"Can you accept any conditions?" Zhao Jingyu looked her up and down with a smile. His gaze finally rested on her slightly open lips and he licked them meaningfully.
Xie Nanjia's heart skipped a beat and he quickly covered his mouth: "Don't even think about it!"
"Don't even think about it." Zhao Jingyu lowered his head and moved closer to her. His charming peach blossom eyes were full of teasing even in the dim light.
Xie Nanjia leaned back nervously: "Don't even think about it."
Zhao Jingyu pulled back, crossed his arms, and said with a stern look of a gentleman: "You are not harboring any shameful fantasies about me, are you? How can you associate so many things with just a random sentence?"
Xie Nanjia: "... You are the one. I think you hit your head and you are talking nonsense."
Zhao Jingyu reached out and touched the back of his head: "It is indeed damaged, so I wanted you to make some medicinal food for me to replenish my body. Who knew you would think of such a dirty place."
"..." Xie Nanjia's face suddenly became red, "Do you blame me? It was you who licked your lips like that..."
"Is it not okay for me to lick my lips because I am craving the food you cooked?" Zhao Jingyu blinked innocently. "How about it? This condition is not too much, right?"
Xie Nanjia knew that he was teasing her on purpose, but she couldn't defend herself. Thinking that he was doing this to protect her from getting hurt, she softened her heart and compromised: "You're not in the hospital all day long, when can I do it for you?"
Zhao Jingyu was startled when he heard this. The smile on his face disappeared instantly. His eyes narrowed dangerously and he grabbed her neck: "Are you spying on me again?"
Xie Nanjia was caught off guard, and by the time she wanted to dodge it was too late. His hands were so strong and full of hostility that it seemed as if he could crush her throat in the next second.
"Let go, I didn't..." She shouted with difficulty, struggling hard, feeling the air in her lungs being rapidly drained away.
"Then why do you know my whereabouts?" Zhao Jingyu asked again, his voice cold as ice.
"I guess..." Xie Nanjia's voice became lower and lower, and one hand quietly reached into his arms and touched the hidden dagger.
Zhao Jingyu slightly relaxed his grip to prevent her from being suffocated to death, and asked coldly, "How did you guess?"
Xie Nanjia held the dagger, swallowed his saliva and said, "You haven't bothered me these days, nor have you gone to the Fourth Miss and the old lady. I went to get my bag, and the guards didn't make things difficult for me, nor did they ask me to see you. I felt that this was not like your usual behavior. Now that I see you wearing a guard uniform, I can naturally guess that you are busy with other things."
Zhao Jingyu looked at her in silence, as if he was wondering whether what she said was true or not. After a moment, he let go of her neck and said slowly, "You are really smart, but I will warn you one last time. Use your intelligence where it should be used, otherwise don't blame me for not remembering our friendship."
"..." Xie Nanjia rubbed her neck, feeling like she had survived a catastrophe. She quietly took her other hand out of her bosom and nodded repeatedly, "Second Master, don't worry. We are allies. I promised to lend you a helping hand. Even if I know more, I won't reveal a single word to anyone."
Zhao Jingyu raised his eyebrows. He had forgotten that there was a ridiculous alliance between them. It was a good thing that she still remembered it so clearly.
Silly girl, could she really think that he was coveting Zhao Jingping's position as the crown prince
A faint smile appeared on his lips. It was better to let her misunderstand like this, so that she would not delve into his abnormal behavior.
So far, he has been quite successful in hiding and has never aroused anyone's suspicion. He doesn't want to fail in front of a little girl.
"Since we are allies, what have you done for me during this period of time?" He put on a smile again, as if the murderous man just now was not him at all.
Xie Nanjia said: "I have convinced the old lady for you, you will have a new sister-in-law soon."
"Ha!" Zhao Jingyu suddenly laughed out loud, "You are clearly doing this for the prince, how can you say it is for me?"
Xie Nanjia said, "I can't explain it to you right now, so let me keep you in suspense for now. You'll know soon."
"..." Zhao Jingyu was about to ask more when Hualou came out with a lunch box and looked around for Xie Nanjia.
"Okay, I'll trust you again." Zhao Jingyu said, stepping aside to make way for Xie Nanjia, "You go back first, and remember to bring me a midnight snack tomorrow night. I have something important to tell you."
Xie Nanjia agreed, bowed and took his leave, then walked towards the painting building.
Hualou was slightly startled when he saw her suddenly come out from behind the flowers and plants in the garden, but he didn't say much. He left the front yard with her, and only asked after they passed through the moon gate and entered the back house, "Were you with that guard just now?"
Xie Nanjia couldn't help but look at her deeply and asked tentatively: "Do you know who that guard is?"
"I don't know." Hua Lou shook his head. "Anyway, he's been here these days."
"…" Xie Nanjia was speechless at her slowness and asked again, "What do you think of his appearance?"
"She looks... okay!" Hualou said disapprovingly, "I didn't really pay attention, but she won't be better looking than the Marquis anyway."
"..." Xie Nanjia finally understood. It was not that she didn't pay much attention. Her mind and eyes were full of the Marquis, and she didn't even look at Zhao Jingyu.
Xie Nanjia suddenly found it funny. Zhao Jingyu was such a narcissistic person. If he knew that there was a woman who didn't take him seriously, would he be furious
"What are you laughing at?" Hua Lou asked curiously, "You are asking about her like this, are you attracted to her? Don't you like the Second Young Master? How come you are attracted to someone else in the blink of an eye?"
