Prince Jin returned from his hunting trip on the sixth day.
Early in the morning, Yu Zhu still wanted to linger in bed, idling away the morning hours.
Buried under the quilt, she carefully rubbed her ten fingers.
Without going into too much detail, after these days of embroidery work, her fingers had been pricked at least twenty times.
It wasn't that she didn't do the work—she simply did less, worked slowly, and followed a regular routine.
She planned to rest this morning and would properly study that so-called multi-sided embroidery technique in the afternoon.
But just as she was about to fall asleep, Lan Xi hurried in. While pulling off her quilt, she began dressing Yu Zhu without pause.
Still half-asleep, Yu Zhu stared blankly at Lan Xi with one eye wide open and the other half-closed.
"What's wrong? What's wrong? What happened?"
To be in such a hurry—could it be that the Emperor himself had arrived?
But that seemed unlikely. Usually, it was Prince Jin who went to the palace to see the Emperor.
If not that, then what could have caused such panic?
Still dazed, Yu Zhu was practically dragged along like a puppet on strings by Lan Xi.
"Prince Jin is back!"
Pressed down in front of the dressing table, Yu Zhu couldn't help but grumble inwardly.
So he's back—is such a grand fuss really necessary?
Shouldn't Prince Jin first go to bathe, then eat, and afterward handle the accumulated official duties from the past few days? If he still had energy after all that, he might come to her in the evening to vent his excess vigor.
Early in the morning like this—could it be that Prince Jin missed her so much that he rushed straight to the rear courtyard as soon as he returned?
Yu Zhu didn't think she was memorable enough to Prince Jin for that.
Lan Xi swiftly styled Yu Zhu's hair, her tone filled with unconcealed joy.
She was happy for Yu Zhu.
"Prince Jin has summoned you to the front courtyard. He said he has something special to give you."
Only then did Yu Zhu remember that before leaving, Prince Jin had indeed asked her what she wanted.
Yu Zhu had said she wanted a deer.
If he really hunted a deer, it would indeed be difficult to manage in this small courtyard.
Lan Xi quickly styled Yu Zhu's hair into a "spiral snake" bun, then reconsidered and replaced the simple white jade magnolia hairpin with a gilded filigree camellia hairpin with dangling ornaments.
Instantly, Yu Zhu looked much brighter and more striking, especially paired with her pale yellow dress.
Lan Xi believed that Prince Jin undoubtedly favored Yu Zhu greatly. If that was the case, why should she always dress so plainly and modestly? If she didn't assert herself, others would only think Yu Zhu was easy to bully.
She needed to carry herself with the demeanor of a favored concubine.
Once dressed, the mistress and her maid followed Yun Jin, Prince Jin's attendant, to the front courtyard.
Before they even reached the courtyard, Yu Zhu caught a whiff of a floating scent in the air.
It was the distinct smell of wild beasts and blood, which instinctively filled her with panic and a faint sense of nausea.
Yu Zhu suppressed the disgust in her heart.
Prince Jin loved hunting—showing such a reaction in front of him would surely be offensive.
Leaning on Lan Xi's hand, she whispered, "Have Lan Xiang bring a Cooling Pill."
Upon receiving the order, Lan Xiang lifted her skirt and hurried to the medicine room to fetch a bottle of Cooling Pills.
Meanwhile, Yu Zhu used the excuse of not having eaten breakfast yet and feeling dizzy, asking to rest for a moment.
Yun Jin said nothing. Dressed in black, he was tall and slender with a handsome face. However, he was overly proper and solemn, exuding a steadiness that seemed beyond his years.
As a personal guard, Yun Jin was well aware that there was a new Yu Shiqie in the rear courtyard.
The usually calm and composed Prince Jin had mentioned this Yu Shiqie several times during the hunt, making Yun Jin quite curious about her.
This hunting expedition served two purposes: first, to accompany the Crown Prince, and second, to obtain a bear pelt as a wedding gift for the Princess Consort.
However, when they followed the tracks to find a hibernating bear and were about to smoke it out, Prince Jin suddenly changed his mind.
His hand rested on the deerskin quiver as he held his breath and carefully drew an arrow.
