After finishing her meal, Mu Yunjin lay down, her eyes half-closed as waves of drowsiness washed over her. Yet anxiety lingered in her heart, preventing her from fully surrendering to sleep.

Beside her, Chu Li noticed her exhausted expression and how she kept forcing her eyes open periodically. He said gently, “If you’re tired, just sleep. I won’t throw you off halfway.”

Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow and, still not entirely reassured, asked once more, “Really?”

“Really,” Chu Li nodded.

With that, Mu Yunjin finally relaxed, closed her eyes, and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

Chu Li sat leaning against the carriage wall, listening to the steady breathing from within. A warmth rose in his heart as he reached out to cover her with a blanket and brushed aside a few stray strands of hair from her forehead, his gaze quietly fixed on her sleeping face.

…

Mu Yunjin slept for a long time. When she awoke, she found herself lying on a hard bed, surrounded by unfamiliar surroundings, and completely alone. Startled, her drowsiness instantly vanished as she sat bolt upright.

After putting on her shoes and opening the door, she discovered she was in what appeared to be an inn, with the clamor of guests rising from downstairs.

…

…

Mu Yunjin frowned and reopened the window. The intense light from outside shone in, stinging her eyes. She raised her hand to block the glare and saw the bustling street below, filled with people coming and going.

This wasn’t Qingzhou.

But why was she here alone?

Where was Chu Li?

Had he truly abandoned her here?

Damn, that bastard!

Mu Yunjin stormed out of the room in a fury and pounded heavily on the door of the adjacent room.

A woman opened the door and, seeing Mu Yunjin standing outside, looked her up and down with displeasure. “Do you need something?”

“No, nothing.” Seeing it wasn’t the person she was looking for, Mu Yunjin replied flatly.

“What’s wrong with you? Are you deliberately messing with me?” The woman immediately flew into a rage, shrieking at Mu Yunjin in a shrill voice.

Just as Mu Yunjin was about to retort, the door on the other side opened, and a familiar figure emerged. Seeing Mu Yunjin standing in the corridor wearing only her sleeping attire, his expression turned slightly displeased.

“Come here,” a cool voice called from the side.

Mu Yunjin froze for a moment, then immediately rushed over. Before she could speak, Chu Li pulled her into his room.

Mu Yunjin felt somewhat embarrassed and glanced up at Chu Li. “I thought…”

“Thought what?” Chu Li gave her a sidelong glance. “Don’t you know to dress properly before going out?”

Mu Yunjin looked down and realized she hadn’t even put on her outer robe. She couldn’t help but twitch her lips. “I’ll go change my clothes.”

“Wait.” Chu Li stopped her.

Mu Yunjin paused and turned to look at him. “What is it?”

“You have half an hour to get yourself ready. We’ll continue our journey afterward,” Chu Li said.

Mu Yunjin nodded and immediately walked out.

Back in her original room, Mu Yunjin let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, Chu Li hadn’t abandoned her here alone.

After preparing some hot water and finishing her bath, Mu Yunjin changed into comfortable clothes. Her skirt reached only to her knees, and she wore a pair of cloth boots. She tied her hair into a simple ponytail with a cloth band and looked at herself in the mirror for a while, feeling strangely liberated.

This style of dress was refreshingly comfortable.

When she left her room and went downstairs, Ding Xian was already waiting at the entrance of the inn. Seeing Mu Yunjin approach, he said quietly, “Princess, we can depart now. The snacks have been placed in the carriage.”

Hearing the title “Princess,” Mu Yunjin frowned slightly, still not entirely accustomed to it.

She boarded the carriage, and they set off once more.

…

“Where were we just now?” Mu Yunjin, refreshed and energetic after her rest, crossed her legs and took a bite of osmanthus cake while casually looking at Chu Li.

Chu Li saw her carefree demeanor and frowned slightly. “Put your legs down.”

“Hmm?” Mu Yunjin didn’t immediately understand, then looked down at her legs and pouted, straightening them.

“We’ve left Lin’yin Capital, and it will take another day to reach Qingzhou,” Chu Li answered her earlier question.

Upon hearing they still had another day of travel, Mu Yunjin immediately lost her appetite. She put down the osmanthus cake and lifted the carriage curtain to look at the scenery outside.

“If we go to manage the Qingzhou flood and can’t resolve it for a long time, does that mean we won’t be able to return to the Imperial City?” Mu Yunjin looked at Chu Li.

Chu Li nodded.

“Then the Emperor is doing this deliberately. Just as Chu Ye becomes the Crown Prince, he sends you to some remote place to manage a flood, and it’s not something that can be resolved quickly. Is he afraid you might threaten Chu Ye? That’s truly ruthless.” Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow, folded her arms, and couldn’t help crossing her legs again.

Chu Li sighed slightly and tapped her crossed legs, frowning. “Are you a woman?”

Mu Yunjin didn’t like sitting so stiffly; her whole body felt uncomfortable. Seeing Chu Li correct her for the second time, she replied irritably, “Whether I’m a woman or not, don’t you know already?”

He had seen her naked before, yet he was still asking this question.

Chu Li was speechless, looking defeated, and allowed her to continue sitting with her legs crossed. After watching her for a while, he gradually grew accustomed to it and stopped correcting her.

