"Father, today Miss Luo is just here as my friend for this family dinner. We can't be impolite."
Xia Yan nodded.
"You entertain the guests first. I'll go back to my room and return soon."
Xia Qingyan nodded.
It wasn't long after Xia Yan left.
An Yun also made an excuse that she had something to do and left something behind, wanting to go back and retrieve it.
Zhao Shuning understood her implication.
The grand prince had been so impolite today.
It seemed that her appearance had given him quite a shock.
Xia Qingyan originally wanted to follow, but was stopped by Zhao Shuning.
"Feiyan, what are you doing?"
"Prince, don't you need to explain this set of clothes you gave me?"
Xia Qingyan was blocked by Zhao Shuning and couldn't do anything for a moment. After all, the woman in front of him was someone he cared about.
Yan Ruyu was gone.
No one noticed when he left.
Hearing Zhao Shuning's question, Xia Qingyan quickly explained, "Feiyan, you may have misunderstood me."
"This dress should be quite similar to what your mother wore when she was alive, right?"
Xia Qingyan stopped in his tracks.
"I'm sorry, Feiyan. I had no other choice."
"Now I'm giving you a chance. Explain it properly."
On the other side.
After Xia Yan returned to the main room, he rummaged through the clothes in the cabinet.
He rummaged all the way to the bottom.
When he saw the brocade box, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
He opened the box, and the white dress was lying quietly inside. It was still as new as the day he first saw Qingqing in the palace of the Cangwu Kingdom.
Tears welled up in Xia Yan's turbid eyes.
A voice came from behind.
"My lord is missing elder sister again, isn't he?"
Xia Yan turned around.
It was An Yun behind him.
Seeing An Yun, his face showed a hint of displeasure.
"What are you doing in this room? You're not the mistress of the palace yet. You should know your place."
"My lord, don't you think it's too hurtful to say such things to me now? If I didn't know my place and was afraid of implicating you, I would have been with you more than twenty years ago."
"That's not what I meant."
"My lord, you've finally fallen in love with her, haven't you?"
Xia Yan said, "You don't understand."
"I don't understand. I only know that my lord clearly liked me too, and you went to the Cangwu Kingdom clearly to see me. But why did you change your heart as soon as you saw her? Yun'er doesn't blame my lord. Yun'er just feels that after waiting for you for so long, I don't deserve this kind of attitude from you."
Xia Yan seemed to think he had gone too far.
He folded the dress and put it back into the brocade box.
Then he turned around.
He began to comfort the crying An Yun.
"Alright, alright. Don't be sad. You're pregnant with our child. If you're sad, the child will be affected too."
An Yun stopped crying.
"My lord, do the words you said still count?"
"What words?"
"You said that you would set the date for our wedding today and announce it to the guests."
Xia Yan's face changed.
"Of course it counts. It's just—"
"Just what?"
"I'm still worried about your relationship with Qingyan."
"My lord, over the years, I've done everything I could. I've given everything for your child with the princess. The current situation between him and me is all his doing. He made a decision, but now he wants to go back on it. There's no such easy thing in the world."
Xia Yan said, "I don't know much about the matter between you two. But I want to tell you, don't think Qingyan is just a gentle and elegant young man. If he gets ruthless, he's no less than me. You should be careful."
"Yun'er knows."
An Yun leaned on Xia Yan's chest.
Xia Yan gently comforted her.
"Alright, I'll go back to the banquet first. You come out later, so as not to let others gossip."
"Yun'er knows."
Xia Yan left.
An Yun was left alone in the room.
An Yun took a deep breath and wiped the tears from her face. Today was a day worth celebrating. She shouldn't be so sad.
She should be happy.
She raised her head and slowly walked towards the door.
Just as she was about to leave the room, a voice came from the center of the main room.
"The Golden Silkworm Gu. You raised it, right?"
The voice was nice and full of magnetism.
Hearing this, An Yun immediately turned around, and the sharp weapons in her hand were thrown out.
But before the weapons could touch the man, they all fell to the ground.
It was Yan Ruyu.
Yan Ruyu looked at An Yun.
Just this calm look made An Yun feel a sense of fear.
"You?"
Wasn't he the man beside Luo Feiyan? Why was he in the main room?
"The Golden Silkworm Gu. You raised it, right?"
"Sir, you're joking. How could I touch such a thing?"
"Isn't the Gu art the unique skill of the An family in Jingzhou, Liantai of the Cangwu Kingdom?"
An Yun took a step back.
"Who are you? How do you know my previous identity?"
"The Golden Silkworm Gu. You raised it, right?"
"I am indeed a descendant of the An family, but I know nothing about the Golden Silkworm Gu you mentioned."
Yan Ruyu said, "I don't want to hear nonsense."
An Yun's body was suddenly bound by a powerful force.
She covered her abdomen with her hands.
Fear showed in her eyes.
"Alright, I'll tell you—"
Yan Ruyu had no intention of harming her child. He just wanted an answer. Only the parties involved knew the whole story.
"I did raise the Golden Silkworm Gu. Among them, there was one that was the most robust."
"That's the king of the Golden Silkworm Gu. Since it was born, it has been extremely fond of drinking Zhuyeqing wine. It's a special one. Even its food is mainly Zhuyeqing wine."
"So, over time, its size and color are no different from Zhuyeqing wine."
Yan Ruyu's face looked grim.
"You gave the Golden Silkworm Gu to Xia Qingyan?"
"He asked me for it. I had no choice but to give it to him."
Yan Ruyu roughly knew half of the story.
The other half of the truth was on Xia Qingyan.
What did he want the Golden Silkworm Gu for?
Was it premeditated or just an accident?
Yan Ruyu stood up and said, "After I leave, you'll forget everything that happened just now in a moment."
An Yun's eyes became dull.
After Yan Ruyu left.
He returned to the banquet. There were many guests, singing and dancing were in full swing, and wine cups were clinking. Zhao Shuning was still talking to Xia Qingyan.
Yan Ruyu walked to Zhao Shuning's side and whispered a few words.
Zhao Shuning's face changed.
The distance between her and Xia Qingyan suddenly widened to about three feet.
Xia Qingyan quickly asked, "What's wrong?"
Zhao Shuning's heart was beating fast.
She just smiled and replied, "Xia Qingyan, are we still friends?"
"Didn't we always be friends?"
"Always? Really?"
"Feiyan, I've explained about the dress."
"What about other things besides the dress?"
Zhao Shuning's expression was very serious.
Xia Qingyan suddenly felt panicked.
Could it be that she knew something?
No one should have known what he had done. It was impossible for Feiyan to know, right?