Ping Zhao Lu

Chapter 141 Good news

After they left, Chu Yunyi finally breathed a sigh of relief, his tense nerves relaxing a little. He slowly turned his gaze to the side.

At this moment, Mu Song, who had been hiding here, emerged from the darkness like a ghost.

He came to Chu Yunyi quietly, knelt on one knee, and saluted with his fists clasped.

"Has the prince set off?" Chu Yunyi asked expressionlessly.

Mu Song nodded slightly and replied respectfully, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince has already set out on the road to Lianzhou. According to the current itinerary, he will arrive at his destination in about ten days."

Upon hearing this news, Chu Yunyi's lips curled up into an imperceptible sneer, and he looked even more lazy.

He leaned back nonchalantly, gently leaning against the pool wall behind him.

"Haha, by the time he slowly arrives in Lianzhou, the place will probably be in chaos! Those starving people won't care whether the visitor is the crown prince or the emperor. As long as they can't solve their food and clothing problems, then no matter who it is, they will be regarded as an unforgivable sinner..."

Chu Yunyi's voice was cold and ruthless, as if he had already known the chaos that was about to happen.

Mu Song naturally understood the deep meaning behind his master's words, and immediately nodded in understanding, "I understand. Your Highness, please rest assured that I will do my best to properly arrange everything."

After saying that, he flashed and disappeared into the darkness again, without a trace.

*

The autumn sunshine falls on the courtyard like a veil, soft and warm.

Xu Zhouye leaned leisurely on the rocking chair in the yard, holding a yellowed book in his hands, his expression focused and relaxed.

Now that the Empress Dowager, the Emperor and the Crown Prince are not in the palace, the originally bustling palace suddenly seems a little deserted.

Xu Zhouye seemed to be reading a book intently, but in fact his mind had already flown away, passing through the palace walls and resting on the emperor who was watching the hunt in the enclosure.

Xu Zhou couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself.

It turns out that I overestimated myself.

Without Chu Yunxiao by my side, I felt like every day was a year, and I was worried about him all the time.

Qing He, standing by, took in her master's distraught appearance. She stepped forward and said softly, "Don't worry, Your Highness. If all goes well, Young Master Zhuang and the others should be back today."

Before Qing He finished speaking, a clear and hearty cry suddenly came from afar: "Xiao Jin'er~"

Xu Zhouye turned his head in surprise when he heard the sound, only to see Zhuang Yan's face full of excitement, running towards him like a gust of wind.

He opened his arms, as if he wanted to hug Xu Zhouye tightly in his arms.

Behind Zhuang Yan, Xiang Heng followed closely with steady steps, and the two formed a sharp contrast.

Seeing Zhuang Yan coming at him aggressively, Xu Zhouye hurriedly stood up from the rocking chair, nimbly dodged to the side, and cleverly avoided Zhuang Yan's passionate embrace.

Zhuang Yan couldn't stop his steps due to inertia, and after stumbling, he finally managed to steady himself.

He crossed his arms with a look of resentment, mumbling and complaining, "Well, Xu Jin, things have finally become estranged between you and me!"

Xu Zhouye let out a long sigh of relief.

He raised his head, a look of helplessness in his eyes, looked at the person in front of him, and said, "I really can't let you do whatever you want this time."

Zhuang Yan frowned upon hearing this and asked in confusion, "Why don't you use that 'I already have a family, so I need to be more careful' rhetoric anymore?"

Xu Zhouye: "..."

After a brief pause, he waved his hand, signaling everyone to follow him into the house.

Zhuang Yan and Xiang Heng exchanged glances, then looked at Qinghe and Su Ming. Seeing that everyone was full of suspicion, they could only suppress their curiosity and followed Xu Zhouye into the bedroom.

After entering the bedroom, Xu Zhouye walked straight to the couch with a soft brocade cushion on the side, sat down leisurely, then gently stretched out his right arm and placed it on the table next to him.

Then, he raised his eyes slightly and cast a suggestive look towards Xiang Heng who was standing not far away.

Xiang Hengxin nodded in understanding, stepped forward, and gently and skillfully placed his fingers on Xu Zhouye's pulse.

The others gathered around, their faces full of curiosity, but they didn't dare to disturb them.

Xiang Heng's fingers rested quietly on Xu Zhouye's wrist, and time seemed to freeze at this moment.

