Ye Jingyan is a hopeless romantic!

Ye Jingshu angrily told Ye Jingchen about her discovery.

Ye Jingchen: ......

A seven-year-old girl might not even understand what 'liking' is, so how could she be a love-struck person?

"Why did you come to this conclusion, Your Highness?" he asked Ye Jingshu.

"She's so timid, yet she dared to hit us with a ball for Xie Chang'an! And when Third Sister told her Xie Chang'an was amazing, she was actually very happy. Isn't that love-struck?" Ye Jingshu asked angrily.

"Did the Imperial Sister ask her why she was happy because Xie Chang'an was so strong?" Ye Jingchen asked.

"I'm so angry with her, I don't even have the energy to ask this!"

Ye Jingchen was actually quite curious as to why Ye Jingyan, who was such a timid person, would become brave because of Xie Chang'an.

Children are naturally curious and don't have many complicated thoughts.

“He is the young heir of the Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion, and he will inherit the Xie family army to guard the northern border. The stronger he is, the more stable the northern border will be. Isn’t that something to be happy about?” Ye Jingyan asked, puzzled.

She truly didn't understand why her elder sister was so angry!

"It's worth it, of course it's worth it!" Ye Jingchen didn't expect to hear such an answer from Ye Jingyan.

How could the emperor not understand such a simple truth that even a seven-year-old girl could grasp?

Perhaps he understood it all too well, which is why he was even more wary.

"I never expected that the Second Princess was the type to appear foolish but actually possess great wisdom," Ye Jingchen exclaimed.

Ye Jingyan: ?

"However—you can say these things to your elder brother, but please don't tell anyone else. Besides, the Xie family army's real name is the Divine Might Army. The Divine Might Army belongs to Dayuan, not the Xie family's army. If you say this and someone with ulterior motives hears it, it might bring trouble to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion," Ye Jingchen reminded her.

It took Ye Jingyan a while to understand the meaning behind Ye Jingchen's words, and she said solemnly, "Thank you for reminding me, Your Majesty."

At that moment, she felt that her brother wasn't so scary after all.

"Brother, could you... could you please stop bullying Young Master Xie?" she asked, mustering her courage.

Ye Jingchen: ......

It's already good enough that Xie Chang'an doesn't bully them, so why does Ye Jingyan always feel that they would bully Xie Chang'an?

"Don't worry, he's very strong, we can't bully him." Ye Jingchen said with some difficulty, facing Ye Jingyan's eager anticipation.

Whether it's morning exercise, archery, horsemanship, or Cuju (ancient Chinese football), Xie Chang'an is always one step ahead of them.

But Ye Jingchen knew that this was still the result of him hiding his true strength.

Moreover, the gap between them will widen as they get older. At least Ye Jingchen himself knows that unless he focuses on doing one thing, he will not be able to catch up with Xie Chang'an.

However, given his status, it's impossible for him to focus on just one thing.

His time and energy were already limited.

Moreover, he wasn't a particularly ambitious person.

Ever since he learned that Xie Chang'an was a reincarnated person, he never even considered how he could surpass Xie Chang'an in any aspect.

At most, numerology might have a slight effect.

Since that conversation, Ye Jingyan has stayed quietly in Wenhua Palace. Ye Jingshu no longer needs to go to her bedchamber to catch her every day. She usually waits at the entrance of Biyue Palace. Very occasionally, Ye Jingshu can see her as soon as she leaves Chaoyang Palace.

However, although she went to school, she didn't seem to take it very seriously. She just coasted through each class and remained as timid as ever.

She was genuinely concerned about Xie Chang'an, but Xie Chang'an treated all the princes and princesses equally, including Ye Jingchen. She was also timid, so she hadn't been able to say a word to him.

After Ye Jingyan started attending classes at Wenhua Hall, Ye Jingchen took everyone to Chengqian Palace for a free meal.

Before going, Ye Jingyan had some ulterior motives, but after meeting the emperor, she dared not say anything.

Especially seeing her elder brother laughing and joking freely in front of their father, without any fear, she dared not say anything.

The Emperor's treatment of his elder brothers and sisters was ultimately different from that of them.

Soon, the end of the month arrived.

On this day at the end of the month, they don't have to go to class.

At the end of last month, Ye Jingchen took them to the small kitchen and the clothing bureau, where he taught them about many things they would encounter in their daily lives.

This time, Ye Jingchen took everyone to the small kitchen again, saying he was going to teach them how to cook noodles.

Two months before the emperor's birthday, he decided to give the emperor a big gift to move him deeply.

While noodles are easy to cook, longevity noodles are not, because a bowl of longevity noodles only requires cooking one noodle, and the noodle must not break.

It's considered very unlucky if the noodles break.

However, they are still young. As long as the noodles are cooked continuously, the emperor probably won't mind if they are a little thick. After all, he is not eating noodles, but their filial piety!

Filial piety should not be measured by the thickness or length of noodles.

Since the goal is to show filial piety, everyone should participate and work together so that everyone feels involved!

Although making longevity noodles for the emperor was the job of the princes and princesses, Ye Jingchen had his four study companions participate in the learning process as well.

If they wanted to, they could easily do the same when their own parents celebrate their birthdays to make them happy.

“Your Highness, as the sage said, a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen—” Wu Zemin hesitated before speaking after hearing Ye Jingchen say that each of them had to learn how to cook noodles themselves.

He and Gu Beichen were the oldest in Wenhua Hall besides Ye Jingshu, and their families were both wealthy and powerful with many servants. They probably didn't even know where their own kitchen was, let alone know how to cook for themselves.

Last time, Ye Jingchen only took them to visit the small kitchen to learn about grains, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea, so they didn't think much of it. But this time, Ye Jingchen wanted them to cook directly, which Wu Zemin felt was inappropriate.

“Taking things out of context is unacceptable! Bei Chen, do you know the complete text of ‘A gentleman keeps away from the kitchen’?” Ye Jingchen asked Gu Bei Chen directly.

He has a bad memory, but there's a very knowledgeable child prodigy here, so asking him is sure to be the right thing to do!

"A wise person, when dealing with animals, cannot bear to see them die when he sees them alive; he cannot bear to eat their flesh when he hears their cries. Therefore, a wise person keeps away from the kitchen!"

"The sage's intention was not that a gentleman cannot cook, but rather to tell us to respect life, which is a manifestation of the Confucian concept of benevolence," Gu Beichen explained.

"Well said!" Ye Jingchen praised without reservation; the prodigy was indeed useful.

"Ze Ming, is there any other question?" he asked Wu Ze Ming.

"I've learned a lot!" Wu Zemin bowed deeply to Ye Jingchen and Gu Beichen, feeling somewhat ashamed.

He grew up surrounded by the noble and virtuous pronouncements of a gentleman, even the sages said that a gentleman should stay away from the kitchen, so he regarded these as things that would damage the demeanor of a gentleman.

But after hearing Gu Beichen's explanation, he realized that he had misinterpreted the sage's words and felt ashamed.

"Food is the most important thing for people, and eating and drinking are the most important things in life. Therefore, the kitchen is by no means a filthy place that a gentleman cannot set foot in, and cooking is not a shameful thing!" Ye Jingchen took the opportunity to educate all the children.