Chapter 13
Just as I was daydreaming, there was suddenly a commotion in the front yard.
All the women in the room looked outside and saw a very tall figure quickly stepping into the yard. Without even looking in their direction, they walked towards the warm room in the east.
Yue Qingning happened to be by the window and was stunned when he saw the man.
The eldest daughter of the Yao family behind him asked, "Who is that person?"
Yue Qingning didn't answer, not wanting others to know that they knew each other, and someone answered from behind.
"That seems to be the third young master of the Cui family! Someone from the Duke of Protectorate's Mansion has also come?"
The Duke of Protectorate's Mansion has nothing to do with the eldest princess. Even if the eldest princess really died of illness, other unrelated people can only enter the mansion tomorrow. Why did he come today?
With curiosity in her heart, she looked at the pattern on the window on the opposite side. On the other side, he was walking around a screen and going inside.
He came in such a hurry, could he be an acquaintance of the eldest princess?
Before she could figure it out, she was suddenly patted on the shoulder. Yue Qingning turned around and saw the woman from the Cen family who had just been talking to the noble lady of the Yao family looking at her with a smile.
"Miss, you are the daughter of Yue Shangshu's family, right? I seem to have seen you before."
Yue Qingning quickly replied, "Yes! I met Sister Cen once before at the Princess' birthday banquet."
She smiled even more happily when she heard that, and held Yue Qingning's hand very naturally and became closer to him.
"I thought I'd seen you somewhere before. Your name is Qingning, right?"
Yue Qingning nodded, feeling very uncomfortable with her being so familiar. However, he couldn't pull his hand back, so he could only hold it up awkwardly, about to let it go.
Cen Rong was naturally happy to have made the acquaintance of another noble lady and patted her hand.
"The last time we met, I was wondering if I'd ever get to meet my sister again. I never expected that we'd be together again today because Her Highness the Princess wasn't feeling well. This is truly... Oh my God!"
As he spoke, he covered his nose twice with a handkerchief. Yue Qingning hurried forward to comfort him.
"Sister Cen, don't worry. His Highness has always been in good health. This is probably just a minor ailment, nothing serious! Besides, when we were summoned here, no conclusion had been made. His Highness is blessed by fate, and he will definitely be fine!"
After hearing her say this, Cen Rong put down his handkerchief and sniffed twice more. Yue Qingning looked over and saw that her face was not red at all, it was all fake.
The male members of his Cen family since Grandpa Cen had made little contribution to the court and preferred to avoid getting involved, so over the years their family gradually declined in Kyoto, with only the women holding up the family's reputation.
Now the whole family is counting on the eldest princess to live a more prosperous life. Unexpectedly, the eldest princess is critically ill. Her Cen family is obsessed with making friends with the powerful and wealthy, and can't even shed a tear for a little benefit.
"Qingning, I'm relieved to hear your words! My grandfather is too old. When he heard about the princess's situation at home, he was so anxious that he couldn't eat. He insisted that I come to see him quickly. I am also very haggard. I want to see His Highness at all costs so that I can go back and tell my grandfather to be at ease!"
The more Yue Qingning heard this, the more she wanted to sigh. If only she were a little dumber, she wouldn't be able to understand the deeper meaning of her words and could even pretend to comfort her.
Unexpectedly, someone from Dongge suddenly summoned Yue Qingning over and rescued her from this predicament.
Yue Qingning quickly stood up from the stepping stone and respectfully followed the maid to the east warm room.
Before she entered the room, she heard several people talking in the room, especially a man with a very low and gentle voice, but her heart began to beat again.
Is it possible that by chance I will finally meet the person I didn't meet in my previous life?
The maid reported that Yue Qingning was waiting at the door, and the voice inside suddenly stopped and called her in.
Not daring to look up, Yue Qingning walked slowly into the inner room with his head lowered.
The aroma of medicine in here was so strong that it made people dizzy. Yue Qingning quickly looked at the two robes in front of him, and after determining the direction, he bowed to him.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Shou! Her Royal Highness the Princess!"
The voice hummed but did not respond, and it was the eldest princess who called her to stand up.
"Qingning, don't be so restrained! We are all family."
Family? Apart from her and the eldest princess, who were distant relatives, where did the family come from?
She was in a mess but didn't show it, and was about to stand up as she responded.
When she looked up, she was surprised to find the person standing next to her so close that she took her breath away.
"Third Young Master..."
She was so scared that she forgot what to call. She randomly called out the most familiar name, but the person in front of her responded softly.
His face was probably red. Yue Qingning had fallen for him many times in her life. Even though they had only met twice, he didn't realize that his behavior was inappropriate at all.
Seeing the two of them standing aside awkwardly, the eldest princess laughed.
"Ouch! Qingning, come to Grandma! Are you scared by two grown men in the room?"
Yue Qingning walked over with a confused look and sat down beside the bed.
Just looking at this "grandmother", she had a rosy complexion and a clear voice, and didn't look sick at all. But she didn't dare to ask now, so she lowered her head and listened to her silently.
"Qingning, I originally thought you didn't know General Cui! I just heard him talk about it. Have you ever met him before?"
Yue Qingning quickly replied, "Yes! I ran into General Cui by chance at Lotus Lake yesterday, and we went sightseeing together for a while."
"This is truly... fate has come, and it really can't be stopped!"
She laughed very happily, as if it was some great news, and Yue Qingning had no choice but to laugh along with her.
