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"As long as Your Highness likes it, I won't feel any trouble carving as many as you like."

After riding a long way back and forth, Qingyang returned to the shade of the tree where the felt mat was spread. He was surprised to find that his third brother was actually sleeping on the mat.

Qingyang broke off a piece of foxtail grass from the nearby bushes and squatted down to rub his third brother's nose again. However, looking at his handsome face sleeping soundly, Qingyang's heart softened. He turned to Zhang Su and said, "Let's go fishing."

Zhang Su looked at the hem of the little princess's skirt.

Qingyang understood what he meant, because she had planned to play in the river before going out, so Qingyang deliberately wore a pair of white silk shorts under her skirt.

"I'll go clean up, and you can roll up your shirt and trouser legs."

After saying that, Qingyang walked up to Jie Yu and asked Jie Yu to help her untie her complicated long skirt and roll up her trouser legs.

Xie Yu once again looked at both sides of the river, making sure that he could not see the eight guards, and that no civilians had broken through the guards' defense and were running towards him. Finally, he looked at Zhang Su, who was about ten steps away.

Although only fifteen years old, the boy, who was already taller than many adult men, had already turned his back, not daring to disobey the princess's order. He was tucking the hem of his clothes into his belt, revealing a pair of straight long legs in white shorts.

Qingyang also glanced back and urged Jie Yu: "Hurry up, don't worry about him."

She had long understood the differences between men and women, but those were the rules she told other men. In her heart, Zhang Su was the same as her third brother, and he was the prince consort she had chosen for herself long ago. It was just some fun, so there was no need to be shy.

Xie Yu thought that the princess was only nine years old and still a child, and Zhang Su always valued rules and would never peek at the princess when he shouldn't, so it would be fine to let Zhang Su accompany the princess to the water next time.

After taking off her chest-length skirt, the little princess wore a pink short jacket that covered her waist, and a pair of white silk trousers of appropriate thickness. She rolled up the trouser legs above her knees, which made them very suitable for wading in the river.

The little princess also prepared a small bucket and a net bag for catching fish. Holding one in each hand, Qingyang was the first to stand by the river, looking at Zhang Su expectantly. As for whether Zhang Su's exposed legs were long or white, the little princess, who was only thinking about catching fish, didn't care.

Zhang Su did not approach the princess. Instead, he stepped into the river opposite him without looking around. After taking a closer look at the pebbles on the bottom of the water, Zhang Su closed his eyes and said, "This is a good place to go in the water. Please move, Your Highness."

Qingyang ran over without questioning, opened his arms and said, "Hurry and carry me over."

She was not as timid as her third brother, but she knew that the water on the shore was too deep for her to walk on.

Zhang Su opened his eyes briefly, but his sight did not reach under the little princess's clothes. After holding the little princess's armpits with his hands, Zhang Su closed his eyes again, then lifted the little princess up and walked step by step towards the shallow water in the middle.

Perhaps because she was used to being held by Duke of Wei, Zhang Jieju, for so many years, Qingyang didn't pay much attention to the way Zhang Su held her. She looked at the water flow below excitedly. As soon as Zhang Su reached the place where she could go into the water, Qingyang urged him to let her go.

Zhang Su put the little princess into the water and made sure that she was standing firmly. Then he walked in front of her and turned his back to her to inspect the situation in the water.

Qingyang ignored him and filled a bucket with half water and placed it next to her. She held the net bag and bent down to look for small fish. If she couldn't find any, she would wade around in the water. This alone was fresh and interesting enough.

Jie Yu saw it clearly from the shore. Zhang Su really didn't even look at the little princess. He had perfectly imitated the humble and polite manner of his father, the Duke Zhang Jie.

"Got it!"

"He's escaped, Zhang Su, go stop him!"

The little princess's crisp cry woke up the third prince who was taking a nap. Qin Ren rubbed his eyes and sat up. Seeing that his sister was having so much fun, he also cleaned up and called Zhang Su to come over to help him walk through the deep water.

After the little princess had enough fun in the water, Zhang Su picked her up again.

This time Qingyang noticed it and asked him curiously, "Why are you closing your eyes?"

Zhang Su: "Your Highness is a royal noble, and I, a humble minister, cannot offend you."

Qingyang looked down and saw her feet hanging above the water, and also saw Zhang Su's legs walking through the water.

Etiquette is etiquette, but Qingyang still doesn't understand why there are so many taboos between men and women, including what her third brother said about her getting styes if she looks at his body. Just like now, she saw Zhang Su's legs, and her eyes didn't look good, did they?

The more Zhang Su didn't dare to offend, the more Qingyang liked to tease him and gently stepped on the part of his knee that was not touching the water.

Zhang Su's brows twitched slightly, then he quickened his pace as if nothing had happened, and in a blink of an eye, he handed the little princess to Jie Yu who was waiting on the shore.

While the little princess was wiping and changing her clothes, Zhang Su took a towel and went away. When he came back, her clothes were tidy again.

Qingyang: "If you don't want to eat cakes, let's go back to the city and eat at a restaurant."

Of course Qin Ren listened to his sister.

Qingyang also lifted the wooden barrel onto the carriage and watched the small fish swimming around in the barrel all the way.

Qin Ren said with relief: "Finally, he looks a bit like a child."

Usually, his sister gets up earlier than him, studies better than him, and even practices martial arts seriously and in a professional manner. Seeing this, he feels ashamed and embarrassed. Only when he takes care of his sister can he find the confidence to be a brother.

Zhang Su knelt aside with his eyes downcast, not agreeing with what the third prince said. In fact, the little princess had always had a childish temper, she was just smart and studious. If the little princess really had a temperament that matched her knowledge, she would not have asked him to ride a horse with her, would not have put flowers on his head, and would not have deliberately stepped on him.

