She refused to marry.

"You can't bear to part with me?" Xiao Xuanjing walked behind the screen, wrapped his arms around her waist, and smelled her scent.

"I was just a little too hasty. If I leave, could Your Majesty grant me a favor?" Su Wanwan shook her head.

"What is it?" Xiao Xuanjing's eyes were deep.

"Come back alive." Su Wanwan turned to look at Feng Chenjun and said worriedly.

"Okay..." Xiao Xuanjing suppressed the shimmering light in his eyes and lowered his head to place a kiss on her forehead.

"Your injury hasn't healed yet. Sit down and let me change your dressing." Su Wanwan lowered her eyes and touched the bandage around his waist.

Su Wanwan got up to change her clothes, mixed the ointment, stirred it well, and set it aside.

Feng Chenjun had already taken off his clothes and was sitting obediently on the edge of the bed.

Su Wanwan looked at the seven or eight wounds; half an inch deeper and you would find the veins.

Fortunately, he survived.

I wonder if Fengchenjun's fate has already been changed.

Just like myself.

"Bear with it..." Su Wanwan applied the ointment, and the cool sensation spread instantly.

Xiao Xuanjing felt a slight stinging pain in his wound and couldn't help but move his shoulder.

"Does it hurt?" Su Wanwan gently blew on it.

Instead, Xiao Xuanjing felt a surge of heat in his chest. He picked up his teacup and drank it, but the heat continued to rise.

The restlessness only intensified.

Su Wanwan watched him drink two cups of tea, feeling the scalding heat on her fingertips. She then pressed her cheek against Feng Chenjun's back; her lord was burning hot.

She reached out and placed her hand on Feng Chenjun's forehead. "It's not hot..."

Xiao Xuanjing lowered his eyes and remained silent. Finally, after she finished bandaging and getting dressed, he went to the deck to dispel the restlessness he had just felt.

Su Wanwan was tidying up the bottles and jars in the room. What was Feng Chenjun thinking just now? His eyes were hard to read. Could it be that she used too much force and hurt him?

A short while later, Feng Chenjun strolled back.

Su Wanwan picked up her bundle, walked to the door, and saw that he looked better. "Did I hurt you just now?"

Upon hearing this, the maid at the door walked away in embarrassment.

"It's alright." Xiao Xuanjing turned his head and chuckled, then slowly walked towards the bow of the ship.

Su Wanwan walked to the bow of the boat, where another boat was already waiting. The two boats were connected by iron chains and covered with wooden planks.

Xiao Xuanjing took her hand and led her across the wooden planks to the deck of the new ship.

"If the Crown Prince is in trouble when we return to the capital, take this to the Empress Dowager at Fragrant Hills. Although she has converted to Buddhism and no longer cares about her affairs, she is very kind to me and will not stand idly by."

"Okay." Su Wanwan took the sachet and turned to walk into the cabin.

Xiao Xuanjing pulled her back and hugged her tightly. "Wait for me to come back."

"Your Majesty, I understand." Su Wanwan noticed out of the corner of her eye that everyone's eyes were on her, and she felt very uncomfortable.

"That's Changying. It only likes to eat meat. Keep it in the house for a few days, then let it send a message. It should arrive in a few days." Xiao Xuanjing turned her face and pointed to the falcon locked in the cabin.

"Mm." Su Wanwan nodded.

"Alright, time is of the essence. We must leave before Prince Changxin returns to the camp." The Grand Tutor stood anxiously on the opposite deck.

Xiao Xuanjing still refused to let go, whispering in her ear, "Little fox, any little fox I've fed, even if it runs into someone else's snowfield, its footprints will still be mine."

Although the voice was soft, it was still heard by those who wanted to hear gossip, and they all turned to look.

Su Wanwan frowned and remained silent, wanting only to escape the sight of those people. She turned and walked towards the cabin.

Xiao Xuanjing returned to Tantai Lin's boat, his gaze lingering on the direction the woman had left.

"Feng Chenjun can't even say sweet words, what a waste of such a handsome face..." Tantai Lin straightened his back and sneered with interest.

"My disciple is just like me in this respect; he's a bit clueless when it comes to matters of men and women..." the Grand Tutor chimed in.

Xiao Xuanjing was already in a bad mood, and now he was even more annoyed. "One of them never married, and the other is a womanizer. What's the difference..."

*

Su Wanwan sat in the cabin, opened a small crack in the window, and watched the ship sail away into the distance. Suddenly, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Feng Chenjun did not die, and the Su family was not exiled.

Su Xian didn't have his tendons severed and starve to death on the street; he should be by Qingshan's side right now, which is good.

None of the things she didn't want to see happened.

I wonder if my parents have returned to Suzhou.

The ship quickly sailed away, and after turning the corner, Feng Chenjun's ship disappeared from sight.

Su Wanwan took out the sachet that Feng Chenjun had given her. It was a gift from her before the Shangsi Festival. It didn't contain any spices, but rather a smooth object like a jade pendant.

The opening was sealed shut; it couldn't be opened, and the contents couldn't be seen.

Su Wanwan put the sachet away, picked up the steamed buns that had been prepared beforehand, and ate them slowly.

The voyage went smoothly, heading south without encountering any obstacles.

She would tease Changying whenever she had free time, so the journey wasn't boring.

A horse-drawn carriage came to pick them up at the dock; the person who arrived was Zhao Yu.

"Second Miss, you must be tired from your journey..." Zhao Yu stepped forward.

Seeing that he had put back on his old, worn-out clothes, Su Wanwan hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Zhao Yu, has something happened at home?"

"Second Miss, you're overthinking it." Zhao Yu shook her head and stepped forward, saying, "I'm used to wearing this. In the three months that you were away from the capital, the Crown Prince's people did harass you frequently, but fortunately, the people left behind by the Heir Apparent were protecting you in secret, so nothing serious happened."

Su Wanwan felt a tightness in her chest. "You mean, the young master's men are currently at the Su family residence?"

"Yes." Zhao Yu bowed.

"Who is it?" Su Wanwan asked, clutching her chest.

"This is the new housekeeper, the previous accountant, Mr. Jiang." Zhao Yu gestured for her to get into the car. "Second Miss, let's go back to the manor first."

Su Wanwan sat in the carriage, recalling what Feng Chenjun had said: the Su family's account books were also provided by the heir apparent.

She burned all the account books to the ground, so how could the young master have them? It turns out that Jiang Sheng had secretly made a backup.

When his family was raided last time, he volunteered to go to the same cell as his father, probably also to put the Su family to death.

Thinking about this, she got goosebumps all over her body.

"Second Miss, after you left, the Crown Prince sent people to arrest the Master. It was Mr. Jiang who produced evidence proving the Su family's innocence. Seeing that he could not punish them, the Crown Prince secretly sent people to harm the Su family. Your maternal grandmother came to the Su residence to visit relatives and stayed there, and only then did the Crown Prince stop." Zhao Yu sat in the carriage and raised the whip.

"Grandmother, Grandmother's here at the Su family's?" Su Wanwan was stunned. "Are you sure? Is my mother happy?"

My mother insisted on marrying my father, but my maternal grandmother disagreed.

My maternal grandfather's family, the Wang family, was a famous and prominent family, and all of their children were outstanding individuals.

But then the youngest child fell for Su Hongxuan, who had nothing.

When her father came to propose marriage, the Wang family refused no matter what. Her mother almost hanged herself, and in the end, her maternal grandmother had no choice but to let her marry into the family.

The moment my mother stepped out, my maternal grandfather slammed the Wang family gate shut, declaring that he would never have this daughter again.