Although the Prince's mansion also had many fine items in its treasury, He Liufeng inexplicably felt that the two were different, and that choosing them himself and paying for them himself would be more meaningful.
He Liufeng stood inside the shop, browsing for a long time before finally choosing a jade hairpin. He asked the shopkeeper to wrap it up, paid for it, and left.
After a delay, when He Liufeng returned, Qu Qingxi was already waiting. Since He Liufeng had not yet returned, Qu Qingxi did not ask them to serve the dishes.
Qu Qingxi originally thought that He Liufeng would probably not return until midnight for such a big matter, but unexpectedly, He Liufeng returned with Ling Mu before the sun had even set.
"Huh? Why are you back so early?" Qu Qingxi was extremely surprised to see He Liufeng walk in.
Hearing Qu Qingxi's words, He Liufeng felt something different. She said "come back," and the look of surprise in her eyes as she looked at him was like that of a wife waiting for her husband to come home for dinner.
Perhaps she really does have different feelings for me, and her previous statement about leaving after the collaboration ends was probably just empty talk.
Thinking of this, He Liufeng felt even better.
"Yes, I finished my official business and came back." He Liufeng nodded calmly.
When Qingdai saw that the prince had returned early, she quickly signaled the servants to serve the dishes.
The two sat down at the table, and He Liufeng took out an exquisite box from his pocket, placed it on the table, and pushed it towards Qu Qingxi.
"I just passed by and thought it would suit you perfectly, so I bought it for you."
"What?" Qu Qingxi saw the logo on the box and felt it was somewhat familiar. Suddenly, she remembered that when she and Qingdai went shopping before, they seemed to have bought jewelry from this store.
Upon opening the box, one finds a white jade hairpin carved with lily of the valley flowers. The design is exquisite, and the lily of the valley flowers are carved so lifelike that it is quite beautiful.
"Thank you very much." It was rare for a jade hairpin to suit Qu Qingxi's taste so well, so she sincerely thanked He Liufeng.
Seeing that Qu Qingxi clearly liked it, He Liufeng couldn't help but smile. "It's good that you like it."
It was worth spending so much time choosing.
The table was quickly filled with dishes, and the aroma filled the entire room. However, looking at the table full of food, Qu Qingxi remained silent for a moment.
Why did they prepare so many dishes when there were only two of them? Qu Qingxi felt full after tasting a couple of bites of each dish, but seeing He Liufeng's smiling face, she didn't say anything, since it was He Liufeng's money after all.
Qu Qingxi was planning to use this meal to trick He Liufeng into revealing that the money would ultimately come from the customer, and she wasn't worried about the cost at all.
"I thought you weren't coming back today," Qu Qingxi said casually, picking a piece of green vegetable for herself.
"Yes, there wasn't much to do today. I came back as soon as I finished." He Liufeng nodded casually.
Ling Mu stood at the door, silently lighting an incense stick for the group of people who were still busy. It was clearly the prince who abandoned his official duties and left as soon as he heard that the princess was going to have dinner with him tonight, and he even told the princess that he had finished his business.
People who are obsessed with love are truly terrifying! Ling Mu shook his head slightly. Looking at the worthless smile on the prince's lips, Ling Mu felt ashamed. Where did the cold and ruthless prince from before go?
"Hey, what's with that expression?" Qingdai was looking at He Liufeng and Qu Qingxi with a maternal smile when she turned her head and noticed the slightly disgusted expression on Ling Mu's face.
“The prince has changed. He is no longer the stern and decisive prince he used to be.” Ling Mu shook his head and sighed.
"Tch, Lingmu, are you made of wood? This is what makes Your Highness flesh and blood. Humans are supposed to have emotions and desires, otherwise what's the difference between you and a tree?" Qingdai retorted.
"Qingdai, I've noticed that you've become quite bolder since you started following the Princess. You even dare to speak to me like that?" Ling Mu crossed his arms, looked Qingdai up and down, and made his conclusion.
"No, it's not that I've become bolder, but that I've figured things out and made progress, while you've remained stagnant, which is why you have this misconception." Qingdai said with a mysterious air.
"Bullshit! I think you're just too idle all day. The princess spoils you so much that you've become arrogant." Ling Mu sneered, daring to say that he was still standing still.
"Hey, Ling Mu, just say what you want to say, why are you swearing?" Qing Dai stared at Ling Mu with wide eyes, looking incredulous.
"What do you mean by 'insulting'? That's just an interjection. You're really ignorant." Ling Mu glanced at Qing Dai, then left. He figured the prince probably didn't have anything to do right now, so he should find some time to rest.
"You're the one talking nonsense!" Qingdai only dared to mutter a curse under her breath after watching Ling Mu walk away. She wouldn't dare say this to Ling Mu's face, since he was still her superior.
Honestly, seeing how well the prince treats the princess, as long as I cling to the princess's coattails from now on, no matter if you're Ling Mu or Ling Huo, you'll all have to act according to my wishes. Hmph, Qingdai snorted coldly and turned to leave.
At the dinner table, Qu Qingxi was still trying to get information out of people.
"By the way, may I ask how your investigation into the theft of the national treasury is going?"
"The Emperor has decreed that the Wang family be executed along with their entire clan, and all their property be confiscated."
"But I heard that the Crown Prince is involved in this matter."
Upon hearing this, He Liufeng turned to look at Qu Qingxi, then at the others in the room. After they left, He Liufeng chuckled, "Who told you that?"
"Ahem, I dreamt about it this morning," Qu Qingxi said, spouting nonsense without batting an eye.
"What do you want to dream about him for?" He Liufeng was slightly annoyed, but even though he knew Qu Qingxi was talking nonsense, he still explained slowly.
"Yes, it is indeed related to the Crown Prince. The Wang family is the Empress's maternal family. Your Majesty's actions can be seen as cutting off a major support for the Empress and the Crown Prince." He Liufeng didn't want to mention too much to Qu Qingxi. Qu Qingxi knew too much about this matter, which was not a good thing for her. He only mentioned it vaguely.
Cutting off a major support for the Empress and the Crown Prince? This statement reveals a lot of information. It seems that my previous guess was correct. The Emperor did not really favor the Empress, and by extension, he did not favor the Crown Prince either. More importantly, the Emperor did not want the Crown Prince to sit on that throne in the future. Otherwise, why would he cut off the Crown Prince's support?
Seeing Qu Qingxi lost in thought, He Liufeng changed the subject, "By the way, that illegitimate daughter of the Marquis of Dingguo's family has been doing good deeds lately."
"Distributing porridge outside the city, right?" Qu Qingxi knew this, of course. She could hear all of Ren Nuanyun's conversation with the system, so she naturally knew about it. Because Ren Nuanyun had run out of points, she needed to complete some tasks to earn more points.
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