Xiao Jinglin glanced at the maid kneeling beside her, boiling water and making tea. Hongying immediately stood up and walked out of the pleasure boat.
Xiao Jinglin sat there without moving, and Ren Yaoqi also did not move.
Hongying returned a short while later. Just as she was about to report, a woman's voice rang out from outside: "Xiao Jinglin, don't you know that boats are prohibited on the city's waterways? Or are you relying on your status to knowingly violate the rules?"
The voice sounded very young, probably about the same age as Xiao Jinglin, and the tone was filled with undisguised sarcasm and displeasure.
It was obvious that the girl outside knew Xiao Jinglin, but Ren Yaoqi was a little curious about which girl in Yanbei dared to speak to the princess of Yanbei Palace in this way.
Xiao Jinglin didn't even show any expression after hearing this, and didn't seem to have any intention of showing up. He just said to Hongying in a calm voice, "Tell the boat girl to leave the city from the north gate."
Hongying turned around and left without any hesitation. Ren Yaoqi, who was sitting in the pleasure boat, could still hear Hongying talking to the boatwoman at the stern.
Another maid prepared the tea and poured a cup for Xiao Jinglin and Ren Yaoqi respectively.
The ignored woman standing on the bridge was furious, her voice rising in volume. "Xiao Jinglin, did you hear me? Get out here right now! Are the two waterway gates in the city just for you to play around with? You've brought disgrace upon the Yanbei Palace! Xiao Jingyue, why don't you stop her boat!"
Xiao Jingyue? The third son of the Xiao family?
"Cousin, you don't know, this pleasure boat was specially shipped back from Kyoto by my second brother at the request of the prince. Don't underestimate it, the price of a pleasure boat is enough to buy a big house. It's not that my third brother didn't want to stop him, it's that I didn't have the courage to stop him. I can't afford to pay for it if it breaks down." The man's leisurely voice sounded slowly, but it added fuel to the fire.
"Look at what you have accomplished! Go and stop the boat for me. If the boat breaks down, it's my fault!" the woman said arrogantly.
Then several timid voices were heard, and it seemed that the woman was giving orders to her followers.
By this time, Ren Yaoqi could already guess who this girl was. The old Princess of Yanbei had only one daughter, Xiao Wei. She had married Wu Xiaohe, the Ningxia General. Xiao Wei also had only one daughter. The one who dared to challenge Xiao Jinglin outside must be Xiao Wei's daughter, her cousin from the Yanbei Palace.
This Sister Wu doesn't look like she's an easy person to deal with.
Ren Yaoqi was pondering the complicated relationships in this family when he heard a few knocking sounds on the boat wall, and then the boat began to shake.
Ren Yaoqi didn't expect that the people outside would actually dare to attack him. He was caught off guard and bumped into the low table.
The tea bowl on the low table was knocked over, and the freshly brewed scalding tea was about to spill onto Ren Yaoqi. Xiao Jinglin, who was sitting next to him, quickly pulled Ren Yaoqi over. The tea flowed down the edge of the table onto the lichen in the boat, soaking a spot that was still steaming.
"Sister, are you burned?" Apple, who was standing opposite, almost fell to the ground. After she regained her balance, she rushed over and asked worriedly.
Xiao Jinglin also looked over with concern.
Ren Yaoqi shook his head: "The princess pulled me away in time, so I didn't get burned."
There was a "splash" sound of someone falling into the water outside, and someone screamed.
"Princess, they used bamboo poles to knock our boat girl into the water." Hongying leaned over to take a look and turned back to reply.
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