The fool has become a spirit, and she can speak

Cheng Feng smiled awkwardly, then pretended to be nonchalant and said, "He ran away to travel. We've sent people after him. He should be back in the next few days."

Hong Zhekai had just arrived in Fengying City and did not understand the prince's style of doing things, but the kite incident caused by the prince had caused a sensation in the entire Fengqi. If it had not been handled promptly and properly, it would have been enough to be criticized by future generations.

Today the prince caused another handkerchief incident. Through the two handkerchiefs on Ge Dongqing's door, Hong Zhekai already had a guess in his mind. He thought that the prince must not have gone out to travel, but had done something bad and ran away to avoid disaster. Aren't naughty children like this? He recalled that his youngest son Hong Yuncong, who had been in trouble many times, was just like Cheng Youning. As long as he got into trouble, he would run away, and then turn the house upside down and search everywhere. If he couldn't find his son, he would have to wait until his son was hungry and ran back by himself. However, the prince's status was noble, and the emperor was furious, and he was determined to dig three feet into the ground to find the prince.

Hong Zhe was thinking one thing, but speaking another. He flatteredly said, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Your Highness has lofty aspirations and has the wisdom to travel far and wide at such a young age. Such extraordinary courage and willpower are beyond the reach of ordinary people. I admire you!"

After saying this, Hong Zhekai had another thought in his mind. Would Cheng Youning be beaten with a stick again when he returned? Seeing the emperor's suppressed anger, he probably wouldn't spare the prince, right?

Cheng Feng couldn't handle such flattery. What else did his son know besides eating, drinking and having fun? The last thing he wanted to mention right now was his son, who was nowhere to be found. Thinking of Cheng Youning, he was consumed by the lawsuit. Under the pretext of rushing to the northern city walls, Cheng Feng and the others left the Hong Mansion early.

In Hong Jiutong's boudoir, the maid Jingjing was diligently reporting to Hong Jiutong.

"Miss, the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess have left."

Hong Jiutong, who was waiting for news, sat up straight upon hearing the voice and stared anxiously at the maid Jingjing, "Leaving so soon? What did he say? Has the prince been found?"

"They were all talking about the refugees outside the city, but the prince's whereabouts have been found."

"Where is he?"

"The prince didn't say anything specific, but what is certain is that the prince did not disappear for no reason. He went out to travel."

"Travel?" Hong Jiutong was skeptical. "He's only nine years old and he's already traveling?"

"Maybe the prince is different from ordinary people. Other children who go out at the age of nine may be begging, but the prince must be traveling. What the prince of Prince Pang said could not be false." Jingjing's tone was very firm. She firmly believed that the prince was traveling.

Ever since Cheng Youning became the crown prince, Hong Jiutong, the personal maid, has had a drastic change in her opinion of Cheng Youning. She is happy for their young lady. She never thought that her young lady is destined to be a phoenix and will become an imperial concubine in the future. Whenever she thinks of this, she feels proud for their young lady.

But how could she know the sorrow in her young lady's heart at this moment?

"Will the prince be in trouble? What if he encounters bad guys?"

"Don't worry, miss. He's a smart kid and nothing will happen to him."

Hong Jiutong's shoulders, which had just been hunched, suddenly drooped, and her body hunched slightly. She stammered, "But he's just a child after all!"

Jingjing saw this and came up with an idea, "Miss, why don't I go to Prince Nie's Mansion and ask our eldest son. He should know more."

Hong Jiutong shook his head and said, "Don't bother my brother, and don't ask deliberately. If the prince comes back, the whole imperial city will know."

The maid quietly twisted her handkerchief with her fingers. "That's true. But Miss, you were so concerned about the Crown Prince just now, and now you've become so indifferent. The Crown Prince is your future husband, do you really care about him?"

Hong Jiutong is not concerned about the prince, she simply cares about his life or death. What can she get if the prince disappears or meets with an accident?

She is already of marriageable age, but her young fiancé is still young. But he will eventually grow up, and when Cheng Youning reaches the age to marry and take concubines, even if she feels a thousand kinds of dissatisfaction in her heart, it cannot change her fate of being Cheng Youning's concubine. This marriage was arranged by the emperor, and once the emperor has spoken, the marriage contract will be valid forever.

If Cheng Youning lives peacefully, she can still be the prince's concubine. But if something happens to Cheng Youning, who can she be betrothed to?

In the eyes of her family, marrying no one could be better than marrying the crown prince. The crown prince was of noble status, second only to the emperor and above everyone else. If he ascended the throne one day, it would be natural for her to become the imperial consort.

As the daughter of a minister and the sister of a prince, what could she possibly be dissatisfied with? Marrying Cheng Youning was her final destination. No one could change her fate, and no one wanted to change it for her. For the sake of her family, the reputation of the Hong family, and the face of her father and brothers, she herself did not want to change.

In the whole Fengqi, from princes and generals to high-ranking officials and nobles to the common people, no one did not envy her marriage. How many daughters of ministers and merchants had once racked their brains and schemed to marry into the royal family, but in the end their long-cherished wish could not be fulfilled. With such a good fate as hers, she could only stay out of the spotlight!

Because of her marriage, her parents were so happy and overjoyed. Every time they mentioned this marriage, her parents were full of pride and smiled with smugness. Even her gentle and kind brother, Prince Nie, praised this lawless, cunning and naughty prince.

The whole family agreed that there was no better marriage than marrying the prince. Everyone in the Hong family, young and old, male or female, all agreed that she was very lucky.

But how many people know that the things that others cannot get have become the shackles of her fate!

After this marriage, she had always been submissive and had fantasized countless times about marrying a person who was in love with her and how happy it would be for them to grow old together with the same ideals.

She also lowered her standards and imagined that if she could not marry a man who was compatible with her, would marrying an ordinary man of similar age and with some talent to spend her life with her be better than finding a younger husband?

Her young husband, Ququ, was already betrothed to three wives at a young age. When he came of age, wouldn't he have a harem of concubines? When he ascended to the throne, wouldn't he have three harems, six courtyards, and seventy-two concubines? Would she, a woman whose beauty and youth had faded, hide away in the deep palace, consumed by sorrow and loneliness for the rest of her life?

Time is fleeting and beauty fades easily. When she was in the prime of her youth, no one paid attention to her. When she is old, who will remember her insignificant appearance?