A voice came from inside the room, "Yes."
Liu Ying pushed the door open gracefully and walked in. When she glanced at the couch, her face flushed crimson instantly.
Behind the bed curtain, the young master had pinned Miss Wei onto the bed. The quilt was in an embarrassing shape. The young master was holding Miss Wei's delicate wrist and whispering endearments in her ear. Miss Wei's face was as red as a ripe apple, struggling and murmuring softly.
Liu Ying's face turned bright red. Without even putting down the snacks, she turned around and rushed out of the room.
Seeing her fleeing in a hurry, Cui Huan closed the door gently and a faint smile played on her lips.
By the candlelight, Yu Zixi's bright black eyes sparkled like stars in the sky. He gently put his arm around Wei Dongling's slender waist and whispered, "Dongling, I'm going to Yangu Mountain with my master tonight. I won't be in the capital for a few days. After much thought, I think it's the safest for you to stay in the Prince's Mansion."
Wei Dongling blushed slightly. Raising her eyebrows, she asked in a low voice, "When do you think you'll be back? I want to expose the Zhao family's secret iron ore trade with Xiliang. It's so frustrating to always be on the defensive."
Yu Zixi stroked Wei Dongling's baby - smooth face with his fingertips. A look of pain flashed across his eyes. He sighed and said, "Dongling, I'm sorry. I failed to protect you well. I'll make the Zhao family pay for what they've done. As for the Young Master Mingyang from Xiliang, let the Crown Prince's men investigate secretly. You just focus on recovering from your injuries."
Wei Dongling's eyes widened in surprise, "What?"
Yu Zixi gently kissed her lips and sighed, "In a few days, I want to take you to meet someone."
Wei Dongling pushed Yu Zixi's face and said anxiously, "But I want to deal with the Zhao family myself."
Yu Zixi lay on his side and gently put his arm around her waist. He whispered, "I'm planning to clear Prime Minister Su's name. Let the Crown Prince handle the matter of the secret communication with Xiliang. He's lame. He has nothing better to do anyway."
Wei Dongling said in a daze, "I saw the Crown Prince today. His leg is almost healed."
"He's lame again."
Wei Dongling was shocked and asked, "When did this happen?"
Yu Zixi touched his nose, "Before it got dark."
Wei Dongling:......
Yu Zixi rubbed his chin against the back of Wei Dongling's hand and whispered, "Once the charges of harming loyal officials and colluding with other countries are confirmed, no matter how intricate the Zhao family's influence is, it will surely fall apart. After the Crown Prince achieves this merit, he'll probably swagger around for a while."
Wei Dongling felt more at ease. It seemed that everything was under Yu Zixi's control.
Yu Zixi suddenly said in a displeased tone, "Stay in the Prince's Mansion and recuperate for a while. Don't fall in love with him. Do you hear me?"
This "him" naturally referred to Shangguan Yun.
Wei Dongling:......
Seeing that she didn't say a word, Yu Zixi was a bit annoyed and gently bit her lips.
Wei Dongling pushed his face away and asked in a low voice with a blushing face, "What does your master want? Does he want you to restore the country?"
Yu Zixi was shocked. He was silent for a moment and didn't say a word.
Wei Dongling asked in a low voice again, "Whose tomb was that we paid respects to that day?"
Yu Zixi sighed dejectedly, "That tomb contains my father's remains. We couldn't even erect a tombstone for him. I want to bury him with our ancestors openly."
Wei Dongling reached out and gently hugged Yu Zixi. She buried her face in his arms. Her eyes were a bit red and she murmured in a low voice, "My father is the same. There's not even a tomb for his clothes and hat."
Yu Zixi stroked the soft long hair of the person in his arms. Closing his eyes, he said softly, "My father's body was left in the wilderness and no one dared to bury him. It was Prime Minister Su who buried him there later."
Tears glistened in Wei Dongling's eyes. She hugged Yu Zixi tightly.
Yu Zixi sighed and said, "There may be some turmoil for a while before I can give you a peaceful life. But please believe me. My heart is full of you."
Wei Dongling nodded gently. She said to him with a bit of distress, "The jade pendant you gave me... I broke it."
Yu Zixi looked at Wei Dongling with burning eyes. He ruffled her hair and smiled gently, "It doesn't matter. I'll give you a better one in the future."
Wei Dongling buried her head in his arms. Although the wounds on her body still ached faintly, the smell of Yu Zixi made her feel very safe.
When they returned to the Prince's Mansion, the night was pitch - black.
Yu Zixi asked the servant to take her to the gate of the Prince's Mansion. Cui Huan carried her back to the guest room. From afar, Wei Dongling saw that the lamp in Shangguan Yun's bedroom was still on. After thinking for a while, she didn't dare to go and bother him.
The mattress in the guest room was soft and comfortable. Wei Dongling lay down on it and fell asleep immediately. She slept until dawn.
When she woke up the next day, Cui Huan had already got up and gone to the kitchen to get breakfast for her. There were egg custard, glutinous rice cakes and shrimp and vegetable porridge, filling half of the table.
Cui Huan carefully helped Wei Dongling sit up and handed her the food.
Wei Dongling bit into a glutinous rice cake and asked her in a muffled voice, "Did you hear any sound last night when you were sleeping?"
Cui Huan pouted with dark circles under her eyes and replied, "I didn't hear anything."
Wei Dongling was surprised. She had heard someone playing the tune "Fireworks Fade Quickly" from afar all night. Was it just a hallucination?
After Wei Dongling finished eating and Cui Huan cleaned up, she went to boil medicine for her.
Just as Wei Dongling was drinking the medicine, a servant brought in Second Master Qi and Qi Jinxuan.
Second Master Qi came into the guest room and sat down. Behind the screen, Wei Dongling quickly wanted to get up to pay her respects. Second Master Qi waved his hand repeatedly and said, "Dongling, don't get up. Your uncle was a bit worried about you at first. But seeing that you're being taken care of so well in the Prince's Mansion, I feel much more at ease. Recover from your injuries well. I'll come and pick you up when you're fully recovered."
Wei Dongling nodded with tears in her eyes.
Second Master Qi gave a few more instructions and then went to the main hall with Shangguan Yun to drink tea and express his gratitude.
Qi Jinxuan pulled Wei Dongling and looked her up and down. Seeing that her complexion was better than yesterday, she was very happy. She asked Lv Kou to hand over a box, took out a delicate gold hairpin from it and stuffed it into Wei Dongling's hand. She smiled gently and said, "I passed by Baocui Fang just now and picked this for you. Do you like it?"
Wei Dongling held the heavy gold hairpin and grinned from ear to ear, "It's so beautiful! It must have cost a lot of silver, right?"
Qi Jinxuan held Wei Dongling's hand and said with heartache, "You got hurt like this in the palace to save me. I feel so bad when I think about it. I thought that you haven't had any decent jewelry for so long. This hairpin is the latest style in their shop. I think you'll like it."
Wei Dongling nodded quickly and said with a smile, "I like it! I like it so much!"
She was so poor. How could she not like something made of gold!
Qi Jinxuan nodded and said, "When you and Young Master Yu get married in the future, I'll pick out a set of good headdresses for your dowry. Although we're a bit of a humble match, we can't be shabby, right?"
Wei Dongling was really overjoyed that the young lady was willing to treat her like this. She nodded excitedly.
"By the way, I have something else to tell you." Qi Jinxuan waved her hand and asked everyone to go out.
Lv Kou and Cui Huan got up and left, carefully closing the door behind them.
Qi Jinxuan whispered, "My father sent a letter home."
Wei Dongling was shocked and asked, "General Qi sent a letter home? What did he say?"