What to do if you receive the wrong package?

After watching Prince Ning and Lin Bihua drive away, Zhou Yuran intended to sneak back to her room for a nap. However, she inadvertently discovered that Duan Chenke was walking alone in another direction.

Zhou Yuran hesitated for a moment, then said goodbye to her sisters and decisively broke away from the group, running towards Duan Chenke.

"Hey, what did Yueya go to see the King of Chu for?" Gu Yan asked, looking in the direction Zhou Yueran left.

"Perhaps he has something to discuss with the King of Chu," Shen Mujin said casually.

"What do you think it is?" Gu Yan continued to ask.

Shen Mujin and Hua Yin exchanged a glance, then looked at Gu Yan, whose eyes were darting around, and they probably guessed something.

Hua Yin shrugged, seemingly knowing but not saying anything: "It's probably related to Sister Lin."

---------------

Zhou Yuran saw Duan Chenke right in front of her, but she still had to jog for a while before she could catch up.

"Your Highness, Your Highness, wait for me."

Duan Chenke stopped when he heard the voice, turned around, and saw that it was Zhou Yuran.

"What urgent matter brings you, Miss Fang?"

Zhou Yuran put her hands on her hips, took a moment to calm her breathing, and couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "Walking so fast right after eating, be careful of your appendix hurting."

"What did you say? What pain?" Duan Chenke didn't quite hear him.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Zhou Yuran smiled slightly at Duan Chenke and quickly changed the subject.

"Your Highness, there is something I'm not sure if I should say."

Seeing Zhou Yuran's conflicted expression, her fingers tightly gripping her sleeve, Duan Chenke couldn't help but joke, "If you don't know, then don't say anything."

"Hey! No way!" Hearing Duan Chenke's rejection, Zhou Yuran grabbed his arm without thinking, afraid that he would turn around and leave.

"This matter is very important, and we cannot keep it from being discussed."

"Speak, what is it?" Duan Chenke glanced at Zhou Yuran's persistent grip on him, but did not offer any words of advice. Instead, he spoke calmly, signaling her to continue.

Zhou Yuran breathed a sigh of relief, bit her lip slightly, as if she had made up her mind, and finally said, "Actually, Sister Lin is the one who communicated with Prince Ning through writing in the library."

After speaking, Zhou Yuran breathed a sigh of relief. She had expected to see a look of shock or surprise on Duan Chenke's face, but to her surprise, he remained completely calm.

Could it be that she was too nervous and didn't explain herself clearly?!

Zhou Yuran recalled her earlier remarks and couldn't help but add earnestly, "Your Highness, didn't you say that Prince Ning met someone in the library with whom he communicated through writing? Actually, that person wasn't some female official copying books, but Lin Bihua, Sister Lin! Both Prince Ning and you are mistaken."

Duan Chenke's expression remained unchanged after hearing Zhou Yuran's words; he merely raised an eyebrow slightly. "I know."

Zhou Yuran blinked blankly, not quite understanding at first.

"Huh? Your Highness, what did you just say?"

“I said, I know about this. Not only do I know, but my older brother has known for a long time as well.” Duan Chenke repeated himself, his voice low and calm.

"Then...then..." Zhou Yuran suddenly didn't know what to say. Or rather, she didn't know what to ask.

If Prince Ning and His Highness truly knew from the beginning that Sister Lin was the real person, why would all these events have occurred, and why would Prince Ning's attitude towards Sister Lin be so terrible?

"Sometimes what you see isn't necessarily the truth, and what you hear isn't necessarily the truth either," Duan Chenke said meaningfully, glancing at Zhou Yuran, whose expression had changed slightly.

Zhou Yuran remained silent. She didn't know what kind of existence Lin Bihua was in Prince Ning's heart, just as she didn't know what position she held in Duan Chenke's heart.

At that moment, all the courage she had mustered vanished.

"Oh, in that case, I'm fine. Sorry for bothering you." Zhou Yuran unconsciously loosened her grip on Duan Chenke's hand, took a step back, and was about to leave.

"Wait." This time, it was Duan Chenke who stopped Zhou Yuran.

