Chapter 384: We all don't quite agree

"Hmm, this bun is good. The skin is thin, the broth is rich and fragrant, and the filling is half shrimp and half pork with a perfect balance of fat and lean! Not bad, not bad at all!"

In the elegant and comfortable Jiangjun Garden, Heng Xian held a bamboo steamer of soup dumplings and ate them in a leisurely manner.

Ji Yaoyue sat to one side, excited, pointing at three plates of pitch-black pastries: "It's not the buns, it's these, these... I made them myself..."

The group of palace maids behind her were seeing their princess like this for the first time; they were surprised at first, then covered their mouths to giggle.

Heng Xian picked up a dish called "Butterfly Jade Dragon Roast" and chewed slowly: "Good! It has both the chewiness of glutinous rice and the deliciousness of meat broth, and there's even something like snake meat inside. It really whets the appetite. Hmm, I'll have another one!"

"Are you doing this on purpose? I'm not talking about the Jade Dragon Roast, I'm talking about these three plates!" The smile on Ji Yaoyue's face gradually vanished as she kept pointing at the three "pitch-black" plates.

"Ah? Let me have another sip of millet porridge." Heng Xian feigned calmness and instructed a lady-in-waiting to serve some porridge.

The lady-in-waiting suppressed a laugh, carefully watching the princess's expression as she went to scoop the porridge.

"Hmph!"

Ji Yaoyue rested her chin on her hands, pouted her rosy cherry lips, and looked away in a huff.

Heng Xian chuckled, signaled for the lady-in-waiting not to serve more porridge, picked up the three pitch-black items, and put them into his mouth.

"Swish..."

Not only Ji Yaoyue, but a large group of palace maids and eunuchs all looked over in unison.

Heng Xian frowned slightly. As expected, he couldn't say it tasted bad, but he could only say it had absolutely nothing to do with food—salty with a hint of sweetness, sweet with a hint of bitterness; it was indescribably strange.

"Ho, how is it?" Ji Yaoyue asked nervously.

Heng Xian's brow relaxed. When coaxing a girl, the important thing is to endure. He let out a comfortable breath: "It's delicious! Just wait for me to finish eating!"

As he spoke, he tucked in. The three plates of snacks, which weren't too many, were swept away in an instant, and he ate more than half of them.

The smile on Ji Yaoyue's face became exceptionally bright, her eyes curving into crescent moons.

Seeing only one last piece of the "pitch-black" stuff left, she reached out to grab it and popped it into her mouth.

It was too late for Heng Xian to stop her.

Ji Yaoyue chewed a few times, her expression changed, and with a "waa," she spat it out along with her saliva, her face bitter as she said: "So, so disgusting!"

Heng Xian smiled, picked up a handkerchief held by a palace maid, and carefully wiped the corners of Ji Yaoyue's mouth.

The group of palace maids exchanged glances and quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look.

Ji Yaoyue's face turned bright red. She let him wipe it, staring at him blankly: "It tastes so bad, why did you eat it?"

Alright, here it comes!

Heng Xian immediately said with a straight face: "Since you made it, even if it tasted worse, I would still eat it all!"

Ji Yaoyue's face turned even redder. She stared at him dumbly, her eyes filled with tenderness, and she was completely infatuated.

Just then, a eunuch hurried over from outside, knelt down, and reported: "Her Ladyship, Consort De, orders Your Highness to rush to the Xianqing Palace immediately!"

Ji Yaoyue came back to her senses and turned around: "Did something happen at Mother's place?"

The eunuch shook his head: "This servant does not know!"

Ji Yaoyue looked at Heng Xian: "I have to go into the palace!"

Heng Xian nodded: "Go ahead!"

Ji Yaoyue walked forward a few steps, but feeling uneasy, she turned back and shoved her Princess Seal into Heng Xian's hand, smiling: "It's as if I were there in person. Wait for me to return!"

After saying this, she left in a hurry with the palace maids.

Not until Ji Yaoyue had gone far away did Heng Xian rub his uncomfortable stomach and stand up.

Coaxing a girl to be happy really does come at a price!

Besides, he actually had the potential to be a kept man!

He rubbed his nose and turned to walk back.

