In fact, Hongli had already seen Fu Qing. Fu Qing caught a glimpse of a hooded woman standing behind the Fourth Prince. Even from just a side profile, he could accurately recognize that it was Su Yushan.
It would be impossible for him not to react at all, but fortunately he reacted quickly, using only his peripheral vision and not focusing his gaze on her.
Gathering his wandering thoughts, Fu Qing bowed to the Fourth Prince according to custom, saying, "Greetings to the Fourth Prince."
Hongli responded calmly and offered a gesture of support, saying, "Brother-in-law, there's no need for such formalities."
Such a title was originally a joke. A serious person like the Fourth Prince would rarely address someone like that to their face. But today, he deliberately pointed out his identity in public, clearly trying to give him some hints.
Fu Qing couldn't help but wonder, Yun Fang had already taken responsibility for the handkerchief incident, and that matter had a reasonable explanation. Could it be that the Fourth Prince still had doubts?
But if he really doubted Yu Shan and didn't trust her, why would he be willing to take her out of the mansion?
An undercurrent of tension was brewing among the three, but Hongzhou was completely unaware. He greeted them warmly, "Fourth Brother, since you're here, why don't you sit together? The more people there are, the more fun it is to watch the show, isn't it?"
Su Yushan couldn't help but sigh. Had she come to watch the play today, or had she become a part of it? Although she had nothing to hide, those misunderstandings had indeed happened. She and Hongli had a very unpleasant falling out back then. How could Hongli possibly be completely without resentment when he saw Fu Qing again?
"I have already reserved a private room."
As she expected, Hongli politely declined, but Hongzhou repeatedly urged him to sit down, saying, "Then let's just cancel! We're brothers in the same theater, how can we sit separately?"
Despite Hongzhou's repeated invitations, Hongli did not agree. Instead, he turned his head and looked down at the woman beside him, asking, "Where would you like to sit?"
This is a difficult question to answer. If she says to sit here, Fu Qing is here. If she says to go to the reserved private room, it would offend the Fifth Prince. Besides, Hongli is always meticulous, and she worries that he might think she is deliberately avoiding Fu Qing and has something to hide.
It seemed that no answer would be right, so Su Yushan smiled gently and said, "You decide, I'll listen to you."
By both throwing the problem back at him and giving him face, he shouldn't be able to find fault with it, right?
Hongzhou immediately chimed in, "Well—since your sister-in-law has no objections, Fourth Brother, why don't you stay?"
Upon hearing this, Hongli's brow furrowed, he coughed lightly, and his gaze seemingly casually swept over Fu Qing.
Hongzhou then realized that Fu Qing was still present, and that his fourth sister-in-law was his younger sister! He had addressed his fourth brother's concubine as "little sister-in-law" in front of Fu Qing, and he figured Fu Qing would be uncomfortable about it.
At home, Hongli doted on Su Yushan, but when they were outside, especially in the presence of outsiders, he had to give his wife face. Now that the Fucha family was here, he certainly could not condone Hongzhou's way of addressing Su Yushan. This was a matter of respect for the Fucha family, and it was also a matter of his awareness as a prince.
In fact, Fu Qing also heard the words "little sister-in-law". Hong Zhou called her that so naturally, so he must often call Su Yushan that.
At that moment, he did not feel sorrow for his sister, because he had known all along that the daughter of the Fucha family would only marry for power, not for love.
On the contrary, he was even a little relieved that Su Yushan could regain Hongli's favor and that Hongli was still willing to bring her out, which meant that they had probably put aside their past grievances.
Fu Qing thought that Hongli would avoid suspicion because of the handkerchief incident, but to her surprise, Hongli actually agreed and sat down right there.
Su Yushan was also surprised, but she didn't know what Hongli meant. Did he really not mind? Or was he deliberately testing her?
Unable to fathom Hongli's thoughts, she simply stopped trying and sat down with him.
The servants came over to serve tea and snacks, and Su Yushan sat quietly to the side, listening to the conversation between the others.
Hongzhou, thinking they were all on his side, didn't bother to hide anything and asked frankly, "Fu Qing, I heard that Father Emperor is arranging a marriage for you recently?"
Before the words were even finished, Su Yushan exclaimed in surprise, "Ah---"
"What's wrong?" Hongli immediately turned around and saw that Su Yushan's hand and dress were spilled with tea. He immediately took a handkerchief and gently wiped Su Yushan's hands, asking with concern, "Does it hurt a lot?"
Su Yushan shook her head despite the pain, "It's alright, the tea isn't scalding hot, it's lukewarm, it's not serious, I'm fine."
"She shouldn't have been so careless. If it had been boiling water, the consequences would have been unimaginable!" Hongli glanced at the maid and reprimanded her sternly, "What's wrong with you? How are you serving the princess?"
The maid who was serving tea was so frightened that she quickly knelt on the ground. "It was my stupidity. Please punish me, Fourth Master and Princess."
This maid was assigned to her by Hongli. Today, Changyue had something to do at home and asked for a day off, which is why Su Yushan had this little maid serve her. She never expected her to be so careless.
Hongli intended to punish her severely, but Su Yushan, seeing the maid trembling and pale with fright, felt sorry for her and took the blame for her.
"Actually, it's not her fault. I was distracted for a moment and didn't catch it properly."
Hongzhou was talking about Fu Qing's marriage just now, and she just happened to be distracted. What a coincidence!
Hongli gave her a deep look, hesitated, and remained silent for a long time before finally giving up and continuing to wipe the tea stains off her fingers with a handkerchief.
Although he didn't say anything, Su Yushan felt that something was off about his expression. She silently recalled her words and, after thinking about it, she suddenly realized that he might think she was distracted because of Fu Qing.
She really wanted to tell him that things weren't as he thought, but the words were already out of her mouth. If she changed her mind, wouldn't she be putting the little maid in the eye of the storm again?
Considering the consequences, Su Yushan ultimately decided not to explain in front of everyone, lest she make things worse by trying to explain.
Since becoming pregnant, she has had a craving for sour foods. When she noticed some dried apricots on the table, she picked one up and savored it. The dried apricots were perfectly sweet and sour, just to her liking. As she chewed slowly, she watched the woman in green on the stage, not paying much attention to what they were saying.
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