"Hide?"
Lin Jiangnian's eyes gradually became strange.
Under the dim light, on the bed, the girl's delicate body curled up under the quilt, her pretty face with delicate contours flushed, her eyes panicked, and even her voice trembled slightly with anxiety.
There was a knock on the door and my aunt's voice, and it felt like I was caught in bed with someone cheating.
At this moment, it is extremely clear.
Lin Jiangnian didn't move, but looked quietly at the panicked girl on the bed, with a playful smile in his eyes.
She moved closer to the girl, staring at Zhiyuan's tender face so close to her, and lowered her voice meaningfully, "Why are you hiding?"
Shame and anger flashed in the girl's eyes, and she turned her head away in panic. At this moment, the knocking on the door became louder.
"Kite? Are you asleep?!"
The crisp sound is particularly clear in the silent night.
In the silent and dull room, Lin Jiangnian could even feel the pounding heartbeat of the girl in front of him.
Very intense.
She is very nervous!
Extremely nervous.
That pretty face no longer had any coldness.
At this moment, her face was full of shyness and panic.
It was late at night, and the couple were alone. My aunt was still knocking on the door.
The strong and strange stimulation caused the atmosphere in the room to change slightly.
Lin Jiangnian was still staring at the girl in front of him, his long eyelashes trembling slightly, and his eyes no longer had the usual calmness and composure.
Her breathing was rapid, her expression was flustered, her bare hands clutching the quilt were clenched tightly, her whole body was tense, as if she was extremely nervous.
Even in the eyes when he looked at Lin Jiangnian, there seemed to be a hint of pleading.
Very cute!
Seeing this, Lin Jiangnian was moved. He leaned close to the girl and whispered softly, "Are you scared?"
Although he spoke softly, he could sense the tension and silence of the girl beside him.
Outside the door.
After knocking on the door for a while and hearing no movement in the room, the knocking stopped.
Then, Jiang Yuxiang muttered to herself, "Strange, the light is still on. Could this little girl be asleep?"
After a while, the sound of footsteps gradually fading away was heard.
The girl on the bed seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
At this moment, the voice that was about to go away came from outside the door again.
"Let's go check on that brat. He even dared to hide it from my aunt. I haven't taught him a lesson yet today..."
The sound of talking to oneself gradually faded away.
Inside the room, lying on the bed, Zhiyuan, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, suddenly felt anxious again.
"You, go back quickly!"
She spoke in a panic and pushed Lin Jiangnian.
Lin Jiangnian didn't move, but looked at the panicked girl in front of him with a smile: "Why do you want to go back?"
"Xiao, Auntie is looking for you..."
"It's okay, let her find it."
Lin Jiangnian remained unmoved. Unlike Zhiyuan, he was not moved at all. Even if he was caught red-handed, it wouldn't bother him at all.
But it's completely different for kites.
Her pretty face flushed, and she became particularly flustered when she heard Lin Jiangnian's words. She raised her eyes and met his playful gaze.
As if she had expected something, her eyes were filled with shame and anger: "Go back!"
"No."
Not only did Lin Jiangnian not plan to leave, he simply lay down, looking like he was going to stay there.
Zhiyuan was already panicking at this moment. In the middle of the night, his aunt suddenly went to look for him. What if he didn't see her and found something...
The girl's already red face became even hotter. Looking at Lin Jiangnian who was lying on the bed, she felt anxious, angry, and ashamed.
"You, go back quickly."
The voice was very soft, with a hint of panic, completely lacking the previous coldness.
Lin Jiangnian raised his eyebrows and looked at her face with some pride: "You can go back, but what good will it do me?"
Zhiyuan said nothing and stared at him in embarrassment.
"How about you give me a kiss?"
Lin Jiangnian suddenly came up to her and said with a smile: "If you kiss me, I will go back. How about that?"
After hearing this, Zhiyuan's face turned even redder, and her eyes became panicked. She bit her lower lip lightly, staring at Lin Jiangnian with shame and anger, as if trying to force him away with her eyes.
However, Lin Jiangnian ignored it completely.
"Kiss me, my prince, and I'll leave! Otherwise, I'll sleep here tonight!"
