“Yes, we work together as one.” Xiao Huayong’s eyes were filled with tenderness.

Her willingness to work with him to prevent them from becoming enemies filled Xiao Huayong with satisfaction as if he had obtained a long-desired treasure.

Shen Xihe smiled and lowered her gaze, a slight ripple passing through her heart.

Did she have feelings for Xiao Huayong? She couldn’t say there were none – at least she cared about his emotions and accommodated his temperament. But she also couldn’t say there were definite feelings – she had merely changed her way of dealing with him.

From rigid determination to gentle persuasion, she remained clear-headed and rational. Compared to unimportant people, she would certainly protect and help Xiao Huayong, but when it came to her closest family, she would still unhesitatingly choose to stand against him.

“Will Fourth Prince come?” Shen Xihe asked again.

She had been uncertain days ago and remained uncertain today. Compared to the emotionally driven Third Prince, Xiao Changtai clearly valued power and profit more.

“He will,” Xiao Huayong said confidently. “Li kidnapped Lady Ye and sent messages to Fourth Brother. She’s been frequently sending him letters these days. I’ve discovered their communication method and switched her letters midway.”

Li Yanyan’s letter clearly stated that Ye Wantang was in her hands. If Xiao Changtai knew this, he wouldn’t panic, as he was confident he could handle Li Yanyan.

Xiao Huayong had replaced Li Yanyan’s letter with that picture book. With the events in the capital, Xiao Changtai wouldn’t suspect Li Yanyan but would immediately think Ye Wantang had fallen into Xiao Huayong’s hands.

If he didn’t come, Ye Wantang would silently die like Munuha – this was no joke.

Xiao Huayong had originally planned to let Xiao Changtai know that Li Yanyan had intercepted Ye Wantang, to ease his concerns since dealing with Li Yanyan would be manageable. But after careful consideration, he thought Xiao Changtai might find other ways to retrieve Ye Wantang from Li Yanyan.

Moreover, since Xiao Changzhen had only foamed at the mouth, Li Yanyan wouldn’t truly harm Ye Wantang over this. If Xiao Changtai found another way to apologize or appease her, bowing his head to Li Yanyan, the matter might be resolved.

Therefore, he changed his plan at the last moment. Instead of alerting Li Yanyan, he chose to provoke Xiao Changtai.

“Besides his feelings for Lady Ye, there’s also his confidence,” Xiao Huayong stood tall with his hands behind his back, gazing at the competing flowers. “He wants to truly face off against me once.”

As a capable and confident person, being pushed this far, Xiao Changtai wouldn’t back down – otherwise, how could he be worthy of competing for the throne?

This reasoning convinced Shen Xihe. She didn’t believe someone like Xiao Changtai would come purely for Ye Wantang. But for a man’s principles and pride, she found it reasonable.

He had never truly confronted Xiao Huayong before; wanting to determine who was superior made perfect sense.

“Your Highness must be careful. If he comes, he will certainly give it his all,” Shen Xihe gently reminded.

“Perfect opportunity for his complete defeat,” Xiao Huayong’s lips curved in a cold smile.

As Xiao Huayong predicted, after a night of careful deliberation, Xiao Changtai decided to return to the capital.

“Your Highness, please reconsider,” his trusted advisor strongly urged upon hearing the news. “Our forces in the capital are insufficient, and we’re under His Majesty’s watchful eye. If we act now, everything will be exposed.”

“We won’t confront him directly,” Xiao Changtai’s eyes turned cold. “He has captured Wanwan. If I don’t go, won’t my followers lose heart? It would also be hard to explain to the Ye family. Today he forces me to this point – if I keep avoiding him, my subordinates will lose faith.”

This time, he had to go.

“Your Highness…”

“No need to persuade further. Arrange everything according to my instructions,” Xiao Changtai’s gaze was determined as he detailed his carefully planned countermeasures to his confidant.

Xiao Changtai secretly returned to the capital in disguise three days later. Neither Xiao Huayong nor Shen Xihe knew – Xiao Huayong was watching Li Yanyan, assuming Xiao Changtai’s return couldn’t escape his conspirator Li Yanyan’s notice.

Once Li Yanyan learned of Xiao Changtai’s return, she would surely contact him immediately and tell him Ye Wantang was in her hands. With Xiao Huayong’s interference, Xiao Changtai wouldn’t trust Li Yanyan, but he would meet her.

His purpose would be to use Li Yanyan. At this time, Xiao Changtai’s guard wouldn’t be at its highest – the perfect opportunity to strike.

When Xiao Changtai entered the capital, Li Yanyan learned of it immediately, but before she could send him a message, Xiao Changtai secretly met with the Zhao Prince.

“He met with Second Brother?” Xiao Huayong was at Shen Xihe’s County Princess residence.

This news came from the Dai Prince’s mansion. After the incident with Princess Yangling and Munuha at the Dai Prince’s mansion, many people were implicated. To symbolically give His Majesty and the Princess an explanation, the Dai Prince’s mansion had also punished a batch of servants. Xiao Huayong had seized the opportunity to arrange one or two people inside.

These few months of maneuvering in the Dai Prince’s mansion had gone well, successfully buying off people who could get close to Li Yanyan.

“Your Highness’s spy network spans the world,” Shen Xihe praised.

“Rest assured, Youyou, there are no spies around you,” Xiao Huayong smiled gently.

Shen Xihe raised her eyebrows: “Your Highness can try to plant someone.”

“If I had known of today’s deep feelings for you ten years ago, I would have placed people by your side then,” Xiao Huayong said, half-joking and half-serious.

Planting people around young Shen Xihe would have been the only possibility, but back then, besides those targeting Shen Yueshan, who would bother placing spies around a little girl? Even if they did, they would focus their efforts on Shen Yueshan or Shen Yunan.

Linglong was an exception, perhaps a coincidence that she wasn’t placed by Shen Yunan’s side, ultimately becoming a misplaced piece. After Linglong’s precedent, the current Shen Xihe was even less likely to let people get close easily.

The reason she hadn’t thought about marrying off Zhenzhu and others in recent years was that she had already begun training a second batch of confidants. Only after they could handle matters independently and replace Zhenzhu and others would she arrange their marriages.

Shen Xihe shifted her gaze from him, thinking about Xiao Changtai meeting Xiao Changmin: “The Zhao Prince is the only one he could persuade.”

With the crown prince’s early death, the Zhao Prince became the eldest son. As the saying goes, establish the legitimate and the eldest – after legitimacy comes the order of seniority.

Xiao Changtai seeking out Xiao Changmin wanted the Zhao Prince to see Xiao Huayong’s true face. Even if the Zhao Prince wouldn’t help him this time, he would never let his guard down against Xiao Huayong in the future.

Killing two birds with one stone.

“Second Brother isn’t foolish,” Xiao Huayong pondered for a moment. “Unless Fourth Brother can offer Second Brother sufficiently moving benefits.”

To put it nicely, Xiao Changmin was cautious; to put it bluntly, he was someone who wouldn’t let go of his hawk without seeing the rabbit first.