Chapter 27.1
Li Wenjian lay in bed for three days, and Zhao Heng checked his wound. Seeing that it had healed and scarred, she allowed him to get up and walk around.
The weather was fine that day, with a gentle warm breeze. Li Wenjian asked Jing Lin to bring his fishing gear. Despite still being injured, the Emperor instructed him to temporarily refrain from participating in political affairs. With the spring weather perfect, it was a good time for fishing.
Jing Lin rushed to the storage room and quickly fetched a long box. Li Wenjian glanced at it, slightly stunned. He held the box on his lap, gazing at the fishing rod inside, speechless for a long time. Judging by his reaction, Jing Lin knew he had grabbed the wrong item and stood nervously by the side, feeling as if he were scratching a cat.
He used to envy Mu Gui for being able to serve the His Highness up close, but now that he was in that position himself, he realized how difficult it was!
While Li Wenjian was lost in thought, Zhao Heng and Fei Yu entered the room. Fei Yu's eyes widened in surprise when he saw the fishing rod on Li Wenjian's lap, and he hurriedly walked over, saying, "Your Highness, let me get your fishing rod for you."
Zhao Heng stood quietly on the side, gazing at the lowered eyes of Li Wenjian.
As if sensing her gaze, he looked up at her.
When Zhao Heng met his deep eyes, she felt a strong sense of loneliness surrounding him. How could His Highness be lonely?
Was it because of that fishing rod? He was fine when he left the house.
Fei Yu quickly ran out with the fishing rod, and Li Wenjian waved his hand, signaling Jing Lin to leave as well.
Once they were gone, only the two of them remained in the room.
As Li Wenjian stood up, his robe flowing gently, his tall figure slender, and his long hair loosely cascading over his mountain-colored sleeping robe, his posture exuded rare laziness. His thin, long fingers rested on the armrest of the chair, as if he were about to get up.
Zhao Heng supported him as he stood, and Li Wenjian said, "Let's change clothes."
Zhao Heng helped him to the inner room to change. In the palace, she had prepared a spacious robe for him. Although it was not as formal as court attire, the loose robe with wide sleeves was more comfortable. The deep black color was imposing, but it added a touch of nobility when worn on him.
Standing against the light, the sunlight streaming in from behind him, his relaxed figure looked like a flowing jade.
Li Wenjian sat in front of the mirror as Zhao Heng combed his hair and tied it up. She handled it gently, afraid of causing pain to his scalp. With her little finger lifting the strands of hair at his temples, she skillfully tied his long hair back.
His demeanor was graceful, his appearance magnificent.
His Highness truly... looked good with or without makeup, Zhao Heng thought.
After changing into his new clothes, Fei Yu brought his fishing rod just in time.
With their belongings, they headed towards the lake to fish.
Throughout the journey, Zhao Heng had been considering bringing up the topic of Mu Gui, but every time she opened her mouth, she hesitated upon seeing Li Wenjian's indifferent expression.
"If you have something to say, go ahead," he spoke before she could figure out how to broach the subject.
Summoning her courage, Zhao Heng said, "Your Highness, please bring General Mu Gui back."
Fei Yu, who was following behind, glanced at her and quickly disclaimed, "It wasn't me. I didn't say anything."
In a low voice, Zhao Heng admitted, "It was just a guess."
Previously, it had always been Mu Gui who looked after Li Wenjian's daily needs. However, after her grandmother's incident, Mu Gui had disappeared, and Jing Lin had taken over his duties. It was evident that Jing Lin was struggling to adjust, causing inconveniences in Li Wenjian's life.
"General Mu Gui has always been busy attending to my needs, and I am grateful for his dedication. The incident that day was unforeseeable...it was not due to his negligence," Zhao Heng said softly, lowering her head. "Your Highness, you have already gone through so much for me. I would feel even more guilty if I were to cause you to lose such a capable right-hand man."
Indeed, who could have anticipated the unforeseen accident involving an elderly woman from a village? Neither Mu Gui, nor His Highness, nor even she had foreseen it.
