C31

Xiao Qing Ran had been quite relaxed these few days because the woman who loved to cause trouble was no longer around. The lady and the general had also been warned not to cause trouble, but Xiao Zhi wasn't too sure why he was suddenly looking for her.

That man knew what was good for him, or someone had warned him. Of course, one of the most unlikely conjectures he had ever made was his conscience. He truly felt that he owed his poor, motherless third daughter.

However, no matter what it was, it didn't matter to Xiao Qing Ran. This was because she never expected that her father, who had not been raised for so many years, would have such a good conscience.

"Miss, in two days time, the king's official will invite you to the banquet. This year's betrothal had been decided long ago, and Xiao Xi Yu should not be participating in this year's one. Only Miss will be able to attend."

Rio stood beside her and spoke to her while sharpening an apple.

Xiao Qing was lying on the bed, bored to death, flipping through a book in her hands. One of her legs dangled underneath her as she replied, "No wonder I feel that everything around me has been so quiet these days. It's about the banquet."

That man was now the crown prince, and usually, these kinds of things were handed over to him. Previously, Su Qianhan hated these sorts of trivial matters, so he would hand over all official duties related to social interaction to his subordinates.

This was the first official duty Su Qianxing had after he became the crown prince. He definitely had to do it himself.

Riko sighed somewhat helplessly. "Miss, I'm asking if you want to go to the enclosure at that time?"

In fact, this so-called king and official banquet was a banquet for princes, princesses, princesses, as well as other renowned princesses and princesses. The so-called king and official banquet was actually a feast for the princes, princesses, along with all the renowned princesses and officials.

According to the modern way of speaking, this would probably be the celebration after the annual party.

Xiao Qing sighed as she placed the book on her chest and rubbed her temples with one hand. "If it's possible, I don't want to go."

Unfortunately, it was impossible.

"That's true. Let's not talk about the General's Estate. Miss has no choice but to go with the Crown Prince. Besides, Miss has never been absent in the past." Li Er gave Xiao Qing Yi the peeled apple pieces.

Xiao Qing Ran narrowed her eyes and stuffed a small piece of apple into her mouth.

Riko didn't even remember that she was still in an intimate relationship with Su Qianxing. She had already met the empress a few times, so she seemed to be quite satisfied with her future grandma.

She might just blow a whistle in the emperor's ears at any time, and the emperor might decide about her relationship with Su Qianxing the moment his head turned hot. This would be a good thing for her and her future actions, but from a different perspective, she wasn't willing to interact more with that man.

Su Qianxing was the path that he would never be able to walk in this lifetime.

Xiao Qing pursed her lips as her gaze unconsciously swept across the ground beside her. Originally, there should have been some bloodstains there. It was formed when Xiao Xiyu came over the other day when her feet were worn out.

"How is it at the Residence of Duke Han?" Xiao Qing Ran's mind suddenly jumped as she remembered the poison in Su Qian Han's body.

"Liu Suifeng sent someone to deliver a message early in the morning saying that King Han did not plan on letting him help treat the poison. However, he had already figured out the poison's condition." After giving it some thought, Riko recited, "'Insect Taste'. It's a type of poison that can cause thousands of bugs to bite into in extreme pain. It's different from ordinary poisons because it's made using an extremely special mixture of poisonous insect fluids. "

"This poison must be ingested in the body at a young age. When the owner grows up, the poison will increase along with the owner. Just like an ant growing up in the bones, the poison will occur twelve times a year, once a month. When the infected person's mouth is in pain, their entire body will be scorched. When the bone marrow is in pain, they might even lose their natural instincts and eat blood like wild beasts. "

Xiao Qing Ran's eyes quickly flashed as she recalled the scene when Su Qian Han was poisoned. "Does this poison only be administered when you're a child?"

"They say so." Riko nodded her head, "Liu Suifeng also said that due to the special nature of this poison, adults usually have the ability to resist it, so it won't be effective on adults. Only children will be effective on adults. And judging from the current state of the Frigid King, he was probably poisoned when he was seven or eight years old."

Even though she did not interact much with the Duke of Han, she still felt pity. Who would do such a sinister thing to a child of that age?

Xiao Qing Ran's expression turned ugly as her hands unconsciously clenched into fists.

She thought that she knew who the poisoner was, and she also knew a little about the death of Su Qianhan's mother. In the entire imperial harem, there was only one person who was so capable and ruthless.

She had always known that a harem battle was scary, but she had never thought that the woman would be able to survive in such a place like this.

