The Emperor, with more men than women, made me his mistress.

Seeing Jin Chenyuan staring intently at her, as if he wouldn't give up until he heard the answer he wanted.

Yue Li rolled her eyes inwardly and deliberately called out in a high-pitched voice, "A Yuan."

Seeing Yue Li's deliberate expression, a smile flashed in Jin Chenyuan's eyes. He lowered his head and lightly kissed the corner of Yue Li's lips, saying, "Wait for me to come back."

Looking at the intimate scene between the two in front of him, Shao Qi pursed his lips, and the folding fan in his hand creaked loudly.

One day, one day he will be able to be so uninhibitedly intimate with Yue Li in front of others.

When Jin Chenyuan turned around, Shao Qi had already turned his back as well.

Seeing Shao Qi radiating a low-pressure aura, Jin Chenyuan curled his lips and said, "Let's go, young master, let's find a place to talk."

"Alright, Prince Chen, this way please." It would be more convenient for the two of them to talk things over after leaving Yue Li's side, so Shao Qi did not object to Jin Chenyuan's suggestion.

Since they were on their own ship, Shao Qi led Jin Chenyuan directly to the passenger room in the cabin.

Seeing this, Yue Li curled her lips.

She had originally thought that even if she wasn't involved in this kind of thing, she could at least listen in from the sidelines. But unexpectedly, the two of them left her sight immediately.

After watching the two enter the cabin, and seeing Qingyun immediately standing guard at the cabin door, Yue Li reluctantly withdrew her gaze and turned her attention back to the lake.

........................

Upon arriving at the cabin's waiting room, Shao Qi, as the host, first invited Jin Chenyuan to sit in the chair at the head of the table, then poured Jin Chenyuan a cup of tea before sitting down himself.

After seeing Shao Qi sit down, Jin Chenyuan did not drink the tea that had been poured for him, but asked, "I wonder what the young master wants to say to me?"

Shao Qi looked at Jin Chenyuan seriously and said, "I suppose Prince Chen came here with me because he already had some idea of ​​what was going on."

Jin Chenyuan raised an eyebrow, but instead of answering directly, he asked, "Is there something about the young master that I can sense?"

“Your Highness, there’s no need to test me like this. I’ve often heard about Your Highness’s deeds from my father and I know your abilities, so I won’t try to show off my skills in front of you.”

Upon hearing Shao Qi's words, Jin Chenyuan lowered his eyes, concealing the thoughts within them.

Shao Qi stared intently at Jin Chenyuan and said, "On the way from the Prince Chen's residence to the Marriage Lake, I told Yue Li that I love her, and she agreed to give me a chance."

Shao Qi's words made Jin Chenyuan's eyes snap open, his gaze shooting at Shao Qi like two sharp swords.

This was the first time Shao Qi had faced such a sharp gaze from Jin Chenyuan, and his clenched palms were slightly sweaty. However, he did not back down and met Jin Chenyuan's gaze directly. If he backed down now, what right would he have to pursue Yue Li, what right would he have to stand by her side?

Seeing that Shao Qi's eyes flickered with nervousness but he didn't flinch, Jin Chenyuan felt a degree of approval for Shao Qi.

It should be noted that sometimes his extremely oppressive gaze would be so intense that even veteran officials in the court would find it hard to bear and would slightly look away.

Turning his gaze away, Jin Chenyuan fiddled with the folding fan in his hand and said, "So what? Young Master should know in his heart that Ah Li agreed to you so easily, partly because of your acquaintance in Qingyuan Prefecture?"

"So what? Didn't we meet at Qingyuan Mansion? If she can be your Princess Consort, why can't she be my Crown Prince's Consort? Besides, I genuinely like her." Hearing Jin Chenyuan's words, Shao Qi blurted out impulsively.

Thinking back to how Yue Li was initially closest to Shao Qi among the two, and how their current situation was only achieved through his machinations and that unexpected incident, Jin Chenyuan's gaze towards Shao Qi became even more hostile.

Shao Qi realized he had acted impulsively. He had reminded himself to remain calm when he entered the cabin, but since he had already spoken, he continued, "Prince Chen knows the laws of the court better than I do. Yue Li must find six husbands before she turns 25. If she has to find six husbands, why can't I? Since Yue Li has agreed to give me this opportunity, I will try my best to seize it. Therefore, I hope that Prince Chen will not prevent me from contacting Yue Li."

Shao Qi's words were quite bold, considering that Jin Chenyuan had not yet officially married Yue Li and needed more time to spend with her and cultivate their relationship. Yet Shao Qi was saying these things in front of him.

Although Jin Chenyuan greatly appreciated that Shao Qi had spoken these words himself instead of having Yue Li tell him while he hid behind her, he still felt uncomfortable hearing Shao Qi say this. "You don't need to worry about finding six husbands for A Li before she turns 25. I will select some outstanding young men from noble families for A Li to choose from."

Upon hearing Jin Chenyuan's words, Shao Qi stood up excitedly. Suppressing his emotions, Shao Qi said, "Did I offend Prince Chen with what I just said? Why is Prince Chen stopping me from pursuing Yue Li? If I offended Prince Chen with what I just said, I apologize to Prince Chen here first."

Seeing Shao Qi's excited expression and his efforts to control himself, Jin Chenyuan nodded inwardly. Good, at least he can manage his emotions. Then he asked a seemingly unrelated question, "Has the young master received the 'Chastity Sand'?"

Shao Qi, who was in the middle of his excitement, was stunned for a moment and blurted out without thinking, "Yes."

"Is the young master's chastity-preserving mark still there?"

"Of course it's still there, I'm not married yet." When asked if the chastity stigma was still there, Shao Qi reacted extremely strongly, as if he had been insulted.

Jin Chenyuan didn't take Shao Qi's reaction to heart. There were plenty of young masters from prominent families in the capital who, after applying the "chastity-preserving sand" (a type of talisman), couldn't control themselves and acted recklessly.

However, Jin Chenyuan was quite satisfied that someone who intended to pursue Yue Li still had the "Chastity Sand" on him.

Knowing that she had a chastity mark on her body and that her first time was taken by her, Yue Li still cared a lot about whether a man was clean or not.

After all, before she knew she had the chastity-preserving sand on her body, Yue Li didn't seem to have any intention of taking responsibility for herself.

Since Yue Li cares so much, he will bring up this prerequisite in advance and ask for clarification.

"Since the young master intends to pursue A-Li, then protect your chastity mark. A-Li seems to care a lot about it."

"What do you mean? Prince Chen, do you mean you don't object to me pursuing Yue Li?" Shao Qi asked, a beat slow to react.

"of course."

Jin Chenyuan suppressed the bitterness in his heart and restrained his desire to hide Yue Li away and only let himself see her. He said in a calm voice, "I'm just vetting the character of the people who are pursuing her for A-Li. As for whether they can win her over, that's up to you."

At least Shao Qi in front of him was simple-minded and much easier to deal with than those who were cunning and scheming. Jin Chenyuan comforted himself in his heart.

"Really? Thank you so much, Prince Chen! Don't worry, I won't let you down. I will definitely protect my chastity sand." Shao Qi was so happy to receive the affirmative answer that he started to ramble incoherently.

Shao Qi's words made Jin Chenyuan, who was originally planning to drink tea, pause and withdraw his hand.