.

After eating and drinking, it was time for the little princess to take a nap, but Qingyang was still in high spirits. He browsed around a few shops and suddenly said to Zhang Su, "Where did you buy those little wooden figures? Take me to see them."

Qin Ren was so sleepy that his eyes were dull. "You're going back after visiting the wood carving shop? I really can't do it anymore."

Qingyang nodded.

The brother and sister were already set, so Zhang Su could only lead the way.

The woodcarving shop was quiet in the afternoon, with only a young clerk dozing off at the counter. Hearing footsteps, he lazily opened his eyes, but perked up after taking in the four people's faces and the silks they were wearing. With a fawning expression, he walked around the counter to greet them and said to the older brother, who must be the owner's siblings, "What would you like to buy, gentlemen and ladies?"

Qin Ren, whose mind was full of thoughts of sleeping after shopping, yawned and looked at his sister.

The guy then looked at the shorter rich lady.

Qingyang looked at Zhang Su, and the waiter followed him to look at Zhang Su, but didn't see anything. He then looked at the young girl who was so imposing despite her young age.

Qingyang continued to stare at the guy.

Buddy: “…”

The little girl is really pretty, but what does that look mean?

Qingyang didn't see what he wanted, and immediately lost interest in the waiter. He said, "We'll just take a look. You go and take a rest."

After saying that, he walked towards the nearest counter which was filled with a dense pile of small wooden carvings.

Qin Ren and Zhang Su followed closely behind. Xie Yu waved to the waiter and asked him to wait aside.

Qingyang soon discovered a row of small wooden figures, which were similar to the first one Zhang Su gave her when she was four years old. The carvings were simple and one could only appreciate the superficial emotions of joy, anger, sorrow and happiness. In terms of facial features, the first small wooden figure did not look like her at all. The third brother and others praised it because of the similar smile.

But in the following years, the little wooden figures Zhang Su sent looked more and more like her, and their movements and postures also changed. There were five of them in total. The first three were standing there stupidly, the fourth was sitting on a small wooden stool holding a chess piece, and the fifth was even more amazing, holding a small wooden sword in the same posture as her sword practice.

After looking through all the cabinets, Qingyang did not find any similar wooden figures, only some graceful women or statues of various gods and Buddhas with more intricate carvings.

After leaving the shop, Qingyang glared at Zhang Su and said, "You're lying! You didn't buy your figurine from here at all."

Zhang Su: “…”

Qin Ren: "Why do you say that, sister?"

Qingyang looked back at the clerk at the counter and explained to his third brother, "First, if Zhang Su comes here every year to buy wooden figurines, the clerk will definitely recognize him based on his appearance. It's impossible that he has no impression of him."

Qin Ren looked Zhang Su up and down and nodded in approval.

Qingyang: "Secondly, there's no little wooden figurine on the counter like the one Zhang Su gave me. Either this shop doesn't make them at all, or Zhang Su ordered one specifically for the shop. If he did, it's impossible for the clerk not to know him."

Qin Ren was completely convinced and asked Zhang Su in confusion, "Where did you buy it? Why don't you tell the truth?"

The brother and sister stared at him. Zhang Su couldn't name another woodcarving shop that could fool them, so he whispered the truth: "Your Highness has always wanted a little wooden figurine as a birthday gift, but I know that your Highness wasn't very satisfied with the first one because it only resembled your smile."

"I thought about asking the shop's craftsmen to carve a new wooden figure in the image of Your Highness, but Your Highness is of noble status, and I dare not reveal Your Highness's true appearance to others. So I learned the basic skills of wood carving from a master, and practiced carving myself in my spare time..."

Qin Ren was shocked and asked, "Did you carve the last few?"

Zhang Su lowered his eyes and said, "Yes, I am clumsy and my carving is crude. If Your Highness dislikes it..."

Qingyang: "I don't mind at all. Your carving is much better than those sold in the store. It looks most like me."

Zhang Su: "That's because the masters outside have never seen His Highness."

Qingyang: "I don't want them to see it either. What if they carve a few more and sell them? I can only keep my wooden figures for myself, and at most give them away to my family."

Zhang Su: "Don't worry, Your Highness. I will only carve one for you every year and will never keep it for myself."

Qingyang: "...You are not an outsider. If you like, you can carve an extra one for yourself."

Zhang Su: "I dare not."

Jie Yu came to the young man's rescue and said with a smile, "The Third Young Master wants to give His Highness a unique gift every year. Carving too many will only defeat the purpose."

Qin Ren: "Besides, Zhang Su doesn't have much free time. Carving one is tiring enough. If it weren't for a gift for his sister, he might not even want to carve one."

He likes his sister, but he doesn't like her so much that he has to collect a little wooden figure of her. So why did Zhang Su carve an extra one?

Qingyang thought Jie Yu’s words were very nice. Although her third brother was right, she didn’t know why she felt a little angry.

Zhang Su looked up, noticing the little princess's displeasure. He explained, "As long as Your Highness likes it, I wouldn't feel tired carving as many as I want. It's just that I'm clumsy, so I can only carve one decent piece every year."

The little princess immediately smiled and praised him: "You are not stupid at all, you are much more clever and skillful than your third brother."

Qin Ren: “…”

Not willing to be outdone by Zhang Su in gift-giving, Qin Ren asked Fu'an to find a piece of top-quality boxwood after returning to the palace for a rest. He then started carving it bit by bit with a special carving knife.

Sawdust fell one after another, and before long, the one-foot-long boxwood turned into a boxwood tip that was thin at the top and thick at the bottom in the third prince's hand.

【Author’s words】

Qin Ren: Sister, I’ll give you a hidden weapon!

Haha, 100 little red envelopes, see you in the evening~