Suppressing the trace of doubt that suddenly arose, Luo Sheng’s gaze swept over the empty wine table. “Has Your Highness not ordered yet?”

Wei Qiang wanted to sneer coldly.

Since entering, his mood hadn’t been smooth even once. Where would he have the mind to order food?

“Are there any new dishes?”

Luo Sheng smiled. “The weather has cooled, so the tavern has launched mutton hot pot and fish head hot pot. Would Your Highness be interested in trying them?”

Wei Qiang couldn’t help glancing at Wei Han’s table.

On the table sat a small red clay stove with a pot on top from which heat still rose, the fragrance of mutton wafting over along with the wine’s aroma.

Wei Qiang hesitated slightly before saying, “Then I’ll have a fish head hot pot, plus a pot of spirits.”

Eating mutton in late autumn was excellent, but inevitably one would reek of the gamey smell afterward, which wasn’t quite appropriate outside the palace.

Only someone like Prince Kaiyang had never been seen to have scruples about food. Perhaps from staying too long in the northern lands, he’d picked up barbarian habits.

“Your Highness, please wait a moment.” Luo Sheng dropped this line and turned toward the kitchen.

Wei Han held his wine cup, gazing thoughtfully at that disappearing plain-clothed figure.

Wei Qiang’s voice interrupted Wei Han’s contemplation. “Does Uncle Prince come here to drink every day?”

Wei Han glanced at him and said blandly, “I come when I feel like coming.”

It just so happened that he felt like coming every day.

“This nephew greatly envies Uncle Prince’s carefree freedom.” Wei Qiang’s tone carried envy of uncertain authenticity.

The corners of Wei Han’s mouth curved, a flash of mockery passing by. “Your Highness was also quite carefree and free before. No need to envy me.”

Wei Qiang’s expression stiffened slightly as anger bred in his heart.

Would Prince Kaiyang die if he didn’t make cutting remarks?

His past as the heir of Prince Pingnan hadn’t been brought up by anyone for quite some time.

This was also why he was unwilling to return to Prince Pingnan’s residence.

Returning there, he would inevitably recall those past events he preferred not to remember.

Yet Prince Kaiyang deliberately stabbed at his sore spot, leaving him unable to respond.

If he denied it, his words just now would amount to nonsense. If he acknowledged it, the trouble would be even greater.

If the Crown Prince reminisced about his life as Prince Pingnan’s heir, and this reached the Emperor Father’s ears, what would he think?

Yet that remark had merely been polite tavern talk.

Wei Han lowered his eyes and drained his cup, then methodically picked up a piece of stewed mutton that was tender and fragrant.

He was a full nine years younger than this Crown Prince and could be said to have grown up hearing the Crown Prince’s gossip.

After hearing it all, he had only one thought: this eldest nephew’s character was too poor.

Of course, it wasn’t his place to lecture him, but it was also difficult to expect a good attitude from him.

Wei Han raised his eyes to glance at the neighboring table, silently adding in his heart: Especially after the Crown Prince started liking to come to Miss Luo’s tavern.

His gaze turned toward the entrance to the kitchen. Wei Han thought: Could Miss Luo be personally serving dishes to the Crown Prince?

The kitchen was filled with fragrant aromas. Because the hot pots and braised dishes were all prepared in advance, Xiu Yue wasn’t busy.

Luosai Huzi had already gone to meet Xiao Qi on his way home from school, while Zhuang Han, who was responsible for chopping firewood, rarely set foot in the kitchen.

Luo Sheng left Hong Dou in the courtyard chatting with Zhuang Han and stepped inside.

“Miss—”

Luo Sheng’s tone was calm. “The Crown Prince has come.”

The hand with which Xiu Yue gripped the wok spatula trembled.

If she could, she wished she could rush out of the kitchen and beat that beast to death with this spatula in her hand.

Luo Sheng didn’t speak, only looked deeply at Xiu Yue.

Xiu Yue immediately came to her senses, her face recovering its calm.

Quite satisfied with Xiu Yue’s restraint, Luo Sheng’s tone became even more bland. “The Crown Prince wants to eat fish head hot pot. Aunt Xiu, prepare it well.”

“Miss?”

Luo Sheng’s lips curved, her tone deeply meaningful. “The Crown Prince being willing to come to our tavern to drink is an honor for the tavern. We cannot slight the Crown Prince.”

