"Okay, thank you Hong'er for your help. I'll go and make some preparations first. It's actually better to view the water from the Water Palace not far from the Linshui Pavilion than from here. Besides the water color, you can also appreciate the other scenery of Qujiang Lake. How about asking Hong'er to move to the Water Palace?" Helan Minzhi glanced at Li Hong, and then kept staring at Bai Chun, as if asking for Bai Chun's opinion.

"Okay, I'll leave everything to you." Li Hong said to Gao An who was walking over.

After hearing what Li Hong said, Helan Minzhi immediately left and began to make preparations. The woman who had just been flirting with him had already become a passerby in his eyes. He took a few Chang'an playboys who were traveling with him and started to go to the Water Palace to make preparations.

"Why are you here? This is my first time out." Gao An stood in front of Li Hong, kicking the innocent grass under his feet unhappily, his face full of reluctance and grievance.

"Oh, do you still feel aggrieved? It's fine if Li Sujie comes out, but why are you coming out? You are the oldest here, and Shang Jin is one year younger than you. If something happens to you, can you take the responsibility?" Li Hong said to Gao An, who rarely came out.

Gao An raised her head, her beautiful face full of resentment, her bright eyes were red at the moment, and it was estimated that she would cry at the next moment.

Several princesses of the royal family stood there far away, not knowing whether to go forward or wait for Li Hong to call them forward. They felt awe in their hearts towards this cousin who was a few years younger than them.

"Mangzhong, prepare the car and send them back." Li Hong looked at Gao An, who was beautiful and secretly angry, and said with a heart of stone.

Hearing Li Hong's words, Gao An's tears began to flow from his eyes unconsciously. The crystal-like tears slid down his cheeks to his chin. Gao An did not say anything, but looked at Li Hong stubbornly, his eyes full of sorrow.

...

...

Over the years, I have rarely been truly happy. I am locked in the inner courtyard of the imperial palace every day and cannot go anywhere except the Hongwenguan and the harem. Occasionally, I go out of the palace and am brought out by Li Hong. Today, I finally thought I could come out and be a free-flying bird for a day, but I didn't expect to be caught and forcibly sent back.

Gao An wiped her eyes and choked with tears, "You never tell me the reason, and you always act arbitrarily. You are the prince, you can leave the palace at will, you can see the colorful world every day, have you ever thought about my feelings? And the same goes for Yi Yang, if you want her to go out, let her go out, if you don't want her to go out, send her back! We are also royal princesses, not your puppets, Li Hong, we are not at your mercy. Mother has been alone in the deep palace for so many years, and she is still grateful to you, Li Hong, but what else can you give us except letting mother live like a walking corpse? You only know how to let me go back, you will bully me and Yi Yang, when can I be myself? I don't want you to give me so much money every month, I will return all the money to you, I just want to come out and see this different sky..."

Li Hong waved his hand, and Xia Zhi understood what he meant. She respectfully took several other princesses from the royal family and returned to the group of students.

Although the princesses of the royal family could not hear clearly what Gao An said to Li Hong, they knew that Gao An was feeling very upset when they saw her sad face.

Li Hong looked at Gao An's aggrieved and choking appearance. Should he tell her that without her mother, who was living like a zombie, she couldn't even go to Hongwenguan? She could only be confined to the harem and still not get married after several years of adulthood!

Li Hong sighed, took the handkerchief handed over by Bai Chun, handed it to Gao An who was twisting his muscles, and said slowly: "Which royal child can have true freedom when he is born? Which one does not carry a mission connected to the royal family? You only see what others have but you don't have. Do you know how many people envy you now? Want freedom? It's easy. In your next life, you will be born into an ordinary family and you will have freedom! Freedom is relative. If your heart has freedom, you are free. If your heart is not free, even if I put you in the uninhabited place of the Four Towns of Anxi, you will not be as free as a bird!"

Gao An sobbed and wiped away the tears that could not stop. Li Hong sighed again, walked up to him, and regardless of the surprised looks from others, he put his arm around Gao An's shoulders and slowly walked towards the water palace, whispering, "Freedom comes at a price. Because of your recklessness and willfulness, mother's life like a walking corpse these years has lost its meaning. Do you want to not even see mother like a walking corpse in the future because of your willfulness? Besides, is mother a walking corpse now? It is her greatest satisfaction to see you every day, and what about you? Before you came out, did you think about the consequences if people knew that you left the palace privately? Are the censors just eating dry food? Yi Yang is not here, that is a special permission. Do you think he will leave with just a word from me? How much work did Aunt Lanling do for me? You can't see it...!"

"Don't say anymore. I'll go back. I was just impulsive just now..." Gao An pulled away the arm of Li Hong, who was almost as tall as her, and said with red eyes and pouting lips.

"Forget it, now that you're out, just take a walk. When you go back, just remember that it was me who brought you out. No matter who asks you, you must say so. Even if the teachers from the Imperial College or the Hongwenguan smell it, they will deny it. You must say that it was me who brought you out." Li Hong said as he looked at Helan Minzhi and a few of his companions who were already waiting on the roadside in the distance.

