"Oh? We've arrived?" Yu Xinyi lazily opened her eyes, as if she had just woken up from a dream.
"Yes, Your Highness, we've arrived," Liu Jinli said with a forced smile.
Originally, he had only made a polite invitation at the entrance of the palace, thinking that the prince, who was in a daze all day, would definitely refuse. Little did he know that the prince would agree on behalf of the prince. It seemed that the prince was just putting on a show to let the world know that he was still taking care of this good-for-nothing prince in many ways.
"Okay." Yu Xinyi lazily got out of the car, holding onto the door. Her already loose clothes became even more disheveled as the night wind blew them.
Yu Xinyi didn't care, letting her dark hair, as black as night, be tousled by the wind.
"Your Highness, please. I have prepared wine and dishes." Liu Jinli gestured for Yu Xinyi to enter the residence.
Yu Xinyi casually walked inside. The Liu residence had already prepared wine and dishes, and everyone took their seats.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, please." Liu Jinli raised his wine cup and offered a toast first. During the meal, Liu Jinli kept flattering Yu Jinshuo with skill. Nowadays, Yu Jinshuo is someone everyone wants to curry favor with. If it weren't for a small connection in his household, he probably wouldn't have been able to invite the prince to the mansion.
During the meal, Yu Xinyi ate his food casually, but his constantly closing eyes showed that he was very sleepy.
"Your Highness, these are pastries carefully prepared by the chefs in the manor. Please enjoy them." Liu Xinrong carried a tray with delicate little dishes and various kinds of pastries on it.
By deliberately dressing up in a flamboyant and virtuous manner in front of the prince, who was a gunman from the demon realm, anyone could understand what Liu Jinli was up to.
Their own daughter was far more beautiful than that foolish girl Liu Lanyan. There was no reason why the prince would choose a foolish and ugly woman over a beauty like her.
Upon seeing Liu Xinrong, how could Yu Jinshuo not understand Liu Jinli's thoughts? However, he had never liked sweets, but he didn't want to offend the four elders under the Demon Lord, so he had to play along.
"So it's Miss Liu. Since it's such exquisite food, how could you miss it? Elder, you might as well try some too." Yu Jinshuo used this opportunity to offer his congratulations, but no one thought he was being impolite. Instead, it made the Liu family father and daughter even happier, feeling that the prince valued them.
"Your Highness, thank you." Liu Jinli and Liu Xinrong ate with relish, biting into the pastries to find soft fillings inside.
After taking a bite, he felt something was off, but Liu Jinli assumed it was a new trick the chef had come up with and didn't pay much attention to it.
After the two of them each ate one, suddenly one of them rushed into the hall, shouting loudly, "Master, you can't eat that! You can't eat those pastries!"
"What kind of behavior is this, shouting and yelling like that?" Liu Jinli reprimanded sternly.
Besides being impolite in front of Yu Jinshuo, more importantly, these snacks were meant for the prince. How would the prince feel if a servant suddenly appeared and shouted that they couldn't eat them?
"Master, you really can't eat this." The servant knelt down with a thud, kowtowing forcefully, his face deathly pale and covered in cold sweat. "The filling of that pastry... the filling is..."
"What is it?" Liu Xinrong was also anxious. She was the one who served the snacks to the prince. How could she not be angry?
"Yes, yes..." the servant stammered, his body trembling, but he dared not speak.
"What is it? Speak!" Liu Jinli slammed his fist on the table, shouting angrily, "If you don't speak, I'll kill you!"
The servant closed his eyes, steeled his resolve, and shouted, "It's shit!"
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Chapter 4 is purely coincidental.
"Uh..." Liu Jinli and Liu Xinrong covered their mouths and turned to rush out, leaving only the trembling messenger and the stunned maidservant beside him in the main hall.
With a crash, the plate holding the snacks fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.
Exquisitely shaped pastries rolled all over the floor, their vibrant colors quite pleasing to the eye. Of course, at this moment, Yu Jinshuo's face was almost the same color as one of the pastries on the ground—a bright green.
"Pfft—" Yu Xinyi spat out the wine in his mouth and pointed at the snacks on the ground, laughing loudly.
