Nong Nu Jiao

Cen Lingyi looked up and suddenly saw Yan Chenghui, her heart skipped a beat.

She curtsied and said, "This servant greets Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Song Mingchi and the other two also bowed.

When Cen Wanrou saw Yan Chenghui, she was also taken aback and subconsciously looked at her younger sister.

As the older sister, she naturally knew about the relationship between Cen Lingyi and Yan Chenghui.

But I wonder what the current situation is between my sister and His Highness the Crown Prince?

Yan Chenghui's clear gaze fell on Cen Lingyi.

For a moment, no one spoke, and the atmosphere became tense.

"Mother, mother..."

Yan Huaijiao's childish voice broke the tense atmosphere as she reached out her two small hands to touch Cen Lingyi.

Just now at the banquet, he started making a fuss about wanting Cen Lingyi. Lingzhi couldn't coax him anymore, so Yan Chenghui took him in his arms.

He was overjoyed to see Cen Lingyi at this moment.

Upon hearing this, Cen Wanrou's eyes widened in astonishment as she looked at her younger sister again.

Is this the child of my sister and His Highness the Crown Prince?

But back then, didn't my sister leave His Highness the Crown Prince and marry Lu Huaiyou?

"This is the child of His Highness the Crown Prince and His Highness the Crown Princess. He can't speak very well yet, which is why he calls me that."

Cen Lingyi whispered an explanation to her, then took two steps forward and reached out to take Yan Huaijiao's hand.

"daughter."

Yan Huaijiao hugged her face and kissed her.

Cen Wanrou blinked but didn't say anything.

This child resembles His Highness the Crown Prince in his features, but also somewhat resembles his younger sister. He is clearly the child of his younger sister and His Highness the Crown Prince.

Why does my sister say no?

"Your Highness, stop fooling around."

As soon as Cen Lingyi held the little one, her expression softened considerably.

"Since you are serving in the Eastern Palace, and you have found your sister, take her to the Eastern Palace."

Yan Chenghui gazed at her, his tone indifferent.

Cen Lingyi was stunned and remained silent for a moment.

Should I take my sister to the East Palace?

She hadn't thought about it.

She will be leaving the East Palace in a few days. Will it be difficult to bring her sister and Lingzhi with her when she does?

But didn't Xia Qinghe say he would help her?

"Your Highness, Miss Cen has been staying at my residence..."

Lu Huaiyou still wanted to keep Cen Wanrou.

He knew Cen Lingyi's loyal and affectionate nature; keeping Cen Wanrou was the same as keeping Cen Lingyi.

He was unwilling to let Cen Wanrou go so easily.

"Has Lord Lu forgotten what day it is today?"

Yan Chenghui glanced at him sideways, his gaze sharp and menacing.

Lu Huaiyou couldn't help but shiver and swallowed the rest of his words.

Today he is marrying Princess Anshun, and the Second Prince is in the main hall. If he finds out about this, he probably won't let him off the hook.

He hasn't yet firmly established himself in the court, so playing it safe is the best policy.

"Lord Lu would be better off going inside to greet the guests."

Song Mingchi also spoke up, his tone full of sarcasm.

He disliked Yan Chenghui and despised Lu Huaiyou.

Lu Huaiyou is a complete scoundrel who only knows how to lie, deceive, and take advantage of others' misfortunes.

"This humble official takes his leave."

Lu Huaiyou had nothing to say, bowed to Yan Chenghui, and left.

Yan Chenghui met Song Mingchi's gaze.

Neither of them spoke, and the tension was palpable.

"Thank you, Your Highness, for taking my sister in."

Cen Lingyi curtsied at the court banquet, receiving the imperial bow.

"Lingyi..."

Song Mingchi frowned as he looked at her, a hint of worry in his eyes.

Entering the East Palace is easy, but getting out is not.

Cen Lingyi gave him a reassuring look.

Since Yan Chenghui requested it, she would let her sister go to the East Palace with her.

Anyway, he never expected that she would leave with her sister and Lingzhi.

Even if he knew, he probably wouldn't care—and if he did care, it would be about the hatred he hadn't expressed.

It's just a pity for the little one in my arms; I wonder how many more days he'll cry?

