Chapter 69 Are they really siblings?

Fine, let's eat then. But Jiang Ru reminded him, "Your Majesty shouldn't call me 'sister'."

The emperor lowered his head: "I know."

Seeing his dejected appearance, Jiang Ru hadn't even asked him anything yet, but she herself was already looking slumped over. This little emperor must have quite a few worries.

Jiang Ru wasn't unable to find a way to break the ice, but the emperor's status was different, so it was best for Jiang Ru to talk to him as little as possible, even though the emperor didn't seem like a bad person.

The emperor finished eating the sweet dumplings one bite at a time. Jiang Ru didn't initiate a conversation with him; her gaze was fixed on the land before her, as if she were lost in thought.

The emperor asked her, "What are you looking at?"

Jiang Ru said, "I'm looking at this piece of land."

There's nothing much to see on the land; the rice hasn't been planted yet, it's just a barren field.

Suddenly, the emperor changed his tone: "I can't stay here for long. At most, someone will come to take me away."

Jiang Ru looked at him, feeling a slight pang of sympathy. She knew that the emperor was not in control of his own destiny, and that he had very little time for himself.

Jiang Ru said softly, "Then let's enjoy this moment. At least for now, no one can disturb us."

The rear garden was specially opened up for growing rice. It originally had a large space, at least an acre in size. Further back was the Jade Cloud Palace where the emperor rested daily. If Jiang Ru came here, she would probably see the emperor often.

Perhaps because the emperor seemed harmless, Jiang Ru was not very wary of him. After the emperor finished eating the sweet dumplings and had no handkerchief to wipe his mouth, Jiang Ru handed him one. The emperor suddenly said, "I know Zhao Tuo wants to marry my sister, so I deliberately refused him."

Jiang Ru knew that the emperor was not as harmless as she thought. He was meticulous in his actions, and how many of those raised by the royal family were truly innocent?

After saying this, the emperor smiled at Jiang Ru: "Prime Minister Song was once my tutor, and Pei Sheren was also his student. We are fellow students, so it is not inappropriate for me to call you sister."

Everything he has done and every word he has said since arriving here today has been out of line, yet he remains completely unfazed.

Jiang Ru was at a loss for words. The person beside her had an extremely strong presence, and Jiang Ru was constantly reminding herself that this was the emperor.

No one could truly confide in him. Even though Jiang Ru wasn't from this era, she was well aware of the ancient "order of rank and status," so she lowered her eyes and said, "Your Majesty must not say this to anyone else."

Jiang Ru originally intended to refuse him directly, but changed her mind at the last minute.

The emperor's eyes lit up, knowing that Jiang Ru meant she agreed, and he immediately beamed with joy: "Then, sister, can you bring me food often in the future? The food in the palace is terrible."

Jiang Ru immediately felt a pang of regret. She should have known better than to try to get close to the emperor. If she had been caught secretly feeding him food, it would have been her fault.

Seeing her predicament, the emperor's smile froze on his face, and he said dejectedly, "If you don't want to, then pretend I didn't say anything."

Seeing his pout, Jiang Ru finally agreed.

The two had finished talking when people appeared from all directions to escort the emperor away. Just then, Jiang Ru saw a familiar figure in the distance, dressed in purple robes—it was Pei Wu.

Jiang Ru gazed longingly into the distance. Soon after, Pei Wu arrived. He bowed to the emperor and then looked at Jiang Ru.

Jiang Ru finally felt a bit more at ease and gave him a wink. With more people around, the emperor became very serious, addressing her as "Pei Qing" repeatedly, as if he wasn't the one who had just called her "sister."

The two exchanged only a few words before the emperor left with his men. Soon after, the palace maids who had disappeared returned.

Pei Wu walked to Jiang Ru's side. The paper bag Jiang Ru had been holding was now empty. Pei Wu lowered his gaze and looked at her hand. Jiang Ru frowned in confusion. Actually, she didn't quite understand what the emperor meant either, so she just treated him as a gluttonous child.

Pei Wu spoke up: "What were you saying just now?"

Jiang Ru told him everything: the emperor had come and eaten something, but there was nothing else unusual.

Jiang Ru asked nervously, "Will something happen?"

Pei Wu said, "It's nothing."

The one who should be in trouble is the emperor. He went to great lengths to transfer everyone away, only to end up eating some sweet dumplings at Jiang Ru's place. I wonder if he will be reprimanded after this is discovered.

After all, it was irresponsible of the emperor to eat food brought from outside the palace, and he was also too greedy.

