sarcastic
Zhang Mobai shook his head. "You're too soft-hearted. These people are born for the sake of imperial power and interests. Even though it's lonely at the top, they still enjoy the thrill of being bathed in the cold light of the sword and licking blood from the edge of a knife."
"But... never mind," Tang Feng shook his head, took a sip of tea, and swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue. After all, he was a modern person, and there were many times when he couldn't understand the way of thinking of the ancients.
After chatting for a while, Tang Feng wanted to take Qin Liuliu out for a walk. Zhang Mobai, who was happily eating on a stool, made a few excuses. Tang Feng wasn't angry. He dusted himself off and tugged at Zhou Ziliang's sleeve. "If the little madwoman won't keep me company, you should at least keep me company!" Zhou Ziliang stood up, leaning on the table. "Yes, yes, I'm afraid of your sharp tongue. You can say a few words to anyone you meet. 'Words can be dangerous,' that's you for sure." Zhou Ziliang tapped Tang Feng's nose.
Tang Feng was displeased by Zhou Ziliang's words and shoved Zhou Ziliang's hand away. "Get off, get off! Take it or leave it, you talk too much!" Tang Feng got up, took Qin Liuliu's hand, and walked out the door. Yang Fei saw this and stepped forward to push Zhou Ziliang. "What are you standing there for! Hurry up and chase after him! You're such a blockhead. I don't even know how you managed to win Tang Feng over in Daze the other day." Zhou Ziliang didn't even let Yang Fei finish speaking before shoving him away and chasing after him. Yang Fei shrugged and swayed as he sat down next to Zhang Mobai. "I..." "My junior brother is so immature," Yang Fei straightened his robes, which he had just ruffled. "I used to think your older brother wasn't good enough for my junior brother, but now it seems we're the ones who are out of our league." Yang Fei rambled on for a while, but Zhang Mobai remained silent. He tugged at Zhang Mobai's sleeve and asked cautiously, "Bai Bai, why aren't you saying anything? Usually, when I say something like this, you'd proudly retort." Zhang Mobai put down his teacup, glanced at Yang Fei, and said, "What did you say? I was thinking about something."
"What are you thinking about? You're so lost in thought."
"I was thinking about my little brother," Zhang Mobai said, resting his chin on his hand and looking out into the courtyard. "Don't worry, my junior brother is here! How could he let your little brother get hurt or suffer any loss?"
"That's not what I'm worried about. I know how Zhou Ziliang treats my little brother. Listen to what he just said. He's too soft-hearted. Given time, after he leaves the academy and goes to the imperial court, he'll be surrounded by deceit and flattery. How will he stand it? He'll be bullied when he first enters officialdom."
Tang Feng pulled Qin Liuliu down the mountain. It was Qin Liuliu's first time there, and she kept pulling Tang Feng around, looking here and there. "He doesn't seem tired at all," Zhou Ziliang followed behind, unhurriedly. "Kids like to play." Tang Feng patted Qin Liuliu's head and pointed ahead. "Go on! The lotus flowers are in full bloom right now. Go pick a couple and play with them. Be careful not to fall into the lake." Qin Liuliu, as if granted a pardon, dashed off in a flash.
"You brat, what's wrong with him being with me? Oh dear! He was so much cuter before. When he first came to the manor, he wasn't even as tall as my waist, with a round face, and he was always clinging to me. Look at this heartless little thing, not only has he gone astray with Liu Yiwan these past two years, but he's also become distant from me." Tang Feng finished speaking with a hint of grievance, feeling as if his own son had been mistreated. Tang Feng found a rock, sat down, and sighed as he looked at Qin Liuliu in the distance.
“Boys will be boys! As they grow up, they naturally can’t be compared to before.” Zhou Ziliang also found a clean spot to sit down. “When I was a child, I used to play and frolic at my mother’s feet, but now I maintain a respectful distance from her.”
Tang Feng looked at Zhou Ziliang with some disdain. "Who cares about you! Liu Liu is a child I've watched grow up since she was little. How can you be the same?"
Zhou Ziliang was somewhat amused and exasperated. "I'm also a child my mother watched grow up!" Tang Feng picked up a small stone and threw it at Zhou Ziliang. "I'm not stupid, everyone knows you were also watched grow up by your mother! Do you need to explain?" Just then, Tang Feng noticed a group of people walking towards them on the path. "Who are these people?!" Tang Feng squinted, trying hard to make out their faces. At this moment, Zhou Ziliang stood up and pulled Tang Feng up. "Xiao Feng, get up quickly, that's Prince Cheng."
"What happened to Prince Cheng? I... um..." Tang Feng was cut off by Zhou Ziliang before he could finish speaking. "Xiao Feng, listen to me, that's not someone you can mess with. For my sake, please keep quiet." Tang Feng pried Zhou Ziliang's hand away and pinched his shoulder hard. "Then you have to buy me food. When we get back to Xiling, I want to eat Liufuji pastries, the kind that's all-you-can-eat."
"Alright, alright, I'll buy it all for you." Zhou Ziliang pulled Tang Feng up, went over and bowed, "Your Highness Prince Cheng." Tang Feng reluctantly followed behind him and bowed as well.
Li Yunheng waved his fan. "Isn't this Young Master Zhou?" Li Yunheng didn't let Zhou Ziliang and Tang Feng stand up, so the two had to remain bowed. "I heard you and Xu Chang'an had some unpleasantness the other day!" Li Yunheng bent down, turned his head to look at Zhou Ziliang, and patted his shoulder.
Zhou Ziliang knew, of course, that Li Yunheng was settling scores after the fact. Xu Chang'an was Li Yunheng's lackey, and his father, Prime Minister Xu, had often spoken well of Li Yunheng before the Emperor. "Your Majesty, I do not understand what you mean."
