As the ribbon was untied, the diaphragm slowly fell, revealing a patch of white skin to his eyes. Hongli paid no attention to the other scenery, but immediately noticed the scar that was different from the other delicate skin. Even a beautiful jade has a slight flaw, which is a slight imperfection.
So she really does have scars, she really is Xiao Lan!
These wounds were inflicted for him, and Hongli should feel guilty. However, at this moment, what he was thinking was—if the first hypothesis failed to be verified, then only the second possibility remained.
While pondering, Hongli coughed a few times, seemingly in great discomfort. Lan Rong didn't dare continue and quickly covered her stomach with her hand, asking with concern, "Fourth Master, what's wrong?"
"Perhaps it's because I drank too much wine without eating, my stomach hurts a bit." Hongli pretended to be in pain and asked her to pour him a glass of water.
Lan Rong took it seriously, quickly tied on her belly band, and turned to pour him hot tea.
When she brought it over, he accidentally knocked it over, startling Lan Rong, who quickly grabbed a handkerchief to wipe his hand. "Fourth Master, are you alright? Is your hand burned?"
Hongli shook his head, saying he was fine, but Lan Rong was still worried. She went to the medicine box to look for burn ointment. Just then, Li Yu's voice came from outside.
"My lord, today is the fifteenth. According to custom, you should go to the Fujin's place. Someone from Lanzhao Courtyard has already come to inquire. What do you think, my lord...?"
Upon hearing this, Hongli pretended to realize something, "Oh right, today is the fifteenth, I had completely forgotten."
Upon hearing this, Lan Rong felt slightly annoyed, but dared not show it. His face was full of grievance, but he pretended to be magnanimous and said, "Why don't you go and keep the Fujin company, Fourth Master? So as not to upset her!"
She dared to say this because she was certain that Hongli was attracted to her. Moreover, Hongli didn't seem to care much about his wife, so she believed that Hongli would definitely stay. After all, the situation just now was like dry tinder and a raging fire, ready to ignite at any moment.
Hongli scoffed impatiently, "What a spoilsport!" He then stood up and sighed helplessly, "But she is, after all, my wife. If I don't go, and she finds out I'm here with you, she will definitely hold a grudge against you."
Now that things had come to this, Lan Rong couldn't stop him and could only let him be. "Thank you for thinking of me, Fourth Master. It's alright, I don't mind. We can consummate our marriage another day. Fourth Master, you should go to Lanzhao Courtyard to accompany your wife. I understand you and won't hold it against you."
Straightening his clothes, Hongli turned and left. Lan Rong was indignant but helpless, secretly sighing that the Fujin (principal wife) really knew how to pick her time, ruining her and the Fourth Prince's enjoyment!
In reality, no one from Lanzhao Courtyard came out. It was all planned in advance by Hongli and Li Yu. Li Yu was guarding outside. As soon as he heard the sound of a cup breaking, he would go up and report to the Fourth Prince, thus rescuing him from the pleasure quarters.
The reason Hongli chose today is because it is the fifteenth. After leaving Yiyun Pavilion, he did not return to Huatang Pavilion, but went to Lanzhao Courtyard. In this way, Lan Rong will only blame the Fujin, not Yushan.
The two, master and servant, cooperated very well, which allowed Hongli to escape in time. Although he went to Lanzhao Courtyard, he did not consummate the marriage with his wife, because his wife already had a legitimate son, and she had no reason to ask for anything more.
Hongli refused to touch her, and Yuying would not ask for it, much less deliberately use her beauty to seduce him. In her view, she was the legal wife, and a legal wife would never use such despicable means to bewitch a man.
Each of them covered themselves with a blanket, and the night passed peacefully.
The next day, after finishing his business, Hongli went to Huatang Pavilion and told Yushan about his discovery: "She does have scars on her body, and Lan Rong is indeed Xiao Lan herself."
Su Yushan couldn't help but ask curiously, "Didn't you say that Yi'er couldn't serve you personally? If she didn't see it, how did you know?"
After clearing his throat, Hongli didn't dare to lie and said truthfully, "Last night I went to Yiyun Pavilion and asked her to have a drink with me. I also took a look around while I was there."
Upon hearing this, Su Yushan's eyes widened. "You said her wound is on her chest. How can you see it without taking off her clothes? Unless... you take off her clothes."
The thought of that possibility immediately ignited a fire in Su Yushan's heart. She glared at him hatefully and turned her face away, unwilling to continue the conversation.
Hongli immediately clarified, "I didn't do anything. She took it off herself. She only took it off halfway, not completely, when I said my stomach hurt. I stopped her in time. I definitely didn't look at her for a second, really!"
One glance was enough; did he want to look a few more times? Su Yushan snorted and teased, "The abdominal wound has been healed; of course you saw everything. How dare you try to deny it?"
Hongli felt wronged. "Yi'er is not trusted by her, and I can't get close to her. I have no choice but to sacrifice my looks and investigate myself. You don't think I deliberately used this trick to take advantage of her, do you? There are so many women in the manor. If I were really lustful, I could have chosen any of them. Why would I choose her? Yushan, I am sincere to you. You can't doubt me because of this!"
With a slight pursing of her red lips, Su Yushan retorted, "Did I say I doubted you?"
He didn't say it, but he could tell. "You look terrible; you're clearly angry."
With a quick glance, Su Yushan huffed, "I'm not happy that you went to watch other people undress, but I wouldn't suspect you."
"Just trust me, I have that much self-control." After explaining, Hongli got down to business, "Now that it's confirmed she is Xiaolan, and her identity is not in question, it must be Mother who was pushing things together behind the scenes to help her get selected. But how did Mother know about her existence?"
There are still many things that haven't been investigated, so Hongli has to keep waiting and see if there will be any news from Demin.
As the two were talking, Yan Yan's voice came from outside. It turned out that he had woken up and was crying for his mother, so the nanny brought him over.
At this moment, Hongli happened to have some free time, so he took Yushan and her son to stroll in the back garden.
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