Chapter 102 A waist as slender as a willow branch—it's not impossible for him.
What a humiliation!
Yuan Yan's thorn is so deep, and it hurts so much.
Yuan Jing made up his mind that no matter the cost, he would destroy this thorn in his side.
"Your Highness, the King of Qin has just awakened and needs time to recover. We might as well take action as soon as possible to weaken his power," her subordinate suggested.
"Alright, then I'll leave this matter to you." Upon hearing this, Yuan Jing's deeply furrowed brows smoothed out slightly.
"Your Highness, rest assured, this humble servant will certainly handle it properly," the official assured him.
...
Yuan Yan is currently recuperating from his injuries as ordered by imperial decree.
Before leaving, Yuan Hao issued an imperial decree that Yuan Yan should recuperate properly in the Prince's residence during this period, and that no unauthorized persons should disturb him.
The imperial edict arrived at just the right time, immediately shutting out the outside disturbances.
Yuan Yan was happy to have some peace and quiet. He stayed in his residence to "recover from his injuries" while conveying his orders through his trusted confidants, such as Xue Lang and Yu Liu.
The carefully selected soldiers have already begun training. Yuan Yan entrusted this force to Aman, Yuan Shi, and others, ordering them to train them diligently and to create another force that surpasses the Ruijian Battalion.
"Your Highness, there is something I must tell you." Just then, Yu Liu came to Yuan Yan with a worried look on his face.
"What is it?" Yuan Yan was busy reading today's secret reports and didn't even look up.
"It is... Prince Qi sent eight thousand taels of silver to my home. My family was unaware of this, and by the time I found out, I had already accepted the silver notes."
“I am Your Highness’s trusted subordinate, and everyone in the capital knows this. For Prince Qi to secretly send me money is probably an attempt to bribe me so that I might do something against Your Highness.”
"But Your Highness knows my loyalty. How could I be so easily bought off?"
"This silver is burning hot to the touch. As soon as I learned where it came from, I brought it here immediately. Now that the person and the silver are here, Your Highness can do with them as you see fit."
As Yu Liu spoke, she took out the silver notes from her bosom and presented them to Yuan Yan for inspection.
Yuan Yan looked up after hearing these words and saw Yu Liu kneeling and presenting the silver notes, looking deeply ashamed.
Yuan Jing was willing to spend eight thousand taels of silver to bribe an official in the Prince's mansion.
Compared to the rigid Xue Lang and the simple-minded A Man, Yu Liu always appeared more shrewd and worldly. Therefore, Yuan Jing used her as a weak point, attempting to bribe her to deal with Yuan Yan.
It's likely that Yuan Jing thought Yu Liu would be absolutely unable to refuse such a large sum of money. Little did she know that Yu Liu was far more loyal than she imagined, and upon receiving the silver, she immediately told Yuan Yan everything.
"Host, Yuan Jing has even extended his reach into the Prince's mansion. What do you plan to do?" the system asked her.
Yuan Yan replied in his mind: "No need to rush, let's see what she wants to do first."
"Get up," Yuan Yan said to Yu Liu, putting down his pen.
"Yu Liu, you have been with me for a long time, you should know what kind of person I am. If it is not your fault, I will not easily blame you."
Yu Liu's expression relaxed slightly, and he said gratefully, "Your Highness is magnanimous, and I am deeply grateful."
Yuan Yan then said, "Keep this silver note for now."
Yu Liu was taken aback: "This subordinate dares not. This silver is too hot to handle. Whether it's eight hundred taels or eight thousand taels, this subordinate cannot accept it..."
"I know that this silver note was given to you by the Prince of Qi. Why not take what belongs to her? Take the silver for now."
“If Yuan Jing comes to you later, whatever his request is, just agree to it. I want to see what Yuan Jing is trying to do with this,” Yuan Yan said.
"Your Highness means that I should pretend to be bribed and act as your inside man." Yu Liu understood, and his eyes lit up.
