The mistress who remarried has returned.

Qin Huai glanced at his father, and under his father's stern gaze, he did not remain silent. He resolutely refused Zhou Qiu's jade pendant, saying, "I appreciate Your Highness's kindness. However, the gift is too precious, and my humble status makes me unworthy to receive such a generous gift."

Zhou Qiu's face stiffened. This Qin Huai actually didn't listen to him. It seemed he was going to make a big fuss. In that case, he had no choice but to expose the fact that he was meeting the married woman from the family of the treacherous tyrant behind the artificial hill.

In this way, the Qin family would have no choice but to submit to him. Otherwise, they would have to go and discuss the matter before the Emperor to see whether the Emperor trusted his own son or the powerful minister who held military power and whose achievements overshadowed the Emperor. "Brother Qin, who were you seeing behind the artificial hill just now?"

Zhou Qiu brought up the old topic again, his threat obvious.

Su Yunxi found Zhou Qiu's threats to Qin Huai extremely grating. After she threatened Qin Huai, this treacherous Zhou Qiu also threatened him, and it was all because of her threats that Qin Huai was put in a passive position.

Qin Huai's act of throwing a towel and grabbing Su Yunxi at the artificial hill today was a loss of composure, but not a loss of wit. At the banquet, when Zhou Qiu walked away to the Consort Shu to collect the Crown Prince's robe, Su Yuanzhou reported that Su Yunxi had been betrothed to Lin Enxiao. Zhou Qiu did not hear this. Qin Huai had a complete escape route in mind before taking this step.

Qin Lanzhang remained calm and composed. His son was extremely shrewd, and he did not believe that Zhou Qiu could control Qin Huai. However, Qin Huai had revealed a flaw to the second prince today, which made him, as the father, feel quite unusual. "Qin Huai, answer the second young master's question."

Qin Huai bowed to his father and said, "Seeing that the moonlight was still beautiful, I suddenly felt interested in swordsmanship, so I sparred with someone behind the artificial hill."

Su Yunxi leaned against the artificial hill, listening intently to Qin Huai's voice. Her earlier threat to betray Qin Huai was indeed hateful, and she was terrified he would throw her out. But hearing that Qin Huai showed no intention of betraying her, she breathed a sigh of relief. Even if Qin Huai had thrown her out, she wouldn't have betrayed him. But explaining anything now was pointless.

Zhou Qiu immediately interrupted Qin Huai, saying, "Brother Qin, who are you sparring with? Would you mind calling her out and having her spar with us for a while? I've often heard about General Qin's valiant achievements on the battlefield, and I've long wanted to see the general's prowess."

As he spoke, Zhou Qiu's arrogant gaze swept over Lord Qin and the many retainers in Lord Qin's mansion, as if these people were already his possessions, and Qin Huai was already a beloved general under his command, whom he could play with and indulge in at will.

Su Yunxi secretly looked out from the artificial hill and saw Madam Qin staring coldly at Qin Huai.

She was extremely annoyed. She had originally intended to give Qin Huai a piece of incense to relieve his pain, but not only did she make a mess of things, she also threatened to betray Qin Huai, and caused him to be forced to bow his head by the second prince and be despised by his mother.

Su Yunxi was quite flustered by this situation, not knowing how to calm down or salvage it. Usually, hindsight is the least valuable advice.

Qin Huai looked at Zhou Qiu and remained silent.

Zhou Qiu pressed his advantage, "What's wrong, Brother Qin? Is it inconvenient to call someone out for a live spar? If it's inconvenient, just say so. We don't have to watch the swordplay performance. You can come to my residence for tea tomorrow."

As he spoke, he tried to recruit Qin Huai, inviting him to his residence for tea. He promised that if Qin Huai agreed, Qin Huai and the entire Qin family would be his people.

Qin Lanzhang said in a deep voice, "Qin Huai?"

Upon hearing his father's urging, Qin Huai nodded and said, "I'm sparring with Lin Enxiao. I would be happy to demonstrate my swordsmanship to entertain you all. However, my opponent is less skilled and is holding back. I'm not sure if that would be convenient."

Zhou Qiu's expression suddenly changed.

Lin Enxiao?

His mother's bodyguard?

Damn it, how did he get involved with Qin Huai and Consort Su behind the artificial hill? This way, Qin Huai will turn around and accuse him of murdering the emperor with the Crown Prince!

Qin Lanzhang felt relieved. Given his high position and power, he couldn't afford to show a dismissive smile. His guess was correct; Qin Huai had a well-controlled approach, and although there were a few minor deviations today, everything was still within Qin Huai's grasp.

His retainers were also relieved, and the series of emergency response measures they had originally planned no longer needed to be used.

Seeing that Consort Shu's son had made a fool of himself and gone to all this trouble to embarrass her, Qin's mother lost interest in playing along and decided not to waste any more time. She simply said, "Your Highness, your mother and I have something to discuss, so I won't accompany you to watch the swordplay performance."

Zhou Qiu turned to look at the subordinate who had delivered the message to him. This man was not only hard of hearing, but also had poor eyesight. He only reported that Qin Huai and the Crown Prince's concubine were having an ambiguous relationship behind the artificial hill, but did not report that his mother's guards were also having an ambiguous relationship here.

The subordinate secretly wiped away a cold sweat. Lin Enxiao was hidden in the artificial hill, and he hadn't seen him clearly. Now, he was definitely going to be killed by the Second Master!

Qin's mother gave Zhou Qiu a rather cold look.

She looked down on the children raised by these concubines; they were all wicked and unfit for important positions. The Crown Prince, on the other hand, was very prudent and knew how to care for people. Xixi's remarriage to the Crown Prince was a necessary step in the process. Otherwise, what would be the point of staying by the side of Qin Huai, who had fallen into a power struggle with the second prince?

It's clear that Qin Huai has a despicable character, even capable of exploiting women. Now, Qin Huai is truly becoming more and more worthless, actually allowing a mere Zhou Qiu to find fault with him; it's truly disappointing. Compared to Qin Yun, Qin Huai is far inferior.

Qin Huai noticed the disappointment in his mother's eyes, took a step forward, and wanted to say something to her.

Qin's mother coldly brushed him aside, snorted, and left.

Qin Huai stopped in his tracks, speechless.

Qin Lanzhang's retainers said, "Lin Enxiao has collapsed behind the rockery? Does he need medical attention? Let's all go and help carry the Second Master out to the hospital."

Lin Enxiao then came out with his sword, bowed beside Zhou Qiu, and said, "General Qin's swordsmanship is superb. I was defeated in just a few rounds in the sparring just now. I am no match for him."

Qin Lanzhang said loudly, "Qin Huai, since this is a martial arts exchange, it should stop when the point is reached. The princes live a secluded life, unlike you who are always on the battlefield. They are much more noble. Why don't you give them a break?"

Zhou Qiu's face was dark and gloomy, as if he had become a weakling in Lord Qin's words.

Qin Huai said to Zhou Qiuyan, "Why don't we invite the Emperor to come and watch Qin Huai and Young Master Lin perform together?"

"His Majesty is speaking with the officials; there is no need to disturb him."

Zhou Qiu didn't get the better of the situation, so he didn't continue to develop behind the artificial hill. He certainly wouldn't invite the emperor, lest the Qin family use this as leverage against him and the emperor suspect him of coveting the throne. He could only pretend that he didn't care about the throne. How could he possibly risk touching a knife? He simply turned his back and hurriedly left the place of trouble to protect himself.