31. The young prince also has
Upon hearing this, Jin Lanyue pouted and dropped the sesame brittle she was holding onto the table with a thud.
She felt a little wronged.
The princess slammed her hand on the table and stood up immediately: "You!"
Qu Zijin pressed down on the princess's shoulder, his gaze shifting to that stubborn figure.
Although the young prince stood up straight and held the telescope, his hand holding it was trembling slightly.
The hall fell silent for a moment, with only the faint hissing sound of the copper pipes turning.
The young prince waited for a long time without receiving a response, and felt increasingly aggrieved. He couldn't help but think: Sure enough... they all hate him...
Hmph, he doesn't want to like them either!
He blinked hard at his sore eyes and pointed the telescope at something further away, but his hands were shaking so much he couldn't see anything clearly.
Just then, the sound of footsteps suddenly came from behind—
Jin Lanyue, carrying an oil paper package bigger than her head, staggered toward the little prince.
Sometimes, when her short legs move too fast, she almost trips over the hem of her skirt.
"Little Prince!" The little dumpling poked his back. "This is for you!"
The young prince turned his head, intending to refuse with a haughty air, but then he saw neatly arranged mung bean cakes, golden and glistening honey twists, and hawthorn balls coated in icing sugar inside the oil paper package...
Everything that's on the table is here.
The little prince's hand, holding the telescope, froze in mid-air, his eyes reflecting the expectant face of the little dumpling.
He opened his mouth, but the words "Who cares?" got stuck in his throat.
"Everyone has one..." Jin Lanyue tiptoed forward and handed it over, "This one is yours..."
As soon as she finished speaking, she stuffed the oil paper package into the prince's arms.
Then, the little dumpling turned and ran, the pearl flowers in her hair trembling.
The young prince stood frozen in place, when suddenly his arms felt heavy.
The sweet fragrance went straight into my nose.
"Why bother with him!" Jin Lanyue had just run back when the princess grabbed her little hand. "Let him play with the mirror by himself!"
Qu Zijin looked at the young prince's lonely figure and sighed softly, "Teacher is magnanimous and doesn't hold grudges. He is truly admirable."
"Everyone has one! Yue'er's own..." The little dumpling counted on her fingers, "The little princess's... the Grand Tutor's... the little prince's..."
After counting for a while, her tongue got tied in knots, so she simply spread out her little hands, which were covered in sugar crumbs, and said, "That's enough!"
As they were talking, they heard a rustling sound behind them.
The young prince had somehow gotten behind Jin Lanyue and shoved the telescope into her arms, saying, "It's a reward for you!"
After saying that, he turned and ran, not even bothering to pick up the boot that had fallen off.
"Oh my god..." Jin Lanyue hugged the heavy telescope, her little face full of confusion.
The rubies set in the glasses hurt her hand, but she still remembered to call out, "...Thank you!"
The princess burst out laughing.
The little dumpling bent down and picked up the delicate little boot.
"Teacher..." Qu Zijin had just opened his mouth when he saw the little dumpling chasing after him, carrying a telescope and boots in her arms, running like a waddling little penguin.
The sunlight outside the palace was so intense it made people dizzy, and the young prince was peeking from behind a pillar.
Seeing Jin Lanyue chasing after him, he panicked and turned to run, but tripped over his own single boot and stumbled.
"Young Prince!" Jin Lanyue stopped him, panting, "Your boots fell off!"
The young prince's face flushed red, whether from embarrassment or heat, it was hard to tell.
He blushed as he went to take it, only to find that the little dumpling had also returned the telescope: "The mirror... the mirror is expensive... Yue'er can't take it..."
The young prince awkwardly lifted his leg to try and put his boots back on, hopping several times on one foot because he couldn't stand steadily.
After getting dressed, he was both embarrassed and hot, sweating profusely. He stuffed the binoculars back in, saying, "I said I'd reward you, and I'll reward you!"
She paused, then her voice suddenly softened: "...I'll bring you something fun again tomorrow."
Before Jin Lanyue could react, he had already run away, leaving the little dumpling standing there holding the telescope.
Sunlight streamed through the lens, casting a round patch of light on the ground, swaying back and forth, much like her confused state of mind at that moment.