Yuan Yan smiled slightly and nodded, saying, "Not bad."
"I understand," Yu Liu replied happily. "Your Highness, rest assured, I will definitely handle this matter well and find out the true intentions of the Prince of Qi."
Yu Liu made contact with people from the Qi Prince's residence, and they tentatively inquired about Yuan Yan's recovery from his injuries.
"Tell them that I am seriously injured and unable to move, and am still recuperating," Yuan Yan instructed Yu Liu to reply.
After confirming that Yuan Yan's injuries were healing slowly and that he would indeed be unable to return to court for some time, Yuan Jing finally felt somewhat relieved. Taking advantage of this time, she began to take action again, transferring key generals such as Yuan Shi from the Ruijian Camp and replacing them with her own people.
At Yuan Yan's tacit instruction, Zhao Yutong, an official of the Ministry of War, stepped forward and impeached Prince Qi for unilaterally transferring the generals of the Ruijian Battalion without the joint consultation of the three departments, thus violating the laws of the court. He humbly requested His Majesty to investigate the matter thoroughly and to hand it over to the relevant authorities for further discussion.
Seeing that Yuan Yan, despite being seriously injured and with no certainty of recovery, still had loyal supporters in the court, Yuan Jing's apprehension grew. However, due to the circumstances, he had no choice but to abandon his original plan and instead use a more covert method to deal with Yuan Yan.
Yuan Yan and Yuan Jing clashed remotely. Although Yuan Yan was "recuperating" and did not need to attend court, he was still inevitably busier.
After the people who had come to discuss matters left, Yang Lingyi carried the soup and tiptoed over.
"Sister Yan, take a rest. You've been looking at this stuff for so long."
"I learned how to make pigeon soup from the eunuch in the manor. It's good for nourishing the body. Sister, come and try it and see how it tastes."
Upon hearing Yang Lingyi's voice, Yuan Yan immediately put down what he was holding and smiled slightly.
"Yi'er, you're here. Why did you make me food again?"
Yang Lingyi placed the food box on the table and took out the soup from inside.
"It's because I see that my sister is working too hard, and I want her to eat more to nourish her body."
"Sister, remember to rest. If there's anything, just let the people below do it. Don't overwork yourself." He gave these gentle instructions as he worked, his voice warm and soothing.
During this time, Yuan Yan stayed in the mansion, and Yang Lingyi acted as if she were really injured, sending him all sorts of nourishing meals. She even went so far as to consult the eunuchs of the Prince's mansion and learn a few dishes that Yuan Yan liked.
"Yi'er, my body is perfectly healthy now, why would I need any tonics?" Yuan Yan looked at the soup, his smile slightly helpless.
"It's Yi'er who has been handling all the big and small matters inside and outside the manor, and has lost a lot of weight. She is the one who needs to nourish her body the most." Her gaze shifted to Yang Lingyi's face, and her tone became gentle.
“Sister, don’t worry. Recently, Shen Shuqing has been helping me with some things, so I’m not that tired.” Yang Lingyi shook her head.
Since Yuan Yan's assassination attempt, he has devoted a great deal of effort to managing the entire Prince's residence and preventing the news from leaking out.
Knowing how important this matter was to Sister Yan, Yang Lingyi even delegated some of the management authority to Shen Lianzhou, asking him to assist in managing the Prince's Mansion, just to ensure that there would be no mistakes.
When he made his decision, his dowry father-in-law advised him, "Young master, why are you doing this? It's easy to give up the power of managing the household affairs, but difficult to take it back. If you hand these matters over to that Shen Shuqing, what if he develops some improper thoughts later? Won't you be making trouble for yourself?"
"Now is a critical moment, and His Highness's safety is the top priority. These matters of the inner quarters are not important. You need not say any more, I know what I'm doing."
Yang Lingyi did not listen to her father-in-law on this matter and insisted on her own way.
