Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot
Chapter 515 - 449: Misunderstanding Resolved, The Excited Crown Prince

Chapter 515: Chapter 449: Misunderstanding Resolved, The Excited Crown Prince

Indeed. Wasn’t he one of the people who went to the Southwest Border back then?

Yet she never connected his proximity to the incident location and his identity as the second son of King Qin’s Prince Mansion.

The two threads in her brain ran on separate tracks entirely.

Under his patient guidance, the two thoughts collided.

Liu Qingyun had pictured countless scenarios—the surname Qin, not surnamed Qin; dead or alive; from Miaojiang or not from Miaojiang. But she had never imagined that the person could be the mute boy who had sworn brotherhood with her.

Under the night sky, she had once traced his eyebrows and features with her fingertips.

It was a face so handsome it could make the heavens themselves cry foul.

But the potion’s effects were too strong; afterward, no matter how she tried, she couldn’t recall his appearance.

If this were true...

Wouldn’t that mean she had slept with her sworn brother...

At this very moment, words failed to capture her emotional turmoil and overwhelming embarrassment.

No, she needed to stay as inconspicuous as possible.

"Weren’t you resting at the inn to recover? How did you end up at the tavern?"

"I was worried about you and went to the tavern to find you... That night, I intended to confess my identity to you, so I wasn’t wearing a mask."

At that point, everything clicked into place.

Liu Qingyun sneaked a guilty glance at him.

Lu Zhaoyan, as if guessing what she wanted to ask, replied with a feigned innocence, "It was too dark in the room, so I didn’t see your face clearly. I asked who you were, and you said, ’Who cares who I am? For all you know, I could be your ninety-ninth man.’"

Stop talking... This was mortifying...

Liu Qingyun wished more than anything for the ground to swallow her whole—

"At first, I wasn’t sure if it was all just my imagination," Lu Zhaoyan said, glancing at Liu Qingyun. "Now I’m certain it wasn’t."

Liu Qingyun’s embarrassment intensified.

"You... mmmmmm?!"

She let out an awkward and aggrieved sound through her nose, clearly wanting to ask but too ashamed to voice it aloud.

"I..."

This question left Lu Zhaoyan unsure of how to respond as well.

He carefully considered his words and, avoiding the yet-to-be-verified parts, said, "At the time, I wasn’t in the best condition. I thought... that I mistook the person for you after the fact."

That statement carried a lot of implications.

Liu Qingyun, though stubborn in some matters, wasn’t actually brainless.

She stared blankly at him. "You..."

Lu Zhaoyan hesitated for a moment before setting his expression resolutely. "I’ll investigate this thoroughly and give you an explanation."

Liu Qingyun cleared her throat, picked up a cup of tea, and said with a forced calmness, "Well, well... It’s nothing, really. Just... something that happened. I’ve already forgotten about it."

Lu Zhaoyan looked at her seriously and said, "I’m not that worthless."

Liu Qingyun choked violently.

"I haven’t forgotten," Lu Zhaoyan added with utmost seriousness.

Liu Qingyun thought: I may have thick skin, but not that thick... Can you think before you speak?

Guuuurrble~

Her stomach growled.

For the first time ever, she didn’t find the sound of her stomach growling embarrassing at all.

Lu Zhaoyan said, "We’ve been talking for so long. You must be hungry."

"You’re hungry too. Go eat!"

Liu Qingyun immediately pushed him out, locked the door from the inside in one swift, seamless motion!

Once she was alone in the room, the earlier embarrassment came crashing back tenfold, and her face turned as red as a tomato.

She flung herself onto the bed, muttering into the blankets, "Even rabbits don’t eat the grass near their burrows... I’m so humiliated..."

Her dignity... was all lost that one night...

How would she ever face anyone again?

Suddenly, Liu Qingyun poked her head out of the blankets. "Wait, no one knows about our sworn brotherhood! I slept with the Crown Prince—why would that be embarrassing? If he doesn’t say anything, and I don’t say anything, who would know I ate the grass nearby?"

"Wait a second, one person does know."

"Qingyi."

"But she doesn’t know who I am. Besides, she mentioned her family arranged a marriage for her, and she’d return to get married once her face was healed."

"Ah, what a shame I won’t see her one last time."

Xi’er came in with food, and Liu Qingyun ate her fill before heading off to nap.

She truly lived by the mantra: eat well, drink well, and don’t let things weigh on your mind.

In contrast, Lu Zhaoyan couldn’t calm himself.

He stood silently on the arched bridge of the Crown Prince Mansion, gazing at the shimmering lotus pond. His memories of past and present interwove, chaotically crashing through his chest.

His hand clenched into a tight fist.

There was both excitement and doubt.

If the one who spent that night with him was her, then what about Dou Qingyi?

Why, upon waking, was the person beside him Dou Qingyi?

And why, after giving her a bowl of Abortion Soup, did she still carry a pregnancy to full term and give birth to Lu Qi?

Ji Feng had just returned from the Imperial Palace and came looking for Lu Zhaoyan. After asking around, he learned that the Crown Prince was here, accompanied only by Cui Hu, who was instructed to stay far away and not approach.

Ji Feng asked Cui Hu, "Is His Highness troubled again?"

The Crown Prince only ever stood alone on the bridge to brood when something monumental occurred.

Cui Hu jumped nervously and chastised in a low voice, "Damn it, can’t you make some noise when you walk?"

Ji Feng said, "I asked you a question."

Cui Hu sighed, "After seeing Linyuan’s mother, His Highness has been acting strange. Today, I don’t know what he discussed with that woman in the room, but when he came out, he was grinning from ear to ear like a groom on his wedding day."

Ji Feng frowned at the Crown Prince’s solemn expression. "Are you certain?"

Cui Hu replied, "I’m not exaggerating. His Highness has never been so elated. Even when the Crown Princess came to the Prince Mansion to acknowledge their kinship with the Commandery Prince, it wasn’t like this. Yet after being so happy, he came here to cool off."

Ji Feng, as the Crown Prince’s closest confidant, understood him well. His Highness never allowed himself to linger in an emotional state for long.

Which meant Cui Hu’s claim was probably true.

But then, what joyous event could make His Highness so unnaturally happy?

And conversely, what monumental chaos could also make him want to overturn the entire Imperial City at this moment?

Rose Garden.

Dou Qingyi had just finished lunch.

In truth, she had no appetite, taking only two bites before instructing the servants to clear the table.

Hui Zhi had been beaten to death with a rod, and now her new maid, Chuntao, attended to her.

Chuntao asked softly, "Madam, would you like to rest?"

Dou Qingyi inquired, "No reply from the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion yet?"

Chuntao shook her head. "None."

Such a major incident had unfolded last night—the Crown Prince had left in front of her, holding someone else’s hand.

Restless, she had written a letter overnight and sent it to the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion.

Yet, the entire morning had passed without any response.

Could it be that something had happened to the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion? Or were they too busy with the wedding arrangements for Liuying and Qi’er to attend to other matters?

"Prepare the carriage. I’m heading out."

Time was of the essence; Dou Qingyi resolved to visit the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion in person to discuss a solution.

She could not, under any circumstances, lose her position as Crown Princess Consort.

But just as she donned her cloak and left the courtyard, she ran straight into Lu Zhaoyan.

His expression was cold, his eyes sharp enough to pierce through her soul.