"Heh ~ It seems that it was me who was blinded and overestimated that mother and son." A trace of ridicule flashed past Xiao Qing's eyes as she coldly shook her head.

Riko heard the mutterings of her voice and found it strange. "Miss, who are you talking about?"

"No one." Xiao Qingran did not intend to tell Riko too much. She asked in a deep voice: "Then is Liu Suifeng making a ruckus?"

That man had been tricked into the manor by him. When he entered, he had said that he would get out of the manor soon after finishing his business. Since Su Qianhan had no intention of letting him see a doctor, that person was about to lose his patience.

"Don't worry young miss. Our men will often remind him. Furthermore, Liu Suifeng seems to be in a good condition these two days. We didn't find anything abnormal."

The abnormality Riko mentioned was the ability to 'run'.

"That's good, but just in case we have to be watched." Xiao Qing suddenly sat up and stuffed the last piece of apple into her mouth. "Alright, then there's nothing for me to do today. I can go out for a while. If anyone comes over, just say that I'm not feeling well and will be resting."

"Yes ~"

Xiao Qing Ran left the General's Estate and walked around four or five small alleys as she headed towards a rather remote farmhouse. From afar, she could hear the jingling sounds coming from inside.

Xiao Qing rapped on the door four times, and three echoes sounded from inside. "Who is it?"

"He's here to collect the goods." Xiao Qing replied with raised eyebrows.

The person inside received a reply. Only then did the shabby wooden door open, revealing the face of a young boy.

When the eight to nine-year-old child saw Xiao Qingran, he laughed out loud and threw himself at her waist. He sweetly called out, "Qingqing ~"

"Ai ~" Xiao Qing caressed his head, "Little Li has grown taller again. Is grandpa here?"

Yes, grandpa was waiting for elder sister in the room, he said that he had something to tell elder sister." Xiao Li seemed to enjoy Xiao Qing's coquettish actions. "Elder sister, you haven't come to see me for over a year. The last time when elder sister Li Er came over, she brought a lot of things for me. I'm so happy.

"Then what about the things that elder sister Qing Yi brought?" Xiao Qing raised her eyebrows and conjured a bag of chestnuts from her sleeve.

The children all liked to eat sweet food. When the boy saw the oil paper bag, he immediately ran into the house, "Grandpa, grandpa Qing Ran's big sister is here ~"

Xiao Qingyi shook her head in amusement and walked past the farmhouse into the inner room. There was a small door on the right of the main hall like room. She pushed the door open and entered, and stood around an old man as she chattered happily about Chestnut.

The old man was around sixty years old. Although his hair and beard were white, he looked even better than the young. He was also full of spirit.

"Old Yuan." Xiao Qingran stood at the door and called out for someone in a respectful manner.

Yuan Feng raised his head and glanced at her, then patted Yuan Li's head and said, "Good girl, grandpa is still talking to your elder sister Qing, take your things and go play outside."

"Okay ~" Yuan Li nodded and went out happily, not forgetting to make a face at Xiao Qing Qing even before they left the door.

"Go outside and wait for this old man." This was what Yuan Feng had told Xiao Qing Qing.

"Alright." Xiao Qing Qing nodded and pushed open the door again.

Yuan Feng cleaned up the things by his hand and went out. In the outer hall, Xiao Qing was currently making a pot of tea as per usual.

Seeing that the old man had come out, she poured a cup of tea and pushed it over. "This is a new tea that I've brought. Please try it."

Yuan Feng's complexion didn't look too good at first, but when he smelled the fragrance of the tea, he finally relaxed and walked over to sit across from Xiao Qing.

The two of them sat cross-legged on the floor. There were only two small teacups on the table in front of them, and the fragrance of the tea was refreshing.

Yuan Feng sipped a cup of tea. The turbid light in his eyes sparkled a little bit brightly, but when he raised his head and saw the person opposite him, his expression sank once again. "What do you have to say?"

Xiao Qingran did not care about the attitude the old man had towards her. She knew him four years ago, when she first expressed her intentions to Su Qian Xing to help him win the throne.

Back then, the late emperor's right Prime Minister was a resourceful man who could be counted as a Zhuge. Whether it was in politics or military, he had helped the late emperor quite a bit. It should be said that his achievements in this country were indelible.

After that, no one knew where he went. It took him more than half a year to find traces of him, but he never would have thought that he would have been hiding in such a place all along.

"You already know?" Xiao Qing Ran's words were a little complicated as it was a kind of helplessness towards the entanglement of fate.

The first time he saw the old man, the old man's reaction was very big. At that time, he said a lot of things that he didn't understand, and now he finally understood.