After chatting over tea for another half hour, Xiao He excused himself, saying he needed to return to the palace, and the small gathering came to an end. The young lords and ladies all rose to take their leave.
Xiao Lanting turned to Yun Juan.
“My carriage is waiting in the alley. Go wait there first. We’ll head back to the estate together.”
“All right.”
Yun Juan acknowledged him, bowed once more to the Crown Prince, and left the room.
“Lanting.”
Xiao He slung an arm around Xiao Lanting’s shoulders and gave him a hearty pat.
“Can you tell me something? Why would you rather marry an illegitimate daughter with nothing but a pretty face and an ordinary family background than marry my sister? To be honest, I’m genuinely curious.”
His eyes curved into a smile, but beneath it, his gaze remained calm—almost probing.
Without changing expression, Xiao Lanting glanced sideways at him.
“Your Highness, she isn’t your real sister.”
Xiao He raised an eyebrow, pointed at him with a grin, then burst into laughter as he let go.
“I’m heading back to the palace. I invited your wife here on impulse today and completely forgot Little Eight would also be here. I probably frightened her. Go home and comfort her a little.”
Waving his hand, Xiao He climbed into his carriage, which soon disappeared down the bustling street.
A trace of hostility flickered across Xiao Lanting’s face before vanishing as quickly as it had appeared.
He headed toward the carriage waiting in the alley.
Meanwhile, Yun Juan sat inside the carriage, mentally replaying everything that had happened at the banquet.
She didn’t think she’d embarrassed Xiao Lanting.
Just then, Jiaoyue called from outside.
“Madam! Madam, look!”
Curious, Yun Juan lifted the curtain.
Jiaoyue excitedly pointed across the alley.
“Look! Someone’s stopped the Young Master! Who is that young lady? Doesn’t she know he’s married? Madam, should this servant go—”
“No need.”
Yun Juan recognized the figure at once.
It was Princess Xiao Nanzhi.
One party might have feelings, but the other had none.
Xiao Lanting could handle this himself.
She let the curtain fall, absentmindedly picking at her fingers.
A moment later, unable to suppress her curiosity, she quietly lifted one corner of the curtain again.
She really was just curious how Xiao Lanting would reject the princess.
Across the alley—
“Lanting-gege, don’t leave.”
Xiao Nanzhi stepped in front of him.
“There were too many people just now, and I was too embarrassed to speak. But I have to ask you now. Are you really going to live as husband and wife with that illegitimate daughter, Yun Juan? She has nothing but a pretty face. She can’t help you in any way. Why would you marry her?”
“Get lost.”
Xiao Nanzhi bit her lip.
“You always pretend not to see. You always pretend not to know, no matter how obvious I’ve made it. Is it because I’ve never actually said I liked you? Is that why you’ve acted as though you didn’t understand? Well, now I’ve said it. Surely you understand now.”
Xiao Lanting frowned deeply, clearly exhausted by her persistence.
“Xiao Nanzhi, you’re a princess of imperial blood. Why demean yourself like this?”
His voice was utterly cold, paying no heed to the tears welling in her eyes.
“And another thing—stop throwing around the word ‘illegitimate.’ You’re hardly any different yourself.”
“Y-You…”
Her trembling finger pointed accusingly at him, her face flushed with humiliation.
Narrowing his eyes, Xiao Lanting spoke in an icy tone.
“Xiao Nanzhi, I’m married now. I show you courtesy because you’re a princess. But if you continue pestering me, I won’t go easy on you.”
Without another glance, he stepped into the carriage.
Yun Juan hurriedly looked away, pretending nothing had happened.
“You took so long…”
“I got stopped. It wasted some time.”
“Oh…”
She hesitated before asking casually,
“Who was it?”
Xiao Lanting chuckled.
“You saw, didn’t you?”
Yun Juan nervously twisted the handkerchief in her hands.
She’d been watching so intently that she’d lowered the curtain a heartbeat too late.