“Yes.” Xiu Yue acknowledged impassively.

The small red clay stove was perfectly suited for placing on tables, and the pot that went with it wasn’t large either.

Xiu Yue lifted the lid of a large pot and ladled the continuously simmering fish soup into the small pot, then added the prepared fish head, fish balls, and other ingredients.

Before long, the fish balls the size of longans in the small pot all floated to the surface.

She added scallion segments and cilantro, and then Xiu Yue picked up a porcelain bottle, unscrewed the cap, and sprinkled a small pinch of powder into it.

Luo Sheng watched expressionlessly until that white powder completely dissolved into the rich, whitish fish soup, the fragrance drifting to her nose intensifying, and only then did she twitch the corners of her lips slightly.

This was seasoning specially added for Wei Qiang. She hoped he would like it.

Her cool fingertips rested on the bracelet at her wrist, Luo Sheng’s eyes growing colder.

The gold-inlaid seven-treasure bracelet that could stir up the realm—it wasn’t yet time for it to emerge.

A Prince Zhennan’s residence bearing the crime of treason had no use for this bracelet.

Regardless of whether she would ultimately oppose the master of this Great Zhou realm, the first thing she needed to do was clear Prince Zhennan’s residence of its crimes.

And to achieve this, Wei Qiang’s “cooperation” was indispensable.

The crime of treason had been determined by Emperor Yong’an, and the decree to exterminate Prince Zhennan’s residence had also been issued by Emperor Yong’an. Approaching from other angles, she had almost no possibility of overturning the case for Prince Zhennan’s residence.

The Emperor wouldn’t slap his own face unless it concerned extremely great personal interests.

What if the Emperor wanted to change Crown Princes?

What could be easier than overturning the case for Prince Zhennan’s residence and pushing the crime of framing Prince Zhennan’s residence onto Prince Pingnan’s residence?

Wei Qiang’s position as Crown Prince had come from exposing Prince Zhennan’s residence’s treason, so naturally it could also be revoked for falsely accusing Prince Zhennan’s residence.

As long as the Emperor conceived the idea of changing Crown Princes, this would be a ready-made shortcut.

At that time, it wouldn’t be her racking her brains trying to figure out how to overturn the case for Prince Zhennan’s residence, but rather the Emperor would be happy to see it happen.

Taking ten thousand steps back, even if the Emperor deposed the Crown Prince without thinking to use the pretext of falsely accusing Prince Zhennan’s residence, at least she could knock that beast Wei Qiang from the clouds into the mud. The matter of clearing Prince Zhennan’s residence of its crimes could then be pursued gradually.

No matter what the Emperor did, for her it was only the difference between a small gain and a large gain. In any case, it was all profit.

If she disregarded the consequences and poisoned him fatally today, she could take Wei Qiang’s life, merely at the cost of mutual destruction.

But how could Wei Qiang’s dog life compare with the thousand lives of Prince Zhennan’s residence? How could it compare with Prince Zhennan’s residence’s nearly two hundred years of reputation?

Using his one life to offset all this—he wasn’t worthy!

She wanted him to spit back out what he’d swallowed. She wanted Prince Pingnan’s residence, which had risen by stepping on Prince Zhennan’s residence’s dried bones, to become disgraced and lose everything.

The seasoning Xiu Yue sprinkled into the pot was a good thing. One didn’t need much at a time. Accumulated over days, it could make a person with a dark, festering heart wearing a hypocritical mask unknowingly lose control, becoming irritable and easily angered.

For a person with weak self-control and a filthy heart, would she worry he wouldn’t make mistakes?

And a Crown Prince who repeatedly made errors wouldn’t be far from earning the Emperor’s disgust.

Though the Emperor had no sons, he had more brothers than just Prince Pingnan, and more nephews than just Wei Qiang. For the position of heir apparent, Wei Qiang had never been the “irreplaceable one.”

“Miss, it’s ready.” Xiu Yue’s calm, gentle voice sounded, her eyes deep.

Luo Sheng withdrew her thoughts and called out to Hong Dou, who was chatting animatedly with Zhuang Han. “Hong Dou, time to serve the dishes.”

“Yes!” The little maid crisply responded and came running in with quick steps.