Seеing hеr exрression, Yin Gеzhi соuldn't hеlр but rеflect оn himself—was his expressiоn tоo fiеrcе, sсаring hеr? Hе hаd сlеаrly intеnded to prаisе her fоr being clevеr earliеr, knowing how tо sеt а trар fоr Lеng Yan using Zhou Zhеnshаn's mattеr. Yеt bеforе he соuld even givе thе cоmpliment, he hаd alreadу mаdе her сry?
Glancing dоwn аt thе flickеring lаntеrn, Yin Gеzhi slоwlу spоkе: "Let's gо buy уou a nеw onе. Тhаt onе is brоkеn."
Нuh? Feng Yue was а bit incredulous, looking uр at the man bеfore hеr.
Hаd thе sun risen frоm the west today? This man was actually speaking to her so gently?
Before she could react, her hand was taken. Unlike Leng Yan's rough grip on her wrist earlier, the First Prince held the young lady's small hand in a way that was truly comforting. He tossed the lantern in her hand into the river and led her toward the bridge.
Summer was approaching. Young women in sheer single-layered robes exuded faint fragrances on the bridge, their cheeks flushed as they were surrounded by a group of scholars. Who would have thought that as soon as Yin Gezhi stepped onto the bridge, the shy and timid young ladies suddenly found strength, pushing aside the obstructing passersby and crowding around Yin Gezhi to gaze at him.
"What a dashing young master! I wonder if he is already married?"
"This young master truly embodies jade-like elegance and golden refinement, unlike other common men."
"Young master, young master?"
As if surrounded by eight hundred quacking ducks, Yin Gezhi clearly lacked patience. He pulled the "married one" from behind him forward and pointed at her.
Feng Yue reacted swiftly—she hooked her arm around his neck and planted a kiss on his chin, then looked triumphantly at the surrounding young ladies, exuding an air of "if you want to steal this man, come fight me!"
Sighs of disappointment arose instantly. The young ladies halted their advances, glancing fearfully at this tigress before finally clearing a path for Yin Gezhi.
"Your Highness is truly very popular among young ladies," Feng Yue couldn't help but remark. "Even if you were born into an ordinary family, with a face like yours, you'd likely rise to prominence in the imperial court."
Shooting her a sidelong glance, Yin Gezhi said, "Thank you for the compliment."
Truly not the least bit humble! Feng Yue shook her head. Just as she was about to say, "Look at your face—is it as big as the moon in the sky?" she noticed a circle of young ladies gathered at the other end of the bridge.
"What is your esteemed surname, young master?"
"Young master, you are so handsome. I wonder if you are already married? If so, it doesn't matter—are you open to taking concubines?"
Hearing these familiar lines of flirtation, Feng Yue's ears perked up, and she instinctively stood on tiptoe to look over.
At the bridgehead, Ye Yuqing shielded Yi Zhangzhu, smiling gently and elegantly. "I am not married, but I have a beauty by my side. Please excuse us."
This smile elicited screams from the young ladies, instantly enlivening the lantern festival. Feng Yue couldn't help but sigh, nudging the person beside her with her elbow. "Look, isn't a gentle man more popular with women?"
Glancing at her, Yin Gezhi asked, "Do you like gentle men?"
"What does it matter whether I like them or not? Just look at Miss Yi's expression," Feng Yue replied. "In front of you, she always looks aggrieved and unhappy. But see how happily she smiles when she's by the Crown Prince's side."
"Is that so?" Yin Gezhi snorted expressionlessly and strode toward that direction.
Yi Zhangzhu was smiling when she inadvertently turned her head and saw Yin Gezhi. She immediately frowned and called out, "Brother Yin? What are you doing here?"Yin Gezhi remained silent, glancing back toward the bridge.
Yi Zhangzhu followed his gaze and saw Feng Yue smiling at her like a blooming flower: "Miss Yi, what a coincidence."
Her expression shifted slightly, and Yi Zhangzhu looked displeased. Turning to Yin Gezhi, she said, "Brother Yin, if you wanted to see the lantern festival, wouldn’t it be better to join us? Why did you have to bring her along?"
Yin Gezhi raised his eyes, cupped his hands toward Ye Yuqing, and said, "With Your Highness here, I shall take my leave."
"Wait!" Yi Zhangzhu quickly reached out to pull him back, biting her lip. She glanced at Ye Yuqing and whispered, "Even Crown Prince Brother knows to accompany me. Why don’t you? There are still many interesting things ahead. Are you really leaving just like that?"
The onlookers around them couldn’t help but feel envious. Tonight, they had only seen these two handsome men, and both seemed to be at this girl’s beck and call?
Ye Yuqing was slightly displeased. Though he still wore a smile on his face, Feng Yue could tell that Yi Zhangzhu’s behavior was clearly disrespectful to him. But he was accustomed to smiling, and those who didn’t think too deeply would truly believe he was good-tempered and tolerant.
The thoughtless Miss Yi continued to try to keep Yin Gezhi by her side: "Crown Prince Brother must be tired from walking. Why don’t you accompany me to see the rest?"
Yin Gezhi glanced back at Feng Yue, a hint of smugness in his eyes.
Prefer gentle men, do you? Hmm?
How childish! Feng Yue gritted her teeth but still managed to put on an admiring expression for him. She thought to herself that this First Prince Yin must have lost his mind from all the battles he’d fought. Why compete with her over such a trivial matter? She simply believed women should like gentle men—what was wrong with that!
Ye Yuqing fanned himself, his smile tinged with a hint of loneliness. Feng Yue thought, since they were both in the same boat, why not stroll through the lantern festival together?
