He spoke words that were meant to be moving, yet they sounded somewhat grating to his ears. Princely Heir asked in a deep voice, "Yanyan, have you ever thought about why I’ve never cared about how others talk about me?" "That question..." She had never really thought about it. Should she think about it now, wouldn’t it be what the commoners often say about not feeling itchy when there are too many fleas? Princely Heir pinched the bridge of his nose, resigned to the fact that his hints, whether obvious or not, had been too simple, yet she still hadn’t understood; it could only mean that her inherent thoughts were too deeply ingrained. Seeing him pinch the bridge of his nose, Leng Yu Yan asked with concern, "Are you tired? Then let’s quickly return to our room." Princely Heir responded softly, and the two walked side by side. On the other side, Ye Jiu had Li Yuyue sit at the table and scooped a bowl of supper for him. "This time I’ve surely figured out the difference between sugar and salt. Try it, Princely Heir." Li Yuyue looked at the little dough balls in the bowl, his lips twitching, "May I not eat it?" "These bird’s nest balls were really cooked by me, and I rolled them myself," Ye Jiu pushed the bowl towards him, eagerly waiting for him to try it. "They do look tempting," Li Yuyue complimented for once. "Then, Princely Heir, please eat," Ye Jiu sat down opposite him, scooping a bowl for herself as well. Li Yuyue frowned, took a deep breath, ate a spoonful, felt like vomiting, but held it in. Ye Jiu asked with a smile, "Isn’t it delicious? I added a lot of sugar on purpose." Li Yuyue nodded solemnly, "You should eat too, while it’s hot." Ye Jiu took a spoonful, swallowed it, chewed twice, then spit it out with a "wa": "The center of the balls is still raw flour, Princely Heir, why didn’t you say anything?" Only then did Li Yuyue spit out the dough ball from his mouth, "Otherwise, how could I trick you into eating it too?" Ye Jiu pouted, "Is what I make really that bad?" "Too sweet," Li Yuyue stirred with a spoon, "The sizes of the balls are uneven; the smaller ones are nearly cooked while the larger ones are still raw in the middle, plus the bird’s nest was not simmered long enough. Ye Jiu, cooking requires careful attention, it’s not just a matter of dumping everything into the pot." Upon saying this, Li Yuyue finally realized the profound meaning behind Princely Heir’s words about being fortunate. He shook his head and raised his hand to call Wei Liang: "Take this supper and cook it some more." Wei Liang complied, took back the two bowls of supper, and left the room. Ye Jiu’s eyes widened, "If it’s not edible, just throw it away." "Food shouldn’t be wasted," Li Yuyue explained softly, "Your effort, I certainly won’t disregard, it’s just not well-cooked; another round of cooking should make it edible." "Princely Heir..." Ye Jiu blinked, looking like she was about to cry at any moment. "I have a suggestion, though." "Next time you cook something, try it yourself first." "Princely Heir still finds my cooking inedible?" "It’s just the truth." Ye Jiu’s brows furrowed, "Am I really that useless?" "Uh..." Li Yuyue was at a loss. Were all women this unreasonable? It was clearly her own mistake, how could she look so wronged? At that moment, Leng Yu Yan returned to her room, organized the books she’d read that day, then looked at Princely Heir, "Aren’t you going back to the Eastern Palace?" "There are no guest rooms available in my courtyard for Your Highness to stay." Princely Heir, upon hearing this, instantly understood; she was referring to the day he fled from the bed. "If Yanyan truly has no regret about breaking off the marriage, then I am naturally willing to share a bed with Yanyan," said the Princely Heir. "Hehe, Your Highness really knows how to joke," Leng Yu Yan shot him a look, "You can keep me in your room, and I’ll sleep however it suits you." "Really, sleep however suits me?" The surprise came so suddenly that Ye Yiheng felt somewhat bewildered. "Yes, sleep on the floor, sleep separately, all is well," Leng Yu Yan started to remove her hairpins one by one, "Otherwise, what else?" Ye Yiheng