"No, Your Highness, no, I was wrong." Xinrui immediately knelt down and cried. "This sweet soup was given to Your Highness by my own decision, it has nothing to do with the Princess Consort."
"Cheng Feng!" Xiao Yi called out again, his expression cold and stern.
Cheng Feng stepped forward, picked up the bowl of sweet soup, and had the maid force-feed it to her.
"Throw him out!" Xiao Yi said coldly. "Tell the Crown Princess that those with ulterior motives cannot be allowed to live."
"Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me!" Xinrui, who had been fed sweet soup, kept kowtowing and begging for mercy. "Your Highness, I just want to stay by your side and serve you. I really didn't mean any harm."
Cheng Feng was also furious. Although the young master was gentle and refined, he was definitely not someone to be trifled with. This maid was only bought after they arrived in Youzhou; it seemed she had harbored inappropriate thoughts!
Cheng Feng simply handed the person over to the steward and then went to inform Hongzhu himself.
"Xinrui sent sweet soup to the prince?" Hongzhu asked, puzzled. "I told her I wouldn't send it."
"The person has been dealt with by the steward, and the young master has instructed his subordinates to inform the young master's wife," Cheng Feng said.
"Dispose of? How should it be disposed of?" Hongzhu didn't react for a moment.
“Your Highness, that maidservant became flushed and hot shortly after drinking the sweet soup I brought her,” Cheng Feng explained. “She had inappropriate thoughts and acted recklessly. The Prince’s mansion cannot tolerate such a person.”
Hongzhu understood instantly, and said with some annoyance, "This girl, well, you can deal with her as you see fit."
"Then I'll take my leave." Cheng Feng was about to go back when Hongzhu stopped him.
"Is the young master still in the study? I'll go check on him." She was never one to keep secrets, and this thought was like a hundred claws scratching at her heart.
Xiao Yi was not disturbed by a maid; what truly unsettled him was Tao Wanniang.
He had thought that he might never see him again in his lifetime. He was in Youzhou and the emperor was on the throne, so he could not return to the capital. Since there was no possibility of the two of them meeting again, he could keep this thought to himself.
But they were reunited. Tao Wanniang was like a free-spirited wild goose; she could come even from Youzhou, so far from the capital. Her free and resilient spirit, her ever-present composure, stirred his heart once more. Though the wind and frost had ravaged her appearance, they had not diminished her charm in the slightest.
Just as Xiao Yi was lost in thought, Hongzhu arrived and closed the door behind her.
"Are you here because of that maid?" Xiao Yi asked. "She has ulterior motives; you don't need to plead for her."
"I didn't come for her, Xiao Yi. I have a question for you, and you have to tell me honestly!" Hongzhu looked at Xiao Yi seriously. Xiao Yi was the person she had set her sights on, the person she would travel thousands of miles to find, the person she would follow anywhere! No matter what, she would not let go!
Xiao Yi was confused by Hongzhu's serious expression. "What happened?"
"Xiao Yi, do you have someone you like?" Hongzhu asked, looking at Xiao Yi.
"Why are you suddenly asking about this?" Xiao Yi asked in surprise, without giving a direct answer.
“Whether you have it or not, I am your wife, and I will not give up this position,” Hongzhu said assertively.
Xiao Yi smiled. There was absolutely nothing between him and Tao Wanniang. Tao Wanniang was free. She had no feelings for love and affection. She had her own path to walk. In fact, he could tell that Tao Wanniang was enjoying herself.
"Why are you suddenly asking this? My relationship with you will never change."
Hongzhu was somewhat dejected. What good was being together if their hearts weren't together?
"Xiao Yi, I...I might have discovered what's on your mind!" Hongzhu hesitated for a moment before cautiously saying, "You...you...you like Sister Tao, don't you!"
Hongzhu lowered her voice and spoke close to Xiao Yi. Then she saw Xiao Yi's face freeze in front of her, and the panic and shock in his eyes could not be hidden no matter how hard he tried.
“I…I just found out, and I haven’t told anyone,” Hongzhu said immediately. “I won’t tell anyone either, but Xiao Yi, I won’t give up on you.”
After his initial shock and panic, Xiao Yi managed to calm himself down. Looking at Hongzhu's cautious expression, he lowered his voice, almost hoarse, and asked, "How did you know?"
“I saw the way you looked at Sister Tao today, Xiao Yi. I like you. I know what it feels like to like someone, so…” Xiao Yi didn’t deny it, and Hongzhu’s feelings became complicated.
She was genuinely surprised that Xiao Yi would fall for Tao Wanniang! Tao Wanniang is quite old; she already has grandchildren!
Hongzhu felt a pang of heartache upon seeing Xiao Yi's expression, even though she had intended to say what she wanted to say.
"Is it hard to hold back?" Hongzhu asked. "Sister Tao probably doesn't know."
"Hongzhu, you're very smart, and you've been very attentive to me," Xiao Yi said bitterly. Otherwise, how could he have discovered it?
“I do like it, but don’t worry, this is a secret between you and me, and I won’t tell anyone!” Xiao Yi said. “I also hope you will keep it a secret for me.”
Xiao Yi's words made Hongzhu's feelings even more complicated. She couldn't express her feelings for him. Nor could she bring herself to tell Xiao Yi to speak to Tao Wanniang. How could she tolerate her own man like that?
"Since you put it that way, then I'll pretend I didn't know," Hongzhu said after thinking for a moment. "I think Sister Tao wouldn't want any of this nonsense either!"
“Well, she has a bright future ahead of her, and I don’t want to cause her unnecessary trouble. Besides, we’ll still have contact in the future, and if she finds out, she’ll probably feel uncomfortable,” Xiao Yi said.
Disgusted, the man she cherished was being disgusted by someone else. Hearing this made Hongzhu feel uncomfortable and inexplicably angry.
But Xiao Yi was the person she liked, and she couldn't bear to be angry. Tao Wanniang didn't know anything about it and hadn't done anything, so she couldn't blame Tao Wanniang. In the end, she angrily slammed her fist on the table.
"I really shouldn't have focused all my attention on you and kept an eye on your every move, only to find out about this," Hongzhu said angrily. "I... I'd rather I hadn't known!"
Seeing Hongzhu's expression, Xiao Yi felt a sudden softening in his heart. His feelings for Tao Wanniang were no longer a secret he kept to himself.
"Hongzhu, thank you!" Xiao Yi said to Hongzhu with heartfelt gratitude.
"Don't thank me. I've been your wife my whole life, Xiao Yi. Now that you're far from the capital, you're no longer destined to bring misfortune to your wives," Hongzhu said. "I'm younger than you, and a hundred years from now, you'll be the first to go!"
Although these words were not very pleasant to hear, Xiao Yi still nodded and smiled.
"Besides, there's plenty of time. I'll spend my whole life with you. I'm young, beautiful, and truly love you. Even if you're a stone, you'll eventually warm up," Hongzhu firmly believed. "If one day I run out of stamina, I... I'll just have my way with you!"
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