“Wait.” Chu Yunge had already spotted him.
She withdrew her hand from patting Yan Feng. “It’s settled then. Go rest.”
With that, she stepped forward two paces. “Li Guangi.”
Seeing Li Guangi halt, she chuckled. “You’re already here. Why run?”
Li Guangi turned stiffly. Chu Yunge’s eyes lit up when she saw the tray in his hands. “Come in quick. This Princess is ready to wash up.”
So the little milk dog was also a little workhorse? Nice.
The other palace servants noticed that the little mute Li seemed to have caught the princess’s special favor. They hurriedly invited him inside and tried to take the tray for him.
Li Guangi shook his head and dodged, his gaze landing on Yan Feng.
Yan Feng stood rooted in place, like a dog abandoned by its master and still processing it. Only when Li Guangi entered did he snap back to attention, then vanished from sight in an instant.
But Li Guangi was not blind. From the subtle clues, he could tell Yan Feng had stayed with the princess last night.
She told him to leave, then turned around and had this Yan guard serve her instead…
A flicker of dimness passed through Li Guangi’s beautiful, harmless eyes. What exactly was he hoping for?
Chu Yunge finished washing up. Her lavish breakfast had already been laid out, fragrant and appetizing in every way.
Her gaze scanned the table before locking onto the porridge and pickled side dishes Li Guangi had brought.
They were exquisite too, but still different from what the kitchen had sent.
“I’ve got to try what our Li lad brought. Did you make it yourself?”
Li Guangi nodded. Staring at the lavish breakfast, he grew ever more inferior and uneasy. He seemed to have outsmarted himself. The princess lacked for nothing, yet he had eagerly simmered a pot of plain porridge to send over…
He was just like the plain porridge and side dishes amid the feast—out of place, yet fooling himself into thinking he was special.
As Li Guangi mulled this over, he heard Chu Yunge exclaim in pleasant surprise. “Not bad.”
The plain porridge and pickled vegetables Li Guangi offered were refreshingly tasty. They looked ordinary, but paired with the sides, they whetted the appetite like nothing else. Chu Yunge’s eyes brightened, and for once, she ate her fill.
“These pickled veggies—you made them yourself too?”
She noticed something off in Li Guangi’s expression. “What’s wrong? Unwilling? If you don’t like it, don’t bother. Make something you enjoy. Last time, you said you’re good at accounting, right?”
Li Guangi shook his head, then nodded, and hurriedly pulled out paper and brush to write.
“I’m willing. Whatever Your Highness wants to eat, I’ll make it. I can do other side dishes too.”
He paused, then added: “I am indeed good at accounting.”
After finishing, he let out a breath of relief and looked at Chu Yunge with some trepidation.
Chu Yunge caught the self-deprecating glint in Li Guangi’s eyes.
Probably from a lifetime of experiences and his inability to speak.
“Then if I want more later, I’ll come to you. But don’t overwork yourself. There’s plenty of accounting for you to handle—I’ll let you have your fill.”
For Li Guangi, having tasks to contribute his skills would likely give him a greater sense of security.
The Princess Mansion had plenty of businesses under its name, plus her fiefdoms. She had paid them little mind before, just leaving them to the stewards. Later, Xie Wangze had taken over some.
But Xie Wangze was busy with his own bid for the throne back in Chen State, so better not burden him with these trifles.
Of course, she didn’t fully trust Xie Wangze either—afraid he might sabotage things out of spite.
The princess might not care, but she did. She needed to get a clear picture of her own assets. Back in modern times, she hadn’t even had that chance.
“This Princess just happens to need to sort out the estate accounts. Help This Princess with it.”
Sure enough, Li Guangi’s eyes brightened as he nodded.
Du Ruo stood to the side, watching the scene unfold. It was already beyond her expectations.
What came next exceeded them even more.
The princess, who had never cared about her estates and only used executions to keep underlings in line, was suddenly taking an interest in her own businesses.
The managers and stewards in the estates panicked, fearing the princess would have them killed.
The more Chu Yunge learned of the details, the happier she got: Jackpot.
If she had these assets back in modern times, she’d be laughing in her sleep at midnight.
After reviewing the estates, she tossed the account books straight to Li Guangi. Ancient ledgers were too tedious to pore over.
Li Guangi truly had a gift for accounting. He flipped through them briskly—no abacus, no scratch paper, all mental math. He verified the figures, spotted the issues, all in one seamless go.
His whole demeanor shifted—from harmless and insecure to focused intensity. Light gleamed in his eyes, and he shone with confidence in his results.
Chu Yunge was surprised and delighted. She felt like she had picked up a treasure.
The attending palace servants saw how much Chu Yunge favored Li Guangi and took the chance to tell her how he had been bullied in Caifeng Courtyard. He had made three dishes of sides, but someone deliberately bumped him, smashing two.
For that, Li Guangi immediately earned the right to pick his own courtyard and live alone.
Pei Ji remembered Chu Yunge’s poor appetite and couldn’t help dropping by at lunch. Seeing Li Guangi there—and that Chu Yunge had even let him pick a courtyard—he turned and left.
“Your Highness, the Little Marquis came and went.”
Du Ruo reported it. Chu Yunge glanced at the doorway without much thought, her eyes falling on what Du Ruo held. “What is it?”
Du Ruo hurriedly presented the invitation. “Your Highness, it’s an invite for the Dragon Boat Race on the fifth of the fifth month.”
Chu Yunge perked up. In this alternate world, the Dragon Boat Festival came with boat races too, supposedly to train the navy—rowing while fighting enemies.
“I’ll go.” She couldn’t miss such excitement.
Noticing the longing in Li Guangi’s eyes, she turned to him. “Want to go?”
She pondered whether to give him a kiss to let him join or have him kiss her as a reward, when Du Ruo hesitated and asked:
“Your Highness, won’t you go with the Prince Consort?”
At such a formal event, bringing along a male favorite… that was favoring the concubine and dooming the wife—spoiling her face boy and snubbing her prince consort.
Du Ruo could already imagine the gossip about the princess.
Chu Yunge paused at that. “The Prince Consort probably doesn’t want to go with This Princess…”
“Your Highness.” Du Ruo spoke up. “The Prince Consort is here.”
Chu Yunge turned her head and saw Xie Wangze outside the hall.
Xie Wangze’s gaze swept over Li Guangi, who had stood uneasily to bow. He paid him no mind and approached to salute. “Your Highness, did you receive the Dragon Boat Race invitation? Might I accompany you?”
Chu Yunge: “…Xie lad wants to go with This Princess?”
She emphasized “go with.” Someone had invited the princess to a birthday banquet before, but Xie Wangze refused to join. After their wedding night fiasco, he had dodged every event where they’d appear as a couple.
Why the sudden change of heart?
Not to mention catching her in an intimate moment with Li Guangi last night—he had left with a cold face. Now he showed up uninvited. Most peculiar.
Xie Wangze straightened, his deep eyes fixed on her. “Yes. Might the princess grant the convenience?”
The Chen State delegation would arrive in Heavenly Prosperity City tomorrow without mishap, and they would likely watch the races too.
Chen and Chu shared a river border. If their alliance fell apart, naval battles were inevitable.
Both nations had emphasized navy training in recent years.
Chu State prided itself on its navy. Whether to show off or intimidate, they wouldn’t pass up letting the Chen envoys see.
Stuck in the Princess Mansion since the wedding, he couldn’t easily contact outsiders. The boat races offered the best chance to link up with his Chen contacts.
His father emperor’s health worsened by the day. He couldn’t wait much longer—he had to return soon.
As for the princess… just a fated ill match. Better parted sooner.