Hearing that he was alright, Jiang Ru was somewhat relieved, but said helplessly, "I won't bring it next time."

Originally intended only for the palace maids, now not only has the emperor set his sights on them, but he's also allegedly taken advantage of them. It feels very dangerous.

After saying this, Jiang Ru glanced at the sun. It wasn't yet time for Pei Wu to finish his duties. She asked, "Why did you come over?"

Pei Wu didn't answer her directly, but simply said, "I'll wait for you."

So he can leave the palace with Jiang Ru later. Jiang Ru was a little happy: "That's great."

She patted the seat next to her: "You sit down."

The steps weren't clean and were covered in dust. Seeing this, Jiang Ru searched around but couldn't find anything for Pei Wu to put on. She reached into her bosom and found that her handkerchief had vanished.

Jiang Ru muttered, "Where's my handkerchief?"

Pei Wu watched her rummage through his arms and casually said, "If the handkerchief is lost, it's lost. We can just get another one."

Jiang Ru didn't give up and searched for a while longer. Finally, she accepted the fact that her handkerchief was missing. Jiang Ru smiled awkwardly at Pei Wu, lifted her skirt to the side to cover a small area of ​​the ground, and said, "You sit here."

Pei Wu's official robes were more expensive, unlike hers, who wore a casual ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) because she had to work, and could wash them when she got dirty.

Pei Wu looked down for a while, then bent down, lifted Jiang Ru's skirt and put it back down before sitting directly on the steps.

These steps today must have some kind of magic; the emperor sat on them in his dragon robe, and Pei Wu sat on them in his official robes, neither of them minding that they were dirty.

Speaking of the emperor, Jiang Ru suddenly remembered where her handkerchief had gone. She muttered to herself, also speaking to Pei Wu, "I just gave my handkerchief to the Emperor. He ate some sweet dumplings and didn't have a handkerchief to wipe his mouth."

Jiang Ru gave the handkerchief without any intention of doing so, especially since the emperor was so much younger than her. Jiang Ru had no ulterior motives, but Pei Wu still said, "Don't give him anything to eat next time."

These words sounded rather serious. Jiang Ru nodded: "Okay, then I won't give it to him next time. Is it because there will be something wrong if he eats it?"

Pei Wu denied it: "So that he won't have a handkerchief to wipe himself after he finishes eating."

Jiang Ru: "..."

Jiang Ru took it as a joke and didn't take it to heart. As the sun set, it was time to go home. The palace maids left laughing and joking, and Jiang Ru also packed up to leave.

These past few days, Jiang Ru hasn't dared to wander around the palace, only daring to look around this area. Now that Pei Wu is with her, she's become bolder, pointing at the palaces and asking Pei Wu to explain them to her.

The rear garden is separated from the front palace. The scenery here is excellent, with many pavilions, rockeries and ponds. Fish swim freely in the pond. This is considered the imperial garden of the palace. However, the concubines do not like to move around now, and the young emperor has no concubines, so there are very few people here on weekdays.

In the back garden, there was a very large ginkgo tree, so large that it would take three people to encircle it. Its emerald green leaves were dappled with color under the glow of the sunset. The leaves rustled as Jiang Ru looked up at the tree and said, "The palace is really different. It's so grand."

In ancient times, trees were actually scarce, and even cutting firewood required traveling long distances. This is why droughts often resulted in widespread famine, as there was no tree roots to eat.

However, the palace has many flowers, plants and trees. You can see trees and plants that Jiang Ru rarely sees here. At this time of year, roses, gardenias and other flowers are also in full bloom in the garden, making the scenery very beautiful.

The two walked past pavilions, through rockeries and clear ponds. At the end of the back garden, some Xiangfei bamboo was planted. Jiang Ru, without thinking, broke off a leaf, compared it to Pei Wu's back, and said, "Actually, your official robes would look good with bamboo leaves too."

Whether it looks good or not is another matter. Jiang Ru had previously said that green looks weird when paired with other colors, but now she has taken the initiative to overturn that statement. Jiang Ru ran a few steps forward: "Actually, I think a green sachet would look good too."

Jiang Ru seemed to have fallen in love with embroidery and was always thinking of adorning Pei Wu with something. Pei Wu didn't refuse, and on the way back, she dragged Pei Wu to pick out materials, preparing to make a light-colored sachet for him.

When they got home, the sedan chair stopped outside the door. The two got out of the sedan chair and saw Zhao Tuo from afar. Jiang Ru was annoyed to see him, especially when she thought about how he had secretly wanted the emperor to grant her a marriage today. She couldn't help but complain to Pei Wu.

