Qi Xiao laughed mockingly, "What are they here for?"

Jiang Deqing bowed and said, "I heard that the King of Lingnan was worried about Princess Roujia, so he ordered the second young master to accompany her. Princess Kangtai has also never been to the capital, so she came along as well."

Bairen frowned and unconsciously looked at Qi Xiao. Qi Xiao waved his hand to dismiss everyone, and the two of them went into the inner room.

In the past six months, Bairen had been sending a report to the King of Lingnan every half month. Except for matters related to Qi Xiao, everything else was reported in detail. Bairen had done everything the King of Lingnan instructed him to do.

Although he had caused some trouble since coming to the capital, he hadn't made things difficult for Lingnan. He felt he should have satisfied the King of Lingnan.

Bairen furrowed his brows, "So what's the meaning of sending Wenyu here now? If he really cared about him, why bother sending me here in the first place?!"

Qi Xiao patted Bairen's hand soothingly and said in a low voice, "There are only two reasons for your father to send your half-brother here at this time. One is that your father is dissatisfied with your conduct in the capital and intends to replace you... Of course, this shouldn't be the case. Not to mention that you've handled matters properly in the past six months, with his favored concubine there, he wouldn't let Wenyu replace you.

"Then there's only one other possibility... Your father didn't expect you to adapt so well in the capital. Not only have you survived safely until now, you've also quietly arranged a marriage for your sister. Your father... or his concubine, is eager to send your brother to share in the benefits. Princess Roujia's wedding is a major event linking the imperial city and Lingnan. It's an opportunity to make connections with many nobles in the imperial city. Your brother isn't a fool. Would he let such a good opportunity slip?"

Qi Xiao smiled faintly, "I'm afraid there's also the intention of monitoring you... When the King of Lingnan initially sent you as a hostage, he already had the intention of deposing and replacing you. Now that you've unexpectedly gained a foothold in the imperial city, not only have you become close with me, but your sister has also married into the He family.

"The emperor has always treated you well. With the support of the imperial city, it's become a pipe dream for them to strip you of your position as the eldest legitimate son. After all... in the end, it's still the emperor who has the final say on who will inherit the position of King of Lingnan in the future. Your father and his concubine have realized this point, so naturally they can't sit still."

Bairen had also considered these things, which is why he couldn't help but get angry. He could tolerate them coming to block his ambitions, but now with Roujia's wedding approaching, those two people coming over... Bairen didn't know what trouble they would stir up.

Unlike Bairen, Qi Xiao wasn't angry at all upon hearing this news. Instead, he was somewhat happy. The more unstable Bairen's position, the more he would need to rely on Qi Xiao. This was naturally what Qi Xiao wanted to see.

Of course, putting that aside, Bairen had suffered a lot from his half-siblings since childhood. Before, they were far out of Qi Xiao's reach, but now they delivered themselves to Qi Xiao's doorstep. If Qi Xiao didn't do something, he would be letting himself down.

These words naturally couldn't be said directly to Bairen. Qi Xiao smiled, "It's no big deal. I'll tell you a way for you and Roujia to avoid facing them every day, how about that?"

Bairen's eyes lit up, "What way?"

Qi Xiao smiled faintly, "I was originally thinking, after Princess Roujia arrives in the capital, to have her stay at the princess' manor for a while. One reason is to let my aunt instruct her on some private matters of the inner court. The second is to let her meet some people here before the wedding, since she'll need to interact with them often in the future.

"As for women's matters in the inner court, even if you and I want to help, we can't intervene. He Zichen's mother is a widow and not very capable. We still need to rely on my aunt. She's the most skilled at handling these things. You can rest assured."

Regional kings couldn't enter the capital without an imperial edict. The King and Queen of Lingnan probably wouldn't be able to attend Roujia's wedding. Bairen was just worrying about not having an elder to guide his sister. Upon hearing this, he quickly said with joy, "Really?"

Qi Xiao reached out and stroked Bairen's face, "Would I joke with you? Is this arrangement good?"

Bairen quickly nodded. Qi Xiao took his hand and squeezed it, smiling, "As for you... I've already informed the people at the Internal Affairs Department. Any arrangements related to Princess Roujia's wedding must first go through the Crown Prince's manor. Only after I approve can they proceed with supervision.

