Gu Chen saw the scene before him and stifled a laugh, teasing Jiang Wan.
"Your maid's attire is truly unique."
Jiang Wan was a little angry to hear Gu Chen's teasing; it wasn't his place to make fun of her maid.
"Your Highness, it's really too much to make fun of my maid. Xi Tao and Xi Guo, you two go down and take off your hairpins and wash your faces."
Gu Chen saw the slight anger on Jiang Wan's face. Thinking that she would soon be his Princess Consort, he felt an indescribable feeling, but his expression remained cold.
"You should explain to me what your sister said today."
Jiang Wan thought that Gu Chen had scolded Jiang Nianzhu in the tea pavilion because he believed her, but she didn't expect that he had already seen through the truth. He was really shrewd.
"What Jiang Nianzhu said is indeed true, but not entirely so."
Gu Chen was dazed by Jiang Wan's words, his face filled with displeasure.
"If there's someone in your heart, this king will cancel the marriage contract with you. Just say it directly; why bother being so vague and ambiguous?"
Jiang Wan thought that if she relied solely on herself to seek revenge, the long road ahead would likely be impossible. Gu Chen, as the Regent King, could potentially help her in the future, making the task much easier.
After a moment of thought, Jiang Wan smiled slightly, a look that was quite captivating, making Gu Chen feel somewhat unable to resist.
Jiang Wan sat in front of Gu Chen, her face sincere.
"Jiang Wan and Your Highness will soon be husband and wife. To avoid any future misunderstandings, I should naturally be honest. I did have some fondness for Shen Quan before, but we never did anything inappropriate. Jiang Wan gradually realized that it wasn't love, and I never thought of breaking off the marriage with Your Highness. Jiang Wan's heart is clear, and there is no one else at the moment. Your Highness can rest assured that Jiang Wan will never betray Your Highness. My relationship with Shen Quan is now like strangers. If Your Highness minds, then we can call off the engagement."
Gu Chen found Jiang Wan increasingly interesting. If it were another woman, she would have been at a loss, afraid of him. But this Jiang Wan was open and honest, every word sincere, neither humble nor arrogant; she was truly an extraordinary woman.
Gu Chen pretended to be angry as he looked at Jiang Wan.
"You're not even trying to hide it. With such blatant honesty, aren't you afraid I'll grow tired of you and kill you?"
Jiang Wan's expression remained unchanged as always, unperturbed by Gu Chen's words. Instead, her eyes were resolute, and her tone was firm. "You won't kill me, Your Highness."
Gu Chen looked at Jiang Wan, his gaze deep and questioning.
"Why?"
"Your Highness came personally to deliver the betrothal gifts today. Jiang Wan assumes that even if the Emperor had ordered it, given Your Highness's way of handling things in the tea pavilion, you wouldn't have come. But you did come, and you even came to chat with Jiang Wan in person. You also chose to believe what I said in front of everyone in the tea pavilion, and then privately asked me the truth. It's clear that Your Highness doesn't dislike Jiang Wan, so you won't kill me."
Gu Chen didn't continue on Jiang Wan's words, but instead put aside his usual coldness and replied gently.
"What's past is past. I've given you a chance. If I find out in the future that you still have feelings for Shen Quan and are deceiving me, you won't be spared. You can ask for anything you need for the wedding next month. The betrothal gifts were prepared by the Emperor, but if you think it's not enough, I'll have more sent over from my mansion."
Jiang Wan looked at Gu Chen, feeling that he wasn't as cold as when they first met. He seemed to treat her differently from others, but perhaps she was overthinking it. After all, they would be husband and wife from now on, and it was only natural to be more cordial.
Jiang Wan rolled her eyes, thought for a moment, and then spoke in a sweet voice; "Jiang Wan has no other requests, and there's no need to prepare any more betrothal gifts. There are already plenty. If they're all sent over, what will I spend after I marry into the Prince's Mansion?"
Jiang Wan didn't want to make things easy for Jiang Nianzhu and Madam Liu.
Gu Chen felt like Jiang Wan was flirting with him, but he had no proof...
"My Princess Consort is actually a money-grubber. Then I'll keep them for you, and you can spend them after you marry in."
My Princess Consort? Jiang Wan's face flushed with what Gu Chen said, the redness reaching her ears. Seeing this, Gu Chen also subconsciously swallowed his saliva, and Jiang Wan's expression looked a little unnatural.
"Does the Prince have anything else? If there's nothing, it's getting dark, so I won't keep the Prince here."
Gu Chen was displeased after hearing Jiang Wan's words.
"Then I'll leave first. If you have any problems, you can come to the Regent King's Mansion to find me."
