The mistress who remarried has returned.

Qin Huaibian said to his subordinates, "The security at Yingtian Hall that day must be ensured without any mishaps. The Emperor will be attending, and inevitably some people will try to stir up trouble there, trying to frame the Qin family. You saw the fate of the Crown Prince who murdered the Emperor; the General's Mansion cannot be tainted by such filth. Those princes who try to win me over are all itching to do so. They outwardly submit to me, but I'm sure they've offended quite a few in secret."

As he spoke, he pulled out the chair next to him. Su Yunxi walked over and saw that he had thoughtfully pulled out the chair, so she sat down. He then put his arm on the back of the chair behind her, and his slender fingers naturally rested on her side. Her hair was blown by the wind, and the strands of hair swayed and brushed against his fingers. It was indeed a slightly itchy sensation when the ends of her hair brushed against her skin, which was about the same as she had imagined.

Qin Huai's fingers trembled slightly, and his gaze lingered on her lips for a moment.

At the same time, he glanced at the shopkeeper, who immediately arranged for a waiter to come and serve him.

"How's the situation in the surrounding area?"

"Much better."

"woke up?"

"not yet......"

Su Yunxi noticed that Qin Huai was looking at her lips, so she raised her hand and touched her lips. They felt very dry and were obviously dehydrated.

Qin Huai didn't continue asking about the Crown Prince's condition. Remembering Kang Yin's mention of a follow-up visit, he took out a gift box from his side and placed it in front of Su Yunxi.

"Shen Shu was on leave that day. Otherwise, it would have been most appropriate to leave the security to him and Liu Shun." The confidant replied to Qin Huai. Although he was surprised that the general had sent such an expensive gift to the concubine of the Crown Prince, he did not show any surprise. He lowered his head and pretended not to see it. However, his heart was in turmoil as if he had discovered a great secret. He could not tell anyone else, so the secret ended without a trace. The general must have known that she had a husband. He did this knowingly.

Su Yunxi had been busy all day, from rescuing her younger brother at the Xue family mansion to attending to the sick man at the East Palace. She hadn't had any water and felt parched and hungry. Seeing Qin Huai discussing matters with his subordinates, she picked up the teapot, poured a cup of tea into her teacup, and took a big gulp.

To her surprise, the tea was icy cold, as if it had been chilled to the touch. She grinned, revealing her two rows of small teeth, and even her brow furrowed.

Why is Qin Huai drinking cold tea in winter?

At this moment, the waiter came over, bowed to Qin Huai, and asked, "Sir, what are your orders?"

"Bring me some warm tea that I can drink right away." After hurriedly instructing the waiter, Qin Huai said to his subordinate, "Go and tell Shen Shu that I've asked him to adjust his days off; he has to go to Yingtian Pavilion that day."

As he spoke, he looked at Su Yunxi's face, which was scrunched up by the icy water.

Su Yunxi then realized that he had been busy with several things at the moment. In the process of talking with his subordinates, in addition to giving her gifts, he also arranged for warm water, just like the previous seven years, when he was considerate to her in every way.

"Yes." At this moment, the young man accepted the order and left, just as the waiter brought over warm water.

Qin Huai accepted the warm tea.

The young guard, as if remembering something, turned back to Qin Huai and said, "This afternoon, Wang from the Su family was executed at the Ministry of Revenue under the supervision of Su Yuanzhou. Su Yuanzhou watched respectfully from the side. After the execution, he asked me to report to you, saying that someone from his household offended you at the Xue residence today, and he hopes that you will forgive such a petty offense. He will personally come to apologize another day. I then handed the person over to Lord Su and will return to report to you."

"I understand." Qin Huai waved for him to leave.

Su Yunxi heard that Wang Shi had finished her punishment and would definitely badmouth her to Su Yuanzhou. She didn't know how her father would treat her. She felt that she could no longer stay in the Su family. She needed to leave and establish her own household as soon as possible. Out of sight, out of mind. She had already given up hope for her father.

Qin Huai observed Su Yunxi's expression, "Afraid to face Su Yuanzhou?"

