Two maids walked past the pavilion, chatting as they went. "The Third Prince is here to visit the Prince again. Why haven't we seen him being so concerned about our Prince before?"
"Come on. Look, has the Third Prince even gone into the Prince's courtyard? He's here to see the Princess. I heard the Princess gave the Third Prince some gift, and he likes it so much that he's been coming to our mansion frequently ever since."
As the two maids talked, they gradually walked away, but their words seemed to be engraved on Lan Jiaoshu's heart.
Calculation glinted in her eyes as she murmured, "The Third Prince and Di Lanmo?"
Filled with schemes, Lan Jiaoshu forgot her anger and headed towards Di Lanmo's courtyard.
Standing at the courtyard gate, she heard Di Lanmo ask softly, "Do you like it?"
The reply came in Chu Xiuqi's excited voice, "I like it! I like it so much!"
Di Lanmo had long promised to give him a super powerful weapon. He thought the crossbow was already amazing enough, but he never expected there to be something even more powerful.
The crossbow was small in size, and the arrows were much smaller too, but its power was far greater than that of a regular bow and arrow. A few days ago, he showed it off at the training ground and was envied by everyone.
The Heavenly Mechanism Crossbow that Gu Qiran (should be Di Lanmo here) gave him now was even more remarkable. There was a magazine at the bottom that could hold up to five arrows. Once one arrow was fired, another would be automatically loaded onto the string, allowing for five consecutive shots. Of course, it could also be used like an ordinary crossbow.
"What's this called?" Chu Xiuqi examined the small object in his hand from every angle, unable to take his eyes off it.
Di Lanmo casually tossed him a small quiver. "It's called the Heavenly Mechanism Crossbow. These are the arrows. You can give it a try."
Chu Xiuqi took the arrows reverently. Following the method Di Lanmo had taught him, he aimed at the wall beside them and fired an arrow. The wooden arrow actually pierced into the stone wall and got embedded in it.
Even though he had expected the Heavenly Mechanism Crossbow to be powerful, Chu Xiuqi was still shocked by its strength.
A wooden arrow hitting a stone wall and getting stuck in it!
Chu Xiuqi shook his head in amazement. "This is incredible!"
But Di Lanmo wasn't very satisfied. Chu Xiuqi had never seen anything better and regarded this wooden Heavenly Mechanism Crossbow as a treasure, but she had seen the real deal. The arrows made of fine steel could pierce not only ordinary stone walls but also steel plates.
Compared to the real one, this wooden crossbow was like the difference between clouds and mud, completely inferior.
Chu Xiuqi had never seen anything more powerful. The most powerful thing he had seen before was the crossbow Di Lanmo gave him last time, so naturally, he thought this crossbow was extremely powerful.
"You're amazing. You always manage to surprise me!" It only took a single sentence for Chu Xiuqi's attention to shift from the crossbow to Di Lanmo.
Di Lanmo smiled. "I'm glad you like it." As his aunt, she didn't think there was anything wrong with saying this. Chu Xiuqi was simple - minded and didn't think much of it either.
But to Lan Jiaoshu, these words sounded full of ambiguity. She quietly slipped away, already plotting how to deal with Di Lanmo.
Di Lanmo was completely unaware of this. After testing the Heavenly Mechanism Crossbow with Chu Xiuqi a few times, she saw him off.
The incident erupted three days later.
Qingque rushed back in a panic. "Princess, it's bad! Big trouble!"
"What's so bad? Your mistress is doing just fine!" Di Lanmo rolled her eyes, thinking this girl was becoming more and more out of line.
"No!" Qingque gasped for breath. "People outside are saying you're having affairs and being unchaste!"
Di Lanmo didn't care much. "Let them say. Will it make me lose a piece of flesh?"
Seeing her attitude, Qingque wondered if she was being too worried.
"Someone from the palace has come to invite you to enter the palace. They said they're going to teach you the rules a princess should follow."
Hearing this, Di Lanmo's face instantly changed. "What did you say?"
Only then did Qingque look a bit triumphant. This was the right reaction!
She kindly told Di Lanmo the whole story. "People outside are saying you're unchaste, and the news has reached the palace. Now the messenger from the palace is with the Prince. Do you want to go to the Prince and plead your case, or just run away?"
"Who said that? You need evidence to make such accusations. This is slander, okay?"
Qingque gave her a sidelong glance. For this kind of thing, all it took was some idle talk. Who needed evidence?
There were always people who believed such rumors. "I think you should go and see the Prince." If she just ran away, and the Prince actually didn't want her to enter the palace, wouldn't that be a loss?
Di Lanmo thought the same way. "You stay and watch the house. I'll go and take a look."
Hearing from Chu Shisan that Di Lanmo was coming, Chu Zhiyan was extremely annoyed!
When she didn't need him, she just ignored him. Now that she needed his help, she came to him. What was this all about?
Did she think he was some plaything that she could summon and dismiss at will?
Seeing that his master seemed to have stopped reacting and was still hesitating whether to report again, Chu Zhiyan suddenly turned to him. "Is there anything else?"
"Ah? No, no more!" Chu Shisan said as he fled in a hurry.
"Chu Zhiyan, how have you been these days?" Di Lanmo walked directly into the room. She was a bit surprised to see Chu Zhiyan not lying in bed but quickly regained her composure and sat down beside him.
Chu Zhiyan pretended not to see her flattering smile. "So, the Princess is finally free and remembers me, the one who's been faking illness?"
Di Lanmo thought for a while and felt that she might have gone too far these days.
Although his physical injuries were almost healed, his emotional wounds might not have recovered yet. She had just left him alone like that. "Your Highness, the more I think about it, the more I feel I'm a terrible person. Please give me a chance to take good care of you, okay?"
Looking into those bright eyes, Chu Zhiyan's heart skipped a beat. It took him a great deal of effort to maintain his cold - hearted demeanor. "No need to go through the trouble. I think you should enter the palace and learn the rules properly."
Chu Zhiyan's tone was calm, but it made Di Lanmo feel that his decision was unshakable. She cursed him as a petty person in her heart but still smiled on the surface. "Your Highness, what are you saying? You're not feeling well, and as your princess, I should take care of you by your side. I wouldn't dare to be lazy!"
"Really?" Chu Zhiyan glanced at her sideways and sneered.
Damn it! Is he never going to let this go? Di Lanmo was frustrated inside but still looked humble on the surface. "Of course. I know my actions a few days ago made you unhappy. I've realized my mistake. Your Highness, you're magnanimous. For the sake of our marriage, please give me another chance, okay?"