The Obsessive Crown Prince Can't Let Me Go
Chapter 81 - 80: Does Your Highness Feel Distressed?

Chapter 81: Chapter 80: Does Your Highness Feel Distressed?

Shen Yinning soaked in the hot spring, her eyelashes lowered as she toyed with a crimson petal.

Shen Yunxi was Lu Ying’s beloved.

These two wretched lovers had betrayed her years ago...

Though she didn’t love Lu Ying, a faint and indescribable emotion still stirred within her heart.

After a moment, she instructed Wei Yu, "Tell her to wait at the villa’s entrance, and say I am currently receiving guests."

As a result, Shen Yunxi waited in the cold wind for a full hour, but Shen Yinning never appeared.

Impatient, she stomped her embroidered shoes, her small face twisted in fury: "This cannot be! I specifically climbed the mountain to find her, and this is her attitude?! I am the dignified Crown Princess Consort—does she not take me seriously?!"

Lu Qianqian, who had accompanied her, sneezed and cursed irritably, "She may be able to write a few strokes with her brush, but does she really think she’s someone important? Not even respecting her sister-in-law, does she plan to ascend to the heavens?! Servants, beat down the gate for me, break it open! This princess wants to see exactly how extraordinary this so-called Lady Shen thinks she is!"

The Imperial Guards prepared to act, but Nanny Zhang intervened, "This must not happen!"

Lu Qianqian frowned, "Nanny Zhang!"

"Your Highness, Third Princess," Nanny Zhang curtsied respectfully, "Your reputation is already less than ideal. If you break down Lady Shen’s gate today, and tomorrow the Empress Dowager or the court officials hear of it, you will inevitably face more criticism."

Shen Yunxi’s face turned pale as a sheet.

She had almost forgotten that Lady Shen was a favorite in front of the Empress Dowager.

Breaking Lady Shen’s gate would be akin to breaking the Empress Dowager’s gate.

Did she have a death wish?!

"We can’t break it..." She grabbed Lu Qianqian’s hand, "Not only can we not break it, but we also need to appear respectful!"

"Precisely," Nanny Zhang said with satisfaction, "In my humble opinion, since Lady Shen refuses to meet Your Highness, why not come again tomorrow and the day after that? If you show sincerity, perhaps you can move her. Even if you don’t succeed, Your Highness visiting repeatedly to invite Lady Shen for Duke Shen Yan’s fortieth birthday would become a celebrated tale. Everyone will praise Your Highness for your filial piety."

Shen Yunxi suddenly understood, "Yes, yes, it doesn’t matter whether she meets me or not. What matters is my earnest devotion!"

With this in mind, she ordered Lianxin and the others to leave the gifts they had brought at the villa entrance, then climbed into her sedan chair and left.

For seven consecutive days, Shen Yunxi visited the Hot Spring Villa.

Soon, everyone in the Capital knew that Shen Yunxi, in order to request a calligraphy piece from Lady Shen for her father, willingly humbled herself and visited the villa daily, seeking an audience with Lady Shen.

As the weather grew colder, she even braved the chill and stood outside the villa an hour each day without regard for her health.

Initially disdainful of Shen Yunxi, the civil servants gradually began to change their opinions. In just a few days, the entire court came to know that the Crown Princess Consort was an exceedingly filial individual.

Shen Garden.

When Shen Yinning came to serve Lu Ying, she overheard him asking, "I heard that you’ve been making the Crown Princess stand outside the Hot Spring Villa for an hour every day?"

The man, adorned in a fox-fur cloak and golden hairpin, exuded nobility as he sat beneath the window writing with great poise.

Because his gaze was lowered to the paper, Shen Yinning couldn’t discern the emotions in his eyes.

While grinding ink for him, she tentatively asked, "Is Your Highness heartbroken over her?"

Lu Ying dipped his brush into the ink, deliberately replying, "She is my Crown Princess Consort; of course, I care for her. Your actions should also have limits."

Shen Yinning’s hand faintly paused in its task, and she whispered her acknowledgment.