Lin Jiangnian met her eyes, staring into her cold yet shy eyes without any fear.
Eye contact.
Zhiyuan bit her lower lip and just stared at him.
His eyes were still filled with shame and anger, but with a hint of coldness.
Without saying a word.
Like a stubborn girl, she confronted him silently.
After looking at Lin Jiangnian for a few seconds, she turned her head away and no longer looked at Lin Jiangnian. She still said nothing and did not move.
A very stubborn girl.
Seeing this, Lin Jiangnian sighed.
Sure enough, it’s not that easy to get her to take the initiative.
"Really not kissing?"
Lin Jiangnian moved closer, almost touching the girl's face, feeling her flushed and hot face: "Aren't you afraid of being discovered by your aunt?"
Hearing this, the girl's body trembled slightly, but she remained silent stubbornly.
Lin Jiangnian reached out, turned the girl's stubborn little head over, and looked into her eyes.
The originally cold eyes were filled with a bit of shame and anger, a bit of coldness, and a bit of... grievance.
Just looked at her without saying a word.
Seeing this, Lin Jiangnian's heart softened a little.
"You're so stubborn, little mouth!"
Lin Jiangnian sighed, and under the girl's expressionless gaze, he kissed her again, blocking her stubborn mouth.
"Since you don't want to kiss me, then I'll have to come myself."
“Um… no…”
The girl's pupils widened and she struggled in shame and anger.
But soon, the strength of the struggle gradually weakened...
“…”
After a long while, Lin Jiangnian contentedly released the girl's soft body from his arms: "Alright, I won't embarrass you anymore. I'm going back now, Prince?"
Lying on the bed, the girl said nothing, lowered her eyes, and breathed rapidly, as if she had not yet recovered.
The rosy cherry-red lips seemed to be coated with a layer of sugar, shining and tempting.
Lin Jiangnian rubbed her head and ruffled her hair: "I'll come to see you tomorrow night. Remember to wait for me obediently."
The girl didn't say anything, just turned her head away with an expressionless face.
It seemed very light, and it seemed as if he had not spoken at all.
"snort."
Lin Jiangnian stood up contentedly, got off the bed, turned around, walked to the door, opened it and left.
On the bed, the girl sat quietly with her legs bent. The quilt wrapped around her body had fallen off at some point, revealing a fair and beautiful face under her thin clothes and messy hair.
Her skin was fair and delicate, with a blush that climbed up the girl's pink neck, even her earlobes were dyed red.
The girl lowered her eyes, her bare hands hidden beneath the covers tightly grasping them, stirring them restlessly. Her breathing became slightly rapid, and after a long moment, she finally calmed down.
Those cold eyes just stared at the door.
I don't know how long it took before a faint humming sounded from the cold room.
"snort."
"Bad guy."
“…”
In the courtyard, night fell and the cold wind howled.
After leaving Zhiyuan's room, Lin Jiangnian made a deliberate turn and returned to his own courtyard from the other side yard.
As soon as he stepped into the yard, he saw a graceful figure standing quietly under the eaves not far away, with her arms folded across her chest, staring at him with a half-smile.
It seems like a long wait.
"Aunt?"
The figure under the eaves was Jiang Yuxiang.
"Why are you here?"
Lin Jiangnian walked forward.
Jiang Yuxiang looked him up and down with her beautiful eyes: "Why, Auntie can't come?"
"Or do you think your aunt has ruined your plans?"
Lin Jiangnian was startled for a moment, then he said calmly, "If my aunt is coming, of course you can come."
"Yeah?"
Jiang Yuxiang narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly, "Where did you go just now?"
"I took a walk in the backyard." Lin Jiangnian remained calm.
"With whom?"
"one person."
"real?"
"Of course it's true..."
Lin Jiangnian paused, noticing that his aunt's tone was slightly off: "Aunt, why are you asking this?"
"What do you think?"
Jiang Yuxiang suddenly sneered.
Lin Jiangnian's eyelids twitched.
The look on Jiang Yuxiang's face seemed to indicate that she knew something.
