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

When Tang Ling walked out of the study, Qi Xiao was standing in the corridor not far away waiting for her. He deliberately walked a little further away to avoid suspicion.

Tang Ling frowned as he looked at Qi Xiao, but the obvious annoyance was quickly suppressed by himself. He walked towards Qi Xiao, stretched out his hand and held Qi Xiao's. They left the same way as they came.

Qi Xiao was a little worried at first, but after Tang Ling held his hand gently, it seemed as if even the sky fell at that moment, it wouldn't matter.

However, Qi Xiao soon realized that he was not afraid of any big trouble, but the small trouble in front of him made him in a dilemma. Tang Yan ordered people to prepare a guest room for Qi Xiao in the east wing. The waiter followed Tang Yan and Qi Xiao back to the warm room, waiting to take Qi Xiao to the east wing.

The servants of the Tang family were all carefully selected and strictly disciplined. They only obeyed Tang He's orders. The waiter stood at the door of the warm room waiting, neither urging nor inviting. Tang He would not return to the Marquis' Mansion tonight and would stay in the small courtyard. Tang Ling did not dare to leave Qi Xiao in the warm room.

Qi Xiao had no choice but to sleep in the east wing guest room, but he couldn't even sit still. When Tang Ling was far away, Qi Xiao could only endure it. Now that the person he loved most was right next to him, but Qi Xiao couldn't see her, he couldn't help but feel a sense of anxiety.

To get from the warm room to the east wing, one has to pass through two courtyards and four doors. The guards in the courtyard are tight outside but loose inside, and only two of the four doors have guards on duty. Qi Xiao thought about it again and again, stood up and sat down, sat down and stood up again, but he still couldn't help but stay put, so he climbed out the window and went out, acting like a thief on the beam again.

The guards of the Tang Mansion are of course more capable than the ordinary guards who guard the house, but Qi Xiao does not take them seriously. The only problem is Ye Huai who is guarding the warm room.

Ye Huai suddenly appeared, blocking Qi Xiao's way and stopping him from climbing through the window: "Your Highness, I'm afraid this behavior is inappropriate."

"...Then please inform Ye Huai for me."

Ye Huai looked at Qi Xiao, and finally sighed after a long while. He took Qi Xiao around to the main gate and knocked on the door: "Sir, the Crown Prince of Chen is here."

Qi Xiao glanced at Ye Huai. He insisted on saying the four words "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Chen" to annoy others. It seemed that he did not welcome Qi Xiao.

At the same time, Qinglan was changing the bandage on Tang Ling's hand inside the house. When Ye Huai knocked on the door and said Qi Xiao was here, Qinglan looked up at Tang Ling and said, "Young Master..."

"Wait a moment." Tang Ling called to the door, then lowered her head and whispered to Qing Lan, "Is it almost done?"

Qing Lan sighed slightly, quickly applied medicine to Tang Ling, and bandaged the wound properly. He couldn't help but say, "Sir, if the Marquis knew..."

"Shh, my dad won't know."

"..." Qinglan glanced at Tang Ling, but ultimately said nothing. Although Qinglan feared Tang He, he was also terrified of something bad happening to her. He'd been suffering from recurring heart palpitations for the past few years, each one somehow connected to Qi Xiao. News from the Chen Kingdom had deepened Tang Ling's worries, and the court's discussion of Princess Xihe's marriage had left her heartbroken. Lovesickness was a poison, and Tang Ling's antidote was right outside the door. How could Qinglan, a doctor, stop her?

Qinglan packed up her things and left with the medicine box. She opened the door and let Qi Xiao into the house, then pushed Ye Huai away.

Ye Huai suddenly recalled the past when Qi Xiao came to see Tang Ling at night and Qing Lan would get so anxious that she would jump up and down, but Ye Huai had to hold her back. Now, she was silent.

"you……"

Qing Lan lowered her head and interrupted Ye Huai: "I guess you'll have to take me in for a while."

