GTB Chapter 189

Chapter 191: Which Prince is Good?

Chapter 191: Which Prince is Good?

At the palace gate, Shí Yuánchén stepped into Shí Yǎn’s carriage. “Seventh Brother, how can Shí Xiū’s medical skills be so superb, even better than the imperial physicians?”

“He simply prescribed the right medicine.” Shí Yǎn picked up a teacup and replied calmly.

Upon hearing this, Shí Yuánchén’s eyes flickered, and he then looked at Shí Yǎn. “Then why did they save…?”

“Firstly, they didn’t dare; secondly, they weren’t confident. Although there are many supporters of the former Crown Prince, there are also many neutral parties.”

Shí Yǎn leaned lazily against the carriage wall and continued in a low voice, “The other two are not just decorations either.”

Shí Yuánchén naturally knew who the other two were. He seemed to understand why they didn’t dare to attack the Emperor directly, but could only tempt him to ruin his own health.

In the Seventh Prince’s manor, by the stone table in the Green Bamboo Courtyard, Xiāo Lì ate pastries while praising, “These pastries are really delicious, even better than those in my Northern Kingdom.”

Jiāng Jiǔchū sipped her tea and tentatively asked, “I heard that your brother is going to marry Fàn Yùwǎn as a concubine?”

“Mm-hmm.” Xiāo Lì nodded, also looking incredulous.

“I really underestimated my brother. I didn’t expect that the direct daughter of the Grand Tutor would take the initiative to throw herself into my brother’s arms.”

“This wouldn’t be surprising in our Northern Kingdom, since there are many who want to climb the social ladder. But in your Dong Yue Kingdom, that means travelling thousands of miles.”

“I really don’t know what she’s after. Could it be my brother’s appearance? In the eyes of you Dong Yue people, is he so handsome that he’s unmatched in heaven and on earth?”

Jiāng Jiǔchū asked curiously, “How did she… take the initiative to throw herself into his arms?”

“Ah, she! She mixed in with the dancers to perform for my brother.” Xiāo Lì shook her head after speaking, then leaned close to Jiāng Jiǔchū and continued, “Let me tell you a secret, this Miss Fàn definitely doesn’t understand my brother’s character. My brother doesn’t give his heart easily, especially to those who offer themselves so readily. Men don’t cherish that.”

Jiāng Jiǔchū nodded, then looked at Xiāo Lì. “Then… this can be considered a marriage alliance, right? So you still need…”

Xiāo Lì nodded. “It’s still necessary. Jiǔchū, why don’t you tell me what these princes are like?”

“You’re more familiar with them than I am. For the sake of you being my first friend from another country, can you tell me what kind of character these princes have? Who is trustworthy and who is not?”

Jiāng Jiǔchū was stunned to hear this. To be honest, she had been skeptical about Xiāo Lì’s initiative to befriend her. Now it seemed that she had overthought things.

“If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t choose someone who already has a formal wife. After all, a princess has a noble status. Although she can enter the household as an equal wife, in the end, two tigers cannot share the same mountain.”

Xiāo Lì nodded upon hearing this. She understood this point, but in comparison, she felt that character was more important.

After all, she was marrying from afar, so finding someone with good character would be safer.

“Then, compared to the Fifth Prince and the Eighth Prince, who do you think has a better character?”

Before coming to Dong Yue, she had already learned about the princes, but the information she gathered about their character was only superficial and could not be relied upon.

“I don’t know much about the Fifth Prince. He didn’t grow up in Kyoto either, so I guess not many people know him well. As for the Eighth Prince… he’s been following the Princess around every day these past few days. I think the Princess should be able to understand him somewhat even without me saying anything.”

Jiāng Jiǔchū privately wanted Xiāo Lì to choose Shí Yuánchén. Therefore, even though she thought Shí Xiū was also a good person, she glossed over him.

“So you don’t know much about the Fifth Prince either! I was hoping to learn more about him from you.”

Xiāo Lì was still somewhat satisfied with Shí Xiū, but his demeanor, which seemed gentle and refined at all times, also made him seem unfathomable.

Jiāng Jiǔchū shook her head. “Mm, not very familiar. Do you prefer the Fifth Prince?”

