18 On the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival, returning
The Liu Hanruo before him was different from the ones he had seen before. His initial impression was of a frail, sickly beauty, but later he saw a noble and charming beauty. In the memory of the 'Carefree King', he had never seen Liu Hanruo dressed so simply, which made him take a few more glances.
Faced with Liu Hanruo's heartfelt accusations, the "Carefree King" couldn't help but feel embarrassed and could only change the subject by coughing, saying irrelevant things.
"Your Highness, the weather is so lovely today."
Upon hearing this, Liu Hanruo raised an eyebrow, her lips twitched violently, and her tears receded. Her stiff expression froze on the spot as she mechanically looked out the window. The sky was still hazy, and visibility was extremely low. Which eye of this 'Carefree King' saw that the weather was fine? He spoke with such confidence, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world, like talking about eating.
Well, perhaps men all care about their pride, especially a prince like him. But if you want to change the subject, at least do it in a slightly more natural way. Don't be so obvious; it'll be obvious you're just being perfunctory. Liu Hanruo sighed inwardly. Men like understanding women. To save face for the 'Carefree Prince' and to make a good impression, she should continue the conversation.
"Yes, Your Highness, but I think the weather would be better if the sun came out!"
"Ahem... Uh, what the Princess Consort says is true." Realizing that his topic had gone a little too far, the 'Carefree Prince' could only laugh awkwardly.
"Your Highness, I know you are busy with official duties, so I will keep it brief. For the Dragon Boat Festival banquet, I plan to... and then... until the very end... Originally, I intended to ask for Your Highness's opinion first, and then draft a table outlining the specific details of the Dragon Boat Festival banquet and distribute it to the various stewards. However, considering that Sister Liu had recently suffered a miscarriage, I was worried that Your Highness might be upset, so I didn't dare to disturb you and took it upon myself to arrange everything. Your Highness, in your opinion, is there anything that is not perfect and needs to be revised?" Liu Hanruo subtly changed the subject.
Despite Liu Hanruo's eloquent speech, the 'Carefree King' remained indifferent and made no comment until the very end, when he slowly said:
"As the mistress of the inner palace, the princess is free to make her own decisions. There is no need to specifically ask me. I have no objections. If the princess has nothing else to attend to, she may leave. I have many official duties to attend to."
Clearly an order to leave, Liu Hanruo, though reluctant to part with the book, dared not openly disobey and could only bow and take her leave.
"Your Highness works tirelessly day and night; you must be taking better care of yourself. I'll have the kitchen prepare a stew of ginseng and black-boned chicken for you to replenish your energy. I'll take my leave now."
In the following days, Liu Hanruo was very busy, either looking at the bills or giving instructions to the steward. In order to avoid any mistakes, Liu Hanruo even adopted a reward and punishment system, which greatly motivated the servants.
The night before the Dragon Boat Festival feast, Liu Hanruo summoned all the managers. First, she confirmed the menu, then she explained in detail the personnel arrangements for tomorrow's banquet, and finally she discussed the performance arrangements and other matters. By the time she finished explaining everything, it was already late at night, and everyone took their leave. Liu Hanruo lay quietly on the bed, unable to fall asleep for a long time. She took out the phoenix pendant from her body, her gaze distant, seemingly lost in thought.
On the other side, the main gate of the Shuiyue Pavilion was tightly shut, but a window beside it was wide open, seemingly waiting for someone's arrival. The third watch of the night had passed, and an anxious figure paced back and forth inside the pavilion, clearly the 'Carefree King.' He kept looking out the window, muttering to himself:
"It's past midnight, why haven't they come yet? Could something bad have happened to them again...?"
As soon as the weary man in black sneaked into the library, he heard the 'Carefree King' murmur. Seeing his anxious expression, the man in black suddenly felt like teasing him.
"Hmm, it seems you're quite worried about him?"
"Isn't that obvious? We agreed on the second watch, but it's already the third watch and there's still no sign of him. How can I not be worried? You know, that guy almost died last time!"
Perhaps out of concern, he seemed to have given it little thought, answering instinctively, as if he had forgotten that he was the only person in the entire library. If the person he was waiting for had not yet arrived, then who else could he talk to?
"Pfft, I didn't expect you to care about him so much."
"Absolutely, we're sworn brothers."
"What if he gets bullied?"
"That's impossible! That guy's a real jerk, with such high martial arts skills, it's a miracle he doesn't bully others, how could he possibly be bullied!"
"Didn't you just say that he almost lost his life last time? What if it was the same person from last time?"
"Damn it, I haven't settled the score with that bastard from last time. If he dares to hurt him again this time, I'll chop that bastard to pieces!"
The thought of what happened last time still lingered in his mind, and the more he thought about it, the more panicked he became, fearing that he would be in danger again like before. So, he couldn't stay still any longer, opened the door, and was about to use his light-footed skills to fly out. Just then, he heard loud laughter behind him, and belatedly realized that something seemed to have gone wrong.
Knowing that the man in black was coming that night, someone had already ordered during the day that no one was allowed to enter or leave Shuiyue Pavilion that night. So the only possible owner of that voice could be... Thinking of the conversation just now, the person realized that he had been tricked. So, he was furious and attacked the man in black behind him. Every move was fierce, but he stopped at the crucial moment. The fight was exhilarating. The two stood on opposite sides, looked at each other and smiled, and understood each other perfectly.
"How did it go? Is everything taken care of?"
"Well, that's all for now. I can finally rest for a bit."
"Then I'll be free, right? You know, facing your bunch of thirsty women, I'll really have to live many years less."
"Oh, really? As far as I know, you were living a pretty good life, you almost became a father!"
The person didn't seem to care about the man in black's teasing, and simply said with a hint of helplessness:
"Sigh, it's not that I'm heartless, but how can you keep a child from that kind of woman, especially..."
"Yes, tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. Is everything prepared for the banquet?"
"Speaking of this, I'm reminded of your princess. She seems to have changed a lot. She organized this banquet all by herself. She was dressed in plain clothes that day, extremely simple. I didn't even recognize her and mistook her for one of the concubines in the harem, making a huge blunder and almost losing face. Your princess was very understanding and gave me a way out. I was so touched at the time."
"...It's late, go back now. Remember to come to the banquet tomorrow."
"Okay, you heartless friend, you used me and then kicked me out."
After saying this, "The Carefree King" vanished, leaving only the man in black in the room. He filled a basin with water, added something to it, then soaked a cloth and wiped his face. A moment later, he gently pulled, and a human skin mask fell off, revealing his true appearance—undoubtedly the Carefree King who had just left. He suddenly smiled and said softly:
"We'll see each other tomorrow, hehe!"
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