Someone spent a great deal of money to buy a fist-sized Luminous Pearl from an out-of-town merchant and presented it to the Second Prince, only to discover it was a fake.

The Second Prince felt he had been mocked and ordered his men to arrest the merchant who sold the Luminous Pearl.

The out-of-town merchant was terrified and hurriedly shouted.

"Don’t arrest me! My sister works in the palace! She’s a favorite of the Noble Consort! You can’t arrest me!"

When Li Hao heard this, his interest was immediately piqued. Upon further questioning, he learned the truth.

The out-of-town merchant before him was actually telling the truth. He really did have a sister named Zijuan who served the Imperial Concubine.

Li Hao felt that the name Zijuan sounded very familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

Unfortunately, he was still confined to his residence for self-reflection and couldn’t enter the palace to ask his mother.

「Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the day of the Seventh Prince’s one-month celebration.」

The Emperor held a one-month banquet in the Imperial Palace, inviting members of the imperial family and other relatives to attend.

Even the Second Prince and the Fifth Prince, who were still confined for self-reflection, were granted a special pardon. They were allowed to enter the palace for the banquet to offer their blessings to their newborn seventh brother.

Hua Manman’s injuries had mostly healed. Normal walking and movement were no longer a problem, but some scars on her body had not yet faded and looked rather unsightly.

Feihua Zhenren had prepared a scar-removing ointment for her.

She was now applying the ointment daily, but it would take some time before the effects became visible.

To hide the scars on her body, she had deliberately changed into an outfit with a high collar. Wide sleeves covered the backs of her hands, revealing only her fingertips, and a long skirt trailed behind her, offering just a glimpse of her shoes as she walked.

Her entire body was wrapped up tightly.

This way, the scars were indeed hidden, but it was hot!

On the way to the banquet at the Imperial Palace, Hua Manman pushed open the carriage window to let the wind rush in.

She pulled open her collar with one hand, allowing the breeze to blow into her clothes.

Li Ji couldn’t help but ask, "Do you want to go back and change?"

Hua Manman grumbled, "No."

’I can die from the heat, but I absolutely cannot die from being ugly.’

Li Ji heard her inner thoughts and tried to comfort her.

"The scars on your body aren’t ugly."

Hua Manman looked at him darkly. "Are you serious?"

Li Ji said without a change in expression, "Of course I’m serious. Every part of you is perfect. Even your scars are adorable."

Hua Manman’s expression gradually turned strange.

She couldn’t help but recall how, when they were in bed, that damn dog of a man loved to kiss those few scars of hers repeatedly. He would only stop after they had turned red from his kisses.

’Does that damn dog of a man have a scar fetish?’

Li Ji, who heard her inner thoughts: "..."

’A scar fetish, my ass!’

’Wasn’t I just trying to say a few sweet things to make her happy?’

’Did she have to twist it like this?!’

’This woman just can’t be coaxed!’

Li Ji reached out and pinched her cheek. "I’m not interested in scars. I just think that whenever I kiss the scars on your body, you become exceptionally sensitive. I like seeing you lose your composure like that. It’s very... delectable."

As he finished speaking, he even stuck out the tip of his tongue and licked his lips, as if savoring an endless aftertaste.

Hua Manman blushed furiously at his explicit words, while simultaneously cursing him wildly in her mind.

’Li Ergou really lives up to his name. He’s such a dog!’

The carriage stopped in front of the palace gates, and the two of them disembarked one after another.

Only then did Hua Manman realize. She clearly hadn’t said anything just now, so how could Prince Zhao have guessed what she was thinking?

’Could he really have a Mind Reading Technique?’

--This was the second time this thought had occurred to her.

She subconsciously turned her head to look at the man beside her.

Li Ji looked down at her. "Why are you just standing there?"

Hua Manman shook her head. "It’s nothing."

’No way. How could someone in this world really possess a Mind Reading Technique?’

’I must be overthinking things.’

Li Ji narrowed his eyes. ’I’ve been so obvious, how can she still not guess the truth?’

’What a little fool.’

At the one-month banquet, the Emperor publicly announced the promotion of Hua Qingqing to the rank of Zhaorong and officially bestowed the name Qiong upon the Seventh Prince.

Qiong means "fine jade," which is a very auspicious meaning.

Hua Manman couldn’t help but think of Prince Zhao’s name.

The character for his name, Ji, was not a very auspicious one in the traditional sense.

It symbolized silence, desolation, and loneliness.

In Buddhism, it was even linked to death.

Under normal circumstances, very few people would use this character for a child’s name.

While everyone’s attention was on the Seventh Prince, Hua Manman quietly asked the man beside her.

"Who gave you your name?"

Li Ji watched the joyous scene before them and replied nonchalantly.

"The Saint gave it to me."

Hua Manman froze. Why would the Emperor give Prince Zhao such a name?

Li Ji explained.

"’Expansive and free of worries, silent and free of thoughts.’ The Saint hoped that I would be as the poem describes: peaceful and quiet, with a tranquil and detached mind."

After speaking, he curled his lip slightly, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.

’The Emperor was ostensibly giving me a name, but in reality, he was using the opportunity to admonish Duke Zhen.’

’He wanted Duke Zhen to be peaceful and quiet, with a tranquil and detached mind—to relinquish military power when the time came and no longer cling to authority.’

’Now that Duke Zhen is dead and military power has returned to the Emperor’s hands, the Emperor must be very satisfied.’

Hua Manman didn’t understand the twists and turns behind all this.

’She simply felt that that damned man’s name was all wrong.’

’With his troublemaking personality, he shouldn’t be called Li Ji. He should be called Li the Meddler.’

Hua Manman mulled it over.

’Huh? It has the same low-brow ring to it as Li Ergou.’

’As expected, the name that suited him best was still Li Ergou.’

Li Ji: "..."

He took a sip of wine, his face expressionless.

’How dare she call me Li Ergou?’

’When we get back tonight, I’ll make her cry and call me ’big brother’.’

Taking advantage of the crowd at the banquet, the Second Prince, Li Hao, secretly moved to Xianfei’s side.

Having not seen her son for some time, Xianfei missed him dearly.

She was very happy to see him here and pulled him aside to shower him with concern.

After they finished catching up, Li Hao began to ask Xianfei about Zijuan.

This person, Xianfei, neither had the illustrious family background of the Lady, nor the stunning beauty of Consort Liu. Whether in terms of looks, talent, or family background, she could only be considered upper-middle tier in the harem.

Logically, someone like her should have been quite inconspicuous.

And yet, for so many years, her position in the harem had remained stable. Not only did she give birth to the Second Prince for the Emperor, but she also managed to stay in the Emperor’s thoughts.

Even if he didn’t often choose her tablet for the night, he would never forget her share whenever there were good things to be distributed.

Such a woman was inevitably intelligent.

Xianfei knew who Zijuan was, but she didn’t directly tell her son about her. Instead, in a soft and gentle voice, she told him to stay at home and rest easy, and not to meddle in other people’s affairs anymore.

Xianfei had been in the palace for many years and knew well that the more one does, the more mistakes one makes. Often, doing nothing at all was the wisest decision.

She did not want her son to be drawn into the vortex of Consort Liu’s framing.