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The Crown Princess tightened her grip on her handkerchief.
Xiao Liulang settled the bill and left with Gu Jiao.
Despite her calm appearance without the slightest sign of being drunk, Xiao Liulang could tell that she was really drunk.
She was just… pretending to be normal.
Xiao Liulang held her soft but calloused hand and walked out of the restaurant.
The Crown Princess watched the two leave hand in hand, ignoring the eyes of those around them, and she suddenly felt unwell in the bottom of her heart.
Although reason told her that this was not Ah Heng, but a lowly illegitimate child, she still couldn't help but think, if Ah Heng was still alive, would he also have grown into such a charming man?
It wasn’t that the previous Xiao Heng wasn't handsome enough, but at that time he still had the charm of a child, and although he could also stun people with his looks, it didn’t make people yearn for him.
Unlike today's Xiao Liulang, who had the unique temperament between youth and manhood. His looks, his breath, and even his distant and cold rejection of others, all were able to fascinate women.
He also seemed to be taller than the Crown Prince. Before Xiao Heng passed away, his height hadn’t even reached the Crown Prince's chin.
"Linlang?" The Crown Prince called her.
The Crown Princess's eyelashes trembled slightly and she said, "My handkerchief is dirty. I'm going to change to a new one on the carriage."
She got up and walked out.
She didn't get on the carriage, but followed in the direction of Xiao Liulang and Gu Jiao's departure.
The two turned into a small alley, and Gu Jiao stopped and squatted on the ground drawing circles.
Xiao Liulang smiled and looked at her, "Why did you stop walking?"
Gu Jiao said, "I can't walk anymore."
Xiao Liulang asked, "What should we do then?"
Gu Jiao said, "I need a kiss to be able to walk."
Xiao Liulang crouched down and looked deeply into her eyes, "Are you sure?"
Three-year-old Gu nodded her head.
Xiao Liulang kissed her on the forehead.
Three-year-old Gu stood up, but still didn't leave.
One kiss was not enough.
When the Crown Princess followed them to the entrance of the alley, what she saw was an ambiguous scene of the two people.
Two inseparable figures could be seen in the pitch-black alley. Xiao Liulang pressed Gu Jiao against the wall, one hand wrapping around her slender waist and holding her close to him, while the other hand held the back of her head as he lowered his head to kiss her.
Despite the thick darkness, the Crown Princess could still feel the possessiveness and tenderness of the man.
He clearly exuded a strong and domineering aura, but at the same time, his actions were careful and restrained.
How could he... How could he...
"Linlang, Linlang, Linlang!"
The Crown Prince shook the Crown Princess's shoulder.
The Crown Princess suddenly snapped out of her daze. She was already back by the Crown Prince's side, but her mind was filled with the image of Xiao Liulang kissing Gu Jiao.
Although she was far away and couldn't see clearly, the ambiguous atmosphere was like a flame filling her entire chest...
She collected herself and awkwardly smiled, "Your Highness."
The Crown Prince looked at her puzzled, "The food is getting cold, why aren't you eating? I've been calling you for a while and you didn't hear me. What were you thinking about?" contemporary romance
"I..." The Crown Princess was at a loss for words. Her mind was in a mess.
The Crown Prince frowned, "Is it that Xiao Liulang? When you see him, you seem to lose your soul. Are you reminded of Ah Heng? You still haven't forgotten Ah Heng after all!"
The Crown Princess lowered her gaze and said, "Your Highness, please calm down. I wasn't thinking about him just now, but about the girl beside him."
"The ugly woman with the birthmark on her face?" The Crown Prince still doubted her.
In order to get rid of the suspicion that she was thinking about Ah Heng, the Crown Princess had to stiffen her scalp and put the topic on Gu Jiao's body, "Do you know who that woman is, Your Highness?"
"Who is she?" The Crown Prince asked nonchalantly.
The Crown Princess asked, "Doesn't Your Highness wonder who she is, being with Senior Compiler Xiao?"
The Crown Prince replied indifferently, "Either she's his wife or his concubine, or some other mistress outside. This kind of thing is common, nothing to be surprised about. What I'm curious about is why Xiao Liulang, a newly crowned top scholar, chose such an ugly woman?"
"She is the daughter of the Marquis Ding'an Estate." The Crown Princess said.
The Crown Prince was startled, "Young Miss Gu from the Gu Family? I've met Young Miss Gu from the Gu Family before, and she doesn't look like this!"
The Crown Princess gently explained, "The Young Miss Gu that Your Highness saw before was a peasant’s daughter who was swapped with the real Marquis Ding’an Estate daughter at birth. This current woman is the legitimate daughter of Marquis Ding’an Estate."
"Oh." The Crown Prince suddenly realized, "Come to think of it, I did remember hearing about this."
The Crown Prince couldn’t be blamed for not keeping it in mind. There were many people in the capital, with many high-ranking families and highly influential clans. Compared to this petty news, there were countless more important matters. He might have listened to it as a topic of conversation after dinner, but he wouldn't have put his heart into remembering it.
The Crown Prince frowned, "Then, she is..."
"She is Xiao Liulang's wife. The two of them met and got married in the countryside, and they only found out that she was swapped at birth after they got married." The Crown Princess said.
The Crown Prince snorted, "It seems that Xiao Liulang has good luck. As a poor boy from the countryside, he randomly married a village girl and she turned out to be the daughter of a Marquis Estate. Although she's a bit ugly, her status is not bad after all."
The Crown Princess paused, then added, "But I heard that Young Miss Gu has never returned to the Gu Family."
"Why hasn't she returned?" The Crown Prince asked in confusion.
"I have no idea." The Crown Princess shook her head.
The Crown Prince thought for a moment, "Perhaps it's because she can’t be presented to the table, and the Marquis Ding'an Estate can't afford to associate with someone like her."
The Crown Princess shook her head slightly, "Your Highness, don’t you know about the bellows..."
Before she could finish her words, a cheerful laughter came from outside the courtyard, "Second Brother!"
"Fourth Brother!" The Crown Prince's eyes lit up and he waved to him, "How come you’re here too? Come and sit down!"
"Isn’t it because I heard that this family opened a new restaurant? I happened to be passing by, but I didn't expect to find Second Brother here as well." The Fourth Prince said as he came to the table, cupping his hands to the Crown Princess in greeting, "Sister-in-law."
The Crown Princess smiled and nodded.
The brothers started their own conversation, and the topic just now couldn’t continue.
The Crown Princess silently drank her cup of sweet osmanthus brew.
On the other side, Xiao Liulang brought someone back home.
The effect of the sweet osmanthus brew this time was unexpectedly too strong. The wine Xiao Liulang brought back from the provincial capital or Gu Chengfeng's pear blossom wine wasn’t even comparable. Gu Jiao was unable to stand straight as soon as she arrived home.
She smashed herself face down on the soft bed and fell asleep, snoring loudly!
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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