Qi Yihan frowned, expressing his displeasure, "Is it absolutely necessary to go?" He truly didn't want Li Man'er to take any risks. Although he knew she had means of self-preservation, the mere thought of those people plotting against her, openly or covertly, made his heart heavy.
"Those who achieve great things disregard minor details," Li Man'er said. "Do you have anything planned for tomorrow? Want to join the fun?"
Qi Yihan replied, "I have many trivial matters, but I can push them all aside and go with you."
"Don't!" Li Man'er laughed. "It'll be no fun if you come with me. Perhaps you shouldn't go after all; your important business should come first."
Li Man'er was perfectly aware of Madam Bai's intentions and the Crown Prince's plans.
They were merely trying to scheme against her. She was a valuable prospect right now; if something were to happen between her and the Crown Prince, would Qi Yihan still marry her? She would be forced to pledge herself to the Crown Prince and work for him.
What a clever plan!
This idea was likely hatched by Madam Bai and her daughter. First, they arranged for the Crown Prince and Li Tian'er to meet unexpectedly and form a connection, then, through Li Tian'er's persuasion, the Crown Prince would set his sights on her.
The Crown Prince already had a Crown Princess, two secondary consorts, and several other women. Even if she were a County Princess, marrying into the palace would only make her a concubine, a minor concubine at that.
A concubine without status was like a servant. Only someone as clueless as Li Tian'er would be eager to become the Crown Prince's concubine.
She thought the Crown Prince could ascend the throne, and she could become a consort in the harem, climbing step by step?
Let her dream!
"What do you intend to do?"
"Just leave it to me. I have my treasures, and I certainly won't let myself be taken advantage of," Li Man'er said. "Perhaps this is even a good opportunity for me; it's imperative that I crush the second branch of the family."
Since they kept trying to scheme against me, this time I'll crush them for good.
"However, we should go out tonight, in the dead of night."
Qi Yihan understood immediately. "You plan to take me to the nunnery to kidnap your cousin."
Li Man'er immediately chuckled, "Exactly, Your Highness, you've guessed it."
And so, that night, Qi Yihan waited for Li Man'er at the back gate of the County Princess's mansion.
After midnight, Li Man'er scaled the wall. The two of them avoided the city patrols and quickly galloped out of the city.
Outside the city, Ah Qi had already prepared horses. Qi Yihan and Li Man'er rode their horses and sped towards the nunnery where Li Tian'er was temporarily residing.
An hour later, Li Man'er had taken the sleeping Li Tian'er into her spatial realm.
Although Qi Yihan was curious to witness her miraculous feat of disappearing, he felt extreme disgust towards Li Tian'er. Who knew what peculiar habits she might have while sleeping? He didn't want to offend his eyes by seeing anything he shouldn't.
"Let's go!"
The two of them left the nunnery without alerting anyone and rode back to the capital. Given Qi Yihan's status, his face was a sufficient pass; the city guards would never dare to stop him. However, to be on the safe side, Li Man'er and Qi Yihan abandoned their horses in the outskirts and, relying on their exceptional skills, slipped back into the city under the noses of the guards.
In reality, things weren't entirely smooth. They were almost discovered by a patrolling deputy general. Li Man'er immediately brought Qi Yihan into her spatial realm, thereby narrowly escaping.
Qi Yihan now understood why Li Man'er was always able to accomplish things others couldn't so smoothly.
Her spatial treasure was truly heaven-defying; it could hold people and objects, and it contained quite a few items.
Qi Yihan, as an outsider brought into Li Man'er's spatial realm, had his actions restricted unless Li Man'er authorized him. He could not, like Li Man'er, hear conversations from the outside, nor could he see the contents of the realm. Both the items within the spatial realm and the people hidden inside were automatically shielded. Except for Li Man'er, Qi Yihan could only see a field of white mist.
"This is good. With Li Tian'er here, I can relax and watch the show," Li Man'er said. "Thank you for escorting me back. Before it gets light, you should hurry back and get some sleep."
Qi Yihan, however, held her waist and sighed softly. He truly didn't want to leave, but their relationship was not yet proper, and he feared causing trouble for Li Man'er.
Others might not dare to speak ill of him, but they might not hesitate to speak ill of Li Man'er. He wouldn't even tolerate the slightest bit of slander directed at her.
Counting the days, it would still be several months before he could marry her.
"Alright, there are important matters to attend to tomorrow, and while you're not tired, I am," Li Man'er pushed Qi Yihan towards the door and tilted her chin upwards. "Go on."
Hearing her words, Qi Yihan could only leave. But before he did, he couldn't resist leaning down and quickly kissing her red lips before leaving with satisfaction.
Li Man'er returned to her room vexed, changed her clothes, and got into bed. She couldn't fall asleep for a long time.
She dared not let Qi Yihan stay longer, purely because she didn't want to be overcome by his charm. If she couldn't help herself and took advantage of Qi Yihan, wouldn't she be laughed at for a lifetime?
However, to be honest, her future husband's physique was truly excellent: broad shoulders, a narrow waist, long legs, and abdominal muscles...
Tsk tsk.
Li Man'er wiped away imaginary drool and finally drifted off to sleep peacefully. She was a virtuous girl and would absolutely not have any inappropriate dreams, absolutely not.
The next day, Li Man'er, dressed in her finest, returned to the Iron Gallantry Marquis's mansion with an invitation.
Upon seeing her, Madam Bai acted as if she had seen a dazzling mountain of gold, greeting her with excessive warmth.
Madam Liu also emerged, appearing to have recovered well during this period, her spirits much improved.
Seeing the affectionate demeanor between Madam Liu and Madam Bai, Li Man'er understood everything. These two were clearly colluding, intending to join forces to set her up.
Unfortunately, she was not the one who would be embarrassed today.
"Second Aunt, you sent me an invitation, is there something important?" Seeing that there were no other guests in the mansion, she wondered if she was the only one invited.
Madam Bai wore a fawning expression and said, "Qingzhou and Qingcheng have returned. They've both made considerable progress in their studies. I was thinking that our whole family hasn't gathered in a long time. County Princess, I hope you don't blame me for sending you this invitation so rashly!"
"How could I!" Li Man'er chuckled lightly. "After all, we are family."
Madam Bai inwardly hated her to death, but outwardly she said, "Yes, yes, yes. I was wrong before, Second Aunt apologizes to you." As she spoke, she glared at Madam Liu, signaling her to chime in with some pleasantries.
"Blood is thicker than water. No matter what, one cannot write the word 'two' with a single stroke," Madam Liu felt uneasy. For some reason, she had a premonition that today's plan wouldn't go smoothly.
Useless.
Madam Bai's eyelids twitched with anger. These two sentences were so hard to utter.
Li Man'er smiled faintly, "That is true."