The Lin Residence.
"Father, the Emperor praised A'wan at the morning court today, saying she sets an example for the imperial harem, but then he turned right around and ordered the regional inspector to investigate our family's sacrificial fields!" The man's face was livid.
The old Grand Secretary's face was full of irritation. "The more the Emperor favors A'wan, the more the Grand General's faction hates us. The Emperor is trying to play us against each other and reap the benefits."
Mentioning Lin Wanzhu in the palace, the man sighed. "A'wan had someone deliver a letter home today. She foolishly said the Emperor praised you as a pillar of the state, and she even wants to ask him to give me the position of Chief Examiner."
The old Grand Secretary's tone was heavy. "Write back to her and say everything is fine at home. With A'wan's temperament, if she knew the Emperor was only using her, her heart would break instantly."
The man hesitated. "But the Grand General's side..."
The old Grand Secretary's tone suddenly turned cold. "That is exactly why we must hold on. As long as the Lin family does not fall, A'wan will remain the Noble Consort."
"Tell Xiao He to advise A'wan to meddle less in the affairs of the former Empress."
"Yes."
The palace was shrouded in a thin mist in the early morning, with a thick layer of snow still covering the roof tiles.
Eunuch Liu was holding a bundle of palace silk, preparing to go to the storehouse to register it. As he walked, he glanced at the dejected shadow beside him.
Ji Zhaoxi couldn't stop yawning.
"Look alive when you walk," Eunuch Liu scolded in a low voice.
Ji Zhaoxi pursed her lips in grievance.
Just as he was lecturing her, a burst of laughter suddenly came from the corner ahead.
A prince walked over, surrounded by a crowd like the moon among the stars. He was followed by many attendants, and his eyes were full of arrogance.
The eunuchs beside him bowed their bodies and kept telling jokes, trying to make the Second Prince in front of them happy.
The Second Prince's gaze swept casually and happened to land on Ji Zhaoxi, who was following behind Eunuch Liu.
She was wearing coarse clothes, holding fabric in her hands, and had some charcoal ash on her face, but the Second Prince felt that her clever and nimble aura was particularly eye-catching in the courtyard.
"Halt."
The Second Prince spoke slowly and deliberately, blocking the path between the two.
Eunuch Liu froze for a moment, but reacted extremely quickly, immediately kneeling down. "Greetings to His Highness the Second Prince."
The Second Prince ignored Eunuch Liu and walked half a circle around Ji Zhaoxi with great interest. He held the handle of a fan in his hand. "Eunuch Liu, why does this little eunuch of yours look like a girl?"
Ji Zhaoxi met the eyes of Eunuch Liu in front of her, honestly lowered her head, and didn't say a word.
Keeping her mouth shut was the right thing to do at a time like this!
The Second Prince leaned down. "What is your name?"
Eunuch Liu's heart leaped into his throat. He suddenly moved half a step forward, blocking Ji Zhaoxi behind him. "Replying to Your Highness, this little brat is called Xiao Xizi. He is a jinx; his parents died early, all cursed to death by him. This jade fan of yours was bestowed by the Emperor, please don't let this unlucky thing taint it."
Hearing this, the Second Prince's expression changed instantly. "Eunuch Liu, don't bring this kind of unclean thing onto this path. It really ruins my mood."
"Yes, yes, yes, this old slave is foolish. This old slave will take this jinx and get far away right now!"
Eunuch Liu hurriedly took Ji Zhaoxi and left.
The Second Prince frowned as he looked at Ji Zhaoxi's receding figure, deep in thought.
Just then, the Third Prince ran over, crying loudly. His clothes were torn with a large gash, and his face was covered in mud stains. Little Shunzi followed beside him, looking extremely indignant.
The Second Prince was almost bumped into by him and took a few steps back, looking at the Third Prince's back with disgust.
