The Deposed Crown Prince had Three Lifelong Regrets - Chapter 25

Chapter 25

“Miss Lu, how is your leg injury healing? We will probably return to the capital in a few days, and we will have to trouble you to accompany us.” Li Qinghuai was silent for a moment, perhaps finding no way to explain herself. She supported herself on the ground and tremulously rose from the other woman’s embrace.

Even though she was the one who had imposed on the other, she was the first to assume a reserved posture.

She twitched her stiff and aching facial muscles, forcing a delicate smile that inexplicably radiated a chilly distance, pushing people a thousand miles away.

Lu Fengmian understood that the former her and the current her could not be simply regarded as the same person.

She did not believe the capital’s rumors that the Crown Prince was genuinely gentle. Many emperors throughout history possessed a dual nature. A genuinely and thoroughly kind person born into the royal family could only be a useless incompetent.

The two stood shoulder-to-shoulder, their heads close together. They exchanged polite formalities for the time it took for half an incense stick to burn, only to be interrupted by someone tactless.

Xu Bufan disliked Lu Fengmian but was interested in the still-hideously-ugly Li Qinghuai. This indicated that he was not a man consumed by carnal desires; he was consumed by curiosity and ambition.

“Who are you? You two look very familiar. Miss Lu, how about an introduction?”

Lu Fengmian thought about how Li Qinghuai had initially acted as if she had no connection to the princess, and she couldn’t help but admire her slightly.

The impression left from their earliest encounter was too profound; she had acted in a manner utterly unbecoming of a royal woman. To call her reckless and rash would be an understatement; she was utterly preposterous and ridiculously uninhibited.

“She was sent out from the palace to gather information, and it was unavoidable that she had to ask for your cooperation. After she completes her mission, she will certainly return with praise for you. Why are you trying to cozy up to her now?” Lu Fengmian’s smile was forced.

“Hiss, you can’t say that…”

Lu Fengmian couldn’t be bothered to listen to his nonsense. Her thoughts were becoming muddled again, so she quickly took the opportunity to pinch the Crown Prince’s pale cheek. The woman was meditating with her eyes closed. Disturbed, she impatiently shifted further away.

Lu Fengmian was worried. Even though the other woman had a valid reason for her actions, she had still witnessed a treasonous scene. What if the Crown Prince decided to kill her to silence her on the way back to the capital?

If she returned to the capital safely, would it cause friction between the Zhao family and the Crown Prince?

After worrying about herself and her family, she worried that Mo Xianghao would be concerned if he came down the mountain and couldn’t find her, not knowing where to mourn her.

“The Flying Fish Robe! That’s the Flying Fish Robe!”

“Who understands this,” Xu Bufan suddenly stood up straight, losing control. “The Royal Guard! The Royal Guard! That’s the Royal Guard!”

“So you are on a secret mission, right?”

He envisioned the entire path to promotion and wealth in his mind, fantasizing to the point of beaming, and then immediately started worrying.

“Yes, yes,” Li Qinghuai nodded half-heartedly, humoring the big fool.

Just as the man was jubilant, Lu Fengmian interjected, “Don’t celebrate too early. Think carefully: if the army was planning to surround the entire mountain, and if they were truly working together, why would they run to this ancient temple?”

Xu Bufan’s face instantly changed. In that brief second, he considered a thousand possibilities.

Li Qinghuai didn’t want to get involved in the messy affairs. Now, she adhered to the principle of adapting to constant change, watching the show when there was one, and enjoying the gossip when there wasn’t.

She found it irritating to watch someone performing like a monkey, but if that person was Chengmei, it was tolerable.

“So, you should run quickly. Don’t dream of ascension. Riches and honor are not to be relied upon.”

Lu Fengmian held grudges, very deep ones.

Even though she didn’t know why Lu Fengmian was acting this way, Li Qinghuai had already demonstrated her loyalty, loving whom Lu Fengmian loved and hating whom she hated. Although she was too dizzy to fully understand the criticism, she instinctively stood on her side.

“Run, run,” she muttered indistinctly, her sanity wavering.

The bonfire burned fiercely. The flames leaped high, dazzling and persistently condensed in the air like a phoenix.

Warmth enveloped everyone. They slept soundly through the night.