C660 660 'Sixth Prince of the Eight Trigrams

She could feel that there was a heavy memory on the Pavilion Master's body. From the moment she was seven years old, she had been able to sense that even though they had been separated for a long time, the weight on his body had never dissipated.

Just like this moment, his figure seemed so depressed, so heavy, and so heartbreaking.

Shen Qin hesitated inside the room for a long time before making up her mind and walking out.

Yan Xiao sat in the pavilion, quietly listening to the cold wind blowing past his ears late into the night. The sound of hesitant footsteps that came from his hands caused him to slowly open his deep eyes and slightly move his lips, "Qin Er."

Shen Qin's footsteps paused, her feet slipped and she almost fell down.

It had been a long time since he had heard this form of address.

She remembered that before she was ten years old, he had called her that. Later, when she returned to her father's side, when they met again, they had always just been discussing business, or they had simply gone straight to the point. They had never addressed each other as anything before they spoke.

So, when Shen Qin heard the pavilion master call her this again, she was shocked. At the same time, she couldn't help but feel secretly happy in her heart.

"Pavilion..." "Pavilion Master."

"Come here."

Yan Xiao turned around and saw Shen Qin standing in the snow. She was wearing a red cape and a hat with a layer of white fox fur on it.

Hearing that Yan Xiao told her to go over, she hastened his steps and walked in front of him.

"Pavilion Master."

She whispered again, looking at him with her bright eyes. He raised his eyebrows slightly, met her burning gaze, and the corners of his mouth parted in a smile that was not a smile.

"Aren't you surprised at my identity?"

When he spoke, his voice seemed softer than before.

Shen Qin nodded her head and shook it again. Due to her curiosity, when she looked at Yan Xiao, her eyes seemed exceptionally bright and clear.

"Sit down. What do you want to ask me?"

Shen Qin felt that the pavilion master today was exceptionally easy to get close to. Compared to when she was talking to her in the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, although they were close, she felt a faint sense of alienation whenever he spoke to her.

Shen Qin sat down in front of Yan Xiao obediently, but she seemed to be a little reserved.

He placed his hands awkwardly on his lap, like a student waiting for training.

Seeing her like this, Yan Xiao calmly pulled on his thin lips: "Go ahead and ask."

Shen Qin sat up straight, coughed lightly two times, moistened her throat, and said: "Pavilion Master, are you really Sixth Prince?"

"What is it? Doesn't This King look like his younger brothers? "

Yan Xiao raised his eyebrows and looked at her eyes that were filled with curiosity. His fan-like eyelashes fluttered one after another, causing him to feel a little weird.

Hearing Yan Xiao address himself as "This King" for the first time, Shen Qin felt that he was not used to it.

"Yeah, pretty much."

After thinking for a bit, she thought about Yan Jue who was still in prison, and added, "He's even more similar to the Eighth Prince."

Yan Xiao suddenly laughed softly. His smile seemed to be able to blossom out light rays in the middle of the night, making Shen Qin a little absent-minded.

"Of course it's similar. This King and he were born from the same mother, how can it not be similar?"

As he spoke till here, Yan Xiao seemed to have thought of something and his eyes darkened.

Shen Qin actually had a lot of questions to ask, but facing Yan Xiao, she did not know what questions she should ask. Pursing her lips, she hesitated for a moment before saying: "I sought you out a few days ago, but my subordinates said that they were unable to find you. I thought …"

Shen Qin's words almost left his mouth, but she swallowed them back down due to her lack of confidence.

"Then why?"

Yan Xiao raised his eyebrows and smiled at her.

Shen Qin moved her lips, she lowered his head and said softly: "I thought I would never see you again."

"Hmm?"

Yan Xiao didn't know if he really didn't hear it, but this heavy "Mhm?" Without batting an eyelid, he lengthened her voice, as if someone had lifted it in Shen Qin's heart, causing her cheeks to suddenly feel hot.

"Say it again, I didn't hear you clearly."

Yan Xiao slightly tilted his ear, smiling yet not smiling as he moved his lips, and said.

"I... "I mean …"

Shen Qin's eyes flickered a little. Due to her guilt, her eyelashes fluttered even faster, and her head drooped lower and lower.

"Pavilion Master, why did you suddenly come to the capital?"

She directly ignored Yan Xiao's question and guiltily changed the topic. Thinking back to what she had said just now, the more she felt that it was a bit shameful and malicious.

Yan Xiao did not immediately answer her question. Instead, he looked at her with a smile that was not a smile, which made Shen Qin feel even more guilty.

After a while, he moved his lips and said, "I received news a few days ago that Shen Ji Hall's activities were frequent. I suspect that they were planning to assassinate Kaiser on the Spring Hunt, so I hurriedly rushed over. However, I was a step too late."

Yan Xiao's tone carried a trace of anger, and his beautiful eyebrows unconsciously knitted together.

Only then did Shen Qin understand why the pavilion master suddenly disappeared. With his abilities and his familiarity with the operation of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, it would not be easy for the people of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets to find him.

He was actually able to sneak back to the capital after feeling so bad for the past few days that she couldn't even eat.

Shen Qin muttered in her heart, but she did not dare let Yan Xiao see even the slightest of what she was thinking.

"Oh."

She softly replied, her gaze looking towards Kaiser's chambers. She sighed and said, "I wonder if Your Majesty can survive this ordeal."

"Don't worry, it's okay. That kid isn't that weak."

Yan Xiao also looked in the direction of the palace, and when he saw the worry on Shen Qin's face, his heart felt a little strange.

"I heard that during these few months, royal sister-in-law has been selecting empress and concubine candidates for the emperor. What do you think?"

"Huh?"

Shen Qin looked up, her face at a loss as she looked at Yan Xiao. He didn't understand why he asked her this question.

Yan Xiao seemed to have seen through the thoughts in Shen Qin's eyes. He covered his mouth and coughed uncomfortably as he said, "I'm saying that you're the niece of a Grand Scholar and also the adopted daughter that's in his name. You're qualified to be chosen as one as well."

Shen Qin finally understood the meaning of Yan Xiao's question just now. His heart suddenly sank, and after that, he spoke with a heavy voice. "The life of a harem does not suit me, I will not enter the palace."

Inexplicably, when Yan Xiao heard Shen Qin's reply, he was in a great mood. There was a smile in the corner of his eyes, and unexpectedly, he jokingly said in a rare gossipy tone, "You should be twenty this year.