A rough man
Lan Yunyi's smile deepened.
Pilgrims began to descend the mountain one after another. Shen Yao didn't want to stand there idly, so she reminded Lan Yunyi and left Lingshan Temple with him. When they reached the carriage, Lan Yunyi helped her into the carriage.
Along the way, Lan Yunyi kept asking about her well-being, while Shen Yao leaned against the window, listlessly looking at the scenery. She seemed to casually respond to his words, but her mind was constantly on edge, wondering when he would ask about Chengxin.
But Lan Yunyi never mentioned Chengxin until they arrived at the General's Mansion.
Shen Yao had a headache.
After Lan Yunyi alighted from the carriage, she lifted the curtain and helped Shen Yao down. Once inside, Lan Yunyi immediately arranged for someone to prepare dinner and hot water for her bath. She also personally brewed a pot of fragrant flower tea for Shen Yao, making it impossible to detect anything amiss.
Shen Yao felt that things couldn't continue like this, so during the meal she suddenly looked at the pale-faced person next to Lan Yunyi and casually said, "Your servant doesn't look well."
Lan Yunyi smiled and served her some food: "Indeed. The princess cares so much about her servants; she is truly kind-hearted."
Shen Yao raised her eyelids and glanced at him, then looked at A Yuan.
Lan Yunyi suddenly stopped smiling, turned around and glanced at A Yuan indifferently, giving him a wink.
A-Yuan hurriedly cupped her hands and said, "This humble one thanks Your Highness for your concern."
Lan Yunyi turned to look at Shen Yao and said with a smile, "A Yuan is already physically weak, and he suffered too much when he was young, which damaged his health. That's why he always looks so sickly. If Your Highness gets tired of seeing him, I'll kick him out."
“No need,” Shen Yao said. “I didn’t know either. It was Master Chengxin from Lingshan Temple who told me this afternoon.”
"So it's Master Chengxin." Lan Yunyi chuckled softly, and A Yuan behind him suddenly turned gloomy.
“I heard that Master Chengxin came from a family of great medical experts and had superb medical skills. But later he attained enlightenment and said something like ‘to heal people, one must first heal their hearts,’ so he began to devote himself to Buddhism and Taoism.”
Shen Yao didn't speak.
She couldn't figure out Lan Yunyi's attitude. She was just wondering how important this A Yuan was to him. Could she be the carrot in front of the donkey's head, keeping Lan Yunyi from killing her?
"That's a bit of a tangent." Lan Yunyi smiled. "I once offered a large sum of money to see Master Chengxin to examine Ayuan's pulse, but... Master Chengxin didn't seem willing to treat Ayuan."
Thinking of Chengxin's words today, Shen Yao sighed softly: "We have different positions from him, and seeing a doctor also depends on fate. We can't force it."
Lan Yunyi paused for a moment, then immediately understood Shen Yao's meaning and smiled, "The princess is insightful."
Shen Yao looked at A Yuan, then at Lan Yunyi, and said, "There is a cordyceps in my dowry. You can give it to him."
Lan Yunyi hurriedly stood up and thanked her, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, Princess." Then she pulled A Yuan over to thank her as well.
A-Yuan thanked her coldly, and the two of them were very respectful, which made Shen Yao feel a little uncomfortable.
She reached out and tugged at Lan Yunyi's clothes, saying, "I just told you that you don't always need to bow in front of me, have you forgotten?"
Lan Yunyi sat down and said, "Sister, you are of noble birth. If I can't even handle these formalities, I won't feel at ease."
Shen Yao didn't respond, but instead steered the conversation back to A Yuan, saying, "A Yuan is actually quite weak, and taking strong tonics would only harm her health. Giving you these medicinal herbs is just a token of my appreciation. If there's ever a chance to cure her completely in the future, I will lend you a hand."
A-Yuan bowed and thanked her.
After the two of them politely declined each other's offer, Shen Yao finally figured out how to start the conversation. She also put some food on Lan Yunyi's plate and said, "This dish is good."
"Thank you, Princess," Lan Yunyi said.
Shen Yao said, "Today, I met with Abbot Chengxin at Lingshan Temple because there were indeed important matters to discuss."
After saying that, she briefly told Lan Yunyi about her plan.
Lan Yunyi neither said it was good nor bad, and after listening, she smiled and said, "I'm afraid that in practice it won't be as easy as the princess thinks."
Shen Yao smiled and asked, "So, what brilliant idea does the Prince Consort have?"
Shen Yao and Cheng Xin had sorted out the entire network of relationships in Xiliang and knew that the core of Xiliang lay with Lan Yunyi.
As long as Lan Yunyi says "okay," no one else will care.
The problem is that Lan Yunyi might not want to agree.
Aside from the fact that Shen Yao is a woman and "showing her face in public" might damage the reputation of her husband Lan Yunyi, the more important reason is that once Shen Yao's business develops, it means that imperial power will also infiltrate Xiliang.
The situation within Xiliang City was already complex. As a transportation hub, Xiliang's development was of great importance. Prince Jing was restless, Magistrate Chen's faction was divided, and the imperial power wanted to take another share of the spoils.
Lan Yunyi wasn't incapable of dealing with the court and the emperor; it was just that, given the current situation, the constant border conflicts were the real issue, and he couldn't afford to waste too much energy on political maneuvering.