“It’s alright, he just looks more pleasing to the eye, at least more pleasing than someone else.”

After saying this, Xiāo Lì grabbed Jiāng Jiǔchū’s arm and stood up, taking her hand and walking towards the courtyard entrance. “Come on, accompany me for a stroll. It’s so boring to stay in the courtyard all the time.”

“It’s already late afternoon. If we go now, won’t it be dark when we get back? Why don’t we go tomorrow?”

“So what if it’s dark? Surely your Seventh Highness can still eat dinner without you?”

Xiāo Lì teased without stopping, then turned her head to look at Jiāng Jiǔchū, whom she was pulling behind her.

“Let me tell you, there are many handsome men on the Magpie Bridge where the eastern and western streets meet at night. You don’t know, watching handsome men under the moonlight is such a great feeling. How should I express that feeling? Let me think.”

Jiāng Jiǔchū glanced at Xiāo Lì, thinking that the rumors were indeed true. This princess really enjoyed admiring male beauty.

Seeing her frown and search for words, she smiled and chimed in, “The moonlight casts its clear glow upon his face, as if a star has fallen into the mortal world.”

Xiāo Lì tilted her head and agreed with Jiāng Jiǔchū. “Yes, yes, that’s the feeling! Let’s go, let me take you…”

“Where to?” Shí Yǎn’s voice reached their ears, and he appeared at the courtyard entrance.

Xiāo Lì and Jiāng Jiǔchū stopped in their tracks upon hearing this, feeling a little guilty, but also thinking that he probably hadn’t heard.

Xiāo Lì smiled. “Nowhere. We’re just going for a walk on the street. I went to the Jade Treasure Pavilion yesterday, and the shopkeeper said that a new batch of goods would arrive today. I’m just taking Jiǔchū to take a look.”

“Is that so?” Shí Yǎn glanced coldly at Xiāo Lì, his gaze falling on their joined hands.

“Are you sure you’re looking at jewelry, and not… the so-called handsome men under the moonlight?” As he spoke, he turned his head to look at Jiāng Jiǔchū behind him. “Does Chūchū want to go?”

“Ah! That… Princess, I remember I still have something to do, so I won’t go. Another day, another day we’ll go earlier. I don’t really like strolling at night.”

As Jiāng Jiǔchū spoke, she pulled her hand away from Xiāo Lì’s. In the next moment, Shí Yǎn grabbed her hand and walked towards the courtyard.

Xiāo Lì looked at Jiāng Jiǔchū’s back, raised her hand, then dejectedly lowered it, muttering softly, “You really have no backbone.”

“Heh… you have the guts, daring to take my Seventh Sister-in-Law to see handsome men.”

As Shí Yuánchén spoke, he shook his head and sighed. “Princess, you really have a boundless audacity. Whoever marries you in the future will probably be able to raise sheep on his head.”

“Tch, what’s wrong with us women looking at them? I’m looking at you now, aren’t I? I just looked at Seventh Highness, and you also looked at this princess and Jiǔchū. It’s all looking, what’s the difference?”

“It’s always better than you men, who, when visiting brothels, must be all hands on deck!”

“You…” Shí Yuánchén was momentarily speechless. “Can men and women be the same?”

“What’s different?” Xiāo Lì looked at Shí Yuánchén with a smile. “We’re all people, we all have propriety, righteousness, and integrity. It’s just that the world is biased towards you men.”

Shí Yuánchén shook his head. “That’s just the princess’s one-sided view. The way of the world, from ancient times to the present, must have its reasons.”

As he spoke, he looked at Xiāo Lì with a serious expression. “In this prince’s opinion, because women themselves are weak and naturally lack strength, chastity, although it restricts women, also protects them.”

“Conversely, if chastity is no longer important, wouldn’t men be even more unrestrained? And then, how can no longer important chastity restrain men?”

“Those who suffer at that time will be you women, after all, women have to endure the pain of pregnancy and childbirth.”

“Therefore, only if you yourselves value chastity will men have scruples and dare not overstep the boundaries.”

After Shí Yuánchén finished speaking, he stopped looking at Xiāo Lì and instead lifted his foot and walked towards the courtyard.