Chapter 321: Chapter 319: Is He the Most Important Person in Shen Zhaozhao’s Heart?
"Like..."
Shen Yinning savored the word.
The room was filled with the faint and refreshing fragrance of lotus buds. A few emerald-green lotus leaves in a white porcelain vase set off the buds’ delicate pink beauty, like a vivid painting.
"Like..."
She lowered her lashes, her slender pale fingers gripping the brocade quilt tightly.
But she and Lu Ying were not ordinary man and woman.
Their "liking" was insignificant in the face of national vengeance and familial hatred.
If Lu Ying had to choose between the throne and her, he would choose the former.
If she had to choose between family revenge and Lu Ying, she would also choose the former.
The buds in the vase had yet to bloom, but Shen Yinning seemed already to see their withered and decaying forms.
That night.
Xue Mianmian arrived carrying two parcels of pastries to visit Shen Yinning.
The young girl’s round cheeks were tinged with the flush of hurrying: "I didn’t even know you were hurt; it was Xue Ling who told me. My mother and Qingqing are all very worried about you, and these pastries were made by my mother herself—they’re your favorite flavors."
Shen Yinning smiled softly at her: "Thank you."
"I begged Mother to let me stay at Shen Garden and take care of you until you’re fully healed." Xue Mianmian said joyously, pointing to the bundles carried by Chun’er and Dong’er. "Look, I even brought my change of clothes. Zhaozhao, it’s been years since we slept together. Can I stay with you tonight?"
Shen Yinning’s wound had already scabbed over, so sharing the bed wouldn’t be an issue.
She easily made room for Xue Mianmian on half of the bed.
After bathing and changing into soft, clean sleepwear, Xue Mianmian happily climbed into the bed.
Hugging Shen Yinning’s arm, her round deer-like eyes sparkled: "Zhaozhao, your room smells so wonderful, the scent of those lotus flowers is amazing!"
"Lu Ying brought them."
"Oh, so the Crown Prince gave them to you. Zhaozhao, I heard from Xue Ling about what happened with you two in Jiangnan. I think you hold a special place in the Crown Prince’s heart. It’s such a shame that your family met with trouble back then—otherwise, you’d surely be the Crown Princess Consort by now. You don’t know, during the first couple of years of Shen Yunxi being the Crown Princess Consort, she was so ruthless. Xue Ling said she killed quite a number of concubines in the Eastern Palace. If it were you, you definitely wouldn’t have acted like that."
The girl’s words were marked by childish innocence and naivety.
Shen Yinning didn’t mind: "What ’if’? There’s no such thing as ’if’ in this world."
"Then..." Xue Mianmian asked curiously, "Do you like him?"
Shen Yinning paused for a moment before softly replying: "I do. I like him the most. I liked him ever since studying at the Yu Residence. He was always cold, quiet, and reserved, so different from other boys. I found myself secretly watching him, and slowly, I began to like him."
Xue Mianmian’s eyes widened in surprise.
She had no idea her close friend harbored such a hidden affection from the past!
Not even someone as close as her knew!
Remembering how Lu Ying now had the Crown Princess Consort and countless concubines in the Eastern Palace, Xue Mianmian couldn’t help but sigh, feeling troubled.
Afraid her good friend would grow sorrowful, she refrained from mentioning Lu Ying again.
She’d come prepared, fearing Shen Yinning might grow bored while recuperating, and brought a carefully chosen selection of storybooks. Now, she busied herself with reading stories to Shen Yinning, much like a little girl meticulously tending to her doll.
After reading barely a couple of pages, Xue Mianmian herself dozed off, yawning before drifting into slumber.
Shen Yinning sat up and tucked the brocade quilt over her.
Night pressed deeper, and the lotus flowers in the white porcelain vase began to bloom petal by petal, their fragrance in the air growing stronger.
The next morning.
