He didn't have much feeling for this Crown Princess; she was just a pawn of the royal family. Otherwise, given his status, why would he marry such a woman as his principal wife?
In the Qinfang Courtyard of the General's Mansion, Hailing and her mother, Du Caiyue, had dinner. The mother and daughter chatted for a while before going to rest separately.
Now they don't have to worry about anyone harming them. They are protected by guards from the Crown Prince's residence outside and served by maids from the Crown Prince's residence inside. These people won't easily touch them. They still have value to be used now.
Inside the room, Rouge opened the window, letting in a cool night breeze. The gauze curtains fluttered gently, the candlelight flickered, and the room was filled with a soft glow.
Hailin wasn't in a hurry to go to sleep. Instead, she lazily leaned back on a recliner on one side of the room and closed her eyes to rest.
She's not in a hurry to resolve the current situation; she'll let things take their course, because rushing won't help.
"Miss, I'll go and fetch some chilled bayberries."
In the summer, the young lady is most afraid of the heat. She always needs to eat something chilled after meals before she can sleep, otherwise she can't fall asleep. In the past, she would secretly bring things in from outside, but now she doesn't need to. She can just order the people from the General's Mansion to prepare them.
"Okay, sure."
Hailing nodded, and Yanzhi left, leaving the room quiet once more.
Hai Ling leaned back lazily, not wanting to move. She thought of the Seventh Prince, Feng Zihe, and couldn't help but smile. She was unusually happy. She never expected that she would become friends with the Seventh Prince. He was her first friend, and she believed that the Seventh Prince was not the kind of person with ulterior motives and genuinely wanted to be friends with her.
She was lost in thought when suddenly a strong gust of wind blew, causing the candle flame to sway from side to side and almost go out.
When the candles were extinguished and the lamps were lit, a tall and strong figure appeared in the room, looking down at her.
Hai Ling's face turned ugly. Her happiness from a moment ago vanished. Her dark eyes flashed with cold light as she spoke in a deep voice, "Bai Ye, what are you doing here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? Did you come to see if I'm dead or not?"
The extra person in the room was Bai Ye, the young general. His sword-like eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and his deep black eyes were unfathomable. Seeing the woman lying on the chair unharmed, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had received news today that Miss Jiang had been assassinated last night, and he was very worried. He had wanted to come and check on her, but he heard that the Crown Prince had sent people to protect her, so he couldn't come during the day. He finally managed to come at night and was relieved to see that she was alright.
But upon seeing her sarcastic remarks, his expression darkened.
In truth, Bai Ye had always felt a pang of pity for Hai Ling. He frequently visited the Jiang family and knew that the Fourth Madam was out of favor, which led to Hai Ling being bullied by everyone in the household. He sympathized with the girl, but sometimes her behavior was infuriating. Just like now, he was clearly worried about her and didn't know how she was doing, but she immediately mocked him with cold words, which annoyed him.
General Bai Ye is a powerful military commander in the Great Zhou Dynasty. Everything he has achieved is through his own efforts, not through the protection of his ancestors. The Bai family is just an ordinary merchant family in the capital, but through his own efforts, Bai Ye has become a pillar of the Great Zhou Dynasty at a young age. He has also become the ideal son-in-law of a noble lady in high society. Although the person he admires is the second young lady of the Jiang family, this does not affect his popularity. On the contrary, he is still highly respected and welcomed wherever he goes.
However, whenever he tried to show Hailing any concern, he would only be met with a cold shoulder and make a fool of himself.
Just like now, Bai Ye's lips were tightly pressed together, his pupils were as black as the sky, and the raging fire slowly began to burn, staring intently at Hai Ling.
Hai Ling didn't care about his anger. That's right, she could tell at a glance that the man was angry, but she couldn't be bothered to care whether he was angry or not.
"You'd better leave quickly. There are guards from the Crown Prince's residence outside. If you don't leave, I'll call for help."
Hailin threatened Baiye, and as soon as she finished speaking, she opened her mouth to scream without any hesitation.
