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Around noon, He Yu brought Xiao Yao back to Qing Shu Pavilion.
The courtyard was quiet, and Yun Yue came forward to take the items from Yun Zhu's hands. Xiao Yao casually asked, "Where is my son?"
"Replying to the prince and princess, Eldest Son is currently playing in the bamboo forest with Wu Yun, and Second Young Master is in the study of the side hall reading. Liu Jin is accompanying him," Yun Bi replied.
"Indeed, like master, like pet," He Yu laughed. "I'll go check on the eldest; you should go see Second Brother. I bet the eldest is having a great time with Wu Yun and won't pay attention; be careful they don't accidentally hurt you." He Yu patted Xiao Yao's shoulder.
Xiao Yao thought about it and agreed, nodding as she parted ways with He Yu.
Entering the side hall, her footsteps caught Liu Jin's attention as it was lying on the ground sleeping. It lifted its head alertly to look at Xiao Yao, and upon recognizing her, relaxed again and lay down watching her. Xiao Yao approached and patted Liu Jin's head, scratching its chin, which made Liu Jin emit a comfortable and contented purring sound.
Xiao Yao smiled slightly, stood up, and looked into the inner room. Sure enough, she saw He Zi'an engrossed in a book. Not wanting to disturb him, she quietly stepped back and said to Yun Zhu, "This garden is indeed much cooler than in the capital."
"Yes," Yun Zhu knew that Xiao Yao was thinking of something else entirely, so she proactively continued the conversation. "I have already instructed the kitchen to prepare mung bean soup. The two young masters just had their meal half an hour ago. The master came out a bit hurriedly earlier; perhaps he didn't notice that ice has been placed in the study. However, no one is fanning it. The ice is by the window, allowing a cool breeze to flow into the room without being too cold."
"Mm." Xiao Yao nodded with a smile, not holding back her praise. "Yun Zhu, you really handle things well."
"Thank you for your praise, my lady," Yun Zhu said with a bow and a smile. Xiao Yao continued, "When we return to the capital this time, I plan to choose a few attendants for these two sons. You and Zhao Hezhong discuss it and provide me and the prince with some options."
Hearing this, Yun Zhu felt a surge of excitement; this meant that her position was now firmly established alongside Zhao Hezhong. Although previously it had been practically her and Zhao Hezhong making decisions together, she had never received such direct acknowledgment from her lady before.
Now that she had heard Xiao Yao say this, it felt solidified. Yun Zhu immediately bowed respectfully and replied, "Yes, I will certainly provide my lady with a satisfactory answer."
"Good."
Although she didn't want to disturb her son while he was studying, even a scholar needed to eat.
When it was time for lunch, Xiao Yao sent someone to call her son back to the main hall for their meal. Since they had been out for quite some time, Li Pei and Li Da naturally followed along.
Although Qing Shu Pavilion was somewhat remote, it was spacious enough; all necessary facilities were present in the courtyard, including a kitchen.
Moreover, who would dare neglect someone living under the authority of Xuanping Wang in the capital? The food sent to Qing Shu Pavilion was on par with what was served to the emperor and princes—fresher than what concubines received.
Xiao Yao was sitting in the house, tidying up the large floral patterns when two dirty little boys rushed in, startling her completely unprepared. After a startled scream, she recognized that it was her husband and eldest son.
"You... did you two get into a fight? Or did someone beat you?" Xiao Yao asked with a trembling voice.
"Not really," He Yu said casually, not feeling anything was wrong. "We just had so much fun that we didn't pay attention to this."
"..." This one hadn't grown up either. Xiao Yao waved her hand, "Alright, alright, you two hurry up and take a bath! If you don't clean yourselves up, you won't eat today!"
The faces of the father and son, which were originally full of excitement, immediately fell. He Ziyi even made a face and stuck out his tongue, saying, "Mother is a bad egg!"
"Right," He Yu surprisingly agreed with He Ziyi seriously, "Look how angry Mother is; she won't even let us eat."
Xiao Yao couldn't help but laugh in anger, crossing her arms with a cool tone, "Do you want to say that again louder?"
Instantly, the father and son felt a chill rising from their feet; the cooling effect in this hot weather couldn't be better. He Yu turned around with a dry laugh, "No, we didn't do anything. Son, what did you just say?"
"Huh?" He Ziyi immediately played along with his father and pretended to be clueless, "I didn't say anything at all. Father, did you hear anything?"
"Father didn't hear anything at all; shall we go take a bath?"
