Reborn to marry, the short-lived prince lived a hundred years

After saying this, Meng Tingyue carefully observed Xiao Huaifeng's reaction. He saw that he still remained calm, gently blowing away the foam on the surface of the tea, without showing a trace of guilt or surprise on his face.

Meng Tingyue's heart sank involuntarily.

"Of course I know. Isn't that the pharmacy that prepared your medicine for the past ten years?" Xiao Huaifeng lowered his eyelids slightly, and placed the teacup on the table with an elegant gesture. His voice was calm and unperturbed. "What happened to that shop?"

His nonchalant attitude made Meng Tingyue suspicious, wondering if this was just a misunderstanding.

"Doctor Guo from the shop said that the Xiao family gave him a silver note."

Hearing this, Xiao Huaifeng raised his eyes with a hint of apology in his eyes, "It seems that you know everything."

After saying that, he gently placed the warm teacup in his hand on the table, and the aroma of tea wafted in the air.

"I've been taking medicine constantly for the past ten years, not because of the root of my illness from that serious illness, but because there's something wrong with the medicine."

"That's right." Without Meng Tingyue asking any questions, Xiao Huaifeng had already told her the whole story.

"Back then, the Meng family came and wanted to take you back. Although we were extremely reluctant, your name had already been engraved in the Meng family tree. If we tried to force you to stay, the Meng family would report us to the authorities, and the officials would eventually let the Meng family take you away."

"So we came up with a plan. We asked for a medicine that won't harm your body, but will create the illusion of weakness. This will deceive the Meng family and prevent Jiang Qingrou from harming you because of your condition."

The doubts in Meng Tingyue's heart were resolved, and replaced by a slight sense of relief.

She suddenly recalled the past. When she was a child, she was extremely resistant to the extremely bitter medicine. Every time, she would act coquettishly to Nanny Qin and say that she didn't want to take the medicine.

At this time, Nanny Qin, who usually treated her very well, became extremely strict and supervised her day after day, forcing her to finish the medicine even if she took a sip of candied fruit or a sip of medicine.

Meng Tingyue suddenly realized: "So, Nanny Qin was also sent by you to supervise me taking my medicine every day."

Xiao Huaifeng nodded slightly, "Not only supervision, but also protection."

"Our original intention was to wait until you married into the Qing Palace, and then have Renxin Hall quietly replace the prescription. This way, your body could gradually recover."

I thought it was perfect, but I didn't expect her to notice it in advance.

After hearing this, Meng Tingyue's mind suddenly became clear as a mirror.

No wonder her frail body gradually improved after her wedding in her previous life. She even thought it was because of the good feng shui of the Prince Qing's Mansion. It turned out that the medicine she took after the wedding had been secretly replaced.

"If you have any resentment in your heart, just blame me as much as you want. Although this matter concerns the Xiao family, I am also to blame." There was a bit of helplessness and self-blame in Xiao Huaifeng's words.

The day he made this decision, Xiao Huaifeng knew that one day he would surface and face the reproachful gaze of his niece.

Just imagine, who would be willing to spend ten long years taking bitter medicine?

What's more, during the past ten years, the disease has been following her like a shadow, preventing her from running and playing freely in the sun like other children.

The Xiao family deceived her after all.

Meng Tingyue fell into deep thought. If it were in her previous life, she might have blamed the Xiao family without hesitation. At that time, her heart and eyes were full of the good things about the Meng family, and she naturally distanced herself from the Xiao family.

In this life, she has already seen through the true colors of the Meng family and is extremely grateful to the Xiao family for their foresight planning.

If the Xiao family had not been prepared, how could they have let Jiang Qingrou go with her vicious and cruel methods?

I'm afraid that chronic poison had long been secretly mixed into her food. Day by day, her body became weaker and weaker, until one day, a trivial cold could easily trigger the toxins in her body, causing her to die quietly on her sickbed.

Thinking of this, Meng Tingyue's heart was filled with gratitude. She whispered, "I know the Xiao family is concerned about me, so I won't blame them. If they hadn't taken Jiang Qingrou's personality into consideration, I might not have lived to see my 15th birthday."

Meng Tingyue's open-mindedness beyond her age made Xiao Huaifeng both surprised and happy. He lowered his eyes slightly, and a gentle smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"At first, I was worried that you would alienate the Xiao family because of this, but I never expected you to be so mature."

Talking about this, Xiao Huaifeng couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness and pity in his heart. If the Meng family hadn't failed to give her the protection she deserved, how could she have experienced the ups and downs of life so early in her youth?

Meng Tingyue opened her lips slightly and spoke in the gentlest tone, "My mother once said something: the world is unpredictable, and the person beside you may be unpredictable, but the Xiao family will always be her strongest support and will never abandon her."

She saw these words in her mother's notes.

Xiao Huaifeng's eyes trembled slightly, and his eyes softened as he looked at his niece, who was much younger than him. He seemed to see some of his sister's shadow in his niece. "Yes, the Xiao family will always be your retreat."

At this moment, there was a knock on the door, and a man with a stern and upright face walked into the room.

Meng Tingyue's eyes fell on the person who came, and she couldn't help but tremble slightly. She knew this person.

Yuan Chen reported, "Master, the Meng family suddenly dismissed all the employees at Wenqingfang today, seemingly anxious to sell the shop. They even contacted me about this. I remembered that this shop once belonged to the Second Young Lady, so I immediately rushed here to report."

Xiao Huaifeng and Meng Tingyue exchanged a glance, "The Meng family's actions are surprisingly fast."

Yuan Chen continued, "According to my observation just now, I discovered that the Meng family also went to the rouge and powder shop..."

Xiao Huaifeng secretly calculated in his heart, speculating on the deeper meaning behind the Meng family's move, and frowned slightly: "The Meng family's financial situation is normal, why are they so eager to sell the store?"

"I might be able to guess a thing or two." Meng Tingyue thought for a moment and asked, "Uncle, can you send someone to investigate where Princess Laiqing is now?"

Xiao Huaifeng's gaze fell on Yuan Chen, who blurted out, "Princess Qing went to the Meng residence early this morning, and when I left just now, she still hadn't left."

Meng Tingyue immediately understood. With a smile on her face, she explained to Xiao Huaifeng, "Uncle, do you remember the shop called Gu Bao Zhai on Jinhua Street?"

He nodded slightly, his expression slightly focused. "Of course, are the two related?"

"Meng Qingjiao probably has a special liking for that shop and is eager to acquire it, but she accidentally falls into the trap set by the owner of Gubaozhai." Meng Tingyue lightly covered her red lips, with a playful smile on her lips.

Xiao Huaifeng suddenly realized, "I've sent people to secretly investigate that shop. If I want to take it over immediately, I have to buy all the items in the shop together, and the price will be over ten thousand taels."

"Even though it's located in a prosperous area like Jinhua Street, its market value is only four or five thousand taels. Selling it for double the price is truly a loss-making deal."

"What's worse, the people I sent have carefully inspected the goods in the shop. Although they are genuine goods, they are all outdated and second-hand goods. Compared to them, there are many more exquisite and superior treasures in the world."

Meng Tingyue nodded slightly. "The items in that shop aren't worth that price, but Meng Qingjiao is completely oblivious. She's completely convinced that the shop's location is prime, and she's eager to buy it. I guess she's short on money, so she's thinking of selling her shop to raise enough money."