Song Mingchi understood immediately and said no more.

Yan Chenghui watched them exchanging glances right in front of him, and his fist clenched so tightly it cracked slightly.

"Your Highness, the young prince seems to be sleeping. This servant will take him back first."

Cen Lingyi spoke softly.

Yan Chenghui remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

At the gate of the Lu residence, he watched as the Cen sisters helped each other into the carriage, and waved to Yun Que beside him.

"Your Highness."

Yun Que immediately stepped forward.

"Have someone keep an eye on her and forbid her from having any further contact with Song Mingchi."

Yan Chenghui gave the instructions in a low voice.

"Yes."

Yun Que agreed, but felt very uneasy.

If Your Highness can restrain Miss Cen, how can they possibly restrain her?

They dared not offend Miss Cen!

Inside the carriage, the glass lamps illuminated the interior brightly.

Lingzhi was driving the carriage ahead.

"Little sister, he... he's really not your child?"

Cen Wanrou sized up Yan Huaijiao's appearance and asked Cen Lingyi uncertainly.

The more she looked at the child, the more he resembled her younger sister. Moreover, the child and her younger sister were very close. If they weren't mother and son, how could they be so affectionate?

"Sister, I am his wet nurse. He is the eldest son of the Crown Prince and his consort. How could he be my child?"

Cen Lingyi was both amused and exasperated, and explained it again.

On the way here, she had already told her sister about her recent situation.

"But he looks a lot like you."

Cen Wanrou still didn't quite believe her.

"Maybe it's because I raised him? He'll look like whoever he was breastfed with?"

Cen Lingyi carried the little guy a little further away and examined his appearance.

"eat."

Yan Huaijiao pointed to the snacks on the small table and asked her to give them to him.

"Your Highness can only eat a little bit; eating too much will cause indigestion."

Cen Lingyi took the pastry and broke off a small piece for him.

Yan Huaijiao took it and brought it to her lips, smiling happily.

Cen Lingyi couldn't help but smile. Did Yan Huaijiao look like her? She couldn't tell.

But when he smiles, he really does look just like Yan Chenghui.

"Are these pastries from Yuzhaifang?"

Cen Wanrou asked a question.

"No, it's a white rice cake I made for him. Sister, please try it." Cen Lingyi handed her a piece and explained with a smile, "It's made by grinding fox nuts, poria cocos, yam, and lily bulbs into a fine powder, mixing it with milk, and steaming it. It's good for nourishing the spleen and stomach."

"It's not too sweet, and it has a light milky aroma." Cen Wanrou took a bite. "My sister's cooking skills have improved so much lately?"

"This child is lovable; I'll make him something when I have some free time."

Cen Lingyi looked at the little guy.

Yan Huaijiao was munching on a snack when he saw Cen Lingyi looking at him, so he grinned at her.

Seeing his adorable appearance, Cen Lingyi's heart melted, and tears welled up in her eyes.

She's about to leave, so let's make some snacks for the little one.

While taking care of the little guy these days, she unknowingly learned how to make many snacks suitable for him.

*

"Orchid, has His Highness returned?"

Sun Peihuan leaned against the soft couch in the room and asked impatiently.

Today is Lu Huaiyou's wedding day. Your Highness only brought the Crown Princess. Why didn't you take her with you?

No, Cen Lingyi went along too, taking that little bastard with her.

She gets irritated just thinking about it.

"Liangyuan, there's still no news from the front, but it's getting late, it should be soon."

Lan Hua stepped forward to comfort her.

Sun Peihuan frowned, about to speak.

Lotus hurried in from outside: "Liangyuan..."

"What is it?"

Sun Peihuan was in a bad mood and asked a question in a rude tone.

Lotus stepped forward and bent down, saying, "The arsonist of Fahua Temple has been identified."

"Who is it!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Peihuan suddenly sat up.

"He's a young novice monk from Fahua Temple; someone is behind him."

Lotus lowered her voice.

"Who ordered this? Where is that young novice monk?"

Sun Peihuan stood up, her eyebrows raised.

Someone was definitely trying to harm her!

"Yes...it's the Crown Princess."

Lotus lowered its head and said.

"The Crown Princess?" Sun Peihuan was greatly shocked and furious: "Are you sure?"

