Where is the early stage of the marriage alliance?

"I have heard that the Crown Prince of Chu has been poisoned. What is his condition now? Is his life in danger?"

Xiao Ce's eyes shifted slightly. When he entered the palace just now, Bai Xu was working on detoxifying him.

"Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Lu is currently treating Prince Ling, and the poison should have been neutralized by now."

He was absolutely confident in Bai Xu's medical skills.

"That's good, that's good."

Emperor Liang murmured a few words, but his expression still held some hesitation, his brows furrowed slightly, as if he had something left to say. Xiao Ce saw this clearly and stood still, not in a hurry to leave.

"I have one more question."

Emperor Liang's hesitation was obvious, and Xiao Ce noticed it immediately.

"Your Majesty, please speak freely."

"In a couple of days, I will summon the Chu delegation to the palace to discuss the border market in detail. What are your thoughts on establishing a border market, Ce'er?"

His gaze was fixed intently on Xiao Ce, as if he were earnestly awaiting an answer. Xiao Ce lowered his head, pondering without a decision, before finally raising his eyes after a moment.

"Trade between the two countries is beneficial to both nations and their people, and is indeed a feasible strategy."

Emperor Liang nodded slowly, his face showing approval, but the hidden worry deep in his eyes could not be concealed.

"Ce'er, how is your relationship with that princess of Chu?"

Xiao Ce was taken aback upon hearing this. After a moment's hesitation, a hint of difficulty appeared on his face. His lips moved slightly, but he ultimately remained silent.

"I already know that Ling Heng's trip to Jinling to discuss the establishment of the border market was merely a means to an end. His true purpose is to take away the Princess of Chu. I imagine that once the border market matter is settled, he will take the opportunity to demand her. Therefore, I am asking for your opinion first. If you have no feelings for the Princess, I will let her return to her country. But if you have feelings for her, I will leave her with you no matter what."

"No need, thank you Your Majesty."

His tone was resolute, and his face was cold and expressionless.

"Let her go if she wants to; forcing her to stay is ultimately pointless."

Emperor Liang knew that Xiao Ce was always very opinionated, and that further words would be useless, so he could only wave his hand helplessly.

"That's enough, you may leave."

"Yes."

Watching that figure resolutely step out of the palace gate, Emperor Chu finally sighed repeatedly.

"Dequan! Tell me, does Ce'er truly have feelings for the Princess of Chu, or is he indifferent to her?"

Li Dequan bowed his head, a knowing smile playing on his lips. Having served the emperor for decades, he was already a master at understanding people's hearts.

"In my humble opinion, what the Crown Prince meant by saying he would let the Crown Princess leave if she wanted to is actually... he secretly hopes she won't leave!"

"You think you know everything!"

Emperor Liang raised his eyes and looked again at the figure that had long since disappeared through the door, having already made his decision.

……

"Imperial Physician Lu, what exactly is the poison that my brother has been afflicted with?"

Ling Xi, watching Lu Baixu writing furiously at the table, couldn't help but speak up. Lu Baixu's hand paused slightly, but he didn't look up. He simply lowered his eyes and continued writing the prescription, his handwriting steady and powerful.

"The poison that Prince Ling has been afflicted with is called Azure Blood. I once traveled to the Jin Kingdom and saw it once, so it is quite normal that the doctors in Jinling City do not recognize it."

"The Jin Dynasty?"

Ling Xi's expression changed slightly. She had always believed that Mu Wanning had poisoned her, and had never considered this possibility before. Could it be... that the Jin people had secretly intervened? Had she... wrongly accused someone?

Lu Baixu waited a while for her to react before putting down his pen, looking up at her. He saw that she was deep in thought, so he frowned slightly, his jaw tightened, and a fleeting look of helplessness crossed his eyes.

"Young Master Ling has been poisoned for several days now."

"How many days?"

Ling Xi suddenly looked up. Although she and Lu Baixu were not close, she had always thought he was a steady and reliable person, and his words were never empty.

If what he said is true... then she really misunderstood Mu Wanning, and also misunderstood Xiao Ce? But clearly, after Xiao Ce returned from Yunqi Courtyard, he drove Xian away. How can this be explained? Or did he simply find out that Xian Yue was his mother's person?

Lu Baixu's words left Ling Xi in a state of unspeakable conflict for the entire afternoon.

Yesterday, she was still full of resentment and stormed into Yunqi Courtyard to question Xiao Ce, shouting at him without regard for his feelings. Now, she felt a mix of emotions, but she couldn't bring herself to apologize.

Xiao Ce didn't come to the embassy again, presumably returning directly to the Prince's residence from the palace. Ling Xi felt increasingly heavy-hearted as she thought about it. Despite being questioned and misunderstood, Xiao Ce had disregarded past grievances and even sought out Lu Baixu that very night to treat her brother. This act of repaying evil with kindness only made her feel awkward, and even as darkness gradually fell, she still refused to return to the Prince's residence.

"Princess, shall we not return to the Prince's residence today?"

Pei Lan finally couldn't help but speak up after hearing her sigh softly for what seemed like the umpteenth time. Now that the princess was the crown prince's wife, it wouldn't be appropriate for her to stay out all night. Besides, Imperial Physician Lu had already said that the crown prince would probably not wake up until tomorrow, so there was no point in the princess staying at Linfeng Courtyard.

Throughout the entire afternoon, the princess seemed distracted, and it wasn't entirely because she was worried about Prince Heng.

"Go back! There's no way to avoid it anyway..."

The first word was crisp and clear, which made Perrin pause slightly. The second half of the sentence was muttered very softly, but Perrin still heard it.

"What are we hiding from, Princess?"

"Perrin, what should you do if you misunderstand someone and get very angry with them?"

"Does the princess mean to mention the misunderstanding about the Crown Prince last night?"

Ling Xila nodded with a gloomy face, feeling slightly dejected.

"Then... how about we go apologize to the young master?"

Ling Xi sighed softly. Apologizing to Xiao Ce was barely feasible; she'd already gained experience giving him gifts, so an apology would be a good start. But apologizing to Mu Wanning? She simply couldn't do it!

Stepping into Chuixing Courtyard, all was still quiet in the darkness. This was always the case with Xiao Ce's courtyard; whenever he returned, she could never tell whether he was there or not.

It wasn't until she turned the corner in the corridor and saw a warm light shining through the study window that she realized he had returned.

Lu Ming, who was on duty at the door, spotted her immediately and quickly went to greet her.

Ling Xi's heart tightened suddenly. She had only seen Lu Ming, yet she felt a sudden pang of guilt and instinctively wanted to turn around and run away. But Lu Ming was extremely fast, taking a few steps forward and bowing respectfully.

"Princess Consort! The Prince requests your presence in the study."

study?!

Didn't Xiao Ce always forbid her from entering the study? Ling Xi was very surprised, feeling that this unusual behavior must be unusual.

"Guard Lu, are you sure the young master wants me to go to the study?"

Seeing the uncertainty and confusion on her face, Lu Ming suddenly remembered how he had stopped the Crown Princess at the door of the study last time, and suddenly understood.

"I confirm that this is what the Crown Prince said."

"All right……"

Ling Xi answered unconsciously, still looking puzzled.

"Princess Consort... In truth, the Prince is not targeting you. It's just that your status is special, and the Prince works in the Ministry of War. If something goes wrong, it's inevitable that you will be implicated..."