"Oh right! You haven't met this person yet, have you? This is your cousin, Prince Shou. He's been in poor health and rarely goes out, and he never lets anyone visit him when he returns. This is a great opportunity for you two to get to know each other!"
The mentioned Prince Shou walked towards this side. Yue Qingning hurriedly wanted to stand up and make room for him, but the eldest princess grabbed her hand and stopped her from leaving.
"Qingning is indeed as elegant as her name. I often hear my aunt mention you, but I didn't expect you to have grown up so much now!"
Prince Shou was standing beside her. She wanted to stand up but was being pulled so she couldn't, so she could only nod at him.
"Qingning has been staying at home and refusing to go out. She has not been able to see His Highness several times. It is Qingning's fault."
He seemed to be waving his hand, but Yue Qingning didn't dare to look up. She could only see that the blue and white brocade pattern on his body moved with him, but she didn't know what his expression was.
"It's because of my physical condition in my early years, it's not your fault."
The eldest princess also echoed.
"He's always staying at home, so how could I give you a chance to see him? This time, I was sick, so this little bastard only came out to see me. He's such a sullen jerk that he drives me crazy!"
As she said this, she pretended to pinch him. Yue Qingning was also amused by the harmonious atmosphere between the aunt and nephew. She looked in the direction of her grandmother's hand, and unexpectedly saw a handsome face with a clear and upright appearance suddenly caught her sight.
He was just about to extend his arm to let the eldest princess vent her anger, and then turned towards her with a smile on his face.
His eyes are as deep as the sea of stars, and his expression is as calm as the falling moon, which makes people attracted to him at once.
Yue Qingning stopped breathing for a moment, not daring to look anymore and lowered his eyes, but secretly marveled at the man's demeanor in his heart.
This Prince Shou is really not simple!
Seeing that she avoided his gaze, Prince Shou did not react. He smiled and straightened the cushion behind the eldest princess.
"Okay, Auntie! I was wrong in the past. I will definitely come to see you more often in the future, okay?"
The eldest princess patted his hand and pulled Qingning again.
"I'm not destined to have children of my own in this life. You two are the ones I love dearly. My health is getting worse day by day. You two need to come visit me often and get to know each other better, okay?"
Seeing that she was related to the royal family in this way, Yue Qingning was sweating profusely but she dared not refuse, so she quickly agreed.
"And A-Makoto!"
As he spoke, he called Cui Hu over. Cui Hu squatted beside Yue Qingning and looked up at the princess.
"You are all my precious children, you must get along well with each other!"
Cui Hu was not good at speaking and didn't know what to say, so he just said one sentence.
"Don't worry!"
Yue Qingning also nodded, her whole body almost stiff and numb. It was as if the Third Young Master Cui had his arms around her, and she almost became a wooden figure, not daring to move.
Seeing that they all agreed, the princess finally felt relieved and asked them to wait for a while on the other side of the room.
Not knowing what to wait for, Yue Qingning had no choice but to follow Young Master Cui to the other side of the screen, where there was a low couch and two chairs.
She didn't dare to sit down first, and just stood there waiting for him to sit down first. Unexpectedly, the Third Young Master saw that she was uneasy and didn't sit down either. His tall and big body almost pressed her to the ground.
"Why doesn't Qingning sit down?"
With her lips bitten, she pulled her lip down hard. How dare he call her Qingning so openly!
"I'm afraid there's something else you need, Third Young Master, please take a seat first! I'll call you if there's anything else."
He thought for a moment, walked around her and sat down on the low couch. Yue Qingning was finally able to take a breath from the pressure and walked to the other side away from him.
He also saw her walking away, his brows furrowed, not knowing what he was thinking, but suddenly he spoke again.
"I'm so sorry for sending you back like that yesterday! How are you? Are you still feeling dizzy?"
She forced a smile and replied to him.
"I was feeling unwell yesterday and disturbed everyone's fun. It was Qingning's fault! I'm well now. Thank you, Third Young Master, for your concern!"
He paused after hearing this and said, "If I hadn't insisted on keeping you two to admire the lotus yesterday, this wouldn't have happened. It's my fault!"
The voice sounded like it fell into the water, and Yue Qingning hurried to comfort her.
"It's not your fault! I'm weak myself. Third Young Master, please don't blame yourself! If you say that, Qingning is guilty of a greater crime."
He seemed to look at her because of the sincerity of her words, and his eagle eyes were filled with tenderness at this moment. Yue Qingning's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't given up yet.
"I thought you were blaming me, so you didn't look at me."
“…”
As expected, I shouldn't have met him. Yue Qingning felt that the cold sweat rolling down her body was making her restless again.
He looked like he wanted to say something from his heart, but she didn't want to listen!
Thinking of this, she could not stand any longer and wanted to lift the curtain and run away immediately, not even caring about the etiquette of a lady. If there were not two royal family members opposite her, she would not be able to stay any longer today.
"Qingning..."
"Third Young Master!" Yue Qingning quickly interrupted him.
"It seems to be calling us."
The smile on her face was somewhat forced. She took a stiff step and was about to lift the curtain and leave, but the person next to her stood up faster than her, causing her to almost bump into his arms.
It was as if he was teasing her! But she dared not say anything, her lips pursed and her brows furrowed.
Seeing her like this, Cui Hu lowered his head silently and tried to soften his voice.
"I didn't mean to scare you, don't be afraid of me."
As he spoke, he took the initiative to lift the curtain for her, and even stepped aside to let her go first.
Yue Qingning's face turned red and white after hearing his words. She didn't know what to say at this moment, so she just followed the convenience he gave her and walked out.
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