"In this way, as the brother-in-law, you naturally also need to frequently come to my place to discuss matters with me. Your half-brother and half-sister want to come to the capital, right? You siblings can vacate the Lingnan Prince's manor and let the two of them live there by themselves."

Hearing this, Bairen couldn't help but laugh. The gloom from earlier completely vanished. Qi Xiao leaned in and kissed Bairen's forehead, softly laughing, "I've arranged things so well for you. How will you repay me?"

Bairen's face reddened slightly. Qi Xiao smiled and pulled him towards the inner room.

Three days later, the grand wedding procession from Lingnan entered the capital. The emperor ordered the Minister of Rites to personally go outside the city to welcome them and directly escort them to the palace.

"Quick, let me have a look..." Princess Dunsu had also entered the palace early.

Together with the emperor, empress, and several high-ranking concubines, she waited in Qianqing Palace. Because of Qi Xiao's relationship with the He family, he was considered to have ties with the Lingnan Prince's residence. Therefore, he didn't avoid suspicion and came together with Bairen.

After a series of tedious formalities, everyone met each other. Princess Dunsu first called Princess Roujia to her side. Taking her hand, she examined her closely. Roujia was in the prime of her youth at sixteen, like a blooming flower. She was a natural beauty.

Although the long journey had left her tired, her beauty was still dazzling. Princess Dunsu shook her head in delight, "My nephew has really lucked out. This appearance, this bearing... Empress, look, she looks just like the Queen of Lingnan in her youth."

Roujia quickly lowered her head and said, "Princess, you praise me too much..."

Although Roujia had a gentle temperament, her every action was dignified and proper, not showing timidity but only giving an impression of grace. The more Princess Dunsu looked at her, the more she liked her. Turning to Empress Feng, she smiled, "Empress, do you still remember the Queen of Lingnan? When she got married, she was also at this wonderful age..."

Empress Feng gave a dry laugh and nodded. Back then, the King of Lingnan and his queen had held their grand wedding in the capital, so Princess Dunsu had an impression. But at that time, Empress Feng had not yet married the current emperor. As a daughter of an ordinary family, how could she have seen the then crown princess?

Princess Dunsu either forgot or something, but she continued to praise, "When I saw Bairen back then, I thought this Princess Roujia shouldn't be bad. But I didn't expect... she would be even better than I imagined. Your Majesty, what do you think? With this marriage, haven't we profited?"

The emperor laughed heartily, "Of course... Wenyu, are your father and mother well?"

Dongling Wenyu saw the Emperor asking about him and hurriedly stepped forward, bowing and saying, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. My father and mother are in very good health. Before I left, my father repeatedly instructed me to convey his well wishes to Your Majesty."

Qi Xiao had been watching Dongling Wenyu since everyone entered the hall. He was also fifteen this year, said to be only three months younger than Bairen. Although he was Bairen's brother, he didn't resemble Bairen at all.

Not only was he much less good-looking than Bairen, but his every move carried an air of slickness, both petty and unimpressive. Compared to Bairen's indifferent self-possession, it was simply a world of difference. Of course, Bairen now would never be as cold to him as he was to others, just like last night...

Qi Xiao's mind wandered. He couldn't help but turn his head to look at Bairen, only to see that Bairen had been looking at Roujia the whole time. Although his face didn't show anything, his eyes were full of concern.

In contrast, Roujia also looked at Bairen from time to time, as if she wished Bairen could see through her. Qi Xiao felt a little unhappy in his heart, but then he thought that Roujia was about to get married soon and felt relieved. In the future, with a husband and children, how could she have time to pay attention to Bairen? Bairen would have to be his alone...

The Emperor was still sighing, "It has been nearly ten years since I last saw your father. Time flies like an arrow, the sun and moon spin like a shuttle..."

Wenyu hurriedly echoed his sentiments. He had done his homework, from the imperial bestowed inkstone that had always been in his father's study, to the hunting grounds in the capital where the King of Lingnan and the Emperor used to ride horses and hunt together.

The Emperor would say one thing and he would respond, never letting the conversation go cold. Everyone was talking and laughing, only Princess Kangtai stood there alone, ignored. Empress Feng, afraid that she would look bad, smiled and said, "This is the second young lady, right? Come, let me take a look at you..."

