Chapter 16: The lesson of male morality is actually...
In fact, when Song Youning was a child, she liked to stick to him.
When she was little, she always loved to follow him, tiptoeing to his desk, and calling out with a smile: "Brother Funing, can you teach Ningning how to write?"
But at that time, Li Funing would only put down his pen, help her sit properly, and scold her: "Your Highness, your sitting posture is not correct, and your handwriting is not correct either."
Since childhood, Li Funing has been a gentleman, measured by the jade ruler of a century-old family. Every inch of his demeanor has been rigorously polished, even the arc of his frown must conform to etiquette.
When he first met Song Youning, he behaved like a young master from an aristocratic family, being aloof and polite, even observing the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects when passing a cup of tea.
This way he would have a chance to get close to her.
Little did she know that this deliberately maintained distance had become a wall of ice between them. The more he dutifully addressed her as "Your Highness," the more the light in her eyes dimmed; the more he restrained himself and withheld his presence, the more determined the curve of her skirt rose when she turned.
It wasn't until that day at the palace banquet that he saw her with his own eyes, talking and laughing with Xiao Lin, a happier woman than she had ever been in his presence. At that moment, he realized that the gentlemanly conduct he had adhered to had long since become a force that pushed her towards others.
He remembered that the day Xiao Lin appeared, Song Youning was being scolded by Li Funing.
When he was young, he was four years older than Song Youning, but he spoke in a very serious manner: "Your Highness's skirt is stained with mud, which is against the rules."
Suddenly, a burst of laughter came from the top of the wall: "Song Youning, what's the fun in being with a nerd? This prince will take you to rob a bird's nest!"
The two turned around when they heard the sound, only to see Xiao Lin, dressed in a fiery red dress, lazily leaning against the blue brick wall.
He held a string of candied haws in his hand and a piece of dogtail grass in his mouth, laughing freely and unrestrainedly, with three parts of ruffian spirit and seven parts of unruly, just like a gust of wind, disturbing the twilight in the yard.
The mature Li Funing frowned slightly, his childish voice revealing a serious tone: "Prince Xiao, this is against etiquette."
Xiao Lin jumped down from the wall, grabbed Song Youning's hand, and pulled her up from the stool: "This prince is polite"
Young Song Youning pushed Xiao Lin's hand away, her eyes wide open, her hands on her hips as she said, "I'm so happy to be with Brother Funing!"
"Xiao Lin, if you keep talking about him like this, I'll get angry!"
Song Youning liked him at that time.
In terms of family background, the Li family has been noble for hundreds of years, and the Zhenbei Marquis Mansion holds great power, which is far more prominent than the Li family.
In terms of appearance, Li Funing is as cool as jade, while Xiao Lin is as bold as fire, and they are equally matched.
His only chance of winning was because he was steady and met the standards of a future emperor's husband, but if he fought for this position, he would keep her away from him.
Then he will break it with his own hands.
Li Funing came back to his senses and put Song Youning behind him: "Prince Xiao, I am now the princess's consort, so please be mindful of your behavior towards my wife.
Song Youning looked at Li Funing, who was behaving out of character, and felt strange.
"You haven't even decided on your second marriage yet, and your destiny hasn't even been decided yet!" Xiao Lin couldn't help but complain.
Li Funing's eyes darkened slightly, and his tone was extremely serious: "It has already been decided. A few days ago, in front of all the officials, His Majesty has already issued an edict."
"So what? We are not married yet." Xiao Lin glanced at him nonchalantly, "This prince never cares about these things. Rules, laws, status, this prince doesn't care about any of them. This prince only knows that if I like someone, then I like him, and if I like someone, I will take the initiative to fight for him."
"And if it weren't for my mischievous behavior in childhood and His Majesty's dislike of my corrupting the princess, how could you have been the 'Emperor's Husband'?"
Song Youning saw that the two men were on edge. If she didn't stop them, they might cause chaos. She deliberately changed the subject: "Xiao Lin, why are you here if you're not going to lead the troops?"
"We have already taken two cities, but Your Majesty and my father have disagreements and the situation remains deadlocked..."
"Look, an imperial decree has summoned this prince back to the capital to wait for orders." He suddenly leaned forward and tapped his palm with his folding fan. "But when this prince thinks of Ningning still in Yuzhou..."
"So I changed my route and headed south overnight, specifically to wait here."
He suddenly covered half of his lips with the fan and said in a low voice, "Even the secret guards sent by my father to follow me were left behind at the official post station. I deliberately squatted in this casino in advance, waiting for you to come find me."
"Looking for you?" Song Youning frowned.
Xiao Lin leaned against the gambling table, with her ponytail tied high and a smile on her lips.
"This prince knows that Ningning always likes to join in the fun, so I deliberately made up a gambling god to trick you into coming."
“Who knew this would happen?”
He took a step forward: "Well, isn't this prince very smart?"
"Isn't he smarter than that old-fashioned Li Funing?"
Song Youning narrowed her eyes and suddenly reached out to grab his ear: "Xiao Lin, are you so bold? How dare you make fun of me?"
Xiao Lin cried out "Ouch", but he didn't hide. Instead, he rubbed against her with a smile: "It hurts, it hurts, Song Youning, this prince missed you so much!"
"Hey, why are you still doing this?"