chuckled and shook his head. As expected, there was no surprise. He cleared his throat and said, "As for Ms. Wu and her son, you can detain them for as long as you wish, and dispose of them however you see fit. I grant you the power to execute first and report later." Leng Yu Yan nodded her thanks, "Much appreciated!" This was also because of the role her elder brother now held. With him around, she had already processed the legal interrogation procedures. The elite soldiers of the Northern Garrison that her brother led were now in charge of the capital city’s defense and security. Ms. Wu and her son were suspects in the murder of her mother and the destruction of her beauty and physique; on these two points alone, detaining them in the Prince Mansion’s dungeon was both reasonable and legitimate. She turned her head back and asked, "Has the Beiliang Princess Yu Yinglei realized that Ye Zhenxian is missing body parts? Not only does she clamor to marry you, Your Highness, but she also wants to return to Beiliang, right?" "Yes, but she won’t be able to go back." "Previously, Consort Xian intended to marry Yu Yinglei to either Ye Zhenyu or Ye Zhengmo. Given the current situation, what do you think?" Ye Yiheng countered. Leng Yu Yan pondered, then said, "Since neither of Consort Xian’s sons managed to marry the Beiliang Princess, they won’t let her leave easily." Ye Yiheng nodded, "Exactly, Yu Yinglei keeps asking to return, and the one who opposes this the most is Ye Zhenyu." Leng Yu Yan said with a smile, "Your Highness has played a masterful game of chess. From the mutilation of Ye Zhenxian to the arrival of the Beiliang envoy for the marriage agreement, you orchestrated the situation so that Ye Zhenxian and Yu Yinglei were mixed together, and then you set their wedding date which led to tonight’s grand drama." The man before her was enigmatic, his chess moves played to breathtaking perfection, turning everyone else into pawns in his game. Consort Xian had put much effort into coaxing Beiliang, yet unexpectedly, she did not become Yu Yinglei’s mother-in-law. Yu Yinglei was now married and, regardless of what Ye Zhenxian does, her identity for life can only be that of Princess Xian. All the other princes’ plans of pulling Beiliang to their side as a backing force were blocked by Ye Yiheng. Ye Yiheng responded with a faint smile, "Their mixing together involved the efforts of your elder brother." "Without Your Highness’s reminder, my elder brother probably wouldn’t have thought to bring them together," Leng Yu Yan sincerely praised, "You truly are formidable." Fortunately, she was his ally now. If they were enemies, escaping from his grasp would not be easy. Ye Yiheng gently patted her shoulder, "What is Yanyan thinking?" "Nothing much." Leng Yu Yan smiled faintly, "Your Highness, go ahead and freshen up." Ye Yiheng’s eyes moved slightly, "Indeed." Leng Yu Yan narrowed her eyes slightly. His tall figure was like a fine pine in the breeze, and even his retreating silhouette heading towards the bathroom was incomparably handsome, but why did it make her feel uneasy? Even somewhat anxious! Her eyelids began to twitch, feeling that in these past days, someone’s gaze upon her intermittently carried a probing intent. The Tian Family were naturally suspicious—could it be he was beginning to doubt her sincerity in cooperating with him? In less than half the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Ye Yiheng’s voice came from the bathroom, "Yanyan, bring me a set of sleeping clothes." Leng Yu Yan furrowed her brows and walked to the bathroom door, "Do you have sleeping clothes at my place?" "Mhm, Song Guo handled this matter." "How come I wasn’t aware?" As she spoke, Leng Yu Yan opened the wardrobe and, to her surprise, found neatly folded men’s clothing. She could not help but rummage through them—outer garments, robes, underwear, even short underwear were all there. Her cheeks involuntarily flushed red as Leng Yu Yan took his sleeping clothes and entered the bathroom. Behind the screen, there was a faint sound of water followed by a splash as someone emerged from the bathtub. Leng Yu Yan quickly turned around...