Shen Xihe raised her brows and couldn't help but smile sincerely: "Your Highness, never before has there been someone with whom I could converse so freely and comfortably."
Even without trust, without letting down her guard, without complete honesty, there was still an indescribable sense of ease.
"My good fortune..." Xiao Huayong murmured softly.
"Your Highness." Shen Xihe gazed deeply at him, "What does Your Highness seek in a wife?"
Xiao Huayong lowered his head with a cough, pondering for a moment before replying: "No betrayal."
His requirement was actually just these three brief words? As long as his wife didn't betray him, that was enough?
"What if she has a weak character?" He only demanded loyalty, without considering that a soft nature might make her susceptible to manipulation or exploitation?
"This Eastern Palace... every step hides deadly traps cough cough..." Xiao Huayong lowered his gaze, "If she chooses to enter the Eastern Palace... and cannot stand firm, stepping into traps cough cough... I won't save her... If I suffer because she's exploited... that's my incompetence, and I won't blame her..."
For a moment, Shen Xihe looked at Xiao Huayong and felt an illusion of looking into a mirror.
They were actually so similar in their bones, so resolute in trusting only themselves.
Lost in thought, her eyes wandered briefly before she suddenly smiled, picked up her teacup and drank it all: "It's getting late. Zhaoning takes her leave."
Xiao Huayong stood up without attempting to detain her. He accompanied Shen Xihe to write down the recipe for wontons, then supported by Tianyuan, personally saw her to the gate of the Eastern Palace.
"Your Highness need not see me further." Shen Xihe stood before the palace gate, watching the fiery red maple trees swaying in the gentle breeze, their leaves swirling. "Your Highness, you are very good."
With a faint smile toward Xiao Huayong, Shen Xihe gracefully departed with her shawl flowing behind her.
Today she wore a crimson floor-length gown with an apricot-yellow shawl. As she disappeared behind the red maples, she resembled the brilliant setting sun slowly descending. When she vanished from sight, the world seemed to darken, all light withdrawn.
Xiao Huayong remained standing at the palace gate long after she had disappeared: "She said I am very good."
Tianyuan:...
His Highness's somewhat foolish smile was truly unbearable for Tianyuan to witness. He could only lower his head: "Your Highness, there are people outside the palace."
The Eastern Palace was absolutely secure. After repeated replacements, everyone in the Eastern Palace had become Xiao Huayong's people, though some remained unaware, still believing these were their own informants. But beyond the Eastern Palace gates was different.
Xiao Huayong immediately clenched his fist against his lips, erupting into a bout of heart-wrenching coughs, leaning half his weight on Tianyuan as he was helped inside.
"Your Highness intends to propose to the princess, why did you say such things earlier?"" Tianyuan had been terrified moments before.
Talking about not saving her if she couldn't stand firm and fell into traps - was this appropriate to say to someone you wish to marry?
Once inside, Xiao Huayong stood before the gradually reddening pomegranate tree and sighed deeply: "Only such words would she believe."
He would have liked to speak some sweet nothings - he knew how to make grand vows of eternal love too. But if he dared say such things, starting tomorrow Shen Xihe would likely avoid him like the plague.
An unemotional person views romance as a joke. Otherwise, when he previously said he was someone who wouldn't hurt her, she wouldn't have remained unmoved and even found it laughable.
She doesn't want romance. She only wants mutual benefit, only ease and comfort.
Tianyuan widened his eyes: "There actually exists such a woman in this world!"Zhaoning County Princess hasn't even reached her coming-of-age ceremony yet. During those years when he and His Highness wandered the world, how many women had he encountered? Even the most emotionally detached person would, at most, be reluctant to fall in love, fearful of affection, or hesitant to yearn for love—yet deep down, they still craved genuine emotional connection.
But Zhaoning County Princess was truly an unfeeling person, someone who genuinely had no need for sincere affection!
"This... must be what they call an ethereal fairy untouched by mortal desires," Xiao Huayong chuckled softly.
Tianyuan:...
Faced with such a difficult young lady, their Highness not only found no trouble in it but seemed to revel in the challenge.
Not even daring to confess his feelings, resorting to deception and schemes to seek her hand—and their Highness didn't find himself pitiable?
Tianyuan thought it was utterly undignified, but he didn't dare say it aloud!
He strongly suspected that his master would ascend the throne faster than he could win the County Princess's heart.
"Your Highness, shall I take the wonton recipe to the kitchen?" Tianyuan asked as they entered indoors, spotting the recipe weighed down by a paperweight.
Xiao Huayong reached for it first, examined it carefully, then stored it with the address note Shen Xihe had written for their last meeting: "Who said anything about having the kitchen make it?"
If not for cooking, why request the recipe?
"This recipe was written for me," Xiao Huayong said, securing the brocade box. "Tomorrow morning, go to the Princess Manor and say that the wontons made in the Eastern Palace according to this recipe are unpalatable to me."
Tianyuan:...
He had truly overestimated their Highness. Really!
When Tianyuan mustered his courage to relay this message to Shen Xihe, she too was momentarily stunned.
"County Princess, for some reason, even though we followed your recipe exactly, His Highness finds the taste unsatisfactory," Tianyuan said, betraying his conscience.
"Wait here. I'll prepare another batch of filling for you to take back," Shen Xihe replied. Having recently received favors from Xiao Huayong—especially regarding her initiative to summon Shen Yungan to the capital—even if she were inclined to burn bridges after crossing them, her principles wouldn't allow her to refuse his request for wontons at this moment.
Shen Xihe prepared two types of filling in a large bowl, placing it in a food container: "As autumn days dawn early, have the chef wrap all the filling into wontons and store them in the ice cellar. Whenever His Highness wishes to eat, just boil a few in hot water—the taste will be no different."
Tianyuan hadn't expected Shen Xihe to have such a method. Now their Highness's plan to frequently seek her out for wonton-making would surely fail.
For some reason, Tianyuan felt a faint sense of schadenfreude.
When Tianyuan returned with two large bowls of filling and conveyed Shen Xihe's words, Xiao Huayong's lips curved into a smile brimming with boundless affection: "Gaining even the slightest advantage from her is truly challenging."
Shen Xihe paid no mind to Xiao Huayong's thoughts. With her prepared filling, at least a hundred wontons could be made—enough to last him a long time stored in the ice cellar. Free from concerns about Xiao Huayong, she devoted herself entirely to arranging Shen Yungan's courtyard.
Simultaneously, the collection of plants and flowers grew steadily. She began meticulously planning the Princess Manor's layout. As fragrant spices arrived continuously from various regions, Shen Xihe refined more and more incense blends. Hiring several Fragrance Artisans proved effective—their training progressed well, and their work was excellent.
After the workshop produced a batch of high-quality finished products, Hongyu personally inspected them before moving them into the Living-Alone Pavilion.
Thus, Shen Xihe's Living-Alone Pavilion officially opened.
On opening day, two shops burned incense blends Shen Xihe had formulated with purple velvet fragrance. The aroma drifted far, perceptible even from ten li away.As if a delicate fragrance had permeated the entire capital, fame was achieved overnight.
Tianyuan was also the first to inform Xiao Huayong of this matter.
"Living-Alone Pavilion?" Xiao Huayong repeated the name, a vague and indescribable feeling washing over him.
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