"Your Highness the Crown Prince, this is my little daughter, Liang Zhiyun," Liang Jingzhuo introduced to Xiao Wang.
However, Xiao Wang only gave her a cursory glance.
Then, his gaze fell on the man behind Liang Zhiyun.
He said in a low voice, "This young master seems a bit familiar."
Hearing this, Liang Jingzhuo quickly introduced, "This is Young Master Xie, the fourth son of the Xie family in Qinzhou, Xie Jingchu."
"Oh? Really?" Xiao Wang raised his eyes, his gaze sharpening. "However, this young master looks like an old acquaintance of Miss Shen."
After saying that, Xiao Wang's gaze fell on Ruan Jiu again.
If he wasn't mistaken, this man in front of him was the one who released the river lanterns with Ruan Jiu on New Year's Eve.
But now, it seemed that the two were not as intimate as they were that day.
This naturally piqued his curiosity.
Hearing this, a look of surprise flashed across Liang Jingzhuo's eyes. "Do you two know each other?"
Before Ruan Jiu could speak, Xie Jingchu took the lead and said, "Just a distant junior. Not very familiar."
A distant junior.
Was that really the case?
Ruan Jiu lowered her eyelids, and the fingertips hidden in her cuffs turned white.
"A Jing, sit down quickly."
A Jing?
Hearing Liang Zhiyun affectionately call Xie Jingchu "A Jing", Ruan Jiu suddenly raised her head.
But the scene in front of her stabbed her eyes fiercely.
She saw Liang Zhiyun hook Xie Jingchu's arm and sit down directly.
What made her even angrier was that Xie Jingchu didn't even dodge.
It was the first time she had ever seen a woman other than herself get close to Xie Jingchu.
The two sat side by side, chatting and laughing, looking like old friends who had known each other for a long time.
Ruan Jiu squinted her eyes slightly, so angry that she wrinkled the front of her robe.
Xiao Wang, who was sitting beside her, took in all of Ruan Jiu's emotions.
Was this woman jealous?
Then he turned to Liang Jingzhuo and said, "It seems that Lord Liang's daughter has a very good relationship with the young master of the Xie family."
Hearing this, Liang Jingzhuo thought that Xiao Wang was blaming his daughter for being indiscreet and flirting with an outsider.
So he quickly explained, "Young Master Xie saved my daughter's life, so naturally my daughter is a bit closer to him."
Xie Jingchu smiled faintly. "It's just a small matter. Not worth mentioning."
Hearing this, Liang Zhiyun immediately said, "A Jing, don't be so modest."
Then she said to everyone with great enthusiasm, "You didn't see how amazing A Jing was! That day when I went outside the city to look for medicine, I suddenly ran into a group of ferocious bandits. Fortunately, A Jing showed up in time and drove them away."
Liang Zhiyun looked at Xie Jingchu with admiration in her eyes, vividly describing the scene of that day.
She wished that everyone would know about Xie Jingchu's bravery.
And every word seemed to pierce Ruan Jiu's heart accurately.
She had also encountered bandits.
Where was Xie Jingchu at that time?
Xiao Wang caught the desolation in Ruan Jiu's eyes, and his dark eyes flickered.
It seemed that it wasn't interesting enough yet.
So he said, "It seems that good things are coming soon in Lord Liang's mansion."
Hearing this, Liang Zhiyun stole a glance at Xie Jingchu.
Then she lowered her head, her face blushing, looking like a shy young girl.
She said coquettishly, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, don't tease me."
These days, Liang Zhiyun had been sticking to Xie Jingchu all day long. How could Liang Jingzhuo not understand his daughter's thoughts?
The laughter and chatter at the table were like harsh noises, making Ruan Jiu's ears ache.
Suddenly, a sour feeling welled up in her throat. She couldn't spit it out or swallow it.
It was really disgusting!
Ruan Jiu took a deep breath, picked up the wine cup on the table, and drank it in one gulp.
When she put down the cup, a cold smile suddenly appeared in her eyes.
She stared directly at Xie Jingchu. "But I heard that the Fourth Master already has a sweetheart."
Xie Jingchu's breath caught in his throat.
He didn't expect Ruan Jiu to say such a thing.
Seeing Xie Jingchu silent, Liang Zhiyun immediately panicked.
She kept shaking Xie Jingchu's arm. "A Jing, is what she said true?"
Before Xie Jingchu could speak, Ruan Jiu continued, "Yes, Miss Liang. I also heard that the Fourth Master's sweetheart is fair-skinned and beautiful, like a celestial being descending to earth."
Originally, Xiao Wang was watching the show with great interest. Hearing Ruan Jiu's words, he almost choked.
He had long seen that the relationship between the two was unusual.
So he deliberately said those words to test Ruan Jiu's reaction.
However, it was the first time he had seen someone praise themselves so highly.
After hearing this, Xie Jingchu even coughed several times.
Until his cheeks were flushed red.
He forced a smile and looked at Ruan Jiu. "Miss Shen, you flatter me too much."
Hearing Xie Jingchu say this, Liang Zhiyun immediately put on a sour face and pouted. "Is A Jing's sweetheart really that good?"
A flash of light passed through Xie Jingchu's eyes. Meeting the cunning in Ruan Jiu's eyes, he slowly said, "If you want to know, why don't you let Miss Shen tell you in detail."
This time it was Ruan Jiu's turn to almost choke.
After coughing lightly, she quickly composed herself.
She raised her eyebrows slightly. "She is gentle, virtuous, well-educated, and proficient in all the arts. If I had to use a poem to describe her, I think 'as graceful as a startled swan, as gentle as a swimming dragon' would be very appropriate."
Xie Jingchu pursed his lips and tried hard to suppress the corners of his mouth.
This little girl didn't hold back at all when praising herself.
And Liang Zhiyun seemed deflated.
After hearing Ruan Jiu's description, she realized that her personality was very different from that of Xie Jingchu's sweetheart. No wonder Xie Jingchu had always been lukewarm to her.
However, since it was the man she, Liang Zhiyun, had taken a fancy to, she wouldn't give up easily.
Xiao Wang supported his forehead. He simply couldn't bear to listen anymore.
How did these words come out of her mouth?
Not wanting to hear her shameless words anymore, he immediately changed the topic.
"I wonder how the epidemic in the city is?"
Hearing Xiao Wang's question, Liang Jingzhuo became serious and replied, "To prevent the epidemic from spreading again, I have ordered all the patients to be isolated in the west of the city.
This epidemic is far more dangerous than expected. So far, thousands of people have died.
Fortunately, you sent the medicinal materials in time. I believe that in a short time, those seriously ill people will recover."
"Lord Liang, the weather in Shuozhou is cold. Logically, such a serious epidemic should not have occurred," Ruan Jiu frowned in confusion.
Ruan Jiu had asked what was on Xiao Wang's mind.
Xiao Wang glanced at Ruan Jiu lightly. She was a smart one.
Indeed, it would be normal if it were just a common cold or fever, but this time Shuozhou was hit by a serious epidemic.
Moreover, generally speaking, there would be a major epidemic after a major disaster.
However, there had been no natural disasters in Shuozhou before.
This epidemic was really strange.
Hearing this, Liang Jingzhuo looked solemn. "This is the first time I've encountered such a thing. I don't know the reason for the time being."
Xiao Wang also frowned tightly.
After a moment, he said in a deep voice, "Since that's the case, Lord Liang will take this prince to the west of the city to take a good look tomorrow."
"How can this be? The epidemic is very dangerous. I'm afraid it will infect Your Highness the Crown Prince!" Liang Jingzhuo exclaimed.
"It doesn't matter."
He still had to go there in person.