Chapter 675 Prince Iasu
"Prince Iasu?"
Upon hearing the sound, the two people inside the room were startled.
After the maid let out a soft cry, a cheerful, young voice rang out: "Ayu, I've bought what you wanted!"
After he finished speaking, a young man walked in from outside.
Although she had been wanting to meet Prince Iasu, whom she had only heard of but never seen, Shang Ruyi was still nervous because it was so sudden. She had just gotten out of bed and was already dressed. Lei Yu was also concerned that the two of them had not yet dressed up. He was fine, but he was afraid that Shang Ruyi would feel uneasy.
So he immediately shouted, "Don't come in!"
But it was too late.
The next moment, a young and handsome man carrying something in his hands walked happily around the screen and entered. But as soon as he entered, he heard Lei Yu's shout and stopped in his tracks. He was also startled to see a strange woman sitting on the edge of the bed. He let go of the object in his hand and dropped it.
But it landed right in the brazier that the maid had moved aside.
With a loud "whoosh," the still-burning flames in the brazier suddenly leaped up, instantly engulfing whatever had fallen in. Immediately afterward, a pungent, spicy, and slightly fragrant odor filled the entire tent, hitting the noses of everyone present. They all began to sneeze, and Shang Ruyi, who was sitting nearby, even had tears streaming down her face.
"What is this?!"
Lei Yu's eyes were also stinging from the fumes. Just as she was about to ask what was wrong, she heard the young man scream, "Ah! My pepper!"
It's no wonder pepper smells pungent when you throw it into a fire!
The tent was immediately uninhabitable, and the group scrambled out of it. Even though the air outside was crisp and damp with rain and snow, they still choked for a while before barely recovering. Lei Yu, his eyes bloodshot, glared at the young man and said irritably, "What are you up to?"
Shang Ruyi finally managed to get through the burning pain in her nose.
Only then did she have time to raise her head and look at the Turkic prince, Iasu.
The prince was only twenty years old, and his figure was fairly tall, but not too burly. He only exuded a clever and strong air, and looked even younger than Lei Yu. After being reprimanded, he immediately put on a big smile. His originally big and round eyes curved into two crescent moons when he smiled. He had a high nose bridge and full lips with a natural smile. He was handsome but had a childlike innocence, which made people happy to see him.
He said with a grin, "Don't be angry."
Lei Yu, still furious, said, "Where have you been these past few days? I couldn't find you anywhere. And now you're back burning things—where did you get the pepper?"
Upon hearing the mention of pepper, Prince Iasu immediately frowned. Shang Ruyi thought that if he had ears, they would droop down right now. He said with a wronged and helpless expression, "I heard you say the other day that you like to add pepper to your mutton soup, but we've run out of pepper here, so I went to buy some."
"You...you went to buy pepper?"
“Yes, I heard that some merchants from the Western Regions would take that road to sell spices in the Central Plains, so I went to that road to stop them, but I was unlucky. I stopped several groups of people, but they were all there to buy silk and porcelain. Finally, last night I ran into a group. They had a bag of their own food, and I had to beg them until they sold it to me.”
As he spoke, Prince Iasu looked up and saw the maids opening the tent door to let the smell dissipate. He immediately said regretfully, "I didn't expect it to be burned as soon as we brought it back."
"..."
Lei Yu immediately fell silent.
A complex expression appeared on her face. Her eyes, which were already red from the smoke, seemed even redder now as she stared intently at Prince Iasu.
Shang Ruyi, who was standing to the side, blinked and fell silent for a moment.
She then remembered that the mutton soup the servant had brought yesterday was something Lei Yu had said he wanted to drink a while ago, but Lei Yu hadn't drunk it in the end. So that's what happened.
Prince Yiasu, because of a single sentence from his wife, went to great lengths to intercept merchants from the Western Regions on the grasslands, just to buy them a bag of thunder jade so he could add some pepper to his mutton soup...
It seems that Lei Yu's claim that he was "very good" to her and that he would give her whatever she wanted was not an exaggeration at all.
Thinking of this, Shang Ruyi couldn't help but smile slightly.
While feeling regretful, Prince Yiasu, whose heart and mind were completely focused on Lei Yu, finally diverted some attention to the "stranger" beside him. He noticed that Shang Ruyi was wearing Lei Yu's clothes and couldn't help but frown and ask, "Ayu, who is she?"
"..."
Lei Yu reached out and rubbed the tip of her nose, but when she spoke, her voice still carried a barely perceptible hesitation and difficulty as she said, "She is my friend."
"friend?"