Xia Qinghe was a very kind person, and she was always gentle and pleasant to her. Even though she didn't follow the rules in front of Xia Qinghe, Xia Qinghe never held it against her, and always said that she treated her like a younger sister.

When she encountered problems, she would complain to Xia Qinghe, who would always comfort her gently.

Now, it turns out that Xia Qing was the one who set the fire and tried to burn her to death.

"How could the young master's men have made a mistake?" Lotus said, "I've told you before, one should always be wary of others, for you can only know a person's face, not their heart, my lady."

She knew all along that there was no simple woman in the inner quarters of the Eastern Palace.

However, Liangyuan in her family is simple-minded and protected by her father and brothers, so she has no sense of wariness towards others.

"Damn bitch!"

Sun Peihuan swept the tea set off the table, furious.

She had always thought Xia Qinghe was a good person, and she never expected him to try to kill her right away.

Xia Qinghe must be jealous of her favor with the prince, so he tried every means to get rid of her.

Thinking of this, she turned and walked out.

"Liangyuan, where are you going?"

Lotus quickly chased after it.

The orchids followed suit.

"I'm going to see His Highness and ask him to uphold justice for me!"

As Sun Peihuan spoke, she stepped over the threshold.

"You absolutely mustn't, Lady Consort," Lotus said, pulling her back. "That young novice monk committed suicide after being questioned, so there's no way to verify anything now. If you go to His Highness now and accuse the Crown Princess, you won't have a valid argument."

"Never mind that."

Sun Peihuan shook off her hand.

His Highness has been so good to her, even risking his life to save her, how could he not avenge her?

Lotus and Orchid knew they couldn't dissuade her, so they had no choice but to follow her to the front of Mingde Courtyard.

The gates of Mingde Hall were tightly closed; Yan Chenghui had gone to a banquet at the Lu residence and had not yet returned.

Sun Peihuan waited until midnight but Yan Chenghui did not appear. She had no choice but to return to her courtyard for the time being, thinking she would come to find him again the next day.

Yan Chenghui did not return to Mingde Hall until noon the next day.

He went to the outskirts again to discuss the renovation of the palace.

"Your Highness, the head of the Construction Department of the Ministry of Works is a confidant of the Second Prince's father-in-law. Now that he has been arrested and interrogated, the Second Prince will probably not let it go. He may even come to our door today."

Yun Que followed into the main hall.

"Don't worry about it for now."

Yan Chenghui sat down at his desk and rubbed his forehead with his hand.

"Then shall I assist Your Highness in bathing and changing, and have you rest for a while?"

Yun Que inquired.

Yan Chenghui lowered his hand, glanced at him, and said nothing.

Yun Que, suddenly inspired, raised his hand and called out, "Yun Palace."

How could he forget to report Miss Cen's situation?

"Your Highness, I have inquired," Yun Gong said as she entered. "Consort Sun came to see you last night and didn't return to her courtyard until midnight. She must have already found out that the person who set fire to Fahua Temple was the Crown Princess."

As soon as he finished speaking, the inner hall fell silent.

Yan Chenghui looked up at him without saying a word.

"Apart from that, there's nothing else..."

Yun Gong seemed increasingly unsure of himself as he spoke, glancing anxiously at Yun Que.

Did he miss something?

My subordinates haven't reported any other news...

"What is Miss Cen doing?"

Yun Que cleared his throat and asked.

Yun Gong suddenly realized and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, Miss Cen sent someone out early this morning to buy all sorts of ingredients. She paid for them herself, and she's making pastries in the side hall right now."

Yan Chenghui lowered his long eyelashes and asked softly, "What kind of desserts are you making?"

Are the servants in the side hall not enough for her? She prefers to do things herself.

"It should be made for His Highness."

Yun Gong scratched his head.

"Your Highness, please rest for a while. Miss Cen's snacks will be served when you wake up."

Yun Que nudged him and spoke with a smile.

Yan Chenghui remained silent, rose and headed towards the inner palace, but turned back halfway and said to Yun Que, "Don't go looking for her."

He wanted to see if she would bring him some snacks on her own initiative.

"Yes."

Yun Que bowed his head in response.