An unknown old woman, who had schemed against Lu Qingwan twice upon her arrival, not only angered Feng Xi Wu but also made Li Jin and the others feel indignant.
Upon hearing this, Li Qing immediately said, "Your subordinate obeys your command!"
After speaking, he turned and left, so eager it was palpable.
Lu Qingwan felt warmth and sweetness from the concern Feng Xi Wu and his subordinates showed her.
She felt that her post-traumatic stress disorder was not so difficult to accept anymore.
She rubbed her cheek against Feng Xi Wu's stomach, "Alright, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess are probably anxious. Hurry and change your clothes, and accompany me to visit them.
I also want to see as soon as possible what kind of parents with dragon robes and phoenix crowns could give birth to such a cute and adorable little bun like Xiao Yuan'er. Don't waste my time!"
It was then that Feng Xi Wu realized that after Lu Qingwan had washed up, she had uncharacteristically donned the solemn attire of the Princess of Qin, even styling her hair in the peony bun she usually disliked.
It turned out she had been prepared to visit the Crown Prince's mansion all along.
In contrast, he himself was still wearing a simple linen robe, with his hair half-combed.
Seeing this, Lu Qingwan suppressed a chuckle, "Your Highness has helped this concubine change and dress up countless times. Today, this concubine will reciprocate your kindness once. Let's go, change your style.
Otherwise, the Crown Prince might think all the money in the mansion is spent on this concubine, and that I am bullying his precious younger brother!"
Lu Qingwan was in a rare mood, and Feng Xi Wu was naturally happy to oblige.
Li Jin volunteered, "Your Highness's court robes have not been worn since they were brought back. Your subordinate will fetch them now."
After speaking, he rushed into the main house ahead of Lu Qingwan and Feng Xi Wu.
A moment later, Feng Xi Wu, clad in a black python robe with four-clawed golden dragons, a purple-gold crown, and a golden embroidered belt, stood before Lu Qingwan.
Seeing his attire, she could barely hold back her laughter, "It's really so tacky!
Fortunately, you have this face to hold it up. Anyone else wearing this would be a total nouveau riche!"
Lu Qingwan covered her face, "Didn't you say Great Qin is much stronger than the southeastern three kingdoms? Why are the ceremonial robes so ugly!"
Feng Xi Wu sighed, "In Great Qin, black and gold are colors of nobility, but the colors and styles of the clothes are fixed. Those who don't recognize quality would find it difficult to discern the richness of the fabric.
Thus, effort can only be put into ornamentation.
With these auspicious cloud patterns of gold thread all over, the purple-gold crown, and the gold-inlaid belt, even a three-year-old child could tell that this King's status is exceptionally noble..."
Although he could fully understand the intention of the Great Qin imperial family to display their unique status, Feng Xi Wu genuinely found it too ugly.
He was completely speechless at Lu Qingwan's teasing.
Li Jin and the others, not having to wear the garish court robes, were stifling their laughter with schadenfreude.
Feng Xi Wu put his arm around Lu Qingwan's waist and went out, saying coolly, "Don't celebrate too soon. Since we are in Great Qin, you are now this King's personal guards.
This King has checked for you. A reigning prince has three thousand personal guards, and the personal guards of the princes of Great Qin wear something similar to what those guards wore when we entered the city."
Li Jin and the others froze simultaneously.
Li Yang almost burst into tears, "Your Highness, are you serious?"
Lu Qingwan secretly added fuel to the fire, "Does His Highness mean those wearing red, with armor that looks like it's been cut in half, and a large bowl on their heads?"
"Princess Consort, please stop!"
Li Yang covered his face and wailed in despair, "Your subordinate can hardly imagine how ugly he would look wearing such an outfit.
Your Highness, you are merely a prince in a different place. You won't make your subordinates blind themselves to cheer you on, will you?" m..oΓg
Feng Xi Wu didn't care if he wanted to blind himself. Seeing the smile on Lu Qingwan's face made him happy.
"Ru Yue and Ying Shi will stay to take care of Li Su, and Li Jin will manage the mansion. Li Yang and Si Han, along with the rest of the December contingent, will escort this King and the Princess Consort to the Crown Prince's mansion."
With an order, before the amused expressions on everyone's faces had receded, they immediately responded, "Your subordinate obeys!"
It was still a carriage pulled by two horses, its exterior decoration and interior furnishings identical to those in Great Gan.
As Lu Qingwan boarded the carriage, Feng Xi Wu silently pulled her into his embrace.
Li Yang knew that Lu Qingwan intended to seal her vision with acupuncture, so he drove the carriage extremely steadily, without any jolts.
Lu Qingwan knew Feng Xi Wu was uneasy, so she nestled in his arms obediently, comforting him for a while before quietly tugging at Feng Xi Wu's sleeve, "It's time to act. If we dawdle any longer, we'll reach the Crown Prince's mansion."
To care for his younger brother, the Crown Prince had used some means to ensure Feng Xi Wu's princely mansion was only two ministers' residences away from the Crown Prince's mansion.
If it weren't for the sake of proper etiquette, Lu Qingwan and Feng Xi Wu could have walked there.
Feng Xi Wu silently released her, "You go ahead."
Lu Qingwan's initial training was in traditional Chinese medicine, so needling was as natural as eating and drinking.
Taking out the silver needles she had prepared earlier, she unhesitatingly inserted them into the acupoints around her eyes, a total of six needles.
In reality, no one could see any change in Lu Qingwan's eyes from the outside. Yet, the moment her eyes were completely blinded, Feng Xi Wu precisely grasped her hand.
Neither too early nor too late, exactly at that moment, he held Lu Qingwan's hand and said solemnly, "Don't be afraid, I am here."
For a normal person, even after night vision training, Lu Qingwan could not remain completely unaffected.
The instant her vision plunged into darkness, Lu Qingwan felt an uncontrollable panic.
But the moment Feng Xi Wu held her hand, she felt reassured.
She unconsciously tightened her grip on his hand and said, though her voice was relatively calm, "Help me time it. You'll remove the needles for me after fifteen minutes."
Fifteen minutes was more than enough time to travel from the prince's mansion to the Crown Prince's mansion.
As soon as Lu Qingwan finished speaking, Feng Xi Wu ordered, "Slow down the carriage. Let's arrive at the Crown Prince's mansion later."
Li Yang, afraid of disturbing Lu Qingwan's acupuncture, quietly replied, "Understood." Thus, a peculiar sight appeared on the streets of Zhongzhou.
A carriage, pulled by two horses capable of traveling a thousand li a day, appeared to be a luxurious vehicle, moving as slowly as a turtle through the valuable and crowded area where officials resided.
The short journey of three to four li took a full fifteen minutes.
If it hadn't been outside the peak hours of court attendance or the midday break, the carriage would have caused a traffic jam in Qingyun Lane.
Servants from noble families and officials with free time couldn't help but come out to watch the spectacle. Upon seeing the "Qin" character on the carriage, they revealed expressions of understanding.
"So it's the Qin Prince's carriage, then it's not surprising!"
Someone cleverly guessed, "The Prince of Qin refused the second daughter of the Lan family to marry that princess from the southern small country, and personally went to the border of Great Gan to welcome her.
It's evident he's smitten with that princess from the southern small country.
I heard that women from the south are delicate. Is he afraid that the carriage moving too fast will startle that princess?"