Early the next morning, Qingzhu shook Bai Chuxiao, "Miss, get up, the Prince of Yan is waiting for you."
Bai Chuxiao didn't want to open her eyes, so she covered her head and muttered, "Why is he here so early?"
"It's getting late, Miss. Look at the sun in the room; the Prince of Yan has invited you to go out and play."
Back in Dingzhou, there was a martial arts training ground where she would get up early to practice, sometimes sparring with her two older brothers. But after returning to the capital, there was nothing there, so Bai Chuxiao no longer wanted to get up early. She became incredibly lazy and didn't even want to get up for breakfast.
Bai Chuxiao reluctantly sat up, glanced at the time and realized it was indeed getting late, so she let Lanxiang dress her up.
When Bai Chuxiao led Qingzhu to the door, she saw the Prince of Yan standing in front of the carriage, followed by Mo Yan, whom she had met before.
The Prince of Yan came forward and, seeing her somewhat sleepy-eyed appearance, smiled and said, "What's wrong? Did I disturb your sweet dreams?"
Bai Chuxiao snorted and followed him into the carriage, while Qingzhu and Moyan sat outside.
"That's right. Since coming to the capital, I've found it all so boring. I used to practice my martial arts, but now all I want to do is sleep," Bai Chuxiao said listlessly.
The Prince of Yan poured her a cup of tea and said with a smile, "Xiaoxiao, why don't you come and visit my Prince of Yan's residence? My martial arts training ground is quite nice; you're skilled in kung fu, I'm sure you'll like it."
Bai Chuxiao perked up and happily agreed. She had indeed been too lazy lately and needed to loosen up.
The Prince of Yan's residence was not luxurious at all, but rather filled with a somber atmosphere. It didn't look like the residence of a royal prince. Bai Chuxiao surveyed the martial arts training ground before her; it was much larger than the Murong residence, filled with weapons—swords, spears, halberds, and daggers—and several straw men were arranged in a regular pattern for practice.
She clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Great! I like it!"
"What kind of weapon does Xiaoxiao like?" Chu Tianze asked with a smile.
"I'm good with both swords and daggers," she said, then asked, "Can I go up and play a bit?" She hadn't practiced in a long time and couldn't resist warming up.
Chu Tianze smiled and nodded, then watched as she went up and chose a dagger, which flashed swiftly among the scarecrows.
Mo Yan, standing to the side, was stunned. "My goodness, Miss Bai is too fierce!" Mo Yan had no idea she knew martial arts. Now, seeing her every move, it was clearly a killing technique. If it were a real person, with Miss Bai's skill, she would definitely kill with a single blow.
Qingzhu tilted her head back. "What's all the fuss about? Our young lady is incredibly capable, and of course, I'm very capable too."
Mo Yan scratched his head at her expression. Qingzhu said disapprovingly, "Don't you believe me? We can have a little demonstration."
Bai Chuxiao finished her practice and rushed over, smiling at the Prince of Yan, "Chu Tianze, how about we have another match? This time we'll both use swords, and let's agree beforehand that neither of us will hold back."
Chu Tianze laughed, "Alright, with Xiaoxiao being so capable, how could I possibly hold back?"
And so, the two began exchanging sword techniques at lightning speed. When Yu Fengyang arrived, he saw that the fight was at its most intense.
He stared wide-eyed at the two people in the room and exclaimed, "My goodness!"
Then he turned to Mo Yan and asked, "If I'm not mistaken, this is Miss Bai, right?"
Qingzhu snorted, "It's our young lady, so what?"
Yu Fengyang waved his folding fan and sighed leisurely, "With such a fierce wife, Tianze's future days are going to be miserable."
Mo Yan thought to himself, "I really shouldn't mess with Miss Bai anymore; even a prince might not be able to beat her."
Seeing that they had been fighting for a long time and still showed no signs of stopping, Yu Fengyang said loudly, "Hey you two, why don't you stop fighting? It's getting late, how about we go out for dinner?"
