Wei Qiang carried a food box toward a carriage.

Qing’er was leaning against the carriage wall, dozing.

“Ahem.”

Hearing the sound, Qing’er’s eyes snapped open. Seeing it was Wei Qiang, she hurriedly bowed: “Your Highness.”

“Is the Selected Attendant inside?”

Qing’er quickly nodded: “The Selected Attendant is inside.”

“Has she eaten?”

Qing’er’s face showed worry: “She barely touched her chopsticks. The Selected Attendant said she had no appetite.”

Wei Qiang couldn’t help but frown.

Yu Niang’s constitution was weak. This kind of hurried travel was indeed exhausting for her, and it was natural that she couldn’t eat.

He carried the food box and climbed into the carriage.

The carriage interior was quite spacious, complete with a low couch, soft blankets, wall cabinets, and a small table.

A frail woman with thick dark hair lay on her side on the low couch, seemingly asleep.

“Yu Niang, are you asleep?”

After a moment, the woman with her back to Wei Qiang slowly turned and sat up, giving him a graceful smile: “Why has Your Highness come at this hour?”

“To see if you’ve had your meal.”

Zhaohua’s face was pale, her smile somewhat weak: “I ate a little.”

Wei Qiang moved closer and grasped her hand: “Don’t deceive me. Qing’er told me you didn’t touch your chopsticks again.”

Zhaohua frowned: “Qing’er is truly a blabbermouth.”

Meeting the man’s displeased expression, she smiled helplessly: “Being in the carriage for so long inevitably feels stifling, so I ate less.”

“I brought you a bowl of noodles.” Wei Qiang pointed to the food box he had just placed on the small table. “It’s made with sour broth—perhaps you can eat it.”

Zhaohua hesitated without moving.

Wei Qiang urged: “I specially brought it for you. At least taste it.”

Zhaohua smiled shyly: “Your Highness went to such trouble.”

Seeing her smile, Wei Qiang felt warmth in his heart.

These past days, Yu Niang smiled more than before, which lifted his spirits as well.

With this thought, Wei Qiang personally opened the box lid and carefully took out the blue-and-white porcelain bowl.

Seeing the bowl of sour broth noodles topped with abundant diced ham, Zhaohua’s eyes flickered subtly. She asked casually: “Your Highness, these noodles weren’t made by the imperial chef, were they?”

The corners of Wei Qiang’s mouth lifted in a smile: “Of course not. Can you guess where this bowl of noodles came from?”

Zhaohua thought for a moment, then said: “Could it be from Miss Luo? I heard Your Highness mention before that Miss Luo would bring the restaurant’s head chef for this autumn hunt.”

“Yu Niang is indeed clever.” Wei Qiang nodded approvingly and handed her a pair of chopsticks.

Zhaohua hesitated for a moment, her fingertips trembling slightly as she took the chopsticks and lifted a few noodle strands to her mouth.

“How is it?” Wei Qiang watched her, his tone expectant.

Zhaohua swallowed the noodles and nodded: “Very delicious.”

Wei Qiang smiled: “Then eat more.”

“Mm.”

Watching the large bowl of noodles nearly emptied, Wei Qiang couldn’t help saying: “Cold noodles don’t taste good. It’s fine to leave some.”

Given Yu Niang’s appetite, wasn’t she eating a bit much?

Zhaohua set down her chopsticks, her eyes gleaming with pleasure: “The noodles taste good even when cold.”

Wei Qiang was momentarily speechless. When Zhaohua had drunk even the noodle broth, he suppressed his surprise and suggested: “Yu Niang, why don’t we go outside for a walk?”

Zhaohua glanced at the carriage door and hesitated: “Would that be appropriate?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? We’ve just finished the midday meal, and many ladies are outside taking walks.”

Only then did Zhaohua nod.

Watching coldly as Wei Qiang exited the carriage first, Zhaohua touched her slightly distended stomach and curved her lips.

Stepping out of the carriage, cool wind blew against her face.

Zhaohua gently exhaled a breath of stale air and looked around.

As far as her eyes could see were unfamiliar faces.

The man’s voice sounded beside her ear: “There’s still some time before departure. Let’s walk around the area casually.”