"You also believe it was an accident," Li Wenjian's voice seemed to contain a faint, elusive smile.
As Zhao Hong pushed the wheelchair, feeling the warm breeze on her face, a petal from a begonia fell from her eyelashes. She blinked slowly and said, "Otherwise, who would go through the trouble of harming a defenseless old woman?"
Turning his head, Li Wenjian gazed at her.
Even when telling a lie, her expression did not change in the slightest, as if she had convinced herself that it was all just an accident.
In the early morning, the sky blazed with hues of pink, creating a fiery spectacle in the eastern sky.
Li Wenjian was fishing by the lake, while Zhao Heng brewed tea by his side.
Fei Yu lit the stove, the silver charcoal crackling as it burned. Just as she was about to place the purple clay teapot on the stove, Zhao Heng took out two sweet potatoes from her sleeve and tossed them into the fire, burying them in the charcoal ash. Fei Yu looked at her, and she said softly, "When the tea is ready and the sweet potatoes are done, I'll share one with you."
Fei Yu nodded emphatically.
After setting up the fishing gear, Li Wenjian sat by the shore, baited his hook, and waited quietly.
While warming up the tea and looking at Li Wenjian, Zhao Heng marveled at his patience. Even when the float did not move, he remained motionless like a mountain, almost as if he didn't exist. The moment the float twitched, he calmly raised the fishing rod, revealing a plump and healthy fish on the hook.
Recalling her past attempts at fishing, Zhao Heng realized she lacked the patience. Whenever she saw the float move, she would hastily reel in the line, only to find no fish on the hook, with most of the bait gone. Eventually, her grandmother made a fishnet out of purple vines for her.
With that fishnet, she had caught many fish.
As the fish splashed into the water bucket, splashing her face, she stomped her feet in frustration, but her grandmother just laughed.
"Zhaoxun, the water is boiling," Fei Yu's voice brought her back to reality.
Gathering her thoughts, Zhao Heng smiled lightly.
Tea was an essential part of Li Wenjian's daily life, but for the maids at the laundry room in the palace, it was a luxury. They couldn't even get a few ounces of tea throughout the year, and what they did get was mostly broken tea leaves. In the past, they just brewed the tea in hot water and drank it once it cooled, with no consideration for technique.
She felt that her usual methods might not be suitable for Li Wenjian.
During her time serving at the Duke's residence, she had heard that there were four maids just dedicated to managing the tea in the Duke's courtyard.
Her method should not require the presence of four people to serve tea.
Realizing this, she subconsciously looked at Fei Yu and asked, "Would you like to try?"
Fei Yu shook his head, "I don't know."
He indeed didn't know, as these tasks were usually handled by Mu Gui in the past.
Frowning at Fei Yu, Zhao Heng found him doing the same to her.
With no other choice, she reluctantly opened the teapot, added tea leaves, poured water, and brewed the tea while warming the cups.
It should be done like this, as she had observed the palace maids serving tea the same way during the Emperor and Empress's visit to the Eastern Palace. She had only dared to sneak peeks through the corners of her eyes at that time.
Regretting her lack of courage, she thought she could have learned from that experience if she had been bolder.
Fei Yu gave her an impressed look, indicating that she was on the right track.
Once the tea was served, he happened to catch another fish. Fei Yu brought warm water to help Li Wenjian wash his hands and, after drying them, Zhao Heng handed the tea to the Crown Prince.
Taking a glance at the teacup, Li Wenjian noticed the dark tea, the overly dense tea leaves, and the murky fragrance. It seemed that Zhao Heng's tea brewing skills were not on par with Fei Yu's.
After taking a sip, Li Wenjian found it to be almost similar.
Despite hesitating for a moment, he still drank the tea.
Just as he was about to give some pointers, he saw Zhao Heng had already turned around, pouring half a cup of hot tea from the teapot.
Li Wenjian spoke, "Don't drink it."
But it was too late.
Zhao Heng wrinkled her nose in apology and surprise, looking at Li Wenjian with a face full of regret. The tea was too bitter, making it hard to swallow.