Lin Jiangnian remained calm, "Auntie, you came to see me so late, is there something wrong?"
Jiang Yuxiang's beautiful eyes were still fixed on him. "I originally wanted to go find Zhiyuan, but I didn't expect her to have gone to bed, so I stopped by to see you."
"Thank you for your concern, auntie."
"I don't care about you."
Jiang Yuxiang suddenly snorted coldly.
Lin Jiangnian: “…”
There's something wrong with my aunt.
Lin Jiangnian remained calm and walked towards the room next to him: "It's cold outside, would you like to come in and chat, auntie?"
“No need!”
Jiang Yuxiang was still standing under the eaves, glancing at Lin Jiangnian: "I just wanted to come and see if you, brat, did anything shameful in the middle of the night."
"Auntie, how could I do something shameful?"
"That may not be the case."
Jiang Yuxiang sneered: "Who knows if you would sneak into a girl's bedroom in the middle of the night and do something shameful."
Lin Jiangnian: “…”
My aunt is definitely hinting at something.
Seeing that Lin Jiangnian didn't say anything, Jiang Yuxiang snorted again and then looked away.
"Go to bed early!"
After saying that, she turned and left.
Lin Jiangnian looked at his aunt's back as she left, lost in thought.
…
A quiet and cool courtyard.
Jiang Yuxiang came back to the door of Zhiyuan's room, stood inside the room and hesitated for a moment before raising her hand to knock on the door.
"Kite?"
After a while, a slightly panicked voice came from the room: "Xiao, auntie?"
"Are you still awake? Can I come in?"
"Yes, yes..."
Hearing this, Jiang Yuxiang pushed open the door and walked in.
The atmosphere in the dim and quiet room was depressing.
Not far away, beside the bed, a cold young girl was sitting on the bed. She was wearing thin clothes. Under her skirt, a pair of snow-white jade feet, which had not yet been put on shoes and socks, were stepping on the soft carpet.
It is very white, and seems to have a hint of coldness, so white that it is dazzling.
Jiang Yuxiang stepped into the room, looked around, and sniffed casually. When she was sure there was no strange smell in the room, she felt relieved.
Then, his eyes fell on the girl beside the bed not far away.
"Kite."
Jiang Yuxiang walked slowly closer. The girl was sitting on the edge of the bed, her black hair scattered and slightly messy. Under her black hair, she had a beautiful face whose blush had not yet completely faded.
He lowered his eyes and was a little hesitant to raise his head.
"What's wrong with your hair? It's so messy?"
Jiang Yuxiang walked closer and spoke softly.
The girl beside the bed stiffened slightly, not knowing how to explain.
Jiang Yuxiang walked to the side, picked up the wooden comb on the table, and gently combed the girl's hair.
The girl didn't move, letting Jiang Yuxiang gently comb her hair.
The wooden comb slid down the black hair, making the messy hair smooth, revealing a delicate face that was not made up but was charming and lovely.
She was as innocent as a young girl, with a beautiful face, white teeth and starry eyes. The blush that had not yet completely faded away was like a powder on her face, adding a bit of prettiness.
Jiang Yuxiang stared at her little face for a while and couldn't help but sigh: "Our Zhiyuan is indeed the most beautiful girl in the world!"
Zhiyuan lowered her head slightly as if she was a little shy, and after a moment she spoke softly, "It's my aunt."
"How can you compare to little kite? In the blink of an eye, you've grown so big."
Jiang Yuxiang looked at her face and couldn't help but sigh: "When I sent you to the Linwang Mansion, you were so young. In the blink of an eye, I, your aunt, have grown old."
Zhiyuan was slightly startled, then raised her eyes to her aunt and shook her head gently: "Aunt is not old."
"Why haven't you aged?"
Jiang Yuxiang sighed, "Time flies so fast. Zhiyuan, you're already old enough to get married. It's time for you to get married."
Zhiyuan looked a little uneasy and looked away slightly: "Isn't my aunt also not married?"
"My aunt can no longer get married."
Jiang Yuxiang sighed: "Who would want a twenty-something-year-old girl like me?"
Zhiyuan was silent for a moment and said nothing.