Kangtai hurriedly stepped forward to pay her respects upon hearing this. Kangtai had just turned fourteen this year, her face still youthful, but her brows and eyes carried a hint of calculation.

When Empress Feng asked if she was tired from the journey, Kangtai quickly smiled and said, "I'm not tired. I've always been healthier than my sister. When we came, I sent all my personal maids to my sister's carriage to take care of her. I also sent all the fox fur cushions to my sister's carriage, but unfortunately... my sister still got tired, which made me anxious but helpless."

Empress Feng smiled and sighed softly, "Good child, you're really thoughtful... You worry about Roujia, but you should also take care of yourself. At such a young age, if you really get tired, it's no joke."

Kangtai turned to look at Roujia, winked at Empress Feng, and said in a low voice with a smile, "But... my sister is here to get married. It doesn't matter what happens to me. If my sister gets tired or cold, and it delays the good event, wouldn't that be my fault?"

At this, everyone in the hall laughed. Roujia's face turned red, and she lowered her head without saying a word, only smiling faintly, the smile not reaching her eyes.

Qi Xiao looked at Kangtai's innocent and sweet smiling face and sneered in his heart, thinking that this must also be a troublesome one.

Princess Dunsu also laughed and joked with Kangtai for a while, then pulled Roujia's hand again, asking her in detail what she liked to eat and play usually, what good mountains and rivers she saw on the way to the capital, if she could stand the cold weather in the capital, and so on. Roujia answered everything in detail.

Princess Dunsu secretly evaluated her manner of speech and became more and more satisfied, her eyes growing increasingly kind as she looked at Roujia.

Everyone talked for a good while before the Emperor bestowed a family banquet. It wasn't until the evening that they dispersed. On such a day, Qi Xiao naturally couldn't let Bairen go to his manor again. He only let Jiang Deqing pass a message to Bairen, telling him not to take everything to heart and wait for him to avenge him.

Bairen was puzzled after hearing this, until the next day when he understood what Qi Xiao meant...

Early the next morning, the steward of the Crown Prince's manor, Jiang Deqing, personally delivered a carriage full of things to the Lingnan Prince's manor, saying that it was some small items prepared by the Crown Prince to celebrate the arrival of the two princesses and the young master to the capital, for the princesses and young master to enjoy.

Wenyu was overjoyed when he heard this and hurried out to greet him, exchanging a round of pleasantries with Jiang Deqing. Jiang Deqing smiled faintly and presented the gift list with both hands. Wenyu took it and became even more complacent when he saw it. The items written on the first page of the gift list were all for him, including the four treasures of the study, antiques, and rare books, lacking nothing.

Wenyu was happy to get these things and felt that he had gained face. He had come to the capital, and even the Crown Prince attached such importance to him. Wenyu flipped to the next page and continued reading, feeling more and more that something was wrong. He thought what he had gotten was already a lot, but the following pages were densely packed, all filled with things for Roujia, and each item was a treasure...

Jiang Deqing stood expressionlessly at the door, loudly announcing, "A pair of white jade ruyi, eight eastern pearls, four strings of old agate bracelets, two brocade gold-inlaid jeweled necklaces, four pairs of jadeite bracelets, four bolts of cloud brocade, eight bolts of python gold, twelve bolts of large gold sequins, twelve bolts of small gold sequins, sixteen bolts of various colored gauze and satin..."

The servants hurriedly kept transporting things to Roujia's courtyard. Jiang Deqing announced for a long time before taking a break and said to the servants in a low voice, "The rest are for Princess Kangtai. Don't deliver them to the wrong place."

The servants quickly acknowledged. Jiang Deqing cleared his throat, "Two strings of pearls, four carnelian rings. Second Young Master, all the items are here. This old servant will take his leave first." Jiang Deqing made a respectful bow to Wenyu and turned to leave.

Wenyu stared dumbfounded at the last few items for Kangtai on the gift list for a long time, at a loss for words. He hurriedly turned to look for his sister. Before he even entered the courtyard, he heard the sound of Kangtai smashing things. Wenyu was at his wit's end and hurried to persuade her.

In the Crown Prince's residence, Qi Xiao heard Jiang Deqing's report and smiled with satisfaction. Kangtai dared to step on Bairen's sister's face in front of him, so he would let her know what it truly meant to lose face.