I suddenly remembered Li Zhaole's gift. Xie Yuancheng handed me a small box and said, "This is it. There are many folk trinkets. This is what I asked Anshi to prepare. Take it back and give it to her on the Lantern Festival."
If we weren't on the street, I would have kissed him. With Xie Yuancheng around, I don't have to worry about anything.
"Ying'er, why did you take the women's clothes with you? I'll bring you back later. If you take them into the palace and they get caught, it won't be easy to explain." I told him that he gave them to me, and I'll keep them with me to remember him.
Xie Yuancheng's eyes always light up when he smiles. Meng Anshi said he rarely smiled before, but he smiles often after seeing me, so seeing him smile makes me happy too.
The carriage moved slowly through the snow.
I shook his hand: "Yuancheng, is it really okay for us to go to the palace like this? I don't want you to give people something to talk about, and then your sister will have to worry about you again."
"No, I'm traveling with the Prince Consort. I'll be staying at Heqing Palace starting today, so I can see Li Zhaole's expression." Sometimes he just liked seeing others upset but unable to scold them.
I sighed: "You, you stole her man and then deliberately provoked her."
Xie Yuancheng said in a serious tone, "It's not too late for you to regret it now. As long as you're willing, I can hide you for the rest of your life. Once we return from the battlefield, we'll leave the capital."
Of course I wanted to, but Xie Yuancheng had his own aspirations. He had dedicated his life to the Ninth Prince's cause, and now that he had met me, how could he easily give up? Besides, my sense of justice compelled me to act not only for him but also to ensure that those behind the scenes received their due punishment.
I leaned against him and said, "Of course I would! But I'd rather be with you openly and honestly, without always having to hide."
Back at Heqing Palace, Li Zhaole stood angrily at the entrance. I wanted to see how Xie Yuancheng would get past Li Zhaole.
"Brother Yuancheng, weren't you unwell? Why did you come to the capital?" Seeing Li Zhaole's appearance, I felt a sense of schadenfreude.
"Your Highness, you were out of the palace for two days and are only now returning. You didn't go sightseeing in the capital with Brother Yuancheng, did you?"
This princess takes her anger out on others when she's unhappy.
“Princess, I only met the Marquis last night, and I didn’t know he had come to the capital. I only went with him this morning after I learned that he was going to the palace.”
Seeing my sincerity, Li Zhaole stopped bothering me.
Xie Yuancheng looked relaxed. He slowly walked over and had Meng Anshi deliver a strange box to Li Zhaole.
“Anle, I saw this box when I passed through Dongqin two months ago. It suits you very well, so I bought it. I brought it to you in the capital this time.”
Li Zhaole's hands trembled slightly as she opened the lid. On it lay a rouge box, its design quite unique, which even pleased me.
Granny Zhang took the gift, and seeing that Li Zhaoyue didn't move, she tugged at her sleeve.
“Brother Yuancheng, thank you for your concern. I have already asked Anxiang to prepare rooms for you, in the Hexu Palace next to mine and the Prince Consort’s.”
Seeing Li Zhaole looking somewhat lost and hesitant about whether to go forward and help her, I noticed Xie Yuancheng's ambiguous smile. What was this man's brain made of? A rouge box was enough to make Li Zhaole admit defeat.
“My lord, it seems that Sister Zhaole is not feeling well. Why don’t you take me there?”
Okay, whatever you say.
Li Zhaole was quite polite; the bedroom he arranged for Xie Yuancheng was not only exceptionally luxurious but also eye-catching.
As soon as they entered, Meng Anshi closed the door and stood outside, while Xie Yuancheng sat down at the mahogany table with a wicked grin.
He should keep a lower profile in the future. I sat next to him and advised, "Yuancheng, isn't this a bit inappropriate?"
“What’s wrong with it? She was the one who started this trouble. I just gave her a box of rouge, but I didn’t say anything.”
"Whatever you want. I'll go to the East Palace this afternoon to see my sister and give her a congratulatory gift in the name of the princess. You just stay in Heqing Palace."
This man is too arrogant. I always feel like I'm walking on thin ice in the palace, but he doesn't care at all.
"Of course I'll go with you."
I plan to refuse. He's already so ostentatious since he just arrived; the Empress will definitely be on guard. Besides, if Consort Ji finds out about what happened to us last time, she'll probably come and slap me.
"Why are you covering your face? Let me see." Xie Yuancheng came closer, and my hand actually touched the spot where Consort Ji had hit me. Seeing Xie Yuancheng carefully examining the area, I was worried that Anxiang Xiren or Wan'er might come in, so I pushed him aside.
"It's nothing, I'm going back now."
Xie Yuancheng grabbed the jade pendant hanging from my waist: "Your husband is right here, where are you going?"
I don't think he intends to stop. Things are different here than outside. You should probably tone it down.
"I still want to go to the Hanlin Academy."
"I want to go too."
"Go ahead and return it. Now get up."
There's just no way to deal with him; he doesn't care at all about the things I'm worried about.
As soon as I entered the Hanlin Academy, I saw Lu Fengjun sitting in a corner reviewing documents. I was able to stay safe these past two days thanks to his mediation. He is a friend in name only.
Xie Yuancheng and the Grand Secretary went to discuss matters, and I, who usually have a leisurely job, walked up to Lu Fengjun.
"Lord Lu, we are very grateful for your help this time."
Lu Fengjun looked up. This guy's smile was much more sunny than Xie Yuancheng's. Indeed, Xie Yuancheng had told me that he was related to the Empress by marriage, backed by a powerful and influential family. No wonder he could freely enter and leave the palace and even accompany her on her incognito visits.
Xie Yuancheng has experienced too much since childhood, so it would be too cruel for him to smile without any impurities.
"Your Highness, you're back! You look much better. I should have invited you to my residence to discuss this matter."
Lu Fengjun is simple-minded. If it weren't for the opposing forces, I would still be very willing to be his friend.
"Everything is ready, it just took a day. I'll need your help more often in the future."
"If you need anything in the future, please let me know. I will do my best to help."
I saw Xie Yuancheng coming over, so I decided to step aside. My master is too jealous; if I upset him, who knows what he might do tonight.
When Lu Fengjun saw Xie Yuancheng, he was very happy: "Lord Marquis".
Xie Yuancheng nodded: "What are Lord Lu and the Prince Consort talking about?"
"It's nothing more than daily things to pay attention to, nothing serious."
"That's good. The prince consort is young and without Lord Lu's guidance, he may sometimes be a bit childish. I hope Lord Lu will be more tolerant of him in the future."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
