Sunlight streamed through the lattice windows into Chengxin Hall, casting patches of golden-orange light across the floor.
When Cui Yu stepped into the courtyard, he still carried the heat of the outdoors with him.
Early that morning, he had accompanied his imperial father and the civil and military officials to the drill grounds north of the imperial residence to inspect the Xishan Imperial Guards.
The Xishan Imperial Guards protected the capital and its surrounding areas and were one of the court’s most vital forces. Ever since the founding of the Dayong dynasty, the training and inspection of the Imperial Guards had been taken especially seriously. It had also become customary for the emperor to inspect the troops stationed nearby whenever he left the capital on a tour.
It was both a display of the Son of Heaven’s majesty and a deterrent to those with treasonous designs.
By the time the grand inspection was over, more than half the day had passed.
When Cui Yu returned to Chengxin Hall, he did not see that familiar figure. The hall was unusually quiet. His footsteps paused for a moment as his gaze swept around the room before settling on Nanny Wang.
“Where is your mistress? Has she not returned yet?”
Nanny Wang hurriedly bowed and replied with a smile, “To answer Your Highness, the mistress went out early this morning with Second Miss Xu. Chunping went with them as well. They should be back soon.”
Cui Yu nodded.
Wang Chun had already thoughtfully brought in a copper basin filled with water at just the right temperature, while Little Lu held a clean face towel.
Cui Yu washed his hands, then took the towel and wiped his face before sitting down at the desk.
He casually picked up the unfinished book lying there, his gaze falling upon the lines of text.
Yet after only a short while, his eyes involuntarily drifted toward the window.
It was still early.
Cui Yu lowered his gaze and turned a page.
After some time, he unconsciously looked up at the sky again. The sun was already setting in the west.
His brows drew together slightly. It was nearly time for the evening meal. Why had A-Yan still not returned today?
He could not help recalling the events of the past few days.
Apart from the first night of the imperial residence’s family banquet, when A-Yan had been especially attentive and affectionate toward him, these past few days…
During the day, he accompanied his imperial father in discussions of state affairs, inspected the Imperial Guards, and listened to the officials present their memorials. Whenever he happened to have a moment to return to Chengxin Hall for a rest, he had not once managed to see her.
She was always leaving early in the morning with Second Miss Xu, only returning around the time of the evening meal.
And after she returned, aside from remarks such as, “We fed the fish by the lake today. Those koi were so fat,” “There’s a tabby cat in the imperial residence—chubby and so cute. The moment you pet it, it rolls over and shows you its belly,” “We also saw a big yellow dog. It was so well-behaved,” “The fruit on the back mountain is ripe. It’s sweet and sour, and tastes even better than the fruit in the capital,” and “There’s a whole sea of flowers over there. Tomorrow, we should pick some to put in a vase”…
The name she mentioned most often was “Sister Xu.”
Cui Yu’s brows furrowed slightly.
He lowered his eyes to the page, but for a long while, he did not turn it.
It was not until the last rays of the evening glow had faded that he finally set down the book and rose to his feet.
The courtyard gate remained empty. There was still no sign of anyone.
“ Nanny Wang,” he called, his voice slightly deep.
Nanny Wang hurried over. “What are Your Highness’s orders?”
“Which direction did your mistress go today?”
Nanny Wang thought for a moment. “I heard the mistress say she was heading west of the imperial residence. There’s a bamboo grove, some rockeries, and a lotus pond over there. The scenery is quite beautiful.”
Cui Yu nodded and strode out.
Zheng Yuande, who had been standing nearby, was taken aback and hurried after him.
Was His Highness… planning to personally go and look for the Worthy Lady?
As he trotted along behind him, Zheng Yuande could not help muttering inwardly.
These past few days, His Highness had been busy with official duties during the day. Every day, once he finished, he hurried back to Chengxin Hall. Yet the Worthy Lady Shen and Second Miss Xu had been having such a wonderful time exploring the imperial residence that they were practically reluctant to leave. Every day, they returned precisely at dinnertime.
Today, she was only a little later than usual, but His Highness could not even sit still and had decided to go look for her himself…
Tsk!
However, the moment the two of them stepped out of Chengxin Hall, Cui Yu suddenly stopped.
In the distance, a figure dressed in smoky blue was slowly approaching.
The afterglow of the setting sun fell upon her, bathing her in a soft, warm radiance.
Cui Yu’s expression relaxed slightly, and he stepped forward to meet her.
“This servant greets Your Highness the Crown Prince.” Chunping hurriedly bowed.
Shen Yanshui came to her senses. When she looked up and saw the Crown Prince walking toward her, she instinctively ran toward him.
“Your Highness!”
Oh my goodness! She had nearly been scared to death just now!
Seeing her suddenly running toward him, Cui Yu’s heart jolted. He strode forward and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
“Slow down. Be careful of yourself.” His usually unhurried voice had quickened considerably.
Shen Yanshui plunged straight into his arms, wrapping both hands around his waist.
“Your Highness… I just… um…” She suddenly hesitated over whether she should tell the Crown Prince.
Cui Yu’s brows knitted slightly. Without caring that they were being so intimate in full view of everyone, he asked in a low voice, “What happened?”
Every palace servant outside Chengxin Hall had lowered their heads the moment Worthy Lady Shen threw herself into the Crown Prince’s arms.
Only then did Shen Yanshui realize that they were still standing outside Chengxin Hall. She took his hand and pulled him into the courtyard.
“Let’s go back first.”
Cui Yu glanced down at her but said nothing more. He merely tightened his grip on her hand.
The moment they entered the courtyard, the servants in the small kitchen had already laid out the evening meal according to her usual preferences.
Everything on the table was food that Shen Yanshui and Cui Yu normally enjoyed.
