Chapter 99

As Jiang Xiurun spoke, she stood with her hands behind her back and her chest puffed out, perfectly embodying the demeanor of an arrogant person. However, her striking looks made every expression and gesture seem like a painting.

Her words were sharp and piercing, but her appearance was utterly captivating.

Feng Wu, unable to reconcile the love and hatred in his heart, was convinced that she was a thoroughly opportunistic woman!

Feng Liwu was as dull as they came.

Sure, he was good-looking, but how much better was he than Feng Wu? Yet this princess of Bo was utterly devoted to helping Feng Liwu.

It probably wasn’t love—she was just clinging to his power.

If Feng Liwu were to fall from grace, how much affection would she still have for that wooden block?

Suppressing the anger in his heart, Feng Wu pretended not to understand her sarcasm and smiled faintly.

“My elder brother is naturally suspicious. After spending so much time together, day in and day out, doesn’t he mind?”

Jiang Xiurun was surrounded by guards sent by Feng Liwu.

After the incident in Wei, she had even more guards, including two elderly men in their fifties with weathered faces and few words.

Their eyes, wrinkled at the corners, were like dark pools, seemingly able to see through anyone’s disguise.

These were supposedly renowned martial artists hired by the Crown Prince at great expense.

Their experience in the martial world was vast, and they could spot even the most skilled impersonators.

Thus, Jiang Xiurun was certain that Feng Wu’s ambiguous remark about “spending days together” would definitely reach Feng Liwu’s ears.

She suddenly looked up, ready to defend her innocence, but Feng Wu didn’t give her the chance.

He strode away with a flick of his sleeve.

Qian’er, standing beside Jiang Xiurun, couldn’t stand the sight of this fallen prince’s smugness.

She shouted after him, “The water I gave you earlier was laced with a sedative I spat out bit by bit over several days. It was a last resort, so please forgive me!”

Qian’er’s loud voice carried all the way to the carriage at the end of the alley.

Feng Wu, though slightly stiff, managed to board the carriage with some semblance of grace.

His attendants, however, couldn’t hold back and began retching.

Jiang Xiurun turned to Qian’er with a smile, but Qian’er wasn’t satisfied.

She whispered, “Should we drag that guy back and beat him up again?”

Jiang Xiurun shook her head.

Feng Liwu’s uncle, Wei Xun, was still in Feng Wu’s hands.

This was a matter of the royal family, and as an outsider, how could she intervene?

However, Feng Wu’s deliberate approach to her brother was truly despicable.

Jiang Xiurun planned to warn her brother about Feng Wu’s true nature and advise him to be cautious in the future.

After explaining Feng Wu’s background to Jiang Zhi, he was thoroughly frightened, worried that his hospitality toward Feng Wu might be misinterpreted by the Crown Prince as collusion with a fugitive prince aiming to overthrow the Qi dynasty.

Wenniang also looked guilty, blaming herself for insisting on going to the temple to give thanks while pregnant, which had led to this trouble.

Jiang Xiurun comforted them, “It’s clear that he had ulterior motives and deliberately approached you. I wouldn’t be surprised if he tampered with your carriage. Why blame yourselves?

Jiang Zhi worried, “Will the Crown Prince… cause trouble for you?”

Jiang Xiurun handed her brother a cup of tea.

“The Crown Prince is reasonable. He wouldn’t punish me without cause.”

As they spoke, the steward of the residence rushed in, looking nervous.

“The… the Crown Prince has arrived at our gate. Should we go out to greet him?”

Jiang Zhi, already anxious, turned pale at the news.

He feared the Crown Prince had come to interrogate him.

Jiang Xiurun was also surprised.

Emperor Duanqing had explicitly forbidden the Crown Prince from entering the city.

How had he come in so blatantly, defying the imperial decree?

In fact, Feng Liwu had just received an edict allowing him to enter the city.

A nation’s heir apparent, camping outside the city gates, slurping porridge with pickles, kneeling outside the city walls waiting for his father’s permission to enter—it was an embarrassing spectacle.

To the common people of Qi, it seemed the Crown Prince and his mother were being bullied by a heartless emperor.

Some villagers even organized to send the Crown Prince chickens, ducks, fish, and meat.

Scholars in Luo’an also submitted memorials, arguing that the Crown Prince was the foundation of the nation and should not be undermined.

Even if the Empress’s alleged misconduct was true, it should be handled discreetly without implicating the Crown Prince.

A weak heir would lead to a strong branch, and the nation would suffer.

They urged the Emperor to allow the Crown Prince to enter the city and quell public discontent.

Emperor Duanqing, caught in a difficult position, had no choice but to comply, granting the Crown Prince entry to save face with the scholars.

However, before Feng Liwu could return to the Crown Prince’s residence, he received a report from Jiang Xiurun’s guards that Feng Wu had appeared.

The details of Feng Wu’s conversation with Jiang Xiurun, especially the line about “spending days together,” reached Feng Liwu’s ears, causing his expression to darken.

After Feng Wu’s appearance, the guards, without needing orders, split up to follow him.

They discovered he had returned to the palace, indicating that the prince had reconciled with his father.

Feng Liwu, uninterested in the father-son reunion drama, first went to the hostage prince’s residence to pick up Jiang Xiurun and return to the Crown Prince’s residence.

