It saved him the trouble; otherwise, if she started crying before he even touched her, his master would just order him out again.
Cui Yunchu's mind began to race.
"Wait."
Shen Xiabai kept his back to her. "Have you thought it through?"
"Can I not enter through your secret door?"
Shen Xiabai suddenly turned around, his brows furrowed tightly.
Cui Yunchu explained, "If others see us, they might misunderstand our relationship again. You wouldn't want us to be tied together by gossip either, would you?"
Shen Xiabai seemed to grit his teeth. "Fine."
He strode forward, hooked the rope in her hands, and dragged her outward.
He took large, urgent strides, causing Cui Yunchu to stumble as she was pulled along.
Rushing to reincarnate? Why in such a hurry.
"Is Lord Shen in such a hurry to kill me?"
"Shut up." His voice was even colder than the chill of the night wind.
The candlelight outlined his broad and tall figure, radiating a chilling aura from head to toe.
Through the corridor, there was a lake. Cui Yunchu fixed her gaze on it and slowed her pace even more. "Lord Shen, Lord Shen, please allow me to say a word."
Shen Xiabai, his slender fingers still hooking the rope, slowly turned around. "Speak."
"Can I look in a mirror?"
"??" What nonsense was this?
Yu Feng warned from the side, "Master, do not be fooled."
The eldest Miss Cui's tricks were endless.
But the tricks weren't the scary part. The scary part was that his master was willingly falling for them despite knowing better.
"Why do you need a mirror?"
Cui Yunchu lowered her eyes. "I wish to always appear beautiful and enchanting in front of Lord Shen."
The air seemed to freeze at this moment in dead silence.
Yu Feng said in his heart: Master, if you believe this, you are completely doomed.
Shen Xiabai forced himself to look away and coughed lightly. "Stop playing tricks."
Cui Yunchu pointed to the small lake nearby. "I just need to look at my reflection there. It won't take much time."
Shen Xiabai loosened his fingers. "Hurry up."
"Come with me, otherwise I'll be scared." Cui Yunchu tugged at a bit of his sleeve and walked toward the small lake.
Yu Feng could only watch helplessly as his master was lured away by the vixen.
By the lake, Shen Xiabai said coldly, "This is the last time. Make another demand, and I will pull out your tongue."
"Lord Shen, a snake!" Cui Yunchu screamed and threw herself at Shen Xiabai.
With a loud splash, water sprayed everywhere. Yu Feng merely frowned and tilted his head to prevent the water from splashing onto his face. His expression remained wooden, showing no particular reaction.
As if it were entirely expected.
"Men, get in the water. Save them." His voice was incredibly calm, even carrying a trace of helplessness.
Tonight was destined to be restless.
Every household in the capital sensed something unusual and kept their doors tightly shut. The Crown Prince's forces shuttled through the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Personnel, the Supreme Court, the Department of Punishment, and various government offices, collecting evidence of crimes.
Tang Qingwan was not fit to be moved, so she temporarily stayed in Consort Liang's bedchamber.
"Now that the Crown Prince is tearing up all pretenses with the Liu family, and the Cui and Tang families have also grown apart from him, the Central Palace has suffered a heavy blow. They will likely need a long time to recover."
In the main hall, Consort Liang narrowed her sharp eyes slightly and said to Xiao Yi, who was seated below, "Now is the best time to deal with the Crown Prince."
Xiao Yi's voice was calm. "I know what I am doing. I will make arrangements once this storm passes."
Consort Liang nodded. "It can be said that even the heavens are helping you now. You should set aside those romantic affairs for the time being."
"I know what I am doing." He stood up and said, "Tomorrow is the day I present the betrothal gifts to Yunfeng. I still need to accompany her to pick out a love-token hairpin, so I will not keep Mother company any longer. I shall take my leave."
He had just said he knew what he was doing.
Consort Liang rolled her eyes.
It seemed all her words just now had been in vain.
"Get out, get out. My endless nagging is no match for her simply beckoning with a finger."
She only hoped that after the betrothal day was over, he could put his mind back on their grand cause. With the support of her maternal family, their chances of defeating the Central Palace were extremely high.
Prime Minister Cui and the Crown Prince were busy dealing with the Liu family, so Cui Yunfeng left the palace a step ahead.
At the palace gates, Eunuch Liu reported, "Your Highness, a message came from the future Princess Consort. She said she was afraid the shops on the street would be closed by the time you left the palace, so she picked out a few herself and is waiting for you at the Moon Gazing Tower to choose together."
Xiao Yi's lips curled into a smile as he strode onto the carriage. "To the Moon Gazing Tower."
The carriage sped along.
Xiao Yi occasionally lifted the carriage curtain to ask, "Are all the betrothal gifts ready?"
"To answer Your Highness, they are all prepared."
"What about the Ministry of Rites? Have they been instructed?"
"Rest assured, Your Highness. This old servant has prepared everything perfectly. There will absolutely not be a single mistake during tomorrow's betrothal."
Xiao Yi leaned back against the carriage wall, his wicked eyes filled with a joyful smile.
"We shall go present the betrothal gifts after tomorrow's morning court. I must lend my father-in-law a helping hand."
He hoped this would make Yunfeng a little happier.
The carriage stopped at the Moon Gazing Tower.
In a private room on the second floor, the food had already been prepared, but Cui Yunfeng was nowhere to be seen. Xiao Yi felt an inexplicable wave of panic. He grabbed a waiter and asked, "Where is the lady who was waiting here?"
"Do not worry, sir. The banquet was booked by a lady's maid. They will be here shortly."
Eunuch Liu said, "Your Highness, please sit down and have a cup of tea first. Perhaps the future Princess Consort hasn't finished choosing yet. I imagine she will be here soon."
Meow~
The tablecloth was quickly lifted and dropped. A snow-white cat paced leisurely, stopped at Xiao Yi's feet, and rubbed against his shoes.
"Xiaobai." Xiao Yi bent down and picked up the white cat. "Where is your master?"
Xiaobai meowed twice and nestled obediently in Xiao Yi's arms, a stark contrast to how it bristled when facing Cui Yunchu.
Sure enough, even a cat knew that the weak were easy to bully.
Eunuch Liu smiled from the side. "The future Princess Consort takes great care of Xiaobai, bringing it everywhere she goes. It shows her dedication to Your Highness."
Xiao Yi's brow relaxed.
It was as if days of anxiety and restlessness had found a moment of peace right then.
That was something only Cui Yunfeng could bring him.
The white cat lay in Xiao Yi's arms, but its gaze was fixed tightly on the dining table, not leaving for a moment. It licked its lips from time to time, clearly craving the food.
Xiao Yi picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of roast goose, threw it on the floor, and patted Xiaobai. "Go on."
The cat immediately jumped down.
Eunuch Liu said, "The future Princess Consort is indeed very attentive to Your Highness. Everything prepared here is what Your Highness loves to eat."
Xiao Yi curled his lips, his gaze softly watching the greedy white cat on the floor.
As time slowly passed, the softness in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by an impending, stormy gloom and a tense posture.
His wrist resting on the armrest trembled slightly. A chilling cold wrapped around him madly like a venomous snake, piercing to the bone.
"Y-Your Highness..." Eunuch Liu's voice trembled, and he fell to the ground on his backside in terror.
