Where is the early stage of the marriage alliance?

Xiao Ce... brought her to Chuixing Courtyard? And even got a doctor for her?

Ling Xi propped herself up on the bed and sat up, shaking her groggy head. Still feeling unwell, she patted it hard with her hand.

"What is Your Highness doing? Does your head hurt?"

Perrin put down the porridge she had just brought and hurried over to help her sit down.

Her head didn't hurt, but she felt that everything in front of her was too unreal. It was one thing for Xiao Ce to call a doctor for her, but why did he bring her to Chuixing Courtyard?

"Where is the Crown Prince?"

"The Crown Prince went to court before dawn."

Perrin glanced out the window, then turned back.

"I reckon they should be heading back home soon."

Is he coming back soon?

A sudden sense of tension arose in Ling Xi's heart, and she couldn't help but carefully look around.

Xiao Ce's bedroom was extremely spacious, with a square layout, and showed no sign of extravagance.

The inner and outer rooms were separated by a sliding door. She couldn't see the outer room clearly, but in the inner room, there was a full-length ebony wardrobe on the left, and behind a screen on the right was a low cabinet and an ebony clothes rack. Beside the bed was a small table with a bronze candlestick and a tea set on it. Apart from that, there were no other superfluous decorations in the inner room. The whole room was cool and elegant, without a trace of extravagance, yet it exuded nobility in every detail.

"Princess, please have some porridge first."

Ling Xi looked at the steaming porridge that Pei Lan had brought out, but she had no appetite at all.

"Perrin, bring me my clothes."

"Why does the princess need clothes?"

Despite her doubts, Perrin still went to get the clothes from the hanger.

"Let's leave before Xiao Ce returns."

Ling Xi dressed somewhat clumsily while trying to get out of bed.

"Leave? But... the young master ordered us to move all of the princess's belongings to Chuixing Courtyard today, and said that the princess will live in Chuixing Courtyard from today onwards."

"You live here?!"

Ling Xi suddenly stopped putting on her boots and looked at Pei Lan standing to the side with a puzzled expression.

"Yes! The young master even had me and Wushuang move here too, to the side room next door."

Ling Xi seemed to suddenly remember something and looked at Pei Lan in surprise.

"Where did the Crown Prince sleep last night?"

"Sleep on the tatami mat in the outer room."

On the couch in the outer room? Ling Xi swallowed hard. She had taken Xiao Ce's bed and made him sleep on the couch?

"Let's go! Hurry up and pack our things."

"Why does the princess want to leave? The young master has now brought her to Chuixing Courtyard, which means he is willing to be close to her. Why must the princess leave?"

Intimacy? Ling Xi frowned, recalling the scene when she encountered Mu Wanning while delivering a cloak to Xiao Ce. She really couldn't stay here.

"Anyway, let's get going. Where's Wushuang? Tell her to pack her things too."

"Where are we going?"

A deep voice came from the outer room. Ling Xi looked up and saw Xiao Ce, dressed in a dark blue official robe, standing at the door between the inner and outer rooms. His official robe was crisp and his posture was upright. He exuded a coldness that kept strangers at a distance. Perhaps it was because of the official robe that he was already aloof, but at this moment he seemed even more dignified and majestic.

She quickly composed herself and sat on the edge of the bed, not daring to move.

"Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness, to find a doctor to treat me. I feel much better now that I've woken up, and I'm planning to return to Yuehua Courtyard."

Xiao Ce stood still at the door, without moving an inch.

"You can go down now."

With just a few words, Perrin immediately understood that he was being instructed, and quickly bowed and withdrew, leaving only the two of them in the room.

Xiao Ce remained standing in the same spot, his gaze fixed on her. His official robes made him appear even more serious, and his already deep-set eyes, now concealing his emotions, made him seem even more imposing and unpredictable.

He didn't speak, just watched quietly, as if weighing something. Ling Xi felt a chill run down her spine under his gaze, and subconsciously clenched her sleeve, lowering her eyes to avoid his gaze.

"Your yard is too cold and damp. The doctor said that your health is not suitable for living in such a place for a long time."

"That kind of place?" Ling Xi couldn't help but think to herself. Yuehua Courtyard was far inferior to his Chuixing Courtyard, but it was still the courtyard that their Prince Rui's Mansion had arranged for her.

She never complained about Yuehua Courtyard because although it was in a remote location, it was quiet and peaceful.

It's warm here, but what's their relationship? How can they share a room in the same courtyard?

Ling Xi looked up and saw him leaning lazily against the door frame with his arms crossed.

"Don't worry, you can have the bed; I'll sleep on the tatami mat in the outer room."

"No...that's not what I'm worried about."

Ling Xi hurriedly spoke up. If Mu Wanning came to cause trouble out of jealousy and hatred, she would find it troublesome. The key point was that his mother would not like to see her here either.

"Then what are you worried about?"

His gaze fell directly on me, carrying a hint of seriousness in his question.

"Aren't you afraid... Mu Wanning will misunderstand? I... I'm afraid of trouble."

Ling Xi felt that he should understand the unspoken meaning in his words, so she didn't want to say anything too harsh. After all, she and Xiao Ce could still barely get along peacefully.

"There won't be any trouble, you can settle in without worry."

His tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable air of authority. He then walked behind the screen and began to loosen his belt.

Once Ling Xi could see his movements through the light and shadow behind the screen, her gaze, which had been following his movements, froze and then immediately turned away.

Living together was quite inconvenient, but why did Xiao Ce seem so calm and composed?

That's true, he already has a child, so why would he need to avoid any suspicion of impropriety between men and women?

"Your elder brother will be arriving in Jinling soon, and I think you probably don't want him to know that our relationship is strained."

He changed his robes slowly and deliberately, his tone as calm as if he were talking about something trivial.

That's it! Her brother had traveled a long way to Jinling to see her; she couldn't let him worry. Xiao Ce certainly wasn't afraid of her brother finding out about these things, but she didn't want that. Ling Xi took a deep breath, without the slightest hesitation.

"Then... I'll have to trouble you, Your Highness."

"Don't worry, I'll move back to Yuehua Courtyard as soon as my brother leaves Jinling."

She seemed to be making some solemn promise, while he had already changed his clothes and walked out slowly. He was dressed in a plain white wide-sleeved casual suit, his shoulders and back were straight, and the cold sharpness between his brows and eyes seemed to have softened a bit, completely losing the fierceness he had when he entered the door.

It really looks good!

Ling Xi felt a sudden pang of unease, and seemed to have forgotten what to say.

……

Having slept too much during the day, Ling Xi was wide awake at night.

A sharp gust of sword wind came from outside the window; Xiao Ce had been practicing his sword for half an hour.

Even after practicing so much, I might not be as powerful as Wushuang. Thinking this, Ling Xi turned over again.

Not long after, I heard him return to the house, and then he came into the inner room. What was he doing in there?

As Ling Xi was guessing, she soon heard him getting his clothes, and a moment later, he went to the bathroom next door.

She only learned today while taking a bath that his bedroom was connected to the right wing room, which was used as a bathhouse. The floor had a small bathtub, and the servants would enter and exit through the main door of the wing room to change the water.

The underfloor heating was on, so Ling Xi felt no chill at all. The quilt was soft and fragrant, and the mattress beneath her was comfortable; it had been newly changed by Xiao Ce's orders that day.

But she still couldn't sleep. She was always particular about her bed, and if she hadn't been delirious with fever yesterday, she probably wouldn't have been able to sleep peacefully in Xiao Ce's bed.