Chapter 6: Call the Crown Prince "You're not allowed to hate me."...
The days passed in mutual dependence between the brother and sister.
Spring has passed and summer has arrived, and the cicadas outside the window continue their incessant chirping.
Banban would casually practice singing with Ji Changyue during the day, and lazily study knowledge with Ying Zheng in the evening.
The bell on her ankle had gone from one to two. She only realized it was made of pure gold when the second one was put on her a few days ago. She wondered where he got the money.
In the afternoon, Banban nestled under the eaves to cool off, wearing a five-colored floral skirt and bare legs like lotus root segments. Her plump and round feet were like fine jade beads. She scratched her right foot with her left foot together, feeling drowsy.
Her arms couldn't support her head at all, and the pink petal crystal headdresses on her two buns trembled incessantly as she pecked at rice like a chick. In particular, her feet swayed leisurely, and the two golden bells on her ankles jingled.
The bell rang, and Ying Zheng knew she was lost in thought. When the bell fell silent, she must be asleep, but if she remained silent for too long, he would worry about her.
During a break from martial arts practice, he wiped the sweat from his neck and bent over, casting his shadow on her face. Perhaps due to the heat, she frowned, trying to struggle to open her eyes, but failed. Instead, she murmured knowingly, "It is said that there are no clothes...and...we share the same robe..."
Ying Zheng lifted his robe and sat down next to her, peeking out at the outer door. He said to Qing Sang, "Mother, you're back."
The sleeping girl suddenly sat up, wailing in a affected tone: "They say they have no clothes~ but we share the same robes! The king is raising an army~ let us prepare our weapons—"
Who's there?
Banban looked left and right, then turned and glared angrily at them:
"Cousin!!"
Despite being pushed and punched, Ying Zheng remained unmoved and said in a deep voice, "The military songs my mother taught you, you sing them so weakly, where is the spirit?"
"So tired?" He leaned in and examined her face closely. "I remember you didn't get up until noon today."
Banban felt very wronged. "I didn't want to practice singing in the first place. I don't want to go to the battlefield." She muttered, quite self-righteously, "I woke up a long time ago, I just didn't get out of bed."
He asked, "So what are you doing lying in bed?"
"Look at the picture books! Zhishengzhai has acquired many new picture books. Cousin, you can look at them with me!"
Ying Zheng sighed. "I won't look." He stroked his cousin's soft hair. "Then go in and rest for a while."
Banban felt uneasy, "But my sister-in-law will be angry if she finds out."
"No, that won't happen." Ying Zheng simply denied it, took her hand and stood up, leading her into the house together.
"Cousin, are you tired? You've sweated a lot. You need to wash up, or you'll smell bad."
"I'll be there right away."
"My cousin took a sip of water and added honey. Fresh honey is so sweet, one sip can make you happy for a long time."
"It is too sweet."
"Cousin, you're amazing! I admire you the most, cousin. Your arms are so strong!"
"..."
Banban is that kind of person. When she likes to talk, she talks non-stop, and no matter whether Ying Zheng replies to her or not, she can talk to herself for a long time.
From seeing ants moving house yesterday evening and then it raining in the middle of the night, to the servants in the house getting married and having a girl, to Ji Hao getting meat soup on his beard while eating today, she always has so much to say.
It's a pity I couldn't take a nap.
Cong Yun knocked on the door and came in, saying that a guest had come and brought gifts to give to the young lady of the Ji family.
"Who is it?" Banban asked, full of doubt.
Before long, several servants led two older boys over.
Upon recognizing the newcomer's face, Banban was slightly taken aback. "Crown Prince? It's you—"
It was not the crown prince of Zhao, but Crown Prince Dan of Yan.
Prince Dan sent a gift, saying, "Last time, it was my attendant who spoke inappropriately and offended the young lady. I apologize for this."
I was curious about the gift, and there was no reason not to accept it. Only after accepting it did I notice my cousin's slightly furrowed brow.
