Chapter 36 Pretty Boy

Lin Lanting was unaware of this, but he happened to be leaving his post early, and before the sun had set, he rode his horse into Chongren Ward, where his home was located.

As I approached my house, I saw a man in white robes carrying a zither emerge from the house and board a fine and luxurious carriage.

Lin Lanting had a good memory; he vaguely remembered that this carriage was one of the ones the princess brought with her as part of her dowry. However, she found the carriage too small and uncomfortable to sit in, so she didn't use it often.

It is quite inappropriate that this carriage is now being ridden by a strange young man.

Lin Lanting narrowed his eyes, slowed down his horse, and deliberately blocked the direction the carriage was traveling.

The carriage was blocked from moving forward, and the coachman was about to reprimand him, but when he saw that it was the prince consort, he immediately changed his expression and said with a smile, "So it is the prince consort. May I ask why the prince consort is like this?"

Lin Lanting pulled on the reins, his gaze fixed unfriendly on the carriage, and asked knowingly, "The sun is almost setting, where is the princess going?"

She was all smiles, seemingly no different from usual, but the driver felt a chill run down his spine.

For some reason, he felt a chill run down his spine, as if he had done something shameful. He cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, this is not the princess traveling, but rather the princess ordering servants to escort Young Master Xi back."

After speaking tremblingly, she saw the prince consort approach on horseback, his tone unreadable.

"What Young Master Xi? Who is that?"

After the words were spoken, Xi Bai, who was sitting upright in the carriage with his zither, had no choice but to speak.

He put down his zither and stepped out of the carriage, bowing respectfully to Lin Lanting and saying, "Greetings, General. I am Xi Bai, a musician from the Left Music Bureau. I have been summoned here today to play the zither for the princess. The princess has kindly sent a carriage to escort me back."

The speech was neither humble nor arrogant, but rather proper and sounded perfectly correct. However, Lin Lanting found it extremely grating.

When Lin Lanting saw someone he didn't like, he wanted to say something unpleasant.

But then I thought, what is this person anyway? Does he deserve my trouble to go out of my way to insult him?

He acted as if he cared so much about this little musician.

With that thought, Lin Lanting gave a faint "hmm" and waved for the others to leave.

Without saying much, her indifferent attitude revealed her disdain for him.

Xi Bai lowered his gaze, his eyes turning cold and brooding for a moment before he looked up and smiled with a gentle and kind expression.

"Respectfully seeing off the Lieutenant General."

After the smoke cleared, the two went their separate ways, and all was well.

After handing Xuan Lei over to the stable boy, Lin Lanting fed his beloved horse hay and beans as usual, stuffed two apples into its mouth, and then hurried home.

He stepped into the room without waiting and saw Huiyi sketching something on her desk. She was dressed neatly and looked normal.

Lin Lanting breathed a sigh of relief.

It's probably just listening to music.

Upon seeing Lin Lanting enter, Huiyi, amidst her busy schedule, casually asked, "You're back so soon today?"

Lin Lanting had just finished feeding the horses and was washing his hands when he replied, "There's not much to do today, so I'll be leaving early."

"Oh, right..."

Wiping the water droplets from her hands with a handkerchief, Lin Lanting asked casually, "What did the princess do at home today? Did anything interesting happen?"

Huiyi continued her work, saying lazily, "It's nothing, pretty much the same as usual."

This answer displeased Lin Lanting, who retorted, "That's not right. I heard that the princess summoned a musician. How can it be similar to usual?"

Huiyi paused in her drawing, turned around in surprise, and said unhappily, "You dare to follow me?"

Lin Lanting chuckled and said, "How dare I? I just happened to see her returning home in the princess's carriage."

Huiyi's expression softened, and she readily admitted, "That's right, he plays the zither beautifully, speaks pleasantly, and is a fine young man."

This compliment was just something Huiyi said casually, but it only made Lin Lanting feel annoyed.

This immediately reminded him of the promise they made that night.

They keep to themselves and don't interfere with each other's fun and happiness.

Lin Lanting vaguely remembers being quite happy at the time, but now she can't recall her feelings at all.

He only felt tightness in his chest and shortness of breath.

Perhaps it was the intimacy of that night that made it impossible for Lin Lanting to ignore it.

What are you going to do?

His fingertips turned white from being squeezed so tightly that he asked stiffly.

Huiyi was completely bewildered by the question and said impatiently, "What do you mean by 'wait and see'? It's so strange!"

They couldn't communicate at all; it was like talking to a brick wall.

Lin Lanting clenched her fists, feeling a pang of regret for not punching that pretty boy a few times back then.

His temper began to rise, and for the first time, he felt an unyielding attitude. Just as he was about to say something and argue with Huiyi, a little girl walked in from outside.

"Princess, the gardener has planted the osmanthus tree. Would you like to go and take a look?"

After drawing embroidery patterns for half an hour and hearing Lin Er's inexplicable words, Huiyi decided to go out for some fresh air.

Setting down her paintbrush, Huiyi took the damp handkerchief handed to her by Biqing, wiped her hands, and said happily, "Then let's go take a look."

Having said that, he ignored him completely, and the group of people rushed out of the house, treating him as if he were nothing.

Lin Lanting was so angry that her liver hurt.

For reasons unknown, he nimbly followed along to see the broken osmanthus tree.

"Your Highness, with my service, the osmanthus tree will bloom this Mid-Autumn Festival, and its fragrance will surely fill your entire residence."

Transplanting trees is quite difficult; if not handled carefully, they can wither and die in a new location.

