Chapter 713: Chapter 713 Husband’s Rights Leng Yuqing felt ashamed. “It was truly my lack of consideration!” Ye Yiheng gave him a glance before adding, “Or could it be that Second Uncle has taken a liking to that woman?” If it had been himself in that situation, a woman who had plotted to crawl into his bed would long since have been turned into a human lantern. No, wait—those of unattractive appearance wouldn’t even qualify to be made into lanterns. They would have been fed to the dogs. Leng Yuqing shook his head repeatedly, urgently saying, “Your Highness, my sister, you must not misunderstand! How could I possibly have taken that woman to heart? It was solely because of Mi Xinrong’s pleading that I helped.” Ye Yiheng raised an eyebrow. “It’s nearly time for the midday meal, so Second Uncle should take lunch at the Eastern Palace. In the afternoon, we should hear some news, and then you can listen for yourself.” Leng Yuqing readily agreed. The study fell silent for a while. Leng Yu Yan let out a sigh of relief. It turns out that someone was concerned about her. With that thought, she smiled sweetly. Just then, Ye Yiheng spoke up unexpectedly, “Second Uncle, if you have matters to discuss with Yanyan in the future, come direct to the Eastern Palace.” Leng Yuqing hastily agreed, “What Your Highness says is very true; today was my fault. I shall not do so again in the future.” Ye Yiheng spoke unhurriedly, “Second Uncle has repeatedly asked Yanyan to return to the Prince Mansion. If I were a little more petty, I’d think Second Uncle was trying to drive a wedge between Yanyan and me.” Leng Yuqing froze at these words. Was this Crown Prince some sort of demon to have guessed that he had indeed subtly warned his sister to be wary of the Crown Prince? Leng Yu Yan quickly smoothed things over, “Your Highness, you scare my second brother by saying that. How could he possibly want to sever our relationship? He’s alone in the Prince Mansion and calls me over just because he misses his family.” With that, she walked behind Ye Yiheng and placed her hands on his shoulders, gently massaging them. “Besides, our grandfather and Father King have said that if I wish to return to my maiden home, Your Highness must not stop me, right?” Ye Yiheng glanced at Leng Yuqing without a flicker of emotion and then chuckled, patting the soft hands upon his shoulder. “I was just saying; look how scared I made you siblings.” Leng Yuqing laughed loudly. “Your Highness rarely jokes, and when you do, we actually fail to catch on.” Ye Yiheng smiled lightly. “It indeed poses a problem for Second Uncle to be alone in the Prince Mansion; I believe Second Uncle should find a wife.” “Ah?” Leng Yuqing quickly waved his hands. “I am not of great age; this issue is still premature.” The corner of Ye Yiheng’s mouth twitched. “You’re a year older than I am. How can you say you’re not of great age?” Leng Yuqing, caught in his embarrassment, wasn’t sure what to say. He only heard Ye Yiheng continue, “Princess Nandian, Baili Wenyi, is yet unmarried; what does Second Uncle think of her?” Upon hearing this, Leng Yuqing and Leng Yu Yan spontaneously rejected in unison, “Not possible!” ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝓷𝓮𝓽 Ye Yiheng looked at Leng Yu Yan, “Crown Princess Consort, why is it not possible?” Leng Yu Yan lowered her gaze and said honestly, “I do not like Baili Wenyi. She has a domineering personality. If she became my sister-in-law, should the members of the Prince Mansion listen to her, or to my grandfather and Father King?” Ye Yiheng spoke calmly, “She will likely officially become Imperial Princess Nandian. If Second Uncle marries her, you’ll need to go to Nandian. The relationships within the Prince Mansion wouldn’t be much affected.” Leng Yuqing stood up, agitated, “As a full-blooded man, how could I possibly marry into Nandian? This cannot happen!” Upon these words, Ye Yiheng’s expression darkened. “I once said I could marry into Prince Zhenbei Mansion. Are you saying that I once lost face as a man?” Leng Yuqing smiled bitterly, “Your Highness is different from me! Moreover, Princess Nandian is like a mother tiger; I would be averse to her, much less harbor any such intentions.” The three of them chatted for a while, and once the dining hall was ready for lunch, they moved to the dining hall. After lunch, a little more than an hour passed, Mo Chen Ruo Feng returned to the Eastern Palace and brought