She hadn’t expected that Shen Yunxi would use this punishment of standing in the cold to repair her reputation.

Thus, continuing to refuse her audience was meaningless. Shen Yinning had already sent someone to inform Shen Yunxi that on Shen Yan’s birthday, she would personally attend the event to inscribe a celebratory message.

She only hoped her uncle could bear the consequences.

As she pondered this, Gui Quan rushed in with urgency to report, "Your Highness, the Crown Princess Consort has arrived!"

Without Lu Ying having to give an order, Shen Yinning immediately put down her brush and obediently hid beneath the desk.

Shen Yunxi stepped over the threshold, smiling sweetly. "I heard that Your Highness has been staying at Shen Garden these past two days, and I was worried, so I came to check on you specially."

With her reputation in the Capital steadily improving, even her words carried more confidence these days.

Lu Ying replied indifferently, "The weather is bitterly cold. The Crown Princess need not leave the palace to visit personally."

"Is Your Highness concerned about me?" Shen Yunxi’s cheeks flushed, and an uncontainable affection glimmered in her eyes. "As long as I can see Your Highness, what does enduring the wind and frost matter? I am willing to endure any hardship for you—"

She wanted to say more, but Nanny Zhang’s discreet cough interrupted her.

Only then did Shen Yunxi come to her senses and pulled a girl standing behind her forward. "Your Highness, I worried that the accommodations in Shen Garden might not suit you and that those outside the palace may not serve you well. So, I specially selected Bai Shuangshuang to come and care for Your Highness. From now on, let Bai Shuangshuang handle your daily needs. What do you think?"

Bai Shuangshuang?

Shen Yinning quietly lifted a corner of the table curtain.

The girl Shen Yunxi had pushed forward wore an elegant palace gown with a fox-fur scarf around her neck. Adorned with golden hairpins and jade ornaments, it was none other than her former maid, Bai Shuangshuang.

After the downfall of the Shen Family, her maids had either died or been sold. Who would have thought Bai Shuangshuang had entered the Eastern Palace and even become Lu Ying’s concubine?

How had she managed it?

Bai Shuangshuang stepped forward gracefully. "This concubine greets the Crown Prince. Long life and prosperity to Your Highness."

Having served Shen Yinning since childhood, sharing meals and living under the same roof, Bai Shuangshuang’s manners and deportment had been meticulously taught by Shen Yinning herself.

In Lu Ying’s eyes, her movements, demeanor, and even her makeup bore a striking resemblance to Shen Yinning’s youthful vivacity when she was a lively maiden.

What kind of scene would it be when these two master and servant recognized each other after three years?

He stroked his Moyu Ring and said, "The Crown Princess has been most thoughtful."

Shen Yunxi added, "Bai Shuangshuang is exceptionally skilled at playing the pipa. Has Your Highness not yet heard her play? Bai Shuangshuang, why don’t you perform for His Highness?"

Bai Shuangshuang curtsied again before taking up the pipa and sitting delicately on the embroidery stool.

The girl lowered her head, fingers lightly brushing the strings. Her slender hands resembled tender scallions, and the soft pink silk of her outer robe emphasized her fair complexion and youthful beauty.

Inwardly, Shen Yunxi cursed Bai Shuangshuang as a shameless seductress. Outwardly, she maintained her composure as she led the palace maids out of the room, thoughtfully closing the door behind her to leave the two alone.

Standing under the eaves, she stamped her feet in frustration. "Look at Bai Shuangshuang with her coquettish airs! If I could conceive a child, I would never have elevated that wretch! Once she bears a son in the future, I’ll kill her without delay!"

Nanny Zhang consoled her, "Leaving Bai Shuangshuang at Shen Garden is not only a chance to secure an heir but also a way for her to identify the vixen trying to seduce the Crown Prince. It’s killing two birds with one stone, and Your Highness should be pleased!"

Shen Yunxi pouted but still felt displeased.

Inside the study.

After finishing a pipa melody, Bai Shuangshuang looked at Lu Ying and said, "This was a piece the young lady personally taught me before she was banished to Gan State. Does Your Highness like it?"