Prince! The political conspiracy is not a play, the show is real

Seeing Tao Yao spit out the fishbone, everyone looked at each other in surprise. Only then did they realize that Chu Huanjun's action just now was to help Tao Yao force out the fishbone stuck in her throat.

Shi Yiqian blushed and sweated, feeling a little embarrassed: "Hey, Tao Yao, what are you doing?"

Chu Huanjun returned to the flower table, fanned himself and sat down leisurely. He said to Zhou Yan and Shi Yiqian in a joking tone:

"You two are so careless. How could you not notice that Second Miss Shi had a sore throat and looked unhappy? Old Shi, you are so careless. You dared to marry your daughter to such a careless man? Today it's just a fish bone, but if it's something else tomorrow, it's hard to say whether it can be saved."

After coughing for a while, Tao Yao finally calmed down and got up from the ground. She refuted him in a hoarse voice, "Your Highness, you are joking... I accidentally got a fishbone stuck in my throat today. I will never let this happen again. Even if I do, I will find a doctor myself so that I can be saved."

Shi Yiqian never expected that Tao Yao would speak to Chu Huanjun in such an offensive tone. He immediately coughed softly a few times and gave her a warning look, which seemed to say: What's wrong with you? Do you know that this is the noble Prince Yi? Why don't you kowtow and apologize?

What he didn't expect was that Chu Huanjun didn't care about Tao Yao's "offense" at all. Instead, the smile on his face deepened, and he brought a glass of wine on the table to his lips and took a sip.

"Oh. It's good that Second Miss Shi has this ability." Chu Huanjun smiled, picked up the wine jug beside the table and filled another glass, passing it to Tao Yao. "But I saved you today, you have to thank me."

The wine glass was pushed in front of her, and Tao Yao hesitated whether to wave her hand to refuse - if she drank it, she would make a fool of herself if the wine was tampered with or she was drunk; if she didn't drink it, it would be a disgrace to Prince Yi.

As if he saw her hesitation, Chu Huanjun asked again, "Second Miss Shi, can you drink?"

Seeing Tao Yao remained silent, Chu Huanjun added, "You had a fish bone stuck in your throat for a long time, and your throat must have been injured. This wine has been infused with precious herbs, so it's mild and has the ability to heal wounds. Why not give it a try?"

It was clearly a question, but when Chu Huanjun said it, it sounded like a tone that brooked no refusal.

Tao Yao truly couldn't drink, so she hadn't touched a drop of alcohol in years—she suspected she was a terrible drinker, considering she could get tipsy even from a chocolate bar. And because she was someone who preferred to be conservative, she always refused alcohol, something uncontrollable like alcohol.

But now the wine glass in Chu Huanjun's hand was already next to her, and she had almost no choice but to drink it.

Tao Yao silently despised Chu Huanjun in her heart, wondering what evil intentions he had in mind to tease her.

Tao Yao made up her mind and prepared to pretend to drink.

Tao Yao took the wine glass from Chu Huanjun's hand, covered her face with her sleeve, and pretended to raise her head to drink.

Little did she know that the wine in the glass only passed through her mouth and tongue once, and then it was all spat back into the glass and splashed onto the wide sleeves in front of her.

Fortunately, the sleeves of the robe I was wearing today were wide enough and the color was bright enough, so even if a whole glass of wine was poured on it, no trace of it would be seen.

Tao Yao lowered her arms, deliberately hiding a corner of her wet sleeve at her waist, and respectfully handed the empty wine glass to Chu Huanjun.

Chu Huanjun smiled with satisfaction and said, "How do you feel?"

Tao Yao nodded obediently: "Well, this wine tastes sweet and mellow, it really makes me feel much more comfortable."

Chu Huanjun's expression shifted slightly, as if he had noticed something, but he didn't expose her. "Well, if Miss Shi Er likes to drink, I'll ask someone to bring some more over someday."

Shi Yiqian didn't want to cause any misunderstanding that would ruin his plan, so before Tao Yao could speak again, he immediately declined, saying, "Don't bother, Your Highness. If my daughter really likes it, I can send someone to the wine shop to buy it for her."

Tao Yao nodded repeatedly. After so many days, this was the first time that Shi Yiqian had a sympathetic connection with her.

"That's right, don't bother your Highness."

This is the first time that Shi Yiqian has refused a gift from Chu Huanjun in all the years that Chu Huanjun and Shi Yiqian have known each other.

Chu Huanjun could probably figure out what Shi Yiqian was thinking, so he tried to test him and replied, "This wine of mine is not something you can buy in ordinary wine shops. Last year, when my father sent me to the south to search for him, I had just arrived in Jiangnan and was not used to it. I suffered from the unfamiliar climate for many days, so I went to Lingyin Mountain in Hangzhou to visit a pharmacist, and only then did I get the recipe for this medicinal wine. After taking it, it cured my illness."

Later, when I returned to the capital, I learned that the master was a mountain immortal who had not left the mountains for many years. Therefore, this recipe is hard to find in the world, and only I have it. I brought wine here today because it was freezing cold and I wanted to warm myself up, but I never thought it would come in handy today.

Chu Huanjun spoke vividly, implying that he wanted to hint at Shi Yiqian.

Zhou Yan, the unscrupulous businessman whom he had tried so hard to curry favor with that he even married off his daughter to, was still far inferior to him, the Prince Yi.

Shi Yiqian felt embarrassed and didn't feel like refusing anymore.

Although Zhou Yan was very good at flattery, he had no ability to read people's expressions.

Hearing Chu Huanjun's story, he quickly agreed, "Oh, I've also met the master the prince mentioned. I also have the recipe for the medicinal wine, and it's really effective—" As he spoke, he picked up the wine cup that Chu Huanjun had placed on the table, held it to his nose, and sniffed it for a long time. Then, frowning, he asked in confusion, "Huh, why does it taste different?"

Chu Huanjun gave Zhou Yan a glare with a fake smile and said, "Well. That means your recipe is fake."

Zhou Yan was a little unconvinced and still confused, muttering, "It shouldn't be like this..."

Chu Huanjun desperately resisted the urge to punch Zhou Yan for being so tactless, and stiffly maintained a dignified and polite smile on his face.

Zhou Yan's words gave Shi Yiqian an excuse, and he quickly said, "Well, since Mr. Zhou also has this recipe, we shouldn't bother the prince. After all, the Shi family and Mr. Zhou will be relatives in the future..."

Hearing the word "relatives", Chu Huanjun felt a little unhappy. While maintaining his polite smile, he couldn't help but frown and said bluntly: "Old Shi, I'm not afraid of trouble."

Tao Yao sensed the tension between their conversation and, not wanting to let them argue any further, interrupted them hastily, saying, "Your Highness, Mr. Zhou, you two don't have to worry about this. I don't drink, and I don't like it. Thank you for your kindness, I appreciate it."

As soon as she finished speaking, the three men looked at her together, staring at her so hard that it made her back hair stand on end.

After a long silence, Chu Huanjun slowly asked, "What do you like?"

Tao Yao's heart suddenly felt like several gunpowders had exploded. She was furious and bitter, unable to express her pain. She couldn't help but shout in her heart: Chu Huanjun is, after all, a big shot who has seen the world and often visited big scenes. Doesn't he know that he should choose his words according to the occasion?!

However, there is only one reason why he speaks without considering the occasion, and that is that he does not care about the people present at all, and they are not worth his effort to say polite words.

Therefore, Tao Yao could only frantically resist the urge to roll her eyes at him, and replied softly through gritted teeth, "Your Highness, please don't bother to understand this."