The midsummer sun was scorching and stuffy. The wind blew across the face, but before one could feel a hint of coolness, it was back to the sweltering day. This was the first time the Third Prince had come to this place. It wasn't this hot in the capital. Moreover, the current emperor only had four sons, and princes were precious. No matter how down on his luck, he wouldn't be without ice in summer.
He followed Song Huaizhi forward. The heat was so unbearable that he couldn't help tugging at his clothes constantly. The young guard beside him, seeing his discomfort, could only find a fan and hand it to him.
"Mr. Song," the Third Prince took the fan and fanned himself vigorously a few times. Squinting his eyes, he said, "May I ask where you're taking me now?"
Song Huaizhi was wearing a crow - blue short shirt. At this moment, he looked rather unusually elegant like a young man. Hearing the Third Prince's question, he paused slightly in his steps, turned around, and replied, "Naturally, to a place where we can talk."
"A place where we can talk? Then how about going to..."
The Third Prince was about to say that they might as well go to his residence, but suddenly realized what Song Huaizhi meant. When he said to find a place where they could talk, it meant that his residence was not reliable. Maybe someone had infiltrated it.
How did this man know everything!
This time when he came here, he only brought a few guards and maids. All of them were from the palace and were the emperor's trusted aides assigned to his own son. No one would dare to touch them unless it was a crucial moment.
Unless that person wanted to slap the emperor in the face.
Wait! The Third Prince was deep in thought, and a person flashed through his mind in an instant. He couldn't help holding his breath, and his expression suddenly darkened.
There was also the wet - nurse.
Song Huaizhi just kept walking forward and didn't realize that the poor, fragile - hearted Third Prince was so sad that he stood still on the spot.
After walking a few steps, Song Huaizhi finally noticed that there were no more footsteps behind him. Frowning, he looked back and saw the Third Prince standing there with his head down.
Song Huaizhi: "..."
He almost forgot. Every time he used to meet the Third Prince, this man had already become a sinister and ruthless character. He always talked with a smile but stabbed people in the back after finishing.
The current Third Prince was just a poor lad who had just left the capital, been pushed out by others to take the blame, and had no maternal family to protect him.
Although he was strong enough, he was still just a sixteen - year - old boy after all, with a whole family holding him back. Just thinking about it made one want to cry.
Really...
The Third Prince felt his nose getting sour. He rubbed his eyes, frowned, and followed Song Huaizhi's steps without saying a word.
When they arrived at Song Huaizhi's teahouse and entered the private room, the Third Prince sat down stiffly like a wooden man and stared at Song Huaizhi in silence.
Song Huaizhi felt a bit of a headache. He didn't want to discuss matters with a childish kid, but at this moment, the Third Prince was all alone and couldn't even find someone to confide in, so he had become the reliable person in the Third Prince's eyes.
Thinking like this, Song Huaizhi inexplicably found it a bit funny, recalling the scenes of the two of them going head - to - head. He had never thought that he and the Third Prince would have such a day.
"Wait," Song Huaizhi ignored him indifferently and simply explained, "Yu Yu will be here soon."
"Oh," the Third Prince saw that this man ignored him, so he could only reply dryly. Then, not willing to give up, he probed, "Mr. Song is so cold, but he treats Miss Meng differently."
"Oh?" Song Huaizhi smiled, but the smile in his eyes froze. Looking at him, he said, "But what does this have to do with you?"
The Third Prince almost choked to death. He took a deep breath, suppressing his desire to turn around and leave in a huff. Then he sighed.
Although Song Huaizhi was venomous - tongued, seemed dangerous and annoying, he was the only one who had helped him.
Thinking like this, the Third Prince felt that Song Huaizhi wasn't that bad after all. So he looked at him and said, "May I ask how old Mr. Song is now? Twenty? Twenty - two?"
Song Huaizhi, who had just turned seventeen, remained silent.
Meng Ruyi happened to arrive at the door. Hearing this, she almost burst out laughing. She knocked on the door and said, "Brother Xiaosong, I'm here."
"Come in."
Meng Ruyi walked in and felt that the atmosphere inside was a bit tense. The Third Prince looked blank, not knowing where he had offended Song Huaizhi.
"Your Highness," Meng Ruyi sat down and added, "Brother Xiaosong has just turned seventeen."
"Really? Mr. Song is mature for his age and seems very reliable!"
Song Huaizhi was too lazy to look at him.
[Hahaha, I'm dying of laughter. Brother Xiaosong has suddenly aged a few years for no reason!]
[To be honest, if it weren't for Meng Ruyi saying so, I would have forgotten how old Song Huaizhi is.]
[I'm the same as the person above. Song Huaizhi looks young, but he does things so amazingly that he's like an elder who is much older.]
[Hahaha, I'm dying of laughter. What do you mean by "looks young"! Song Huaizhi is only seventeen! He's still a minor in our time!]
Cough cough.
Meng Ruyi accidentally caught a glimpse of the bullet comments and almost couldn't hide her expression. She coughed twice heavily in her heart before coming back to her senses and looking at the two people in front of her.
"Speak," Song Huaizhi said to the Third Prince.
"Mr. Song knows that the ostensible purpose of my trip is to take over the military affairs here, but in fact, I'm just a scapegoat pushed out by others," the Third Prince said. He couldn't help clenching his teeth, and his voice was tinged with anger. "I've also heard about what happened four years ago. I never thought that there would be such stupid people in my maternal family who dared to interfere in this matter."
"Now those people have been dealt with by General Gu. But this feud has been formed. In everyone's eyes, my trip will surely be difficult and doomed to end in failure."
There was no danger to his life, after all, the emperor only had four sons, and General Gu wouldn't dare to confront the emperor for the sake of this scapegoat, the Third Prince. But he was bound to suffer.
"But how could I return empty - handed?" The Third Prince looked at the teacup in his hand. His long eyelashes fluttered slightly, covering the burning ambition in his eyes.
"So I hope that Mr. Song and Miss Meng can give me a hand. When I go to the capital in the future, I will surely not forget your great kindness today."
Meng Ruyi looked at him, pursed her lips, and said, "We can help you."
The Third Prince suddenly raised his head. He didn't expect things to go so smoothly, so his eyes lit up as he looked at Meng Ruyi.
"But Brother Xiaosong and I won't show up in public," Meng Ruyi said calmly, her eyes steady. "We can help you at critical moments, but you have to handle the rest by yourself."
"Okay," the Third Prince said, standing up and bowing to the two of them. "Thank you both for helping me."
"But there are still many things you haven't done, and you can't interfere in that matter yet," Song Huaizhi looked at the Third Prince, smiling faintly. "There are some dirty people around you. Clean them up before you start doing things."
"Yes, I..." The Third Prince suddenly couldn't say the following words. After sitting down, he remained silent for a long time.
Meng Ruyi and Song Huaizhi glanced at each other. Neither of them interrupted the silence in the room and just quietly watched him.
"I've heard that there are often epidemics in this place in summer. If outsiders come here, they will surely be on tenterhooks, right?"