Marrying the Crown Prince

“It’s nothing,” Li Ziyan said honestly, without any flowery words, “I just wanted to keep you here for a while to talk.”

Upon hearing his words, Zhou Zhou suddenly took a few steps forward, bringing the two of them closer and closer, causing Li Ziyan to take a step back in a bit of a panic.

His ear tips turned slightly red again, like a half-ripe cherry tomato.

"Your Highness, what are you hiding from?" Zhou Zhou's deep eyes held a carefree smile.

With Zhou Zhou so arrogant and unruly, so undisciplined, the redness on Li Ziyan's ear tips quickly spread to her entire ear, like a ripe tomato.

Having teased her enough, Zhou Zhou didn't dare to go any further, afraid of pushing her too far. Of course, the point is that even though she had rehearsed this bold scene countless times in her mind, she still felt a wave of heat wash over her face.

“Your Highness,” she stepped back, maintaining a normal social distance between them, “if there is nothing else, I will take my leave.”

Zhou Zhou turned to leave, but someone grabbed his forearm. His hand was hot, so hot that you could still feel the heat through his sleeve.

Once her hand was grasped, Zhou Zhou naturally couldn't pull away and could only turn back to look at him, "Your Highness?"

When Li Ziyan saw Zhou Zhou's pure and serene eyes, he seemed to be burned and quickly lowered his hand, "I..."

He opened his mouth, but didn't know where to begin. The redness in his ears continued to spread, and his cheeks flushed pink.

"I know," Zhou Zhou replied suddenly, then felt a rush of heat to his face.

Upon hearing these three words, Li Ziyan was stunned for a moment before reacting and hurriedly asked, "You said you know, then... then what do you know?"

Zhou Zhou also felt a lot nervous at this moment, and subconsciously laughed it off, "Now that you mention it, I don't seem to remember what I know."

Having said all that, Li Ziyan was unwilling to accept such an answer.

"Zhouzhou." He called Zhou Zhou by her given name, not as directly as others, but as if he had held it in his mouth for a long time before uttering it, carrying countless emotions.

Zhou Zhou's face flushed bright red instantly, but she didn't flinch. Instead, she smiled and nodded in response, "Your Highness, I'm here."

These four simple words seem to say nothing, yet they also say everything.

Li Ziyan's eyes lit up instantly. He took a few steps forward, cautiously reaching out his hand, like a child, or as if handling a precious treasure, tentatively taking Zhou Zhou's hand.

His hands were indeed a little hot, just as Zhou Zhou had thought.

However, she herself wasn't in much better shape. When she touched Li Ziyan's hand, Zhou Zhou's breathing became erratic, and her heart pounded as if it were about to jump out of her throat.

"It's so good to have you here."

Those four words seemed to still be ringing in Zhou Zhou's ears, disturbing her peace of mind. So Zhou Zhou turned over again, successfully waking up Li Zixi on the bed.

Li Zixi didn't open her eyes, but instead groped around with her hands until she hugged Zhou Zhou's waist, then mumbled a soft complaint, "Zhouzhou, I'm sleepy."

Zhou Zhou reached out and patted her back, gently and silently comforting Li Zixi, "Sleep, sleep."

Soon, Li Zixi drifted off to sleep again.

Hearing the steady breathing of the person next to her, Zhou Zhou's heart calmed down. As time went by, she also began to feel sleepy and slowly closed her eyes.

When I woke up again, it was already dark, and the dim candlelight had been lit, making the whole room warm.

Jufang tiptoed over and asked silently, "Miss, is it time for your meal?"

Seeing her being so careful, Zhou Zhou noticed that Li Zixi was still fast asleep next to her. It seemed that the long journey in the morning had taken its toll on her.

"What time is it?" Zhou Zhou asked in a low voice.

“It’s almost dusk,” Jufang replied. After hesitating for a moment, she took out the letter hidden in her sleeve. “This was sent by Eunuch Changyi, who serves His Highness the Crown Prince.”

Hearing Jufang mention Li Ziyan, Zhou Zhou thought of their conversation after lunch.

She swallowed hard, suppressing the shyness, excitement, joy, and other emotions welling up inside her. She took the envelope, got up, walked to the candlelight, and began to read the letter by its glow.

Li Ziyan's calligraphy was neat and orderly, and there was nothing particularly different about it. But thinking back to the Peach Blossom Banquet, Emperor Chenze said that his calligraphy was not bad.

Therefore, he should be like himself, writing with an ethereal and otherworldly air when practicing calligraphy; and in his daily writing, he should use the most neat and proper script.

The letter, though called a letter, consisted of only two sentences: first, he told her to have a good time at the resort; second, he had official business to attend to and was leaving early.

Zhou Zhou read ten lines at a glance, finishing the entire content in one go.

Even though there were no sweet words, Zhou Zhou's cheeks still felt a little hot—Li Ziyan was informing her of his whereabouts.

Feeling a sweet warmth in his heart, Zhou Zhou held the letter above the candle flame, lit it, and burned it to ashes, never to be seen again.

After she finished doing all that, she clapped her hands to wake Li Zixi, saying, "Get up and have dinner."

Li Zixi groggily got up, struggled to open her eyes, and looked at the completely dark sky outside, somewhat incredulous, "It's so late."

Even at this late hour, she still didn't feel hungry.

Of course, the same applies to Zhou Zhou.

So the two of them called the cook from the kitchen.

The cook wasn't originally a cook; he was a servant who tended the flowers and plants at the manor. It wasn't until a few days ago when Li Ziyan came over and there was no one in the kitchen that he was promoted to cook, simply because he was an excellent cook.

"This humble servant greets the princess, and the young lady greets you." The cook was slightly short and stout, and his skin was tanned dark from years of sun exposure, which made him quite comical. He kowtowed and performed a grand ceremony as soon as he entered, which amused the two of them.

“No need to kneel,” Li Zixi waved her hand, “Get up and answer.”

"What dishes are left in the kitchen?" Zhou Zhou asked.

"This afternoon I dug up some wild vegetables. The fish that His Highness the Crown Prince caught yesterday are still alive and kicking."

Since Li Ziyan caught the fish, let's keep it alive.

This idea popped into the minds of both Zhou Zhou and Li Zixi at the same time.

So, attention turned to wild vegetables, "How are these wild vegetables usually eaten?"

"Chop it into filling, add minced meat and chopped green onions, and it's perfect for making dumplings," the cook replied quickly. "Just put it in boiling water and it'll be cooked through. Take a bite, and your mouth will be filled with the unique aroma of wild vegetables."

He spoke so vividly that the two girls immediately made the decision: "That's it for dinner tonight. You can add five more things as you see fit. Just enough to eat."