So, watching Yin Gezhi and Yi Zhangzhu walk away, she skipped over to Ye Yuqing’s side and said with a grin, "Young master, would you like to buy a lantern?"
Glancing at her, Ye Yuqing asked, "Are you selling lanterns?"
"No." Feng Yue pointed to the lantern stall nearby. "What I meant was, if you’re buying a lantern, could you get an extra one for me?"
Unable to hold back a laugh, Ye Yuqing said, "You really are... Aren’t lanterns here supposed to be given by men to women? Who would ask for one outright?"
Blinking, Feng Yue pointed at herself.
Who would ask for one outright? Me!
The gloom in his eyes instantly dissipated. Ye Yuqing smiled, his eyes sparkling brightly as he led her toward the lantern stall. As they walked, he said, "You really are a treasure."
"You flatter me."
Yi Zhangzhu was asking Yin Gezhi why he always got involved with that courtesan when she turned around and nearly choked with anger: "Crown Prince Brother!"
Amid the surrounding noise, her voice naturally didn’t carry far, only causing Yin Gezhi beside her to glance back with a cold look.
"Brother Yin, what’s wrong with all of you?" Yi Zhangzhu stomped her foot in frustration. "When did your taste in people become so poor? Miss Feng Yue may be pretty, but she has no real skills—she’s just like a decorative vase. What do you all see in her? Why do you treat her with such favor and bring her along?"Withdrawing his gaze, Yin Gezhi glanced at Yi Zhangzhu and turned his head, saying, "For a woman to be beautiful is also a kind of skill."
Choked by his words, Yi Zhangzhu flushed red. She looked at him and asked, "Does Brother Yin think Zhu'er is not as beautiful as Miss Feng Yue?"
"I didn't say that."
"Then what do you mean?" Her eyes reddening, Yi Zhangzhu said, "When you say something like that, isn't this what you mean? Accusing Zhu'er of being narrow-minded, unable to bear that others are more beautiful than her?"
Yin Gezhi: "..."
He had truly only spoken a fact—why did she have to interpret so much into it?
Feeling a headache coming on, he continued walking forward, looking at the lanterns all around, and did not speak again.
When a woman's temper flared up, not speaking was a grave sin! Yi Zhangzhu stood where she was, watching the figure ahead of her, and directly burst into tears: "You don't care about me at all!"
People around them looked over one after another. Yin Gezhi stopped in his tracks, turning to look at her with a headache: "How should I care?"
Glancing up at Ye Yuqing and Feng Yue over there, she saw Ye Yuqing handing a lantern to Feng Yue, who smiled sweetly and accepted it, then curtsied to him.
Why were they so affectionate? Why couldn't she and Yin Gezhi be like that?
Pursing her lips, Yi Zhangzhu said with red eyes, "Look, Crown Prince Brother gave Feng Yue a lantern."
Too lazy to even turn his head, Yin Gezhi said indifferently, "Mm."
Mm?! And then? Shouldn't he give her one too? Was it over with just an "mm"? Yi Zhangzhu glared at him, then pointed to the side: "There are lanterns for sale over there. Shall we go take a look?"
Following the direction she pointed, Yin Gezhi said, "It's too crowded. If you want to buy one, go ahead. I'll wait for you here."
Yi Zhangzhu: "..."
At the bridgehead, Ye Yuqing was just teasing Feng Yue with the line "the face and lantern flowers reflect each other's red" when he heard Yi Zhangzhu's tearful voice from behind: "Crown Prince Brother, I don't want to stroll with him anymore!"
Feng Yue looked up and saw Miss Yi crying pitifully, saying with great grievance, "Let's go!"
Ye Yuqing raised an eyebrow, glancing at Yin Gezhi standing with his hands behind his back in the distance. He couldn't help but whisper to Feng Yue, "How is Prince Yin so formidable? It's rare for Zhu'er to get this angry."
Feng Yue hid her face behind the lantern and whispered back, "In this humble one's opinion, although Prince Yin is not gentle, his attitude toward Miss Yi is definitely not bad. So, she probably angered herself."
Yi Zhangzhu was furious. Seeing the two of them whispering to each other, their words inaudible to her, she grew even angrier. She glanced at the Crown Prince, stamped her foot, and said, "Forget it! There's nothing worth seeing here anyway. I'm going back by myself!"
"Zhu'er!" When the young lady got angry, she was not easy to deal with. Ye Yuqing quickly stopped her, bowing in apology: "It's my fault. If you want to stroll, let's continue. I'll accompany you."
Yi Zhangzhu felt deeply wronged. She looked at him, then at the lantern shop behind them.
Ye Yuqing understood women far better than Yin Gezhi. He immediately had someone buy another lantern and handed it to her: "Shall we go?"
Her anger subsided a little. Yi Zhangzhu pursed her lips, glanced at Feng Yue beside her, wiped her tears, and said, "Sorry, you can continue accompanying Brother Yin. I'll go ahead with Crown Prince Brother."
Having status was truly wonderful—seamlessly switching between two princes without even considering others' feelings!Fortunately, Feng Yue didn't feel much about it. Seeing her leading the Crown Prince away, Feng Yue held the lantern and waited for Yin Gezhi to approach.
Yin Gezhi strolled over, glanced at the lantern in her hand, and said, "It looks quite nice."
"Huh?" Blinking, she carefully sensed the sarcasm beneath his calm tone. Feng Yue immediately stuffed the lantern into the hands of a child running and jumping nearby, then looked up at Yin Gezhi with a smile. "This one isn't very pretty. Could you buy me another one, young master?"
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