Soon, the news that the Third Prince had gone to bully Xiao Yanchen but was beaten up instead spread throughout the entire palace. After all, the Third Prince had cried all the way back; it was hard for others not to know.
When the Noble Consort found out about this, she was extremely happy, laughing so hard that tears came out.
"Was the Third Prince really beaten by that Xiao Yanchen?"
The Noble Consort had a look of schadenfreude on her face, the ornaments on her head trembling wildly. "The Third Prince usually relies on his mother's family's little merits and doesn't even put me in his eyes. I didn't expect him to be beaten by Xiao Yanchen now."
At the thought of the Third Prince's wretched appearance, the Noble Consort's face was full of smiles.
She suddenly thought of something, her eyes full of slyness. "Xiao He, is that Xiao Yanchen currently not attending the Imperial Study?"
Xiao He froze for a moment and nodded. "Yes, Your Ladyship."
The Noble Consort put down her teacup and raised an eyebrow. "Xiao Yanchen has also reached the age to go to the Imperial Study. He can't keep hiding in his Ru Hui Palace forever. Not knowing a single character would make him a laughingstock."
The Noble Consort stood up excitedly. "Let's go, bring the osmanthus cakes."
"We are going to the Imperial Study to see the Emperor. It is time for this Xiao Yanchen to go to the Imperial Study and learn something."
She wanted to see how Xiao Yanchen and the Third Prince would fight once Xiao Yanchen arrived at the Imperial Study.
She loved watching this kind of dog-eat-dog drama the most.
The sun finally came out a little today, and Ru Hui Palace was no longer as cold and gloomy as usual; instead, it carried some warmth.
Ji Zhaoxi was eating, her cheeks puffing out with every bite.
She had run over in a hurry, so her braids were a bit messy. A few strands of hair had fallen loose, and in the sunlight, the broken hairs looked somewhat fluffy.
Xiao Yanchen sat beside her, his eyes constantly looking at her hair, feeling a tickle in his heart.
"Xiao Xizi, let me re-braid your hair for you." His eyes were sparkling.
Seeing Ji Zhaoxi nod, Xiao Yanchen grew even happier. He stood behind Ji Zhaoxi and carefully tucked the loose hairs by her cheeks behind her ears.
He actually didn't know how to comb hair, but he just wanted to touch her hair. He carefully divided the hair into three strands, his movements incredibly clumsy.
He wanted to tie the best-looking braid for Xiao Xizi, but his hands wouldn't listen to him, and in the end, he tied a crooked braid.
Xiao Yanchen glanced at Ji Zhaoxi, who was still eating, and felt a bit guilty. He was just about to undo the braid.
Ji Zhaoxi sensitively noticed something was wrong. She quickly leaned over to the washbasin to take a look. Seeing her reflection in the water, her eyes instantly turned red.
"It's so ugly! You did this on purpose!"
All her face was lost!
Seeing her red eyes, Xiao Yanchen instantly panicked. His entire face flushed red, and he followed behind her, at a complete loss for what to do.
"Xiao Xizi, please don't be angry. I didn't do it on purpose. I'll re-braid it right now, and this time I will definitely do it well..."
Ji Zhaoxi snorted and sat back in her seat. "If you braid it like this again, I'll beat you up."
She was getting more and more skilled at bullying Xiao Yanchen now.
Xiao Yanchen responded with grievance and started re-braiding Ji Zhaoxi's hair.
The strands of hair constantly intertwined in his hands. Xiao Yanchen's nose was filled with the scent of soap locust from her hair. His previous grievance dissipated at once, replaced by an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.
Xiao Yanchen earnestly smoothed Ji Zhaoxi's hair, clumsy but focused. Because he was too nervous, he even unconsciously held his breath.
The sunlight from outside shone on the two of them, and Xiao Yanchen felt warm all over.
He suddenly thought that if he could keep braiding her hair like this forever, it wouldn't matter even if he got beaten up by Xiao Xizi.