"Don't understand?" Li Yunheng straightened up and closed his fan. "Even someone as clever as the young marquis has moments of not understanding?" Tang Feng glanced down at Xu Chang'an standing beside Li Yunheng with a smile, inwardly cursing his family history.
“If you’re referring to the matter at the Corridor Hall, then I don’t think I had any unpleasantness with Young Master Xu,” Zhou Ziliang slowly stood up. “We only exchanged a few words, just like you and I are doing now. Do you really think that exchanging just a few words with me has caused any unpleasantness?”
Li Yunheng remained silent for a long time before suddenly bursting into laughter. "You're still the same as before. I have high hopes for you. Unlike your father, you're more shrewd and more to my liking." After saying that, he walked up to Tang Feng and nudged Tang Feng's shoulder with the rib of his fan, signaling him to stand up. "You're Tang Feng?"
Tang Feng nodded, "Indeed," and bowed again, "Greetings, Your Highness Prince Cheng." Li Yunheng smiled, "After leaving Lishan Academy, what are your plans? Do you need me to find you a good position?"
"No need for that. I'm used to a leisurely life; whether I have an official position or not makes no difference. The deceit and treachery of officialdom are not for me. But thank you for your kindness, Your Highness." Tang Feng stared at Li Yunheng, and seeing that he wasn't angry, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Li Yunheng was different from Li Yunrui; standing in front of Tang Feng, he gave Tang Feng a strong sense of pressure. He knew that Li Yunheng was going to use him to threaten Zhou Ziliang.
"That's such a pity. I thought you were quite an interesting person. I rarely open up to people, but you're different. I really want to have a chat with you right now." Li Yunheng stepped forward and met Tang Feng's eyes. Tang Feng clenched his fists, feeling that Li Yunheng was provoking him. If he hadn't promised Zhou Ziliang that he wouldn't act impulsively, he would have punched Li Yunheng by now. Zhou Ziliang saw that Tang Feng's body was trembling slightly and assumed that Tang Feng was afraid. He stepped forward and shielded Tang Feng behind him. "Your Highness, Xiao Feng is innocent and has never been involved in officialdom. Please don't frighten him."
"Scare him?" Li Yunheng laughed heartily, then pointed at Tang Feng. "He looks scared to you? I think he's quite interested in these things. Zhou Ziliang, I hope that even if we can't be friends, we'd better not be enemies. I heard that your engagement with Tang Feng has been postponed. When you two hold your wedding in the future, don't forget to invite me, so I can share in your joy." Li Yunheng helped Tang Feng straighten his clothes that had been ruffled by the wind.
"Fourth brother is really quite carefree," Tang Feng thought, glancing behind him and inwardly cursing his bad luck. Li Yunheng's matter was still raging, and now Li Yunrui had appeared. Tang Feng then thought, perhaps letting these two chat would keep him out of the picture! Tang Feng turned and respectfully bowed. "Long time no see, Your Highness Prince Duan." Li Yunrui was caught off guard by Tang Feng's sudden change of heart and quickly nodded. "Just a few days ago you were glaring at me, what's wrong with you now, bowing to me like this?"
"I apologize for my rudeness the other day, Prince Duan. I was just talking to Prince Cheng about my marriage to Ziliang. You'll all be coming then!" Tang Feng's lips curled into a smile, and Zhou Ziliang had no idea what Tang Feng was up to.
"This..." Li Yunrui knew that Tang Feng wasn't interested in the succession struggle, and he certainly didn't get involved in the affairs of the previous dynasty, so Tang Feng's words were probably just literal. "Alright, then I'll share in the joy." Li Yunrui smiled and looked at Li Yunheng, who was also taken aback. He didn't know what Tang Feng meant by suddenly saying that. "So, Big Brother and Tang Feng are quite familiar with each other!"
"Not really close," Tang Feng interjected before Li Yunrui could answer, "We just met a little earlier, and he even invited us to moon-viewing the other day."
"Oh? Is that so!" Li Yunheng stared intently at Tang Feng and smiled. "If you two were to get married, who would you prefer to attend?"
"Oh dear! This is a difficult choice!" Tang Feng rubbed his forehead. "I had a very pleasant chat with His Highness Prince Cheng." As he said this, Tang Feng looked at Li Yunrui, whose brows were furrowed. It was unclear whether Tang Feng had understood Li Yunheng's words. Tang Feng lowered his head and smiled. "But I've known His Highness Prince Duan for a longer time, and he treats Ziliang well. As the saying goes, 'a woman follows her husband wherever he goes,' so I might choose His Highness Prince Duan!"
Tang Feng understood this perfectly. He hadn't offended Li Yunheng or Li Yunrui, and had even gained Li Yunrui's protection. Li Yunrui was quite pleased, since Tang Feng and Zhou Ziliang were a couple; if one chose him, the other wouldn't be far behind. Li Yunheng sneered, "So, are you blaming me for being mean to Zhou Ziliang just now?" Li Yunrui stepped forward, blocking Tang Feng and Zhou Ziliang, and said sternly, "Our competition shouldn't involve others..."
Seeing the two arguing so loudly, Tang Feng pulled Zhou Ziliang towards the back. "Tang Feng! What do you think?" Tang Feng gave an awkward smile, realizing he hadn't even understood what they were talking about. He could only force a smile, holding Zhou Ziliang's hand tightly, unsure of what to say.
"Big brother, fourth brother? You two seem to be having quite a lively chat here!" Just as Zhou Ziliang was about to help Tang Feng out of the predicament, a voice came from behind again. Tang Feng felt like a million curses were stampeding through his mind. Had he forgotten to check the almanac before going out?! Who had he run into this time? It was all Liu Yiwan's fault; whenever he saw him, he was doomed.
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