After Marrying the Disabled Crown Prince of the Enemy Country

Chapter 19          Overly Sweet

There was a rich sandalwood incense burning in the Treasure Pavilion. Although there was no heater, it could make people feel a little warmth.

Le Zhi saw Huo Du standing in front of the Bogu shelf* with a white jade cane, wondering what he was looking at. She walked slowly to his side and followed his gaze to the fifth layer of the Bogu shelf.

(Bogu shelf* – multilayer wooden shelf for displaying antiques and treasures indoors with different shapes and layer with an open back)

There was a delicate mahogany box with two bright luminous pearls inside.

Le Zhi’s face sank. The luminous pearl was Huo Xu’s favorite collection.

Huo Du took down the mahogany box as if at random, “How about giving this to Third Imperial Brother for his wedding?”

The light of the luminous pearls was soft, but Le Zhi’s eyes were a little painful when she looked at it. Such a good thing for Huo Xu…

“It’ll be wasted.” As she said, she took the wooden box and put it back in place.

“Le Zhi.” Huo Du chuckled lightly and reached out his hand to hold her wrist, “You are too stingy.”

However, that dog thing really did not deserve it.

Le Zhi declined to comment and followed Huo Du to continue the selection. There were many treasures in the Treasure Pavilion. Le Zhi who had been childhood sweethearts with him for more than ten years was well aware of Huo Xu’s likes and dislikes. Therefore, she deliberately chose the golden utensils and jade wine-jar that Huo Xu disliked the most.

—

After coming out of the Treasure Pavilion, Le Zhi saw Jing Xin and Lin Yue come back loaded with food boxes in both hands. After seeing her and Huo Du, the two girls withdrew the smiles on their faces and walked over to salute in a hurry.

Le Zhi had no intention to hide the matter of doing business from Huo Du. Moreover, she could not hide it.

“What’s the gain today?” Le Zhi asked with a smile.

“Master, the most prosperous shop in the town recently is this Sweet Kum Kee.” Lin Yue replied, “This maid and Jing Xin stayed in the shop together for a long time and found that all men, women, and children passing by would go into the shop to have a look.”

Perhaps Jing Xin, who had always been reserved, was infected by Lin Yue’s smile also relaxed a lot at this time. She added with a smile, “There are many kinds of candied fruits and nuts pastries in Sweet Kum Kee. This maid and Lin Yue picked some well-selling ones to bring back for you to try.”

Le Zhi smiled and nodded. She was relieved that the two girls were really smart.

Since Huo Du was still on the side, she could not just follow them to leave. She knew that Huo Du had always disliked these overly sweet snacks, so she pretended to be polite and asked, “Does Your Highness want to try it together?”

Huo Du could see a trace of slyness flashed across her eyes, but he purposely did as she unexpected, “Yes, ah.”

“…”

As the nightfall approached, the sunset took the warmth away and snowflakes began to float in the sky. At first, she wanted to go to the garden to sample the snacks but had to go back to the bedroom.

The two girls put the candied pastries on small plates and retired after putting them on the table.

Le Zhi took a candied peach and put it in her mouth, and the sweet and sour taste filled her mouth, “It’s delicious, it’s so delicious!”

In the past, she loved to eat candied fruits. Although the candied fruits in the country Qi were different from that in the country Li, they tasted very good. Le Zhi sampled each kind carefully.

“Why doesn’t Your Highness eat it?” Seeing that Huo Du was just sitting and had not tasted it, Le Zhi tore a piece of candied fruit and handed it to his lips, “Your Highness, try it.”

The fruity sweet smell floated to the nose, overly sweet. Huo Du glanced at it with disgust and refused, “No…”

However, as soon as he opened his mouth, the little hand near his lips quickly stuffed the candy into his mouth, and the sweet taste overflowed in an instant. Huo Du’s face darkened in a split second.

This taste was very similar to the candy he tasted when he was a child.

There was a person in his memory who was like this. She put a small box of candy in his hand and said, “Little Du, I’ll be back soon.”

He nodded obediently in response. However, that person did not come back even after he finished eating the whole box of candy.

