She refused to marry.

Su Wanwan rested her chin on her hand. "Isn't that right?"

"Since Miss Su is going to have him marry into her family, doesn't she have any thoughts about seeing other women now?" Xiao Xuanjing leaned down and whispered in her ear.

Su Wanwan smelled that refreshing scent again, an unknown fragrance mixed with his unique scent, which was very comforting.

Then, a thought struck him, and he frowned, glancing sideways as he asked, "Did His Majesty send someone to investigate me?"

Xiao Xuanjing didn't expect her to turn her head, and they almost bumped into each other.

That small, lovely face suddenly came into view, and her chest tightened. She quickly straightened up. "It's common knowledge in the capital that Miss Su is looking for a husband to marry into her family."

Su Wanwan's cheeks were puffed up with anger. It must be because Zhou Lingyi publicized it so well that everyone knew about it.

"What, not going out to vent your anger?" Xiao Xuanjing opened the window wider.

Su Wanwan hurriedly reached out and closed the window. "Why take it out on something like this? Just like me and Your Majesty, do you think we have some kind of secret affair?"

"That woman was practically clinging to her, but Miss Su didn't seem to care." Xiao Xuanjing narrowed his eyes; this little fox had quite the nerve.

"Oh dear, Lu Huai'an is so handsome. If I like him, others will naturally like him too." Su Wanwan waved her hand, sat back down, and began her second round of eating.

Xiao Xuanjing calmly sat back down in his seat.

She is truly different from other women.

She's a bit dim-witted.

"You don't mind that he has another woman in his heart?"

Su Wanwan smiled and said, "No, not at all."

Right now, I can't let Lu Huai'an attract Feng Chenjun's attention, so I'd better slip away quickly. "Your Majesty, have you finished eating?"

"No." Xiao Xuanjing had no appetite whatsoever and ordered the food on the table to be removed.

He ordered someone to bring him a pot of wine.

In addition, some fruits and desserts.

Xiao Xuanjing poured a glass of water in front of her.

Su Wanwan could tell from the strong smell of alcohol and the cloudy color of the glass that it was strong liquor.

"Your Majesty is injured; drinking alcohol is not good for your health," Su Wanwan said with concern.

"Miss Su is getting engaged. This was specially ordered for you." Xiao Xuanjing took a deep breath, trying to suppress his discomfort.

Su Wanwan held the cup; she had no choice but to drink it now.

She swallowed the strong liquor in one gulp, her throat burning, and a pungent smell reached her nose. Su Wanwan quickly sipped some tea.

About a short while later.

She felt her face burning and her head spinning.

I leaned my whole body against the window, trying to use the cool breeze outside to wake myself up from my sleepiness.

Her gaze fell on Xiao Xuanjing's face across from her. Under the influence of alcohol, she stared at him openly for the first time while he was awake.

He has an upright posture, a stern face, and an imposing aura. When he looks at people, he always seems to be scrutinizing and distant.

Yet it still captivates the heart.

"What are you looking at?" Xiao Xuanjing held his wine glass with his slender fingers, his gaze fixed on the woman. Was she really that bad at drinking?

The woman tilted her head, her eyelashes fluttering, and looked at him with a dazed expression. Gone was her usual cunning; only a soft, naive demeanor remained.

"Because you're good-looking..." Su Wanwan blinked and smiled.

Xiao Xuanjing's hand froze in mid-air. The strong liquor he had just drunk was churning wildly in his chest, and an unprecedented feeling stirred up ripples in his heart.

He looked down at the wine; it must be because of the wine.

Xiao Xuanjing put down the wine and looked at the woman calmly.

She looked even more beautiful than usual after drinking.

"Miss Su, you're drunk."

"I'm not drunk, I just look good. No wonder Shen Qingrong keeps telling me she wants to have the Emperor, that he's the best man in the world," Su Wanwan muttered.