Duan Chenke felt quite helpless. Since Zhou Yuran was willing to tell him about this, it meant that Lin Bihua had told her. But why did Sister Bihua only tell Zhou Yuran half of the truth? Was it to get revenge on him, since he had only told Zhou Yuran and the others part of the truth back then?

“Your sister Lin knows that Prince Ning and I know about this.”

Although Duan Chenke's words sounded like a tongue twister, Zhou Yuran miraculously understood them.

"So, the whole thing about Sister Lin and Prince Ning being irreconcilable is just a lie?"

Duan Chenke nodded, his voice revealing a hint of helplessness. "The matter concerning the Empress Dowager is true. Starting with the female official who copied the books, everything was deliberately staged by them."

"Then what is the real relationship between Sister Lin and Prince Ning?" Zhou Yuran recalled the undisguised love in Lin Bihua's eyes when she looked at Prince Ning; there was no way to fake that.

"They've already confessed their feelings to each other and expressed their love," Duan Chenke nodded in confirmation.

"Why would Sister Kelin and Prince Ning do this?" Zhou Yuran couldn't understand. The two lovers had been separated for many years because of this, and now they had to pretend to be at odds after meeting. This was too agonizing.

"This matter can't be explained in just a few words. The main reason is to protect Sister Bihua. If you really want to know the specific reason, you can ask your Sister Lin." Duan Chenke shook his head and directly left the explanation to Lin Bihua.

After all, it was his older brother and Lin Bihua who made the decision to do this. Although he knew some things, he wasn't directly involved.

Zhou Yuran never expected that her original intention of simply telling Duan Chenke a piece of information would actually lead to the discovery of the real news.

"Don't tell anyone about this. The fewer people who know, the better," Duan Chenke instructed.

"Don't worry, I'll only tell Mu Mu and the others. I promise we'll never tell anyone else!" Zhou Yuran nodded solemnly.

Zhou Yuran kept her word.

She did indeed only tell Ayan, Mumu, and Huabao about it. However, Gu Yan then told Jiang Si, Shen Mujin then told Xuan Yi, and Hua Yin then talked to Jian Yuheng, who knew the general situation, about it.

Although the news didn't spread outside, almost everyone in the Chu Prince's mansion knew about it.

---------------

the other side.

Lin Bihua softened her heart and called Prince Ning, Duan Chaoxu, back into the carriage, while she herself got out of the carriage.

"Uncle Lin, thank you for escorting Prince Ning back to his residence."

Uncle Lin listened to Lin Bihua's arrangements, turned his head to the side and, not hearing any objections from inside the carriage, nodded and rode away again.

Lin Bihua watched the departing carriage, then walked quietly for a distance before successfully returning to the Lin residence. Not long after arriving at her small courtyard, she saw a familiar figure skillfully scaling the back wall.

The person who climbed over the wall was none other than Prince Ning, Duan Chaoxu, who was "sitting" in the carriage and being sent back to the Prince's Mansion by Uncle Lin.

"What's wrong today? Why do you want to ride in the same carriage as me?" Lin Bihua poured a cup of hot tea and placed it on the table opposite her.

Duan Chaoxu smiled and sat down opposite Lin Bihua, looking at her intently. "I missed you, and I couldn't help myself."

"You," Lin Bihua gave Duan Chaoxu a fond glare, and continued, "You've held on for so long, you should still be careful."

"I understand. Although we rode in the same carriage, we both got off halfway through, so it won't arouse suspicion." Duan Chaoxu gave Lin Bihua a reassuring look.

"By the way," Lin Bihua suddenly remembered what happened today and couldn't help but ask, "You drew my name in the lottery at the Flying Swan Banquet today, did you tamper with it?"

Duan Chaoxu readily admitted, "It was me."

"Why did you suddenly decide to drag me into this? Didn't you see how terrified Yueya and the others were when they heard I was involved? Yueya almost went up in my place."

"If the Empress is going to help me choose a princess consort, then of course I'll choose the one I like the most," Duan Chaoxu said firmly, holding Zhou Yuran's hand tightly.

Hearing Duan Chaoxu's direct words, Lin Bihua's cheeks flushed slightly, and she forcibly changed the subject: "Don't you know what the Empress is thinking? Don't let this little matter expose the spies you planted by the Empress's side."