Since then, he had hated candy and even anything sweet.

Huo Du’s face became gloomier, and his already cold white complexion looked a little paler at this time. Le Zhi was frightened as she was afraid that her joke made him unhappy.

She leaned closer to him while trembling and lowered her head to admit her mistake. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

There was no response.

“Since Your Highness doesn’t like to eat it, just… just spit it out.” She said softly, and then put her slightly trembling hand near his lips.

In the next moment, Huo Du grabbed her hand and pulled it hard. When she regained her sense, Huo Du’s lips were already on hers, and their breath intertwined. She could see her stunned expression in his black eyes.

Unlike the last time when they were in the hot spring pool, he kissed eagerly and fiercely this time.  Sure enough, he was angry.

Le Zhi felt that he used the tip of his tongue to push the remaining candy into her mouth. The lychee candy was soft and fragrant. He did not let go of her until the candy completely melted.

Huo Du rubbed her shiny lips with his finger, which made Le Zhi’s face blush even redder.

“Do you still dare?” His tone was casual.

Le Zhi shook her head vigorously.

Don’t dare, don’t dare, don’t dare anymore! The temperament of this lunatic is too hard to guess.

After a while, Le Zhi decided to change the subject to ease the weird atmosphere.

“Your Highness, what do you think of opening a snack shop like this?” Le Zhi sighed as she really had no experience in the business.

A smile finally appeared on Huo Du’s gloomy face.

Tsk, it turned out that she wanted to open a shop. Such a small profit but quick turnover shop was not profitable at all. Coupled with the existence of a time-honored shop, it was even more difficult for new shops to make a profit.

An inexperienced person like her would surely suffer.

Thinking of this, Huo Du was silent for a moment as if he was thinking seriously and then said with a gentle smile, “This loneliness thinks Taizifei has a very good idea.”

Did it matter to him whether she loses money or not?

Oh, it seemed to matter as she borrowed the capital from him.

Oh, that’s even better.

It’s better if she loses it and can’t pay it back.

It was rare to see such a kind smile on Huo Du’s face, but Le Zhi felt a chill in her heart.

—

In order to try these candied pastries, Le Zhi almost filled herself to bursting point and did not even take a few bites during dinner.

Jing Xin carefully brought the hawthorn tea and conveniently served her in changing clothes. Le Zhi gave Jing Xin the work of a personal servant. Although this girl did not talk much, she knew how to observe people’s words and expressions very well.

Sitting in front of the bronze mirror, Le Zhi gently took a sip of tea and saw Jing Xin who was combing her hair behind her through the mirror. The little girl had a beautiful appearance, revealing a gentle temperament.

“Jing Xin, where is your hometown?” Le Zhi asked as if she was chatting trivial matters with her, “How many people are there in the family?”

Jing Xin’s hand that held the wooden comb paused for a while after hearing this. The smile on her face faded, and her eyebrows narrowed slightly.

Le Zhi turned her head and said with a smile, “I just asked casually. It’s alright. If you don’t want to say it, don’t say it.”

However, Jing Xin’s eyes gradually turned red. She choked with sobs and said, “It’s not that this maid unwilling to answer Master. It’s just that this maid… this maid doesn’t know…”

Le Zhi asked her to sit on the chair, took out the handkerchief, and handed it to her, “Take your time, don’t rush.”

“This maid was seriously ill a few years ago and couldn’t remember anything when I woke up. Later, a person who claimed to be my aunt sold me into the Imperial Palace, and this maid was arranged by the palace momo to work at Eastern Palace as a maid.”

It turned out to be like this. What Jing Xin experienced turned out to be a rare type of amnesia. So, what did her past have anything to do with An Xuan?

Le Zhi suddenly felt a headache. In this unfamiliar Great Qi, everyone around her was a mystery.

The author has something to say:

Regarding the foreshadowing in the text, it will be revealed little by little later. Zhizhi is not a perfect heroine. She has been growing rapidly since her country was subjugated. She will live more cautiously and suspiciously because of this. It’s even hard for her to trust others.

Having said so much, I actually want to say that His Highness has an exceptionally long road in chasing his wife. Hahahahaha!