Hearing the voice, Liu immediately put down the silk thread in her hand, walked out of the house, and saw Shen Qingqiu at a glance.
"Qingqiu, you're back." Liu looked Shen Qingqiu up and down and said, "Well, it seems that the Ninth Prince has taken good care of you. You have gained a lot of weight."
When the Ninth Prince was mentioned, Shen Qingqiu became extremely angry, with anger written all over his face.
"Why, why do you have this expression? Did you have a quarrel with the Ninth Prince?"
Shen Qingqiu shook his head and said, "Mother, let's not talk about him. Has father sent any letters back in the past few days?"
Liu shook her head. "I sent a letter home half a month ago saying that the Xiongnu soldiers were in short supply. I haven't received any since then. I'm afraid they are too busy with the war and don't have time."
Shen Qingqiu nodded, "Father is invincible, and this battle with the Huns will definitely be victorious."
Liu smiled and said, "I hope so."
"Tuan'er, come here quickly. It's been a long time since we last met. Let me take a good look at you. Have you grown taller?"
Hearing Shen Qingqiu's voice, Tuan Ge'er immediately put down the cricket in his hand, ran to her and said: "I have always eaten well and listened to my mother obediently."
Shen Qingqiu patted Tuan Ge'er's head lovingly and said, "That's good."
On the other side, Gu Yanwei came back from court and looked at the closed door of the other room, hesitating. Over the past few days, he had gotten used to having Shen Qingqiu by his side, and her sudden disappearance had made him so worried.
The eunuch beside him saw his thoughts and whispered, "Do you want me to summon the princess to the palace?"
Gu Yanwei looked at his father-in-law coldly and said, "No need!"
The eunuch sighed and followed the Ninth Prince into the inner room.
"You are not needed here anymore, please go down."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The Ninth Prince flipped open today's memorial, casually picked up the tea brewed by his eunuch and took a sip, but frowned, looking at the tea leaves floating in the cup, unable to relax for a long time.
Shen Qingqiu's voice suddenly rang beside my ear.
"Your Highness, this tea must not be brewed with boiling water, otherwise the brewed tea will not be so fragrant. Try the cup I brewed for you. How does it taste?"
Gu Yanwei shook her head vigorously, as if she wanted to avoid Shen Qingqiu in her mind, but the more she wanted to hide, the more her figure appeared in the bedroom.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, the Ninth Prince..." More and more voices surrounded him. Gu Yanwei stood up in an upset state and shouted loudly, "Eunuch Li."
Eunuch Li came in in a panic and said, "The servant is here."
"Come with me to the Imperial Garden for a walk."
"yes."
Gu Yanwei had no time to appreciate the fragrance that wafted from the imperial garden. Shen Qingqiu's voice, appearance and smile that day kept echoing in his mind.
"Your Highness." The voice of the Eighth Prince suddenly came to his ears, and Gu Yanwei opened his eyes in his memories.
"Myna."
The two men's eyes met in the air until the Eighth Prince approached, "Greetings, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"Myna, what are you doing?"
The Eighth Prince raised his head and said slowly: "You are now the Crown Prince, and you still have to follow the proper etiquette of respecting superiors and subordinates."
Not knowing what he was up to, Gu Yanwei didn't want to deal with him any more and prepared to leave.
"Your Highness, why haven't you seen the princess recently?"
Hearing the Eighth Prince asking about Shen Qingqiu, Gu Yanwei stopped, turned to look at the Eighth Prince and asked: "Why did Brother Eighth ask her?"
Shen Qingqiu had seldom come into contact with the Eighth Prince since entering the palace, so how could the Eighth Prince care about where Shen Qingqiu was going? This made her think of the scene when the two of them were in the Imperial Garden that day.
The Eighth Prince smiled calmly and said, "Princess Kangle is smart and humorous. I like her very much."
Gu Yanwei clenched his hands tightly into fists on both sides of his body, "She left the palace a few days ago."
"You're out of the palace. Why don't you stay in the palace for a few more days? It's a pity."
Gu Yanwei didn't listen to him anymore, turned around and left.
Eunuch Li followed behind her. Ever since Shen Qingqiu left, Gu Yanwei seemed to have returned to his previous calm self, as if only Shen Qingqiu could add more expressions to the face of this usually aloof prince.
"Your Highness." Gu Yanwei was still walking when Eunuch Li suddenly called him from behind.
"Your Highness, do you really want to meet Princess Kang Le?"
"If you want to leave, then leave. What's there to want to see?" Gu Yanwei said stubbornly.
Eunuch Li smiled and said, "I have served His Royal Highness the Crown Prince since I was a child. I know when His Royal Highness is happy and when he is unhappy. Since the princess entered the palace, His Royal Highness has been smiling more and more. I was happy for a few days. During the few days when the princess was away, His Royal Highness was distracted. I also saw it with my own eyes."
Gu Yanwei walked and walked, and slowly stopped. Shen Qingqiu's smiles and frowns flashed in his mind. Suddenly he turned to you, and the father-in-law said angrily: "What nonsense are you talking about?"
"Your Highness knows best whether I am talking nonsense or not. Your Highness must have misunderstood the princess that day, and that's why she left in anger. Your Highness, since you like her in your heart, what can a little misunderstanding mean? Why don't you go to the Marquis' Mansion in person and clear up the misunderstanding?"
