Who said the heir would die out? The concubine is pregnant again!

Realizing she had said the wrong thing, and that he had misunderstood her, Yingzhu blushed as red as a pomegranate, coughed dryly, and looked away.

"That's not what I meant. When I said 'quick,' I meant it was too sudden, not how long it took."

"So, would you prefer it faster or slower?"

What kind of insolent and lewd words are these?

Yingzhu glanced to the side and met Liang Yunqian's meaningful gaze. She knew then that she wasn't overthinking things, but rather that he was deliberately misleading her.

"Uh... fast and slow offer different experiences. This servant has no opinion; it's up to Your Highness's mood."

"I'm in a bad mood, so you'd better behave yourself and not provoke me!"

Liang Yunqian's handsome face darkened, his bright red lips slightly pursed. "Others upset you, yet you take it out on me. I am truly wronged."

This time she was smarter. Her complaints were so faint they were barely audible to him, but he could tell from her pouting lips that they weren't nice.

"What are you muttering about now?"

"It's nothing, please have some tea, Your Highness."

Liang Yunqian took the teacup, took a sip, and glanced at the paper and pen on the small table, which were exactly the same as when he left.

"Didn't you want to practice the strokes? Why haven't you written a single character? You won't write anything when I'm not here? It's clear that all your previous diligence was just a pretense."

He was indeed a suspicious person; he could be suspicious of anything.

Yingzhu scoffed in dissatisfaction, "The young master went to accompany the beauty to create a human being, but left me here to practice the character '人' (human) here. Is he deliberately trying to embarrass me? I'm not in a good mood either, and I don't want to write it."

Her tone sounded somewhat bitter.

"You're throwing a tantrum because Master went to keep Aunt Zhou company?"

"No way! Aunt Zhou was your concubine. It was only natural for you to dine with her and consummate your marriage with her."

She denied it readily, but the downward lip line revealed her displeasure.

Liang Yunqian grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms with a little force.

Caught off guard, Yingzhu gasped softly as she fell into his arms.

His fingers gently traced her lips, so soft and delicate. "You're old enough to hang an oil bottle on, and you still say you have no feelings?"

Yingzhu has no shortage of self-awareness.

"Your Highness already has many women in your harem, and I dare not be jealous. But please don't make me practice the character '人' (person) alone anymore; it's too hurtful to my self-esteem."

"You mean, two people should practice together?"

A faint smile played on his lips, and his gaze as he looked at her seemed to be churning with a different kind of emotion.

Sensing something was wrong, Yingzhu's eyes began to flicker.

"This servant was referring to writing; what is Your Highness saying?"

Her excuse was far too perfunctory.

"How is writing something that hurts your self-esteem? You're just overthinking it. Who told you that Master wants to consummate his marriage with Concubine Zhou?"

"Isn't this common knowledge? Your visit to Xiuxuexuan tonight isn't a secret."

"This isn't the first time I've dined with her, but it's just a meal, nothing to be surprised about."

"Oh..." To prevent him from continuing to ask who leaked the information, Yingzhu deliberately changed the subject.

"So, Your Highness often dine with others! This servant has never had the opportunity to dine with Your Highness."

There's none?

"Didn't we have breakfast together at Lanzhao Garden last time?"

"That doesn't count, does it? The Crown Princess was also there at the time, and I was too scared to even pick up my chopsticks."

Yingzhu didn't want to experience that scene a second time.

"Are you that afraid of her?"

"Those who serve as concubines, especially those who attend to the mistress, are all afraid of their mistress. With the mistress present, I dare not eat freely."

Yingzhu pursed her lips and spoke softly, her face showing no complaint, only sadness.

For some reason, seeing her expression made Liang Yunqian feel inexplicably uncomfortable.

After a long silence, he said in a low voice, "I have some things to take care of these few days. I'll invite you to have dinner at Tingsong Garden after I'm done with my work."

"Ah?" Yingzhu looked up in surprise. "I was just saying it casually. I didn't mean to ask the young master to provide meals."

God knows she was just trying to distract him, but he seemed to take it seriously.

"It's just a meal, I can afford it, so you won't start making up stories and saying I'm biased."

"Since Your Highness is so kind in inviting me, then this servant will respectfully accept." This was truly an unexpected surprise! But amidst the surprise, Yingzhu was also somewhat astonished.

"Why is the young master suddenly being so kind to me?"

Meeting her probing gaze, Liang Yunqian suddenly realized that his behavior was a bit strange. Was he... trying to coax Shen Yingzhu?

Impossible, he wouldn't care about her thoughts at all!

Liang Yunqian immediately dismissed the thought, raising an eyebrow slightly, "Was I very bad to you before?"

Just a few days ago, he was angry because she agreed to study the scriptures, and his attitude was cold. He even refused to teach her to write. But today, his attitude has actually softened.

This puzzled Yingzhu, but since he was getting better, she shouldn't bring up those unpleasant things again. What if he had already forgotten them? If she reminded him, wouldn't she be asking for trouble?

"It's good sometimes and bad sometimes!" Yingzhu immediately declared, worried that he would be unhappy.

"The young master knows this matter well; I'm not just making it up."

"If you want me to treat you well, you must be loyal to me alone and not be fickle!"

Could he be hinting at something again? Yingzhu thought for a moment and immediately raised her hand.

"Well, this servant does have something to confess. Today, the Princess asked Aunt Zhou to make a fake seal. I was worried that there was something wrong with the medicine, so I spoke up to stop her."

After I stopped her, I remembered you told me not to get involved. In my haste, I was worried the Princess would really give that bottle of Snow Dew to the Empress Dowager, and that's when I forgot your warning. Please don't be angry, okay? I'll definitely think twice before I act next time.”

Yingzhu lowered her eyes in frustration, her doe-like eyes blinking innocently, as if she had done something wrong and was afraid of being scolded.

Liang Yunqian had already heard Princess Rui mention this matter, but he didn't expect Shen Yingzhu to bring it up with him on her own initiative.

"You did nothing wrong."

Yingzhu was prepared for him to get angry and find fault again, but he actually said he was right.

After a deep sigh, Liang Yunqian said, "Even though I am not on good terms with the Princess Consort, she is still a member of the Prince Rui's household. If she delivers the wrong thing and offends the Empress Dowager, I will also be implicated."

So you did nothing wrong, your intervention was correct. It was because of your reminder that the princess avoided disaster. In retrospect, you deserve credit.

But because of this, she came up with the idea of ​​forcing me to consummate my marriage with Aunt Zhou in exchange for Ning Xuelu, so your merits and demerits cancel each other out.

"..." His judgment was far too hasty!

"How can you blame me for this? I'm so wronged! Since I did contribute, you should give me some reward."

Out of curiosity, Liang Yunqian tentatively asked, "What kind of reward do you want? Silver?"