This is common
The book says that Pei Heng is a man of "exquisite knowledge and refined manners," but the moment Shen Yao saw him... how should I put it, she actually felt a trace of... disappointment?
She didn't know what went wrong. Perhaps it was because of Lan Yunyi and Chengxin's precedent that Pei Heng's appearance wasn't so amazing to Shen Yao.
Just then, a light rain began to fall. Lan Yunyi suddenly grabbed Shen Yao's hand and pulled her back under the eaves. She whispered in her ear, "A Yuan went to the carriage to get an umbrella. Princess, please wait a moment."
Shen Yao nodded.
At that moment, the people in the pavilion opposite seemed to have noticed them and nodded in their direction.
Shen Yao nodded again in acknowledgment.
A short while later, A-Yuan returned with two umbrellas. Lan Yunyi held one up over her head, and the two walked together to the pavilion, looking up slightly at the legendary young marquis.
The man smiled and looked at them, but his smile inexplicably made Shen Yao feel physically uncomfortable.
His appearance was just as gentle and refined as described in the book. Lan Yunyi suddenly started chatting with the young marquis, and there was nothing wrong with it.
But Shen Yao just felt something was off for no apparent reason.
Perhaps it was because the other person was standing on higher ground than her, making her feel too pressured?
Seeing that he was taking his time to come down, Shen Yao felt slightly dissatisfied but also made up an excuse for him, perhaps because he was a germaphobe and afraid of getting his shoes wet in the rain.
Shen Yao smiled and said, "A Yuan, why don't you quickly give the umbrella to the young marquis?"
A-Yuan nodded and handed the umbrella to Pei Heng. But before A-Yuan could step forward, Pei Heng said, "Thank you for your kindness, Princess, but it's not necessary. Master Chengxin already gave me an umbrella."
Shen Yao said, "Is that so? In that case, it's getting late, let's go back."
Lan Yunyi glanced at her, then smiled at Pei Heng and said, "Princess, you must have been exhausted from worshipping Buddha today. Perhaps the young master and I can go back and talk some more."
Pei Heng smiled, turned around, picked up an umbrella from the table in the pavilion, and walked into the rain.
While Shen Yao was lost in thought, this person inexplicably walked to Shen Yao's side, raised his hand and said, "Princess, please."
Lan Yunyi: "..."
Shen Yao: "..." She secretly glanced at Lan Yunyi and found that the other party was smiling happily.
...
The three of them arrived at the place where the carriage was parked. Pei Heng said, "The princess has been away from the capital for a long time. There are now many new and trendy gadgets in the capital. I brought them all for the princess. They are in my carriage."
Shen Yao nodded, thinking that this was probably a gift from Pei Heng, which was quite thoughtful.
She said, "Okay."
Pei Heng: "..."
Lan Yunyi smiled and said, "Young Marquis Pei is so kind. I have been away from the capital for a long time and I am very homesick. I wonder if I would be so lucky as to ride in your carriage and catch a glimpse of you?"
Pei Heng looked at him and laughed, "Two men like us, squeezing into one carriage...?"
Lan Yunyi smiled and said, "Yes, it's not appropriate for the princess and Young Master Pei to share a carriage. It would be too inappropriate for a lone man and woman to be alone together."
Shen Yao raised an eyebrow.
Lan Yunyi is usually very sensitive and eccentric, but perhaps Shen Yao is just too oblivious. It was only after Lan Yunyi reminded her that she realized Pei Heng had wanted to invite her to ride in the same carriage.
This is utterly disrespectful to her husband!
Although her relationship with Lan Yunyi wasn't particularly close, she wouldn't allow anyone to easily offend her, even if she owned a dog. So she interrupted, "Stop playing around. I haven't been feeling well lately, and the Prince Consort needs to stay by my side often, so I must politely decline the young marquis's kind offer."
Pei Heng smiled and said, "It's alright."
Lan Yunyi withdrew her gaze, put her arm around Shen Yao's shoulder, and helped her into the car. As Shen Yao got into the car, she caught a glimpse of Lan Yunyi turning her head to look in Pei Heng's direction, revealing a smug, arrogant smile.
After getting into the car, he noticed Shen Yao looking at him, and his expression instantly changed. Despite it being a rainy day, he was surrounded by flowers.
Shen Yao withdrew her gaze, and Lan Yunyi immediately sat down next to her, whispering, "I never expected the heir of the Marquis of Zhennan to be such a despicable wretch."
Shen Yao closed her eyes and said seriously, "We haven't gone down the mountain yet, so don't use foul language in front of the Buddha."
Lan Yunyi gave a soft snort and said nothing more.
...
Upon arriving at the princess's residence, Shen Yao went back to her room to change her clothes and do her makeup, while Lan Yunyi warmly led Pei Heng to the tea room for tea.
Pei Heng recounted his experiences traveling the world over the years, and then said, "However, my purpose in coming here this time is not specifically to visit the princess. In fact, I have important matters to discuss with her."
Lan Yunyi: "Okay."
Pei Heng smiled and said, "At that time, I will inevitably have private meetings with the princess. I hope the prince consort will not mind."
Lan Yunyi said cheerfully, "The princess detests jealous people the most, so naturally I would not want to do anything that would annoy the princess. Besides, I am the princess's most rightful husband, so why would I do such a thing?"
Pei Heng smiled and said, "Then I am relieved."
Lan Yunyi said, "However, there is one thing I would like to ask the young marquis."
