After Rebirth, the True Eldest Daughter Starts Brewing Green Tea

ARTTEDSBGT Chapter 147

The evening breeze carried the unique chill of late autumn, and everything was silent, the night cool as water. The jagged rocks of the artificial mountain stood silently in the night, casting long shadows in the moonlight, creating a hidden little world.

A bony hand tightly gripped the slender waist of a girl, and the two leaned closely against each other. Xiao Yan tenderly kissed the person in his arms, his tongue wrapping around hers like a ball of honey, hot and moist, greedily seeking.

Li Zhizhi was forced to tilt her head slightly back, her eyelids drooping, the moonlight falling on the corners of her eyes, revealing a breathtaking whiteness. Her long eyelashes cast a small, quivering shadow, like a b.u.t.terfly about to take flight.

Their breaths were equally hot, mingling together. Li Zhizhi felt dazed from the kiss, her bones feeling soft and weak, as if she might fall. She was tightly held by Xiao Yan’s hand, feeling like a sack that could only lean against him; otherwise, she would slip away.

After a long time, Xiao Yan finally released her but still refused to pull away, gently kissing her lips, greedily rubbing against them. He murmured, “Auntie said you went to see Consort Rong.”

Li Zhizhi had not yet recovered from the intense kiss, feeling a bit dazed. She instinctively responded, “Hmm?”

Her voice was lazy, like that of a cat, evoking affection. Xiao Yan couldn’t help but lightly bite her lip, saying, “I waited for you since daytime. You didn’t come to see me but went to see Consort Rong.”

At this point, he grew somewhat annoyed and asked, “Do you care about me at all?”

Li Zhizhi finally understood his meaning, feeling both surprised and amused. “Does the Crown Prince need to be jealous about this?”

Xiao Yan paused for a moment and replied, “I like you, so naturally, I care about everything.”

After saying this, he gently bit her lip again, his voice m.u.f.fled, “It’s just jealousy, a common human emotion.”

As he bit, Xiao Yan couldn’t help but kiss Li Zhizhi again for a while, lingering closely. Then he asked, “What did you go to see Consort Rong for?”

Li Zhizhi recalled what Consort Rong had said earlier and told him, then couldn’t help but curiously ask, “Who do you think the child of Consort Chun is?”

“I don’t know,” Xiao Yan thought for a moment and said, “But I encountered her a few times in Qionglin Garden. If she really had an affair, it wouldn’t be impossible.”

Hearing this, Li Zhizhi suddenly realized something and recalled the flower from the Spring Outing Banquet. She murmured to herself, “No wonder she planted that flower in Qionglin Garden. That way, it’s convenient for her to leave the palace… So that’s it.”

Noticing her thoughtful expression, Xiao Yan couldn’t help but ask, “Why are you so concerned about her?”

Clearly feeling jealous again, Li Zhizhi chuckled softly, just about to respond when they suddenly heard footsteps outside. She immediately gestured for Xiao Yan to be quiet.

The air fell silent, and the night breeze carried voices. At first, they were faint, but as the person drew closer, they became clearer: “Young Master, you should go back. You’re drunk, and if the Prince finds out—”

“Shut up!” a slightly slurred male voice retorted, “If you keep making noise, I’ll slap you to death.”

His voice was loud and jarring in the stillness of the autumn night. The servant seemed frightened and didn’t dare to insist further. Li Zhizhi recognized the voice as belonging to Xiao Wen, and instinctively exchanged glances with Xiao Yan as the footsteps grew closer.

The figure stopped beside the artificial mountain. Xiao Wen leaned against it, just a wall separating him from Li Zhizhi. Xiao Yan furrowed his brows, pulling her into his arms and shifting to a position further from the rock.

After a moment, Xiao Wen’s voice sounded again: “How did your inquiries about the matter I instructed you to investigate go?”

“The servants have already inquired,” the attendant hurriedly said, “Princess Zhao Hua is staying at the Warm Green Courtyard today, along with the Grand Princess.”

Unexpectedly mentioned, Li Zhizhi raised her eyebrows in surprise, but Xiao Yan’s expression suddenly darkened. Just as he was about to speak, Li Zhizhi covered his mouth with her hand and shook her head slightly.

Over there, Xiao Wen cursed, sounding genuinely drunk, with an odd excitement in his voice: “This broken palace, not even a woman… Lead the way to the Warm Green Courtyard!”

Xiao Yan’s face turned completely black. The attendant outside continued to advise earnestly, “Young Master, this won’t do. You’re drunk right now; what if—”

A loud slap echoed, accompanied by the attendant’s painful cry. Xiao Wen angrily scolded, “You b.a.s.t.a.r.d! You dare to lecture me? Do you have a bear’s heart and a leopard’s gall?”

“I dare not, I dare not…”

The attendant kept begging for mercy. After being provoked by the cold wind, Xiao Wen shivered, probably sobering up a little. He looked around in confusion, as if wondering how he ended up here, stood up, and staggered away.

Seeing that he no longer caused a ruckus, the attendant let out a sigh of relief and hurriedly got up to follow him.

The air quieted down again. Li Zhizhi was deep in thought, even forgetting that she was still covering Xiao Yan’s mouth until he lightly bit her finger, startling her back to reality. She quickly let go and huffed, “Are you a dog?”

Xiao Yan replied, “What were you thinking about?”

“Xiao Wen,” Li Zhizhi said, “Do you think he was really drunk just now?”

