I am the champion of palace intrigue, and even the proud prince bows his head in submission.

Chapter 50: Cooking raw rice into cooked rice

After Qin Jiuwei and Xie Yanli finished eating, they took the packed food and returned to their residence by carriage.

The three children in the mansion had already eaten dinner and were obediently waiting for them to return in Qinglan Courtyard.

In the evening, they received a message from the servants saying that their father and mother would not be returning for dinner that night.

Xie Jingchun led the three children to the main courtyard for dinner.

However, because Qin Jiuwei and Xie Yanli were not present, they did not enjoy their meal.

Xie Jingchun, who usually has a large appetite, only drank half a bowl of rice porridge before putting down the spoon.

After finishing my meal quickly, I hurriedly left the main courtyard, not wanting to stay any longer.

The three children were sitting in a row at the entrance of the main house of Qinglan Courtyard.

Xie Jue propped her chin up with her two little hands and sighed, "Father and Mother, what delicious food did you go to eat? Why haven't you come back yet?"

"I don't know." Xie Jingchun took a big bite of the peach in his hand and said casually, "In any case, the two of them won't get lost."

Xie Jue only heard the words "lost" and looked at Xie Jing with tearful eyes.

"Second brother, Father and Mother are missing! What are we going to do now? Waaaaah~"

Xie Jing was speechless, but still gently reassured him, "Third brother, don't worry, they'll be back soon, they won't get lost."

As soon as he finished speaking, a servant at the entrance of Qinglan Courtyard called out loudly, "Young Master, Young Madam."

Xie Jue's dark, grape-like eyes suddenly lit up.

Xie Yanli and Qin Jiuwei stepped into the courtyard side by side.

A little ball of flesh suddenly pounced on them and stuck to Qin Jiuwei's leg.

Qin Jiuwei had already anticipated that it was Xie Jue, so she bent down, scooped him up, and hugged him tightly.

Xie Jue returned to the familiar embrace and rubbed against Qin Jiuwei's neck affectionately.

"Mother, why are you only coming back now?"

Xie Yanli, standing to the side: ...

Did you notice that your father has also come back?

However, Xie Yanli had long been aware of Xie Jue's dependence on Qin Jiuwei, so he wasn't angry.

I just feel that he is not a very responsible father.

Although things are much better now than before, it's still not enough for the children.

Qin Jiuwei carried Xie Jue towards the main house.

Upon seeing the two of them, Xie Jingchun excitedly took another bite of the peach in her hand.

"Father, Mother, you're back!"

Xie Jing also breathed a sigh of relief.

I'm finally back. Taking care of a child is such a grueling thing.

Qin Jiu smiled at them and said, "Come on, come inside. I brought you some delicious food."

"What delicious food is there?" Xie Jingchun asked immediately.

He didn't eat his fill in the main house tonight, otherwise he wouldn't be eating peaches now.

Qin Jiuwei carried Xie Jue and walked forward without looking back, saying, "You'll find out soon enough."

Xie Jingchun smiled broadly and quickly followed behind Qin Jiuwei.

Seeing that they had all gone inside, Xie Jing strolled over and followed them.

In the main room, three children sat around a table.

Xiaohe opened the food box, and the tempting aroma of roast duck immediately filled the entire room.

Xie Jue couldn't control his drooling, his big, dark eyes staring intently at the roasted duck in front of him.

Qin Jiuwei chuckled softly as she watched, "Eat up, eat up."

"Okay!" Xie Jingchun was the first to respond.

Xie Jue also shouted, mimicking his brother, "Howl!"

Xie Jingchun was thirteen or fourteen years old and still growing. He quickly finished a duck.

Xie Jing was still as refined and elegant as before when eating duck, and he finished half of the duck in an orderly manner.

Qin Jiuwei, on the other hand, kept a close eye on Xie Jue's situation.

When Xie Jue had finished eating a third of the duck, Qin Jiuwei gently stopped him.

"I won't eat it, Mother, you eat it!"

Qin Jiu smiled and waved his hand.

Silly child, your mother came back after she had finished eating.

Qin Jiuwei served each child half a bowl of lotus porridge.

Although braised duck belly is delicious, it is still meat and can be a bit greasy if you eat too much. Drinking lotus root porridge afterward is just the right way to cut through the richness.

They immediately took it, cupped it in their little hands, and started gulping it down.

Xie Yanli sat to the side, watching them eat, drink, chat, and laugh; the room was filled with a harmonious atmosphere.

His stern expression softened involuntarily.

In the past, when he was fighting, he didn't understand why the soldiers wanted to go home so much.

For him, going home is just a place to sleep and rest.

But now, he seems to understand.

Five days later, at the Prince of Qi's residence.

The maid Yu'er hurried through the night and arrived at Gao Shuyu's boudoir, where she gently knocked on the door.

The door opened, and Yu'er quickly walked into the room.

At this point, Gao Shuyu had dismissed all the maids in the room, leaving only the two of them.

Yu'er carefully took out a small white medicine packet from her bosom.

"Miss, the medicine has arrived."

Gao Shuyu looked at the small white medicine packet and immediately became excited.

"Xie Yanli will be attending the poetry gathering tomorrow. This time, I'm determined to make it a done deal!"

"Once I become his woman, he will definitely marry me!"

Gao Shuyu eagerly took the medicine packet from Yu'er's hand and clutched it tightly in her hand.

Yu'er hesitated, "But Miss, do we really have to do this? Once we do it, there's no turning back, and it might even damage your reputation..."

Gao Shuyu interrupted her sharply, "What do you know! I'll do anything to marry Xie Yanli!"

“But…” Yu’er opened her mouth, wanting to continue persuading him.

Although she was just a lowly maid, she could see things clearly.

Young Master Xie doesn't like Miss at all. Even if Miss insists on taking that position, she won't have a good life. Why bother?

Gao Shuyu snorted coldly again, "When I enter the manor, that little illegitimate daughter will naturally be the one to be abandoned!"

She raised her chin slightly, her face radiating confidence and pride.

The next day.

Qin Jiuwei got up early, and after dressing up, went straight to Xie Yanli's study.

During this period, Xie Yanli stayed in the study every night.

She had just reached the door when Xie Yanli pushed it open and came out.

The first thing Qin Jiuwei asked him when she saw him was, "Are you wearing it?"

Going to Prince Qi's residence today is going to be a fierce battle; I wonder what Prince Qi will do.

Xie Yanli had better listen to her and obediently put on the chainmail.

Upon hearing this, Xie Yanli nodded somewhat stiffly.

He didn't want to wear it; he only used chainmail when he was on the battlefield, and he was only going to a poetry gathering.

But in the end, he still wore it.

There was no other way; if he didn't wear it, Qin Jiuwei might cry on the spot in front of him.

Although Xie Yanli nodded, Qin Jiuwei was still somewhat uneasy.

He reached out and touched Xie Yanli's chest directly.