Who says the prince is weak and can't take care of himself?

"I am over-flattered."

"You left me in the palace to recuperate because you were waiting for the imperial edict from the capital."

"Not bad." Qi Xiao stood up and took a new cup to pour himself tea.

Tang Ling let out a long sigh before saying, "Thank you, Your Highness."

Qi Xiao turned around and looked at Tang Ling, his eyebrows curved and smiling: "I told you my name is Qi Xiao, you should remember my name."

Tang Ling stood up and bowed to Qi Xiao: "I would like to thank the prince on behalf of Ye Huai."

"Ye Huai? Your secret guard? So his name is Ye Huai. He didn't even hum a single word the whole night, let alone tell me his name."

Tang Ling's expression changed slightly: "Did you torture him?"

"No, if I torture him, he'll have to confess something to justify my sleepless night."

"you……"

Qi Xiao approached Tang Ling and tilted his head to look at him. "Is a secret guard worthy of you, Ziyi, thanking me so respectfully? Do you have a good relationship with him?"

Qi Xiao is a few years younger than Tang Ling, but he is an inch taller than her. When he gets close to her, he looks more oppressive.

"Since you're saying thank you, how are you going to thank me, Ziyi?" Qi Xiao suddenly leaned in front of Tang Ling and said in a slow and ambiguous voice, "With your body?"

Tang Ling clenched his fists. He really wanted to beat Qi Xiao. This kid kept teasing him!

"Why are you angry again?" Qi Xiao smiled and stepped back, leisurely sipping his tea. "Rumor has it that the Marquis of Xun'an is gentle and approachable. How come you want to punch me after just a few words? I'm your savior."

Tang Ling turned her head away from Qi Xiao and sat back. Why was he getting angry with a little brat? Just treat him like a mad dog!

"Ah, anger is bad for your health. Come and have some tea." Qi Xiao said as he poured tea for Tang Ling.

Tang Ling calmed herself down silently and ignored Qi Xiao.

"Ziyi, can you give me something?"

Tang Ling glanced at Qi Xiao, wondering what he was up to. Without waiting for Tang Ling's reaction, Qi Xiao snatched away her hairpin: "Well, this is it."

"Hey!"

"What? You can't bear to part with even a hairpin? Don't worry, I'll give you a better one." As he spoke, Qi Xiao took off his hairpin and put it on Tang Ling's hair. Tang Ling didn't even have time to react.

"you……"

Tang Ling's words were not as quick as Qi Xiao's: "I'll take this to tell Ye Huai to take good care of his injuries. This is what his master wants."

"I am in the palace, no different from a prisoner. Ye Huai will not believe you."

"What should we do then?" Qi Xiao looked at Tang Ling happily.

"You take Qinglan with you." Tang Ling was worried about the others, and he had to make sure that it was Ye Huai without a doubt.

Qi Xiao understood immediately: "So you still don't trust me. Okay, I'll take Qinglan with me."

Tang Ling was slightly stunned. He didn't expect Qi Xiao to agree so readily, without beating around the bush or joking.

"Ye Huai needs time to recuperate, so you can take care of yourself, right? Are you still leaving, my Lord?"

Qi Xiao didn't wait for Tang Ling to answer. He smiled, opened the door, and walked out. A moment later, Tang Ling heard Qi Xiao's voice from far away in the room: "Untie the shackles, they're making a lot of noise."

"..."

"What are you standing there for? Untie yourself and follow me."

"where to?"

"Ye Huai, are you going to leave?"

Soon the footsteps faded away. Tang Ling sighed and relaxed his shoulders. He was suddenly overwhelmed by fatigue and could no longer think about Qi Xiao or anyone else.

***

Ye Huai was captured by Qi Xiao last night and thrown into the dungeon. Qi Xiao didn't want to embarrass him, so he didn't lock him up. But Qing Lan followed Qi Xiao into the dungeon. The smell of blood in the room still frightened him, and he was furious. He didn't even bother to examine Ye Huai's injuries, but jumped up to question Qi Xiao.

Qinglan didn't know any martial arts, and when he was angry, he was even worse than a reckless man. Before he could even reach Qi Xiao, he was kicked to the ground by Qi Xiao.

"For the sake of your master, I won't kill you." The dark cell and the scarlet light reflected on Qi Xiao's face, as if he was an evil from hell. The murderous intent and coldness in Qi Xiao's eyes were not concealed at all. Qinglan saw it clearly. He shuddered involuntarily, and whatever he wanted to curse just now was stuck in his throat.

"Qinglan!" Ye Huai suddenly shouted, calling Qinglan's attention back.

Qing Lan's legs went weak from Qi Xiao's stare, and she stumbled and knelt beside Ye Huai: "Ye Huai, are you okay?!"

Ye Huai shook his head: "I won't die."

"Let me show you the wound."

Qi Xiao glanced at the two of them. One was half-dead, the other was dull-witted. Why did Tang Ling only bring these two people? It was so boring. He turned and left, leaving Zongsheng to guard outside.

Qinglan and Ye Huai both breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the person leave.

Seeing Ye Huai covered in blood, Qing Lan was so frightened that she almost cried. She tore open his clothes and saw that an arrow had pierced his shoulder, a knife wound about an inch deep in his waist, and knife wounds on his arms and calves. She was shocked and terrified, and her hands trembled: "Ye Huai..."

"I'm fine. Qinglan, you have a miraculous healing touch. You won't let me die, will you?" Ye Huai forced a smile while enduring the pain.

Seeing Ye Huai smile, Qing Lan couldn't help crying, wiping away tears and nodding fiercely: "You're okay! I won't let anything happen to you!"

"Sir, Ye Huai said there was a loophole in the guards on the west side of the palace, so he wanted to give it a try."

Qing Lan personally treated Ye Huai's injuries, and Qi Xiao also gave him excellent medicine. Tang Ling had just breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Qing Lan's words. She was stunned. Ye Huai's nighttime intrusion into the palace was also Qi Xiao's plan!

"What happened? Tell me in detail."

"Ye Huai said that he followed us all the way and watched us enter the Prince of Chu's Palace. He was relieved at first, so he chose a room at the inn on the street in front of the palace with a view of the palace and stayed there. He would find out more information later. However, the palace was heavily guarded, and Ye Huai tried very hard but couldn't find out anything. Trying to sneak in was also impossible, so he became anxious. He had observed that the guards on the west side of the palace were the most lax, so if he really couldn't find any other way, he would just sneak in and see."

"Then why did Ye Huai suddenly become so impulsive?" Even if Qi Xiao deliberately left a loophole, Ye Huai should not have acted so rashly.

"Ye Huai went to find Doctor Zhou. Doctor Zhou was the only one who frequently visited the Prince of Chu's Palace these days, so he tried to contact him. However, Doctor Zhou refused to say anything and just shook his head. We had already been in the palace for several days, and Su Qin and the Huwei Army had no intention of leaving for Shangyuanjing. Ye Huai was getting impatient and tried to contact him several times. Then the medicine boy beside Doctor Zhou leaked the news that the young master was probably seriously ill and there was no hope. He also heard that the Prince of Chu's Palace was asking a high price for the medicine, so he was anxious and resorted to this desperate measure."

It was intentional… Another one of Qi Xiao's schemes. Qi Xiao! Qi Xiao! He was so calculating! And yet he pretended to be nice in front of him, saying he was helping him! It was unbelievable that Tang Ling could actually trust him and sincerely thank him!

Tang Ling suppressed her rage and asked, "How is Ye Huai's injury?"