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yan reached out and pulled Yang Lingyi into his arms, placing her on his lap.
"But Yi'er has indeed lost a lot of weight, and it's a bit uncomfortable to hold her." She sighed slightly and pinched Yang Lingyi's thin arm.
"Really... does my sister really think so?"
When Yang Lingyi heard Yuan Yan say this, she hesitated for a moment, then subconsciously looked down at herself and then at the place where Yuan Yan had touched.
He was slender, with a waist as graceful as a willow. At this moment, held in Yuan Yan's arms, he felt as light and weightless as a soft feather.
“Of course, I prefer men who are a little bit chubby. Yi’er should eat more.” Yuan Yan said deliberately, his expression serious.
In the Phoenix Kingdom, a slender physique has always been considered beautiful for men, especially prevalent in the capital. After arriving in the capital, Yang Lingyi intentionally lost even more weight under her father-in-law's strict upbringing.
But my sister used to like men with some meat on their bones, so maybe he's not entirely out of the question...
Yang Lingyi's resolve began to waver.
Yuan Yan noticed the hesitation in his eyes, took the soup in front of him, and took a bite himself first.
"Yi'er's cooking skills have improved a lot, and the taste is very fresh."
As she spoke, she scooped up another spoonful of soup, turned the spoon around, and fed it to Yang Lingyi's lips, saying, "Yi'er, have a taste too."
As Yang Lingyi watched her movements, a faint pink blush appeared on her fair face.
This time, he finally opened his mouth and obediently drank the soup from Yuan Yan's hand.
"How is it? Is it good?" Yuan Yan asked with a smile, looking at him.
It was clearly Yang Lingyi who made the soup, but now it's Yuan Yan asking him how it tastes.
Yuan Yan held Yang Lingyi in his arms and rested his head on his shoulder.
"Mmm, it tastes good..."
Yang Lingyi realized what had happened after taking a few sips. He had come to deliver the soup, so how did he suddenly end up sitting in Yuan Yan's lap and drinking it all by himself?
At the same time, Yuan Yan leaned on Yang Lingyi's shoulder, and the warm breath he was breathing inadvertently sprayed onto his neck, as if a fine, soft hair was gently tickling him.
A large blush crept up her neck, and Yang Lingyi's face burned. Finally, when Yuan Yan fed her again, she held firm to her principles and shook her head.
"No, this is for my sister. She can't feed it all to me."
This time, Yang Lingyi was smarter. After saying that, she shut her mouth and refused to drink any more.
Yuan Yan said regretfully, "Alas, what a pity."
Yang Lingyi reacted too quickly; she hadn't fed him enough yet.
Seeing Yi'er like this, Yuan Yan stopped forcing him to drink. He put down the spoon, picked up the bowl, and finished the rest of the soup in a few gulps.
"It's delicious. Yi'er's cooking is just what I like," Yuan Yan said.
A sweet feeling welled up in Yang Lingyi's heart. She picked up a handkerchief and gently wiped Yuan Yan's lips, but said, "If you like it, why did you let me drink so much?"
The handkerchief carried a delicate orchid fragrance, which wafted sweetly into Yuan Yan's nose as Yang Lingyi leaned closer to make the gesture.
After wiping her hands and putting the handkerchief away, Yang Lingyi wanted to stand up and clear the bowls and food boxes on the table, but Yuan Yan held her tightly and wouldn't let go.
Yuan Yan's hands also began to become increasingly unruly.
"Yi'er, don't move, stay with me for a while." Her words were almost whispered into Yang Lingyi's earlobe.
Under Yuan Yan's actions, Yang Lingyi's body became hot and her legs became weak.
Normally, he would have given in to Yuan Yan.
But then Yang Lingyi remembered something and gently nudged Yuan Yan's chest.
“Sister Yan, not now… You’re still recuperating in other people’s eyes. It would be bad if they found out.”
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