Long Yang was about to walk over but stopped in his tracks when he heard this. The gloom on his face faded, and the corners of his upturned mouth revealed a hint of a smile.
Seeing this, Zhao Qian secretly heaved a sigh of relief.
When the Crown Prince suddenly addressed Second Miss Lu so affectionately just now, Master’s face became terrifyingly clouded.
He had good reason to believe that the Crown Prince’s words just now might have ended his status as Heir Apparent.
Fortunately, Second Miss Lu was clever.
Just look at how Master brightened up the moment he heard Second Miss Lu’s words.
Thank goodness!
Long Chi stared at Lu Liangwei in bewilderment. He wanted to say something, but when he saw his Royal Uncle standing behind her, he could only swallow his indignation back down his throat.
He was not in a hurry; he had plenty of time in the future, anyway. On the other hand, his royal uncle did not have much time left to live.
In the end, Lu Liangwei was still destined to be his!
With that in mind, he gathered his thoughts and bowed to Long Yang. “Royal Uncle, the Crown Princess isn’t feeling well. I’ll take her back first.”
Long Yang nodded lightly. “Go ahead.”
Suppressing the urge to glance at Lu Liangwei, Long Chi bent down and scooped Lu Yunshuang into his arms.
It was alright—Lu Liangwei would definitely be his!
Seeing that the Crown Prince and Princess had left, Chen Qiyu and the other Eastern Palace beauties did not linger and stepped forward to curtsy to Long Yang. “We’ll be taking our leave, Your Majesty.”
After all the Eastern Palace folk had departed, the chaos at the imperial garden entrance instantly died down.
The Virtuous Consort tucked her hair behind her ear, then stepped forward and said to Long Yang, “Your Majesty, I’ve set up a banquet in the imperial garden, and I’d like to invite Second Miss Lu over. Is that alright?”
Long Yang did not look at her, his gaze falling on Lu Liangwei instead. “Do you want to go there, Weiwei?”
Lu Liangwei glanced at him, then at the Virtuous Consort, and nodded. “Sure. Thank you for the invitation, Your Highness.”
Since the Virtuous Consort said that she had already set up a banquet, it would make her look bad if she refused to go. Although Lu Liangwei disliked such occasions, she did not want to feel uncomfortable every time she inevitably came across the Virtuous Consort in the future.
Looking at her furrowed brow, Long Yang could not help frowning as well.
Although she did not say it out loud, he knew that she detested this kind of banquet. However, since she had already agreed, he could only stay silent.
The Virtuous Consort was a little surprised to see Lu Liangwei agree so readily.
She thought that Lu Liangwei would put on airs, now that she basked in the Emperor’s affection, but she did not.
She paused for a while, then looked at Long Yang. “Would Your Majesty be going there too?”
Long Yang still did not look at her. He disliked that kind of banquet as much as Weiwei did, but if he let her go alone, could she handle the situation herself?
Not hearing him speak, Lu Liangwei looked up and saw his deep, unfathomable eyes staring at her. Her heart thumped, and she winked at him. “Your Majesty, if you still have state affairs to handle, you don’t need to worry about me. The Virtuous Consort and the others will take good care of me.”
Hearing this, the Virtuous Consort quickly glanced at Long Yang.
She hoped to see anger on his face, even if just a trace.
Didn’t the Noble Consort get demoted to the rank of Talented Lady just because she mentioned state affairs? Then what about Lu Liangwei?
With a calm and even somewhat gentle expression, Long Yang nodded. “Well, there is indeed a heap of unattended state affairs in the imperial study. In that case, I’ll go and handle them first and see you out of the palace later.”
“Alright,” Lu Liangwei replied obediently and smiled sweetly at him.
Long Yang’s heart fluttered, and he clenched his fists under his wide sleeves, resisting the urge to pinch her cheeks.
However, he still turned sideways and quickly squeezed her hand that was hanging by her side, using his sleeve to cover his movement.