"Impossible!" Gu Yanwei waved his hand, but after hesitating for a while, he said, "The Marquis has been fighting for the Xiongnu for a long time, and I should go to the Marquis' Mansion to visit him."
Eunuch Li smiled and nodded, "Yes."
——
The whole family was having dinner at the Hou Mansion. The maid Bing'er suddenly ran in and said, "Madam, Miss, the Crown Prince is here."
"What?" Liu stood up and asked, "Why would His Royal Highness the Crown Prince suddenly come here at this time?"
When Shen Qingqiu heard the words "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince", the chopsticks in his hand paused for a moment, but he quickly picked up the food and put it into his mouth with an expressionless face.
“Quick, quick, go out and greet her.” Then he looked at Shen Qingqiu who was still eating calmly and said, “Hey, stop eating. The people below are already at the mansion, why are you still eating?” After saying that, he ignored Shen Qingqiu’s resistance and took her away.
When everyone in the mansion arrived at the gate, Gu Yanwei had been waiting there for a long time.
Liu and her family members knelt down and said, "I didn't know that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would come today. I am sorry for not welcoming you. I hope His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will forgive me."
"No problem." Gu Yanwei looked at Shen Qingqiu who was kneeling behind the crowd and said, "This prince is also concerned about the Marquis fighting outside, so I came here to comfort you."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
"Everyone, get up." After saying that, Gu Yanwei had already turned his eyes away from Shen Qingqiu and walked straight into the door.
Shen Qingqiu looked up at Gu Yanwei's back and remembered the injustice he had suffered that day. He turned around and prepared to leave, but was stopped by Liu. "Where are you going?"
"I……"
"You are not allowed to go anywhere. It's a rare visit from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, so you must stay at home." After saying that, he dragged Shen Qingqiu into the house.
——
"Your Highness, I didn't know you were coming today, and I haven't had time to ask your family to prepare yet. I hope you don't mind."
Gu Yanwei shook his head and said, "I came here suddenly, you don't have to worry about me."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Thinking of the quarrel between them that day, Shen Qingqiu really didn't want to face him again, and finally left when Liu wasn't paying attention. Looking at his back as he left, Gu Yanwei almost stood up, but was reminded by Eunuch Li.
"Your Highness."
Gu Yanwei sat back in his chair silently, watching Shen Qingqiu's back getting farther and farther away until he was out of his sight.
After finally finishing their meal with them, Gu Yanwei suggested that he wanted to walk around the house and didn't want anyone to follow him. Liu found it strange, but didn't ask any more questions.
The moon had already hung in the sky without anyone noticing. Shen Qingqiu was sitting lonely in the garden, counting the lotus flowers in the pond, but she didn't know that a pair of eyes behind her had been staring at her for who knows how long.
A cool breeze blew, and Shen Qingqiu felt a little cold. He wrapped himself in clothes and stood up. As soon as he turned around, he saw Gu Yanwei standing behind him without knowing when.
Shen Qingqiu still had a sour face, "Your Highness the Crown Prince."
The strange name seemed to tickle Gu Yanwei's heart, making him uncomfortable.
Before Gu Yanwei could react, Shen Qingqiu had already stood up and prepared to leave.
"Don't you want to see me?"
Gu Yanwei's voice sounded from behind. Shen Qingqiu paused, turned around and said, "It's His Highness who doesn't want to see me."
She is still angry.
In this contest, Gu Yanwei finally admitted that he had lost. He sighed, slowly walked to Shen Qingqiu, held her hands, and his deep eyes seemed to be glowing as he looked at Shen Qingqiu seriously.
"Qingqiu, I'm sorry, it was because I saw you and Bage in the Imperial Garden..."
Before he could finish his words, Shen Qingqiu interrupted him and said, "There is nothing between me and the Eighth Prince." As she spoke, she suddenly thought of the day when she accidentally fell and the Eighth Prince helped her up. Perhaps it was because she saw this.
"It was because I was careless..."
"I know." Gu Yanwei interrupted him, "It's all my fault. I'm too petty."
Shen Qingqiu raised his head in some surprise. The person standing in front of him was the high and mighty Crown Prince, who was apologizing for his temper. Shen Qingqiu stared at his face and did not speak for a long while.
Just when Gu Yanwei didn't know what to say, Shen Qingqiu suddenly whispered: "Gu Yanwei, do you love me?"
After a long while without a reply, Shen Qingqiu frowned and looked up at him, but Gu Yanwei was smiling at this time. Seeing his anxious look, Gu Yanwei said: "I said that if it wasn't because I like you and care about you, why would I come to this Hou Mansion specially? You didn't really believe my pretense, did you?"
After getting a satisfactory answer, Shen Qingqiu smiled and leaned his head on Gu Yanwei's arms, "Who knows."
"Tomorrow is the enthronement ceremony, come back to the palace with me!"
The next day, Gu Yanwei was packing up with Shen Qingqiu and preparing to return to the palace, but bad news came from the palace.
"Qingqiu, Your Highness, Eunuch Liu is here."
"Eunuch Liu?" Gu Yanwei frowned. "Why did he come back?"
"You should go out and take a look. Eunuch Liu is close to the emperor. Maybe the emperor has something urgent to ask you."
Gu Yanwei nodded, "Then you get ready first, we will enter the palace together later."
Shen Qingqiu nodded.
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