Yu Qingwu snorted coldly, not answering.

She rested her cheek on her hand, leaning against the windowsill, her enchanting eyes hinting at a trace of mockery.

She watched Xie Jin Yan with a cold smile for a moment, then gently pointed to herself, emphasizing each word, "She's innocent? Then am I not innocent? My brother, who was burned alive before he even came of age, wasn't he innocent? Or does Your Highness think that my Yu family deserves it, that we should be wiped out by her Qiu family? That Qiu Shiyi Niang should step on the fifty lives of my Yu family to become that famous Kyoto socialite?"

"Men, I can understand being drawn to talented women and courtesans."

"But Xie Jin Yan, let me tell you this! No one in the Qiu family is innocent! Including Qiu Shiyi Niang!"

"What if I insist on protecting Shiyi Niang?" Before Yu Qingwu could finish speaking, Xie Jin Yan interrupted her coldly. He propped himself against the window with one hand and leaped into the room.

Then, he lay down on the soft couch, glanced at her, his tone lazy yet somber, "Shijie (Senior Martial Sister), I don't care what you do to that Qiu woman, but you are not allowed to touch Shiyi Niang."

These weren't words of persuasion, but an order, a threat…

In the morning, he was a man who had protected her in every way, and in the blink of an eye, he was threatening and intimidating her for another woman.

Was this what he meant by loving her, protecting her?

Yu Qingwu suddenly felt a bit of sarcasm in her heart, and a bit of sadness.

But she wasn't surprised either. After all, Xie Jin Yan was a libertine. He could love her, and naturally, he could love others.

"What if I insist on touching her?"

"I will not only touch her, but if necessary, I will let her die, and I will never be soft-hearted!"

She gritted her teeth, a hint of provocation in her reddened eyes.

There was a slight hint of probing, as well as a bit of anger from her emotions erupting.

Xie Jin Yan shifted his body, glanced at Yu Qingwu with cold eyes, slowly sat up from the couch, and smiled faintly at her, "If you dare to let Shiyi Niang die, I will let you die too…"

"You… is this what you call loving me?" Yu Qingwu's eyes turned red, provoked by Xie Jin Yan until she couldn't help it.

She raised her head, forced the tears back, smiled wryly, and looked at him, "Don't tell me I guessed right, the official consort in Your Highness's heart is that Qiu Shiyi Niang?"

Hearing this, Xie Jin Yan didn't answer.

A flash of cunning flashed in his cold eyes.

His large hand slowly landed on the corner of Qingwu's reddened eye, wiping away her tears for her.

Raising his eyebrows, he caressed her eyebrows and eyes and said, "Shijie, I am the crown prince of Wei Chao, and I will eventually choose an official consort. Shiyi Niang is the most suitable candidate. I hope you can get along with her peacefully."

Get along peacefully?

So, he was admitting it?

So, the protection he had shown her earlier wasn't because he cared about her that much, but because the person standing against her wasn't the official consort he truly wanted and cared about?

He could plot against the Shen family for her sake, but he might not be unable to silence her for the sake of that Shiyi Niang.

Thinking of this, Yu Qingwu's heart suddenly turned cold, and a sense of helplessness and loneliness instantly surged into her heart.

She bit her lip tightly, and large tears welled up from her eyes.

Closing her eyes, Qingwu tried hard to suppress her emotions.

Heavily, she peeled off Xie Jin Yan's hand covering her cheek, and said expressionlessly, "Alright, I understand."

"Nujia (This servant)?"

Again, this kind of weird and sarcastic term.

It could be seen that she was really angry.

A hint of smugness flashed in Xie Jin Yan's eyes, and he reached out again, very gently pulling her into his arms, leaning close to her ear, and asking softly, "What's with this expression, Shijie? Are you unconvinced? Or… jealous?"

As he spoke, he gently bit her earlobe.

The man's ambiguous breath, accompanied by a stinging pain, made Yu Qingwu's body tremble. She subconsciously wanted to push him away, but she was directly pulled into his arms by the other party, and those hot, thin lips kissed her ear even more wantonly than before, coercively asking again, "Shijie, tell me, are you jealous?"

This man, he had just threatened her for the sake of that Shiyi Niang, so why suddenly…

Yu Qingwu was a little dazed, and also a little frightened and indignant, and hurriedly pushed him away, "Xie Jin Yan, the door is still open, if Granny Xun comes in later…"

*Bang*…

Speak of the devil.

As soon as Yu Qingwu finished speaking, Granny Xun suddenly entered the door. She didn't know that Xie Jin Yan was also inside. Seeing such a scene in broad daylight, she was extremely embarrassed.

She froze for a long while before hurriedly retreating outside the screen, stammering, "Liangdi (Consort of Virtue), this old servant has already sent Shen Rou out."

"Um… Your Highness, since you're here too, this old servant will report it together."

"Um… Qiu Mansion's Shiyi Niang sent another invitation just now, saying that she must invite you to participate in her elegant gathering. What do you think, should we reject it directly like in previous years?"

???

Reject it directly?

Wasn't Xie Jin Yan very fond of that Shiyi Niang? He seemed willing to risk his life to protect that Shiyi Niang just now.

Why, listening to Granny Xun's meaning…

Yu Qingwu's mind quickly turned, and the eyes that were just filled with tears suddenly darkened. She raised her head and slowly looked at the handsome man who was holding her, and couldn't help but frown, "Your Highness, what do you mean by 'reject it directly'? Aren't you very concerned about that Shiyi Niang? Why do you still reject her gatherings every year…"

Xie Jin Yan didn't answer, and there was a hint of embarrassment in his handsome face…

After a pause, he replied to Granny Xun in a deep voice, "Granny, handle it as in previous years."

After saying that, he let go of Yu Qingwu, stood up and said, "I still have some official business to deal with, I'll come and see you later."

Yu Qingwu frowned tightly and called out to him unhappily, "Xie Jin Yan, you're really being childish."

She wasn't a fool. After hearing Granny Xun's words and looking at Xie Jin Yan's expression, she naturally understood what was going on.

It was nothing more than this man deliberately protecting that Qiu Shiyi Niang to make her jealous.

But this kind of Xie Jin Yan seemed to make her less afraid instead.

Or rather, this kind of him was closer to the gentle and lovely nature he had as a child.

Sighing softly, Yu Qingwu stepped forward and hugged him from behind.

The soft little hand touched his waist, Xie Jin Yan's eyes softened slightly, and he wasn't as embarrassed as before, but… the wound was a bit painful.

He frowned and reminded, holding Qingwu's hand, "Shijie, you're touching my wound."

"You're injured?" After being told by Xie Jin Yan, Yu Qingwu realized that there seemed to be a faint smell of blood on him.

She hurriedly withdrew her hand, pulled him to sit down, and looked up at his face, only to find that Xie Jin Yan's face was also very pale.

Yu Qingwu leaned forward and sat on the soft couch, asking him, "Xie Jin Yan, didn't you go to the palace to discuss matters? How did you get injured?"

"On the way back, I met an assassin."

"It's nothing, it's a common occurrence." Xie Jin Yan lay back on the soft couch, and despite the pain, he was very used to it.

Yu Qingwu was shocked. Now she had to rely on Xie Jin Yan's big mountain to take revenge, and she was more afraid than anyone else of something happening to him.

After a moment of silence, she held his hand again and asked softly, "Didn't you bring dark guards? How did you let someone succeed in assassinating you? Do you know who did it?"