When Chu Qing heard that the second prince of Xiliang was coming, after the initial surprise, uneasiness welled up in her heart.
As far as she knew, although the war between the Great Yan Kingdom and the Xiliang Kingdom had ceased, there had never been a friendly relationship between the two countries.
The second prince of Xiliang came to the Great Yan Kingdom alone. He claimed it was a visit, but no one believed that his purpose was merely that.
Wei Ying continued, "The second prince of Xiliang, Hu Yan Longhao, is a crafty man by nature and has always been at odds with the eldest prince of Xiliang. The two have been vying for the throne both openly and secretly. I'm afraid Hu Yan Longhao's visit to our Great Yan Kingdom this time is related to his bid for the throne."
"Does he want our Great Yan Kingdom to support him?" Chu Qing frowned and then snorted.
This Hu Yan Longhao did seem to be more intelligent than that so - called eldest prince.
As if sensing Chu Qing's thoughts, Wei Ying continued to explain to her, "Qingqing, don't underestimate the eldest prince of Xiliang, Hu Yan Longchang. He is a brave and skilled warrior, and moreover, the general of the Xiliang Iron Cavalry is his uncle."
Wu Ya also said calmly at this time, "Hu Yan Longchang is more powerful, but Hu Yan Longhao is no easy - going person either."
"What's his purpose for coming this time?"
"Let's wait and see. Let's see what his real plan is."
...
When Xu Xin saw that the visitors were from Xiliang, a dark glint flashed in her eyes.
After the leading men chattered for a while, a burly man shouldered a big knife and stepped forward.
The escort guarding Xu Xin and the others frowned and shouted sternly, "Who are you?"
The man grinned and replied in somewhat broken Central Plains dialect, "We're hungry. We want to borrow some food from you."
The escort looked at them warily, took a few steps back, and his eyes darted back and forth over the visitors.
"Don't refuse a toast only to end up drinking a forfeit," the burly man sneered impatiently when no one responded.
"Wu Shi, don't scare our friends," a smiling man suddenly stepped out from the crowd.
Judging from his clothes, it was obvious that he was of noble status.
Apart from his amber pupils, he looked not much different from the Central Plains people, and his Central Plains dialect was also quite fluent.
"Who on earth are you?" The escort gradually let down his guard as the man who appeared later seemed easy to get along with.
"We're from Xiliang. I'm Hu Yan Longhao, the second prince of Xiliang," the man who introduced himself as Hu Yan Longhao said with a beaming smile.
The escort was shocked when he heard that the man was the second prince of Xiliang.
He had thought they would claim to be a Xiliang merchant caravan or something else, but he never expected the man to admit his identity so straightforwardly!
They were only a hundred miles away from the capital, yet the second prince of Xiliang had managed to arrive here safely?
The escort swallowed his fear and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "May I ask what the second prince's purpose is for coming to our Great Yan Kingdom?"
Hu Yan Longhao smiled gently and replied, "I'm here for a visit."
The escort nodded and said no more.
After hearing the man's identity, Xu Xin was filled with mixed emotions.
So this was the second prince of Xiliang, Hu Yan Longhao, who had been corresponding with her father.
She wanted to step forward, but her mother, Mrs. Wang, grabbed her. Mrs. Wang frowned and whispered, "What are you going to do?"
Xu Xin narrowed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and said, "Naturally, I'm going to get on friendly terms with him."
"Are you crazy?" Mrs. Wang looked at her in shock.
Xu Xin sneered silently. "There's nothing left for me to cherish here. As long as I can avoid being exiled, what does it matter if I sacrifice my body?"
Mrs. Wang looked at her daughter in disbelief that such words could come from her mouth. She wanted to stop her, but then, as if remembering something, she slowly let go of Xu Xin's hand.
Since it was getting late, Xu Xin and her group, as well as Hu Yan Longhao's men, all stopped and decided to resume their journey early the next morning. Although the two groups had different destinations, Hu Yan Longhao, either intentionally or not, chose a resting place very close to Xu Xin's group.
When Xu Xin caught a glimpse of the campfire in the distance, a meaningful smile played on her lips.
...
Although the weather was getting hotter, Chu Qing didn't dare to slack off in her martial arts training at all.
In the past few days, Wu Ya often came to visit Chen Nianrui. Thanks to the medicine he had prepared, the poison in her body hadn't worsened.
As for Imperial Physician Chen, Chu Qing had sent someone to deliver a letter to him. However, she didn't mention Chen Nianrui in the letter. Instead, she said that she was unwell and hoped that Imperial Physician Chen could come and take a look.
Chu Qing sat in the front hall and waited for almost a whole day. It was not until the sun set that Lv Luo came to tell her that Imperial Physician Chen had arrived.
When Imperial Physician Chen saw Chu Qing, she was sitting lazily on a chair. Only after he spoke did she lazily look up at him.
"May I ask where the princess is unwell?" Imperial Physician Chen bowed.
Chu Qing curled her lips and said slowly, "This princess feels a pain in her heart."
Imperial Physician Chen frowned and then asked, "Does the princess have a heart disease?"
He had never heard that the Princess of Ning had a heart disease. Imperial Physician Chen was thinking silently in his heart. Before he could think further, he heard Chu Qing chuckle softly. "This princess may have done some things, so... this heart aches."
After hearing this, although Imperial Physician Chen felt a bit uncomfortable in his heart, he looked blank on his face. "I don't understand what the princess means."
Chu Qing raised her eyebrows, looked at Imperial Physician Chen's expression, and then waved her hand. "This princess doesn't mean anything profound. You don't need to think too much."
... Imperial Physician Chen was stunned, and his discomfort grew. The Princess of Ning must be hinting at something.
Could it be...
Did she know?
Thinking of this, Imperial Physician Chen suddenly looked up and happened to meet Chu Qing's meaningful gaze.
Was this really not hinting at anything?
It was as if there were words written on the Princess of Ning's face saying, "This princess has other intentions when looking at you. It depends on whether you're aware of it."
Seeing the changing expressions on Imperial Physician Chen's face, Chu Qing gave up the idea of punishing him and said coolly, "Your daughter's name is Chen Nianrui, right?"
Suddenly hearing his daughter's name, Imperial Physician Chen was already sweating. He still had no idea where his daughter was. He had even personally pleaded with that noble person, and that person had assured him that as long as he kept his mouth shut, Nianrui would never be sold to the military camp.
Maybe the Princess of Ning just happened to know his daughter's name and wanted to trick him?
Imperial Physician Chen adjusted his breathing, straightened his back, and replied respectfully, "My daughter's name is indeed Chen Nianrui. May I ask where the princess heard it from?"
"She told me herself," Chu Qing stared at Imperial Physician Chen, trying to read more from his face.
Imperial Physician Chen forced a smile and pretended to be calm. "Nianrui actually knows the princess? I'll surely ask her about it when I get back later."
Chu Qing shook her head as if helplessly and said unhurriedly, "But she's here with this princess now!"