Chef Li quickly prepared the side dishes for the whole fish feast he would be making.

Then--

I'm free now.

Each of the gentlemen had a fishing rod.

Half an hour has passed, and not a single fish has been caught.

Looking at the commotion not far away, Chef Li felt utterly exhausted.

The noise was so loud that the whole fish family, including all their relatives, were so frightened that they all moved away. Only a fool would take the bait.

It's no wonder you can't catch any fish by relying on these guys.

Fortunately, the princess's maid had the foresight to bring some fish, otherwise we would really have to cook side dishes today.

Chef Li secretly wondered if stir-frying these side dishes would be enough to make him half full.

Doctor Tao smiled and said, "Come and rest for a while."

Chef Li really did go.

Unfortunately, he thought he had a whole table of fish to cook and hadn't prepared a reclining chair for himself, so he could only sit on a rock now. Luckily, he had brought a lot of fruits, and they were all tribute fruits.

Doctor Tao handed a pear to Chef Li, saying, "Eating pears is good for you; they help reduce internal heat."

As Chef Li ate his pear, he watched the children playing in the distance and became somewhat anxious and agitated.

Doctor Tao laughed and said, "Skipping a meal won't kill you."

However, the first dish was served very quickly.

Shen Wan and Cheng Yao were looking for pretty stones when they spotted three duck eggs, which must have been laid on the riverbank by ducks raised by nearby farmers.

Yinshuang happily picked up the duck eggs and took them to Chef Li.

Just as the duck eggs were handed to Chef Li, a voice came from the other end, "The fish has taken the bait!"

Tang Ze shouted, attracting Tang Yinong and Xu Huan to the scene.

They had only gone halfway when their lips began to twitch.

Tang Ze did catch a fish, but it was only the size of an index finger. How dare such a small fish make such a loud noise? How embarrassing!

Even more embarrassing, Tang Ze was proud of himself, saying, "I caught the fish first, I won, I'll get married first."

Xu Ji said, "You have the nerve to say you won with such a small fish."

"No matter how small it is, it's still a fish."

Tang Ze looked at the Prince of Yanping and the others, "Don't you agree?"

The Crown Prince of Yanping said, "I am willing to accept the bet..."

Before he could finish speaking, the young master got carried away and let the fish escape.

"My fish!!!"

Tang Ze untied the fish, but it was too small. While untying it, his hand slipped and the fish fell into the water, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

The Crown Prince of Yanping's lips twitched. Couldn't you be a little more reliable? "It was barely enough to win with such a small fish, and then the fish got away. Keep trying."

Tang Ze was so angry he wanted to eat the whole fish in one pot.

Seeing Xu Ji fishing intently, Tang Ze took a deep breath, quickly sat down, and continued fishing.

The more impatient you are, the less likely the fish will bite.

Tang Ze was an impatient person, and he couldn't resist any longer; he was going to go down into the river to catch fish.

He took off his shoes and socks, rolled up his brocade robe and trouser legs, and then went into the river.

Prince Yanping and his companions were all playful people. Seeing Tang Ze go into the river, they stopped fishing and all went into the water.

Seeing this, Yunrui said, "They're not fishing anymore, shall we go fishing?"

Princess Qinghe asked, "Do you know how to fish?"

Yunrui shook her head, "No, but it doesn't look difficult."

It's just a matter of casting the hook and then watching; she'd been watching for a while, and it didn't seem difficult at all.

There's a saying that goes, "The eyes may have learned, but the hands haven't."

Yunrui picked up Lu Cheng's fishing rod and tried to cast the line like Lu Cheng had done before, but she failed twice. Xu Huan and the others gathered around to watch, and Yunrui felt a little embarrassed.

The third time she gave it a hard jerk, and then—

He threw the fishhook at Lu Cheng.

Yunrui, "..."

Lu Cheng, "..."

Tang Ze smiled at Lu Cheng and said, "You've already taken the bait, why would I still try to hook you?"

Yunrui's face turned bright red.

The fishing rod suddenly became a hot potato, and she quickly threw it away.

Shen Wan and the others laughed until their cheeks hurt.

Just then, Tang Ze let out a loud yell, startling Lu Cheng. "What are you yelling about?"

“Something bit me,” Tang Ze said.

He crouched down, pulled the thing biting his ankle off, and then the second dish was ready—

turtle.

Also known as soft-shelled turtle.

Seeing this, everyone laughed until their stomachs hurt.

The Crown Prince of Yanping said in admiration, "To get married as soon as possible, he didn't hesitate to use himself as bait. He's really ruthless."

"Unfortunately, a soft-shelled turtle is not a fish," Xu Ji added.

"..."

Cheng Yi and Du Cheng'an kept glancing this way from a distance, wondering what they were laughing about. They wanted to go and see, but their vantage point was just too good.

One fish after another.

In just over half an hour, they caught seven or eight fish.

Cheng Yi has more than him, if not more.

Cheng Yi and Du Cheng'an suspected that these fish couldn't stand the sour smell of lovey-dovey couples over there and preferred the fresh scent of single people, so they came here.

Tang Ze and Xu Ji tried to catch fish in the water, but unfortunately, they missed nine out of ten times. On the last try, they barely managed to touch a fish's tail, but they couldn't catch it.

Although they didn't catch a single fish, they had a really fun time. If it weren't for Chen Wan and the others being there, they would have liked to take a bath in the water.

When the Prince of Yanping saw fish over there, he carefully moved over. A piece of brocade floated down and landed on his knee. Without thinking, he grabbed it and threw it far away, his mind focused on catching fish.

The brocade floated downstream with the river.

Xie Jingyan stood on the wooden bridge, watching the brocade float by, and felt that the brocade looked somewhat familiar.

In just a short while, the brocade had already passed under the wooden bridge.

Thinking of something, Xie Jingyan's eyes flashed, and he turned around and leaped up to pick up the piece of brocade from the water.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!