Marrying the Crown Prince

"That's hard to say," Zhou Zhou replied. "Miss, you're from out of town, so you don't know. Here, even the servants can stay in single rooms."

Hearing Zhou Zhou's words, Su He and Wan Ying looked at him with a more scrutinizing gaze. "How did you know I'm not from here?"

"Then tell me, where am I from?"

"I think that not only do you people from Qixi Kingdom love silver ornaments, but you also love to hang a whip around your waist. I don't know why."

Su and Wan Ying looked down and laughed. It was true, but...

"However, with so many guards following you as soon as you step out, and the fact that you booked the entire inn right away, I don't think you two are ordinary people."

They didn't hide their trip from others, so Li Ziyan and Zhou Zhou weren't afraid of revealing their whereabouts. If they were recognized, so be it; their main point was to remain calm and unhurried.

"Miss Suhe has good taste."

"Each each other."

It was Zhou Zhou's first time dealing with her, and it could be considered a draw.

The two returned to their room, where one ground ink and the other wrote a letter.

Li Ziyan put down his pen, gently blew on the ink, and said, "I don't know whether to call it lucky or unlucky."

Fortunately, while casually strolling around, I unexpectedly encountered a princess from the Kingdom of Qixi; unfortunately, after finally getting a vacation, I ran into a princess from another country who had secretly sneaked in.

Zhou Zhou watched him finish writing, put it in an envelope, seal it with wax, and affix his personal seal. A guess formed in her mind: "Your Highness's trip here is not just for fun, is it?"

With all these tools, if I were just out having fun, I would have eaten everything on the table.

"Yes." Li Ziyan nodded, not hiding anything, "I was going to tell you this when we got to the estate."

"Father assigned me an official task, saying that it was originally intended for someone else to investigate, but since we were going out to play, he asked us to investigate while we were at it."

Hearing his words, Zhou Zhou frowned, somewhat puzzled. "If I remember correctly, Father Emperor was somewhat dissatisfied with me a few days ago, and took it out on His Highness as well. Why is he acting differently now..."

Has he returned to being a good father again?

“Father has always been clear about the difference between public and private matters, and he is very discerning,” Li Ziyan explained.

Emperor Chenze did suspect that Zhou Zhou had orchestrated the whole thing, and he disliked Li Ziyan's protectiveness of her; but that didn't mean he had any issues with his own son. Although he scolded him, his son was still his good son.

However, his kindness to his son doesn't necessarily mean he'll treat his daughter-in-law the same way.

Zhou Zhou: "..."

So I'm really being unfairly blamed for this.

Returning to the matter that Li Ziyan had been assigned, "The tax ledgers for the twelve cities of the capital submitted by the Prefect of Jingzhao seem to have some discrepancies, and Father Emperor summoned me to investigate them."

Since ancient times, taxes have not been levied on those who have achieved academic or official rank. As a result, many landlords registered their land under the names of those who had passed the imperial examinations in order to evade taxes.

“This has happened in every dynasty.” Zhou Zhou sighed. “Unless there is reform, the law that exempts those who have achieved official rank from taxes is abolished, and new regulations are issued, this practice can be completely eliminated.”

However, if this law were truly abolished, it would mean making enemies of all scholars in the world, and the price to pay would be far too high.

"Does Father Emperor have this intention?" Zhou Zhou looked at Li Ziyan.

Li Ziyan pursed her lips. "I can't say for sure."

If Emperor Chenze were in his prime, he might have had the courage and ambition; but now, although Emperor Chenze is in good health, he is past the age of fifty and is no longer able to do many things, otherwise he would not have gradually relinquished power to the Crown Prince.

“Although this is a good thing that benefits the country and the people, it should be done gradually before it can be implemented,” Zhou Zhou said, looking quietly at Li Ziyan.

"Don't worry, I know all this," Li Ziyan replied with a warm smile, like a cool summer breeze that dispelled the gloom in people's hearts.

After finishing their business, the two had a meal and then took out a deck of cards. They called over Jufang and Changyi, and the four of them played cards together.

Playing cards isn't fun if you don't make some money, but how can the master earn a few taels of silver from his servants? So Zhou Zhou was in charge of Ju Fang's wins and losses, and Li Ziyan was in charge of Chang Yi's wins and losses.

Jufang, not wanting to be mistreated, tactfully said, "Counting cards and keeping score is inevitably mentally and physically exhausting. Since you and your wife are out for a relaxing trip, it's not good for you to do such mentally and physically exhausting things."

Hearing this, Zhou Zhou was both amused and exasperated. "Fine, whatever you say, I won't count the cards."

Jufang's eyes crinkled instantly, as if she wanted to get close to Zhou Zhou and kiss her, "I knew Madam was the best to me."

Seeing that the two women, mistress and servant, were as close as sisters, Li Ziyan relaxed even more. "You two grew up together since you were little, so you must have a good relationship?"

“Of course,” Zhou Zhou replied, his eyebrows and eyes lighting up. “When Jufang and Sizhu get married, I will give them both a good dowry.”

Speaking of this, Jufang wanted to say something, but with Li Ziyan, an outsider, present, she could only pretend to be shy, lower her head, and remain silent.

Noticing her change in mood, Zhou Zhou's brow twitched, and he prepared to talk to her alone afterward.

Li Ziyan wasn't familiar with Jufang, and to be precise, he didn't care about Jufang's inner thoughts. However, Zhou Zhou liked her, so he was willing to give Jufang some face.

"Since you've said that, when this girl gets married, let me know so I can add one or two pieces to her dowry."

Jufang quickly stood up, bowed, and thanked him, "This servant thanks Your Highness for the reward."

"Hmm, sit down. When you're traveling, there aren't so many rules," Li Ziyan said casually.

The game has finally begun.

Zhou Zhou said she didn't count the cards, and she really didn't. Therefore, Li Ziyan won the first round.

In the second round, Li Ziyan stopped counting cards. All four of them were playing cards based on luck. So, it can only be said that Zhou Zhou hadn't lost much when it came to luck.

The four of them played for half an hour, playing dozens of rounds. Zhou Zhou won half of the games, and the other half were won by the three of them in turns.

Half an hour later, their lunch had been mostly digested. The two put down their cards, changed their clothes, and went to bed.

Lying on the cool bamboo mat, both of them felt completely exhausted and relaxed, so comfortable that they wanted to roll around on it.

Without hesitation, Zhou Zhou rolled over and nestled into Li Ziyan's arms.

Li Ziyan held her loosely, reached out and tapped Zhou Zhou's forehead, his voice gentle, "Go to sleep."

Zhou Zhou closed her eyes, raised her head, and rubbed against his neck, like a lazy cat that was woken up from a deep sleep and was groggily acting cute.

Li Ziyan felt a little itchy, and his gaze deepened, becoming profound.

"Stop fooling around," he said.