ASTRP -Chapter 35 The Prince Returns to the Feng Residence, Jinge Enters the Palace

Go to the palace today? For what?

Feng Jinge lay back down on the bed, pulled the blanket over herself, turned over, and muttered sulkily:

“Court is only held every two days. There’s no morning court today—what am I going to the palace for?”

Seeing her get up only to lie back down again, Qing Shan was fuming inside. “There may be no morning court today, but you still have to go to the palace to review memorials.”

Feng Jinge refused outright. “Not doing it.”

Being a prince meant she couldn’t even sleep properly—might as well be a commoner.

Qing Shan wanted to explode, but he was afraid of provoking her into quitting altogether.

So… he endured it.

Once she and the prince switched back, he’d settle the score properly.

Suppressing all his anger, Qing Shan said gently, “Miss Feng, if you don’t get up now, the sun will be setting soon.”

Hearing his tone, Feng Jinge pressed her lips together. In the end, she didn’t want to make things difficult for him.

“I’ll get up. Go wait outside.”

Her sudden compliance caught Qing Shan off guard, but he quickly replied, “Alright.”

“The clothes are here, and everything for washing up is ready.”

“I’ll wait outside.”

With that, he left.

When the door shut, Feng Jinge sat up, staring blankly ahead, her eyes unfocused.

When would she ever get her own life back?!

When could she live like a rich lady—eating, sleeping, and repeating without a care…

After lamenting internally for a while, she slowly got up.

She dressed and washed up in one smooth sequence, then opened the door.

Looking up, she saw Qing Shan standing outside like a statue.

He was about to speak, but Feng Jinge beat him to it. “Where’s your prince?”

She walked toward the outer hall as she spoke.

Qing Shan followed behind. “His Highness is in the study.”

Feng Jinge asked again, “Has Su Xiu come back yet?”

Qing Shan almost said yes, but then remembered what Su Xiu had told him on the way back.

He changed his answer without missing a beat. “Young Master Su hasn’t returned yet.”

“Still not back?”

Feng Jinge stopped and turned to look at him. “Did he not come back all night, or did he return in the middle of the night and leave again this morning?”

Qing Shan replied calmly, “He came back in the middle of the night, then left again.”

Feng Jinge gritted her teeth.

That stingy miser!

Just to avoid her, he wouldn’t even stay in the prince’s residence!

Her six hundred taels of silver…

Crying inside, she walked into the outer hall, her gaze immediately drawn to the dishes on the table.

Qing Shan seized the moment. “Your Highness, please eat first.”

“After the meal, we’ll head to the palace.”

While he was speaking, Feng Jinge had already picked up her chopsticks.

With delicious food in front of her, who cared about anything else?

Food first.

Inside the study.

Today, Xiao Jinghan was dressed in a purple gown, with hair ornaments adorning his updo, giving him a somewhat delicate and charming appearance.

He held a book with both hands, looking completely at ease.

Meanwhile, Su Xiu couldn’t sit still.

He sat down, then stood up again, pacing back and forth across the room.

Looking at Xiao Jinghan, his expression conflicted, he opened his mouth as if to speak.

But in the end, he said nothing.

Instead, he let out a heavy sigh.

“Su Xiu,” Xiao Jinghan called.

Su Xiu immediately looked up.

Without glancing at him, Xiao Jinghan kept his eyes on the book. “How about we make a bet?”

Su Xiu looked puzzled. “What kind of bet?”

Xiao Jinghan said lightly, “Let’s bet on the final outcome of those six hundred taels.”

“The outcome?” Su Xiu scoffed. “Isn’t it obvious? No money, but I’ve got one life.”

Xiao Jinghan mercilessly poured cold water over him. “I’m afraid you’ll end up with neither money nor life.”

“…”

Su Xiu was annoyed. “Hey, whose side are you on?”

“We’re on the same side, yet you keep speaking for that outsider!”

Xiao Jinghan glanced at him and said coldly, “Honest words grate on the ears.”

Su Xiu huffed. “Honest words? More like you’re speaking for her because you’re using her body.”

Just then, there was a knock on the study door.

“Enter.”

The door opened, and Ning An walked in.

“Your Highness, Miss Feng has already taken a carriage to the palace.”

“She’s definitely gone?” Su Xiu asked anxiously.

Ning An nodded.

Su Xiu instantly relaxed, patting his chest. “Good… good that she’s gone.”

“But…”

That single word made his heart leap back into his throat.

Ning An glanced at Xiao Jinghan, hesitating.

Seeing his reluctance, Su Xiu grew impatient. “What’s with you? Since when did you start speaking in half-sentences? Just say it!”

Ignoring him, Ning An looked at his prince, a trace of complexity appearing on his usually cold face.

Xiao Jinghan said calmly, “Speak.”

Ning An immediately reported, “But right after Miss Feng left, a servant from the Feng residence came, saying Minister Feng wants Miss Feng to return home.”

“He also said that if she doesn’t return, she’ll bear the consequences.”

Ning An’s gaze was complicated. Right now, his prince was Feng Jinge.

Given the Feng family’s domineering attitude, the prince would surely be targeted if he returned.

Ning An hadn’t forgotten that day when their souls had switched.

The prince, in Feng Jinge’s body, had been locked in a dilapidated room, while the Feng family pointed fingers at him…

Su Xiu raised an eyebrow at Xiao Jinghan and teased, “Miss Feng, going back or not?”

Now that he was Feng Jinge, naturally, he had to return to the Feng residence.

Carved dragons and jade phoenixes, red walls and green tiles—the palace stood layer upon layer.

The sedan chair swayed gently as Feng Jinge sat upright, straight as a pine.

On her handsome face was Xiao Jinghan’s signature expression—cold as frost, eyes deep and unreadable, exuding an aura that kept strangers at a distance.

Her gaze drifted occasionally as she took in the palace surroundings.

Last time she came, it was night—only the lantern-lit paths were visible.

Now, under the blazing sun, everything could be seen clearly.

Her inner evaluation: one word—luxurious.

If she had to sum it up in a sentence: every corner smelled of money.

The imperial palace was truly something else.

No wonder so many people fought tooth and nail to get in, despite all the schemes and deceit within.

As she was thinking this, the sedan chair came to a stop.

“Your Highness, we’ve arrived at the Imperial Study.”

Feng Jinge gathered her thoughts and was just about to step down—

A eunuch rushed down the steps, dropped to his knees before the sedan, and said between breaths:

“Greetings, Regent Prince.”

“Your Highness, His Majesty has gone to Mingci Palace to pay respects to the Empress Dowager. His Majesty said that if you arrive, you may go there to find him.”

The little emperor wasn’t in the study. Normally, she could begin handling affairs and simply have someone inform him.

So why insist she go to the Empress Dowager?

Could there be some kind of trap waiting for her?

A moment later, inside Mingci Palace.

Four palace maids stood at the entrance, two on each side.