The side hall.
As You Rong was about to extinguish the candlelight to rest, there was a forceful banging on the door, accompanied by Lin Qinghe's slurred voice, "You Rong... open the door, open the door, this princess wants to see you, You Rong..."
You Rong's brows furrowed slightly. He walked over and opened the door, and a body reeking of alcohol stumbled in. Fortunately, he was quick to support her, otherwise Lin Qinghe would have fallen to the ground.
The strong smell of alcohol that assailed him made You Rong's brow furrow.
"Your Highness the Princess, you have been drinking."
Lin Qinghe lowered her eyes, a flicker of shrewdness quickly flashing within them.
Taking advantage of her drunkenness, perhaps a little intimate contact could advance the progress bar?
Lin Qinghe thought so, and acted accordingly. She opened her arms and tightly hugged You Rong's lean waist, "This princess has not... has not drunk too much, no..."
You Rong's face changed drastically, and he instinctively tried to push Lin Qinghe away. However, she clung to him tightly, refusing to let go. For a moment, he couldn't push her off.
"Your Highness the Princess, you are drunk. Please let go of this servant."
"No... I won't let go, You Rong, this princess doesn't want to let you go,呜呜..." As she spoke, Lin Qinghe hugged him even tighter and feigned sobbing twice.
You Rong stood there stiffly, held by Lin Qinghe, at a loss.
He said with difficulty, "Your Highness the Princess, you are drunk. This servant will call for a palace maid to escort you back to your sleeping quarters."
Lin Qinghe bit her lip, and suddenly raised her voice, "No! This princess is not going back... This princess is not going anywhere, this princess wants to stay here with you!"
"Your Highness the Princess..." You Rong was completely helpless with drunk people, so he patiently said, "Alright, you're not going back. Your Highness the Princess, please let go of this servant first. This servant will help you sit inside and rest, okay?"
"The moment I let go, you'll run away! You'll disappear, I won't let go!"
Perhaps a little tipsy, Lin Qinghe hugged You Rong's waist and naturally threw a tantrum to take advantage of him.
You Rong's face was full of helplessness, "...This servant will not run."
"Then, then..." Lin Qinghe's gaze fell on You Rong's hands. Her fair little hand held his, their fingers intertwined. She looked up at him, narrowed her eyes, and smiled, "Hehe... now you can't run away!"
You Rong pursed his lips and tried to pull his hand away, but Lin Qinghe held it tightly and refused to let go. Helplessly, he had to give up.
He said, "Alright, you can't run away. This servant will help you to the soft couch inside."
"Mm!"
Lin Qinghe nodded heavily and followed You Rong to sit on the soft couch. You Rong said, "Your Highness the Princess, please let go of this servant first. This servant will go and get you a cup of water."
Lin Qinghe looked at You Rong with a wronged expression, as if she was about to cry. Her hand did not loosen its grip at all, but held even tighter.
You Rong sighed deeply, "...This servant will not run. I will be back immediately after getting the water."
Only then did Lin Qinghe slowly loosen her grip, and said in a wronged whisper, "You must come back immediately!"
For some reason, a spot in You Rong's heart softened.
You Rong: "Mm, I'll be back immediately."
You Rong turned to get water, unaware that as soon as he turned, Lin Qinghe's eyes became much clearer, with no trace of the hazy drunkenness from before.
When You Rong brought the water back, Lin Qinghe had already returned to her drunken state.
You Rong handed the teacup to Lin Qinghe. She said in a soft voice, "...Brother, I want You Rong to feed me..."
You Rong: "..."
A moment later, You Rong brought the teacup to Lin Qinghe's lips. She drank the water slowly, a small sip at a time, from his hand.
You Rong looked down at Lin Qinghe, who had abandoned her usual arrogance and was now as docile as a kitten. His expression was puzzled.
Why had she drunk so much wine? And with whom?
After drinking the water, Lin Qinghe pushed You Rong's hand away and said softly, "...I'm done."
"Do you want more?"
Lin Qinghe shook her head, "No."
You Rong put down the teacup and looked at the heavily intoxicated Lin Qinghe. After hesitating, he tried again, "Your Highness the Princess, this servant will help you back to your sleeping quarters to rest?"
Unbeknownst to him, Lin Qinghe's expression changed drastically upon hearing this. She tightly clasped You Rong's arm and said with a sob, "No, don't go... I won't be able to see you often in the future, and this princess is so sad. At least don't go now, You Rong, don't go..."
Not seeing him often, did she mean he was going to serve in Qianqing Palace?
She would feel sad?
You Rong's eyes flickered, and he inexplicably asked, "Your Highness the Princess, can you tell this servant why you would be sad if this servant went to serve in Qianqing Palace, and yet you still want this servant to go?"
Lin Qinghe remained silent, gazing at You Rong, with tears welling up in her eyes. She looked pitiful, on the verge of crying.
You Rong pinched his brow, feeling a surge of annoyance.
She was already drunk, and he was still foolishly hoping to elicit information from a drunkard.
How could he possibly get anything out of her?
Just as You Rong was about to lift Lin Qinghe to escort her back to her sleeping quarters, Lin Qinghe suddenly spoke.
She said in a low voice, "This princess is reluctant to let you go to Qianqing Palace, but you have to go..."
You Rong was stunned, "Why?"
Lin Qinghe lowered her head, a sly glint flashing in her eyes that You Rong did not see.
"You are determined to seek exoneration for the You family. However, this is a matter of great importance. How easy is it to get exoneration? The only person who can do this, the only one who can permit the You family's exoneration, is your father, the Emperor!"
Lin Qinghe paused. "So, no matter how reluctant this princess is, I must send you to serve in Qianqing Palace, to be close to Father, and then help you step by step to gain Father's trust and favor. Once you hold power, no one will dare to look down on you again, and there will be many people in court who will curry favor with you... Only then, when you bring up the matter of exoneration, can it succeed!"
You Rong's heart trembled, and an inexpressible emotion filled his chest.
She deliberately sent him to serve in Qianqing Palace because she had seen through his intentions and only wanted to help him?!
You Rong looked at her with a complex expression on his handsome face.
Lin Qinghe's heart stirred. She seized the opportunity to move closer to him, burying her face in his embrace and hugging him tightly. She mumbled, "You Rong, whatever you want to do, this princess will help you, rest assured... And I said I like you, it's also sincere, sincerely like you..."
You Rong clenched his hands, which hung by his sides. "Your Highness the Princess, this servant is merely a eunuch, and also the son of a traitorous official."
"It doesn't matter! This princess doesn't care. I like you, and that's enough!" Lin Qinghe humbled herself to the extreme. "If you don't like this princess, it's alright. This princess won't force you. I only beg you, please... don't hate this princess, okay?"
You Rong's heart felt as if it had been struck by something.
After a long time, he gently stroked Lin Qinghe's black hair on her back with his warm hand and said in a low voice, "This servant does not hate the Princess..."
But did he like Lin Qinghe?
He didn't know.
As You Rong's words fell, Lin Qinghe clearly heard a system prompt sound in her mind: "Progress bar increased by twenty percent, total progress bar is twenty-two percent."