However, upon arriving at the gate, Feng Liwu reconsidered.

If Feng Wu could enter and dine with Jiang Xiurun’s brother and sister-in-law, why should he stay outside?

Feeling that Feng Wu had gained the upper hand, Feng Liwu stepped out of the carriage and entered the residence.

Jiang Zhi had met the Crown Prince a few times but had never spoken at length.

This nominal brother-in-law was cold and ruthless, and to Jiang Zhi, their relationship was more like that of a prisoner and a warden.

He had always been cautious, trying to curry favor to secure a place in Luo’an.

Now, with the Crown Prince sitting in his home, seemingly intending to stay, Jiang Zhi felt utterly out of his depth and uncomfortable.

Jiang Xiurun, however, guessed why Feng Liwu had come.

He had likely heard Feng Wu’s words and was in a bad mood, looking for an excuse to take it out on her brother.

Under normal circumstances, this wouldn’t be a problem, but her sister-in-law was newly pregnant.

If Feng Liwu’s cold words frightened her, it could harm the baby.

So, after her brother and sister-in-law paid their respects, Jiang Xiurun excused them to prepare some home-cooked dishes to warm Feng Liwu’s stomach after his journey. She then sent them away, dismissed the guards and maids, closed the door, and spoke with Feng Liwu.

When Feng Liwu entered the main hall earlier, he had seen the lavish spread of dishes on the table, evidence of the Jiang family’s hospitality toward Feng Wu.

He said coldly, “Your brother seems quite close to Feng Wu, going all out with such a feast. Yet for me, it’s just simple home-cooked dishes?”

When someone is looking for a fight, even a fart is criticized for being off-key.

Jiang Xiurun felt she was full of vulnerabilities.

She carefully removed Feng Liwu’s cloak and belt, helping him relax, then said, “My brother didn’t know his identity. He was just repaying a favor to someone who helped him. Once the wine is gone, who remembers who? If Your Highness wants to eat, you can buy food from a restaurant. But I thought, since I now serve you as my husband, we’re family. Why put on airs? My sister-in-law’s cured meat stewed with fish is delicious. After days of poor meals, you should eat something made with care.”

Her words subtly positioned Feng Liwu as part of the family, having her sister-in-law cook for him.

Feng Liwu felt comforted, and his anger subsided.

However, Feng Wu’s words still stuck in his throat.

Even if he hadn’t asked before, he couldn’t hold back now.

“Did Feng Wu ever take advantage of your beauty and act inappropriately?”

Jiang Xiurun massaged his thigh.

“Feng Wu was only trying to extract information about your daily routine to harm you. When someone is consumed by ambition, they have no time for romance. Besides, my looks are average. Not everyone is as un-picky as you, Your Highness.”

Feng Liwu also felt that Jiang Xiurun wasn’t the type to be taken advantage of and remain calm.

His heart eased, but he sensed she was subtly mocking his eagerness.

He pulled her hand and said, “Even with my lack of pickiness, I’m still not satisfied! You’re so lazy. How about feeding me well tonight?”

Jiang Xiurun, still on edge waiting for Feng Liwu’s next attack, was caught off guard by his sudden shift to flirtation.

Her face flushed slightly, and she whispered, “The concubines in the Crown Prince’s residence are starving. With so little food, how can it be enough? You shouldn’t come to me…”

Feng Liwu pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

During this time, he had been busy cleaning up the mess caused by his mother and her lover, neglecting his beloved.

He shouldn’t have!

The two lingered in the inner courtyard of the hostage prince’s residence.

Seeing that Feng Liwu didn’t seem intent on causing trouble for her brother and sister-in-law, Jiang Xiurun relaxed and allowed him to explore under her robe.

When Wenniang finished cooking, the table was reset, and the Crown Prince was invited to eat.

However, Jiang Zhi and Wen Niang were already full and could only sit and pick at the dishes, watching the Crown Prince and Jiang Xiurun eat.

Jiang Zhi, still anxious about his close interaction with the second prince, didn’t notice the details at the table.

Wenniang, however, was different.

As a woman, she was naturally more observant than a man, and she was a careful person to begin with.

Upon closer inspection, she was shocked.

Why did her brother-in-law and the Crown Prince interact so… casually?

The fish stewed with cured meat was rich and flavorful, the roe soaked in the broth, very tasty.

The Crown Prince took a bite and seemed to like it, even picking up a piece and placing it in Jiang Herun’s bowl.

Jiang Herun naturally ate the roe, and soon the Crown Prince had transferred all the roe from the fish’s belly to Jiang Herun’s bowl.

If it were just this, it could be dismissed as the Crown Prince being gracious and showing favor.

But the way the Crown Prince looked at Jiang Herun while he ate… it was indescribably doting, like someone admiring a prized pet or a young man gazing at his hard-won bride.

By the end, Wenniang’s back was damp with cold sweat.

Her brother-in-law was still young and likely naive about matters of the heart.

Wenniang had heard rumors about the Crown Prince’s alleged preference for men.

She had dismissed them as baseless gossip, but now she worried that her innocent brother-in-law might be led astray by the Crown Prince’s sweet words, losing his masculinity and falling into depravity!