She lowered her voice: "Today he deliberately tried to ask the emperor to grant me a marriage. I'm so annoyed with him. If the emperor hadn't refused, your cousin would have been married off to him."

The following sentence is an exaggeration. Not only did the emperor not agree, but Jiang Ru herself was also unwilling, and Pei Wu would certainly not agree.

Upon hearing this, Pei Wu's cold eyes swept over Zhao Tuo, and his obviously displeased gaze made Zhao Tuo sense a hint of danger. Zhao Tuo was intentional, but Jiang Ru had refused many times, and Pei Wu was extremely wary of him.

Pei Wu stood in front of Jiang Ru. He was very tall and could completely block Jiang Ru from view. Zhao Tuo could only see Jiang Ru's hand gripping Pei Wu's sleeve. Her hand was soft and delicate, slender and long, and the tips of her fingers gripping Pei Wu were slightly pink.

Zhao Tuo knew they disliked him, so he endured for a moment and decided not to be disliked anymore. He went straight to the point and took out a booklet: "This is a gift for Miss Jiang."

Jiang Ru cautiously peeked at him but didn't go forward.

Pei Wu examined the booklet in his hand carefully, already having a guess in mind, but still asked knowingly, "What is this?"

Zhao Tuo held up the booklet to Jiang Ru: "This is a book on rice cultivation in Liaocheng compiled by the Minister of Agriculture of the Southern Kingdom. I have come here specifically to give it to Miss Jiang."

Jiang Ru could research this herself, but having the experience from the South would save her from many pitfalls. Jiang Ru believed it a little more, stepped out from behind Pei Wu, and although she wanted to see it, she was a little hesitant. So she nudged Pei Wu and said, "Go get it."

Zhao Tuo, however, said, "I want Lady Jiang to come and get it herself."

Jiang Ru glanced at Pei Wu, whose face had instantly darkened. With Pei Wu around, Jiang Ru felt much bolder. Zhao Tuo couldn't very well beat her up in the street, so she turned to Pei Wu and said it was nothing before stepping forward.

Zhao Tuo held the booklet in one hand and showed it to Jiang Ru. Jiang Ru thanked him and reached out to take the booklet, but Zhao Tuo held it tightly, and Jiang Ru was not strong enough to take it from him.

The booklet was being held by the two of them, one at each end. Jiang Ru was afraid of tearing it and didn't dare to pull hard. She thought Zhao Tuo was trying to cheat again, so she frowned and withdrew her hand. Pei Wu also walked behind her. Jiang Ru saw that Zhao Tuo didn't seem to want to give it to her, and she got a little annoyed. She turned to Pei Wu and said, "Let's go, we don't need it."

Zhao Tuo quickly pressed closer, saying, "Don't be angry, don't be angry, I'll give it to you."

This time, Jiang Ru didn't reach out to take it, but Pei Wu did, and Zhao Tuo obediently gave it to her.

Jiang Ru received the booklet, flipped through a few pages, and confirmed that it was genuine. Satisfied, she gave Zhao Tuo a more favorable look: "Thank you, Your Highness."

Zhao Tuo shook his head with a wry smile, gave Pei Wu a meaningful look, and said sarcastically, "Are you really siblings?"

When questioned again, Jiang Ru emphasized, "We're siblings, don't make wild guesses."

Zhao Tuo curled her lip in disbelief and continued sarcastically, "Now you still think I'm lying."

Since Zhao Tuo's persona has always been so deeply ingrained in people's minds, Jiang Ru, having already received his favor, couldn't very well treat him coldly. So, Jiang Ru smiled at him and said sincerely this time, "Your Highness is so magnanimous; I am ashamed to admit my inferiority."

Zhao Tuo knew this was just polite talk, so he snorted coldly and said, "I'm leaving Bianjing tomorrow. Although I can't marry Miss Jiang, it's good to be friends. Goodbye, Miss Jiang."

Pei Wu and Zhao Tuo really couldn't stand each other. When Zhao Tuo left, he only greeted Jiang Ru.

After the person walked away, Jiang Ru flipped through the booklet with great satisfaction and casually remarked, "Zhao Tuo isn't as annoying as I imagined."

Pei Wu said in a cool tone, "Don't be fooled by a hypocrite."

Jiang Ru:

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Author's Note: This is a second update to make up for yesterday. I'm a little late; tonight's update will be at midnight.