Qinglan's room was right next to Tang Ling's, making it convenient for him to serve Tang Ling, but he couldn't stay there now.

"Master's order?"

Qinglan shook his head: "Let's go quickly."

As soon as Qi Xiao walked into the warm room, he smelled the scent of the golden wound medicine. The golden wound medicine made by Qinglan had a special smell and was very easy to recognize.

"I was just about to ask, how did you get your hand injured?" Qi Xiao walked to Tang Ling, half squatted down and held his injured hand in his palm.

"It was just an accident."

"Is it really just an accident?"

"Ah."

"Let me see……"

Tang Ling hurriedly held Qi Xiao's hand down: "I just applied the medicine, don't take it off."

Qi Xiao looked up at Tang Ling and smiled slightly: "Okay. I'll help you apply the medicine tomorrow."

"...Okay." Maybe Qi Xiao will forget about it tomorrow.

"What did the Marquis say to you just now? You looked unhappy. Did he want to drive me away?"

Tang Ling hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Qi Xiao, have you thought about the future? You faked your death and escaped, traveling thousands of miles to find me, and then what?"

Qi Xiao simply sat down on the footstool beside the bed, leaned against Tang Ling, rested her head on his legs, and said, "Then I will stay with you for the rest of my life."

"...I'm not kidding you, and I don't need you to coax me."

Qi Xiao raised his head and smiled: "I faked my own death to escape and came all the way to find you. Isn't that sincere enough?"

"..."

Qi Xiao raised his arm and touched Tang Ling's cheek and jaw, then said, "Young Master, you are extremely intelligent. You will definitely find a way to save me."

"You..." Tang Ling was at a loss for words. Did Qi Xiao really not consider the consequences? He was willful, but he was definitely not reckless. Even though he considered the consequences, why did he still resolutely run away from the marriage? Was it just because he blindly trusted him?

Qi Xiao stood up, leaned over and slowly approached Tang Ling, put his arm around his waist, hugged him, and said softly, "I ran to you regardless of everything, just asking you not to let me go no matter what, and do everything you can to keep me by your side."

Tang Ling felt a pang of pain in her heart, and she hugged Qi Xiao tightly, biting her lips for a long time and unable to speak. There was no other person in the world as stupid as Qi Xiao, and there would never be another person who would love him so deeply.

"Hmm..." Tang Ling's nasal voice was mixed with sobs. He buried his head in Qi Xiao's arms but still couldn't hold back his tears.

Qi Xiao used a handkerchief to wipe Tang Ling's face. He actually couldn't bear to make Tang Ling cry, but seeing him crying with red eyes, he couldn't help but feel happy, couldn't help laughing, and couldn't help bending down to kiss him.

Qi Xiao took into consideration that Tang Ling was ill and did not dare to be presumptuous, but he could not help it and bit his lips lightly, his throat feeling very dry.

Tang Ling slowly leaned back, pulling Qi Xiao's lapel and falling down.

"Tang Ling..."

"Ah."

"I'm thirsty, go get a glass of water."

"..." Tang Ling pulled Qi Xiao tightly, "Come up."

"..."

Tang Ling's voice was so disgusting that Qi Xiao couldn't bear to hear it at all. Unable to bear this kind of stimulation, his heart trembled and he ripped off Tang Ling's belt.

"Why have you lost so much weight?"

"……No."

Qi Xiao moved to Tang Ling's neck and licked it. He wanted to bite it but was afraid of leaving too obvious a mark so that Xun Anhou Tang He would notice it tomorrow morning. Since he couldn't bite the throat, he would change places.

Qi Xiao used his teeth to tear open Tang Ling's clothes and bit his collarbone.

"Hiss!" Tang Ling gasped in pain.

"You said you weren't thinner?"

Tang Ling was a little angry and slapped Qi Xiao's head away: "Do you really think you are a wolf?"