She hadn't realized her skills were so lacking, so she quickly poured a glass of plain water for Li Wenjian and said, "Your Highness, rinse your mouth with this."
Seeing her slightly flushed cheeks, Li Wenjian took the water and drank it. Zhao Heng sighed in relief and called Fei Yu, "Go to the tea room and have someone brew tea for His Highness."
The sweet potatoes in the stove were almost ready, emitting a faint sweet aroma in the air. Fei Yu sniffed the air and glanced at the small stove. Zhao Heng reassured him, "Don't worry, I'll save some for you when they're done."
Fei Yu ran off like a young monkey.
Zhao Heng squatted in front of the stove, using a stick to pull out two sweet potatoes. They were perfectly roasted, soft, sweet, and fragrant. She burned herself slightly, dropping the sweet potatoes and touching her ear before picking them back up once they had cooled a bit.
As she peeled the sweet potatoes, she glanced at Li Wenjian, hesitating if she should share some with him.
But then, a bold thought struck her.
The Crown Prince was like a delicate piece of jade, accustomed to luxurious meals. How could he eat such simple food? With this in mind, she peeled the potato skin without hesitation, savoring it on her own.
Suddenly, Li Wenjian caught a whiff of a sweet fragrance and followed it to see Zhao Heng sitting at the stone table, with a nearly finished book, "Shan Weng Yun," nibbling on a sweet potato...
She was engrossed in reading, lips moving silently as if reciting the words, cheeks moving with her chewing.
Recently, he had been taking medicine, which left a bitter taste in his mouth. After drinking her tea, the bitterness intensified, and even two glasses of water couldn't wash it away.
Watching her enjoy the sweet potato so much, he found himself wanting to taste it too.
As Zhao Heng sensed his gaze, she turned to him and asked, "Your Highness, do you need something?"
Li Wenjian inquired, "What are you eating?"
Zhao Heng replied, "Roasted sweet potatoes from the stove, but they're not very clean..."
So she couldn't offer it to him. Could he understand that?
Li Wenjian said, "Bring some over for me to taste."
A hint of surprise flashed in her eyes. The sweet potato in her hand was already half-eaten and messy. She silently thought, "Fei Yu, I'm sorry," before picking up another sweet potato and offering it to Li Wenjian.
With delicate fingers, she peeled the sweet potato and offered it to him.
Li Wenjian hadn't washed his hands after handling the worm, so he lowered his head and ate from her hand. His body suddenly leaned forward, and the medicinal scent from him enveloped her nose. Zhao Heng's heart skipped a beat, her earlobes turning red.
Raising her hand, she let her sleeve slide down her arm, folding it neatly at her elbow, her snowy skin shimmering in the sunlight.
As Li Wenjian leaned in to eat the sweet potato, the soft fabric of her sleeve was blown onto his face by the wind. When he straightened up to chew, the sleeve fell back, brushing against her soft skin.
Avoiding his gaze, Zhao Heng looked out onto the shimmering lake, hiding the ripples in her heart.
In the sea of begonias not far away, Wei Wanyu and Ruo Zhen used an excuse to greet the empress from a distance and sneaked a peek at Zhao Heng feeding sweet potatoes to Li Wenjian by the lake.
The rumors spread like wildfire. A palace maid like Zhaoxun would never rise above her station in this lifetime. This fact had been a source of comfort for her, but seeing that alluring woman, so tender and affectionate, leaning against the Crown Prince with such grace and charm left her feeling unsettled.
Wei Wanyu gripped a branch of begonia flowers, her jealousy surging like a tide.
The Crown Prince had never allowed a woman to serve him up close, yet here he was, eating coarse food from her hand in such an ambiguous manner!
How could the noble Crown Prince, as radiant as the sun and moon, deign to eat such wild food from the mountains!
Without realizing it, Wei Wanyu's grip tightened, causing the begonia branch in her hand to snap.
Throwing down the broken branch in frustration, she stomped into the mud angrily, kicking the entranced Ruo Zhen next to her. "Let's go, blockhead."
Ruo Zhen was determined to marry Wei Wanyu no matter what.