Osmanthus cake

Lan Yunyi said, "Didn't the princess notice? I have a new wound on my arm from this expedition."

Shen Yao looked in the direction he pointed and indeed saw a newly formed scar.

Shen Yao reached out and touched the scar, then looked at Lan Yunyi and smiled, "General, you've worked hard."

The scene from earlier that day flashed before their eyes, and they couldn't help but smile at each other.

“General, you fought for the country; this is a medal bestowed upon you by Heaven,” Shen Yao comforted him.

Lan Yunyi said, "...But it hurts."

Shen Yao looked at him.

“We caught a Jin spy during our patrol. When I was taking him to the dungeon, he stabbed me.” Lan Yunyi lowered her eyes. “This isn’t the first time this has happened. The first time I captured a prisoner, the knife almost slit my neck.”

This dignified garrison commander acts like a bullied child at school, whining and pleading with Shen Yao at home. If he's just naturally pretentious, Shen Yao should immediately petition the emperor that this commander is not up to par.

If it's not being pretentious, then it's just an act.

Shen Yao continued her thinking along the second hypothetical path, boldly guessing that Lan Yunyi wanted to use her beauty to numb her mind, or perhaps it was just flirting after dinner.

Regardless, this honey trap was quite delicious. Shen Yao couldn't help but smile, happily accepting it.

Shen Yao said softly, "Where is it? Let me see."

Lan Yunyi noticed the change in her address and couldn't help but glance at her. In fact, Shen Yao didn't like to put on airs when she was being intimate with him, but he could sense that Shen Yao's current humble attitude had another purpose.

Although he didn't know the exact reason, Lan Yunyi was quite pleased. He unbuttoned his inner robe collar and pointed to the bulging scar on his chest. Shen Yao had seen it before, but he had so many scars that this one was practically indistinguishable from the others.

Ultimately, each scar on his body corresponds to a fierce battle or a ruthless enemy.

For Princess Yao, these scars are medals for Lan Yunyi's defense of the territory, but as his wife, she should perhaps shed tears for these scars.

Shen Yao couldn't cry, but she did feel heartbroken. However, it wasn't for her husband, but for a young general who had been fighting on the battlefield since he was sixteen, and for a twenty-year-old youth who had no parents or relatives to love him.

Shen Yao raised her hand and touched the back of his neck, then looked up and kissed his chin, saying, "My husband has suffered."

Lan Yunyi's eyelashes trembled, and then she said softly, "It is my duty to guard this area. There is no such thing as suffering or not suffering."

Shen Yao couldn't help but chuckle. Just a second ago, this person was playing the victim and begging for warmth, but once he was actually given warmth, he quickly retreated into his shell as if he had been burned, and became businesslike again.

Shen Yao couldn't resist kissing him on the chin again before closing her eyes and falling asleep peacefully.

...

The next morning, after having breakfast, the two went out. Shen Yao took him to tour the newly built princess's residence.

It was already the height of summer, yet the branches were only just sprouting tender buds, and the blooming flowers were merely potted plants. The garden was deliberately created to appear prosperous, but it still gave people a sense of desolation.

Shen Yao had absolutely no knowledge of gardens, so she accepted whatever the craftsmen arranged for her. After touring around with Lan Yunyi, Shen Yao asked him, "What do you think?"

Shen Yao had only asked casually, not expecting Lan Yunyi to give any decent answer. However, Lan Yunyi suddenly seemed to be deep in thought, and began to comment and offer suggestions in a very logical manner while stroking her chin.

At first, Shen Yao didn't take it seriously, thinking that this person was just flattering her again. But as she listened, she suddenly realized something and couldn't help but look at him directly a few times.

Lan Yunyi responded with a smile, then pulled Shen Yao back to the Princess's Garden, where they put the theories of ancient garden art into practice on the spot. With just a few flowerpots moved casually, the garden was completely transformed.

Although Shen Yao still didn't understand the mystery, she could see from it that Lan Yunyi had excellent taste, so she couldn't help but say, "The prince consort is truly remarkable."

As a military general, he not only writes excellent articles, but also has some knowledge of gardens and feng shui. Shen Yao couldn't help but ask, "...Is there anything else about the Prince Consort that I don't know? Could it be that he can also paint?"

Lan Yunyi cupped her hands and said modestly, "Of course I can. When I was young, my family was poor, so I had some trivial skills to rely on. Later, I often visited the mansions of high-ranking officials and nobles, and I learned these lowly skills by being exposed to them. I hope the princess will laugh at me."

Although that's what he said, if he had a tail, it would probably be flying high right now.

Looking at the well-organized courtyard, Shen Yao was in an extremely good mood. She smiled and took Lan Yunyi's hand, saying, "You smooth talker."

...

At noon, the two decided not to return home but instead found a restaurant outside to rest and have lunch.

Lan Yunyi originally wanted to go to the restaurant in front of the city gate. Shen Yao recalled the awkward scene from yesterday and fell silent. She then found another excuse to make Lan Yunyi change her mind.

Yesterday's osmanthus cake was not eaten, so Shen Yao specially brought it out today. All the dishes were served, but Lan Yunyi did not eat them. Instead, she placed the osmanthus cakes that Shen Yao had made in front of her and only ate those cakes.