After a moment’s hesitation, Shen Yanshui said, “Your Highness, let’s eat first.”
He had spent the day accompanying Emperor Pingkang to inspect the Imperial Guards and must be hungry. Whatever had happened could wait until after they had eaten.
Otherwise… she was afraid that once he heard about it, it would ruin his appetite.
Cui Yu glanced at her, sat down beside her, and nodded with pursed lips.
They began their evening meal, but dinner was unusually quiet that day.
There was no longer the lively, cheerful voice that was always filled with laughter and chatter.
Shen Yanshui had something weighing on her mind and failed to notice his expression. Her thoughts were not even on the meal before her.
Her mind was filled with the scene she had witnessed that day.
The Eighth Prince and He Wan had been carrying on an affair… and, by sheer misfortune, the Seventh Prince had overheard them!
The look the Seventh Prince had given them at the end had made her skin crawl in an instant.
Her heart had leaped straight into her throat.
She had been terrified that he would expose them then and there. At the time, she had even prepared herself for the worst.
The Seventh Prince was only eighteen by reckoning, and in reality was merely sixteen or seventeen. He had personally caught his fiancée in an illicit affair with his younger brother. No matter what he did, she would not have been surprised.
Yet he had completely defied her expectations. He had simply stood there, calm and silent. After taking one look at them, he had turned and left.
Although his reaction had been entirely beyond anything she had anticipated, for her and Xu Qingle, it had undoubtedly been the best possible outcome.
Otherwise, if the Seventh Prince had exposed the relationship between the Eighth Prince and He Wan on the spot, and the imperial scandal had happened to be witnessed by all of them, merely thinking about it made her scalp prickle.
Emperor Pingkang would certainly have punished them in his anger.
They might even have implicated the Crown Prince…
Emperor Pingkang had grown increasingly wary of His Highness the Crown Prince over the past few years. Although he seemed to have adopted a somewhat better attitude recently, the emperor was a political creature, after all. Who could say what was really going on in his mind?
The more Shen Yanshui thought about it, the more troubled she became. She had probably been cooped up in the palace for far too long after the selection, and once they arrived at the imperial residence, she had let herself go a little too much...
Although they had done their best to avoid people, it seemed they had somehow ended up thinking along the same lines as those who intended to do something illicit... Everyone was avoiding people, after all, so wasn’t it inevitable that they would all avoid their way into the same place?
Sigh...
And then there was the Seventh Prince...
Had he really happened to stumble upon them just as they had, or... had he known about it all along?
She couldn’t help but carefully recall the expression in the Seventh Prince’s eyes when he had looked over at them. But... they had been some distance away, and she hadn’t been able to see clearly.
Besides, she had been too shocked at the time to get a good look. Before she could examine him properly, the Seventh Prince had already turned and walked away.
Yet his overly calm reaction had only aroused her suspicions.
If he had happened upon the scene by accident, just as they had, how could he have remained so calm and composed?
But if he had known about it all along... why had he kept silent?
Although the Seventh Prince’s birth mother, Beauty Li, had once been a palace maid, and the Seventh Prince had no so-called maternal family backing him like the other princes did, he was still an imperial prince... Surely he wouldn’t be able to swallow something like this?
Or was it because Beauty Li, who was still in the palace, was under Noble Consort Lan’s control?
And then there was Sister Xu...
As the Seventh Prince’s betrothed secondary consort, she would be entering his residence at the end of the year. After witnessing something like this today, how would she and the Seventh Prince get along in the future?
The more Shen Yanshui thought about it, the more distressed she became. Her temples throbbed, and for the first time ever, she had completely lost her appetite for the tempting food before her...
Cui Yu watched her sit there with a deeply troubled expression, her small face unconsciously scrunched up. Then he glanced at her hand, which had barely picked up a few morsels of food. He set down his chopsticks and looked toward the attendants nearby.
“Leave us.”
Zheng Yuande froze for a moment, then hurriedly acknowledged the order. He led the palace attendants out on quiet footsteps, and before leaving, he even remembered to close the door behind him.
He couldn’t help mulling over the matter. Worthy Lady Shen’s mood today... was not quite right.
Normally, Worthy Lady Shen was all smiles and laughter. After arriving at the imperial residence these past few days, she had been visibly delighted, wandering all over the grounds every day and leaving their prince completely forgotten in her wake. Yet the moment she returned today, her face had practically written it out in plain sight—
Something is weighing on her mind!
Hadn’t he noticed that she had barely touched her dinner?
As he thought about it, he glanced at Chunping, whose face also held a trace of worry, and quietly edged a little closer...
*
Cui Yu looked at her, his brows drawing together slightly.
“What are you thinking about, A-Yan?”
Shen Yanshui raised her eyes to him. Her lips moved, and she instinctively glanced around before realizing that, at some point, there were only the two of them left in the room.
Cui Yu took her hand, his thumb gently stroking the back of it. His voice softened.
“What’s wrong?”
Shen Yanshui looked at him. After hesitating for only a moment, she took a deep breath and lowered her voice, telling him everything she had seen, from beginning to end.
If she hadn’t exchanged glances with the Seventh Prince today, she could have simply pretended that she had heard and seen nothing, and gone on eating and sleeping as usual.
But the Seventh Prince had seen them.
Cui Yu listened in silence. Yet the more he heard, the colder and more somber his expression became. In those usually placid eyes, emotions rarely seen there churned violently—shock, incredulity, and fury.
When she had finished, he closed his eyes and drew a deep breath, forcing down the heavy anger within him.
Sensing the worry and unease in her eyes, he lowered his gaze to her and said quietly, “I’ll handle this. A-Yan, you don’t need to worry.”