Seeing Yu Xinyi clutching her stomach, almost sliding to the ground from laughing, Yu Jinshuo frowned, his face darkening, and asked in a cold voice, "What is Your Highness laughing at?"
The sound coming from the mouth was extremely suppressed, as fierce as a beast about to tear its prey apart.
"The 'delicacies' at the Grand Elder's residence are truly unique and an eye-opener!" Yu Xinyi said, slapping the table and laughing so hard that tears streamed down his face.
He was already a man with no regard for his image, and now he looked even more insane.
Yu Jinshuo stared at the pastries on the ground, his eyes flashing with a fierce light. He wished he could tear the Liu residence apart and shred Liu Jinli to pieces.
Should we give him this to eat?
A short while later, Liu Jinli and his daughter Liu Xinrong returned, their faces pale.
Yu Jinshuo stared at Liu Jinli and said with a sinister smile, "The Grand Elder is certainly hospitable."
Fortunately, he doesn't usually like sweets, otherwise... Thinking of this, Yu Jinshuo's face became even more unpleasant.
"Your Highness, I was negligent for a moment, please forgive me." Liu Jinli collapsed to the ground as soon as he entered, desperately pleading as he suppressed his intense nausea.
"Oversight failure?" Yu Jinshuo didn't even glance at Liu Jinli kneeling on the ground, his cold smile carrying a bloodthirsty aura. "How could you overlook something like this?"
"So, the Grand Elder's residence has always used this kind of ingredient to make desserts." The chilling murderous intent in Yu Jinshuo's words frightened Liu Jinli so much that he kowtowed repeatedly, fearing that Yu Jinshuo's extreme anger would endanger his life.
"Your subordinate has already ordered men to capture the culprit, and we are at Your Highness's disposal." Liu Jinli hurriedly pushed the criminal forward.
The guards in the mansion immediately brought in a woman and gave her a hard shove, causing her to fall to the ground with a thud. It was clear from the thud that she had taken a hard fall.
"Your Highness, it was she who did it there..." Liu Jinli really didn't want to mention the word "snack," and he would have been vomiting non-stop if he hadn't been forcing himself to.
Glancing at the plainly dressed woman below, Yu Jinshuo sneered, "Does the Grand Elder intend to treat me like this?"
"Your subordinate wouldn't dare," Liu Jinli waved his hands repeatedly.
"Dare not? I think you're quite bold. Pushing out such a maid as a scapegoat, do you think I'm a fool to be played with like this?" Yu Jinshuo was furious. In the demon realm, he was absolutely second only to the king, and even the current demon lord consulted him on everything.
It's utterly ridiculous that such a thing would happen in an elder's residence.
"No, Your Highness, this person is Liu Lanyan." Liu Jinli hurriedly pushed the woman who had fallen to the ground and quickly explained what had happened. "I just asked her, and it was this girl who was being silly and offended Your Highness."
"Liu Lanyan?" Yu Jinshuo frowned, searching through the few remaining fragments of memory in his mind. Looking at the pretty woman in front of him, she seemed to overlap with the appearance of a little girl from a distant memory.
Yes, I only saw her a few times several years ago, and I don't remember her at all. Back then, it was just to get in touch with her father, which led to the marriage agreement.
"But you did it?" Yu Jinshuo's tone was low and heavy, carrying a strong sense of oppression. Even if they were once engaged, what he did today was unforgivable.
Yu Xinyi, who had been sitting casually to the side, glanced at Liu Lanyan lying on the ground and immediately saw the cowardice in her eyes.
It seems there's no good show to watch.
"Yes..." A timid voice rang out, barely audible, like the buzzing of a mosquito. If the room hadn't been so quiet, one would probably not have heard her at all.
"How dare you! You even tamper with the Prince's meals?" Liu Jinli shouted, his rage masking his elation.
If he could take this opportunity to get rid of that annoying girl, his position as Grand Elder would be even more secure.
Upon hearing Liu Jinli's reprimand, Yu Jinshuo's expression changed again, becoming even more unpleasant.
The mere thought of that kind of thing being served to him made him want to vomit.