The one who gave the gift was the one with the square face. His left ear was missing a piece, and the wound had scabbed over, leaving an ugly scar. As a result, his expression was gloomy, and even when he smiled, the smile did not reach his eyes.
“This is my study companion, Li Xie.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the square-faced man knelt down abruptly and offered a apology, which startled Banban. Ying Zheng immediately shielded her behind him, his face full of vigilance.
“I will never forgive him,” Banban said, gripping her cousin’s sleeve imperiously. “But you’d better get up quickly. You’re older than me. Are you trying to shorten my lifespan by kneeling before me?”
The angle was novel, and Prince Dan was surprised. Helpless, he told someone to get up, "Li Xie, did you hear that? Get out of here now."
Li Xie obeyed without question. Crown Prince Dan turned his head and found that Ying Zheng was staring at Li Xie with a deep gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
He quickly spoke up to smooth things over, "Ah Zheng, I don't want a study companion to affect our friendship."
Prince Dan spoke sincerely, glanced at Banban a few times, and then looked at his cousin.
“Now we are in the same boat in Zhao,” Ying Zheng said, “and our friendship over the years is not fake. Besides, I also have my own difficulties.” He was not favored by the King of Yan and was sent to Zhao as a hostage because he was suspected. If Li Xie was sent away, Yan might not send any better companions.
Li Xie grew up with him. Although he was a bit mean and petty, he knew him well and respected him. Prince Dan could not bear to part with him.
Ying Zheng said nothing, but bowed respectfully and said, "Your Highness is too kind."
Crown Prince Dan couldn't figure out Ying Zheng's thoughts for a moment. Seeing that he didn't react, he could only pretend that nothing had happened. However, he spent the rest of the time trying to bring up topics and had a very pleasant conversation with the brother and sister.
As the sun set, the two had a martial arts match, working up a good sweat. The sunset's glow shone on the two boys' bright, smiling faces.
As Banban watched, he rested his chin on his hand and started laughing too.
When it was time for dinner, she warmly invited Prince Dan to stay.
This was the first time the Ji family had entertained such distinguished guests. The servants were in a flurry of activity. Madam Zhu came over to help with the reception. The whole family dressed solemnly for dinner. Ji Changyue wore a moon-yellow deep robe and had clearly done her eyebrows.
This was the first time that Prince Dan had seen Zhao Ji. He glanced at her a few more times and thought to himself, "No wonder Prince Yiren fell in love with Zhao Ji at first sight when she was already someone else's wife. It turns out she is so beautiful."
Banban frequently asked Congyun to add rice to Crown Prince Dan's plate, and always asked him about things in the Yan Kingdom's palace. Crown Prince Dan was willing to talk, and she was so engrossed in listening that she forgot to eat, only managing to eat two fruits.
Ying Zheng ate in silence, glancing at his cousin again and again.
After dinner, Prince Dan readily addressed Banban as "Sister Chengyin." Banban had never imagined that someone who was a prince could be so approachable. Moreover, Prince Dan was quite handsome, with long eyebrows that reached his temples, a high nose, thin lips, and a pair of peach blossom eyes that always held a smile.
He was handsome and loved to smile at her. She was captivated and couldn't help but steal glances at Prince Dan's face.
Ying Zheng suddenly spoke up, "Your Highness, please address Banban as Lady Ji."
Banban was slightly taken aback, and was so angry that she didn't want to sit with him, but he held her hand tightly under the table. She lowered her voice and asked him angrily, "What are you doing?"
Zhu Shi took in the whole scene, touched her lips with a handkerchief, actually to hide her overflowing laughter, while Ji Changyue pressed her forehead.
Crown Prince Dan, upon hearing Ying Zheng's words, was not embarrassed and nodded, agreeing.
As soon as Prince Dan left, Banban started arguing with Ying Zheng as if she was about to overturn the table. Although it was called arguing, he didn't actually say a word, just stared at her with a stern face.