Although the infiltration of imperial power was inevitable, Lan Yunyi tried to delay as long as possible... At least he needed to find a truly reliable person to stabilize the situation for the people of Xiliang City, like a pillar of strength.
Lan Yunyi was silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "I just feel that you don't need to work so hard, sister. It's not that I don't want to protect you. Why not devote yourself to Buddhism every day and live a free and easy life?"
Shen Yao didn't force the issue, knowing that this matter had to be handled gradually, so she smiled and said, "Then I will do as the Prince Consort says."
Lan Yunyi: "..."
He didn't expect Shen Yao to agree so quickly, so he couldn't help but glance at her.
Seeing that Shen Yao was calm and composed, without any of the exasperation one would expect when ambitions are not fulfilled, I couldn't help but take a few more glances at her.
He quickly figured out the reason. So he tentatively asked, "It's good that the princess has come to this understanding... I've also heard that Chengxin of Lingshan Temple is not only well-versed in Buddhism, but also possesses an extraordinary temperament, like a celestial being. Is that true?"
"?" Shen Yao glanced at him, wondering why he asked this.
It's true that it's hard to guess what the villains are thinking.
Lan Yunyi didn't seem to have any intention of taking back her original words, and looked at Shen Yao with a serious expression.
Shen Yao thought for a moment, then realized that shaking her head was not true and would be impolite to Cheng Xin, so she gave a light "hmm".
"I see..." Lan Yunyi smiled, then picked up her chopsticks to eat, drink water, and ignored Shen Yao.
Shen Yao was almost full by now, and she secretly marveled at how well Lan Yunyi had measured her appetite. He was so good at reading people's expressions and was truly worthy of being called a treacherous minister in the book.
Shen Yao wasn't in a hurry. She drank her tea and waited for him to finish eating. In just the time it takes to drink two cups of tea, Lan Yunyi had finished eating.
Shen Yao couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you eating too fast?"
Lan Yunyi wiped her mouth, threw her handkerchief on the table, and said, "I'm just a rough man, I'm sorry the princess had to laugh at me."
Shen Yao: "?"
She sensed something was off about Lan Yunyi's tone, but couldn't quite put her finger on it. Then she remembered how the other woman dared to throw a tantrum in front of the princess, and reassured herself that she was overthinking it.
Military generals are generally considered rather crude.
I'll let it go for now, for the sake of his reputation.
Shen Yao rose and left with a flick of her sleeve. Lan Yunyi followed her to the study to read. As dusk fell, Shen Yao got up to take a bath.
Lan Yunyi put the book down again and followed closely behind.
In front of others, Shen Yao couldn't very well send the person away immediately. However, Lan Yunyi himself didn't seem to have that awareness. When Shen Yao turned to look at him in front of the bathroom, he waved his hand and ordered all the maids to leave.
He took Shen Yao's hand and said, "I will personally serve the princess during her bath."
Shen Yao: "...That's not appropriate."
Lan Yunyi laughed and said, "What's wrong with that? I won't go in. I'll just wipe your hair for you. You wouldn't even give me this chance, would you? Or... do you find Zhishi too vulgar and are afraid that he might hurt you?"
As he spoke, he subconsciously glanced at his hand. Shen Yao followed his gaze and, upon seeing the injury on his hand, was speechless again.
She wasn't someone who easily softened her heart; if Lan Yunyi's appearance were as coarse as his behavior, she would definitely refuse. But Lan Yunyi just happened to have such a handsome face, and Shen Yao hesitated.
Hesitation resulted in nodding in agreement.
Lan Yunyi smiled, then opened the bathroom door for Shen Yao. Shen Yao went in first, and he followed her in, closing the door behind him.
Suppressing her embarrassment, Shen Yao avoided looking at the other person's expression and took off her outer robe, placing it in Lan Yunyi's hands.
Lan Yunyi lowered her eyes, making it impossible to see her expression clearly. After taking Shen Yao's outer robe with both hands, she suddenly looked up at Shen Yao.
Perhaps it was because of the steam in the bathroom, but Shen Yao felt that his gaze also carried a hazy, ambiguous quality.
Shen Yao couldn't help but feel her heart race, thinking to herself that she must be starving to the point of daring to covet such a dangerous person.
She quickly said, "Go wait behind the screen." After saying that, she put on her undergarments and went behind the screen.
Lan Yunyi nodded, then silently turned her back and walked behind the screen.
Apart from a huge bathtub, the only other thing in the bathroom was a floral and bird screen. The rustling of Chen Yao's clothes as she took them off, along with the dripping water, echoed in the empty bathroom.
Suddenly, the water in the bath splashed open with a "whoosh," and from the sound, it was clear that Shen Yao had entered the water.
Lan Yunyi suddenly cleared her throat in a low voice. Shen Yao turned around and saw the figure behind the screen sway, then turn her back and lower her head again.
Shen Yao suddenly found it a little funny. She stared at the figure and began washing his hair without any restraint. After he finished washing his hair... the sound of the water splashing became even louder.
Lan Yunyi suddenly said, "Sister, I want to go outside and wait."
Shen Yao: "Weren't you supposed to serve me?"
"I'd better go outside and wait." After saying that, he left without waiting for Shen Yao's reply.
Shen Yao raised an eyebrow, suddenly remembering what Zhou Sui had said that night.
"I came of age last year." Shen Yao couldn't help but laugh.
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