"You're on good terms with her, so why did you plot against her?" Xiao Xuanjing's expression changed slightly.

Upon hearing his words, Su Wanwan recalled Shen Qingrong's usual words and actions towards her: feigning affection, intentionally trying to win her over, and casually mocking her.

Sweet-talking but ruthless; the needle pierces but draws no blood, yet the pain is excruciating.

Then I remembered the plot where I was stuck eighteen times and stabbed so many times. All those grievances came over me, and I leaned against the window, tears streaming down my face.

"Stop crying." Xiao Xuanjing couldn't bear to watch anymore. After hesitating for a moment, he took out a handkerchief.

Su Wanwan took the handkerchief, covered her nose, and tried her best not to cry out loud, afraid that Xiao Xuanjing would be unhappy and would kill her again.

After a long while, Su Wanwan calmed down a bit, then slumped against the windowsill, applying cool water to her swollen eyes.

Lu Huai'an's voice came from below, "Miss Qin, go back soon."

She instantly became more alert and craned her neck to look down.

Miss Qin's expression was no longer as enthusiastic as before, and she walked towards the boat with disappointment.

Lu Huai'an escorted her to the side of the boat.

Qin Zhaoning suddenly turned around and hugged Lu Huai'an.

Lu Huai'an tried to push her away, but the woman began to sob softly.

Su Wanwan was stunned.

Such a good girl, and Lu Huai'an didn't want her.

Did she delay Lu Huai'an?

The woman suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with affection as she gazed at Lu Huai'an. She stood on tiptoe and, in full view of everyone, kissed Lu Huai'an.

Su Wanwan blinked, sat up straight, and shook her head.

He stared at Lu Huai'an for a moment, then quickly took a step back, creating some distance between himself and the beauty.

"Miss Su, what do you think now?" Xiao Xuanjing smiled smugly, looking at Su Wanwan with a triumphant expression.

"I think I've held him back..." Su Wanwan got up, rested her head on the window, and stared blankly.

Lu Huai'an stood by the boat. The beauty had already boarded the boat, and the boatman slowly pulled away from the shore with a bamboo pole.

The beautiful woman stood at the stern of the boat, still looking back.

Lu Huai'an simply stood on the shore with his hands hanging down, looking elsewhere.

"He's such a good person, if I can be interested in him, then I can certainly be interested in other good girls too. This girl is so good, you can tell just by looking at her that she comes from a good family, is good-looking, and is good to him..." Su Wanwan murmured to herself.

Xiao Xuanjing's gaze narrowed slightly.

He had expected to see her jealous, angry, and questioning, but instead she was blaming herself.

An inexplicable sense of irritability welled up inside me, making me feel increasingly uncomfortable.

"Does Your Majesty know that woman?" Su Wanwan asked, turning around.

Xiao Xuanjing curled the corners of his lips and leaned forward, "The two of them are childhood sweethearts."

"Childhood sweethearts?" Su Wanwan murmured softly.

Before the Lu family was investigated, they must have been a prominent and influential family; otherwise, how could they have such a wonderful childhood sweetheart?

Besides, people still remember him fondly.

"Not only are they childhood sweethearts, but they also have a verbal engagement," Xiao Xuanjing added fuel to the fire.

"He's engaged?" Su Wanwan's dazed eyes suddenly cleared a bit. "Your Majesty knows quite a lot."

Su Wanwan lowered her head in self-reproach and gently tapped the window. "Su Wanwan, look what you've done..."

Unfortunately, the window was of poor quality and fell down with a "bang".

The sound caused quite a commotion, prompting people below to frequently peek out to watch.

Lu Huai'an also heard the noise and turned around slightly.

Su Wanwan hurriedly covered her head, squatted down, and crawled under the table.

Xiao Xuanjing looked out the window and met Lu Huai'an's gaze. He smiled and raised his glass in a gesture of greeting.

Lu Huai'an nodded in response.

My gaze fell on the window; there must have been someone there just now.