Zang Yunyang took two steps up the stairs and knocked on the door with a bang. A little maid came out in response, her face showing a look of relief.
“You’re finally back. Our master sent out three groups to look for you. If you didn’t come back soon…”
The little maid was about to nag when she saw Zang Liujiang and Yu Huishui following behind Zang Yunyang. She quickly stopped talking and respectfully greeted them, “Greetings to the two esteemed guests.”
“Don’t make such a fuss. It’s not my first time going out.”
Zang Yunyang waved his hand dismissively. A few servants came out to take the big black horse, while others led Zang Yunyang and his group into the courtyard.
The servants surrounding Zang Yunyang were all cautious, as if afraid he might get hurt. But Zang Yunyang walked with a brisk pace, going up and down the steps without hesitation, showing no signs of being affected.
This person is truly remarkable.
Yu Huishui glanced around the courtyard. As expected of a place bought by a royal relative, it was complete with rocks, grass, pine trees, and plum blossoms. In the center of the courtyard was a shallow pond, and a hexagonal well was specially built on the side for drawing water. Along the walls were tall bamboo shoots, dusted with a bit of snow, creating a beautiful scene of green and white.
Turning around the corridor, there was a man standing at the end. Just by looking, one could tell he was angry.
“That’s him.” Zang Liujiang leaned towards Yu Huishui as if complaining, frowning and making faces, clearly unwilling to go over.
His high ponytail brushed against Yu Huishui’s ear, leaving a slight tickle. After all, he was not yet twenty, and this youthful vigor was something Yu Huishui had never seen before, making him take a few more glances.
“Just got back?”
The man had an unfriendly expression, staring at Zang Yunyang like a tiger ready to pounce. The servants behind him were trembling, not daring to speak.
“Don’t glare.”
Zang Yunyang’s words startled Yu Huishui. Raised with the principles of loyalty and filial piety, Yu Huishui never imagined someone would speak to royalty like this.
The prince was dressed in a black and purple robe with dark patterns. His bone structure was excellent, and his slightly thin jaw gave off a sense of aloofness. Looking further up, his left face was covered by half a mask, held in place by silk threads behind his ear, fitting perfectly, clearly custom-made.
He wasn’t wearing any thick outerwear, but the servant behind him was holding a black cloak, probably too afraid to persuade the prince to wear it, so he had been waiting in the corridor for a long time.
Being rebuked by Zang Yunyang, the prince pursed his lips, and his tone softened.
“With your health, it’s not safe to go out like this.”
“Aren’t I back safe and sound?”
Zang Yunyang nonchalantly bypassed him and headed inside, “I’m hungry, let’s eat.”
Having been brushed off, the prince’s unfriendly gaze fell on Zang Liujiang, who was following behind. Zang Liujiang wasn’t afraid, and the two exchanged sharp looks until Yu Huishui stepped between them, ending the standoff.
The prince snorted and walked away with his head held high.
“He really doesn’t like you,” Yu Huishui whispered to Zang Liujiang, who nodded in agreement.
Inside the main hall, a feast was already prepared on the round table. Compared to the homely meals at Zang Dashu’s house and the hearty ones at Zang Huan’s, the meal at Zang Yunyang’s was particularly lavish.
There were chicken, duck, fish, assorted fruits and vegetables, hot soups, and fried foods. In the center of the table was a shiny, red-skinned roast pig, showcasing the meticulousness of the meal.
Zang Yunyang had already sat down at the head of the table, waving them over, “Sit down quickly. We’ve reheated this roast pig three times waiting for you.”
The prince was used to Zang Yunyang’s overstepping, naturally pulling up a chair to sit beside him. He even ate with that mask on, looking very mysterious.
Yu Huishui was nudged by Zang Liujiang to sit down. The culinary skills of the prince’s mansion’s chef needed no further praise. The dishes on the table were so exquisite that Yu Huishui couldn’t help but eat more.
But the meal was still not peaceful, all starting with Zang Yunyang’s comment, “This pig leg is a bit tough.”