"Sure! I love taking baths with Father!" He Yu picked up his eldest son and headed towards the Bath while acting out their little play.
They completely ignored Xiao Yao behind them who was both amused and exasperated.
After bathing and changing into clean clothes, He Yu returned to his appearance of a refined young gentleman. Meanwhile, the eldest son He Ziyi had rosy cheeks that made him look like tender grass.
It was truly a case of appearances being deceiving; Xiao Yao deeply felt this truth.
"Mother, is it time to eat?" At that moment, He Zi'an also came in. Seeing the wet hair of the father and son, he paused and asked, "Did Father and Big Brother go take a bath?"
"Yes! Don't I smell nice?" He Ziyi said proudly as he approached He Zi'an's nose after just finishing his bath.
"..." He Zi'an raised his neck disdainfully and said, "Only girls would ask others if they smell good. Are you a girl?"
After being hit with He Zi'an's sharp tongue, He Ziyi's previously excited expression quickly wilted, drooping like a lost puppy. It seemed that someone needed to put her in her place. Watching He Ziyi, who had been flaunting under He Yu's shelter, become utterly dejected by a single remark from her younger brother, she couldn't help but feel a strange sense of satisfaction as if a great grievance had been avenged.
This is not good, not good at all...
In the afternoon, the Brothers were sent by their mother to visit the Prince's Princess.
This was also the first time the Brothers understood what it meant to interact with the opposite sex and what it felt like to blush. Years later, He Zi'an would realize that the shock he felt upon seeing Yang Ning back then was what people called love at first sight.
Although the Brothers couldn't act recklessly on their own turf, they were still the sons of a prince.
They still had classes to attend and rules to follow; when going out, they were no exception.
This was their first social interaction with a girl. He Yu waved his hand and assigned Zhao Hezhong to accompany the brothers. After all, while some might not recognize Xuanping Wang's twin sons, no one in the garden would be unfamiliar with Zhao Hezhong.
Upon arriving at Wenjin Pavilion, the gatekeeper eunuch spotted Zhao Hezhong from afar and recognized the two boys immediately. He quickly bowed and led them inside to find the Consort.
The Consort gently patted the heads of the two children and said softly, "The Princess just woke up from her nap. Can you wait here for a moment? I’ll go call her over."
Being straightforward, He Zi'an had no objections and sat down on a chair, picking up a snack to examine.
He Ziyi, on the other hand, performed a proper greeting and obediently said, "It's fine; my sister is a girl; she is the Princess. We should wait."
This child is quite articulate! The Consort showed an expression of surprise but then recalled Xiao Yao's previous comments about her son and understood. She smiled gently and said, "Alright, I'll go call your sister over. You two can have some snacks."
After waiting for a while, the Brothers saw a lovely girl with double buns enter. She had bright black eyes and a fair, translucent face with two rosy blushes. She wore a pink dress.
Yang Ning was initially excited to have someone come play with her and skipped happily along the way.
However, when she actually reached the door of this room, Yang Ning hesitated; after all, she didn't know them yet.
As soon as Yang Ning walked in, He Ziyi came up boldly, circling around Yang Ning and asking, "Are you Princess?"
He Ziyi, who loved to play with swords and was always getting into trouble and climbing trees, was already bigger than other children his age. He spoke loudly and boisterously, never learning what it meant to be refined.
After being circled by He Ziyi a couple of times, Yang Ning shrank her neck, tears almost spilling from her eyes.
He Zi'an, standing behind, muttered under his breath, "Idiot!"
Then he revealed a friendly and harmless smile, stepped forward, and took Yang Ning's hand. "Don't be afraid. I'm He Zi'an, and this is my brother, He Ziyi. He may look fierce, but he's actually a good person."
What does it mean to have comparison for discernment?
With He Ziyi's fierceness in front of her, facing the gentle and warm He Zi'an made the girl instantly develop countless fond feelings for him. She also showed a sweet smile. "Yes! I'm Yang Ning. My mother sent me to play with you."
"Yes, my mother is the same," He Zi'an gave Yang Ning a reassuring smile. "I remember there's a garden not far ahead; let's go play there!"
"Okay!" Perhaps it was because her brother's smile was too charming; Yang Ning had no resistance to He Zi'an's suggestion and agreed without knowing how far the garden was. She simply believed that following this good brother would surely be the right choice.
As for He Ziyi, he didn't feel neglected at all and happily followed along to the garden to play.
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