Su Lin’s was just about to invite everyone to be seated when he turned around and collided directly with Jun Yichen’s pair of killing eyes.
When he looked closer, however, Jun Yichen had already resumed his usual smiling composure.
He let out a long inner sigh, figuring he must have simply misread the situation. He and the Seventh Prince shared no grievances, past or present; there was simply no reason for the prince to harbor murderous intent toward him.
Gu Ci spoke a step ahead of him. “Your Highness, let’s take a seat,” he said, taking the initiative to sit down directly opposite Su Jinyao.
Since the stone table was round, his placement left only two available seats, both right beside Su Jinyao.
Jun Yichen had no objections. So long as Gu Ci wasn’t the one sitting next to Su Jinyao, he was more than happy to have them kept apart.
Gu Ci calculated quietly that this was a marvelous opportunity to nudge the two of them together. Judging by the look Su Jinyao had given the Seventh Prince earlier, there seemed to be real potential here.
As he poured tea for everyone at the table, Gu Ci asked offhandedly, “What kind of hobbies and interests does Miss Su usually pursue?” Knowing one’s opponent was key to successfully playing matchmaker.
Su Jinyao smiled brightly. “Lord Gu can just call me Jinyao. I don’t have any extraordinary hobbies, I mostly just like skimming through medical texts and experimenting with recipes. They’re rather trivial pursuits, really.” Her tone remained poised, gracious, and articulate.
In typical web novels of this vintage, eight out of ten female leads possessed uncanny medical skills.
Though a cascade of inward complaints played out in his mind, Gu Ci wore an expression of well-calibrated astonishment, as if entirely caught off guard by her proficiency.
“Miss Su is skilled in medicine as well? That is truly remarkable.”
A soft flush bloomed across Su Jinyao’s cheeks at the praise. “Not at all, it’s merely a superficial dabbling. You flatter me, Lord Gu.”
Seizing the opening, Gu Ci reached out to pull Jun Yichen’s fan-wielding hand onto the stone table, flashing a reassuring smile. “His Highness has been feeling rather out of sorts lately. Might I ask Miss Su to check his pulse and see if anything is amiss?”
Jun Yichen frowned slightly, an expression of profound confusion crossing his features as he looked at Gu Ci.
Gu Ci met his gaze with a silent plea. Your Highness, Miss Su is well-versed in medical principles, just let her take a look. Won’t you please agree?
A complex web of irritation and helplessness churned within Jun Yichen. Had A-Ci developed a favorable impression of Miss Su so quickly? He was practically tripping over himself to elevate her, even willing to use me as a stepping stone.
Could it be that, in Gu Ci’s eyes, a woman he had met for the very first time today carried more weight than someone who had shared life-or-death struggles with him?
Or perhaps it was because Su Jinyao possessed such ravishing beauty? Ah, of course, A-Ci had always harbored a soft spot for fair and lovely women.
Heh…
The thought drew a succession of bitter, silent jeers across Jun Yichen’s mind.
Su Lin’an was the first to detect the volatile, abnormal tension crackling between them. Eager to defuse the situation, he chimed in with an awkward laugh, “Jinyao’s medical knowledge doesn’t run deep enough; she certainly lacks the standing to feel the pulse of an imperial prince. Let’s not have you create extra trouble, Gu Ci.” As he spoke, he frantically shot warning glances at his younger sister.
Catching her brother’s warning glare, Su Jinyao hastily offered a conciliatory smile. “Indeed. I merely dabble a little out of personal amusement; it would be quite inappropriate for me to presume to diagnose His Highness.”
At that moment, Jun Yichen spoke up. Casting a deep, lingering gaze at Gu Ci seated beside him, he turned a smiling face toward Su Jinyao. “Miss Su is overthinking it. I merely felt it inappropriate to burden you with such a minor matter. However, since A-Ci has already brought it up on my behalf, I suppose I should trouble Miss Su after all.” With those words, he rolled back his sleeve a fraction, resting his wrist upon the stone table before her.
A brief look of surprise crossed Su Jinyao’s face, but she promptly placed her fingertips against Jun Yichen’s pulse point to check his condition.
