I squeezed Xie Yuancheng's hand: "How could you say that?" I tugged at Xie Yuancheng's clothes: "When I get back, my parents will definitely pull my ear and scold me."
"No, I'm with Ying'er every day. Uncle Cui has already prepared the documents and is just waiting for me to arrive in the capital. But the Crown Prince has gotten into some trouble these past few days. If we go too early, he might just take out his anger on the Ji family."
"What did he do this time?" I love seeing the Crown Prince in trouble. If I could slap him and make him lie in bed for a few months, that would be even better.
"Look how happy you are!" Xie Yuancheng put the book down on the other side and then sat up straight: "He has an illegitimate daughter, don't let that girl sue him."
"What? I remember the Crown Prince is only a few years older than us. Are you sure there's no mistake?"
"Of course it's a mistake. Even if he has a child, he's only one year old. Why would he complain?"
"So what happened?" I leaned against Xie Yuancheng's chest and listened to his story. I was willing to listen to anything that brought misfortune to the Crown Prince.
"The girl who told him was ten or eleven years old. If you calculate the time, he was only about fourteen years old at that time. He wasn't even married yet, so how could he have had children?"
"Could it be?" I was really worried that it was the Prime Minister's daughter, that scoundrel Crown Prince.
"Impossible. I didn't know what happened at the time, but Uncle Cui said that someone maliciously spread the rumors, just for this family reunion."
First, Uncle Cui testified, and then Xin'er went to see him. The boy's appearance was... well, it was hard to describe. He was fat, and his feet had marks from hard labor. His features didn't resemble theirs at all. His father-in-law said he was even a bit ugly.
Finally, after being tortured, the child confessed that she had told the prince and others about her daughter, explaining that she had suffered too much working in the countryside and had come to impersonate the future princess.
"Really, why should we speak up for him? The Crown Prince should be punished, and then his name should be cleared."
"Ying'er~" Xie Yuancheng played with my fingers: "Of course everyone is willing, but impersonating a member of the royal family is a capital offense. That child is just a village girl, how could she come to the capital to impersonate someone? There must be someone behind her."
"Then can't we find out who it is?" Resting at the post station has its advantages; that bastard Xie Yuancheng actually concealed these details.
"He is the Empress's nephew. Later, his illegitimate daughter was dug up, and people were sent to the border to see if the little girl was still there."
"What? Are you suggesting I take that stinky brat who's always trying to climb the social ladder back home to be a rich lady?" I immediately became unhappy. That little brat's stinky feet have trampled on other people's faces; if she gains power, many more people will probably suffer.
"No, at first it was just demoted to commoners, but now many people are involved. Let her come back, go through the motions, and after it's proven, her entire family will be implicated. I can use this to clear my parents' names."
"Didn't they say she was completely beyond repair? If we bring her back, she'll probably die on the way."
"I don't know what to do about it. It's their problem, it has nothing to do with me."
I looked up and saw Xie Yuancheng's completely indifferent face, so I moved closer to him and said, "They're all bad people, let's ignore them."
“Yes~” Xie Yuancheng stroked my back. He felt sad and even angry when he thought about the past.
After so many years of waiting, he was naturally overjoyed to finally have the opportunity to clear his parents-in-law's name. He wouldn't show any sympathy, regardless of whether those around him were human or ghosts.
At first, I felt sorry for him, but when I thought about the suffering Xie Yuancheng endured back then, I realized that it's not something that can be healed by pitying people now.
We traveled for several days, and the roads were all very smooth. We didn't encounter any unpleasant things, so we actually arrived in the capital at the agreed time.
We dismounted and walked. Xie Yuancheng gave a porter two coins and told him to make sure the items on the horse were delivered to the Ji residence.
The porter was naturally pleased to receive two coins, so he led the bag away. He was an honest man, reliable in his work, and everyone around him considered him a good person.
Xie Yuancheng wanted to take me to cause trouble. I looked at the women's clothing I was wearing, and thankfully I had a veil in my small bag. Before Xie Yuancheng could say anything, I put it on.
"My lady is so wonderful, she's such a good girl~" Xie Yuancheng pulled my hand and walked forward. It had been a long time since I had been back to the capital. I used to go out of the city with my mother whenever I had free time, and I was familiar with everything.
"Ying'er, you mustn't look around carelessly." Xie Yuancheng pulled me to an inconspicuous shop: "Let's grab something to eat and then head to the bustling city center."
I looked at the bright sun above and wondered, "How long will it take?" I really want to go home!
"I won't be home until the afternoon. I'm worried you'll be hungry; I'll regret it then!"
He put on a pitiful look, and I followed him inside. It wasn't particularly noticeable from the outside, but once inside, you could smell the aroma of stir-fried dishes.
"You have good taste. I'll listen to you today. When I get home and see the little ones, I'll..."
"What?" Xie Yuancheng pulled me to sit at the last table: "If you have fun playing with the kids, I won't let you go out~"
"Yuancheng~ Chengcheng~ You're almost twenty-three, and I'm almost twenty-one. We need to be more mature." I touched my face with both hands: "We're doomed. I'm almost twenty-one, and it'll be three years since I married you~"
"Yes, you married me when you were just over eighteen years old and three months old. That's Ying'er's good fortune~"
Xie Yuancheng blinked at me under the table, pulling my hand. I poured him tea with my free hand: "Okay, if my husband hadn't married me back then, I wouldn't be here today~"
"You're just trying to make me happy. You run faster than anyone else when you're running." Xie Yuancheng was definitely happy; he even turned to other places to laugh.
I never imagined that I would get married so soon after becoming the emperor's son-in-law and visiting Linyang.
Looking back now, it seems my parents had good judgment; they found me a perfect husband. Although I was a little reluctant when I got into the bridal sedan chair, back in Linyang, I could hear people on the streets talking about the grand occasion of my wedding.
While we were eating, I kept glancing at Xie Yuancheng. He's good at drawing; if he could draw the scene from that time, I could see it. It's all my fault; I was just thinking about going back then.
Where I can go back to is all the shopkeeper's doing. He's made my memories confused, and the time I'm traveling back and forth is actually me.
"Ying'er~ have some crispy duck, it's been seasoned with sauce, it'll definitely suit your taste~"
Xie Yuancheng served me food, which made me even more embarrassed to tell him. It would be shameless to bring this up, so I decided to wait until later.
After dinner, we went to the bustling city center. As soon as we reached the west entrance of the street, we heard cheers. I looked over curiously and saw a crowd gathered around.
"Let's go inside and see what's going on." Xie Yuancheng led me to the teahouse next door, where there happened to be only one window seat left.
As soon as I sat down, I heard a commotion below. I looked over and saw a group of people standing in a circle, with shorter people standing inside.
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