“Indeed,” the prince was the first to attack, with a floating smile on his face and a voice that was eerie and somewhat strange.
“Isn’t it tough? When people go out, they’re not allowed to follow, so we can only keep reheating the roast pig at home.”
“Listen to him,” Zang Liujiang said with a smile, placing a chicken wing in Yu Huishui’s bowl, “If you didn’t know better, you’d think he roasted it himself.”
“The kitchen in my mansion made it. What’s the difference if I made it? But you, making him go out in the snow to pick you up, why did he only go to pick you up?”
Zang Liujiang let it go in one ear and out the other, mentally cursing the petty prince, and placed a piece of fish in Yu Huishui’s bowl.
“Here, wife, try the pickled fish. Oh! It’s not pickled, why do I smell something sour?”
“Ha!” The prince laughed, placing a piece of green vegetable in Zang Yunyang’s bowl.
“Eat more greens to wash away the grease. Be careful not to end up like someone, full of greasy thoughts, with developed limbs and a simple mind.”
Zang Yunyang held his chopsticks, reaching far to place a sweet pastry in Yu Huishui’s bowl, “It’s fine, I’ve calculated it. Their eight characters don’t match, so it’s already good that they just bicker.”
He poked two more pieces of meat into his mouth, adding, “They won’t flip the table, don’t worry.”
Zang Liujiang, after all, grew up on the mountain. He was good at verbally sparring, but after a few scholarly jabs from the prince, who was raised in the royal family, he was left scratching his head, not knowing how to retaliate.
Seeing Zang Liujiang about to jump on the table to fight, Yu Huishui quickly reached out to pull him back, patting his arm to calm him.
Zang Liujiang immediately found his backbone, giving the prince a “just you wait” look, and looked expectantly at Yu Huishui.
Yu Huishui, feeling like a husband going to war, had no choice but to speak up, “Your Highness, with your noble status, why are you staying in such a remote place?”
The prince glanced over, assuming Yu Huishui was just a female companion brought by Zang Liujiang, with a small face and almond eyes, looking obedient and gentle. He couldn’t get angry, so he replied lightly, “I happened to pass by and stayed for some matters.”
“Happened to pass by…” Zang Yunyang muttered, his mouth twitching a couple of times, but he didn’t laugh out loud. Seeing Yu Huishui looking at him, he waved his hand to explain, “It’s nothing, I just thought of something happy.”
Yu Huishui continued, “Your Highness seems to be at the right age. Are you married?”
He acted like a young woman curious about gossip, with a simple and honest demeanor that subtly lowered the prince’s guard.
The prince glanced at Zang Yunyang beside him, “No.”
“This courtyard is no small feat, it must have been quite an undertaking. With Your Highness staying here, officials would surely come to congratulate you, and to win your favor… they must have brought beauties to curry favor, right?”
Yu Huishui paused slightly, glancing at Zang Yunyang on the side. Sure enough, he saw that Zang Yunyang’s face had lost its smile. Zang Yunyang kicked the leg of his chair, moving further away from the prince.
“You…” The prince was a bit surprised. This seemingly obedient and quiet girl spoke with such precision and even understood the concept of beauties currying favor.
He suddenly realized, noticing the person beside him’s mood taking a sharp turn, and quickly explained, “I didn’t…!”
Zang Yunyang didn’t listen, moving his chair further away from him.
The prince, having lost the verbal battle, made Zang Liujiang extremely happy. He personally tore off a pig leg and placed it in the prince’s bowl, making the prince’s face even darker.
After the meal, Zang Yunyang insisted on having Zang Liujiang and Yu Huishui stay the night. Zang Liujiang was initially unwilling to stay, but he couldn’t resist Zang Yunyang’s unreasonable insistence.
“Alright, stop arguing.” Seeing the two of them going back and forth endlessly, Yu Huishui, who was sleepy after a full meal, spoke up, “Then we’ll trouble Fourth Brother for the night.”
“Sure,” Zang Yunyang grinned, and his next sentence almost made Zang Liujiang jump up, “Tonight, you’ll sleep with me.”
