Chapter 480 This princess will not want a useless consort.
What nonsense is he spouting?!
Xie Yunjia stared at him in disbelief, feeling that he was out of his mind.
What are you talking about?
"Isn't Your Highness very clear about what I'm saying?"
Lu Yixue stared at her intently until Xie Yunjia panicked, then said confidently, "Your Highness, you love me."
Xie Yunjia's breath hitched, but she remained silent.
Lu Yixue did not press her to say anything to express her attitude, because he already knew her feelings.
Lu Yixue lifted her hand again and continued to apply the nail polish to her nails, stroke by stroke.
The red nail polish really suited her.
Lu Yixue gently and patiently painted Xie Yunjia's nails, his movements almost reverent.
"...Aren't you going to ask me why I killed that person?"
“The princess must have her own reasons.” Lu Yixue didn’t even look up, focusing intently on what he was doing. “The princess is trying to provoke me, but she has forgotten that she is a very good person. How could I doubt her true intentions just because of a momentary suspicion?”
"You smooth talker, I, the princess, never need a reason to kill." Xie Yunjia said stiffly, "This man is the steward of my princess's residence. When I first came out of the palace to take charge of the residence, that man thought I was young and easy to bully, so he colluded with outsiders to secretly sell the property in the residence and line his own pockets."
Lu Yixue looked up, a faint smile in his eyes, but his tone was extremely serious: "I believe in the princess."
"oh."
Xie Yunjia leaned against the soft couch, looking down at the man kneeling to apply nail polish to her head. After a long silence, she said, "This princess will not want a useless consort."
"Um?"
Lu Yixue's heart skipped a beat. He looked up in surprise, and after understanding the meaning behind her words, he was overjoyed: "Princess, you mean..."
Xie Yunjia gave a haughty hum, pulled her hand away from his, raised her hands, and while admiring her red nail polish, said...
“Since ancient times, the imperial examination has been the touchstone for scholars across the land. Your Lu family has produced scholars for generations, but suddenly you have become a mere scholar. You can’t possibly fail to even become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) and disgrace the Lu family.”
Xie Yunjia feigned disdain, "This princess would never marry a weak and incompetent scholar. Since you insist on abandoning martial arts for literature, then show me some real skills. If you can win first place, this princess will accept you as her consort. If you fail, or only manage a low-ranking position—"
"I see!"
Lu Yixue said impatiently.
His throat bobbed, his voice filled with suppressed excitement. He couldn't help but tug at her drooping sleeve with his fingertips, and whispered his promise: "Your subject will certainly not fail the princess's expectations, nor will he fail the ancestors of the Lu family."
Xie Yunjia glared at him again and pulled her sleeve back: "Hmph, just because you've read a few books makes you talk a good game."
Xie Yunjia blushed slightly, not wanting him to notice. She glanced at the zither he had brought on the table and casually pointed at it, saying, "In that case, sing a song for this princess."
Lu Yixue was stunned for a moment, then chuckled softly, his spirited demeanor softening.
He released his grip, stood up, walked to the table, and ran his fingertips across the instrument, producing a clear and melodious sound.
"I am not good at singing and dancing, so I will play a tune on the zither for the princess to hear."
He sat down cross-legged, raised his hand to pluck the strings, and the sound of the zither was initially steady, but gradually became more spirited and vigorous, like the sound of iron horses galloping across the battlefield, while also containing a touch of tenderness.
Xie Yunjia leaned back on the soft couch, her fingertips unconsciously tapping the armrest, and muttered, "The playing was just so-so, barely pleasing to the ear."
Her gaze, however, remained fixed on his straight back, and a blush crept across her cheeks, spreading to the tips of her ears.
A smooth-talking, despicable man.
……snort.
………
That day, after taking the little ones to play in the bamboo forest near Jingyue Pavilion, Sheng Sheng planned to go to the East Palace for a free meal, but was told by the palace servants that His Highness the Crown Prince had accompanied the Crown Princess back to her parents' home.
It is said that once you enter the palace, it is like entering a deep sea, but Xie Yunchuan not only never restricts Li Manyan's contact with the Li family, but also takes the initiative to inquire about the Li family's recent situation. When Li Manyan said she missed home, he immediately accompanied her back home.
During the previous Chinese New Year, Xie Yunchuan personally accompanied her to stay at the Li residence for a few days.
The elder brother and sister-in-law were living a blissful life, and could only sigh inwardly at how unfortunate their arrival had been.
Zijuan asked her, "Princess, shall we go back to Yuqing Palace and ask the kitchen to make shepherd's purse dumplings? Shepherd's purse is at its freshest right now, and we just bought it from outside the palace. The dumplings we make will surely be incredibly delicious. Or, how about we make them and take them to Jinxiu Palace, so that the Princess and the Imperial Concubine can have dinner together?"
"Okay, okay."
Sheng Sheng was quick to leave, immediately taking the shepherd's purse dumplings that had been prepared in Yuqing Palace to Jinxiu Palace.
Upon arriving at the Brocade Palace, Sheng Sheng discovered that in addition to Consort Rong, the eldest wife of the Rong family, who was also Consort Rong's sister-in-law, was also there.
And there was Sheng Sheng's older cousin, sitting upright to the side, listening attentively to the two elders.
As soon as the voices entered, the atmosphere in the hall instantly became lively.
She bowed with a smile and then asked Zijuan to take the shepherd's purse dumplings she had brought to the small kitchen in Jinxiu Palace to cook them.
"I didn't know my aunt and cousin were here. Luckily, I thought I'd leave some for my mother, so I brought a lot. We can all have shepherd's purse dumplings!"
Madam Rong warmly beckoned her over: "Oh my, our little princess is such a sweet little angel! This shepherd's purse is at its best right now, and she immediately sent it to your mother. Your Highness is truly blessed!"
Consort Rong was pleased, but she remained modest: "Sister-in-law, you flatter me. This child is quite lively. He doesn't even know how old he is. He's barely ridden a horse. Last month, he insisted on going horseback riding with the Fifth Prince, and he accidentally fell down. I was so worried about him."
"Oh, is that so?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Rong quickly looked Sheng Sheng over several times. Seeing that she didn't seem to be injured, she said, "It seems you've recovered quite well. Falling off a horse when you're just learning to ride is no small matter."
Sheng Sheng was both amused and exasperated. When Consort Rong said she had fallen, it was actually because Xie Yunqi was so excited while riding that he insisted on riding around Sheng Sheng in circles.
At that time, Sheng Sheng was leisurely riding her horse around the horse farm. Although she hadn't ridden a horse many times, she could talk to the foals. Once she could communicate with the foals, learning to ride a horse would be a piece of cake.
But Xie Yunqi was too reckless. He got too excited and accidentally missed the saddle, about to fall off. Shen Shen instinctively tried to pull him up, but ended up being pulled off with Xie Yunqi instead.
Fortunately, she spoke up in time to get the two horses to move aside. The two of them only fell to the ground, which wasn't very high. With Xie Yunqi cushioning their fall, they were actually unharmed.
Xie Yunqi, on the other hand, lay on the bed for several days, covering his buttocks.
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