ARTTEDSBGT Chapter 117

Xiao Yan couldn’t resist any longer. One day, when he had some free time, he decided to visit the Grand Princess’s residence. However, upon arriving, the Grand Princess informed him that Li Zhizhi was not home that day; she had gone out with some friends.

Xiao Yan instinctively asked, “Who did she go out with?”

The Grand Princess, who was reviewing some account books, responded, “With Jun’er and that girl from the Su family. They went to the outskirts of the capital to fly kites. A’yang also went with them.”

Hearing this, Xiao Yan immediately frowned, his expression turning displeased. “Yang Jun?”

The Grand Princess acknowledged, seemingly picking up on something in his tone. She looked up from the account book, shifting her gaze to him, and asked, “What’s wrong? I sense you have some reservations about Jun’er?”

Xiao Yan did have reservations about Yang Jun but felt it inappropriate to explain them to the Grand Princess. Hesitating, he said, “Yang Jun has lived in the southern frontier for a long time and is practically considered a foreigner. The customs and traditions there are very different from those in the Central Plains. I just feel…”

Hearing this, the Grand Princess couldn’t help but smile and said, “Are you afraid she’ll lead Zhizhi and A’yang astray? You’re overthinking things, child. Do you remember when you first met Zhizhi—”

“Aunt!” Xiao Yan felt his scalp tingle at the mention of those past events, regretting it deeply. He explained helplessly, “I didn’t mean anything else.”

He then changed the subject. “I heard someone came to propose a marriage match for Zhizhi?”

“It was the wife of the Duke of Yi,” the Grand Princess replied, turning a page in the account book. “She was proposing the youngest son of the Minister of War’s family…”

She paused her actions, suddenly looking up at him suspiciously, and asked, “How did you know about this?”

Xiao Yan calmly replied, “Zhizhi told me.”

The Grand Princess chuckled and said, “She even told you that, it seems your relationship with her has indeed improved.”

If this had been said on any other day, Xiao Yan might have secretly rejoiced, but remembering the things Li Zhizhi had said at the time, his heart was heavy. He cautiously asked the Grand Princess, “Aunt, you wouldn’t have agreed, would you?”

The Grand Princess responded ambiguously, “Marriage is the most important event in a woman’s life. It should be Zhizhi’s decision. As long as she is willing, I, as her mother, will have nothing more to say.”

Xiao Yan frowned and couldn’t help but say, “She’s just come of age, she’s still very young.”

The Grand Princess picked up a grape, smiling as she said, “That’s why I’m not in a hurry. We can take our time to find a suitable match. Our Zhizhi is so wonderful, there’s no worry about not finding a good husband.”

Xiao Yan: …

…

There is a pavilion called “Ten Mile Pavilion” in the suburbs of the capital. At this time, the madder gra.s.s was lush, and the willows were dense. The End of Heat had pa.s.sed, and in one more day, it would be the end of the summer heat. The capital would begin to enter autumn.

Li Zhizhi sat in the pavilion enjoying the cool breeze, looking at the distance where Xiao Rulei and Su Tangyu were flying kites, laughing happily. Yang Jun walked over and asked, “You’re not playing anymore?”

Li Zhizhi rested her chin on her hand, glanced at her, and smiled, “I’m a bit tired, out of energy, so I’m taking this opportunity to relax here.”

“You…” Yang Jun seemed like she wanted to say something but ended up smiling and shaking her head. Today, she was wearing a moon-white brocade robe and a jade crown, looking just like a young n.o.bleman out on an excursion.

Li Zhizhi asked curiously, “Why do you always dress like this?”

Yang Jun tugged at her sleeve and said, “It’s easier to move around like this. The clothes of women in Dayan are too c.u.mbersome. To be honest, the last time I went to see the Grand Princess, I almost tripped over myself. If I had really fallen flat on my face, it would have been quite a joke.”

Both of them laughed, chatted a bit more, and then Yang Jun suddenly sighed. Li Zhizhi asked, “What’s wrong?”

“The old lady is really quite annoying,” Yang Jun said, looking up at the clouds in the sky with resignation. “I grew up in the southern regions, and for so many years, my mother never rushed me about marriage. But ever since I came to Dayan, that old lady has been pressing me three times a day, it’s really giving me a headache.”

She sighed, “If she weren’t an elder, I would have…”

Just then, Yang Jun abruptly stopped mid-sentence, her gaze fixed on something behind Li Zhizhi. Li Zhizhi instinctively wanted to turn around, but Yang Jun pulled her back and said, “Don’t move.”

Li Zhizhi indeed stayed still, her expression puzzled. “What’s going on?”

Yang Jun gave a mysterious smile and said, “Do you remember what I told you last time?”

Li Zhizhi was momentarily stunned but quickly understood her meaning. Yang Jun lowered her voice and said, “Now, if I reach out and touch your face, can you guess…”

As she spoke, she raised her hand and reached over, just about to touch Li Zhizhi’s temple when suddenly her wrist was seized with force. Immediately, a stern and urgent voice came from beside them, “What are you trying to do?!”

Yang Jun felt as if her wrist was about to be crushed. Her expression twisted in pain, but she still managed to give Li Zhizhi a meaningful look. However, in Xiao Yan’s eyes, this seemed like flirtation, which only fueled his anger. He tightened his grip, as if he wanted to break her wrist.

Yang Jun gasped in pain, thinking to herself that this was a tiger’s whisker she really shouldn’t have touched.

Li Zhizhi saw the look of pain on her face and immediately stood up to intervene, saying, “Crown Prince Brother, you’re hurting her!”

Xiao Yan furrowed his brows tightly, turning his head to look at her with great displeasure, and said, “He laid hands on you, this is a rude scoundrel, and you’re still speaking for him?”

