Chapter 773 - 736: War of Words
It was nothing more than a disguise; since he already knew, no matter how much the Crown Prince of Prince Xin acted, he could see through to the essence!
Just like Huangfu Jingchen.
Thinking of this, he glanced slyly in the direction where Huangfu Jingchen was, but was startled to find that Huangfu Jingchen, who was just here, had disappeared. Where did he go?
He stood up suddenly, his gaze somewhat dark.
Did he go to the garden? Or go looking for Xia Wenjin?
He frowned, then smoothed it out, smiled at Prince Lu’s son and Prince Xin’s son, and said, "I’m going out for a walk!"
Prince Xin’s son rolled his eyes and said, "Yuxuan, why don’t we go together? It’s really stuffy in this hall!"
Huangfu Yuxuan ignored him and strode towards the side door, quickly leaving.
Prince Xin’s son said, "Cousin, hurry up!"
Prince Lu’s son shook his head helplessly, with a doting look in his eyes as a brother would have: "You, still so restless. Maybe Yuxuan has something to attend to!"
Prince Xin’s son said, "If there’s something, as brothers, we should help!" Saying this, he tugged at the sleeve of Prince Lu’s son without caring about his image, and the two hurriedly chased after him.
The layout of Prince Ning Mansion was very exquisite and ingeniously designed, with side doors in the South, East, and North Halls that led, when exited, to the garden outside.
Moreover, the garden area was different depending on which hall you came from.
The garden also had three sections.
Currently, there were many noblewomen in the East Hall, and few people walking around inside.
But in the South Hall and North Hall, many people came in, though few were in the hall; they all went to the small garden through the side doors.
After greeting a few familiar noble ladies, Xia Wenjin did not go to the small garden because she was held back by Princess He Ye.
Princess He Ye looked at her with bright eyes filled with curiosity: "Your name is Xia Wenjin, so were you the woman who performed the sword dance at the Seventeenth Princess’s banquet? I’ve heard the dance was beautiful. How did you manage that?"
Xia Wenjin met her gaze; this Commandery Princess was only around sixteen or seventeen years old, not very old, yet as Prince Ning’s daughter, could she really be this innocent?
She smiled slightly and said, "I had no other talent to present at the time, except having learned sword dance before, so I used it as an emergency, and didn’t expect someone to like it!"
Saying this, she blinked, with a very innocent expression.
Princess He Ye chuckled and said, "What a funny thing to say, claiming no talent, while you were obviously a hit."
She leaned in closer to seem intimate with Xia Wenjin, lowered her voice, and said, "I heard Xia Xiaozhe, Mr. Xia, is your cousin?"
Xia Wenjin glanced at Princess He Ye again, and the girl in front of her was trying hard to appear indifferent, but couldn’t conceal the expectation in her eyes, betrayed by her fluttering eyelashes.
Her heart moved slightly, so that’s the situation.
She nodded and said, "Yes!"
"Then is he... also coming today?"
Xia Wenjin recalled just before leaving when the Xia Brothers originally weren’t planning to come, but upon knowing she was attending, they immediately decided to come.
These two cousins were truly good to her, much more reliable than her own brother, Xia Sichen!
She smiled and nodded, "Yes!"
Even if she had said no, her eldest cousin had indeed already arrived, so there was no need to lie about this.
Moreover, the kindness Princess He Ye intentionally expressed, even if with an ulterior motive, was genuine.
She always reciprocated kindness with kindness.
Princess He Ye was very pleased. She stood up, seemingly intending to go out, but stopped, slowly sitting down again, a trace of melancholy appearing on her face, and a hint of frustration in her eyes. Who knows how many thoughts flashed through her mind in that brief moment?
She seemed to give up on going out and turned to Xia Wenjin again: "Has Eldest Young Master Xia ever mentioned me to you?"
Xia Wenjin was taken aback, could her eldest cousin and this Princess He Ye have an extraordinary relationship? Eldest Cousin was already betrothed, though not yet married.
If Xia Xiaozhe and Princess He Ye had feelings beyond the ordinary, this would not be a simple matter.
No wonder Princess He Ye showed her such enthusiastic warmth at their first meeting; she’d thought it was because of the Seventeenth Princess!
Seeing Xia Wenjin’s silence, Princess He Ye seemed a bit disappointed.
Xia Wenjin paused for a moment, then Princess He Ye reached out and said, "Shall we go meet Eldest Young Master Xia?"
Xia Wenjin was about to speak when she suddenly felt something was off and was about to step aside, but Princess He Ye’s hand moved, either intentionally or unintentionally, and Xia Wenjin, unable to forcefully jerk away, in that brief moment, heard a gasp, and the scent of tea spread as a cup of tea splashed onto her sleeve.