Zhaohua looked back at the carriage door.

“What is it?”

“Your Highness, why don’t you take me to see the head chef from Youjian Restaurant? I’m very curious what kind of chef could make such delicious sour broth noodles.” Zhaohua said this with a smile at the corners of her mouth, appearing casual but actually clenching her fists in tension.

She had gone hungry for several meals waiting for such an opportunity. If she missed it, who knew when another would come.

The chance to see Youjian Restaurant’s head chef—she absolutely had to seize it!

She had to see if that person was her little sister Xiu Yue.

Wei Qiang had no idea of the careful calculations behind the person before him. Hearing this, he smiled: “Very well, we can return the food box as well.”

Zhaohua bent down, entered the carriage, and retrieved the food box, smiling: “Let me carry the food box.”

Looking at the smile on Zhaohua’s lips, Wei Qiang’s eyes flickered. For some reason, he found this smile somewhat familiar.

It rather resembled how Miss Luo looked when she smiled.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?”

Wei Qiang shook his head.

He must be obsessed to have such thoughts.

How could Yu Niang and Miss Luo have any similarities?

If one were to speak of resemblances, Yu Niang actually had qualities similar to Luo’er.

Luo’er once said that Shufeng’s intelligence lay in her natural talent, while Yu Niang’s cleverness lay in her perceptiveness. The two maids she would bring to Prince Pingnan’s manor weren’t meant to become his concubines.

She would marry them to men who could stand as equals, so as not to fail them for having followed her.

At that time, he had been somewhat angry—angry that Luo’er had underestimated his devotion to her.

But in the end, it was he who broke his word.

Luo’er died, and without tightly grasping the people she left behind, it was too difficult for him to carry on.

“Let’s go.” Wei Qiang nodded slightly and walked ahead.

Zhaohua lowered her eyes and followed, sneering inwardly.

This self-deceiving man truly disgusted her to the core.

At Luo Sheng’s location, the crimson-robed figure was no longer visible. Only Sheng Sanlang and a few others remained helping Xiu Yue clean up pots, bowls, ladles, and basins.

These implements had all been brought from the restaurant—they couldn’t afford any mishaps.

“Cousin, the Crown Prince is here again.” Sheng Sanlang, who happened to be carrying a cold iron pot and looking up, quickly reminded Luo Sheng.

Luo Sheng looked over.

Xiu Yue also looked over.

A blue-and-white porcelain bowl fell from Xiu Yue’s hands.

Seeing this, Sheng Sanlang felt anxious. In his urgency, he tried to catch the bowl with the iron pot.

A hand steadily caught the blue-and-white bowl and placed it on the long table nearby.

Sheng Sanlang couldn’t help praising: “Shi Sihuo, your reflexes are really excellent.”

Shi Yan looked at him seriously without responding.

This Young Master Sheng, like Miss Luo’s maid, was very presumptuous and familiar.

“Miss Luo, I’ve come to return the food box.” Seeing that his arrival had caused a small commotion, Wei Qiang found it somewhat amusing.

“Your Highness is too kind.” Luo Sheng’s gaze passed over Wei Qiang and landed on Zhaohua for a moment. She turned her head and instructed Xiu Yue: “Xiu Gu, go take the food box.”

After a long moment, Xiu Yue uttered a single word: “Yes.”

She walked toward Zhaohua step by step.

Zhaohua stood in place, her face striving not to show any abnormality, but her heart was already in tumultuous waves.

That was Xiu Yue!

Although her face was ruined and her appearance changed, Xiu Yue’s voice hadn’t changed.

Moreover, she was skilled in disguise—a person’s external changes were difficult to hide from her eyes.

Xiu Yue had already stopped before Zhaohua and extended her hand: “Please hand me the food box, honored lady.”

Zhaohua seemed to be stung by the words “honored lady,” and the hand holding the food box trembled violently.

That hand wearing the gold-inlaid seven-treasure bracelet handed over the food box.

Wei Qiang’s voice sounded at the appropriate moment: “Yu Niang, this is Youjian Restaurant’s head chef. Now you’ve seen her.”

Zhaohua pressed her lips together: “Yes, I’ve seen her.”