Bai Ye's face was grim, but he didn't hesitate at all. He moved quickly and rushed forward, covering Hai Ling's mouth with one long, slender hand and swiftly pressing Hai Ling's pressure points with the other. His tall body was close to Hai Ling's side, and his masculine scent mixed with a musky fragrance filled Hai Ling's nostrils.
Hai Ling stared at him with wide eyes, wishing she could bite him. Besides, she wasn't used to being so close to someone, especially a young and handsome man.
Seeing her eyes widen and her mouth puff out in anger, like a frog, Bai Ye suddenly found it amusing and stopped being angry. He leaned against her and said leisurely, "Why don't you try calling out?"
Call me your sister, call me your mother! You've covered my mouth and acupunctured me, how am I supposed to call you that now?
Hai Ling cursed inwardly. If this damned man let go of her now, she wouldn't just scream, she would bite him.
Unfortunately, the moment she had a thought, Bai Ye knew what she was thinking. A wicked smile appeared on his lips as he said in a very good mood, "You're scolding me again."
Yes, I did insult you, that's all.
Hai Ling was secretly pleased, but a wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. It would be better to let him release his pressure points. With that thought in mind, when she looked at Bai Ye again, her eyes were much gentler, and she had a fawning expression on her face, like a puppy.
Bai Ye's heart skipped a beat, and he was stunned, staring at her for a long time without being able to react.
Their eyes locked. Just then, footsteps sounded at the door, and Rouge entered carrying a bowl of chilled plums. Upon seeing the scene inside, she paled, her hand trembled, and the bowl fell to the ground with a thud.
Before Bai Ye could react in time, he quickly reached for something nearby and threw it at Yan Zhi. It hit her squarely, and Yan Zhi, her eyes wide open, slowly and softly collapsed to the ground.
Hai Ling panicked when she saw this and struggled desperately with wide eyes. Bai Ye immediately knew what she was worried about and said softly, "She's fine."
After he finished speaking, he realized that he had spoken too gently. He didn't seem like himself tonight. Thinking to himself, he looked at Hailin and said in a low voice, "If I let you go, don't scream, otherwise I can silence you by pressing your pressure point."
Hailin's eyes rolled up and down, indicating that she agreed. A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle, so she naturally agreed.
Bai Ye released his hand, the tenderness between his fingers vanishing instantly, and he felt a slight sense of loss. But before he could think further, he heard Hai Ling's cursing voice ring out...
Chapter 33 Call me your sister!
As soon as Bai Ye released Hai Lin, Hai Lin began to curse him without any politeness.
"Bai Ye, you bastard, what's wrong with you coming over in the middle of the night and injuring Yan Zhi? What grudge do you have against me? It's just that I hit Jiang Feiyu last time. Besides, I didn't even manage to hit her. You don't need to go around causing me trouble just to avenge her."
Upon hearing this, Bai Ye's eyes darkened slightly. He hadn't expected Hai Ling to misunderstand. He opened his mouth to explain, "Me?"
He was just worried about her, but before he could finish speaking, Hailing interrupted, "What do you mean 'I'? Release my pressure points right now, or we're done for. I'll beat you every time I see you."
She was baring her teeth and brandishing her claws like a little hedgehog. Bai Ye was furious. This woman didn't act like a woman at all; she was just a little shrew. Every time he tried to be friendly to her, she would provoke him and make him angry. Like tonight, he had come here because he was worried about her, carefully avoiding the eyes and ears of the Crown Prince's residence, just to make sure she was really alright. He didn't expect that his efforts would be so thankless.
Bai Ye thought to himself, his face turning frosty as he stared at Hai Ling with a gloomy expression, but he didn't lift the pressure points off Hai Ling.
The room was completely silent; the two men faced each other, panting heavily.
Suddenly, a soft sound came from outside, and someone fell from the roof. Then a steady voice rang out.
"Your Highness, has something happened?"
The commotion inside had alerted Agu outside, who came to investigate. Upon hearing Agu's voice, Hailin opened her mouth to call out.
Bai Ye lunged forward again, covering her mouth and glaring at her warningly, his lips conveying his message.