-
The next morning.
Wenhua Hall.
The young prince was not only not late today, but he was actually early.
At that time, only Qu Zijin and Jin Lanyue were in the Wenhua Hall, and he barged in in a flurry.
He had specially changed into a new outfit today, and the purse hanging from his waist was bulging.
"Princess Fukang!" the young prince called out as soon as he entered, "Look what good things I've brought you!"
As he spoke, he took out an exquisite Western object from his purse—a small, gilded music box inlaid with several rubies.
Before Jin Lanyue could get closer to take a look, the palace door was pushed open again.
The little princess entered gracefully, carrying a gilded lacquer box. Upon seeing the object in the little prince's hand, she immediately scoffed, "A mere music box is worth showing off?"
She placed the lacquer box on the table: "Little Moon, this is a string of pearls from the South China Sea. I specially had a bracelet made for you."
Seeing this, the young prince immediately pulled out a glass kaleidoscope from his sleeve: "This can produce hundreds of different patterns!"
Not to be outdone, the princess turned and had a maid bring out a brocade box: "This is a luminous pearl from the Western Regions; it glows at night!"
The two little devils took turns pulling things out, and soon the table was piled high with all sorts of strange and wonderful items.
Jin Lanyue stood in the middle, looking left and right, her little face full of difficulty.
"Ignore her!" The little prince shoved the kaleidoscope into her hand. "I want mine!"
The princess immediately grasped her other little hand: "Shouldn't we ignore you? Little Moon, look at my luminous pearl first!"
"Get away from me!" the little prince stomped his foot. "Princess Fukang, don't play with her, come and play with me!"
"You shouldn't play with me, right? Little Moon is my good friend!"
"It used to be yours, but now it's mine!"
"Nonsense!"
After a brief argument, the two turned to look at Jin Lanyue and said in unison, "Princess Fukang/Little Moon, tell me, who do you want to play with?!"
The little dumpling was being pulled and swayed from side to side, too afraid to speak, so it looked to Qu Zijin for help.
Young Qu Zijin rubbed his temples, slamming the ruler in his hand on the table with a "smack": "Put them all away! Today we're here to study, not to set up a stall!"
The two reluctantly stopped fighting, but their eyes were still locked in a fierce struggle.
Jin Lanyue was caught in the middle, not daring to turn her head to the left or right.
Just as the lunch break was about to begin, and Qu Zijin had only been gone for a short while, the hall erupted in chaos.
"My music box was a gift from the French envoy himself!" The young prince slammed his hand on the table and stood up.
"Ha, my luminous pearl is ten times more expensive than your music box!" the princess retorted.
"Your stuff is all show and no substance!"
"You are!"
Jin Lanyue huddled in the corner, covering her ears with her small hands, but the sounds of the two arguing still pierced her ears.
Suddenly, with a "whoosh," the princess swept the inkstone onto the young prince.
"You dare splash me?!" The young prince wiped the ink off his face, grabbed a book, and threw it at him.
"Ah!" The princess raised her hand to block, but her little hand was immediately cut by the corner of the book, and her eyes instantly reddened. "You wait! I'm going to tell Father!"
When Qu Zijin arrived at the scene, he saw the two of them locked in a fierce battle, about to come to blows.
"Stop!" Qu Zijin stepped forward and separated the two. "What kind of behavior is this, a prince and princess!"
The young prince broke free from Qu Zijin's grasp: "Qu Zijin, you're so arrogant! You're just relying on Father Emperor's favor!"
He straightened his askew collar: "And you—"
He pointed at the princess: "She's incredibly stupid! All she does all day is fight, fight! She still can't recite the Three Character Classic. She's as dumb as a pig!"
The princess trembled with rage: "You, you..."
"Enough!" Qu Zijin shouted sternly. "Wei Jiayou, apologize to the princess immediately!"
"I won't!" the young prince retorted, "You're all in cahoots! You favor Wei Chaoyun, and Wei Chaoyun bullies others by abusing her power!"
The young prince stood before the desk, his face flushed red, his eyes wide open, and he launched into another personal attack: "You're just a hypocrite! You're always putting on airs and lecturing people, but behind our backs you're just trying to curry favor with the royal family!"
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