Drawing the bow and nocking the arrow, the bow bent under Prince Jin’s strength into a full moon. Then, with a sharp whistle, the arrow shot through the air.
Unfortunately, the deer was hidden among the shadows of the trees.
The wind was too strong at that moment, causing the arrow to miss its vital spot by an inch.
Prince Jin immediately tightened his legs against the horse’s sides and set off in pursuit of the deer.
Yun Jin, who had been lighting a fire, was taken aback. He quickly extinguished the kindling, mounted his horse, and followed Prince Jin to chase the deer.
The wind was fierce, distorting the sounds carried on it.
"Your Highness, what about the bear?"
Prince Jin paid it no mind. "We’ll deal with it later!"
He had originally intended to capture a live deer for Yu Zhu, knowing she was bored in the rear courtyard. Keeping a deer could amuse her, but deer are stubborn creatures—as long as they have a breath left, they refuse to surrender, preferring to die fleeing.
After a long chase, despite Prince Jin’s intention to spare its life, the spotted deer ran until its last breath, finally collapsing in the snow with its legs giving way, lifeless.
Prince Jin frowned, his tone displeased but tinged more with regret.
"I wanted to give it to her, but I wonder if Yu Zhu would even want a dead deer?"
"Never mind." Prince Jin turned his horse around and instructed his attendants to prepare the deer. "The deer hide can make a nice hand drum to amuse her. Go catch a few rabbits for her to keep. They can be kept in the courtyard, no need to house them in the menagerie—that would be more convenient."
Yun Jin was astonished. Prince Jin was usually aloof and indifferent—when had he ever cared so much about a woman? He typically spoke only of official duties, and even during hunts, he mostly cared only about the quantity of prey.
Yun Jin couldn’t help but feel curious about Yu Zhu. A woman who could occupy Prince Jin’s thoughts must be exceptionally talented and remarkable.
Could she possibly be more gifted and insightful than the daughter of the Imperial Censor, the future Princess Consort?
Yun Jin pondered for a moment, then prepared to catch a few rabbits for Prince Jin.
Such a trivial task didn’t require his personal attention.
But Prince Jin stopped him. His lion-maned horse walked leisurely through the snow.
"Go find a rabbit burrow. The older ones won’t tame easily, but the younger ones tend to be more affectionate."
Well, it seemed he truly had her in mind.
After staying a few more days, Prince Jin successfully obtained a black bear.
The bear was enormous, requiring over a dozen men to load it onto a cart.
It would still need to undergo several processes before becoming a soft pelt.
The sky was still early, and Yun Jin asked Prince Jin if he wanted to continue hunting more game.
On this trip, they had only managed to catch one deer, one wolf, one bear, and a few rabbits—far less impressive compared to the Crown Prince’s haul.
Prince Jin replied softly, "This is enough. I’m about to start a family. My focus should be on my Princess Consort and children—how could I remain so reckless?"
Even among brothers, there were times for veiled probing.
As the youngest and the most favored by the Emperor, he had no choice but to conceal his abilities.
In contrast, Prince Qi’s haul was much more abundant.
He had four deer, six roe deer, twelve foxes, nine wolves, and countless smaller game.
Seeing his younger brother with such meager results, Prince Qi couldn’t resist taunting him.
"Father places high hopes on you. Is this how you repay him?"
Prince Jin rubbed the reins in his hand, lowered his head, and smiled somewhat sheepishly.
"You don't understand, Second Brother. Whenever I think of Wanhui, I can't help but get distracted."
Prince Qi scoffed, looking at his brother's lovesick demeanor with a hint of disdain. But after all, they were brothers, bound by blood, and he still felt a twinge of pity for Prince Jin.
"You're just too young. In a few years, you'll realize that some things aren't as important as they seem."
Prince Jin turned his head. "I've always been lazy. Even taking up a position in the Ministry of Revenue feels beyond me. Living a quiet life behind closed doors is what I truly desire."
Prince Qi glanced again at his younger brother's prey and recalled how Prince Jin always kept his head down, humble and unassuming. He began to think that perhaps Prince Jin truly harbored no ambition.
In truth, among the imperial princes, aside from himself and the fourth prince, Prince Yan, who was born to the Noble Consort, none of the others held any dissatisfaction toward the Crown Prince.