Pei Heng was unaware of what Lan Yunyi wanted to ask him, and a hint of surprise and... nervousness appeared on his face.
Lan Yunyi leaned forward, hesitated for a moment, then opened her mouth and asked in a low voice, "Between me and Chengxin, who is more beautiful?"
The young marquis was stunned.
Lan Yunyi nodded, indicating that he hadn't misheard; that was indeed the question.
Pei Heng thought for a moment, then laughed awkwardly, "...Of course, the general is more handsome."
Lan Yun smiled knowingly, straightened her clothes, and said, "Yesterday I asked the princess, and she said the same thing."
Pei Heng: "...The princess..."
Lan Yunyi waved her hand and said, "There are some rumors circulating in the city that you need not believe, young marquis. The princess and I are husband and wife, and she listens to me in private. But recently, Chengxin has been harassing the princess for days on end. The princess can no longer bear it."
Pei Heng nodded as if he suddenly realized something, and then said, "I guess the princess must like a scholarly man like the general."
Speaking of this, Lan Yunyi shook her head, but did not continue to talk about the type of girl the princess liked.
After a while, Shen Yao changed her clothes and came out from the backyard. Cheng Xin also finally finished some chores at the temple and arrived at the princess's residence.
When Shen Yao heard that Cheng Xin had already taken her seat, she suddenly felt a surge of embarrassment. She entered the front hall under inexplicable pressure and immediately saw Lan Yunyi looking at Cheng Xin with a probing expression.
Chengxin had her eyes closed, propping herself up with one hand in front of her, seemingly muttering something. Pei Heng, on the other hand, acted like a straight man, only responding to Chengxin's words with "Yes, yes, yes..." as if he had lost his mind.
If this were her past life, Shen Yao would probably have turned around and left immediately upon seeing this scene. However, although the scene before her was strange, the three men were all exceptionally handsome. With them around, the antique vases, carved railings, and jade-like structures, as well as the vibrant reds and greens outside the house, all paled in comparison.
Shen Yao paused for a moment, then resolutely stepped forward.
After Shen Yao sat down, all three of them fell silent. Shen Yao sat opposite Lan Yunyi and said calmly, "There's no need to wait for me, just eat."
Lan Yunyi rolled up her sleeves and served Shen Yao some food, saying, "This dish is a new creation from the Lan family kitchen; it has a light flavor. Please try it, sister."
Shen Yao picked up her chopsticks, took a bite, and said, "It's really good."
Chengxin smiled and reached out to pick up a piece of sweet cake for Shen Yao: "No wonder the princess held onto the cakes as soon as she arrived at the temple. Now I know why."
Shen Yao was drenched in sweat: "Thank you, Master Chengxin. I'll do it myself."
She realized her mistake only after she finished speaking, but all three people present had heard it.
Chengxin smiled slightly and continued, "The princess clearly likes sweets, so it's alright if she eats a little more all the time."
Lan Yunyi: "..."
Shen Yao was suddenly put in a dilemma.
Not eating would offend Chengxin, while eating would offend Lan Yunyi. The suspicious thing is that Chengxin isn't usually this lacking in emotional intelligence; his sudden reaction can only mean that someone did something to upset him.
But Shen Yao really didn't know who else present could have provoked Cheng Xin to this extent.
Could it be her?
Shen Yao had reasonable suspicions about Lan Yunyi.
However, these were minor matters. Just as Shen Yao was about to pick up her chopsticks to eat, a pair of chopsticks suddenly reached out from the side and took the sweet cake from Shen Yao's plate.
Shen Yao looked over and saw that it was Pei Heng.
Pei Heng took a bite and helped Shen Yao out of the predicament, saying, "Princess, you are a woman after all. It is understandable that women love beauty and do not eat sweets. Master has put you in a difficult position."
He finished the sweet cake with a smile, then looked at Shen Yao with a beaming smile. Shen Yao smiled and said, "...I didn't expect the young marquis to like sweets."
Pei Heng smiled ambiguously: "I don't like sweets, but... never mind."
Shen Yao pursed her lips, picked up her chopsticks, stared at the dishes on the table, and mechanically picked up the nearest food and chewed it.
She involuntarily looked to both sides and found that Lan Yunyi and Chengxin had not moved, their hands on the table like two silent statues.
Shen Yao's heart sank, and she didn't dare to speak.
At this moment, Pei Heng, who was standing nearby, was completely unaware of what was happening. He wanted to pour wine for Shen Yao and said, "Princess, this is rice wine that I brought from Yangzhou. I think you will like it."
Shen Yao hurriedly shook her head: "I cannot drink alcohol. I will faint if I do."
"Is that so..." Pei Heng's eyes widened, then he laughed. "Great, I've learned a little more about the princess..."
Shen Yao: "..."
...
The nerve-wracking meal is finally over.
Feeling inexplicably guilty, Shen Yao put down her chopsticks after finishing her meal and left the oppressive living room under the pretext of seeing Chengxin off to her carriage.
The light rain had just stopped in the garden, and the air was extremely humid and hot. The short distance made Shen Yao feel extremely uncomfortable.
Chengxin remained silent until Shen Yao escorted him to the carriage, at which point he said, "...Princess, the young marquis will be assuming the position of inspector in Xiliang."
Shen Yao nodded: "He has already told me and the Prince Consort about this."
Chengxin said, "You must be careful with this person."
Shen Yao looked up at him for a moment, then nodded: "I understand."
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