Every time the prince opens his eyes, he sees

But she didn't do what they wanted.

Lu Yaoyao was wearing simple mourning clothes. Although her face was filled with sadness, she received every mourner in an orderly manner with a calm and composed attitude, arranged the worship matters, and handled every detail properly and thoughtfully.

Gu's mother's condition gradually stabilized. Although she still cried from time to time, she no longer blamed Lu Yaoyao.

She saw everything Lu Yaoyao did.

On the day of Gu Huai's funeral, the sky was gray, as if even God was sad for him.

Lu Yaoyao was wearing heavy mourning clothes and walked at the front of the team.

From the perspective of the people, she is not the demonized beauty who brings disaster, but a woman with a strong heart who can shoulder responsibilities.

The calm face and elegant temperament will make people feel at ease.

The people either bowed their heads in silence or sighed softly.

Xie Qingchen also came, representing the royal family, to give Gu Huai the greatest pomp and face.

Let him be buried with honor.

Sprinkles of soil were poured onto the coffin. Lu Yaoyao stood aside. There were no outsiders present. She finally didn't have to suppress her emotions anymore. She watched the coffin being covered with soil bit by bit, and her tears silently slid down her face.

Gu Huai was such a good man, but he is buried in the ground forever.

At some point, an umbrella was held over her head, shielding her from the cold rain.

Lu Yaoyao looked up and didn't expect that the person holding the umbrella for her was Xie Qingchen.

"Your Highness, are you not leaving yet?"

"In early autumn, even if the rain isn't heavy, it's easy to get a cold. So even if you want to stay with Gu Huai longer, hold on to this umbrella."

Gu Huai is dead, the target of the strategy is dead, and his own death is probably not far away.

Lu Yaoyao suddenly wanted to talk to Xie Qingchen. Perhaps this separation would be forever.

"Your Highness, are you happy being the Crown Prince?" I had to hide it and couldn't ask before, but now there is nothing to be afraid of.

Xie Qingchen hadn't expected her to ask this out of the blue. He didn't have to answer her, but as he stared at her sad, yet relieved eyes, he said, "In life, no matter what your status is, there are worries, troubles, and frustrations, but it's not without its benefits either. I'm bound by my status as the Crown Prince, and I have to avoid many things. But I can also use this precious status to do what I want."

"Your Highness, if you govern the country and keep the external forces at bay, you will soon realize your grand ambition of a peaceful and prosperous nation. I, your humble servant, would rather be happy than worried about becoming the Crown Prince."

Xie Qingchen had no input, and only he knew whether he was happy or not.

He was just very surprised that Lu Yaoyao could see through what he wanted, as if she knew him very well.

"But the courage on your shoulders is very heavy, Your Highness must be feeling very tired."

Without waiting for Xie Qingchen to say anything, Lu Yaoyao bowed deeply and said, "I hope Your Highness will have a bright future, a life without worries, work hard, and live in peace every year."

"What are you doing all of a sudden?"

Xie Qingchen suddenly had a bad feeling in his heart. She acted as if she was going to leave.

"It's nothing, I just felt it."

"Your Highness, please go. I will stay with Ah Huai for a while."

Xie Qingchen originally wanted to say something to persuade her, but he had already said enough today. Due to his status, it would be inappropriate for him to say anything more. In the end, he did not say anything more, but just nodded slightly, handed the umbrella to Lu Yaoyao, and slowly turned around.

The rain continued to fall, but it seemed a little colder than before.

Lu Yaoyao held the oil-paper umbrella that still retained Xie Qingchen's body temperature, and stood quietly in front of the newly piled grave. Her eyes passed through the rain, as if she could penetrate time and space and talk to the person who was sleeping forever in the ground.

Xie Qingchen did not go back directly, but went to the peach forest where He Yaoyao was buried.

The peach forest is not far from Gu Huai's tomb.

The words written in blood on the tombstone are still as bright red.

Xie Qingchen was relatively stable this time and did not go crazy. He squatted down and first inserted a bunch of wild flowers in front of the tombstone. He talked to Yaoyao's tombstone and began to clear the weeds around it.

While cleaning, he actually pulled out an earring from the weeds.

Although the earrings were simple, the oriental pearl adorning them made it clear that only the rich and noble could afford them.

"This is..." The phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, and sharpness and cruelty burst out.

Back at the East Palace, Qingfeng noticed that he was in a bad mood and asked cautiously, "Has General Gu been buried?"

Xie Qingchen nodded slightly, then took out the earrings he had picked up from He Yaoyao's tombstone, "Qingfeng, go to the major gold and silver jewelry pavilions in the capital and find out for yourself which family this earring came from."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Qingfeng rarely asks questions that he shouldn't.

He acted quickly and visited all the gold, silver, jewelry and treasure houses in the capital.

After two days of investigation, he finally found the origin of the earring - it came from a jewelry store called "Yunbinxuan", and according to the owner's recollection, there were three women who bought the earring.

Judging from their clothes, they are either rich or noble, but I don’t know which family they are from.

Two of them had extraordinary temperaments and were unforgettable.

After Qingfeng went back and reported the truth, Xie Qingchen fell into a long silence.

Although it was known that two women had bought the earrings, their identities could not be identified, which meant that the clues to the identity of the earrings' owner were gone.

But Xie Qingchen could not give up, he would not let go of any trace of He Yaoyao.

He held onto a chance, thinking maybe the owner of the earrings was He Yaoyao and she was not dead.

After all, the fire was so strange when you think about it carefully, it always seemed like someone had done it on purpose.

He pondered for a moment and said, "Qingfeng, send one hundred secret guards to guard the four streets, east, south, west and north, day and night. Any woman seen wearing this earring must be brought to the Eastern Palace. Pawnshops and gold and silver jewelry exchange shops should also be on the lookout. Also, post a notice offering a large sum of money for this exact pair of earrings. If anyone is willing to sell, the buyer should be brought to the Eastern Palace immediately."

"Subordinates obey orders."

Lu Yaoyao returned to the Gu Mansion. She was in no mood to go out, and she didn't want to ask about what was happening outside. She didn't know what had happened.

In fact, even if she knew, she might have admitted it directly if Xie Qingchen came to question her.

I'm going to die anyway, so why should I be afraid of Xie Qingchen knowing my true identity?

Her maid became interested when she saw the notice. After all, the other party was willing to buy it for one hundred taels as long as she was willing to sell it.

A pair costs one hundred taels, and one costs fifty taels.

With these fifty taels, not only could he redeem himself and get back his indenture, but he could also buy a few acres of land for his family and find a wife for his eldest brother.

She was so excited that she thought too much and went to tear up the list without telling Lu Yaoyao.

Although it was a gift from the young lady and she could do whatever she wanted with the earring, she would definitely not be happy if she knew that she sold it for money, so she didn't say a word to Lu Yaoyao.

After tearing down the imperial edict, someone immediately took her to the Eastern Palace.