When she went out, she didn't see Mu Yanming. Instead, she saw Bai Ke leaning against a pillar in the pavilion. As soon as he saw her coming out, he immediately stood up straight.
"Your Highness, the Princess."
Mo Qinghuan walked under the pavilion and gazed into the distance. "Where is the Prince?"
Bai Ke bowed his head and replied, "Your Highness, the Princess, a letter has come from the Cold Moon Villa. The Prince has gone to the study."
"I'll go and have a look. You stay here on guard. If there's any situation, call me immediately."
Bai Ke nodded, and she walked in the direction of the study.
In the Jingting Courtyard, Mu Yanming was standing in the yard. Beside him stood the young servant from the Cold Moon Villa, still wearing that gray long robe.
She walked over. When the long - robed servant saw her, he bowed respectfully. "This lowly one pays respects to Your Highness, the Princess."
Mo Qinghuan supported his arm. The servant gave up the position beside Mu Yanming and stepped aside.
She looked up at Mu Yanming. Mu Yanming's eyebrows were tightly knitted, and his dark, deep eyes were faintly filled with anger.
She asked softly, "What's wrong?"
He took a deep breath, suppressing the coldness around him, and then reached out to touch Mo Qinghuan's head.
"He said he's grateful for your medicine. He's much better now."
Mo Qinghuan looked into his eyes, but he shifted his gaze. Then he turned to the long - robed servant and said, "Go back and tell your Villa Master that there's no need to be so polite. We should reciprocate courtesy."
The servant understood the meaning behind Mu Yanming's words. "Your Highness, the Prince, please rest assured. This lowly one will surely convey the message." Then he bowed and stepped back.
However, Mo Qinghuan felt that Mu Yanming was hiding something from her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have avoided her eyes.
Mu Yanming looked at her, reached out again to ruffle her hair, and said gently, "How is Ye Feng's poison?"
"We can only wait and see how he recovers. I really can't give you a definite answer for now."
Mu Yanming nodded. "Alright, you go back. I still have some things to attend to."
As Mo Qinghuan walked away, she looked back. After Mu Yanming entered the study alone, he locked himself inside.
Back in the Qingting Courtyard, she still felt strange. It was as if she had a bad premonition. Especially Mu Yanming's attitude made her quite certain that something must have happened.
Seeing her looking preoccupied, Bai Ke thought that there was another unpleasant incident between the two of them. So he was about to step forward to console her.
"Your Highness, the Princess, what's wrong with you? You seem to be in a bad mood."
Mo Qinghuan sat down in front of the stone table and motioned for Bai Ke to sit down with a nod of her chin.
Bai Ke sat on the seat to her right and looked at her.
"Has the Prince angered you again?"
She looked up at Bai Ke. "Bai Ke, I'm asking you. Do you think I'm good to your Prince?"
Bai Ke scratched his head and said with a simple smile, "Is there any need to ask? Of course you are. In this subordinate's opinion, you're the one who cares about him the most."
Mo Qinghuan leaned closer. "Since you think so, can you do me a favor?"
Hearing this, Bai Ke immediately sat up straight, patted his chest, and promised, "Your Highness, the Princess, please just say it. As long as this subordinate can do it, this subordinate won't hesitate. Even if it means going through fire and water, this subordinate will..."
"Hey, stop it. I don't need you to go through fire and water. It's just a small favor. It's not that serious."
Seeing Bai Ke talking on and on, Mo Qinghuan couldn't help but reach out and interrupt him.
"Your Highness, the Princess, please tell me."
Mo Qinghuan sighed and put on a sorrowful look. "Well, you know that no matter how tired or hard - pressed your Prince is, no matter what happens, he never tells me. This makes it impossible for me to care about him and comfort him more."
Bai Ke tilted his head and listened attentively, not yet detecting anything wrong in Mo Qinghuan's words.
Mo Qinghuan continued to guide Bai Ke. "Bai Ke, what do you think I should do?"
Bai Ke put on a serious thinking expression and even scratched his head.
Seeing that Bai Ke couldn't come up with an idea after thinking for a long time, she grabbed Bai Ke's wrist. "Bai Ke, I know you truly care about the Prince. So, since our starting point is all for the Prince's good, do you think this would work? After the Prince goes out, you come to me..."
Before Mo Qinghuan could finish, Bai Ke seemed to have realized something. Like a man greatly frightened, he suddenly withdrew his hand, stood up abruptly, and bowed with clasped hands. "Your Highness, the Princess, this absolutely cannot be done!"
Mo Qinghuan was utterly confused. "Bai Ke, listen to me. It's okay. Even if something goes wrong, you can rest assured that I'll take the responsibility."
Bai Ke took a step back. "This is absolutely out of the question. This subordinate will never do anything to betray the Prince. Your Highness, the Princess, shouldn't act like this either."
Mo Qinghuan sensed something was wrong. She stood up and walked up to Bai Ke. Bai Ke was so frightened that he took another step back. At the step, he almost fell when his foot slipped. "Your Highness, the Princess, no! Absolutely not!"
Seeing that Bai Ke was unwilling, she got a bit angry and raised her voice. "Why are you so stubborn? I've already said it's for your Prince's good."
She stepped down the steps and walked in front of Bai Ke, grabbing his collar. Bai Ke lowered his eyes and didn't dare to look at Mo Qinghuan.
"Bai Ke, don't force me to use my status as the Princess. I'm telling you, this matter has to be done, whether you like it or not." She pushed him back and was about to go and inquire about Mu Yefeng's condition.
Suddenly, Bai Ke drew his sword and put it against his neck.
"Your Highness, the Princess, if you force this subordinate, this subordinate can only prove his loyalty with death."
Hearing this, she turned around, startled.
"No! What do you mean, Bai Ke?"
Bai Ke moved the sword a bit closer. The blade was already tightly against his skin. With just a little more force, it would cut through his skin.
Mo Qinghuan was so scared that she raised her hand. "All I'm asking is for you to tell me your Prince's whereabouts. Do you really have to kill yourself over this?"
She turned her face away, afraid that her disdainful expression at this moment would stimulate Bai Ke.
After hearing this, Bai Ke suddenly felt something was wrong. He looked at Mo Qinghuan and asked uncertainly again, "What did you say, Your Highness, the Princess? You want this subordinate to tell you the Prince's whereabouts? Not to...?"
"To do what?" Mo Qinghuan still didn't know that Bai Ke had misunderstood her words and asked him back.
Realizing his misunderstanding, Bai Ke's face flushed red. He wished he could find a hole to crawl into. Now, he didn't know whether to put down the sword on his neck or not.
Seeing that Bai Ke still didn't relax, she had to compromise. "Alright, alright. I won't make things difficult for you. Put the sword down quickly. What would it look like if others saw this?"
Hearing her words, Bai Ke finally took the opportunity to put down the sword in his hand.
He walked up to Mo Qinghuan. "This subordinate was out of control just now. I hope Your Highness will forgive me. As for the matter about the Prince, please allow this subordinate to think about it for a day. I'll give you an answer tomorrow."
After saying that, he left as if fleeing.
Mo Qinghuan looked at Bai Ke's back in confusion.
What's wrong with this kid today?