"Why aren't you talking?"
"Auntie..."
Zhiyuan was silent for a moment, then said, "You came to the capital to escape your marriage, right?"
Jiang Yuxiang's expression froze slightly, and then he sighed: "That's right..."
As she spoke, she said angrily, "They just dislike my age. The people they arrange for me to marry are either in my seventies or eighties, or blind and short-legged, or they have many wives and concubines at home and want me to be a concubine. Tell me, can I get married?"
Zhiyuan shook her head: "No."
"That's it, isn't it?"
Jiang Yuxiang sneered: "Even if I never marry in my life, I will never marry them."
The kite remained silent.
After a while, she suddenly looked up at her aunt again.
"So, who does my aunt want to marry?"
This question stumped Jiang Yuxiang. After a moment's pause, she shook her head, "My aunt doesn't plan to get married!"
Zhiyuan nodded and said nothing more.
"What about you?"
Jiang Yuxiang's gaze fell on Zhiyuan, and she asked with a half-smile, "Zhiyuan, who do you want to marry?"
Zhiyuan was stunned, and in a trance, a familiar face subconsciously appeared in his mind.
She quickly lowered her eyes and remained silent for a moment.
"I, I won't get married either!"
"Really?"
Jiang Yuxiang looked at her and asked casually, "Do you want to be like your aunt?"
"Um."
"Then are you willing to give it up?"
Jiang Yuxiang smiled faintly: "Are you willing to give that boy to someone else?"
After hearing this, Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment, and then a little panicked: "I, I didn't, didn't..."
"Nothing?" Jiang Yuxiang looked amused.
Under the gaze of her aunt, a blush appeared on Zhiyuan's clean and white cheeks.
She looked away in a panic, biting her lower lip. After a while, she said in a whisper as soft as a mosquito: "No, I'm not reluctant."
"oh?"
Jiang Yuxiang looked at her with a smile: "But, I haven't told you who that guy is yet?"
"Does this count as confessing yourself?"
“…”
Zhiyuan's expression froze, and the next second, the blush on her face dissipated, and in an instant, her pretty face was covered with blood.
Her snow-white skin is rosy, like a snow plum bud in winter about to bloom.
A strong sense of shame surged in her heart, and her whole body tensed up, even her breathing almost stopped. Her face was burning, and her eyes were panicked. She didn't dare to look at her aunt again.
Her delicate body was trembling slightly, and even her snow-white neck seemed to be stained with a few shades of red.
"Auntie..."
"Okay, okay, I won't tease you anymore."
Jiang Yuxiang smiled as she looked at the girl in front of her who was almost ashamed and embarrassed. She sat down beside her and grabbed her hand: "Auntie is just joking with you."
The girl beside him didn't say a word or move.
He still kept his head down, too embarrassed to see anyone.
Seeing this, Jiang Yuxiang sighed again: "You grew up under my aunt's watch, how could I not understand you... You like this boy, right?"
The girl next to him still didn't speak.
"Even if you don't answer, I know... the way you look at him is very different..."
The girl next to him still didn't speak, but her breathing became slightly faster.
"This brat is quite good-looking and has not brought shame to the Lin family. You've been with him for such a long time. If he's sincere to you, your aunt won't stop him..."
Jiang Yuxiang spoke softly, looking at the kite beside her, with a little more tenderness in her eyes.
When the Xunyang Jiang family was wiped out, Zhiyuan was left alone and was taken back to the Jiangnan Jiang family by her sister. A few years later, her sister died of illness. She inherited her sister's will and took on the responsibility of taking care of Zhiyuan.
Jiang Yuxiang at that time was just a teenage girl. It would be better to say that she grew up together rather than taking care of him.
To Zhiyuan, her aunt was both a mother and a sister. To outsiders, she was a powerful maid second only to the Prince Lin's mansion, possessing immense power. Her temperament was cold, her methods ruthless, and her inhumanity was unparalleled. Throughout the Prince Lin's mansion, everyone feared her.
But in front of her aunt, she was just a teenager. After letting down her guard, she was no different from other ordinary girls of the same age.
That's why she was so panicked when her aunt knocked on the door.