With just that sentence, Yu Huishui knew that wearing this dress was a waste.
“We’re newlyweds!” Zang Liujiang shouted.
“Newlyweds? You haven’t even kissed, and you dare call it a marriage?”
“Can’t you use your ideas for something proper? Stop looking!” Having his bottom line exposed, Zang Liujiang reached out to cover Yu Huishui’s face, afraid he might see more.
The prince, equally speechless, finally came to his senses. He stood up abruptly, stammering, “No, no, you can’t stay with a woman…”
Zang Yunyang glanced at Yu Huishui, seeing him nod in agreement, and then threw an even more shocking piece of news at the prince.
“He’s a man.”
A man?!
The prince looked at Yu Huishui across the table in horror, his gaze falling on his slightly bulging chest, “But he…”
Before he could finish, Yu Huishui mischievously raised an eyebrow and slowly pulled out from his collar—a half-filled hot water bottle.
He’s learned to be bad. Zang Liujiang thought. He had never seen his wife make such an expression before.
But even so, Zang Liujiang was still unwilling to let Zang Yunyang and Yu Huishui sleep in the same room. In the afternoon, Zang Liujiang deliberately shook off Zang Yunyang and took Yu Huishui for a leisurely stroll around the mansion.
They didn’t see Zang Yunyang anywhere, and the two of them had so much fun that they gradually forgot about the matter.
Until the sky turned dark, and Zang Liujiang naturally returned to the room with Yu Huishui, Zang Yunyang emerged from the dark corridor like a bright-eyed, spirit-possessed raccoon.
He pushed Yu Huishui into the room and slammed the door shut, leaving Zang Liujiang completely locked outside.
“You go sleep in another room. I want to have a heart-to-heart with my sister-in-law.”
“Zang Yunyang!” Zang Liujiang was furious and naturally refused. He had just married his wife, and she wasn’t even warmed up yet, and now she was going to have a heart-to-heart with someone else?
“Do you think everyone is like you, always thinking about those filthy things all day?”
Zang Yunyang’s voice came from inside, making Zang Liujiang jump up and curse, “You don’t act like a brother at all!”
If this continued, it would never end, and it would be embarrassing if others heard it. Yu Huishui had no choice but to open the door and reassure Zang Liujiang, “It’s just a heart-to-heart, you can go.”
Since his own wife said so, Zang Liujiang had no choice but to accept it, reluctantly opening the door to the next room. He gave Yu Huishui a few more instructions, and before leaving, he even touched his hand a few times.
Outside, the wind howled, making the paper windows rustle. It was already midnight, and a candle burned at the head of the bed, with no one to blow it out, allowing the flame to dance.
Yu Huishui lay on his back, with Zang Yunyang lying still beside him.
Yu Huishui wasn’t asleep, and he knew Zang Yunyang wasn’t asleep either, so he waited for Zang Yunyang to speak first.
The candle flame made a crackling sound, and Zang Yunyang finally spoke, “You’re a man.”
“Yes.”
“Zang Liujiang is also a man.”
“That’s quite obvious.”
Zang Yunyang turned over and sat up, and Yu Huishui finally noticed that his eyes, which had been half-closed all day, were now fully open, with pitch-black pupils reflecting the candlelight.
“Why are you willing?”
“… ” Yu Huishui fell silent, seemingly not understanding his question.
Willing, he was indeed willing.
If Yu Huishui were to marry someone, he could never do it as tenderly as Zang Liujiang.
But what was he willing for? Was it this short-lived pretend marriage?
Yu Huishui was a bit confused about his own thoughts, so he simply stopped thinking about it.
“I’m not sure either.” Yu Huishui propped up one leg, using his knee to nudge the bed curtain beside him, “But Fourth Brother, I might know your thoughts.”
“You know?”
“When I first came here, I went to see Big Brother and Sister-in-law.” Yu Huishui’s voice was soft but firm, “Sister-in-law said, ‘No matter what, as long as you like it, it’s fine.'”