Hearing this, they slowly stopped, and Bai Chuxiao smiled, "My internal strength is ultimately still a notch below."
Chu Tianze shook his head. "But your moves are tricky, which is indeed better than mine. Your internal strength will catch up eventually." He wasn't being modest; Xiaoxiao's moves were ruthless, completely like an assassin's style.
Yu Fengyang looked at the two of them and said, "I think it's inappropriate for you two to be fighting so early in the morning. How about we go to Tianshui Restaurant for lunch together? I heard they have some new dishes."
Bai Chuxiao was indeed hungry, and nodded with a smile. Chu Tianze glanced at Yu Fengyang and said indifferently, "I'm going with Xiaoxiao. You're not here. Go eat by yourself."
Yu Fengyang yelled, "No way, Tianze, you can't be so unfair! I'm going, and I'm going with you guys!"
Bai Chuxiao found his expression amusing. "Alright, then Young Master Yu, why don't you come along?"
They found a window seat on the second floor of Tianshui Tower, and by sheer coincidence, just as they sat down, they saw Prince Xiang, Prince Qi, Liu Shuyao, and Princess Lingxiang, who was wearing a veil, walk up.
Chu Tianlingye was slightly surprised, not expecting to run into Bai Chuxiao here. He frowned slightly when he saw the seventh brother sitting opposite her, but the frown quickly disappeared. He walked over and smiled, "It's been a day since we last met. How have you been, Miss Bai?"
Bai Chuxiao thought he was out of his mind. Why was the Prince of Qi greeting her first instead of asking about his seventh brother?
Before she could answer, Chu Tianze coldly said, "No need for Sixth Brother to worry, Xiaoxiao is perfectly fine."
Chu Tianling chuckled, "So Seventh Brother is here too. Sixth Brother was so busy asking about Chu Xiao that he didn't even see you." Isn't that blatant lying? How could he not see someone this big?
Chu Tianze said calmly, "I think it would be more appropriate for Sixth Brother to address Xiaoxiao as Seventh Princess Consort or Seventh Sister-in-law."
King Qi chuckled, "Seventh brother, you jest. You are not yet engaged or married; such address is inappropriate."
The King of Xiang watched their conversation, a playful smile appearing on his lips. How amusing! He stepped forward and changed the subject, "How about we all eat together today?"
Chu Tianling laughed and said, "Fifth Brother is absolutely right. It's rare for us all to meet. Brother Yu, would you mind moving to another spot?"
Liu Shuyao looked at Bai Chuxiao and smiled, "May I sit next to you, Sister Bai?"
“Of course, Miss Liu, please have a seat,” Bai Chuxiao said calmly, and then Princess Lingxiang sat down next to Liu Shuyao.
After the dishes were served, seeing that Princess Lingxiang still hadn't removed her veil, Bai Chuxiao asked in confusion, "Princess Lingxiang, don't you need to?"
Princess Lingxiang smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, Miss Bai. I've already eaten. I was just out for some fresh air at the invitation of the two princes."
They had been in the capital for quite some time, but the Emperor had yet to summon them. Since she was there for a political marriage, she wouldn't show her face in public before entering the palace.
Prince Xiang smiled and said, "I imagine Father will summon you soon, Princess Lingxiang, there's no need to worry."
Suddenly, King Qi placed a piece of fish into Bai Chuxiao's bowl, saying, "Chuxiao, try this fish, it's delicious, it's their signature dish."
Bai Chuxiao was also disgusted by Chu Tianling's lack of tact, and said, "No need for Your Highness to trouble yourself, I'll do it myself."
Chu Tianze slammed down his chopsticks. "What exactly does Sixth Brother mean?"
Chu Tianling said nonchalantly, "What do you mean? I was just introducing the dishes to Chu Xiao because she's not familiar with Kyoto yet."
King Xiang, seemingly oblivious to their rivalry, laughed and said, "How about we go for a stroll together after we finish eating?"
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