...It got even colder around us.
Qian Shengyan couldn't help but shudder. She looked at Yinzhen, whose face was completely dark, with a bewildered expression: "Your Highness..."
"Then Your Highness will stay at Madam Guo's place tonight, visit the Fifth Prince tomorrow night, and spend the day after with Madam Nian. Is that alright?" Yinzhen asked coldly.
Qian Shengyan was a little confused, but subconsciously replied, "Then, Master... take care of yourself and don't overwork yourself."
Yinzhen: ...!
Seeing that Yinzhen's expression was really unpleasant, Qian Shengyan immediately changed her tune: "Then how about we reconsider? Go another day, so you can rest?"
Yinzhen: ...
Qian Shengyan was truly baffled by the prince's abrupt departure.
What's going on? Is he in his thirties suddenly going through a rebellious phase? He can't go, and he can't not go. What should he do?
And what kind of questions are these? They have nothing to do with her and that man. They didn't even tell her how to resolve this matter today!
Qian Shengyan was also furious, but there was nothing she could do about it now. She couldn't even pound the bed, so she could only use her still-intact left hand to slam the pillow: "This is ridiculous!"
"Your Highness, does the Prince really believe it?" Qingxue only dared to come in after Yinzhen left. She was a little worried. "This is the first time I've seen the Prince so angry when he left Your Highness's place."
Then, as if remembering something, her face turned pale for a moment.
Seeing the change in her expression, Qian Shengyan asked, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing..." Qingxue tried to hide it, but her lips started to tremble. Qian Shengyan couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
"Master..." Qingxue bit her lip, bent down and whispered in Qian Shengyan's ear, "This servant heard Su Peisheng and Lord Tu talking. The Prince ordered that... Duan Linwen be beaten to death..."
Qian Shengyan was also startled, but quickly comforted herself: "What he did is indeed unforgivable..."
After these words were spoken, both master and servant fell silent.
If Duan Linwen's actions disgusted Yinzhen to the point that he had to take her life, then what about her? Could Yinzhen forgive her?
Qian Shengyan was truly troubled. She couldn't help but grab Qingxue: "Qingxue, can you help me analyze why the Prince was so angry just now..."
She repeated the prince's question, and when she finished saying that he had to favor someone else for three consecutive days, Qingxue's eyelids twitched. After hearing her master's answer, Qingxue was speechless.
She seemed to understand why the prince was angry.
But there shouldn't be any reason to be that angry. After all, Qian Shengyan is not jealous or envious, which is a virtue. If she were petty and jealous all the time, the prince wouldn't like her either.
After Qingxue said that, Qian Shengyan pondered for a moment: "So I should show some jealousy?"
Qingxue was slightly surprised: "So, Master, you really aren't jealous at all? What if the Prince really favors someone else..."
"Hmm." Qian Shengyan was embarrassed to say it. Apart from a little disdain, she was alright. She said vaguely, "He's a prince, isn't he? All those women in the courtyard originally belonged to him. What can I do to stop him?"
Qingxue felt that Qian Shengyan was right at one moment, but then felt that something was still wrong. But—even if Qian Shengyan's answer was wrong, the prince shouldn't be so angry, right?
So it's still about being angry with Duan Linwen, right?
The master and servant reached an agreement, but then faced a dilemma. The matter was simple in some ways: they could simply interrogate a few of the servants at Pianyun Shujuan Palace, especially since Qian Shengyan hadn't left the palace except to go to the fields recently. But the difficulty lay in proving that she hadn't met Duan Linwen; the prince would have to believe it!
A wisp of cloud drifted across the palace, casting a gloomy and desolate shadow over the place.
Even more worried than them was Yinzhen.
He didn't know what was wrong with him.
What is he worrying about? Is he worried about whether Qian Shengyan loves him or not?
A young girl not even twenty, at the age of blossoming youth, even if she truly falls in love, how long can it last?
Yinzhen was completely unaware that he was already considering the issues of mutual affection and a long-lasting relationship. He sighed and unconsciously walked to the edge of the field. From a distance, he could see the well-planned green rice paddies, divided into neat squares by ridges. Further away, there were chicken coops and cattle and sheep sheds built according to the drawings made by Qian Shengyan.
Oh, even these names were chosen by Qian Shengyan.
Seeing him approach, the eunuch in charge of the dogs brought them leashes, and Baifu and Zaohua happily ran over and circled around him. Yinzhen then bent down and patted their heads one by one, saying, "Good dogs."
At least he's much more enthusiastic than someone else, hmph.
He was angry and decided not to stay at Pianyun Shujuan Palace anymore, but... where to stay became a problem.
Logically speaking, as the owner of the Lion Garden, Yinzhen should naturally live in the main hall. However, he disliked the Leshan Academy for being too orderly, with rows of rooms built like dormitories and names that were too formal. He preferred the Pianyun Shujuan Hall.
Moreover, if he were to actually move into Leshan Academy, wouldn't that be giving the Nian family too much face?
Unbeknownst to Nian Shi, who was under house arrest, she was once again used by Yinzhen as an excuse.
Yinzhen deliberated and then rallied, pondering and pondering, and finally chose to stay at Huyun Manor—not because Huyun Manor was close to Pianyun Shujuan Palace, but because it was closest to the fields.
That's right, that's exactly it.
The prince changed his residence, and naturally, things were being moved back and forth in the garden. Soon, Leshan Academy also received the news. Although Lady Nian was not allowed to leave the palace, she still laughed heartily with her hands on her hips, feeling somewhat relieved. Lady Guo and Lady Geng, on the other hand, were worried.
"Sister Geng, do you think the Prince listened to what we said?" Guo's round face was full of worry. She rested her chin on one hand and rolled a ball around with the other to amuse the Fifth Prince Hongzhou.
Madam Geng was making clothes for Hongzhou when she heard this and sighed, "Even if the Prince believes the concubine, he will still have some doubts in his heart..."
Before she could finish speaking, she saw her son miss the ball, and it fell to the ground, leaving Hongzhou looking completely bewildered.
Madam Geng couldn't help but laugh. She bent down to pick up the ball and handed it to her son, but Hongzhou, who was already two and a half years old, could only stammer out two-word phrases: "Mother, thank you."
He was already thin and short, and could not compare with the lively Fourth Prince at all. In fact, Lady Geng thought that Hongzhou's arms were probably not as thick as those of the younger, year-younger, Foerguochun.
The child's birth was difficult, and he wasn't raised by her during his early years. At the time, she was in a daze and was instigated by Li to do many wrong things, even causing the one-year-old to contract smallpox...
No matter how hard we try to raise it, we can't bring it back to life.
A pang of sadness gripped Geng's heart. She touched her son's sparse hair and forced a smile, saying, "Go play."
After speaking, meeting Guo's questioning gaze, Geng chuckled and wiped her eyes: "With so many people in the mansion, only if Consort Qian is in charge can we have a way to survive."
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