It's like being caught in premature love by parents...
When she heard her aunt mention this, shame welled up in her eyes, she lowered her eyes to avoid him, and remained silent without saying a word.
Seeing that Zhiyuan didn't say anything, Jiang Yuxiang inadvertently glanced at the bed behind him, then fell on Zhiyuan and suddenly asked softly: "Zhiyuan, what do you think of this brat?"
Zhiyuan still didn't speak.
"You and him..."
As if she thought of something, Jiang Yuxiang's eyes sparkled with light. She leaned close to Zhiyuan's ear and asked something softly.
The next second, Zhiyuan's already red cheeks turned redder, her body tensed, her voice trembled, and she stammered, "No, no..."
"Really?"
Jiang Yuxiang stared at her face.
"Um……"
Zhiyuan lowered her head, almost burying it in her chest. Her bare hands tightly grasped the quilt beside the bed.
Seeing this, Jiang Yuxiang felt relieved but also a little surprised.
She knew Zhiyuan. Although Zhiyuan had a cold personality, she never lied. So, did that kid really not succeed on her?
"That's strange."
Jiang Yuxiang's eyes were filled with surprise. "You came to Beijing with him all the way, and this brat didn't even attack you?"
"Are you really a gentleman?"
Jiang Yuxiang stroked her chin thoughtfully, then chuckled and said, "As expected of my sister's child, his character is truly beyond reproach. In that case, it's not impossible for you to marry him."
She chuckled and spoke, but Zhiyuan beside her remained silent, then shook her head slightly.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Jiang Yuxiang looked at her.
Zhiyuan was silent for a long time, a hint of sadness flashed in her eyes, and her tone was very light, but also very serious: "I am just a maid in the Lin Palace..."
"maid?"
Looking at the girl's lowered head in front of him, Jiang Yuxiang was stunned for a moment, then realized something. He put his arm around Zhiyuan's shoulders, gently held her in his arms, and touched her head.
"Who said that?"
"You are not just a maid, you are the Crown Prince's Consort chosen by my sister..."
"When my sister brought you back to the Jiang family, she planned to train you to be the Crown Prince's consort and to be that boy's child bride..."
"It's a pity that my sister died early, and I didn't have the chance to tell anyone about this. But, my aunt has always remembered it..."
Jiang Yuxiang looked at the girl in her arms with a gentle gaze, chuckled and said, "Not only does my aunt remember, but that Prince Lin also remembers... Otherwise, why do you think he specially brought you back to the Prince Lin's Mansion?"
The kite seemed startled.
Meeting Jiang Yuxiang's gentle smile, she said with a half-smile: "Prince Lin took you back to the Lin Palace, which in itself was a tacit approval. As for asking you to discipline that brat, it was just an excuse..."
"If he really wanted to discipline that kid, he would have plenty of ways and people to do it. Why did he choose you?"
"It's just to give you a legitimate reason to enter the Lin Wang Mansion, so that you can stay with that boy. Over time, if you two develop feelings for each other, then it will be natural for him to marry you..."
Zhiyuan was stunned, his eyes wide open, as if he had never expected there to be such a relationship.
Seeing her dazed look, Jiang Yuxiang couldn't help but pinch her blushing cheeks and sighed: "At first I disagreed, always feeling that the boy was not worthy of you. But then I remembered my sister's last wish, and I softened my heart..."
At this point, Jiang Yuxiang suddenly paused, a look of thought on her face, and her voice suddenly lowered: "Have you noticed any changes in him in the past few years you have been in Prince Lin's Mansion?"
Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment, then his eyes gradually became deep and he began to think.
After a moment's silence, she shook her head gently and said, "In recent years, His Highness has had a bad reputation in the palaces outside the city. He often visits prostitutes and indulges in wine and women outside the city. He has a temperamental temper and is easily angered and irritable, and his health does not seem to be very good..."
Having said this, Zhiyuan paused, eyes lowered: "His Highness seems to dislike me very much. He always speaks rudely to me and we always part ways unpleasantly. Therefore, I rarely have contact with him..."
Hearing this, Jiang Yuxiang was silent for a moment: "Is it possible that he did it on purpose?"