"How could I?" Xie Nanjia couldn't tell her that the guard was the Second Young Master, so she could only retort weakly.
Hualou didn't believe it and taught her seriously: "Don't be fickle."
"..." Xie Nanjia really wanted to tell her that she was overthinking it, and the Chao and Mu she was talking about were both the Second Young Master.
However, she did not say it out loud. When this sentence suddenly popped up in her mind, her heart suddenly beat several times and she became dazed.
It’s him in the morning and it’s him in the evening. How can it be always him? It’s really weird!
In a trance, Hualou suddenly pulled her hard and stopped.
Xie Nanjia came back to her senses and was about to ask her what was wrong, but when she looked up, she saw several people blocking their way in front of them.
"Who?" Xie Nanjia asked, and hurriedly pushed Hualou behind him.
"You slut, you climbed up the social ladder and don't even recognize your master!" one of them cursed.
Xie Nanjia was stunned. Listening to the familiar voice, and with the light of the lantern, he finally recognized the person. It seemed that what the Fourth Aunt said was true. Someone really robbed the painting building halfway.
"I was wondering who it was, it turned out to be Third Aunt." She smiled and bowed, "Third Aunt is so elegant, she came out to stroll around the garden so late at night. I didn't see it clearly because of my poor eyesight. Please forgive me, Third Aunt."
At first, the third concubine did not see clearly that it was Xie Nanjia. She thought that Hualou had brought her companions to the front yard to seduce the marquis. She was furious, but when she recognized Xie Nanjia's voice, she was stunned.
"Xiu'er, why is it you?" She knew that Xiu'er had just received a reward from the lady and had some say in front of the old lady. In addition, her daughter Zhao Lanyun had asked several times to take Xiu'er over to serve her, so her tone of voice was slightly softened.
Xie Nanjia said, "I haven't seen the Marquis since I came back from the enclosure, so I went to pay my respects to him today."
The third aunt was delighted and asked, "Are you going to continue making supper for the Marquis?"
In her opinion, although Xiu'er is more beautiful, she is a decent person. She has been making midnight snacks for the Marquis for so long without any bad intentions. Unlike Hualou, who looks honest and simple but is actually a vixen who reveals her true nature when she sees a man.
"Replying to Third Aunt, the Marquis said that the painting building is very well done and there is no need to change it. Just let me serve the Fourth Miss wholeheartedly." Xie Nanjia said.
She originally wanted to follow Third Aunt's advice and avoid the current trouble for the time being, but then she changed her mind and realized that she could not avoid the trouble even if she tried. It would be better to resolve the matter now to prevent Hualou from being troubled by them every day.
The Third Aunt's hopes were dashed, and she immediately flew into a rage, saying angrily, "I knew this vixen had captured the Marquis' heart. Please get out of the way. I'm going to teach her a lesson today. Once I destroy her face, I'll see what else she can use to seduce men!"
Hualou hid behind Xie Nanjia and nervously clutched her clothes.
Xie Nanjia patted her hands, signaling her not to be afraid, and said to the Third Aunt kindly, "Aunt, you may have misunderstood. Hualou is not what you think. The Marquis is just busy with state affairs during this period and can't get away to visit the concubines. It is definitely not because of Hualou. Please don't embarrass her."
The Third Aunt was so angry that she couldn't listen to him. She said with a gloomy face, "I think you are a well-behaved person. Why are you venting your anger on this slut? I don't have the patience to listen to you making excuses for her. Get out of the way quickly to avoid getting yourself into trouble."
"That won't work." Xie Nanjia said with a smile, "I went to see the Marquis with Hualou, so I have to send her back safely. Otherwise, if something happens, I won't be able to explain to the Marquis."
The Third Aunt said angrily: "Well, it seems that I misjudged you. Since you don't want to drink the wine, don't blame me for being rude."
After that, he directed several servants, "Go, give me a treat!"
Hua Lou saw that they were going to get serious, and not wanting to implicate Xie Nanjia, he ignored his fear and pushed her, urging her to leave: "Xiu'er, this has nothing to do with you, leave quickly, leave quickly!"
After pushing for a few times but failing, and seeing several people approaching, he had no choice but to rush in front of Xie Nanjia and spread his arms to protect her, shouting: "If you want to hit me, it has nothing to do with Xiu'er, don't hurt innocent people."
"Oh, who are you acting out your sisterly love for in this dark time of night?" The leading maid sneered and raised her hand to slap her.
Hualou closed his eyes subconsciously.
However, the slap did not land. Xie Nanjia pulled Hualou behind him again, grabbed the maid's wrist, and threw her out with force.
The maid staggered several steps and fell heavily to the ground.
"You little bitch, you're rebelling! Beat you to death!" the third aunt shouted angrily.
Several other maids rushed forward.
"Brother Feng!" Xie Nanjia shouted for help.
Feng Lun responded from nowhere, and with just three punches and two kicks, he beat the maids to a pulp, making them fall to the ground and wail.
The third concubine was horrified, pointing at Xie Nanjia and trembling, "You, you actually had an affair with a man outside of yours, I'm going to report this to the Madam and have her punish you!"
This was exactly what Xie Nanjia wanted. This matter had to be made a big deal. She clapped her hands and laughed, "There is no time to lose. Since Auntie wants to sue us, why not go now?"
(End of this chapter)