"He calls me 'sister,' why are you stopping him?" She stamped her foot, her face flushed with anger and frustration.
“I said no, and that’s final.” Ying Zheng didn’t argue with her. He grabbed her wrist and said, “It’s time to go see the flowers. Let’s go.”
"I'm not watching it today! I'm not watching it tomorrow either, and I'm never watching it again!" Banban said angrily, shaking off his hand and saying one angry word after another, "I hate my cousin."
The more she said that, the tighter he gripped her, and he became angry.
After a long pause, he finally spoke: "No."
"What?!" Banban asked loudly in a rough voice.
"You're not allowed to hate me." Ying Zheng insisted on dragging her to see the flowers; she couldn't refuse.
Outside the Ji family residence, Li Xie loudly mocked, "The Ji family is nothing but commoners. The Crown Prince was only polite to her, yet Ji Chengyin is still fixated on you. Does she really have feelings for the Crown Prince? Does she even deserve him?!"
The smile on Prince Dan's lips faded, and he frowned. "Li Xie."
Li Xie wanted to stop talking, but he was still furious. He couldn't forget the humiliation of kneeling before a commoner woman when he was a nobleman. "And Zhao Zheng too. The Crown Prince apologized to him, but he still acted like he was above everyone else. He's just a bastard abandoned by the Qin people in Zhao. Does he deserve it?"
"Oh, so Zhao Ji was Lü Buwei's woman before. Who knows if Zhao Zheng is Lü Buwei's son or a Qin man's son? A bastard, yet he dares to treat the crown prince like this!"
Li Xie felt incredibly pleased when he recalled Ying Zheng's expression, as black as coal, upon hearing "Zhao Zheng" several times. He disliked Ying Zheng, and it was he who instigated the other hostages and those around him to call him "Zhao Zheng." The people of Zhao had always disliked the people of Qin, and whenever they saw Ying Zheng with his disdainful eyes and nose, they were happy to call him Zhao Zheng.
A crisp 'snap' sound.
Li Xie covered his face, his eyes wide open, and knelt down with a thud.
Crown Prince Dan's face was grim. He glanced at him indifferently and said, "You are not allowed to use that tone to mock him again. If I hear such nonsense again in the future, you know what the consequences will be."
Li Xie was unwilling to accept this. He covered his face to hide his distorted expression and banged his head on the ground, saying, "Yes, Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. I will never dare to do it again."
Li Xie sobbed, "Your Highness, I feel indignant on your behalf. As the Crown Prince, you have come to Zhao as a hostage, while Zhao Zheng is merely the son of a hostage. What's so great about him? Yet Your Highness personally came to visit. My heart aches for Your Highness."
Crown Prince Dan remained silent, then gently patted Li Xie's shoulder. "This has nothing to do with status. A-Zheng is my friend, not the son of a hostage. Remember that."
The atmosphere was warm, and Prince Dan changed the subject, saying, "I didn't expect her to also have the surname Ji. What a coincidence." She was an interesting girl.
Upon hearing this, Li Xie suddenly had an idea. "Ji is the surname passed down from the Zhou emperors. Our Yan state's royal surname is Ji, which is the closest to the Zhou emperors' lineage. It is incomparably noble, how can the miscellaneous surnames of the Zhao state compare to it?"
Prince Dan could not refute this statement, as he, as the Crown Prince of Yan, could not say that the royal surname was the same as that of the common people.
On the other side, Banban was arguing with her cousin, and they hadn't made up by the time they arrived at the periwinkle.
However, she soon ran out of time to make a fuss, as the periwinkle plant had developed a problem; its leaves and stems were covered in patches of black, as if they had become moldy.
She was startled and hurriedly called the gardener over.
"It was fine yesterday." She sobbed in her cousin's arms, "I killed the flower that my cousin dug up himself."
Ying Zheng gently patted her shoulder, pondering how likely it was that if the flower was truly beyond saving, he could dig up a similar one to replace it.
Banban is always easily fooled; he's a fool.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
