Seeing the curiosity in the eyes of the girl standing next to him, Yongxuan nudged Ertai beside him and looked up at the flower stalk.

"We have martial arts skills, so it would be dishonest for us to win."

Ertai's attention was entirely on Shen Nian, busy feeding her. He didn't notice the wink Yongxuan gave him. Without even looking up, he peeled chestnuts for Shen Nian, shook his head, and refused.

Even without seeing it, he knew what Yongxuan was talking about.

For some reason, he felt a strong sense of unease these past two days, as if something was about to happen. He moved closer to Chen Nian and tightened his grip on her hand.

"Come on, come on, Ertai, I want to see what that mysterious gift is."

Chen Nian noticed the look in Yong Xuan's eyes as he looked at Qing'er. Remembering what Yong Xuan had told her, she feared that her brother was about to take action.

Chen Nian's eyes lingered between Yongxuan and Qing'er, finally returning to Yongxuan with a encouraging look and a hint of satisfaction in her eyes.

She never expected that what she hoped for would actually come true, so she had no choice but to play the wingman.

I can't let my sister-in-law slip away now that I've got her.

It would seem a bit abrupt if Yongxuan went alone and brought back a gift for Qing'er, but it would be different if there were more people. After persuading Yongqi and the others, it wouldn't seem abrupt at all.

Finally, Chen Nian turned around and pleaded with Ertai, shaking their clasped hands, her bright, expectant eyes full of anticipation.

She was really curious about what the gift was. She had been curious about it when she watched the show, but a show is just a show, and she would never know what it was even if she was curious. Now that she had the chance, she really wanted to see it.

"Then you mustn't run around, stay close to Master, understand? You mustn't run around, I'll go and win you a gift."

Pleading with Shen Nian, and meeting her alluring peach blossom eyes and those incessantly chattering red lips, Ertai's Adam's apple bobbed. He slightly turned his head to avoid direct eye contact with Shen Nian.

He could never resist her coquettishness, nor could he refuse any of her requests, so in the end, he could only compromise and give her instructions.

“Go, go, Ertai. Niannian has already spoken, so go. With me by your side, Niannian will be fine. And all of you, those who want to go, go. Yongqi and Erkang, you can go too.”

The emperor, standing to one side, also chimed in.

"Hey, Benjamin, wanna come along?"

Yongqi looked around but couldn't find Benjamin. Finally, he looked at the person standing behind him, staring at the girl without moving, and shouted loudly.

After being provoked by Xiao Yanzi, he decided to go.

As for Erkang, for some reason he also chose to go. They went to get a gift for their sweetheart. Erkang and Ziwei were basically at odds, so why would they go to get a gift?

Standing behind the Emperor, Ziwei heard Yongqi say that Erkang was also going, and a glimmer of hope appeared in her eyes as she looked at Erkang with anticipation.

She knew it; she knew that Er Kang still cared about her and still had her in his heart.

"Huh? What do you mean, 'together'?"

Hearing the noise, and worried about disturbing the people who were still painting, Benjamin took a few steps forward and asked Yongqi and the others in confusion.

"It's about climbing flower poles. If you make it to the top, you can get a gift. Do you want to come with us? A few of us want to go."

Since the Emperor had spoken, and they were genuinely interested and didn't want to appear weak in front of the young ladies, they all went out to participate in the competition, eager to prove their skills.

"gift?"

...