But Huiyi was so eager to smell that cool fragrance at the Lin residence this year that she found the best gardener and carpenter in Chang'an.

Hearing what she wanted to hear, Huiyi was delighted and waved her hand to bestow a generous reward.

"If the flowers do indeed bloom this year, I, the princess, will reward you once more."

After suffering for so many years, what's wrong with her spending a little money to have some fun?

The gardener was out there to earn a living, and he was most delighted to hear such a favor from a VIP, especially since it happened twice. He was overjoyed and showered the VIP with compliments.

Lin Lanting watched and listened from the side, and gradually figured out the trick.

A spoiled princess is easy to coax; say a few nice things and she'll look at you normally, and do something she likes and she'll smile.

Lin Lanting pondered silently, and gradually an idea came to him.

"Princess, you are a national treasure of peonies, I didn't expect you to also like osmanthus. I'll plant more of them in the house tomorrow, so that we can make some sachets and dishes when the season comes."

These words were both beautiful and thoughtful, but they didn't sound like something that Lin Er would say.

Huiyi looked at him with surprise at first, then laughed and said, "Did you take the wrong medicine today? You're being so sweet. Do you need my help with something?"

Over the years, Huiyi has seen many sycophants, almost all of whom wanted something from her.

Seeing that Lin Er had suddenly changed his personality and said some nice things to her, Huiyi immediately started to think in that direction.

Lin Lanting's thoughts wandered as well, and he subconsciously looked at that tender red spot, licking his lips involuntarily.

It really is...

Realizing what he was thinking, Lin Lanting's eyes flickered, and he chuckled awkwardly, "Why would I think that? Couldn't I just say something that would be more agreeable?"

Seeing that Lin Er seemed to have no demands, Huiyi felt a slight sense of unease and awkwardly said, "You've become much more obedient."

Lin Er's conscientiousness was a good thing for her, so Huiyi stopped thinking about it and continued to look at the osmanthus tree with a smile on her lips.

Lin Lanting knew his method was correct as soon as he saw the smile, and he smiled back.

As dusk fell, Lin Lanting went to pay his respects to his parents, only to be bombarded with endless platitudes about serving the princess well. He then leisurely walked back to the east courtyard alone.

Changqiu followed behind, neither the master nor the servant uttering a word.

Just as they were passing by the pond, a tinkling sound came from above. Lin Lanting looked up and saw that it was the sound of a fish leaping out of the water.

He intended to walk straight over, but then suddenly remembered something and turned to go to the pond, giving Changqiu a heads-up.

"Bring me my fishing rod."

Huiyi completed the drawings that she hadn't finished before and handed them all over to Yuniang.

She was good at drawing flower patterns, but not at embroidery, so all the small items she wore were made by skillful hands like Yu Niang.

For example, handkerchiefs, undergarments, and sachets.

Yu Niang's embroidery, combined with her floral patterns, was simply perfect.

After resting for a while, it was time to eat.

It was at this moment that Huiyi smelled an extremely domineering fragrance.

It smelled like something was being roasted, and Huiyi sniffed it a few times before figuring out what it was.

The grilled fish was grilled by Lin Er.

She immediately wanted to go out and take a look, but then she held back.

No, rushing out like this is too cowardly. It makes it seem like she has a thing for Lin Er's grilled fish.

With this in mind, Huiyi sat steadily, but her eyes and twitching nose betrayed her.

She became restless under the overwhelming aroma of grilled fish.

Finally, after being tormented by the overpowering aroma for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Lin Lanting came in carrying the grilled fish.

Evening food was also served.

Huiyi glanced over casually and noticed that Lin Er had grilled two fish, both of them very plump and delicious.

Sizzling with oil, the aroma of caramelized fat fills the air.

It was mealtime, and everyone's stomachs were empty, so Huiyi couldn't help but swallow.

She thought she was very discreet, but Lin Lanting, with his sharp eyes, noticed her.

Silently chuckling to herself, Lin Lanting thought to herself, "I knew I was right."

Enjoying one of the fish leisurely and setting the other aside, Lin Lanting said to himself, "It's been a long time since I've had grilled fish. I'm lucky today; I caught two."

"Two pieces are a bit too much; one person can't finish them all. Perhaps..."

"This one will be for the princess to enjoy."

If someone familiar with her were present, they would surely see through Lin Lanting's feigned pretense.

Two fish are enough to make you feel about three-tenths full!

But this clumsy lie actually fooled someone like Huiyi.

She was so tempted by the grilled fish that she lost her mind.

Upon hearing Lin Er's offer to share, she tried her best to suppress her soaring emotions and said in a seemingly calm and composed manner, "Seeing how sincere you are, this princess will help you."

"Biqing, go get the fish."

And he couldn’t wait to have Biqing bring the grilled fish over.

She had been craving this for a long time.

She thought she was being reserved and natural enough, but little did she know that Lin Lanting had already revealed everything.

Watching the spoiled princess devour the fish with relish, Lin Lanting felt even hungrier and devoured the food on the table in a flash.

Normally, Huiyi would definitely fight with him for it, but today is different.

Having obtained Lin Er's fish, she stopped arguing with him.

Before falling asleep, Lin Lanting lay on the long couch, his thoughts racing.

Li Huiyi ate his fish, so she should be more at ease now.

As if reassured, Lin Lanting breathed a sigh of relief.

But before he could find peace for more than a few days, one day while he was at his post in the government office, Changqiu came running up to him, trembling, and told him some bad news.

"Oh no, my lord! The princess has summoned that pretty boy again!"

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Author's Note: Update complete! [heart emoji]