The couple from the third branch of the Lu family had a fierce quarrel because of this. Yu Zizhen, who was still unaware of this, was celebrating Xiao Yuanjin's birthday.
Not only did she prepare a dinner and a cake, but she also invited those classmates with whom they had a good relationship.
Yang Shixian, Fang Huaiying, Fan Zhongming, Chen Hushan, and even Xiao Shaoke, who was temporarily given to Xiao Yuanjin by Empress Dowager Dalu before he left the palace.
Da Lu still didn't quite believe Xiao Yuanjin's self-narration, so she stuffed Xiao Shaoke into their small group under the pretext of letting him join in the fun.
Xiao Shaoke is Xiao Yuanjin's uncle, and most importantly, he was sent here by the Lu family. Xiao Yuanjin cannot refuse him for any reason.
In desperation, he had to bring Xiao Shaoke, who looked nervous and guilty, to the Zhenbei Palace.
Xiao Shaoke knew that he was an uninvited guest who came suddenly, so he was very nervous.
Of course, he knew that he would not be sent back, but he really didn't like the feeling of being excluded by everyone and having a vague barrier with everyone.
Rather than sitting here and being rejected by everyone as a bad guest, he would rather stay in his room and be an invisible person who is not noticed by others.
However, to his surprise, Yu Zizhen and others did not exclude him subtly as he had worried.
Especially the host Yu Zizhen, she was very warm to Xiao Shaoke, as if Xiao Shaoke was not an uninvited guest who came without permission, but a distinguished guest she had invited with great difficulty.
"Come, sit here, between me and His Highness." Yu Zizhen gave up his seat to Xiao Shaoke, and then had someone add a chair and a set of tableware for her below her original seat.
While pouring tea for Xiao Shaoke, she warmly greeted the others, "Come on, everyone, take a seat."
Although Yang Shixian, Fang Huaiying, Fan Zhongming and Chen Hushan had different personalities, none of them was the kind of young man who couldn't judge the situation. Although they were surprised by Xiao Shaoke's uninvited visit, they did not show this surprise on their faces.
After Yu Zizhen's greeting, everyone immediately became warm towards Xiao Shaoke.
Several half-grown children sat in a circle, talking to each other about the various interesting things that happened around them during this period.
After saying this, they talked about their respective coursework progress.
After everyone had eaten and drunk enough and had a great time, Yu Zizhen was the first to take out the birthday gift she had prepared for Xiao Yuanjin.
"Is this a Hu brush?" The moment the box was opened, Fan Zhongming could no longer sit still. He leaned over to take a closer look, but his head was pushed away by Yu Zizhen's ruthless palm.
She proudly handed the entire set of Hu brushes in the box to Xiao Yuanjin, "Yes, it's Hu brushes, and they're a complete set of Hu brushes made by the renowned master pen maker Wang Shan himself."
Xiao Yuanjin is an expert in both calligraphy and painting, and his skills have already been demonstrated at a young age. Yu Zizhen's gift can be said to be very appropriate.
However, when the others heard her say this, they immediately felt a surge of jealousy. Chen Hushan grabbed one of Yu Zizhen's sleeves and said, "On His Highness's birthday, you just cater to his preferences. On our birthdays, you just gave us fruits and vegetables you grew yourself as a token of your appreciation. You're not kind!"
Yu Zizhen wasn't taking the blame for this. She argued confidently, "How could that be? I always pick the best ingredients for you! The Prince of Zhenbei planted them himself, and you're still picky?! Shouldn't you be grateful and eat them all with extra care?"
Everyone: ...Although this guy is definitely making sophistry, how come this sophistry actually sounds strangely plausible?
Yu Zizhen took the opportunity to change the subject, "Don't just stand there and watch. Hurry up and give me your gifts! After that, I'll have something delicious for you to eat."
Everyone's curiosity was aroused again by her word "good stuff", so they took out the birthday gifts they had prepared for Xiao Yuanjin.
Even for Xiao Shaoke, his uncle, Empress Dowager Da Lu had someone prepare a standard birthday gift for him that was neither surprising nor out of place.
Xiao Yuanjin accepted the gifts from everyone with a smile. After thanking them one by one, he had someone put all the gifts away.
Seeing this, Yu Zizhen immediately asked someone to bring up the double-layer cream cake that was made by Madam Zhang according to the recipe she provided.
Except for Xiao Yuanjin, everyone else present was eating cream cake for the first time, so even though Madam Zhang's cooking was not very successful, everyone was still amazed by its unique taste.
So, the group of people who had already eaten and drunk their fill couldn't control themselves and each of them grabbed a big piece of cream cake.
Yu Zizhen had anticipated this, and when everyone started sharing the cake, she had someone bring over the hawthorn strips and sour plum soup that she had prepared long ago.
While enjoying the attentive service of the servants at the Zhenbei Palace, Chen Hushan whispered to Fang Huaiying, "Look at those two. They want to stick together all the time. Anyway, I don't believe that Yu Zizhen is not partial."
While he was speaking, Yu Zizhen was personally handing a small piece of cake to Xiao Yuanjin.
Xiao Yuanjin likes to eat canned fruits, especially canned fruits sandwiched in cake base. The piece that Yu Zizhen picked for him was cut from the quarter of the cake filled with canned yellow peaches.
As for the others, Yu Zizhen just left it to fate, no matter which piece they cut or which flavor they tasted.
Fang Huaiying was not like Chen Hushan. He never cared about these things. Hearing Chen Hushan say this, he just savored the cream cake with apricot jam in his hand while looking up at Chen Hushan with a soothing smile.
Yu Zizhen doesn't care whether Chen Hushan is mentally balanced or not. Xiao Yuanjin is not only one of her targets, but also has a very bad temper towards her. Of course, she will treat him better.
What Chen Hushan and the others didn't know was that in addition to the set of Hu brushes, Yu Zizhen also gave Xiao Yuanjin a delicate soft sword that she exchanged from the system mall.
The soft sword is lightweight and thin. Not only are the sword body and scabbard thinner than ordinary sword bodies and scabbards, but even the thickness of the handle is only one-fourth of that of an ordinary sword handle, making it very suitable for concealing and carrying at all times.
Although Xiao Yuanjin has no plans to bring this soft sword into the palace at the moment, when he needs it in the future, this soft sword will undoubtedly become his weapon of self-defense to attack by surprise.
***
Not long after Xiao Yuanjin's birthday, the small classroom in the South Study started again. The difference from the previous year was that this time in the small classroom in the South Study, Yu Zizhen saw the second prince and two unfamiliar faces sent in by the Lu family.
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