To his surprise, Li Zhizhi looked surprised and said, “It’s no big deal.”

“No big deal?” His phoenix eyes grew colder, and Xiao Yan’s voice became chilly as he pressed her, “He was improper with you, and if that’s no big deal, then what is?”

“But…” Li Zhizhi blinked and hesitated a little, saying, “But she’s Sister Jun.”

Xiao Yan was stunned for a moment. He hadn’t looked closely just now, only noticing that it was a man. Hearing Lí Zhizhi’s words, he finally turned his attention to the “scoundrel’s” appearance. Sure enough, it was Yang Jun. She had a hint of a smile and surprise on her face as she explained, “Your Highness, you misunderstood.”

She had expected him to let go of her at this point, or at least show some embarra.s.sment. However, Xiao Yan merely stared at her with a cold expression, his gaze freezing, as he said, “I did not misunderstand. Regardless of gender, touching someone without their consent is an offense. Although you are from Nanjiang, now that you are in Dayan, you must understand Dayan’s etiquette.”

After saying this, he finally released Yang Jun’s hand. Yang Jun rubbed her wrist and looked down to see a bright red imprint of five fingers, with some bruising at the edges, showing just how angry the Crown Prince had been.

Yang Jun inwardly clicked her tongue, thinking how jealous this Crown Prince was, even more so than the other two.

Li Zhizhi looked at Xiao Yan and asked, “Crown Prince Brother, why are you here?”

Xiao Yan, in a bad mood, was unwilling to admit that he had come because of Li Zhizhi and coldly replied, “I came to find A’yang.”

“Oh,” Li Zhizhi’s face showed realization as she turned to Xiao Rulei, who was not far away, and waved her over.

Xiao Rulei, who was having a great time and was covered in sweat, saw Xiao Yan and immediately thought he was there to drag her back, causing her smile to vanish and her expression to turn sorrowful.

Seeing her reaction, Xiao Yan’s mood soured even more, but he could not lose his temper. He forced himself to remain calm, his handsome face darkened with anger. Yang Shen and Su Tangyu looked somewhat apprehensive and, after greeting, stood aside, not daring to speak.

The atmosphere grew slightly tense. Li Zhizhi’s eyes shifted, and she asked with a smile, “Brother, can you fly a kite?”

Seeing that she was speaking to him, Xiao Yan’s expression softened a little. After a moment of hesitation, he replied, “I used to play with kites.”

“Perfect,” Li Zhizhi handed him a kite with a smile and said, “I can never seem to get it to fly. Could you help me, Brother?”

Xiao Yan took the kite and naturally did not refuse. He said in a calm tone, “This is not difficult.”

So, the group stayed in the pavilion, watching His Royal Highness the Crown Prince fly the kite in the distance. His movements were awkward and somewhat clumsy. Xiao Rulei was shouting instructions beside him, directing him on what to do. Xiao Yan, annoyed, scolded her softly to be quiet.

Li Zhizhi propped her chin with one hand, munching on pine nut candy. A gentle breeze blew, and she slightly squinted her eyes, looking like a lazy cat. Yang Jun leaned in slightly and whispered in her ear, “The prince, just because of your words, started flying a kite. Isn’t that a sign of affection?”

Li Zhizhi chuckled and glanced at her, her bright eyes clear and sparkling with a somewhat innocent charm. She smiled and said, “Sister Jun must be mistaken. The prince sees me as a younger sister. If A’yang asked him to fly a kite, he would certainly agree. This has nothing to do with affection.”

“Impossible,” Yang Jun said with disbelief, pointing to her eyes. “That’s absolutely impossible. I’ve never been wrong. Just wait, I’ll think of another way.”

—

The days pa.s.sed uneventfully, and before they knew it, autumn had arrived in the capital. The weather had finally cooled down from its previous heat, and the ice basins and seven-leaf fans in the manor had been removed, not to be used again until next summer.

One day, while Li Zhizhi was conversing with the Grand Princess, a servant entered from outside, holding a post with great respect. “A messenger from the Ning Palace has brought a letter for Miss.”

“Ning Mansion?”

Both the Grand Princess and Li Zhizhi were a bit surprised. They exchanged glances, and the Grand Princess smiled, “Could it be that the Princess Ning invites you for tea? She has mentioned you several times since you made tea for her during her last visit to our manor. She praised you endlessly and even told me recently that she wanted to invite you to the palace.”

Hearing this, Li Zhizhi took the letter and briefly glanced at it. She raised her eyebrows slightly and shook her head, “It’s not the Princess’s letter.”

The Grand Princess was somewhat surprised and asked, “Then who wrote it?”

“It’s from the heir,” Li Zhizhi handed the letter to her, “The heir is organizing a gathering and has invited me to partic.i.p.ate.”

The Grand Princess examined the letter carefully and smiled, “I’ve heard that the heir is quite talented, with extensive knowledge and often gathers with scholars and poets. Many of the scholars from Mingyuan have attended his gatherings. I didn’t expect he would extend an invitation to you.”

The Grand Princess was quite pleased and said, “In that case, you should go and broaden your horizons.”

Li Zhizhi agreed to go, looking at the words on the letter with increasing delight. The gathering was to focus mainly on poetry and painting, and attendees were required to compose a poem and bring a painting of their own creation to exchange and appreciate.

Reciting poetry is nothing extraordinary, but this self-made painting is quite special.

Li Zhizhi returned to the study, took out the painting she had made earlier, and examined it for a moment before handing it to the maid. She instructed, “Have this painting mounted, and do it as quickly as possible.”

She paused and then emphasized, “Remember, send it to the Ink Fragrance Studio in the East Market. Their craftsmen have the best skills.”

“Yes, I understand.”