Xue Mianmian awoke after a night of blissful dreams, stretching lazily: "Zhaozhao, what do you want for breakfast? I’ll go to the small kitchen and cook for you. Recently, I’ve been learning to make braised noodles from my mother. Let me tell you, I’ve become really good at it—"
Before finishing her sentence, she sensed something was off.
She snapped her head to look beside her.
The space beside her was empty. The bed held only her!
"Zhaozhao?!"
Shen Yinning had disappeared.
Xue Mianmian was so frightened her soul nearly left her body.
When Lu Ying arrived, he found Xue Mianmian crying in a corner. The moment she saw him, she knelt down: "Waaaah, Crown Prince, forgive me—this is all my fault—I lost Zhaozhao, I’m so sorry—waaah..."
Haitang, Wei Yu, and the other maids were equally shaken, nervously falling to their knees alongside her.
Xue Ling stepped forward and tugged Xue Mianmian up: "It’s not your doing, so why are you crying?"
Lu Ying inspected the room and found signs of the window being pried open. Bloodstains—faintly red and already dried—lingered on both the floor tiles and the windowsill.
He stated in a low voice, "It looks like she was abducted during the night."
Xue Ling offered her thoughts: "Yan Country’s doing? Xue Mianmian was sleeping right next to her. Unless the perpetrator’s kung fu skills were extraordinary, it’d be impossible to take Shen Yinning from the room without alerting Xue Mianmian. Hmph. I thought Yan Zheming was a fool, but turns out his kung fu is rather impressive after all."
Lu Ying rubbed the dried blood on his fingertips: "Yan Zheming had the chance to harm her three days ago but held back. Why would he now intrude to forcibly abduct her? It doesn’t add up."
Xue Ling analyzed further: "Three days ago, Shen Yinning went to meet Yan Zheming accompanied by Cui Ji, right? Shen Yinning’s status as a Princess of Great Zhou wouldn’t allow Yan Zheming, insolent as he may be, to commit such a crime in front of Cui Ji and leave evidence behind. Instead, he delayed action for three days, then quietly abducted Shen Yinning—planning to torture and kill her in private!"
Xue Mianmian cried even louder: "What do we do? Should we report this to the authorities?"
"Idiot," Xue Ling flicked her forehead, "We *are* the authorities!"
Xue Mianmian clutched her forehead, ignoring the pain caused by Xue Ling, and continued sobbing miserably: "Crown Prince, please—please save Zhaozhao—she can only rely on you!"
Lu Ying stood silently by the window.
Though Xue Ling’s analysis sounded plausible, he sensed an inconsistency somewhere.
"Crown Prince..." Xue Mianmian, seeing his hesitation, anxiously entreated again, "You’re the most important person in Zhaozhao’s heart. Last night she even told me how she fell for you back in the Yu Residence, how she always secretly watched you—and how not being able to marry you is her life’s greatest regret..."
Xue Ling raised a skeptical brow: "Did she really say that?"
He felt it sounded far-fetched.
Xue Mianmian hiccupped amidst her sobs.
Most of what she said was indeed Shen Zhaozhao’s own words, though she did embellish the beginning and end herself.
But it captured the essence.
So she nodded earnestly: "I never lie."
Lu Ying’s fingers clutched the window frame tightly.
Was he truly the most important person in Shen Zhaozhao’s heart?
Not marrying him—was that genuinely her greatest regret?
Had she, in her youth, really liked him?
The surge of memories clouded Lu Ying’s reasoning.
Gazing at the bloodstains, which had darkened over time, he envisioned Shen Yinning perhaps already being tormented somewhere by Yan Zheming. Those men of Yan Country were capable of any atrocity—potentially even succumbing to lustful desires.
Shen Zhaozhao had never been close to any other man. Such an innocent and lively girl, how could she possibly withstand such cruelty and humiliation?
His heart clenched abruptly.
Lu Ying swept out of the room with a decisive order: "Summon everyone. Spare no effort—find Shen Zhaozhao’s whereabouts immediately."