He had noticed after all.
Since there was no point pretending anymore, she leaned closer with open curiosity.
“So… what did you say to the princess?”
“Nothing much.”
“So the princess likes you too.”
She paused.
“The Eighth Princess is Consort Jia’s daughter. Consort Jia is close to the Empress, and the Crown Prince dotes on the princess as well. Why didn’t you marry her instead?”
Xiao Lanting looked at her.
“You ask too many questions.”
Yun Juan blinked.
She wasn’t nearly as afraid of him as she’d been before.
“Lanting…”
She looked at him earnestly.
“Why did you marry me?”
She still remembered that day.
She had simply accompanied her parents to dine with the Xiao family, separated by a folding screen.
Yun Xiu had insisted on bringing her along purely to show off that she was about to marry the heir of a marquis.
Yun Juan had thought she’d merely gotten a free, lavish meal.
Instead, the very next day, her father had come to her wearing an ugly expression and announced that the eldest son of the Xiao family had taken a liking to her and wanted to marry her as his principal wife.
To this day, she couldn’t understand why.
Xiao Lanting studied her for a long moment before smiling mysteriously.
“Because you’re honest.”
“Honest?”
“That dinner was nothing but a gathering where everyone used eating as an excuse to negotiate interests.”
He smiled faintly.
“You were the only one who treated it as a meal. You kept your head down, quietly ate your food, and didn’t say a single unnecessary word.”
At that time, Xiao Lanting had been overwhelmed by the matter of finding a wife.
Yun Juan’s unexpected appearance had immediately caught his eye.
That very night, he’d settled on her.
He nodded.
“That’s right. You’re obedient. That’s your greatest virtue.”
“Oh.”
“Candied hawthorns! Sweet candied hawthorns! Big and sweet candied hawthorns!”
Yun Juan’s eyes lit up.
She knocked on the carriage door.
“Stop the carriage.”
The coachman instinctively pulled on the reins, and the carriage came to a slow halt.
Xiao Lanting frowned.
“What are you doing?”
“I want some candied hawthorns.”
She looked utterly innocent.
“The roadside stalls aren’t sanitary. We’ll have Nanny Li make some after we get home.”
“I want the ones they’re selling outside.”
Xiao Lanting glared at her.
The two locked eyes.
There was no way Yun Juan could outstare him.
But she was stubborn.
Even as her eyes became sore and tears began to gather, she refused to blink.
It was the first time Xiao Lanting had ever seen her like this.
Rubbing his forehead helplessly, he sighed.
“…Have Jiaoyue buy some.”
A short while later, Yun Juan happily cradled a stick of candied hawthorns, eating them one by one at a leisurely pace.
Xiao Lanting, meanwhile, frowned to himself.
Did I misjudge her?
Is she really obedient… or just pretending to be?
After thinking it over, he suddenly said,
“I want some too.”
Yun Juan blinked.
She carefully picked one off the skewer with her handkerchief and offered it to him.
He shook his head.
“You’ve already eaten quite a few. Give me the rest.”
She had only eaten two.
There were still four or five left in the paper wrapping.
Looking at him, she asked,
“Are you sure?”
Xiao Lanting extended his hand and narrowed his eyes.
“I just said you were obedient.”
“Oh… all right.”
She handed him the paper bag.
Almost imperceptibly, she let out a sigh of relief.
You really can’t trust roadside vendors.
They advertised them as big and sweet.
They were so sour my teeth were about to fall out.
Fortunately, Xiao Lanting isn’t picky.
Xiao Lanting accepted the bag, equally satisfied.
At least, Yun Juan behaved very obediently in front of him.
He bit into one of the candied hawthorns.
His expression froze ever so slightly.
Keeping a perfectly straight face, he forced himself to swallow it before silently wrapping up the remaining hawthorns and setting them aside.
Tomorrow, he thought grimly, I’ll have the Censor in charge of city patrols thoroughly inspect every last one of those street vendors.