It was already late morning when Chu Qing groggily woke up.
As if hearing some noise, Lvluo and Liuxin lifted the curtain and walked in. They served Chu Qing to get out of bed, change the dressing and put on fresh clothes.
After everything was in order, Lvluo slowly said, "My Lady, the Side Princess has been waiting for you in the front hall since early morning."
Noticing that the little maid had deliberately waited until now to tell her, Chu Qing didn't blame her. Instead, she just curled her lips into a smile and asked, "How long has she been here?"
"Almost two hours," Lvluo replied, pouting.
...
After Chu Qing went missing yesterday, Lvluo and Liuxin stopped their bickering and searched around Xingfu Temple together for several rounds. It was not until their Side Princess, Xu Xin, showed up and said that Chu Qing might have gotten bored and returned to the mansion first that the two of them followed her back.
But when they got back to the mansion, Chu Qing was still not there.
Only then did they realize that Chu Qing was really missing.
...
Because they thought the Side Princess had delayed their search for their mistress, Lvluo now couldn't stand the sight of her.
"She can really be patient, as always," Chu Qing responded calmly after hearing Lvluo's answer.
"My Lady, if you're tired, I'll go and tell the Side Princess," Liuxin said, seeing that there was still a hint of weariness between Chu Qing's eyebrows.
"No need. I'll go and see what she wants to do today," Chu Qing said. Then she got up and walked towards the front hall.
...
The patience of Xu Xin and her maid, who had been waiting in the front hall, had worn thin.
Seeing Xu Xin's completely darkened face, Qiangwei whispered, "My Lady, why don't we go back first? You've been waiting for so long. Go back and have something to eat."
"I've waited this long. I don't mind waiting a bit longer. I'd like to see if Chu Qing can still be so calm later!" Just as she finished speaking, Xu Xin saw Chu Qing walking slowly towards them.
Hiding her impatience, Xu Xin forced a smile and stepped forward to greet her.
"Is Sister feeling better?"
Seeing Xu Xin approaching, Chu Qing stopped walking and replied with a faint smile, "I'm fine."
Then she discreetly hid her wrist in her wide sleeve.
Xu Xin naturally didn't notice Chu Qing's action. She stared intently at Chu Qing's face, hoping to see a panicked look on it.
However, Chu Qing didn't live up to her expectations and remained expressionless.
Xu Xin secretly gritted her teeth, then changed her expression and continued with a worried look, "Sister, those people kidnapped you. Nothing bad happened, right? If something did happen, don't be sad. The Prince is always magnanimous and will surely understand your helplessness."
Chu Qing's face instantly turned cold, and a glint of killing intent flashed in her eyes.
Sure enough, the fox had shown its tail.
She had already suspected Xu Xin. Now, with this kind of behavior, her suspicion was confirmed!
"How do you know I was kidnapped?" Chu Qing stepped closer to Xu Xin, narrowing her eyes.
Xu Xin was stunned and was about to defend herself, but Chu Qing didn't give her a chance.
"I remember that it was the Prince who brought me back to the mansion yesterday. It was too late, so he dismissed everyone without saying anything. Where did you hear that I was kidnapped?"
"I... I heard it from others! There are rumors outside that you were kidnapped by villains!" Xu Xin was frightened by Chu Qing's coldness and involuntarily took a few steps back until Qiangwei supported her.
"Oh? Who did you hear it from? Why don't you bring that person here so that I can confront her properly," Chu Qing curled her lips.
Xu Xin averted her eyes and quickly said, "It... it was the servants who said it! I didn't see who it was, so I don't know who said it!"
"Oh?" Chu Qing's eyes turned colder, "There are actually servants daring to gossip in the mansion? Maybe the punishment I gave last time was too light. If a caning can't deter them, maybe I should follow the example of the predecessors and learn how to make a 'human pig'?"
Hearing the term "human pig", Xu Xin's face instantly turned ashen with panic.
Seeing Xu Xin like this, Chu Qing walked up leisurely, reached out and pinched Xu Xin's chin, frowned and said,
"Why does Sister look so pale? It seems... you look so guilty."
"Ah! Could it be that Sister spread these rumors to frame me?" Chu Qing suddenly let go of Xu Xin's chin and showed a rather surprised expression.
"What's going on here?"
Wei Ying walked in at some unknown time. Seeing Chu Qing and Xu Xin standing facing each other, he asked.
Xu Xin seemed to see a savior. She immediately looked at Wei Ying with tears in her eyes, looking pitiful.
"Your Highness... Sister she..."
"Zizhan~ There are rumors that I was kidnapped by villains last night!" Chu Qing didn't hesitate to interrupt Xu Xin. Instead of her usual teasing or calm look, she instantly looked aggrieved.
Seeing Chu Qing's eyes turning red, her misty eyes staring at him, and her voice becoming soft and tinged with sobs, and even directly calling him Zizhan affectionately.
Although he knew she was acting, Wei Ying still felt as if something was tickling his heart, making it itch and tingle.
Seeing Wei Ying staring at her in a daze, Chu Qing softly called him again.
Although Chu Qing was pretending to be aggrieved on the surface, she was actually extremely panicked inside. She didn't know if Wei Ying would expose her or think she was being disgusting.
Then, Chu Qing was suddenly pulled into someone's arms.
It turned out that Wei Ying had walked up to her at some unknown time and pulled her into his arms.
Feeling Chu Qing's body tremble in his arms, Wei Ying raised his eyebrows and said, "Where did you hear this, Qingqing? I'll kill that person myself to avenge you."
Although it was meant to be a comforting word, it sounded different when Wei Ying said it.
Chu Qing took a deep breath silently, reached out and hugged Wei Ying's waist, then rubbed her head against his chest and whispered, "It was Sister Xin'er who told me."
Xu Xin, who had been stunned by Chu Qing's series of reactions for a long time, finally came to her senses when she heard her name. Then she saw Chu Qing being held in the arms of the Prince of Ning.
At this moment, Xu Xin was almost consumed by jealousy and hatred.
She didn't know that Chu Qing had such a side!
"Xin'er... Xin'er also heard it from others! Didn't Your Highness rescue Sister from the villains?" Xu Xin swallowed her jealousy and looked up with a wronged look.
Wei Ying glanced at Xu Xin obliquely and said unhurriedly,
"Who told you that I... rescued the Princess from the villains?"