…

The carriage traveled for half a day, and Mu Yunjin noticed that the wind outside gradually grew stronger. Raindrops began to seep through the window cracks and drift inside.

Mu Yunjin lifted the carriage curtain to look outside and found that they were in an area surrounded by mountains. Compared to the sunny weather they had seen in Lin’yin Capital that morning, the outside was now filled with howling winds and light rain.

“Are we in Qingzhou territory now?” Mu Yunjin dropped the curtain and looked at Chu Li.

Chu Li also glanced outside. “Almost there.”

Upon hearing this, Mu Yunjin’s heart sank. If the scenery was already like this before they reached Qingzhou, who knew what awaited them there?

But it didn’t matter. Compared to staying alone in the Prince’s Mansion eating, drinking, and playing, she preferred fighting alongside him.

After traveling for another two hours, the rain outside clearly intensified, and the carriage’s speed slowed accordingly. The fierce wind frequently lifted the curtains on both sides, bringing in gusts of heavy rain.

Mu Yunjin moved closer to Chu Li, but seeing that large raindrops could still splash onto her, she pressed her lips together and decided to ignore it, thinking she could change clothes once they reached Qingzhou and settled down.

Chu Li covered Mu Yunjin with a blanket and spoke softly in her ear, “Be careful not to catch a cold. This Prince doesn’t have time to take care of you.”

Mu Yunjin lowered her eyes to look at the blanket. The raindrops continued to spray inside, but they were all absorbed by the blanket. Warmth suddenly filled her heart, and she huddled closer to Chu Li.

Chu Li thought she was cold and simply put his arm around her, resting his chin on the top of her head, and pulling the blanket tighter around her.

Outside, the storm raged on, but inside the carriage was a scene of tenderness.

…

“Bang!”

After some time, the carriage suddenly lurched forward, tilting, causing the entire vehicle to lean to one side.

Mu Yunjin, who had been nestled in Chu Li’s arms and feeling drowsy, instantly became alert. From outside came Ding Xian’s voice, “Your Highness, Princess, the small road in Qingzhou has been ruined by muddy water. The carriage likely cannot proceed…”

“We’ve reached Qingzhou?” Mu Yunjin asked in surprise, looking outside to find that it had grown completely dark. The rain had stopped, but she could see gleaming puddles of muddy water on the ground.

“Then shall we get out and walk?” Mu Yunjin suggested, preparing to exit the carriage.

“Wait a moment.” Chu Li stopped Mu Yunjin, pulling her back to her seat, then left the carriage himself.

When his feet touched the ground, he could feel it sink beneath him. Chu Li looked down at the ground, then at the long muddy road ahead, his brow furrowing.

Ding Xian held a lantern, and seeing Chu Li’s icy expression, dared not speak.

Mu Yunjin then emerged from the carriage, standing at the edge. Seeing everyone hesitating, she smiled slightly and looked at Chu Li. “It’s already dark. Let’s walk across and settle down early.”

Chu Li looked at Mu Yunjin and took a jade pendant from his sleeve, handing it to her.

“Hmm?” Mu Yunjin didn’t understand Chu Li’s intention.

“You’ll help this Prince light the way.” Hearing this, Mu Yunjin frowned, about to scold him for still putting on princely airs at a time like this, when she saw Chu Li turn his back to her and stand beside her.

“Get on.”

Those two short words left Mu Yunjin momentarily stunned, unable to react. Was he… offering to carry her?

“Hurry up,” Chu Li said impatiently when she didn’t move.

Mu Yunjin immediately understood and climbed onto Chu Li’s back, taking the jade pendant from his hand to light the path below.

When the light from the jade fell on the ground, Mu Yunjin realized this was no road at all—it was nothing but a stretch of muddy puddles. Chu Li’s embroidered boots had already sunk deep into the mud, and even the hem of his robe was stained with dirt.

Mu Yunjin lay against Chu Li’s back, her arms around his neck, ripples of emotion spreading through her heart.

She thought to herself that she was truly about to fall deeply for him…

…

The muddy path was already difficult to traverse, and with Chu Li carrying Mu Yunjin, a path that wasn’t particularly long took considerable time.

When they reached a road where they could stand properly, Mu Yunjin looked around and could see a stone tablet to one side with the characters “Qingzhou” carved on it.

“You can put me down now,” Mu Yunjin said, worried that Chu Li might be tired from carrying her and preparing to get down from his back.

But Chu Li’s hands tightened slightly. “Don’t move.”

Mu Yunjin stopped and continued to obediently rest on Chu Li’s back, playing with the jade pendant in her hand.

Ding Xian caught up with them. “Your Highness, the provisions are fine and undamaged. I’ve instructed the hidden guard Song Chun to oversee them here. Shall we proceed to the residence first?”

“Mm,” Chu Li nodded.

Ding Xian led the way. Mu Yunjin, holding the jade pendant, dared not move carelessly and helped Chu Li by carefully illuminating the path ahead, constantly watching for muddy patches and puddles beneath their feet.

Soon, Ding Xian stopped in front of a residence. People were already waiting at the entrance, and upon seeing Chu Li and his party arrive, they immediately approached and bowed to him.

“This humble one is Yang Wanshan, the Prefect of Qingzhou, paying respects to Prince Ning.”