After strolling around for a while, he suddenly noticed someone following him like a shadow. He turned around and saw a petite girl with an expressionless face; her attire did not look like that of a palace maid.

He couldn't help but ask: "Is something the matter?"

The girl coldly cupped her hands: "Mulan, Commander of the Princess's Black Cavalry, is ordered to protect you, Young Master!"

"Mulan? Whose orders?" Heng Xian asked curiously.

The girl said: "The Princess's orders!"

"Fine then!"

Heng Xian nodded and continued his aimless stroll.

Not long after, he reached the main gate. Just as he was about to step out to take a look, a large group of soldiers came rushing in from outside. Among them was the young general who had been very hostile toward Heng Xian along with Nanny Su the previous night.

But he was not the leader.

The leader was a young general who, despite his worn-out armor, still looked exceptionally heroic and extraordinary.

The group jumped off their horses at the gate, all of them filled with rage, and charged straight inside.

The gate guards were startled and knelt down one after another: "His Highness, Prince Wu!"

Prince Wu?

Heng Xian was just wondering.

Mulan, who was beside him, suddenly pulled him behind a rockery to the side.

"Where is that bastard?"

At this moment, the leading young general, "Prince Wu," was striding angrily toward the main hall.

Several duty-bound palace maids of the Princess's Mansion hurried up to meet him and bowed one after another: "Has His Highness, Prince Wu, returned from the border?"

The youth removed his battle helmet, revealing a face that looked remarkably like Ji Yaoyue's, and scolded: "If I hadn't returned, my pure and innocent sister would have been deceived by that bumpkin from some small place! Where is he? I'll kill him with one slash..."

Heng Xian looked through a gap in the rockery and subconsciously rubbed his nose, thinking to himself: A brother-in-law? What a rare thing!

Beside him, Mulan coldly introduced: "His Highness, Prince Wu, is the Princess's own younger brother, born to the same Consort De. Aside from the Crown Prince, he is the only other prince of His Majesty! For the past two years, he has been at the border of the Great Zhou, leading an army of one hundred thousand, guarding three cities, and standing in a standoff against the Great Qin. He rarely returns!"

"The lad is not bad, just a bit impulsive. Still young, after all!" Heng Xian nodded.

Mulan glanced at him, as if to say, look at how old you are yourself.

Heng Xian pointed again at the young general who had been hostile to him the previous night: "Who is this person?"

Mulan said: "A trusted aide of His Majesty, Ye Xingruo, a Zhong Lang Jiang of the Xiaoqi Guard. He is the direct descendant of the Ye family, a military family of eighteen hundred years. He was raised in the Imperial Palace since childhood and grew up with the Princess. They were childhood sweethearts, and once..."

She stopped before finishing her sentence.

"Once what?" Heng Xian asked.

Mulan glanced at him and said indifferently: "Seven years ago, the Ye family sought the hand of Princess Taiping for General Ye Xingruo. His Majesty and the Consort were also interested, but the Princess refused!"

Alright, a love rival!

Heng Xian carefully sized up this Ye Xingruo.

Mulan looked at him again: "Aren't you angry? Aren't you curious why the Princess refused him?"

"Not angry, and not curious!" Heng Xian said with his hands behind his back: "The Princess did it to find a more outstanding me!"

Mulan looked at him in shock, unable to speak for a long time.

"Is there a flower on my face?" Heng Xian asked.

Mulan shifted her gaze and said coldly: "To tell you the truth, apart from the Princess, none of us think highly of your marriage to her!"

"Why don't you think highly of it?" Heng Xian asked nonchalantly.

Mulan said: "You have no background, and secondly, no strength—at least we can't see your cultivation. Thirdly, you have no merits. It is said that when you arrived yesterday, you were so scared by the Dali Temple and several young noble marquises that you didn't dare to step out of your carriage!"

Heng Xian said with a straight face: "But I'm handsome!"

Mulan's cheek twitched a few times, suppressing the urge to draw her sword: "Handsome means good-looking, right? Can being handsome be eaten as a meal?"

Heng Xian nodded earnestly: "Yes! The Princess even cooked for me personally this morning and made me three snacks!"

(End of chapter)