Qi Xiao laughed, lowered his head and licked the spot he had just bitten. He held Tang Ling with both hands and confirmed again: "You have lost weight."

"Let go!" Tang Ling was almost crying because of him, this time out of embarrassment.

Qi Xiao laughed softly, and one hand was enough to pinch both of Tang Ling's ankles at the same time.

"Ah!" Tang Ling was startled, and just as she started to struggle, Qi Xiao hugged her.

"Tang Ling, I'm sorry, I really can't help it. Can you please feel sorry for me, okay?"

"Does it hurt?" Qi Xiao rubbed the sweat on his forehead on Tang Ling's chest, making Tang Ling feel like her heart was about to be burned into a hole, and she couldn't hold back her tears.

Tang Ling put her arms around Qi Xiao's neck, but suddenly thought that his shoulders were broader and thicker than before, and his arms were stronger. He really looked like a wolf, which was frightening. He would die tonight.

"Be good, it will be fine in a while." Qi Xiao frowned, he couldn't control the strength. For three years, he thought about this moment every night, he thought about the warmth and softness in Tang Ling's body, he wanted Tang Ling to hug him again, he wanted to hear Tang Ling calling his name in her crazy collapse.

"Qi Xiao!"

***

It started raining again in the middle of the night. The wind was so strong that it slammed against the window frames, making them creak. Tang Ling couldn't help but worry about his flowers. He wanted to go and take a look, but just as he sat up, Qi Xiao hugged him and pulled him back.

"where to?"

"My Epiphyllum can't withstand such strong wind and rain. I'm going to take a look and pull up the awning." Tang Ling felt pain all over her body, but she actually didn't have any strength at all.

Qi Xiao gently kissed Tang Ling's forehead: "I'll go, you lie down." He had just tormented her severely, and he felt both happy and guilty. It was a good idea for him to tidy up the flower garden for Tang Ling.

Qi Xiao just wanted to withdraw his hand but was held back by Tang Ling: "Forget it, last time... the gardener said that most of the plants had rotten roots and I'm afraid they can't survive. Don't go."

Qi Xiao leaned on Tang Ling's chest and asked him coquettishly, "Forget it? Do you really not need to go and see?"

"Well, forget it." Tang Ling pursed her lips and whispered, "I can't bear to see you get wet in the rain."

Qi Xiao laughed out loud: "I'm not afraid of wind and rain."

"I know. You dared to jump into Qin Jiang on a stormy night, so what is there to be afraid of?"

"...Okay, I was wrong, I was wrong, I will never dare to do it again."

Tang Ling quietly clenched her injured left hand. Qi Xiao was not afraid, but he was afraid. Qi Xiao was by his side until now, and he couldn't help but feel scared whenever he thought of him.

Seeing that Tang Ling had been silent for a long time, Qi Xiao gently touched his cheek and asked, "Are you asleep?"

"Tell me about it."

"say what?"

"Tell me what you've done in the past three years. You have to tell me about your military strength and armaments so I can figure out how to fight this war, right?"

"Aren't you tired? Go to sleep and we'll talk tomorrow."

"I can't sleep." He couldn't wait until the storm was over before putting up a canopy for the Epiphyllum, and then wait until the root system was destroyed before taking the trouble to plant and support the plant.

Qi Xiao smiled silently, changed his position and hugged Tang Ling, saying, "Okay. What do you want to know? I'll tell you everything slowly."

Tang Ling took a deep breath. No matter how powerful the spy of Xingluowei was, he could never become the Crown Prince of Chen. But now he turned the Crown Prince of Chen into his own spy. It was terrifying to think about it.

"At this point, whether you live or die, flee or return, His Majesty is gone. He wants the Great Zhou. But the Great Zhou cannot fight this war. The cost of digging a canal is enormous. Fighting on two fronts, Liujiang and Taihuajiang, is too difficult. Moreover, Princess Xihe is almost in Yuanjing. Even if my father insisted on fighting, the Emperor and the Queen Mother would not agree."