Yu Xinyi continued to drink alone and watch the show, it seemed that Liu Jinli was quite concerned about his current reputation.
It's a pity that such a vulnerable woman became a victim.
However, if you lack the ability yourself, you can't blame others.
"Second Uncle said it's delicious." Liu Lanyan's words almost made Yu Xinyi choke, and a flash of surprise quickly crossed his eyes.
Was this statement a coincidence or intentional?
Yu Xinyi remained seated casually, but secretly paid close attention to Liu Lanyan's words.
"Nonsense! When did I say that?" Liu Jinli's face turned red with anger. Normally, it would be one thing, but now that it involves the prince, this matter could be a big deal or a small one.
“Second Uncle clearly said that.” Liu Lanyan sat on the ground, craning her neck to argue with Liu Jinli, “Second Uncle said it in the front yard! It was because Second Uncle said it was delicious that Lanyan specially sought it out to present to Second Uncle.”
After saying this, Liu Lanyan looked sad and sobbed slightly, "Lanyan only wanted to be filial to Second Uncle. Second Uncle, did Lanyan do something wrong? Lanyan only did it because Second Uncle said it was okay. Second Uncle, please don't blame Lanyan, okay?"
As Liu Lanyan sobbed, Yu Jinshuo's face grew increasingly gloomy. He stared intently at Liu Jinli, not forgetting what he had overheard outside the Prince's mansion—the gossip of the passersby was no joke.
Feeling Yu Jinshuo's piercing gaze, Liu Jinli was speechless. Finally, in a fit of exasperation, he shouted, "Someone come here!"
"Master..." The servant immediately ran in, trembling with fear.
"Who told you to do this?" Liu Jinli shouted.
"Miss asked me to do it." The servant shrank back, trying to stay as far away from Liu Jinli as possible.
"She's an idiot, and none of you have brains either?" Liu Jinli shouted angrily, "A bunch of fools! Do you think you can just believe whatever you say?"
"Miss, Miss has the Grand Elder's jade token." The servant replied in fear, his words immediately silencing Liu Jinli.
The Grand Elder's jade tablet is equivalent to the Grand Elder's personal presence. Even though he has now succeeded the Grand Elder, he still hasn't obtained the jade tablet.
If it weren't for the fact that Liu Lanyan had that thing, why would he have raised this silly girl for so many years?
"Elder, you're truly admirable." Yu Jinshuo stood up, angrily flicked his sleeves, and strode away, startling Liu Jinli, who quickly scrambled to his feet and followed him out.
Everyone in the room followed them out. No one noticed that Yu Xinyi, who had been sitting casually to the side, walked up to Liu Lanyan, squatted down, and said with a soft smile, "Miss Lanyan is quite a clever person."
Liu Lanyan turned her head, blinked, and looked at Yu Xinyi: "Your Highness is really not smart."
Yu Xinyi's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately understood Liu Lanyan's meaning. Seeing through things but not saying them was in line with his usual muddle-headed prince persona.
He actually made an exception for a girl he had just met; no wonder she ridiculed him.
However, he really didn't want to pretend in front of her.
Why did Yu Jinshuo happen to overhear the passersby's discussion? Liu Jinli had already been delayed for a long time by going to the meeting. Hadn't the passersby finished discussing it after all this time?
From the moment Liu Jinli uttered those harsh words, which were overheard by passersby, to the moment his servants rushed in to stop him from eating his snacks, each scene unfolded with such coincidence, yet upon closer reflection, it was also so "unfortunate."
Why did it have to be after Liu Jinli and his daughter had eaten before the truth was revealed, with gossip from passersby and the prince as a witness? Such a coincidence is just too much.
In front of a woman like this, does he still need to pretend?
"Miss Lanyan, where are you going?" Yu Xinyi asked when he saw Liu Lanyan get up and walk out as if nothing had happened.
"I'm sleepy, I'm going back to sleep." Liu Lanyan smiled sheepishly.
How could a foolish person understand what "major event" was happening before their eyes?
Having figured all this out, Yu Xinyi slowly stood up, raised an eyebrow and smiled lightly. What an interesting woman.
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