Chapter 73 He wasn't like this before.
Chapter Seventy
She abruptly pushed him away, her fair cheeks flushing pink, whether from embarrassment or anger, it was hard to tell. "Lin Xiao, you, you're really getting bolder and bolder! Do you know that? Do you know that...?"
"I understand," Lin Xiao interrupted her, looking at her with a raised eyebrow and a smile. "So, Your Highness intends to punish me?"
"You—!" Shen Panyan was so angry she almost fainted. She knew he was doing it anyway; how could she not know he had this kind of personality?
"You're just taking advantage of how good I am to you, getting more and more demanding!" Shen Panyan tried to make her face look serious, trying to intimidate him. "I am the princess of Zhaoyan Kingdom, and also your master. You can't do this..."
Lin Xiao's dark eyes stared straight at her. "But Your Highness, didn't you deny it?"
"......"
Why is everything he says today so offensive?
She stomped her foot angrily, turned her head, and said, "Then just take it as me lying to you, believe it or not."
"You can't do this anymore."
Lin Xiao seemed to chuckle softly, leaned closer to her, lowered his eyes, and spoke in a calm voice without a trace of fear, "But I have already done it. What does Your Highness wish to do? If Your Highness is unwilling, you may simply send me away today."
“I…” Shen Panyan’s voice choked. How could she possibly send him away today?
She was embarrassed and annoyed, and took a step back to avoid his touch. "Anyway, if you keep doing this, I will, I will never care about you again."
"Your Highness understands." Lin Xiao lowered his eyelashes. "Your Highness doesn't need to concern yourself with me anyway; you've never liked me..."
"......"
Seeing his lonely and dejected appearance, Shen Panyan's heart softened again; she couldn't bear to see him sad.
She felt completely under his control. No matter what, he could soften her heart and then take advantage of her. Don't think she couldn't see that he was doing it on purpose.
But she couldn't really say anything to give him hope, so she mumbled, "You...you saved my life, and no matter what, I won't abandon you."
"Oh." Lin Xiao didn't seem to believe him or not, and said slowly, "It's my duty to protect Your Highness. You are my master, and you wouldn't mind taking my life..."
"Who wants to kill you?!" Shen Panyan scolded angrily, a faint blush rising to her fair cheeks. She didn't want to talk to him about it anymore. "Go and eat your meal quickly, or it will get cold!"
Seeing that His Highness seemed genuinely angry, with those clear almond-shaped eyes glaring at him, Lin Xiao subtly curved his eyes and said no more, "Yes, Your Highness."
After having breakfast, Lin Xiao disappeared into the shadows.
Cining Temple is located in the suburbs of Beijing and is very popular. Even though it rained last night, horse-drawn carriages were still slowly entering the temple today.
Shen Panyan went to visit her mother again, personally lit incense, and then left, walking slowly through Cining Temple.
As luck would have it, she had only just reached the side hall when she encountered two unexpected people.
"I'm not going. Haven't you already found out where the princess is? Why do you have to drag me along?" Gu Tanghua said angrily, trying to pull her sleeve back from Gu Jinyan's grasp.
Gu Jinyan held onto her sleeve tightly, "Good sister, please help your brother. That's the women's quarters over there. If I go in rashly, I'll be beaten out by the princess's guards."
"Ha!" Gu Tanghua sneered. "When there's nothing to do, you call for waiter; when there's trouble, you call for sister. Gu Jinyan, let me tell you, even if you talk yourself hoarse today, I won't help you. Didn't you even climb over the Princess's mansion wall? What, now you're afraid of even a small courtyard..."
"Keep your voice down. Is this something to be proud of?"
"What you've done has spread throughout the capital, do you still care about whether it's honorable or not?"
Before leaving home today, Gu Jinyan accidentally angered Gu Tanghua. Now, Gu Tanghua's words are like firecrackers, and if this argument continues, who knows how long it will go on?
Gu Jinyan, ever flexible, immediately slid to his knees and said, "I was wrong, sister, please forgive me. Didn't you like the new jewelry set from Ningyan Pavilion the most? When we get back, I'll buy it for you as an apology, how about that?"
“Add another pair of white jade hairpins, from Ruyi Pavilion.” Gu Tanghua glanced at him.
