Zhang Anan and Qin Qiong had originally wanted to help as well, but Cheng Yaojin was a step ahead of them.
“Uncle, feel free to use it. There’s no need to stand on ceremony.”
Only after hearing Xiao Ran give his permission did Cheng Yaojin pick up the landing net.
Zhang Anan suddenly realized that they had not brought the fish basket over, so he turned around and jogged back to the carriage.
By the time Zhang Anan returned with the fish basket, Li Shimin was holding up the fish with a rather pleased expression. “Not bad.”
“Sizi, is father very impressive?” Li Shimin looked at the little princess.
“Yes~ but Little Gentleman is a little more impressive~” the little princess said with utmost seriousness.
“Hahaha!” Li Shimin could not help laughing as well.
The little princess stayed beside the Samoyed, occasionally petting doggie.
Li Shimin did not put the fish in the fish basket. Instead, he placed it in Xiao Ran’s bucket.
This was the place Xiao Ran had chosen, and the bait also belonged to Xiao Ran.
Li Shimin was enjoying the process of fishing and did not care who received these few fish.
After switching to Xiao Ran’s bait, fish began biting one after another, and the landing net was becoming too busy to keep up.
Zhang Anan ran back and forth, enjoying himself immensely.
Sure enough, solitary enjoyment could not compare with sharing the joy with everyone.
Xiao Ran’s bucket was almost full of fish, all of them big fish. Whenever a smaller one appeared, they released it immediately.
“It has been a long time since I have enjoyed fishing this much.” Li Shimin was extremely excited.
“Crack!” Li Shimin’s fishing rod snapped cleanly in two.
“This fish... is ridiculously huge!” Li Shimin looked at the half of the fishing rod in his hand.
“What a pity. It seems to be even bigger than the ones before.” Xiao Ran also said with a smile.
Cheng Yaojin handed his fishing rod to Li Shimin. “Second, use mine. I’m a little tired, so I might as well take a break.”
Li Shimin waved his hand. “There’s no need for that. You can keep fishing!”
Xiao Ran looked at the bait. There was not much left. If he were using it alone, it would last until the afternoon, but four people were using it up quickly.
He looked up at the sky. It was nearly noon. He had not eaten breakfast and was starting to feel hungry.
Xiao Ran picked up the fishing rod and walked over to Li Shimin. “Uncle, use mine! I have something else to do.”
“That doesn’t seem right!” Although he said it was inappropriate, Li Shimin had already taken the fishing rod.
He was simply too envious.
His mouth said no, but his body was completely honest.
The instant Li Shimin took the fishing rod, his fingertips touched the uniquely cold, hard texture of carbon fiber. His pupils contracted slightly. It was much lighter than he had imagined, yet when held in his palm, it seemed to conceal sinews and bones within. When his knuckles tapped the rod, it actually produced a clear, resonant sound like a jade chime.
The fine diamond-shaped pattern was neither like bamboo joints nor wood grain. Instead, it resembled countless tiny scales woven together. Recalling the smooth arc of Xiao Ran’s cast earlier, he suddenly understood why Xiao Ran had remained so confident even when facing big fish.
“A fine item.” Li Shimin made no attempt to conceal the burning hot desire in his eyes.
Cheng Yaojin, Qin Qiong, and Zhang Anan also came over.
Earlier, Xiao Ran had been holding it, so they had felt too embarrassed to come too close.
“The texture is extraordinary. Bamboo can’t compare.” Li Shimin let the three of them touch it.
Xiao Ran said with a smile, “Three uncles, we should hurry.”
“Young master, what do you mean?” Li Shimin looked toward Xiao Ran, who was washing his hands.
“At noon, the fish won’t bite. We won’t be able to catch anything, so we’ll have to wait until the afternoon!”
Li Shimin nodded. “Then we really should hurry!”
Li Shimin attached the bait and, imitating Xiao Ran, cast the rod out. “Hahaha, this is great!”
If Xiao Ran was willing to sell it, Li Shimin wanted to buy the fishing rod at a high price.
Xiao Ran opened another box. Inside were tableware and cooking utensils, including pots, bowls, and other cookware.
There were also some ingredients.