Su Yunxi gave a helpless smile, keeping quiet about family matters. She no longer confided in him. In the past, she poured her heart out to him out of trust, but now she was afraid of being laughed at and having her wounds rubbed with salt. "Let's not talk about these things."

Qin Huai saw that unless forced, she would no longer open up to him. Her little world had become a barrier to him, and now only Zhou Yu received her favor.

Su Yunxi avoided his questioning gaze, lowered her head and opened the gift box. Upon opening it, she didn't see the actual item directly, but rather saw that it was wrapped in an exquisite packaging fabric. She opened the fabric and saw that it was a particularly precious moon-white dress and cloak, with blue stitching, which was very exquisite and beautiful. The cloak was covered with a fine fur that she couldn't name.

"Fox fur."

"oh."

Su Yunxi didn't display any exaggerated, over-the-top joy. Realizing that Qin Huai had given her the clothes probably so she would wear them in front of the Crown Prince, satisfying his vengeful desires, she said nothing and closed the gift box. She hadn't really cared about these extravagant items anyway. These weren't what she wanted.

Qin Huai didn't see the greedy look on her face that most women have for valuable items; she simply showed a detached indifference. He knew she was obsessed with incense making, and nothing else could capture her attention. "You don't want the clothes the Xue family servants don't want. Then do you like these clothes? Do you find them acceptable?"

Su Yunxi said softly, "The clothes are very beautiful and expensive. But I don't really look right in them. They don't suit me."

"I'm afraid it's not that you feel unworthy, but rather that when you think about how the clothes were made, you find it bloody and cruel." Qin Huai paused, then said, "Just wear it. It's the clothes that don't suit you."

Even if Su Yunxi was slow to understand, she could tell that this was a compliment. She didn't understand what was wrong with him today, why he was treating her so kindly. It was different from his ignoring her for the past four years and his sarcastic remarks in the past few days. She really didn't dare to imagine that he actually approved of her character, after all, she had been slapped once.

Qin Huai poured a cup of warm tea into Su Yunxi's cup and pushed it towards her, saying, "Why did you touch my tea?"

"I'm so thirsty." Su Yunxi stared at Qin Huai, put down the half-cup of cold tea, and took the warm tea he offered. "Why are you drinking cold tea? Won't it upset your stomach?"

Qin Huai looked at her face, picked up the half-empty cup of cold tea she had drunk from, and took a sip. "I was holding you all the way on horseback, and this cold tea was to quell my lust. Are you still squirming on horseback?"

Su Yunxi hadn't expected him to be so blunt. He had no wife or relatives, and his relationship with Miss Xue had been fruitless for many years. He had indeed been a man of principle and had never been with a woman. But since she had fallen into his hands, he didn't maintain his composure as a young master of a noble family in front of her. He didn't treat her like a stranger, and he didn't even shy away from the tea she had drunk. Everything he did was out of revenge against the Crown Prince and to humiliate her.

Since she probably didn't have to take responsibility for him, being someone to vent her anger wasn't so bad. She took a sip of warm tea and said seriously, "So the unpleasant feeling is in my stomach. Isn't there any other way to suppress it? Drinking cold tea is definitely not good for the body."

Qin Huai was intrigued by her bewildered look. "If it's not in your stomach, there are other ways to put it down."

"Then you should try other methods in the future." Su Yunxi wasn't sure what she was talking about with him. She had a vague understanding of matters between men and women, but since the unspoken rules hadn't been broken, she didn't know the truth. As the saying goes, ignorance is bliss, and the conversation went on without end. She then said softly and sincerely, "It would be very troublesome if my stomach got sick."

Qin Huai stared at her face, remaining silent for a long time, before finally letting out a soft chuckle.

Su Yunxi didn't know why he was laughing. Maybe he was laughing at her for being hypocritical in caring about him, or maybe he was laughing at her uncivilized and barbaric conversation.

Qin Huai placed his hand on her shoulder, his fingertips gently caressing the faded fabric of her clothes. His voice deepened in the winter sunlight. "Shall we go get your cloak first?"

He only said he was going to get the cloak first, but he didn't say what he was going to do next.