Chapter 985: Chapter 985: Secret Rendezvous

The Fourth Prince led Ruru behind a large tree and pointed forward, indicating the hollow was ahead.

Just as the two were about to circle around, they heard someone softly speaking from behind the tree.

A man’s voice carried a hint of sighs: "I thought you had long forgotten me."

Then a woman’s voice followed, "How could I forget you? You never came to propose, and my parents forced me to marry. What could I do?"

The Fourth Prince’s face changed dramatically upon hearing the woman’s voice and quickly reached out to cover Ruru’s ears.

Ruru turned to glare at him and pulled his hand away.

The Fourth Prince simply pulled Ruru back.

Ruru didn’t quite understand what the two were saying and quietly asked the Fourth Prince, "Who are they? Aren’t we catching rabbits?"

The Fourth Prince shook his head forcefully and whispered, "Quickly, let’s go!"

Ruru wasn’t dumb; she vaguely felt there might be something wrong with what those two were saying.

Her sister-in-law once told her not to inquire much about affairs in the palace, many things heard should be treated as never heard.

She bowed her head and obediently followed the Fourth Prince as they walked briskly forward.

The Fourth Prince was feeling both anxious and angry.

The woman speaking behind the tree, though he didn’t see her face, he definitely didn’t mistake it — it was his mother’s voice.

He just didn’t know who the man was.

One thing was certain, that man definitely wasn’t the Holy Emperor!

The Fourth Prince was already eleven years old and understood many things.

He knew very well that his mother was meeting with another man; if this were discovered, his mother would be doomed.

What he was grateful for now was that Ruru hadn’t recognized the woman as his mother.

Indeed, unless you are very familiar, it’s difficult to recognize someone just by their voice.

In his anxiety, the Fourth Prince didn’t pay much attention to the ground and stepped on a broken tree branch, which creaked underfoot.

A man’s voice came from behind the tree, "Who’s there?"

The Fourth Prince grabbed Ruru and ran.

Fortunately, the Fourth Prince had been here during the day and was somewhat familiar with the terrain, pulling Ruru along as they sprinted. They soon reached where the little eunuch and Xiao Lu were waiting.

Ruru took hold of Xiao Lu, and the Fourth Prince took hold of the little eunuch, and they ran quickly away.

Behind the tree, Consort Rong’s face turned pale; after she heard the commotion, she also heard footsteps.

There really was someone just now!

She clutched the man’s clothes, anxiously saying, "What do we do, what do we do?"

"This is a deadly matter!"

The man remained relatively calm, "You go back to the bedchamber first, I’ll go take a look."

As he spoke, he slipped out from behind the tree and began to chase.

After chasing for a distance, he reached a fork in the road and didn’t know which way to go.

Master Wu designed the garden, with roads leading in all directions, like a maze.

The man frowned and stood in place for a moment; just as he was about to leave, he stepped on something soft.

He bent over and picked it up to find it was a sachet.

It was filled with some spices, emitting a not particularly pleasant aroma.

The man squinted, stuffed the sachet into his bosom, looked around, and quickly walked away.

Ruru and the Fourth Prince, along with their attendants, ran as fast as they could to the gate outside Ruru’s courtyard, where they stood panting by the wall.

After catching his breath, the Fourth Prince pulled Ruru aside and whispered, "Today’s events, you must not tell anyone."

"Don’t tell your father, your brother, your sister-in-law, or your brother Qi and You Er."

The Fourth Prince had been classmates with Ruru for several years and often played together. He knew her very well and understood that, for Ruru, her family was the most important.