ARTTEDSBGT Chapter 72
“Brother!”
The young boy turned around and immediately saw Xiao Yan. A bright smile appeared on his face, and he quickly ran towards him. Xiao Yan then realized that the person was actually his silly younger sister.
His heart settled back in its place. He looked up and down at Xiao Rulei, frowned, and said, “Why are you dressed like this?”
Xiao Rulei twirled around, with a cute and coquettish demeanor. Despite wearing male clothing, she looked somewhat comical. She asked with joy, “Is it not good-looking? Aunt and sister both said I look handsome!”
Seeing her proud look, Xiao Yan wanted to tease her as usual. However, for some reason, he suddenly met Li Zhizhi’s gaze. He paused for a moment and agreed, “Good-looking.”
If she said it was good-looking, then it was good-looking.
…
The Qianshan hunting ground was not far. After leaving the city gate and heading towards the eastern suburbs, following the official road for about seven or eight miles, they arrived. The terrain here was quite flat, mostly covered with spruce and pine trees. Due to the constant shade, there were no weeds growing beneath the trees. Instead, a thick layer of pine needles and dry leaves covered the ground, making a soft, rustling sound when stepped on.
The weather was perfect today, with clear blue skies, warm sunlight, and a gentle breeze. The trees swayed with a light rustle, accompanied by the distant sound of pine waves. It calmed the heart, and Grand Princess Yong Ning got off the carriage, looking into the distance. She said, “It’s indeed a good day for hunting. I haven’t been here in many years.”
Li Zhizhi asked, “Did you used to come here often?”
Grand Princess Yong Ning smiled and extended her hand, inviting Li Zhizhi to get off the carriage. She replied, “When I was young, I loved to explore. I got bored of playing around in the capital, so I wanted to venture outside. I often went hunting with my royal brother.”
Li Zhizhi was somewhat surprised. In her impression, Grand Princess Yong Ning had always been gentle and dignified, even her speech was very kind and friendly. Perhaps sensing her confusion, Grand Princess Yong Ning couldn’t help but chuckle and said, “As one grows older, one can’t be as carefree as before. You are now in the best years of your life; you should be carefree and not worry about anything.”
She reached out and tidied up Li Zhizhi’s hair, which had been tousled by the wind, saying, “Zhizhi, you just need to be happy like A’yang.”
While they were talking, Xiao Rulei carried her small bow and came over from behind, curiously asking, “Aunt, are there big insects in these mountains?”
Grand Princess Yong Ning laughed and said, “This is just a small hunting ground, mostly with small animals like foxes and rabbits, not big insects.”
“What about the blind bears?”
“As for blind bears…” Grand Princess Yong Ning thought for a moment and said, “If you’re lucky, you might encounter them. I’ve seen them several times before, and there are also wild boars.”
“Wow,” Xiao Rulei smacked her lips and asked innocently, “What do wild boars look like?”
“Wild boars look like wild boars.”
Xiao Yan, who was behind, added casually, cutting off her incessant questioning, and eliciting an annoyed stare from Xiao Rulei. At that moment, another group of people approached – it was Su Tangyu and the others, with Pei Yanchuan among them. He led a chestnut-red horse, dressed in a dark st.u.r.dy outfit, looking sharp and capable. Besides them, there was an unexpected person.
Xiao Yan slightly narrowed his phoenix eyes, staring at the young man who was bowing. Pei Yanchuan’s presence could be justified, after all, he was personally named by the Grand Princess Yong Ning. But who informed him about Su Qingshang?
Who brought him here?
Thinking about the last experience on Beiping Mountain, Xiao Yan felt quite uncomfortable in his heart. He found the other person even more displeasing, especially since he was talking to Li Zhizhi. Due to the distance, he couldn’t hear what they were saying but only saw Li Zhizhi smiling.
Su Qingshang also showed a slight smile on his face. It seemed that he sensed something, suddenly raised his eyes and looked at Xiao Yan. He respectfully bowed and greeted, “Greetings, Crown Prince.”
Xiao Yan tugged at the corner of his lips, saying with a seemingly smiling yet not smiling tone, “What a coincidence, Second Young Master Su is also here for the hunt?”
Su Qingshang just smiled faintly, neither humble nor arrogant, and said, “It’s not really a coincidence. I came as agreed, so I have been waiting here for a while.”
Xiao Yan: …
The Grand Princess Yong Ning keenly sensed something and looked at Xiao Yan thoughtfully. She smiled and asked in a low voice, “This Second Young Master Su, I only heard about him once from Zhizhi. He’s the youngest son of Lord Su, right? Why do I sense some past grievances between you and him?”
Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow slightly and said, “Was he invited by Zhizhi?”
Grand Princess Yong Ning took a moment to think before saying, “It’s not a big deal. Originally, Zhizhi invited that Miss Su, and Miss Su asked if she could bring her brother along to join the fun. What’s the matter?”
Upon hearing that it was not Li Zhizhi who extended the invitation, Xiao Yan felt a bit relieved, but still wasn’t entirely happy. Faced with the questioning gaze of Grand Princess Yong Ning, he couldn’t elaborate on the reasons and vaguely said, “There were some past grievances.”
Xiao Yan didn’t plan to tell her about Su Qingshang’s interest in Li Zhizhi. If his aunt happened to think highly of Su Qingshang and considered him a good match for Li Zhizhi, it would complicate things. Now with the trouble of Pei Yanchuan, dealing with any other potential issues early on seemed wise.
While the Crown Prince was plotting in his mind, Grand Princess Yong Ning suddenly remarked, “Does Su Qingshang also like our Zhizhi?”
