Chapter 1161 - Chapter 1161 Something Was Wrong with Chu Liuyue
Chapter 1161 Something Was Wrong with Chu Liuyue
After saying that, Yujie reached out to pick the flower. She had never seen this kind of vine, which might have high medical value. To show it to Mingqiu Nun, she stooped down to take one. Since Yujie had done this many times, she knew it would likely be the case. Its medicinal value, in Yujie’s judgment, was much more critical than its ornamental value.
As Shao Wanru heard her words, her eyes also alighted on these vines. She picked up the hem of her dress and walked over.
Shao Wanru didn’t notice them at first. With a closer look, she found these vines were indeed unusual. She had never seen this kind of vine. It didn’t seem to be what Princess Yuyan or Princess Yutao liked. Even she herself had ignored them.
Only Yujie caught sight of these blooms, though they were not very beautiful. Of course, they could not compare with those sheets of blossoms for ornament as beautiful as rosy clouds. However, because Yujie had been living in the mountain area, she preferred wildflowers like them.
If Yujie didn’t mention these tiny flowers, Shao Wanru wouldn’t notice. How could Princess Yuyan and Princess Yutao find this kind of flower?
“They are… newly transplanted, right?” The green leaves were so lush that she could not see the bottom.
Yujie carefully reached out to flick the vines and nodded. “Yes, they have been transplanted lately. The two princesses moved into this garden not long ago, so many flowers and plants must have been moved here recently.”
Qing’er also came over, looked through the branches and leaves that Yujie had just parted, and said, “Unlike others, this plant has not yet fully recovered. It should have been placed here in the past few days.”
There were newly transplanted flowers and plants along the way, but they had fully recovered. At least they had been here for more than ten days. These flowers competing in splendor had not withered a little. But the few tiny flowers before them appeared weak and weary, very listless after the transplantation.
Without close observation, they would notice nothing abnormal. But after a closer look, something unusual emerged.
When Yujie raised her hand to nip off the flower again, Shao Wanru walked over.
This courtyard was covered with flowers and plants. On their way here, the air was heavy with the scent of flowers. Surprisingly, these small flowers barely had any fragrance. Shao Wanru inexplicably felt a little strange. This cluster of flowers gave her an exceedingly weird feeling.
It was as if something had been forgotten.
She looked around, searching up and down. But everything was perfectly normal. With crisp sounds of birds singing, this place was no different from other pavilions for rest.
The fragrance of tea wafted in the air. Occasionally, the breeze would send the scent of the flowers. Along with the songs of birds, this scene was a perfect delight to both the eye and the mind.
The pavilion was in a lovely location adjacent to a rockery and a small lake. The lake was full of green lotus leaves, among which a few pink lotus buds had shown their pointed tips. Small touches like these delicate buds gave the leaf-covered pond its beauty and vitality. It was indeed a delightful place to enjoy the flowers and scenery.
“Let’s go!” Shao Wanru frowned slightly and said, feeling inexplicably uneasy.
“My Lady, it’s a nice place. Why don’t you rest a little longer?” Yujie, squatting on the ground, looked up at Shao Wanru and asked with a small flower she picked in her hand.
Qing’er also looked at Shao Wanru in surprise. She didn’t understand why Shao Wanru suddenly wanted to leave.
“I think this place is too quiet and a little out-of-the-way…” Before Shao Wanru could finish her words, she saw someone coming from the corner of her eyes and immediately stopped talking.
Unexpectedly, Chu Liuyue appeared at the intersection near the rockery. Since he came from the pavilion’s side, he only saw someone in the pavilion but didn’t notice who it was. He strode over, followed by a young eunuch. When he turned to the front of the pavilion and saw Shao Wanru in the pavilion, he seemed stunned.
“Princess Chen?”
“Greetings, Your Highness!” Since she had seen him, Shao Wanru could not be impolite. She took a step forward and bowed first.
“Forego formalities. Were you here just now?” Chu Liuyue’s eyes fell on Shao Wanru’s face. She stood sideways with a respectful expression. In profile, she looked tender and stunningly beautiful. Her facial features were delicate, and her rosy lips were dazzling, though without any makeup. When Chu Liuyue saw her like this, he had a lot going on in his head.
He had thought Zhang Qilan was here but didn’t expect to see Shao Wanru. Why would she look for him?
Never had he imagined that it was Shao Wanru. Chu Liuyue knew it was time to leave. However, seeing her flower-like delicate features, he felt like staying.
“I was tired after the walk, so I have a rest here!” Shao Wanru stood up straight and explained.
“Mm.” Chu Liuyue said noncommittally. Then, he strode into the pavilion and sat on the stone bench. The young eunuch beside him hurried forward to pour him a cup of tea and retreated aside.
Chu Liuyue took a sip and nodded. The tea was not bad. Then, he looked up at Shao Wanru, who was still standing at the pavilion’s entrance, pointed at the stone bench before him, and said, “Your Highness, please sit down!”
“She asked me to come over for something, but why is she so reserved? Could it be that there are too many people here?”
Looking at her two servant girls and his young eunuch, Chu Liuyue waved his hand. Right away, the eunuch sensibly retreated to the pavilion’s entrance and stood there with Yujie and Qing’er.