Gu Jinyan hissed, his face contorted with pain, and reluctantly nodded, "Deal!"
"Fine." Gu Tanghua finally relented, giving him a disdainful look. "Quickly take my sleeve off. Pulling and tugging like that is unseemly!"
Gu Jinyan let go and shrugged. "Fine, I'll let go then."
Gu Tanghua straightened her sleeves, which he had crumpled from gripping them, and gave a light snort, "Gu Jinyan, don't think I can't see that you're too scared to go. You're usually so bold, why are you suddenly afraid to go now..."
Before she could finish her rambling, she saw Gu Jinyan suddenly freeze in place, quietly take a step back, hide behind her, looking flustered and panicked, leaving her speechless.
"What are you doing? Get out of here! Aren't you going to see the princess?"
Just then, a gentle voice rang out, "Miss Gu, Young Master Gu."
"......"
Gu Tanghua stiffly looked up, and when she saw the smiling girl in front of her, she stammered, "Greetings, Your Highness."
She curtsied, and seeing that her foolish brother still didn't move, she immediately kicked him and glared at him, "Hurry up and greet Her Highness the Princess!"
Shen Panyan reached out to help her up, smiling, "It's alright, no need for formalities. I'm quite familiar with Young Master Gu anyway, so these formalities are unnecessary."
"It rained last night, so the mountain road should be difficult to travel today. Why did you all come to Cining Temple?"
Gu Tanghua glanced at her brother discreetly and saw him standing a step behind her, looking up at the sky and down at the ground, not daring to look at the princess. She immediately pouted.
Didn't he want to see the princess? Why is he afraid to look at her now that she's right in front of him? Wasn't he very capable before?
Coward!
However, since he was her own brother, Gu Tanghua still had to protect him. She winked at Shen Panyan and said with a smile, "I heard that the wishing tree at Cining Temple is very effective, so I came to make a wish."
After saying that, she put her hands together and said devoutly, "Since we are making a wish, we must be sincere. How can we slack off because of a little wind and rain?"
Shen Panyan chuckled softly, "So that's how it is."
Her gaze fell on Gu Jinyan. "Is Young Master Gu also here to see the wishing tree?"
Gu Jinyan hadn't expected the princess to steer the conversation towards him, and his expression immediately became tense, unsure where to look. He stammered, "Um..."
Seeing his pathetic expression, Gu Tanghua looked at him with disdain.
She was perfectly fine before, going to the princess's residence every day without fail, rain or shine. But after falling ill, she became timid and afraid to go anymore.
Later, after the princess's residence was surrounded by the imperial guards, he became even more timid and didn't dare to ask any questions. He stayed at home for a month until he heard that the princess's residence had been unsealed. He hesitated and struggled for a long time before daring to inquire about the princess's situation.
Unexpectedly, the princess was not in the mansion, but came to Cining Temple. And sure enough, she came chasing after him the very next day.
With his timid and cowering appearance, who knows when he'll finally win the heart of his beloved?
Gu Tanghua immediately answered for her brother, "Princess, he just wanted to come and see you."
She smiled and said, "If it weren't for the Imperial Guards standing guard outside your princess's residence, he would have gone looking for you long ago."
Shen Panyan blinked in surprise, then Gu Jinyan suddenly laughed, "So that's how it is."
Gu Jinyan felt his heart flutter as she looked at him with her gentle smile, and his heart started to pound uncontrollably. He realized that he had been being pretentious before.
So what if he knows the princess doesn't like or care about him? What's there to be so down about? Didn't he already know that?
If the princess doesn't like him, then he'll try his best to make her like him.
After figuring it out, Gu Jinyan immediately stopped stammering. "Princess, where are you going? Are you also going to the wishing tree? Would you like to come along?"
Shen Panyan blinked and smiled, "Okay."
She actually went last night, but it's okay, she can go again.
She thought that after what happened with Lin Xiao, Gu Jinyan would be disappointed in her and would never contact her again. Unexpectedly, he came back again.
Shen Panyan felt that she could bring up her previous idea again.
This will make Lin Xiao give up.
He...he's really going too far...thinking about what happened last night and what happened at breakfast, she couldn't help but feel angry.
So the three of them chatted and laughed as they headed towards the back of the mountain.