"Don't worry, there won't be a fight." Qi Xiao smiled. "Da Chen isn't short of money, but it is short of food. Do you know how much food Da Chen buys from your Chen State every year?"

Tang Ling understood immediately. "Most of the fertile farmland in Former Qi was east of the Liujiang River, while the area west of it was mountainous and arid. Ever since Chen State annexed most of Former Qi's territory three years ago and trade began between Chen and Zhou, trade on the Liujiang River has been transporting tea and brocade cloth from west to east, which was then exchanged for rice. Did you think of this when you ordered the Yaoshan Army to cultivate the fields and plant mulberry trees?"

"I didn't think that far back then. I was just starving in Fenglin Mountain. I thought it would be difficult to transport grain from Chen to Qi, so I wanted to control the grain and fodder to prevent the Qi people from rebellion. After you left, I started to increase my efforts to encourage tea planting, and Qi's grain production was even lower." Qi Xiao smiled somewhat complacently. "If Your Majesty ordered Baixiqiao to send troops from the west now, he would definitely go and cry to Your Majesty. Allocating military funds is useless. You can't eat copper coins when you're hungry."

Tang Ling couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Is there anyone who would betray his own brother like you?"

"I'm cheating him by letting him die, right?"

"Bai Xiqiao is a famous general of the time. How could you have known he would lose?"

"If he really comes, I will fight him alone in front of the two armies, and you can see who will win." Qi Xiao thought and laughed again, "Come to think of it, I haven't seen him for a year."

"If he loses, His Majesty will not forgive him. And you still say you are not trying to trick him?"

"It's okay. He can leave first and have Ning Wanxiao to protect him. At most he'll get a few scoldings from His Majesty."

"Ning Wanxiao?"

"Well, I'll tell you later."

Tang Ling seemed to understand something, but now was not the right time to chat, so she asked, "Then how do we defend the Taihua River?"

"The food shortage west of the Liu River is my fault, but the lack of a battle in the Taihua River is your fault. Why are you still asking?"

"what?"

"Trade between Chen and Zhou. Da Chen has seven docks along the Taihua River, and Zhou has six. Do you know how many merchant ships ply the Taihua River annually? How much silver goes into Da Chen's treasury each year? And how much of this business is done secretly by the nobles of Yuanjing?"

Tang Ling certainly knew that this was his original purpose, to use huge benefits to restrain the Chen State from swinging its sword towards the Great Zhou, but three years was too short and he was not so confident.

"Three million eight hundred thousand taels is almost one-third of the annual income of the Dachen treasury."

Tang Ling was stunned for a moment. There were so many?!

"The Qin River runs through the north and south of Dachen and flows into the Taihua River. Trade has developed rapidly. Your Majesty has dealt with the Ministry of Revenue and the Qin family. I have also investigated the case of embezzlement in river repairs. In just two years, a large number of people have changed in the Yuan capital and the local areas. Silver has to go somewhere. To subsidize the grain transport and build docks, silver flows back and forth along the Qin River."

Qi Xiao stroked Tang Ling's cheek and said, "When there's money to be made, no one wants to go to war. There are no fools in the court. Even if Your Majesty insists on something that doesn't benefit them, they will do their utmost to stop it. Especially since the Qin family has fallen, the Gongsun family is struggling to take care of themselves. Many people want to replace the Gongsun family, but none of them have the foundation to do so, let alone support Your Majesty in raising an army to attack Zhou."

Tang Ling nodded slightly. "Of course, for the Great Zhou, not going to war is the best. However, if Princess Xihe's marriage isn't settled, the Emperor and the Queen Mother will certainly not be at ease. I'm afraid it's impossible to bring Princess Xihe back now. We can't let Princess Xihe stay in Chen State without proper reason. The princess is going to marry, not as a hostage."

"I have a solution for this."

Tang Ling looked at Qi Xiao, and couldn't help but be surprised: "Do you have a solution?"