Xiao Yan:?
Suppressing his surprise, he calmly asked, “Why would Aunt suddenly think of this?”
“Don’t you understand?” Grand Princess Yong Ning laughed, gave him a glance, and continued, “Who is your aunt? She has experienced much more than you, eaten more salt than you’ve had rice. She has seen countless situations like this. Do you think your little thoughts can escape my eyes?”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan’s heart skipped a beat. Grand Princess Yong Ning continued, “Su Qingshang probably has some feelings for Zhizhi, but he hides it well. His emotions are very restrained, quite different from this little Pei. Did he not send a painting to Zhizhi last time?”
In the case of Beiping Mountain, Xiao Yan had also seen that painting and said, “Indeed, it happened. However, he met Zhizhi for the first time and directly gave her a painting, which seems a bit too straightforward.”
He spared no effort to try to influence Grand Princess Yong Ning, but she didn’t pay much attention, saying, “It’s just a painting; it’s not a big deal. But later, he personally carved a seal for Zhizhi, and when I took a look, it was surprisingly well-done.”
Xiao Yan was taken aback for a moment and blurted out, “What seal? Why don’t I know about it?”
“Is it strange that you don’t know?” Grand Princess Yong Ning glanced at him and said, “That was his coming-of-age gift for Zhizhi, quite thoughtful.”
Xiao Yan:…
The Crown Prince held onto the handle of the wheelcar, the veins on the back of his hand almost popping out. A hint of gloominess flashed across his handsome face, but in front of Grand Princess Yong Ning, he couldn’t reveal any clues.
Xiao Yan was certain that once his aunt knew about his feelings for Zhizhi, she would probably kick him out without a second thought.
Unfortunately, Grand Princess Yong Ning was still asking him, “Putting aside your grievances with Su Qingshang, what do you think of this person?”
Xiao Yan felt an urge to grit his teeth but maintained a light and cheerful demeanor, smiling as he said, “How can we put aside the grievances? They are what they are. I don’t think much of this person.”
Upon hearing this, Grand Princess Yong Ning looked at him suspiciously and asked, “Speaking of which, I haven’t asked you yet. What grievances do you have with Su Qingshang?”
Xiao Yan choked for a moment, paused for a while, and then came up with an excuse, saying, “Pei Yanchuan likes Zhizhi, right? We have a good relationship, and I support him. What’s wrong with that?”
“You are indeed a loyal friend,” Grand Princess Yong Ning couldn’t help but suppress her laughter and said, “So, do you think this Pei young gentleman is better than Su Qingshang?”
Xiao Yan:…
He was in a dilemma and almost blurted out that he didn’t think much of either of them. After a moment’s hesitation, Xiao Yan reluctantly said, “Although that’s the case, I think Aunt doesn’t need to be in such a hurry. Zhizhi is just reaching marriageable age, and there are more than just Pei Yanchuan and Su Qingshang in the whole capital. Who knows if she will meet someone better in the future?”
Grand Princess Yong Ning nodded and agreed, “You’re right. I did narrow my perspective. I shouldn’t be in such a hurry.”
Before Xiao Yan could breathe a sigh of relief, he heard her continue, “When I go back today, I’ll have someone inquire and make a list of suitable candidates. We’ll check them one by one. There are plenty of talented and outstanding young men from the n.o.ble families in the capital. We’ll surely find someone that Zhizhi likes.”
Xiao Yan:?
While the aunt and nephew were talking, on the other side, Li Zhizhi was trying to shoot with a bow. Although she had learned various arts such as music, chess, calligraphy, and painting in her past life, she was completely clueless about archery. At first, she couldn’t even draw the bow, but fortunately, Pei Yanchuan was very enthusiastic and patiently guided her on the side.
He taught her how to set up the arrow, how to draw the bow, and how to aim more accurately, explaining every detail. After a short while, Li Zhizhi felt her fingers hurting terribly. Pei Yanchuan took a look and saw red marks on her snow-white fingertips. Feeling a bit distressed, he said, “This finger guard doesn’t seem suitable for you.”
At this moment, a snow-white ribbon was handed over from the side. Li Zhizhi was slightly startled, turned her head to look, and saw Su Qingshang smiling faintly, saying, “Using this to wrap around your fingers is just the same.”
As he spoke, he gestured again, saying, “Hand.”
Li Zhizhi subconsciously opened her hand, and Su Qingshang removed the inappropriate thumb ring for her. He then used the ribbon to wrap around her index finger, which had turned red from being tightly bound. His movements were very gentle and careful, with a casual and unhurried demeanor that didn’t make anyone feel offended, as he never touched Li Zhizhi’s fingers throughout the process. Finally, he tied a small knot.
Li Zhizhi came back to her senses and said, “Thank you, Second Young Master.”
“No need,” Su Qingshang smiled. His clear and elegant eyes slightly softened, like the gentle ripples on the lake surface in March. He continued, “May I borrow this thumb ring for a while?”
As Li Zhizhi nodded, Su Qingshang put the thumb ring into his palm. At this moment, he suddenly felt a gaze directed towards them, carrying a hint of oppression.
Su Qingshang turned his head to look, and it turned out to be the Crown Prince. The expression on the Crown Prince’s face was slightly dark, and his phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, concealing a faint hint of unfriendliness.
At this moment, Pei Yanchuan finally noticed that the atmosphere was a bit off but couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong. He looked at Su Qingshang and then at Xiao Yan, realizing that these two were exchanging glances, seemingly involved in something he couldn’t comprehend.