“It’s alright. In the Empress’s eyes, we don’t get along. Who would deliberately draw someone they dislike?” When he said the word “dislike,” Duan Chaoxu even took Lin Bihua’s hand and waved it in front of his eyes.

"The Empress has really gone all out this time, and the others she's arranged are not easy to deal with. Especially that Liu Rushuang, who is connected to the mysterious person. You must be careful."

"Don't worry, I still need to use their help to marry the queen I desire."

Lin Bihua looked at Duan Chaoxu with some surprise, "You want to make this a real thing?"

"Why not? Tiaotiao, I miss you so much. I'm starting to regret my original plan." Duan Chaoxu reached out and pulled Lin Bihua into his arms.

"Tiaotiao, we've been separated for so many years. I've finally been looking forward to your return to the capital, but I still have to pretend to be indifferent and unhappy. I want everyone to know openly and honestly that I love you." Duan Chaoxu gently stroked Lin Bihua's hair, his eyes filled with boundless tenderness.

Lin Bihua sensed Duan Chaoxu's grievance and helplessness. She could only hug him tightly in return, "Okay, I'll do whatever you say."

"Next time you wield your sword, remember to use Starlight. Starlight suits you better."

Lin Bihua looked up and listened to Duan Chaoxu's somewhat childish instructions, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

"Yes, yes, I will definitely use it next time. I will make sure that everyone can immediately tell that Xinghua in my hand and Prince Ning's sword Yuehua are a pair of husband and wife swords."

When Duan Chaoxu asked his aunt to bring Xinghua to Mobei as her birthday gift, she was really happy. Especially when she learned that Xinghua and Yuehua in Duan Chaoxu's hands were a pair of swords, she was so excited that she almost wanted to sleep with Xinghua in her arms.

Duan Chaoxu looked down at the smiling little girl in his arms, his heart melting like spring water. He gently kissed Lin Bihua's forehead and said softly, "Husbands and wives should use the sword of husband and wife."

"Alright, it's getting late, you should go too." Lin Bihua felt her cheeks getting hotter and hotter, and shyly crawled out of Duan Chaoxu's arms.

"Tiaotiao, don't you want me to have dinner with you?" Duan Chaoxu blinked pitifully.

Lin Bihua directly raised her hand to cover Duan Chaoxu's eyes, "I really want to, but you probably don't have time. Aren't you going to join Xuan Yi and the others in their nighttime exploration of Shanshui Mingyuan?"

“Ake has great faith in Palace Master Xuan and Young Hero Jiang. So it seems like it’s okay for me not to go.” Duan Chaoxu pulled Lin Bihua’s hand off his eyes and held it tightly in his hand.

“Go ahead, you’ll feel at ease once you go. Besides, didn’t you invite me to your residence to instruct you on swordsmanship at the Feast of the Glittering Swan today? Although I think the Empress definitely won’t let me monopolize this opportunity, there will still be a chance to meet then.”

Duan Chaoxu understood Lin Bihua's meaning, and in the end, he could only give Lin Bihua a deep look before skillfully climbing over the wall and leaving.

As the temperature drops, it gets dark earlier and earlier.

Gu Yan and the others originally wanted to ask Zhou Yuran about the gossip after she returned, and find out how Duan Chenke would react when he heard the 'truth', but Zhou Yuran didn't return for a long time.

"I can't wait any longer, I'm too sleepy. I'll take a nap and talk to you when Yueya comes back."

Gu Yan, panting heavily, dragged himself back to his room and collapsed into bed.

When she woke up, it was already pitch black. Gu Yan rubbed her eyes and felt the cold wind seeping in through the cracks in the window.

She was jolted awake by the gust of wind, and her mind gradually cleared.

How long did she sleep? Did she oversleep and miss dinner?

Just as I was about to put on my shoes and go out to take a look, I heard Shen Mujin's voice coming from the doorway.

"Ayan, are you awake?"

"You're awake, you're awake, I'll be right there." Gu Yan pulled on his coat, put it on, ruffled his hair a couple of times, and opened the door.

Then the cold wind made me even more energetic.