Princess Lingchen sat down beside her mother as she ate. She glanced at the seat next to her mother and frowned. The Emperor has not yet arrived. She started to wonder if everything was alright.

"Your father went with the general to visit Prince Lu Wei," the Empress whispered. She had been watching her daughter and knew that the princess was worried for the Emperor. "He will be here soon."

The Crown Princess nodded. Her gaze was watching everyone cautiously. Looking at the way everyone was having fun, the princess knew that no one had heard about Prince Lu Wei's accident. The princes gathered around as they boasted about their hunts and the officials listen to their tale attentively.

After a while, the princess stood up with Ah Zhen's help.

Seconds later, Prince Fei Cui stood up and walked towards the princess with a cup of wine in his hand. His face reddened as he was starting to get drunk. "Princess Lingchen," he spoke with a broad smile on his face. "It's a happy occasion today. You should join us and drink."

The princess glanced at Ah Zhen, and immediately, an attendant came with a cup of wine for her. Princess Lingchen held the cup in her hand and spoke, "I hope you enjoy your stay in Da Cheng, Prince Fei Cui." She lifted the cup in her hand and drank in one shot.

Seeing that Prince Fei Cui began to talk to the princess, the others started to approach her as well.

"Princess Lingchen," Prince Huo called. "I was heartbroken when you left me alone in the woods."

The princess felt her mouth started to twitch when Prince Huo began to talk to her. If Mingyue were around, she would burst into a fit of a laugh. Princess Lingchen had thought that Prince Huo was charismatic, she did not expect that every time the prince opened up his mouth to speak, his words would able to make her cringe.

"Prince Huo, I heard you did not catch anything at all," Prince Yu of Eastern Zhou patted him on his shoulder. Then, he turned to look at the princess with a charming smile on his face.

"My prey went away before I could take any action," Prince Huo said with a heavy sigh. He turned to the Princess with a teasing smile.

Prince Yu seemed to notice the way Prince Huo was looking at the princess. "Is there something going on between you and the princess?"

"You overthink, Prince Yu," Princess Lingchen spoke before Prince Huo could say something else that would make her s.h.i.+ver. "Princes," she smiled diplomatically. "This feast was prepared by the Emperor for you. I hope you will enjoy your time here."

The princes tried to socialize with the princess. Their conversation revolves around politics, arts, and literature. Each of the princes tried to charmed the Crown Princess with their knowledge. Once in a while, Prince Huo would take his chance to flirt with the princess.

After a while, a eunuch announced of the Emperor's arrival with his high pitched voice. The Emperor walked into the are with the general trailing after him. Princess Lingchen saw that the Emperor's expression was not that good despite the faint smile on his face. She wondered if everything was alright with Prince Lu Wei.

Immediately, the music stopped. The servants went down on their knees. The officials and royalties lowered their head into a bow to greet the Emperor. The Emperor then sat beside the Empress and waved his hand to allow everyone to rise. The festivity then resumed.

"I haven't seen Prince Lu Wei around," one of the princes spoke.

"He was unable to join the feast," Prince Yu said. "I heard he had an accident during the hunt. He was thrown by his horse."

Princess Lingchen listened to their conversation on Prince Lu Wei and glanced at the Emperor. She knew that the Emperor had chosen to keep the news about Prince Lu Wei a secret, but the princess can't help but to worry. A frown appeared on her forehead. She had seen Prince Lu Wei's injury while they were in the woods. The wound on his stomach was terrible. If Prince Lu Wei did not encounter her group near the river, he would definitely die from his injury.

Seeing that everyone attention was towards the Emperor, Princess Lingchen quietly sneaked away with Ah Zhen to visit the prince. Her steps halted when she saw her cousin; Prince Jing stood in front of her.