full bloom, the moon be round, and may people live long and prosper!"
"Third Miss, this is for you too."
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