After speaking, Gu Chen placed a Dragon-adorned Ring on the table.
"Wear this ring, and the guards at the mansion gate will let you in when they see it."
Jiang Wan picked up the ring and saw the character "Yu" (Forgiveness/Tolerance) engraved in the middle. Without thinking much about it, she looked up and asked, "Anything is fine?"
Gu Chen looked at Jiang Wan with a determined gaze, his eyes betraying an affection he himself hadn't realized.
"Yes."
Gu Chen's unwavering gaze struck a chord with the fragile nerves in Jiang Wan's heart.
Jiang Wan felt a great sense of frustration. She recalled how her marriage in her previous life had been exploited, marking the beginning of her demise. Yet, in this life, she was the one exploiting the marriage, using it to seek revenge. She couldn't help but ask the heavens, what is love, and where does it reside?
Gu Chen saw that Jiang Wan seemed to be deep in thought, and assumed she wanted him to leave, but didn't know how to bring it up.
"If that's the case, I'll be leaving!"
Jiang Wan hadn't quite recovered from her emotions when she heard Gu Chen was leaving. Politely, she said, "Farewell, Your Highness!"
After leaving the Prime Minister's residence, Gu Chen instructed Jian Yu, who was behind him, "Go send Shen Quan a gift, so he knows not everyone is someone he can just copy."
"Yes."
After Jian Yu responded, he turned and left, disappearing into the bustling street in moments.
Jian Yu, dressed in black and wearing a veil, arrived at the side gate of Prince Quan's Mansion. He used a large tree beside the gate to fly onto the roof, located Shen Quan's residence, and then flew down into the courtyard. He deliberately made some noise to attract Shen Quan and the guards' attention.
Hearing the commotion, Shen Quan immediately became alert, "Who is it?"
He immediately saw a man in black running in the courtyard and ordered, "Catch him!"
As soon as Shen Quan finished speaking, a group of people, along with Qi Wei, Shen Quan's personal guard, chased after Jian Yu.
Jian Yu easily shook off the guards in the mansion and deliberately slowed down, waiting for Qi Wei. The two came to a corner of the street. Qi Wei didn't take the person in front of him seriously, speaking with disdain and provocation.
"What's your scheme in coming to Prince Quan's Mansion? Tell me, and I'll leave you a whole corpse. If you're not sensible, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Jian Yu didn't say anything, just beckoned with his finger. Qi Wei was enraged by Jian Yu's action.
"Looking for death!"
With that, Qi Wei picked up the long sword in his hand and stabbed at Jian Yu. Jian Yu flipped in the air, easily dodging the attack. Qi Wei relentlessly stabbed at Jian Yu's arms, legs, and neck in turn, but Jian Yu easily deflected them all. Jian Yu pretended to be unable to fight back, retreating again and again. Finally, he seized the opportunity and plunged the dagger from his sleeve into the outer side of Qi Wei's thigh.
Qi Wei was in excruciating pain. Before he could react, Jian Yu slashed the dagger towards Qi Wei's wrist and then his back.
Jian Yu didn't take Qi Wei's life; every cut avoided vital areas. Qi Wei was knocked to the ground by Jian Yu, his heart filled with unease, fearing that Jian Yu would torture him.
"If you're a real man, just give me a quick death."
Jian Yu didn't answer, afraid that Qi Wei would recognize his voice. Instead, he stuffed a note into Qi Wei's chest, grabbed his collar, and threw him at the entrance of Prince Quan's Mansion.
The guards at the entrance saw Qi Wei lying on the ground and immediately carried him inside, had a physician examine him, and reported to Shen Quan.
After the physician treated Qi Wei's wounds, he reported to Shen Quan.
"Your Highness, although the wounds on Lord Qi are deep, they aren't fatal, avoiding vital areas. I have bandaged and medicated Lord Qi. He will recover after a period of rest."
Shen Quan waved his hand, signaling the physician to leave. Seeing Qi Wei's miserable appearance, he cursed,
"What a waste. You're one of my subordinates, and yet you've been reduced to this by some thief. How can I trust you with my safety in the future? Do you even have the face to live?"
Qi Wei was terrified that Shen Quan would think him useless and kill him, so he quickly admitted his guilt.
"This subordinate is useless and begs for the Prince's punishment. Qi Wei has no complaints, but, Your Highness, that person placed a note in my clothes."
After saying this, Qi Wei slowly took out the note with his uninjured hand and presented it to Shen Quan. Shen Quan opened it and saw written on it:
"This time, someone took the fall for you. If you can't control your words and actions, next time, the one with this fate will be you, Shen Quan."
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