Song Youning: "Miss me?"
She sneered and let go of his hand. "If you missed me, why didn't you just come over? Why did you have to do all this fancy stuff?"
Xiao Lin covered his red earlobe, touched it, and lowered his voice: "That's so boring."
He suddenly leaned close to her ear and whispered something.
"Besides...if that old man knew that I was looking for you, I might not even see you."
Song Youning was about to retort when a cold voice suddenly came from behind him.
"Prince Xiao, you guessed right..."
He gathered his sleeves, a sharp glint in his eyes. "I will write a letter tonight and tell His Majesty the truth... I will tell you that the Crown Prince did not stay in the capital and wait for orders, but came to Yuzhou."
After saying this, he nodded slightly, appearing respectful and polite, but giving people a sense of indecision: "My Lord, please pack up and wait for your punishment."
Xiao Lin: “…”
"Okay." Song Youning frowned and glanced at the people who were watching the show. If he continued, all the bad things about the three of them would be revealed.
"You guys go down first."
Song Youning said to the people behind him calmly, "One word about what happened today should be spread out."
She raised her eyes, a cold light flashing in them.
"You know what happened."
Shopkeeper Liu and several of his thugs instantly lost their legs, cold sweat breaking out on their foreheads: "Yes, yes, yes! I heard nothing! I saw nothing!"
They almost crawled out, and did not forget to close the door tightly before leaving.
The room suddenly became quiet.
Xiao Lin whistled: "Song Youning, I haven't seen you for a while, you look so impressive!"
"Ouch"
Before he could finish his words, Song Youning kicked him again.
Song Youning glared at him, then looked at the two people in front of him with disdain, feeling very disappointed: "How glorious it is! One is the son of the Zhenbei Marquis, and the other is the son of the Prime Minister. You two, with such demeanor, are still considered the emperor's husband?"
"You're almost a cook..."
Before he could finish his words, Xiao Lin came closer with a grin: "How come the princess finally admitted that I am also a candidate for the imperial husband?"
Song Youning was speechless: What? Has he made sure that he won’t hit someone who smiles at him?
Song Youning kicked him again: "If you continue to be disgusting, I will send you to the cleansing room to be a eunuch..."
Song Youning looked at the two men, rubbed his acupoints, turned around and left.
Since they were young, these two have always fought each other.
Especially Xiao Lin, who is a complete scoundrel, but his martial arts skills are also very powerful.
Should they have taken down the roof of the Golden Palace? His father disliked him for being noisy.
Today, the position of Emperor Husband might really be his...
These two people, one is afraid that she will not follow the rules, and the other is afraid that she will follow the rules too much. They are completely a disaster.
Now that I'm in Yuzhou, I have to stick with these two enemies.
Song Youning covered his head and walked out without looking back, and Xiao Lin followed him happily.
He followed behind with a playful smile: "Song Youning, don't go! This prince just got a jar of lychee wine, let's..."
"No."
She didn't even turn around.
Li Funing added calmly, "Your Highness doesn't like drinking."
Xiao Lin raised his eyebrows: "Who said that? She secretly drank this prince's osmanthus wine when she was twelve years old!"
Li Funing: "..."
Song Youning: “…”
Song Youning's speed increased, and Xiao Lin chattered behind him like a mute who had just learned to speak...
Song Youning stopped suddenly, and Xiao Lin didn't notice it and stumbled and fell to the ground.
Song Youning leaned over and glared at Xiao Lin: "Why are you following me?"
Xiao Lin looked innocent: "Isn't this because I'm worried that you'll be bored alone?"
She sneered: "I am going to the purification room to supervise the work now, do you want to come with me?"
"...Then, I will not go."
Li Funing looked at the two people fighting in front of him. He knew that the boss with fists would beat up this brat sooner or later.
Song Youning had just arrived at the inn when Xiao Lin followed her back. He walked to the counter and tapped the table with his fingertips.
"Boss, please arrange a room for me, the one closest to the princess! Price is not a problem, I have plenty of money."
Shopkeeper Liu was sweating profusely, and he glanced at Li Funing behind him, not knowing whether to make the arrangements or not.
Li Funing slowly poured tea to Song Youning and said in a neutral voice, "The inn is full, please stay somewhere else, my prince."
Xiao Lin narrowed his eyes and looked at Li Funing and Manager Liu. "There are only a few of us guests in this shabby inn. Is it full of ghosts?"
Li Funing replied calmly, "The east wing is infested with rats, the west wing is leaking, the south wing... is haunted, the north wing... is full, and there's no place for you in the top-ranked room..."
"You did this on purpose, didn't you?!" Xiao Lin rushed over and grabbed Li Funing's collar.
Song Youning looked at the two people fighting and held his head with his hand: "..."
Xiao Lin found an opportunity to complain to Song Youning: "Song Youning! This old-fashioned man is bullying me!"
Li Funing: ...
Song Youning's temples were throbbing from the noise.
She knew that if she didn't arrange a room for him, Xiao Lin would really make trouble.
"Li Funing! Get someone to arrange a room for him!"
Li Funing looked up at Xiao Lin and said, "Yes."
"Princess, what would you like for lunch today?" Chuntao came over with the menu when she saw her come back.
Song Youning was just about to get the recipe.
Suddenly I felt unable to move.
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