Shao Wanru hesitated. But since she couldn’t leave without saying anything, she walked up to Chu Liuyue and said, “Your Highness, if you are tired, you can rest for a while. I have had a good rest and will take my leave now!”
“Are you leaving?” Chu Liuyue played with the teacup in his hand, his eyes on Shao Wanru. Without any outsiders around, he could look at her closely.
She was wearing a very simple lavender dress with an eight-panel lower hem. Her slender waist was slightly tied up by a beautiful belt, and only a hairpin tilted upward on her black hair. The beads hanging down were not big but made her more delicate than flowers. She seemed to have never adorned herself with finery whenever she appeared in front of others.
He looked down and fixed his eyes on her red lips. Chu Liuyue had seen her several times, so he knew her rosy lip color was natural without a dab of lipstick. Though she did not say anything or smile, he was tempted to taste the corners of her lips. He wanted to know if such brightly-colored lips were soft and sweet.
For some reason, his breathing quickened.
“I’ve had a good rest. I won’t disturb your rest!” Shao Wanru said indifferently.
Her manner was cool, but her scarlet lips were full of charm in Chu Liuyue’s eyes. For Chu Liuyue, Shao Wanru was like Shao Yanru, who liked giving herself airs to reject.
“Sure enough, they are sisters from the same mansion.” Chu Liuyue smiled. Even though the two sisters did not grow up together, they acted similarly. Since they held themselves slightly aloof at heart, others could not imitate their offhand manner.
Fortunately, he had been used to Shao Yanru’s ambivalent attitude and always knew how to handle this situation. In his eyes, Shao Wanru was like Shao Yanru, who did not want to break through her reserve and wanted to be respected.
If it were another woman, he would not bother chatting with or pleasing her. But Chu Liuyue was willing to cheer Shao Wanru up, making her feel respected and letting her keep a reserved manner.
“You don’t have to be in a hurry. My third brother will be here in a while. Have a seat first. You can go back with him later!” Chu Liuyue said mildly with a charming smile.
“Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness, but Miss Zhang is waiting for me ahead.” Shao Wanru made up an excuse because she didn’t want to stay with Chu Liuyue.
“Is Zhang Qilan on the road before her?” Chu Liuyue was a little displeased. On the way here, he did not meet Zhang Qilan at all. Instead, Shao Wanru called him over in the name of Zhang Qilan. But what did she mean now? When he arrived, she looked determined to leave, as if he wanted to force her to do something.
Chu Liuyue grew increasingly restless, possibly because of her attractive appearance or because of her cold attitude.
Chu Liuyue thought even if he wanted to coax her, she should stop before going too far instead of acting spoilt before him. “You don’t have to leave in such a hurry. Miss Zhang will be here soon.”
“Miss Zhang will be here soon?” Shao Wanru was puzzled about this situation, looking at Chu Liuyue in astonishment.
Her beautiful, lustrous eyes fell on Chu Liuyue. Her eyes were crystal clear, making the corners of her rosy mouth more alluring. As her long eyelashes fluttered twice, Chu Liuyue’s heart thudded.
Impatiently, he stood up and walked up to Shao Wanru with his hands clasped behind his back. The wind went through the pavilion, blowing up Shao Wanru’s dress. Though she was simply dressed in a light purple dress, she was of peerless beauty. Shao Wanru was drop-dead gorgeous, more charismatic than Shao Yanru in his eyes.
Involuntarily, he stretched out his hand and said, “Please sit down and wait for a while. She will come soon!”
He leaned over abruptly before Shao Wanru could react. Then they were too close to each other. Seeing him reach out his hand again, Shao Wanru was so scared that she took a few steps back and almost fell. Fortunately, Qing’er behind her reacted quickly and flung out an arm to stop her from falling.
Chu Liuyue missed her hand and only managed to pull her sleeve.
“Your Highness, please behave yourself!” Shao Wanru exploded with rage, pulling back her sleeve hard.
Chu Liuyue looked at his empty hand, and his frown grew deeper. He looked toward Princess Chen with icy eyes and said, “I think you should mind your conduct. Since you have invited me here, why do you pretend to be indifferent to me? In this case, why would you send someone to invite me in the name of Miss Zhang? Won’t you afraid Miss Zhang will be angry when she finds it out?”
Chu Liuyue flew into a rage out of humiliation. In his eyes, Shao Wanru pushed too far when playing hard to get.
“I invited you here in the name of Miss Zhang?” Shao Wanru was quite taken aback. After a long time, she finally came to her senses, looking around vigilantly. In a flash, she knew she might have fallen into someone’s trap.
Not just her but also Chu Liuyue had been tricked.
She moved back several steps and backed straight to the pavilion’s entrance. “Your Highness, you made a mistake. I just came here and never asked you to come over. Maybe Miss Zhang made the appointment. But you misunderstood!”
At this time, having a horrible feeling, she let her eyes settle upon Chu Liuyue’s agitated face. Strangely, a dull flush crept into his delicate and handsome face, perhaps because of anger or something else. He fixed his glaring eyes on her. Seeing her step back, he pressed on toward her, trying again to grab Shao Wanru.
Something was wrong with Chu Liuyue…