'This man again,' Yun Xi rolled her eyes in annoyance. Meanwhile, Yan Xiao stood confused between the tension between the husband and wife.
After remaining silent for quite a while, Yan Xiao finally said,
'All right, brother, don't get me wrong. I came here because—'
"I invited him. There's something important I need to discuss with him. Are you satisfied with my answer, Your Highness?"
Yan Ling raised an eyebrow, then glanced sharply at Yan Xiao, demanding an explanation.
"Ahem, so my sister-in-law asked me to make a wooden statue from Mrs. Wang's painting to be displayed in the room later,"
He said to Yan Ling with a sweet smile.
Yun Xi furrowed her brow. There were so many reasons he could have used, so why did that particular excuse pop into Yan Xiao's head? Would Yan Ling believe it? He himself had said that Yan Ling was not a fool.
Yan Ling was silent and stared at Yun Xi. He nodded in understanding. Yun Xi had lost her mother when she was a child, perhaps due to the effects of pregnancy, his wife missed her mother, so she asked Yan Xiao to make a statue of her mother to ease her longing.
"All right, do as my wife asks. You may go, there is something I want to discuss with her," Yan Ling replied finally.
Yan Xiao smiled, then walked away casually after saying goodbye politely.
Meanwhile, Yun Xi was still stunned by her husband's words.
'He believes that reason? Ah... it turns out he is a bit stupid, good, I don't have to bother making up another reason,' Yun Xi said to herself. She was so focused that Yun Xi did not realise that Yan Ling was standing towering in front of her, very close.
"Oh my god! Why do you like to scare people so much?"
"It's not my fault, you were too focused on staring at my face," replied Yan Ling. The man chuckled softly then casually entered the Peach Pavilion, leaving Yun Xi who almost threw up blood.
"That crazy bastard, what was he talking about?" Yun Xi muttered. Then she calmly entered the Pavilion, following Yan Ling.
"So, what did you want to talk about, Your Highness?"
Yun Xi stood there, facing Yan Ling, who was sitting gracefully in the guest chair.
Yan Ling glanced at the table that had not been cleared and there were still two cups of tea on it.
"You treated your brother-in-law very well, but you were so fierce to me, don't you think that's strange?"
"Your Highness, you wouldn't have bothered coming here just to fight with me, right? If so, wouldn't it be better to pick a fight with the Emperor? After that, you might become king right away."
"Wang Yun Xi," Yan Ling said in a low tone, but Yun Xi could tell that the man was angry.
"Please, tell me what you want." Yunxi's tone changed slowly, but it was clear that he was reluctant.
Yan Ling sighed. Anger filled his chest. He had waited in front of the Peach Pavilion for half an hour. He could even hear the laughter of his wife and brother.
But now, his wife didn't even want to spend a moment with him. Did Yun Xi hate him that much? Why had she suddenly changed like this?
And again, shouldn't Yan Ling be happy that the woman who always clung to him and fought with Qin Mei at every opportunity was now staying away?
What was she actually thinking?
"Your Highness..." Yun Xi called impatiently. Yan Ling cleared his throat softly and then said.
"I came here to tell you about the third prince's inauguration ceremony tomorrow."
"What is it? Is there a problem?"
"No, I just wanted to say that tonight, a servant from the boutique will come to deliver new clothes for you."
"Oh, all right. Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness," said Yun Xi with a polite smile. She hoped that her answer would satisfy him and that this man would quickly leave her residence.
Yan Ling was disappointed with Yun Xi's answer, especially her overly polite attitude.
"Is there something about my behaviour that you are not satisfied with? Why do I get the impression that you are sulking?"
"What? Sulking? Me? No, not at all, what do you mean, Your Highness?" Now it was Yun Xi who was confused.
"Really? Unfortunately, I doubt it. So I want to cheer you up. How about I stay here tonight to keep you company?"
"Ah, there's no need, Your Highness, really, I'm not sulking at all."
"It's okay, I'll stay anyway. I realise that I've been spoiling Qin Mei too much and neglecting you. So, starting today, I will be fair."
The man smiled. But Yun Xi just wanted to cry. What was going on in this prince's mind?
Was this what they called a natural predator instinct? where he hated being chased, but when his prey ran away, he chased after her? Ahh, this man was cunning too. Yun Xi thought to herself.
"But Your Highness, if I may be honest, I don't want to offend anyone because you suddenly stayed overnight. My pregnancy is already quite draining, so I won't have the energy to fight with other people. It's better if you don't stay tonight. Let's talk about this another time, how about it?"
Yun Xi bargained. Yan Ling stared at her sharply. The man just realised that Yun Xi had been standing in the same spot since the two of them started talking, and it was very distracting.
His long arm quickly pulled the woman down to sit on his lap.
"Your Highness! What are you doing?"
"Helping you sit down. Because it seems like you've been tired from standing all this time."
Yun Xi was speechless, her brain seemed to have stopped functioning when she heard that nonsense!
"No one will be offended. I guarantee it."
"Fine, whatever! Please let me stand up."
"No. Now let's talk properly, what were you talking about with my brother?"
"Isn't the second prince—"
Tuk. Yan Ling used anti-lie magic on Yun Xi's forehead.
The woman fell silent, staring into Yan Ling's sharp, jet-black eyes, which were like magic balls playing with her.
"I..."
*
*
*
"Anyone on the Outside? prepare some warm water immediately," Yan Ling shouted.
"Yes, Your Highness," replied the servant standing outside.
"I am satisfied with your answer. Next time, just be honest with me. What's so difficult about that, hm?"
Shut! Yan Ling withdrew her magic. Yun Xi bit her lip so hard that she almost hurt herself.
She didn't know that this man was so cunning and had such abilities. Fortunately, for some reason, she was not affected, but she still told the man about the third prince who was going to be poisoned, even though Yun Xi deliberately left out many things.
Perhaps because Yun Xi had turned back time, Yan Ling's magic didn't work on her. Earlier, Yun Xi had been too shocked and afraid of being found out for lying, so she had been forced to tell him about her plan for tomorrow, even if it wasn't in detail. Fortunately, the man believed her.
In the future, She would have to be more careful.