He was always this confident and unrestrained. Knowing that she had no choice but to marry him, he became increasingly unbridled in his behavior.

Yet he always managed to strike the perfect balance – leaving her feeling uncomfortable but unable to sharply criticize him. He was incredibly eloquent, able to argue three points of reason even when he was clearly in the wrong.

In truth, Xiao Huayong rather enjoyed seeing Shen Xihe’s displeasure when she could do nothing about his actions. It gave him a strange sense of secret delight, stemming from her silent indulgence of him.

Therefore, he constantly tested her boundaries, step by step. Even knowing she might be displeased, he couldn’t help but act this way.

“I’ve had the kitchen prepare some food. Shall I accompany Youyou for the meal?” Xiao Huayong offered her a graceful exit.

Shen Xihe had no desire to continue this pointless exchange. She left the room without a word, with Xiao Huayong following behind, his face full of smiles.

The following days were peaceful. Shen Xihe’s daily life was completely comfortable – if only Xiao Huayong would annoy her a little less, it would have been perfect. After July ended, early autumn arrived at the temporary palace. The early autumn here was colder than in the capital. While the days were still suitable for outdoor activities, the nights grew quite chilly.

Shen Xihe continued living her peaceful and content days. The court was experiencing rare harmony, unlike the string of unfortunate events from the previous year.

The Emperor’s mood was particularly good. The autumn hunt yielded excellent game, and Emperor Youning would leave early and return late, taking princes and ministers hunting. When the hunt was bountiful, they would hold outdoor evening banquets. The ministers would gather around bonfires, roasting their games, while enjoying songs and dances for entertainment.

When the harvest season arrived, Emperor Youning took a two-day break. Dressed as common folk, he led Xiao Huayong and the princes away from the temporary palace to experience harvesting in the nearest village.

The dynasty had always emphasized agriculture, and its emperors were never ignorant of farming. Personally participating in farming was a virtue passed down from their ancestors.

However, this tradition has been lost for several generations. The Late Emperor had sneered at it, but Emperor Youning revived it. This was because, in his youth, Emperor Youning had farmed and mined in the northwest with the Empress Dowager and Prince Qian – their punishment from the Late Emperor.

After not seeing Xiao Huayong for several days, Shen Xihe initially enjoyed peace for the first two days, finally free from his pestering.

But after those two days, she found herself distracted while reading, feeling that something was missing from each day. This was probably the terrifying power of habit.

His relentless pursuit, rain or shine, had made her accustomed to his presence. Now that he was suddenly gone, she felt a strange sense of loss.

“Princess, the wife of Duke Xie is with child,” Zhenzhu, noticing Shen Xihe’s lack of interest in anything, tried to share the news that might catch her attention.

Shen Xihe, who had been lazily leaning against the railing and staring into space, raised an eyebrow. “Hasn’t Duke Xie been here at the temporary palace with His Majesty for over two months?”

It was now August, and they had arrived at the temporary palace in June. Xie Ji had come with the imperial entourage but hadn’t brought his family, as Lady Yuan had been unwell.

Shen Xihe had heard this while overhearing Ziyu and Zhenzhu’s casual conversations.

“The Duchess is three months pregnant,” Zhenzhu nodded. “The news just arrived. Everyone is congratulating Duke Xie. He’s beaming with joy and has already gone to request leave from His Majesty to return to the capital early.”

Duke Xie was over forty and had only one child, Xie Yunhuai. He was an only child, making the Xie family’s main line quite thin. For the sake of continuing the family line, Duke Xie had taken a concubine at the beginning of the year. Now that Lady Yuan was pregnant, regardless of the child’s gender, he would face less pressure from the Xie clan.

“Pass this news to Doctor Qi,” Shen Xihe instructed.

She wasn’t sure how Xie Yunhuai planned to handle the Xie family affairs. He had only halfway completed his mission to seek justice for his mother when he went to find the antidote for her and Xiao Huayong, which wasn’t in his best interest.

If Lady Yuan remained childless, the Xie family would have to force Xie Ji to reconcile with Xie Yunhuai for the sake of inheriting the title, as only Xie Yunhuai could inherit it. But if Lady Yuan bore a son, given Xie Yunhuai’s previous severance of ties, her son could inherit the title instead.

Thinking of this, Shen Xihe added another instruction to Zhenzhu: “Have someone watch the Duke Xie residence… Wait until we receive Doctor Qi’s reply before taking any action.”

She didn’t want her situation with Xiao Huayong to interfere with Xie Yunhuai’s plans, which was why she considered helping. But then she realized that the astute Xie Yunhuai must have already considered these possibilities and made arrangements. Her well-intentioned but presumptuous help might expose and ruin his plans, so she changed her mind.

Just then, Tianyuan came running to Shen Xihe: “Princess, His Highness has disappeared.”

Shen Xihe stood up abruptly, her expression tense. “What did you say?”

“The Crown Prince has disappeared…” Tianyuan anxiously explained the situation to Shen Xihe.

During this period, Emperor Youning often took the princes down the mountain to experience farming. He hadn’t brought guards, only secret guards following in secret. The princes naturally couldn’t bring their guards either – a grand procession would defeat the purpose of mingling with the common people.

With the Emperor’s secret guards following, neither Xiao Huayong nor Xiao Changqin and the others could bring their secret guards without being exposed. Everything had been fine until this afternoon, when His Majesty took several princes hunting in the mountains on a whim, only to be ambushed.

They didn’t know the exact details, only that several princes were wounded. The attackers were of unknown origin but numerous and skilled. The “defenseless” Crown Prince was the first to fall.

Prince Xin, Prince Zhao, and the Third Prince had been protecting His Majesty, and the Emperor’s secret guards had appeared in time, though the princes were all seriously wounded.

The Crown Prince had been captured, and Prince Lie had pursued them relentlessly – both were now missing.

“His Majesty has made his move,” Shen Xihe realized the gravity of the situation.

How could such a large force suddenly appear in ambush at the foot of the temporary palace? Even if they could fool Emperor Youning, how could they escape the notice of Xiao Changqin and Xiao Huayong? Unless they had noticed…

Perhaps Xiao Huayong had been aware but knew the confrontation was unavoidable, so he went along with it. He just hadn’t informed Shen Xihe beforehand.

Facing assassins, the Crown Prince, who had no martial arts skills, would naturally be better off falling early to minimize injury and scrutiny.

His Majesty wouldn’t try to kill him. Seeing him fall, He wouldn’t believe it so easily, so He simply had people kidnap Xiao Huayong, waiting for someone to attempt a rescue.

Even though Shen Xihe understood the cause and effect, how could she not go to his rescue?

Of course, she had to!

Emperor Youning indeed wouldn’t kill Xiao Huayong, but He would certainly ensure everything went according to plan, making some arrangements for Xiao Huayong – firstly to test him, and secondly to ensure he couldn’t escape His control.

Leaving Xiao Huayong in His Majesty’s hands for too long would not end well.

“Where?” Shen Xihe asked.

Tianyuan replied, “Just outside the temporary palace.”

“Have him replace my guards with his men, then search for His Highness in my name.”

Xiao Huayong’s people couldn’t move, but hers could!