Who says the prince is weak and can't take care of himself?

Qi Xiao and Tang Ling were chatting while he ate slowly, one bite at a time. His face didn't show anything, but Tang Ling could see that he was very worried and had no appetite. The last time Qi Xiao couldn't eat was when he was seasick on the Qin River.

After dinner, Qi Xiao didn't want to leave and dragged Tang Ling to play chess. Tang Ling ignored him and instead ordered someone to boil water for a bath.

When Tang Ling turned back, Qi Xiao stared at him blankly, wondering if he should just act like a scoundrel and continue to pester her. Given Tang Ling's personality, she probably wouldn't be able to resist his nagging and would stay with him for a while longer.

Tang Ling came over and said, "After all the chaos last night and a busy day today, go to bed early. If you feel upset, you can stay."

Qi Xiao stared at Tang Ling blankly, and suddenly he felt like he was not sober after being drunk, as if he was clear-headed but also panicked. He seemed to understand what Tang Ling meant but also seemed not to understand.

Tang Ling felt more and more that he looked like he was seasick, and she couldn't help but move closer and kiss him gently.

"You want me to stay?" Qi Xiao's eyes flashed and he licked his lips gently.

Tang Ling laughed and teased Qi Xiao: "There are still many empty rooms in the courtyard." Huaxi Villa is a three-courtyard compound, larger than an ordinary small house, and there are indeed two empty rooms.

Tang Ling turned to leave, but Qi Xiao reached out to grab her hand back: "That's clearly not what you meant."

"Oh? What do I mean? I don't even know it myself?"

Qi Xiao held him in his arms, lowered his head and rubbed his neck, and asked coquettishly, "Are you really willing to keep me?"

Tang Ling felt an itch from Qi Xiao's breath on her neck. She smiled softly, "Don't let your imagination run wild. I'll ask Qing Lan to prepare some calming incense for you."

"No need, it's you." As long as Tang Ling was by his side, Qi Xiao felt that his depressed mood had improved a lot, and all the annoyance in his heart was swept into the corner.

"There is something I want to discuss with you."

"Hmm?" Qi Xiao kissed Tang Ling, "Okay, I'll agree to anything you ask."

Tang Ling laughed: "It's not my business."

Qi Xiao kissed Tang Ling again, and after a long while, he finally let her go: "I don't want to hear about other people's affairs."

"What about your own?"

"Mine? What's wrong with me?"

Tang Ling held Qi Xiao's face and said gently, "You won the Baiyan Mountain Hunt. Take this opportunity to ask His Majesty for a favor and take Concubine Lin out of the palace. You're so busy that you don't have time to attend to the sick. Even if it's a little late, at least you can go and pay your respects to Concubine Lin. By the way, let Qinglan take a look at Concubine Lin's illness. Qinglan's medical skills are not bad."

Qi Xiao stared at Tang Ling, speechless for a moment. He hadn't expected Tang Ling to consider all this for him, or even take care of his mother. His Majesty had granted Qi Xiao permission to visit the palace at any time, but this wasn't entirely a good thing for Qi Xiao. As a crowned prince, he shouldn't have frequent visits to the inner palace. Furthermore, this favor had already made Empress and Consort Zhao uneasy. Add to that Luo Yu's case, and if he were to spend every day in the palace, in front of His Majesty, it would inevitably lead people to believe he was plotting to seize the throne. He had agreed to this request so he could see his mother, and Tang Ling's idea could help him overcome his immediate needs.

Qi Xiao smiled and said, "Are you so anxious to see mother-in-law?"

Tang Ling knew that Qi Xiao liked to take advantage of him, so today she went along with him and simply nodded in agreement: "I'm not ugly."

"That's right, my father-in-law has seen it all, so what's there to be afraid of?"

Tang Ling smiled silently in Qi Xiao's chest for a long time. It would be great if they were just an ordinary family.

"...The book describes the towering mountains of Hanyang. During the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Xun, a devoted Taoist, sought immortality. He therefore ordered ten thousand people to carve a ten-thousand-step stone path to the Heavenly Ladder on Tianxuan Peak, the main peak of Hanyang Mountain. Tianxuan Peak towers high into the clouds, its slopes are extremely steep, and in many places it is almost perpendicular to the ground. The difficulty of carving the stone steps can be imagined. After more than twenty years of construction, the Heavenly Ladder was completed. Emperor Xun then ordered the construction of the Longevity Altar on the top of Tianxuan Peak. The entire altar was crafted from white jade, and simply transporting the jade, weighing over a thousand pounds, to the summit was an immense challenge."

Tang Ling was holding the "Records of Mountains and Rivers" in his hand, and was talking about an article he had read yesterday, which talked about the ancient Tongtian Road in Hanyang Mountain. Qi Xiao rested his head on Tang Ling's legs and listened to him with his eyes closed. Tang Ling's voice was gentle and soothing, as if it could take Qi Xiao to Hanyang Mountain in a moment, sitting on the sea of ​​clouds and looking at the rolling mountains and the beautiful scenery.

Two months ago, Tang Ling could never have imagined that Qi Xiao, the aggressive Fuzhou bully, would crouch on his lap like a cat, coquettishly pestering him to read to him. At this moment, Qi Xiao seemed not only to have regained his youthful spirit, but also to have returned to childhood, giving Tang Ling the willfulness and affection he had never dared to express before.

"Is the altar built?" Qi Xiao sat up and held Tang Ling in his arms. He had just fallen asleep on Tang Ling's lap, feeling so comfortable, but he didn't want to sleep yet. He wanted to hold her for a while longer.

Just now he said that he didn't want to listen to other people's affairs, but now Tang Ling was telling him the legends in the book, and Qi Xiao was very happy to listen.

"I don't know." Tang Ling put the book down, turned to Qi Xiao and said with a smile, "It's not written in the book. The author traveled through hundreds of rivers and came to Hanyang Mountain and heard the legend about the abdicated emperor building a ladder to heaven. But the ladder was destroyed long ago, so he couldn't climb Tianxuan Peak, so he naturally couldn't find the white jade altar."

"How did the ladder to heaven get destroyed?"

"There are rumors about natural disasters and man-made disasters. Some say that the abdicated emperor, instead of cultivating benevolence and governing the country, sought immortality from the spirits and gods, angering the mountain gods and severing the ladder to heaven. Others say that the craftsmen who built the ladder and the jade altar had been abused and toiled for years, filled with resentment. Finally, they rebelled, pushing the overseers over the narrow mountain path, severing the mountain cable ropes, and fleeing, forcing the project to be shelved."

"Pity."

"You want to see?"

Qi Xiao smiled and said, "It's already autumn. Let's go see the birch forest on Chenshan Mountain first. In autumn, the leaves are as yellow as clouds, and in winter, they are as white as snow."

He remembered everything Tang Ling had said to Qi Xiao when they first arrived in Wudu Prefecture. Tang Ling lowered her eyes and smiled. At that time, Qi Xiao had wanted to stay away from him, but he remembered every word of his gossip clearly. Perhaps he had already liked him.

Qi Xiao liked to see Tang Ling smile, like mellow wine that could make anyone who smelled it drunk, and the drinker would never forget it after just a sip, and would only become more greedy, thirsty, obsessed and infatuated.

Qi Xiao kissed Tang Ling secretly, his mind full of lustful thoughts, but he had to suppress his greed. He didn't know why, maybe it was because Tang Ling was too good and he cherished her too much and couldn't bear to let her go. The aroma of the wine made him greedy, but he didn't dare to drink it all in one gulp, for fear that he wouldn't have enough and wouldn't understand the taste.