Mi Xinrong with him. In the main hall of the front courtyard of the Eastern Palace, after listening to Mo Chen Ruo Feng’s report, Ye Yiheng said emotionlessly to Leng Yuqing and Mi Xinrong, “Yesterday, you combed through the entire capital city, and today, my people searched as well, but to no avail.” Mi Xinrong said anxiously, “Yesterday, the General and I led people in search all night, and today these two brothers led a troop to search for merely four hours, this…” After arriving at Prince Zhenbei Mansion, Mo Chen Ruo Feng only asked for Xinmei’s portrait before beginning the search. He had proposed to join them, but they refused, only allowing him to wait at the entrance of the Eastern Palace for news. He had arrived early to wait and happened to meet them upon their return, so he followed them into the Eastern Palace. He had no idea how the Eastern Palace Dark Guard conducted their searches, but he believed it was impossible to have scoured the entire capital within four hours, which raised his suspicions. Leng Yuqing glanced at Mi Xinrong and said, “The people of the Eastern Palace have their own set of operating principles, and even these four hours are considered a lengthy effort.” Ashamed, Mi Xinrong responded, “It is my fault for being so impatient regarding my younger sister; I shouldn’t have reacted .” Ye Yiheng replied indifferently, “No matter,” and with a flick of his fingers, he gestured for Mo Chen to explain. Mo Chen nodded and turned to Mi Xinrong, saying, “Even though we only brought a troop of men, they were only for communication purposes. There are actually many others searching. Once they gather information, we naturally return to the Eastern Palace to report. Do you understand now?” The Eastern Palace had outposts in every corner of the capital city. As soon as the Eastern Palace Dark Guard was mobilized, it was like casting a net. When it was time to draw in the net, it was also time to integrate the news. Of course, there was no need to explain this key point to him. An emotional Mi Xinrong knelt down, “Your Highness, the Crown Prince, is so helpful; it really shouldn’t have been in question.” He suddenly burst into tears, “If even the Eastern Palace can’t find anyone, it seems likely that my sister has met with misfortune.” Ye Yiheng tapped the table with his finger, his voice unfluctuating, “In reality, when you couldn’t find her in the capital yesterday, you should have realized she was no longer within the capital.” Hearing this, Mi Xinrong was astounded, “Why didn’t I think of that?” He then turned and knelt towards Leng Yuqing, “General, please allow me to take some men to search outside the capital!” Leng Yuqing frowned, “Beyond the capital city, where will you search?” His question left Mi Xinrong at a loss for words. Ye Yiheng once again spoke with a cold voice, “Just inquire at each city gate. Starting from the twenty-seventh of May, check if there have been any suspicious individuals or items leaving the capital, that way you can roughly determine the direction.” This advice struck Mi Xinrong like a revelation. He bowed in place to Ye Yiheng, “Thank you, Your Highness the Crown Prince, for the guidance!” That evening, Ye Yiheng returned to his bedroom from his study earlier than usual. Leng Yu Yan was about to take a bath and was somewhat surprised to see him return. For the past few days, he had been very occupied with reviewing petitions. Why was he back in the room so early today? Seeming to notice her confusion, Ye Yiheng didn’t point it out but simply said, “It’s too hot, and I want to take a bath as well. Let’s go together.” Seeing that she was only in her underwear, he went ahead and pulled her by the hand toward the bathhouse without further explanation. Leng Yu Yan twisted her wrist slightly as she struggled, “I’m not in a hurry, Your Highness; you go ahead and bathe first.” “I have said before, I want to take a closer look tonight,” his voice was deep and husky as he asked, “Yanyan, would you prefer to be looked at on the bed or in the bath?” When he had lifted her from the bathtub at Linqing Pavilion and helped her with the menstruation bag, he caught a glimpse of her fair and smooth skin. But those two times were completely different from what he saw last night! Last night, he had only peeked hastily because of his guilty conscience, but tonight he had made up his mind; as her husband, he had the right and privilege to have a clear look.