"deliberately?"
"He deliberately provoked you to make you resist him, so as to avoid you discovering something?"
"I always feel that boy is hiding something."
Hearing this, Zhiyuan stared blankly and fell into deep thought.
"That's so weird..."
Jiang Yuxiang's voice was slightly low, and there was a bit of unconcealable emotion in her tone: "How could he die out of the blue..."
"Did he really get murdered?"
After hearing this, Zhiyuan remained silent.
She didn't know some of the answers.
On the night when I rescued Prince Lin, I didn't see any other figures.
"Sister clearly gave birth to twins, so why did she claim to only have one? Where did the other child go?"
"Again, how did you get back?!"
Jiang Yuxiang was very excited and thrilled when she realized that Lin Jiangnian was her sister's remaining child. But after she calmed down, many doubts also came to her mind.
What exactly happened back then?
Why only one child?
Where did the rest of this go?
How did you come back?
That one...how did he die?
It's late at night.
Zhiyuan whispered to her aunt what happened in the dilapidated temple that night.
When Zhiyuan realized that Lin Jiangnian was impersonating her, the first thing he thought of was the time when His Highness was attacked during his outing.
I'm afraid that His Highness was 'switch' that time!
What exactly happened that night?
Zhiyuan had already sent people to investigate, but there were still many doubts about what happened that night.
"According to Chen Yingying's accomplices, she invited His Highness to go on an outing, and on the way back, they encountered a long-planned assassination attempt in a dilapidated temple..."
"But among the assassins who tried to assassinate His Highness, there were multiple forces involved, and the details have not yet been ascertained..."
"That night, something happened that we're not aware of..."
After listening to this, Jiang Yuxiang was silent for a long time.
The Prince of Lin was out on a trip when he encountered an assassination attempt. By the time the people from the Prince's Palace arrived to rescue the Prince, no one was left alive.
The rescued Prince of Lin had been replaced, but the Prince of Lin who was replaced was actually another child of Prince Lin...
This is too much of a coincidence!
It's such a coincidence that it seems like someone is manipulating what's happening.
Who is manipulating all this and what is their purpose?
The two people in the room fell into silence for a long time, and no one spoke.
"If I want to find the answer, I'm afraid I can only start with this kid..."
After a while, Jiang Yuxiang sighed softly: "Since he is pretending to be the Prince of Lin, he should know something. I just don't know... whether he is clear about his own identity."
Zhiyuan seemed to recall something and shook her head gently: "He probably doesn't know."
"Um?"
Zhiyuan whispered, "If he knew, he probably wouldn't pretend..."
Looking back now, Lin Jiangnian's disguises were somewhat clumsy. However, although Zhiyuan felt strange at the time, he didn't doubt it too much.
No one would have thought that the Prince of Lin would be "swapped" by someone, and from a real "swapped" to another real...
After a pause, Zhiyuan shook his head again: "Now, it's best not to alert the enemy."
"Um?"
Jiang Yuxiang glanced at Zhiyuan and quickly realized something.
That kid was able to be replaced quietly in Prince Lin's Mansion. The person behind it must be no simple person. If I ask directly, I'm afraid I will alert the enemy.
"But……"
Jiang Yuxiang frowned, worried: "If we don't investigate it thoroughly, what if the person behind him..."
Zhiyuan fell silent and shook her head softly: "Your Highness, you should have made plans long ago."
Hearing this, Jiang Yuxiang also fell silent.
yes!
After all, that was Lin Hengzhong's child. If she could think of it, how could Prince Lin not think of it?
He didn't make any move after learning about this. I guess he knew something.
In that case, there was no need for her to worry any more.
"This child is so pitiful!"
Jiang Yuxiang sighed deeply: "I don't know where he has been these years, and what has happened..."
As she spoke, her eyes reddened slightly: "I thought the two brothers would be able to meet, but I didn't expect..."
The kite was silent and speechless.
After a long while, her eyes became deep, as if she had thought of something, and she suddenly said, "There's someone who might know something."
"who?"
"The eldest daughter of the Xu family."
"Xu Lan!"
“…”