Na Yiasu paused for a moment, then suddenly realized something, and stared wide-eyed at Shang Ruyi: "You are that—Ruyi?"
It turns out he was aware of his existence.
It seems that Lei Yu's longing for him during her time married to the grasslands was not just lip service.
Shang Ruyi smiled, straightened her clothes, and then bowed to the Turkic princes around her, saying, "Prince Iasu, it's been a long time."
Prince Iasu immediately broke into a broad smile. Although the weather was overcast and thick clouds still hung overhead, his smile, with his eyes crinkling and a row of pearly white teeth peeking out from his open mouth, made him seem like a little sun, instantly brightening the entire grassland. He said cheerfully, "It's been so long! I've always heard Ayu talk about you. She always says how good you are, and how good your husband is, and how good your friends are..."
Lei Yu, who was standing to the side, said, "Say less."
Prince Yiasu immediately touched his mouth, then smiled at her and said, "I'm happy for you. You've missed these friends ever since you came to the grasslands. Now that she's here, you must be happy too."
"..."
"By the way, who brought her here? She's been so kind to you."
"It's me."
A slightly cold voice came from the side.
Upon hearing the voice, Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat, while Lei Yu, who was standing to the side with his back to the direction from which the voice came, also trembled slightly.
As soon as Shang Ruyi looked up, she saw Ashina Zhuxie walking towards her.
The conversation between the two of them last night about him was still ringing in her ears. Shang Ruyi didn't dislike this person too much, but the thought that he would covet her friend, coupled with the fact that all her misfortunes were due to him, inevitably made her feel a little hostile.
Moreover, it was only at this moment that she suddenly realized why Ashina Zhuxie had kidnapped her in Qi County.
For a long time, she vaguely believed that Yuwen Ye had abducted her to the Western Turkic Khaganate to atone for the loss of Taiyuan because she was his wife; but now, knowing his feelings for Lei Yu, this action had taken on a deeper meaning—
After seeing him, Lei Yu was worried about his safety, but he was also genuinely happy.
He wanted to make Lei Yu... happy.
The two women were lost in thought, but Yiasu was completely unaware. When he saw Ashina Zhuxie approaching, he paused for a moment, then immediately exclaimed happily, "Big Brother!"
“Iasu, you’ve finally returned.”
"Brother, you've worked hard these past few days. I've heard about what happened in Taiyuan, but don't worry, with your abilities, you'll definitely be able to retake Taiyuan soon."
"..."
Ashina Zhuxie gave him a deep look and said, "Hmm."
After saying that, he added, "By the way, where have you been these past two days? Your father couldn't find you anywhere."
Iasu laughed and said, "I went to buy pepper for Ayu. She doesn't like mutton soup without pepper. I finally managed to buy a bag, but unfortunately, it was burned as soon as I got back." As she spoke, she turned to look regretfully at their tent. By this time, the smell had almost dissipated, and several maids carried the brazier to a far place to empty it.
Ashina Zhuxie glanced back, then looked down at Lei Yu, who had his back to him, and said thoughtfully, "Do you want pepper in your mutton soup?"
Lei Yu didn't turn around to look at him, but said softly, "It doesn't matter."
Shang Ruyi watched them quietly.
At this moment, Yiasu looked up at Ashina Zhuxie and said with a smile, "By the way, elder brother, what brings you here?"
Ashina Zhuye then withdrew his deep gaze, and when he looked at his younger brother again, a complex expression appeared on his face. However, his voice remained calm and composed as he said, "Father Khan just heard that you have returned and wants you to go to the royal tent to see him immediately. He also wants me to go. He seems a little angry."
Iasu stuck out his tongue.
He then laughed and said, "It's alright, I'll go and accept the punishment."
That being said, you could tell from his unrestrained smile that although he claimed to be accepting punishment, there was probably no real punishment that had ever frightened him, which was why his smile was so relaxed. Ashina Zhuxie looked at his happy smile and his eyes deepened.
He said, "Hmm."
Then he turned to the side and said, "Let's go."
"Why,"
Iasu nodded, but did not leave immediately. Instead, she looked down at Lei Yu, whose face was still somewhat displeased, and said gently with a hint of flattery, "Go back to your tent first. If the smell is not good, I will go find some flowers later. It will be fine if there is a fragrance of flowers. Don't stand outside, it will be cold."
Ashina Zhuxie turned and walked towards the royal tent.
Lei Yu nodded, then looked up at Yiasu and said, "Go and come back quickly, I... I have something to tell you."
Iasu immediately opened his eyes wide: "What is it?"
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