Chapter 241

241 Except my Husband and my Brother

Li Hua bowed upon seeing the Crown Prince, who had come to see Lóng Wei. “Your Royal Highness, Prince Lóng Wei, is asleep,” Li Hua informed him. “I can wake him up if the Crown Prince wants,” she added.

Xiaoming motioned his hand in the air and refused her. “That’s not needed. I will come in the morning. Currently, Brother Lóng Wei needs rest,” Xiaoming said, and thought to leave when Li Hua asked him if she could spare a few minutes to talk with him.

“Certainly,” Xiaoming agreed. Li Hua closed the doors behind her and headed to the guest chamber with Xiaoming and Eunuch Sun Fuguo.

Xiaoming settled on the chair, and after him, Li Hua sat down. “Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to the Crown Prince, who agreed with my husband and let him go out. However, I apologize to him as well. His Royal Highness got punished because of me. That should not have happened.” Li Hua kept her head down out of embarrassment.

“Brother Lóng Wei never discussed with me that he wanted to fetch Shui Xiaoqing safely to the palace, nor did he talk about you. I don’t consider it Princess Consort Li Hua’s fault. So, she doesn’t need to apologize to me,” Xiaoming clarified to her. “Please don’t be embarrassed. Also, I should have taken this punishment earlier.”

Li Hua lifted her head to peer at him and wondered why he said that.

“I tried to blame Brother Lóng Wei for the crime he never committed. At least, with this punishment, I feel light,” Xiaoming explained to her.

Since only those two were present in the chamber, Xiaoming decided to ask Li Hua about her equation with Feng Lao. He earlier visited the prison house as well to check on Shui Xiaoqing and his son. There he found out how Feng Lao kept asking about Li Hua from the soldiers.

“May I know what your relationship is with the Shui family’s son?” Xiaoming asked and found the hesitation in Li Hua’s face. “Pardon me for asking such a question. I asked because Shui Feng Lao asked about you from several soldiers,” he stated.

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Li Hua clutched the fabric of her dress, wondering how to say it and what to say to him. Lóng Wei told her that the Crown Prince wasn’t trustworthy, but presently, he looked anxious for them. If she were to tell the truth that she once had feelings for Feng Lao, then it could bring harm not only to her but to Lóng Wei if for some reason a person other than a few trustworthy people found out.

“I asked Feng Lao not to ask about you as it could cause trouble for you in the near future,” Xiaoming asserted. “I know that he was supposed to marry you through an arranged agreement, but seeing him, it felt to me that his feelings were deeper for you.”

Li Hua stayed silent for a while before she decided to speak. “Your Royal Highness, I have nothing to do with Feng Lao,” she stated. “It was merely an arranged marriage proposal with him,” she affirmed and not told the truth to Xiaoming.

“I understand. Tomorrow, the truth will be out. You will finally get to know who was the person behind your family’s massacre,” Xiaoming stated, with a warm smile.

“Will Shui Xiaoqing speak the truth?” Li Hua arched her brows. “He had not till now. I doubt that he would tell you the name of the person who did all this,” she proclaimed.

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“He will. Brother Qiu Mu told me that Shui Xiaoqing will be threatened with his family’s name. Since he is already proven guilty, his family is also bound to get punished,” Xiaoming asserted. “But if he tells us the name, then the King may get lenient on his family,” he opined.

“Your Royal Highness, someone from the royal family is involved in this,” Li Hua told him. Xiaoming was shocked to hear her.

“Why would someone from the Qiu family do such a thing?” Xiaoming wasn’t ready to believe, but at the same time, he didn’t ignore what Li Hua said.

“That’s a mystery, Your Royal Highness. I don’t want the name to come out anymore because Prince Lóng will be targeted frequently along with me. At least for my husband’s well-being and safety, I do not want Shui Xiaoqing to say the name anymore. It will create havoc,” Li Hua stated.

Xiaoming saw the uneasiness on Li Hua’s face. If what she said was true, then someone from the Qiu Family would indeed try to harm both Lóng Wei and Li Hua. But who could be the person who planned all this!? Also, the biggest question was-was the person not aware of Li Hua when she entered the palace?

“Brother Lóng Wei won’t let this matter go off easily anymore. He is adamant about catching the culprit. You can trust me too. I am no longer the old Xiaoming who used to think ill of Lóng Wei. I can help you both if anything goes wrong,” he suggested to Li Hua.

“Currently, I am unable to trust anyone else except my husband and my brother. I hope the Crown Prince understands my situation,” Li Hua said.

Xiaoming didn’t force her and asked her to take a good rest. “Amidst this chaos, you are the one who is most affected,” he stated and stood up.

Li Hua also got up and thanked Xiaoming once again. “His Royal Highness shall drink turmeric milk tonight as it can help him reduce the backache,” she advised him. Xiaoming nodded his head and left the chamber.

Li Hua returned to Lóng Wei’s bedchamber and found him sleeping. “Some secrets are not revealed for a reason. My father never told me that Monk Yuze made a prophecy for me as well. I think he knew something dangerous could have happened because of me,” she murmured while gazing at Lóng Wei’s face. She bent down to check his pulse and put his hand down before covering him with the blanket.