However, not long after, a look of surprise suddenly flashed across Xiang Heng's face, who had originally looked calm as water.

He frowned tightly, seeming a little bit unbelievable, so he put his fingers on Xu Zhouye's pulse again and checked carefully.

He repeated this several times, and after confirming that everything was correct, he slowly withdrew his hand and took a few steps back.

At this moment, the entire bedroom was silent, and everyone's eyes were focused on Xiang Heng, waiting for him to give the diagnosis results.

Xu Zhouye seemed quite calm. He simply said, "What's the situation? Feel free to tell me."

Xiang Heng first bowed respectfully towards Xu Zhouye, then hesitated for a moment before carefully answering, "Your Highness, judging by my pulse, you...are pregnant."

"what!"

Zhuang Yan's eyes widened, his face filled with shock and confusion, his voice unconsciously rising an octave, "What...what is going on?"

Qinghe and Su Ming on the side were also shocked, as if they had heard the most unbelievable thing in the world.

Xu Zhouye, however, remained calm, as if he had anticipated such a huge reaction from everyone. He slowly explained, "I took a secret medicine."

This sentence was like a thunderclap, exploding in the ears of Zhuang Yan and others.

Zhuang Yan still couldn't accept this fact. He stammered, "It's not you...but you..." But he couldn't say the rest of the words.

After the initial shock, Su Ming regained some composure. He took a deep breath and said, "Throughout history, situations like this... are not unheard of. However, the risks involved are extremely high. If we're not careful, the consequences could be disastrous."

Qinghe's face was full of worry at this time. She looked at Xu Zhouye anxiously, her concern beyond words, "Yes, Your Highness, this... I am really worried about your health. What if something goes wrong?" As she spoke, her eyes became slightly red.

"That's right, your health should be the most important thing!" Zhuang Yan quickly echoed Qinghe's words, frowning tightly, looking worried.

Xu Zhouye naturally understood their concerns, but he had made up his mind. He said with a firm gaze, "Now that I've made the decision, there's no turning back."

Zhuang Yan sighed helplessly. He knew his good friend's temper very well. Once he made up his mind to do something, no one could pull him back, and he would never change his mind easily.

After a moment's silence, Zhuang Yan asked again, "Then... does Your Majesty know about this?"

Xu Zhouye smiled slightly, nodded, and replied, "I know."

After hearing this, everyone's anxious hearts finally settled down a little and they secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I will take care of your health from now on and I guarantee that nothing will go wrong!" Xiang Heng promised.

Xu Zhouye nodded, "Thank you, Deputy Envoy."

"What about my uncle..." Zhuang Yan looked conflicted.

Xu Zhouye: "Don't tell my father yet. My eldest brother is injured and hasn't returned yet. I can't let him worry anymore."

*

The winding mountain road was uneven, causing the carriage to bump along and the wheels to make a rumbling sound.

Inside the carriage, Chu Heyuan sat there with a sleepy look on his face, yawning from time to time.

Shi An, who was standing by, noticed this and asked softly, "Your Highness, why don't you lie down and rest for a while?"

Chu Heyuan shook his head and replied with a wry smile, "The road is too bumpy. I can't fall asleep at all." After saying that, he sighed helplessly.

Shi'an lowered his eyes slightly and was about to say a few more words of advice when the carriage suddenly stopped without any warning.

He was suddenly startled and his face became serious in an instant. He quickly reached out to lift the curtain and looked forward.

At this moment, a loud and fierce sound of fighting came quickly from not far away, breaking the original tranquility in the mountains.

Chu Heyuan was also surprised when he heard the voice and blurted out, "You're here so soon?"

Shi'an's expression was solemn, his eyes fixed on the trucks full of disaster relief supplies behind him. After a moment, he nodded thoughtfully and responded, "Yeah."

As soon as he finished speaking, he decisively retracted his gaze, turned to look at Chu Heyuan and warned: "Your Highness, please stay here and don't go out. I'll go check it out and be back soon."

Chu Heyuan nodded in agreement and warned with concern: "Be careful!"

Shi'an responded solemnly, then turned his gaze to the other guards in the carriage and emphasized again: "You must protect His Highness's safety!"

"Yes!"

After receiving everyone's affirmative response, he jumped off the carriage with confidence and galloped towards the direction where the fighting sound came from.