Xiao Ran liked to cook by the water while fishing.
The people before him were no ordinary individuals. Xiao Ran wanted to befriend them, forming a good relationship.
He opened the box, took out a folding long table, and set it down on a flat patch of ground nearby.
It immediately drew everyone’s attention.
Xiao Ran had far too many strange and unusual things.
The three people fishing with Li Shimin also subconsciously turned to look.
Xiao Ran saw that there was half a bag of calcium milk biscuits left in the box. He usually made do with them when he was hungry.
The packaging contained modern information, so Xiao Ran did not take them out.
He picked up several biscuits and put one in his mouth.
“Young lady, come here!” Xiao Ran called.
“Little Gentleman~ what is it~” The little princess brought doggie over to Xiao Ran.
Xiao Ran picked up several biscuits. “These taste quite good.”
Xiao Ran deliberately ate one first for the others to see. He was afraid they might overthink things, so he proved that they were safe by eating them himself.
Besides, Xiao Ran had no reason to harm them.
This was something she had never seen before. The little princess did not take it, instead turning to Li Lizhi. “Elder sister~”
The little princess was asking Li Lizhi what she thought.
“Young master is giving it to you. Sizi, take it!” Li Shimin said with a smile.
He had also seen Xiao Ran eating them himself, so naturally he felt reassured.
The little princess reached out her small hand and accepted the biscuit. “Thank you, Little Gentleman~”
“What a good girl!” The more Xiao Ran looked at her, the more he liked this little girl.
The little princess took the biscuit and bit into it. With a crisp crack, it broke in half, and milky-white crumbs fell rustling onto her lotus-colored Ruqun Skirt.
She widened her grape-like eyes, her little cheeks puffed out as though she were holding an apricot in her mouth. Then she grabbed Li Lizhi’s sleeve and shook it excitedly. “Wow~”
“Elder sister~ it’s so crispy~ and so tasty~”
Seeing the little princess’s eyes suddenly light up, Li Lizhi knew it must be good.
As a princess of the Great Tang, she naturally never lacked pastries and the like. However, when she had eaten pastries from the imperial palace before, her younger sister had never reacted this way.
“Madam, you should try some as well.” Xiao Ran picked up several calcium milk biscuits and offered them to Li Lizhi.
“Thank you, young master!” Li Lizhi did not refuse. She thought that she would have to send Xiao Ran something else later and could not simply take his things for free.
Li Lizhi gently pinched up a biscuit with her fingertips and examined it closely in the sunlight. Fine ripples were imprinted on the milky-yellow biscuit, while its edges were slightly charred from baking. It was indeed much plainer than the su-lao dairy dessert biscuits in the palace, which were crafted with elaborate floral designs.
The corners of her lips lifted slightly. Just as she was about to ask a question, she saw that Xiao Ran had already put a biscuit into his mouth, so she lightly bit off a corner as well.
The crisp, flaky sound burst across her tongue. The milky fragrance mixed with a faint sweetness and instantly spread through her mouth. It was richer than the goat’s milk filtered through three layers of gauze by the Palace Food Bureau, yet it also carried a refreshing wheat fragrance.
She lowered her eyes to conceal the surprise within them. She had never tasted such a texture before.
“This biscuit...” When she raised her eyes, her eyelashes cast fine shadows beneath them. “It melts in the mouth, as though Cow’s milk had been condensed into the wheat flour.”
On the other side, Li Shimin, Cheng Yaojin, and the others, who were focused on fishing, had heard them as well and wanted to taste some.
But they felt too embarrassed to say so.
“It’s so tasty~” The little princess held the biscuit and looked at the doggie beside her. “Doggie, do you want some~”
“Xiao Hei doesn’t eat them! Young lady, you can eat them.”
Li Lizhi had heard the dog’s name earlier as well and thought she had misheard. Pointing at the snow-white Samoyed, she asked, “young master, is the dog’s name Xiao Hei?”
“That’s right. It’s Xiao Hei!”
“Hahaha!” Li Shimin was amused. “That name of yours is certainly unique!”
Xiao Ran stuffed the bag of calcium milk biscuits into a corner of the box and took out all the biscuits. “Young lady, let the uncles have some too.”