Perhaps the coldness in this voice was all too familiar, Qiao Nian's heart fluttered with panic and she hastily took two steps back.
But in her excessive haste, her legs went weak and she was about to fall to the ground.
Fortunately, the Ming Prince was quick of eye and deft of hand and pulled her back at once.
However, with this pull, the distance between the two of them narrowed a bit more, and from a distance, it seemed as if the Ming Prince was embracing Qiao Nian.
Xiao Heng's already sharp eyes now fell on the Ming Prince's hand that was tightly grasping Qiao Nian's arm, and his gloomy eyes darkened a few shades more.
"Are you all right?" the Ming Prince asked with gentle concern.
Qiao Nian shook her head, feeling 莫名 ly guilty.
She didn't know what had caused her to panic just now, nor did she know why she was feeling guilty at the moment.
But at the moment when Xiao Heng's voice rang out, she truly had the feeling of being caught red-handed for doing something wrong.
But clearly, she hadn't done anything!
Taking a deep breath, Qiao Nian suppressed the jumbled emotions in her heart and bowed slightly to Xiao Heng not far away, saying, "Greetings, General Xiao."
The Ming Prince also looked at Xiao Heng and said, "General Xiao, are you here to report back to the palace again?"
Xiao Heng finally shifted his gaze from that hand and looked at the Ming Prince, slowly approaching and saying, "Recently, the bandits in Hezhou County of Yongbei have been rampant and the local government has failed to suppress them several times. His Majesty summoned me to discuss countermeasures."
Not only the Ming Prince, but even Qiao Nian had heard about this matter.
She had heard those palace maids mention it before in the Laundry Bureau.
It was said that the group of bandits in Hezhou County were not ordinary bandits, but were composed of some soldiers who had retired from the battlefield in the early years. They were well-trained and each had extraordinary skills. Not to mention that ordinary soldiers had no way to deal with them, even if a proper team was sent, it might not be easy to wipe them out.
Thinking of this matter, Qiao Nian's face unconsciously became a bit more solemn.
Beside her, the extremely gentle whisper of the Ming Prince came, "Don't worry. The folk customs in Gucheng are simple and honest, and every household has enough food and clothing and there are no bandits."
Qiao Nian opened her mouth, not knowing how to explain to the Ming Prince that she wasn't worried about this matter.
But Xiao Heng had sensed something was wrong.
"Miss Qiao, are you going to Gucheng?" He remembered that some time ago, the Emperor had bestowed Gucheng upon the Ming Prince as his fief.
Before Qiao Nian could speak, the Ming Prince took the lead and replied, "Niannian will become my princess and go to Gucheng with me."
For the latter part of the sentence, the Ming Prince was looking at Qiao Nian.
His eyes were full of her.
The Ming Prince's love came too suddenly and Qiao Nian was really a bit unaccustomed to it, so she lowered her eyes and pretended not to see.
And she didn't notice the extremely obvious trace of anger on Xiao Heng's face.
Xiao Heng glanced at Qiao Nian who had her head lowered and his tone became a lot colder, "I haven't heard of this."
The Ming Prince, however, saw Xiao Heng's anger clearly.
He slightly raised his eyebrows at the end of his eyes, with quite a bit of a 挑衅 meaning, "It was just decided. Although I had this intention earlier, ultimately it still depends on Niannian's agreement."
The implication was that Qiao Nian had already agreed to this matter.
But Qiao Nian knew that she hadn't.
But she was even more aware that marrying the Ming Prince should be the best way out that Madam Lin could find for her.
She would leave the capital in three months. Although the time was a bit rushed,... she would live in Gucheng with the Ming Prince in the future and would naturally cut off all contact with the people in the capital.
It was indeed a fortunate thing.
It was just that she couldn't bear to part with her grandmother.
If the Ming Prince could wait until she accompanied her grandmother through the last days before going to Gucheng, that would be the best.
Qiao Nian thought so in her heart, but didn't say it out loud, which in Xiao Heng's eyes was the meaning of 默认.
His hands behind his back were tightly clenched into fists. He looked at Qiao Nian and said coldly, "Gucheng is far away in the south of the Yangtze River and it takes at least two months to get there. Not to mention the hardships on the way, Miss Qiao may not adapt to the weather in the south of the Yangtze River either."
Qiao Nian didn't understand what Xiao Heng meant. She raised her eyes to look at Xiao Heng with a rather serious expression and said, "The prince said that the winter in the south of the Yangtze River is not as cold as that in the capital. I think as long as it's not too cold, I can adapt."
She was really extremely afraid of the cold.
Especially those ice-cold cold water and the bone-piercing coldness. Just thinking about it made her feel cold all over.
Xiao Heng was left speechless by Qiao Nian's words.
He stared at Qiao Nian fixedly and the coldness in his eyes surged wave after wave.
Even if Qiao Nian didn't understand what Xiao Heng meant just now, she should have understood by now.
Xiao Heng was angry.
Why was he angry?
Because she was going to marry the Ming Prince?
But there was no reason!
Wasn't he looking forward to her getting married?
Only when she got married could he marry Lin Yuan!
Oh, she understood. He was angry that she was marrying too well.
Who would have thought that she, a person who had worked as a maid in the Laundry Bureau for three years, could one day marry a prince and become a princess!
Suddenly she remembered that day when Xiao Heng said in front of her grandmother and Madam Lin that he could only marry Lin Yuan after she married first. Was he waiting to see her 笑话?
He clearly knew that Madam Lin doted on Lin Yuan the most and would definitely try every means to marry her off for Lin Yuan's marriage.
And with such an embarrassing identity as hers, what kind of good family could she marry into?
So now, when he knew that she was about to marry the Ming Prince, he was unhappy?
Qiao Nian actually didn't want to think of Xiao Heng in such a mean way, but Xiao Heng's anger at the moment was really too inexplicable.
So much so that she had to think that way.
Thinking about it, a bit of anger also rose in her heart and she said, "Anyway, I won't block General Xiao's way anymore. General Xiao should be happy."
Instead of standing here and giving her a cold look!
Why should he give her a cold look?
Xiao Heng's fists were clenched tightly. If he was holding something in his hand at the moment, it would surely have been turned to ashes.
And the Ming Prince seemed to have remembered something and had an expression of sudden realization, "Oh, by the way, Niannian, you and General Xiao had an engagement before. You two..."
"I have nothing to do with General Xiao anymore." Qiao Nian interrupted the Ming Prince's words.
Regarding the words that she used to be the apple of the Lin family's eye, the sister that Lin Ye doted on the most, and Xiao Heng's fiancée and so on.
She really didn't want to hear a single word of them anymore.
No more entanglements.
These four simple words successfully stirred up all the anger in Xiao Heng's body.
Anger turned to laughter.
He curled his lips and raised a trace of contempt, "Yes, I will marry the legitimate daughter of the Lin family, Lin Yuan. At that time, I hope the Ming Prince and the Ming Princess will do me the honor."
He deliberately emphasized the words "legitimate daughter of the Lin family", and it was unknown whose heart he was stabbing.
Qiao Nian took a deep breath, suppressed the surging anger in her heart, turned around and bowed to the Ming Prince, "This humble woman is a bit cold and will first go back to accompany the imperial concubine."
After saying that, she turned around and left.
That figure leaving in anger made Xiao Heng find a bit of the old flavor of Qiao Nian and he was momentarily fascinated.
Unexpectedly, the Ming Prince slowly opened his mouth and his melodious voice carried a bit of scrutiny and temptation, "It seems that Niannian really has no feelings for General Xiao. General Xiao, what do you think?"