Although Prince Jin was the most favored, considering he was the youngest son, that favor seemed only natural.
Prince Qi felt relieved. Spoiled children usually amounted to little.
He gifted Prince Jin two foxes.
"Take these for your consorts—one for a fur collar, the other for hand warmers. These are top-quality fire foxes."
Prince Jin looked down and saw that the foxes were indeed fiery red, without a single stray hair.
Only their four paws were black, but the color distribution was perfectly even, not a hint of red mixed in.
Prince Jin smiled. "Thank you, Second Brother."
He tossed the foxes to Yun Jin, saying, "One for the Princess Consort to make a collar, and one for Yu Shiqie to make hand warmers."
After the hunt concluded, the Emperor learned of the princes' performances and couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed in Prince Jin.
Among them, the Crown Prince naturally bagged the most prey, with Prince Qi and Prince Yan not far behind.
Yet the Emperor's attitude remained ambiguous.
"As the eldest, isn't it only natural for the Crown Prince to have the most prey? On the other hand, the second and fourth princes performed similarly to you, showing their abilities are no less than yours."
"As for the seventh prince, forget it. He never puts his heart into anything."
The Crown Prince's face flushed crimson as he watched the Emperor lavish praise on Prince Qi and Prince Yan. He could only force a smile, clearly struggling to hide his discomfort.
Prince Jin seized the moment to toast him, wearing an innocent expression.
"Eldest Brother, I'm getting married on the third day of the new year. You must come and drink to your heart's content!"
The Crown Prince looked back at him, warmth flooding his heart.
When they were young, the second and fourth princes had also been adorable, following him around and calling him "Eldest Brother."
But as they grew older, the rift between the brothers widened. The Crown Prince knew they resented him.
Only the seventh prince always held a trace of reverence for him.
"Eldest Brother will definitely be there, and I'll bring you the finest wedding gift!"
Prince Jin's smile grew even gentler and more sincere.
"Thank you in advance, Eldest Brother!"
Upon returning to his residence, Yun Jin finally met Yu Zhu.
Contrary to his expectations, Yu Zhu was not the kind of beauty who could topple kingdoms. Instead, she fell into the category of delicate and charming.
She was petite, exuding an air of harmlessness.
At that moment, she was feigning dizziness while waiting for a cooling pill.
The smell of the bear was indeed unpleasant. Even Yun Jin, who was accustomed to wild beasts and bloody scenes, found it overwhelming.
If anyone could watch the entire process of dissecting and preparing the bear without batting an eye, it was likely only Prince Jin.
Yun Jin knew this was Prince Jin's way of relieving stress.
Watching the corpses of ferocious beasts being dismantled and transformed into playthings brought Prince Jin a peculiar sense of pleasure.
See, so-called beasts were nothing more than this.
They could be stripped of their claws and fangs, have their tendons pulled and bones removed, becoming pleasing trinkets by his side.
Sometimes, Prince Jin was the hunter. Other times, he was the beast on the chopping block.
One misstep, and you fall into an abyss from which there is no return.
You can only be cautious, again and again, tucking away your ambitions and sharp claws, waiting for the right opportunity.
As the saying goes, "There is a fierce tiger in the heart"—never entrust your true feelings to others.
Yun Jin sometimes felt exhausted on behalf of Prince Jin. He was that loyal sword, naturally hoping to ease Prince Jin's worries.
But some matters differ between men and women.
Men can drink and eat together, freely discuss their ideals, and vent their frustrations.
Yet, in private, everyone harbors unspoken grievances.
At such times, a pair of gentle hands is needed to soothe his furrowed brow and offer comforting solace.
Yun Jin didn’t know if Yu Zhu was that person, because she seemed rather foolish.
One careless move, and she could easily step on Prince Jin’s sore spots.
Lan Xiang ran until she was panting heavily, finally managing to fetch a bottle of Cooling Pills.
Yu Zhu hurriedly popped one of the Cooling Pills into her mouth. The minty aroma rushed into her nose and mouth, and only then did she feel the discomfort begin to ease.
She silently extended her hand and asked Yun Jin.
"Guard Yun, would you like one?"
Well, it would be impolite to refuse.