Zhongli Mingye, still haunted by the scorpions he ate the previous day, was extremely fussy. Song Jinyu had just decided not to take him to try any more exotic foods when, unexpectedly, Zhongli Mingye took the initiative.
In the deer park, many deer were scattered about. "Come on! Let's go hunting today..."
"Oh? Great!"
Song Jinyu happily rode her horse, feeling completely carefree.
This deer park was part of the royal hunting ground, not far from the mountain villa of the Prince Yu's Mansion. Usually, it was a place for the royal family and relatives to enjoy hunting.
Unfortunately, although Song Jinyu was good at horse - riding and archery, she was not as familiar with the deer park as Zhongli Mingye. So she could only watch helplessly as he shot several deer, while she only managed to catch a few rabbits.
Oh well! Oh well!
After leaving the deer park, they found an open space, set up a bonfire, and roasted the fresh deer meat on it.
The steward of the villa brought out some aged Huadiao wine. Micui, Xingjian, Qingfeng, and Niaoniao accompanied them. In the distance, the mountains were faintly visible. They drank heartily and ate the meat in big mouthfuls.
Before long, Song Jinyu had drunk quite a lot of wine.
She was slightly tipsy. The tender deer meat seasoned with Chinese prickly ash salt was extremely delicious.
Zhongli Mingye suddenly brought over another bowl of aged Huadiao. She drank it eagerly, only to notice a faint taste of blood in it later.
At some point, the others had left.
Only the two of them remained.
The tipsy Song Jinyu stood up and staggered, wanting to go back. The autumn wind was getting cooler, and her steps were unsteady. Her cheeks were flushed an unusual red.
Her bright eyes reflected the firelight, making her extremely charming. Her delicate features became even more beautiful. She gently tapped Zhongli Mingye's head with her pinky finger. "You... are really... good - looking!"
"I'm so..." She suddenly felt hot. Song Jinyu shook her head, trying to drive away the desire rising in her heart. She stumbled away but fell into a similarly passionate embrace.
"My love... Let's rest!"
Rest? Song Jinyu was dazed. "Okay!"
But where should they rest?
She looked around, and unexpectedly, there was a tent behind her! Suddenly, her feet left the ground as Zhongli Mingye carried her on his shoulder.
Her head was dizzy. She watched his face getting closer. He was handsome and cold - looking, with deep - set eyes.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, trying her best to stay sober, but was still led into the heat. This time, she was much bolder. Zhongli Mingye was even more pleased. The idea of going deer - hunting today was really a good one.
As the night deepened, partridges chirped a few times.
"Alas..."
"Why are you sighing?" The man's satisfied and hoarse voice was full of implications.
The woman blushed slightly. "I drank a few more cups." Wine was truly the matchmaker of passion.
"The prince likes the drunk Jinyu," who let him do as he pleased and was very cooperative, showing more charm than usual.
"..."
Even now, she still couldn't understand how she had become like this...?
Thinking of the passion of last night, she... wanted to hide. But the man would never let her go. "It turns out that the drunk Jinyu can be so... Mm" Before he could finish, Song Jinyu covered his mouth with a slap.
Humph! What's there to be proud of?
Such days were so wonderful that they seemed unreal. Being farther away from the capital was like being away from all the troubles. Song Jinyu lay in his arms. Zhongli Mingye felt more and more at ease listening to her even and gentle breathing.
However, it didn't last long.
The news brought by Xingjian shattered this peace.
"Your Highness! Something has happened in the palace. The Prince of Zhongzhou tried to assassinate the queen and has been imprisoned in the dungeon!"
There was no choice but to end the trip to the mountain villa early. But Zhongli Mingye wanted to leave Song Jinyu alone in the villa. "Be a good girl. The prince will be back soon."
"Can't I go with you?"
She couldn't figure out why Zhongli Mingye didn't want to take her back to the capital.
Still immersed in the beauty of yesterday, Zhongli Mingye couldn't help but caress her delicate face. "Be good... It's not easy to come out. You can play for a few more days."
Song Jinyu was dissatisfied, but she didn't notice the calculating look that flashed across Zhongli Mingye's eyes.
At the entrance of the villa, she watched Zhongli Mingye getting farther and farther away. She felt very strange and vaguely uneasy.
No matter how calm she tried to be, she couldn't calm her heart.
On the way, Zhongli Mingye was thinking about how to solve the problem. "Xingjian, send the shadow guards to protect the princess with all their might."
"Moreover, no one in the villa should disturb her without good reason."
Before he could react, he was suddenly blocked by a group of black - clothed men. "Kill!"
After a stick of incense, the black - clothed men suffered heavy casualties, and Zhongli Mingye left with injuries!
The queen was seriously injured, and the Prince Yu was assassinated. The court was in an uproar. The emperor, seeing that the royal family had suffered one incident after another, ordered a thorough investigation.
However, Ming Ruyi refused to admit his guilt in the dungeon!
The emperor couldn't easily kill him because the empress dowager had been kneeling in the ancestral temple for three days. Now that Zhongli Mingye had also been stabbed and injured, the emperor was extremely angry.
In the Duke of Fuguogong's Mansion, the lights were brightly lit. Chen Jiacai narrowed his eyes, trying to guess the emperor's intention. Now that his daughter was the crown princess, if she could take another step forward, the Chen family could maintain their glory and wealth for decades.
But at present, these two incidents were very strange.
The serious injury of the queen offset all her previous mistakes. The emperor, out of their thirty - year - long marital affection, ordered the imperial physicians to do their best to treat her.
However... her injuries were so serious that she could only linger on.
It was really a coincidence. The queen had been under house arrest in the palace, cultivating her mind. Ming Ruyi was originally going to visit the empress dowager's palace but unexpectedly appeared in the queen's palace.
The eunuchs and maids saw with their own eyes that when the queen fell, she was pointing exactly at Ming Ruyi.
Zhongli Mingye had just had his arm wound treated when the emperor sent someone to visit him.
For the time being, there was no progress in the investigation, but he managed to lead the emperor to suspect the crown prince and the Prince Cheng.
"The wound is still too deep! If the princess knew, she would surely blame you for not taking good care of yourself." Xingjian had just finished speaking when he heard Zhongli Mingye say after a long while, "Don't tell her about this."
He didn't take her back this time for fear of implicating Song Jinyu. But in this huge mansion, without her, it was terribly lonely.
"Your Highness, why aren't you having dinner?" Micui had served the dishes. It was a whole table of crab dishes. "The steward knows you like them, so he specially asked the cook to prepare them."
"I'm not in the mood."
Song Jinyu was wondering why Zhongli Mingye had left her behind.
It was really strange. Since the incident of Fan Renmei, the atmosphere in the capital had been strange. Because of the incident of the King of the Southern Courtyard of Yanqiu last time, there had been fierce disputes in the court.
After the entire family of the Minister of War was executed and their property confiscated, the new minister was a confidant of the emperor.
Ming Ruyi shouldn't be in trouble, right? After all, he had no reason to harm the queen!
Rong Shuang'er was also very anxious in the mansion. The dungeon was heavily guarded. How could a young lady like her get in?
She had wanted to ask Song Jinyu to see if she could meet Ming Ruyi through the Prince Yu.
But Song Jinyu hadn't returned to the capital.