On the way, Gu Tanghua brought up something, "Princess, do you know that His Majesty has bestowed a marriage upon Princess Chengle and the young master Zhao from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion?"
Shen Panyan paused, surprised, "I don't know."
After the princess's residence was reopened, she had been concerned about the Crown Prince and the Empress, and she really didn't know about the arranged marriage.
“This imperial decree of marriage was issued yesterday. I heard from my father that it’s because of that person in the capital recently…” Gu Tanghua gestured hurriedly, indicating that royal matters should not be discussed casually. “After the incident, the entire capital was in a low mood, and even the common people were trembling with fear and dared not go out. So His Majesty thought of using a happy event to liven things up, so that everyone would not be terrified.”
After many twists and turns, Zhao Yun still married Cheng Le.
So much time has passed that she almost thought her father had changed his mind and wouldn't grant them the marriage.
Shen Panyan sighed inwardly, recalling the words Zhao Wenyao had once said to her, and couldn't help but shake her head.
The Zhao family may be nice, but they're not suitable for her.
Even if they could barely make ends meet, she couldn't stand Zhao Yun, so it would be better to let Cheng Le go.
Shen Panyan was quite satisfied with Gu Jinyan.
"So that's how it is. The capital has been quiet for so long, it's time for some excitement. When is their wedding date?"
"The 26th of this month."
Does that mean there are still half a month left?
Is it too late?
"So fast?" Shen Panyan exclaimed in surprise.
"Of course we have to hurry!" Gu Tanghua said in a low voice, and started gossiping with her, "I heard from others that Princess Chengle is pregnant and the child is Zhao Yun's."
"Princess, you don't like going out, so you wouldn't know. Ever since Consort Hui passed away, Princess Chengle has been quite withdrawn for a while. Didn't she used to always chase after Zhao Yun? Since then, she doesn't care about Zhao Yun anymore, and goes out drinking and strolling around pleasure boats every day..."
"Gu Tanghua!" Gu Jinyan quickly interrupted her, "What are you saying to Her Highness the Princess? Is Princess Chengle's matter something we can discuss?"
Is it appropriate to speak ill of one's younger sister in front of her older sister?
"Your Highness, please forgive my sister; she is very unruly..."
"It's alright," Shen Panyan interrupted him with a smile. "I won't tell anyone about this."
After saying that, she looked at Gu Tanghua and said, "Sister Gu, please continue."
She was really curious about what had happened between the two of them.
Gu Tanghua stuck out her tongue at Gu Jinyan, "That's how it is. After Princess Chengle stopped chasing after Zhao Yun, Zhao Yun started chasing after her all the time, going into the pleasure boat with her, and forbidding the courtesans from getting close to the princess. I heard that his face is ugly, even blacker than ink."
"Later, the two were often seen together, and on one occasion, someone even witnessed them lying on the same bed, completely naked..."
Someone tugged at the hem of his clothes. Veins throbbed on Gu Jinyan's forehead as he whispered, "Gu Tanghua!!"
Gu Tanghua pouted, "What's wrong with talking about this? It's spread throughout the entire capital. Every well-bred young lady I know around here knows about it. If the princess goes back and inquires, she might know even more details than I do."
"You..." Gu Jinyan was furious. How could he let the princess know about such a disgraceful thing? Wasn't he afraid of offending the princess's ears?
What happened to me?
Gu Tanghua glared at him. Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Shen Panyan quickly intervened, "Young Master Gu, Gu's younger sister is still young. You shouldn't argue with her. After all, you are family. Even if Gu's younger sister said something wrong, you shouldn't scold her. Instead, you should gently advise her."
"Exactly!" Gu Tanghua nodded vigorously. "What kind of brother is like you!"
“Princess, I… she…” Gu Jinyan looked at Shen Panyan, whose face was full of disapproval, and then at Gu Tanghua, who was beaming with pride. She was both angry and helpless. In the end, she could only glare at Gu Tanghua to stop her from talking nonsense.
Gu Tanghua made a face at him, grabbed Shen Panyan's arm, and pulled her forward, saying, "I don't want to wait for you, Gu Jinyan. You can take your time. Princess, let's go first!"
Gu Jinyan: "..."
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