"Doesn't that mean you're lying with open eyes?" Gao An turned his head and looked at him.

"So what? As long as you say this, even if they don't believe it, they will choose to believe it." After Li Hong finished speaking, he ignored her. It was better for her to follow him than to blend in with the other students. If someone blamed her at that time, at least she could be safe because of his protection.

As for Li Xian and others, just leave them alone. If I interfere too much, I'm afraid that before I return, the report will have been reported to my father and mother.

The Linshui Pavilion and the Water Palace are separated by a river. The place chosen by the students and Helan Minzhi is just across the water from each other. If they speak a little louder, both sides can hear it clearly.

Everyone sat down, Bai Chun sat down next to Li Hong. Helan Minzhi was about to sit down next to Bai Chun, but was stopped by Hua Meng who was standing behind Li Hong. He pointed to the opposite side ten steps away from Li Hong and said, "Sit across from him."

"What? Can't I, a royal noble, sit next to my cousin? Do you really think you can tell me what to do just because you follow the prince?" Helan Minzhi stared at Hua Meng and said.

"The prince asked you to sit opposite." Hua Meng said calmly.

Seeing Hua Meng's tough attitude, Helan Minzhi looked at Li Hong who had already sat down, only to see that Li Hong was saying something to Gao An on the other side of his body, and was ignoring the confrontation between him and Hua Meng.

Then Gao An was seen waving towards the Linshui Pavilion opposite, signaling the other princesses of the royal family to come and sit over there.

Li Hong didn't even look at Helan Minzhi who was in a stalemate with Hua Meng. The four girls of Xia Zhi were busy placing the sumptuous food brought by Helan Minzhi on the table in front of Li Hong.

"Hong'er, I haven't seen you for many days. I want to sit closer to you so that I can talk about the hardships I've been going through recently." Helan Minzhi saw that Hua Meng was determined and Li Hong seemed not to notice it at all, so he had to say it again with a thick face.

"It's okay to sit opposite each other. There are no outsiders here. They are all my people. Is there anything we can't talk about?" Li Hong said without raising his head while picking and choosing on the table.

At this time, people at Linshui Pavilion had already started writing poems. Wang Bo, who was going back to his hometown and had become famous at a young age and had great literary talent, naturally became the focus of everyone, and everyone asked him to write a poem first.

The students also need to write a poem to hand in to the teacher because they are visiting Qujiang Lake today, so they also hope to find some inspiration from Wang Bo.

Wang Bo readily agreed, and sat there alone looking at the lake and began to organize his thoughts. Everyone stopped disturbing him and began to discuss in a low voice who should write a poem next.

"Oh, by the way, the teacher asked everyone to write a poem before we go out, otherwise we will be punished." Gao An had already burst into laughter. Looking at the scene opposite him, he suddenly remembered that he had a mission for this trip.

"Then just do it." Li Hongai said indifferently.

"I can't think of it." Gao An knocked his head on the table and said helplessly.

"How about this, let Master Helan write a poem for you? He is the most elegant scholar in Chang'an, and his reputation is not in vain." Bai Chun took a sip of tea and said lightly, but he never looked at Helan Minzhi.

Helan Minzhi's eyes lit up. The beauty took the initiative to talk to him. He looked at Bai Chun with eyes full of animality like a prairie wolf and said modestly: "No, no, poetry is not my forte, but if Lady Bai is interested in Qujiang Pond, I can help her solve her doubts. As for poetry, Hong'er should be the best among the young people. With him here, how dare I embarrass myself by writing a bad poem."

Bai Chun drank tea quietly, his eyes still empty, not knowing where to look. As for Helan Minzhi's words, he seemed to have not heard them, but in his heart he wanted to strangle Li Hong to death. On the way to the Water Palace, Li Hong actually asked him to seduce Helan Minzhi and said so many things to find some charges!

Is there any need to impose charges on him? The crimes that have been found are too numerous to list.

The few playboys who followed Helan Minzhi saw that Helan Minzhi was less rebellious and more reserved, and they couldn't even get close to the girl they liked when they met her.

This surprised them all greatly. Helan, who had always been successful in getting women, was about to fail this time. The promise he had made to them just now was obviously impossible to fulfill.

At the same time, Li Hong's identity was about to be revealed in their minds. After all, in Chang'an City, there were only a handful of people who could make Helan Minzhi keep his wolf tail between his legs and not show his bestiality.

Bai Chun felt a little uncomfortable when she felt Helan Minzhi's burning gaze. She secretly reached out and pinched the thin flesh on Li Hong's waist. Her lips were almost pressed against Li Hong's. She whispered, "I can't do it. Please find someone else."

Seeing those pure white red lips whispering in Li Hong's ear, Helan Minzhi wished he could replace him. How great it would be if he were the prince!