Within moments, she withdrew her hand and offered a reassuring smile. “His Highness is in perfectly fine health. Any recent discomfort is likely just the result of exhaustion, he simply needs to ensure he gets adequate rest moving forward.”
The collective tension gripping the rest of the party instantly dissolved into shared relief.
Gu Ci alone furrowed his brow. When he had gripped Jun Yichen’s wrist moments earlier, he had distinctly felt a surging, aggressive wave of internal energy violently churning within the prince’s body. When he tried to probe further, however, Jun Yichen had instantly pulled his hand away.
In truth, Gu Ci had attempted to seize the moment to check on the prince’s true physical state. Hearing Su Lin’an’s sister declare him entirely healthy did nothing to ease his mind; if anything, it deepened his suspicions. Neither the prince’s chronically pallid complexion nor that chaotic, rampaging internal energy hinted at a normal constitution.
Jun Yichen absorbed every shifting micro-expression crossing Gu Ci’s face. Noticing the heavy crease between the other man’s brows, a cold sinking feeling settled in his chest, it appeared his split-second gamble to manipulate his internal energy had still left traces for Gu Ci to pick up on.
Intent on diverting Gu Ci’s attention elsewhere, Jun Yichen let his gaze darken slightly as an enigmatic, pointed smile touched the corners of his lips. “Didn’t Young Master Su mention earlier that he had someone special to introduce to A-Ci? Where is this person? Could it be they were delayed and failed to arrive?”
Just as intended, Gu Ci instantly took the bait, turning a puzzled look around the perimeter of the pavilion. Finding no one approaching, he tilted his head in confusion. “That’s right—Su Lin’an, where is the person you were talking about?”
Cornered by the inquiry, Su Lin’an instinctively flicked a nervous glance toward his sister before catching himself and offering an awkward, strained cough. “Ah, well, it seems they were held up by something unexpected. Another time! I’ll definitely introduce you another day, haha.”
The Seventh Prince is deliberately setting a trap for me, he realized in a panic. If he admitted that the person he had intended to introduce to Gu Ci was none other than his own sister, the implications would be disastrous. A young woman of high birth being secretly introduced to an unmarried noble youth behind closed doors, if leaked, would spell utter ruin for Jinyao’s reputation and drag the entire Prime Minister’s estate through the mud.
A flash of sharp understanding crossed Jun Yichen’s eyes. He had known all along that the sibling pair were harboring ulterior motives regarding Gu Ci, though he remained uncertain whether this was Su Jinyao’s individual scheme or an orchestrated move by the Prime Minister’s household.
A cold chuckle echoed in the prince’s mind. Since they dared harbor such inappropriate ambitions, he had no intention of showing mercy.
In an offhand tone, as though remarking on the weather, he observed, “Is that so? Had Young Master Su not clarified, I genuinely would have assumed the person you wished to introduce to A-Ci was none other than Lady Su.”
The words struck like a thunderbolt, instantly draining the color from the faces of the three other individuals present.
Panicking entirely, Su Lin’an scrambled to his feet, waving his hands frantically as he stammered, “Good heavens, no! I would never make a mockery of my own sister’s reputation! Your Highness, you are gravely mistaken!” With that, he dropped into a deep, sweeping bow before the prince.
Remaining unhurriedly seated, Jun Yichen took a leisurely sip of his tea before offering a faint, amused smile. “Young Master Su would do well to remember the gravity of these matters. After all, if such a misunderstanding were exploited by political rivals of the Prime Minister’s estate, well, the allegations of attempting to privately secure alliances with military heavyweights through familial ties.” He left the sentence intentionally unfinished.
The unsaid implications crashed over Su Lin’an with crushing weight.
Trembling violently in every limb, he sank straight to his knees on the stone flags, kowtowing in terror. “Your Highness is wise! This humble subject harbors no such treacherous intent!” He pressed his forehead flat against the cold stone, too terrified to twitch a muscle.
Treating the spectacle with the casual detachment of a casual observer discussing routine affairs, Jun Yichen chuckled softly. “Why is Young Master Su taking things so heavily? I merely offered a friendly reminder. Since you insist your intended acquaintance was someone else entirely, there is surely no need to prostrate yourself in panic, is there?” His gaze flicked down, watching Su Lin’an with a chilling, predatory amusement.