Mentioning Xiao Wen immediately made Xiao Yan furrow his brow, his expression showing some discontent. But seeing Li Zhizhi looking at him, he had to say, “He was coherent and spoke fluently, not like someone who was drunk.”

Li Zhizhi nodded, recalling the news she had heard earlier, a contemplative look appearing on her face. From what she understood, Xiao Wen seemed to be looking for her?

However, Li Zhizhi felt that they had no interaction apart from Liu Man, who had provided Xiao Wen with the five stones powder. Was there really no other motive?

Li Zhizhi didn’t believe it; she thought that during this autumn hunt, some matters should come to a conclusion.

“Xiao Wen has inappropriate thoughts about you,” Xiao Yan warned. “Be careful these few days. Tomorrow at the autumn hunt, it’s best to stay close to me.”

Hearing this, Li Zhizhi couldn’t help but laugh, her bright eyes under the moonlight sparkling like autumn waters, captivating the soul. She obediently replied, “Okay, I understand, Prince Brother.”

Xiao Yan’s breath hitched slightly as he gently brushed his knuckles against her jade-like cheek, whispering, “It’s said that wealth shouldn’t be revealed; I really want to tuck you into my sleeve and not let anyone else see you.”

After saying that, he lowered his head and kissed her deeply.

After a pa.s.sionate entanglement, Li Zhizhi finally returned to the Warm Green Courtyard. The Grand Princess didn’t say much; she merely looked at her with a half-smile and said, “It seems these late autumn mosquitoes are rather annoying.”

Li Zhizhi’s face instantly turned red. Seeing her embarra.s.sment, the Grand Princess didn’t tease her any further. She had someone prepare wine and invited her to drink together. Li Zhizhi only had a cup but felt warm in her body. She smiled and said, “Speaking of which, I still left a jar of Shidong Spring at home. I’m starting to want some now.”

Upon hearing this, the Princess said, “What’s the difficulty? Just send someone back to fetch it.”

As she spoke, she commanded one of the guards to ride a fast horse back to the capital to get the wine.

…

Meanwhile, in another courtyard of the palace, the lights were dimly flickering. A woman was sitting by the window, using a silver pick to sc.r.a.pe wax. She was extremely beautiful, with a clear and graceful demeanor, resembling a delicate orchid hidden in a secluded valley. This was Consort Chun.

The door was pushed open, and a maid entered quietly, carefully closing the door behind her. Consort Chun immediately stopped her actions and said softly, “Did you see him?”

The maid nodded and leaned in to whisper, “The prince said not to worry and to wait for the right moment.”

With her slender fingers gripping the silver pick tightly, she almost bent it in half. Consort Chun bit her lip and said angrily, “Not to worry? How can I not worry?”

As she spoke, she threw the silver pick down with force, her face showing anger. “He only thinks about himself and never considers my situation!”

“My lady…”

Consort Chun grasped the fabric of her abdomen, her expression anxious and fl.u.s.tered. “This illegitimate child… if anyone finds out, I won’t have a way to live! I’ve always said I wanted to get rid of it…”

The maid could only comfort her, “My lady, don’t worry. The prince must have a way.”

“What way could he have?! He only knows how to wait,” Consort Chun exploded with anger, cursing Prince Ning repeatedly. Suddenly, she grabbed the maid’s hand and said, “Go help me find some abortifacient. This illegitimate child absolutely cannot be kept!”

The maid was startled and said, “My lady, we are in the palace; where can we find abortifacients? Besides, didn’t the prince say he wanted to keep it?”

Prince Ning’s heirs were few; after more than ten years of marriage, he had only one Xiao Wen. Though he had many concubines, there had been no news of more children. Therefore, when he learned that Consort Chun was pregnant, he specifically sought out skilled doctors who diagnosed that it was a male child. He took a risky approach and wanted to keep the child.

His plans were good, but they only made Consort Chun anxious day by day, fearing that the news would leak. After a moment of panic, she gradually calmed down, as if she had made a resolution. She said to the maid, “Go see the prince again and tell him that if he still cannot achieve anything during this autumn hunt, I will immediately get rid of this child.”

…

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, the servants in the palace were already bustling about. Today was the autumn hunt, with a grand archery ceremony, and everything had to be perfect. However, there was heavy morning fog in the mountains, making it hard to see even a figure a yard away, adding to the trouble.

Xiao Wen had taken five stones powder the previous night and was still feeling a bit lazy, reclining on the couch and yawning, unwilling to move. When he wasn’t drinking, his mind was still quite clear, but thinking about the jade-colored porcelain bottle that contained the last of the five stones powder made him feel restless again.

As soon as the Princess Ning entered, she heard him calling for someone to bring wine. She quickly stopped him, saying, “Wen’er, today is the autumn hunt, and there will be an archery ceremony. The Emperor is present; you must not drink and mess things up. Just bear with it for now.”

She hadn’t even finished speaking when that word “bear” made Xiao Wen feel an itch in his heart. He impatiently said, “I’m not some turtle; I can’t keep enduring this every day!”

That said, he still considered his mother and didn’t say anything more. The princess consort ordered the servants to draw water for him to wash his face. At that moment, a servant entered from outside and said, “Young master, a messenger from Princess Zhao Hua has arrived.”

?Her?” Xiao Wen paused in his movements, turned his head, and raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “Why would she suddenly look for me? What did she say?”

The servant replied respectfully, “She didn’t go into detail, but the Princess only asked if you remember Liu Man.”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wen’s expression changed slightly. He handed the handkerchief to the servant and smiled, “Interesting. This Liu Man is indeed impressive; even in death, she still makes people remember her.”

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