Shen Yao was quite pleased, and even though she knew it might be a pretense, she couldn't help but feel happy. She put some more food on his plate and said, "Princess Consort, please have some food."

Lan Yunyi said, "I like to eat sweet things."

Shen Yao smiled without saying a word, and then Lan Yunyi said casually, "I will definitely be the first to eat the osmanthus cake made by the princess herself."

Shen Yao choked, then made a "hmm" sound and pretended not to care as she continued eating.

Lan Yunyi looked at her formally with a smile on his lips, but Shen Yao pretended not to notice and avoided his gaze, focusing only on eating.

Lan Yunyi remained silent, her eyes lowered, and when she opened them again, her gaze drifted to A Yuan not far away.

A-Yuan suddenly straightened up.

Normally, when A-Yuan received his instruction, she would immediately lower her head slightly, silently remember the matter, and then turn around to investigate. But this time, she acted differently.

Looking at Xia Guo beside him, who was twisting her handkerchief in her hand and looked as if she wanted to bury her head in the ground, Lan Yunyi instantly understood. She put down her chopsticks, picked up her teacup, and took a sip of tea.

The teacup tapped gently on the table with a soft "thud," a sound that seemed to strike Shen Yao's heart.

No one spoke for a long time inside. Lan Yunyi didn't eat, but just drank tea one sip after another until there wasn't a drop left in the bowl.

Then he finally spoke, saying, "A-Yuan."

A-Yuan knelt down on one knee with a thud: "Your subordinate is here."

"I never really looked at you properly before, but today I think you are quite attractive."

A-Yuan opened her mouth, not knowing what to say, but her face was already deathly pale.

Shen Yao slammed down her chopsticks and said, "One should not speak while eating or sleeping."

Lan Yunyi looked at her and said, "Does the princess have nothing to explain to me?"

Shen Yao glanced at him coldly: "If you, my consort, like to overthink things, then it's a waste of my breath to explain to you."

Lan Yunyi smiled and said, "The princess really knows how to make things easy for herself."

Shen Yao drank her tea and said, "This is unreasonable."

In her past life, the young stars she kept were all like that. Most of the time they were very obedient and well-behaved, and they would also act coquettishly; but when they really got stuck on something, they all acted as if they wanted to fight Shen Yaoyu to the death.

Shen Yao had no interest in playing these games with them, leaving Lan Yunyi standing there sulking without trying to appease her.

The food on the table was cleared away. Shen Yao had heard that this restaurant had music to listen to, so she waited patiently instead of leaving.

Amidst the commotion below, a sharp crack of the gavel shattered the noise in the tavern. The din instantly subsided, and a somewhat familiar male voice suddenly spoke: "...Continuing from where we left off, when the day came, Lan Yunyi had no choice but to leave the border."

Shen Yao's eye twitched as she looked at Lan Yunyi opposite her.

Lan Yunyi didn't look at her, but instead glanced towards the stands downstairs.

"Without these dark clouds hanging over them, Princess Yao and Chengxin finally saw the light."

"But even if they truly love each other, what good is it? Princess Yao can't give Chengxin a proper status in the end. To compensate Chengxin, the princess sent ten thousand taels of gold to Mount Ling..."

Shen Yao put down her cup.

The storyteller embellished the facts, adding elaborate details and making the plot incredibly complex and colorful. What was clearly not the case at all became a genuine expression of the princess's feelings for Cheng, while her relationship with Lan Yunyi was merely a charade.

Not long ago, Chengxin suddenly attended Shenyao's banquet, making all the guests aware that Shenyao and Chengxin had a close relationship, which was also irrefutable proof that Shenyao "favored his concubine over his wife".

Lan Yunyi looked at the platform with a smile, and when she heard something interesting, she couldn't help but laugh loudly and clap her hands, looking exactly like she was listening to someone else's story.

Shen Yao felt a chill run down her spine, but finally endured until the storyteller finished his commentary. She said, "These stories shouldn't be taken seriously."

Lan Yunyi said, "Isn't it wonderful? This monk Chengxin has been pretending to be a hermit for many years, and now he has finally made it."

Shen Yao thought to herself that it was all her fault, but she dared not refute it.

She said, "There's nothing wrong between me, Chengxin, and Ayuan. Please don't overthink it, my husband, and don't hurt our harmony."

Lan Yunyi respectfully poured water for Shen Yao and said, "Princess, there's no need for you to explain. How could I, Lan, be the kind of person who would so easily doubt my own wife?"

Shen Yao continued to explain, "I did not give Chengxin ten thousand taels of gold, but rather entrusted him with the money to use, and the amount was less than ten thousand taels. In addition, Chengxin appeared at the banquet because some people were dissatisfied at the time..." Shen Yao thought for a moment and decided to slightly elevate Lan Yunyi's status, saying, "At that time, the general was not present, and I, a mere woman, was subject to much criticism. Therefore, asking Master Chengxin to come out of seclusion was truly a last resort."

Shen Yao also started to cover her face and play the victim, which made Lan Yunyi unable to help but glance at her.

Shen Yao said, "A Yuan can be my witness."

Lan Yunyi suddenly turned her head to look at A Yuan.

A-Yuan: "?!" No, what does this have to do with me?!