Chapter 191: Falling in Love

As fellow new Jinshi from last year, although Wen Feng was not as brilliantly talented as the Zhuangyuan who had achieved the triple honors, his scholarship was solid.

"Obtaining lotus because of the lotus, having apricots without needing plums"—with a moment's thought, one could realize this was a homophonic couplet: *Because of what did we become a pair? Having luck, no matchmaker is needed.*

Could that young lady have taken a fancy to Yang Zhe?

The young man in the center calmly shifted his gaze away from Princess Lingque and looked toward several of Yuliu's talented scholars: "Are there any more?"

The men looked embarrassed, stammering without being able to speak.

Those few upper lines were absolute in Yuliu, yet they hadn't expected them to be easily countered by the Zhuangyuan of Great Zhou.

Yang Zhe smiled slightly and cupped his hands toward the Yuliu Prince: "Couplet matching is merely a game in my Great Zhou; it is not about winning or losing. If your country's scholars are interested, I am happy to accompany them at any time."

Even though Great Zhou held the upper hand, the Yuliu Prince laughed heartily: "As expected of the Zhuangyuan. You've shown these arrogant fellows what it means to have someone greater beyond."

"Then, I shall take my leave first."

The onlookers felt a surge of pride upon hearing this exchange and applauded vigorously as Yang Zhe walked toward them.

Yang Zhe nodded modestly, his gaze sweeping through the crowd.

Walking beside him, Han Baocheng whispered, "I saw Brother Wen heading that way."

The two turned their direction and walked toward Wen Feng and Lin Hao.

"Brother Wen—"

Before Han Baocheng could speak, he was stopped by Wen Feng: "Let's leave this place before we talk..."

The group walked away quickly, and after turning a corner, they finally escaped the countless pursuing gazes.

"Second Miss Lin, you are here as well." Han Baocheng tried his best to maintain a steady expression, unaware that the corners of his mouth were curling upward.

Wen Feng could hardly bear to look. He thought to himself: *Those who know will understand you want to leave a good impression on A-Hao to marry her; those who don't will think you've taken a fancy to her.*

For instance, Yang Zhe, who had remained unfazed by Princess Lingque's subtle advances, was clearly stunned for a moment. His slightly rippling gaze landed on Lin Hao's face: "Second Miss Lin, long time no see."

A distant and polite smile hung on Lin Hao's lips: "Zhuangyuan Yang, Young Master Han, long time no see. I've been out for quite a while, so I'll head back first. Please, continue your chat."

Upon hearing Lin Hao was leaving, Han Baocheng grew anxious: "Second Miss Lin—"

The rest of his words were swallowed back by a glare from Wen Feng.

Watching helplessly as Lin Hao walked away, Han Baocheng sighed, thinking to himself that he hadn't even had the chance to ask how Eldest Miss Lin's health was.

Yang Zhe lowered his brows as he watched Han Baocheng.

Seeing Yang Zhe like this, Wen Feng knew he had misunderstood, but he simply couldn't explain it. He couldn't exactly say Han Baocheng was doing it for Chan'er, since nothing had even been decided yet.

Then, remembering that Yang Zhe had once given A-Hao a glass lamp, Wen Feng's headache grew even worse.

Why were all his friends like this!

Han Baocheng, unaware that his lack of facial control had caused his friend to misunderstand, began to worry for him instead: "Brother Yang, that girl who stepped out to offer the couplet... could she have taken a fancy to you?"

*Obtaining lotus because of the lotus, having apricots without needing plums.* This was clearly a subtle way of conveying affection.

Wen Feng's expression turned serious.

As expected, he hadn't overthought it.

Compared to the worries of his two friends, Yang Zhe remained calm and composed. He lowered his eyes slightly and asked back, "And what if she has? I am about to get married."

Han Baocheng slapped his forehead: "I almost forgot, you are the Prince Consort. It won't matter who takes a fancy to you."

Wen Feng was not so optimistic: "That girl is from Yuliu. To be able to step out and offer a couplet, her status is likely not simple. Brother Yang, you should still be careful."

Yang Zhe nodded slightly.

***

Upon returning to the General's Manor, Lin Hao went straight to Jiaoyue Residence.

"Second Sister, have you looked at the storefront?"

"I have. The location is quite good."

"I heard from the manager that there is a particularly large cosmetics shop directly opposite that shop. Since you want to sell floral waters, it might overlap with the shop opposite. Is the location really good?"

Lin Hao smiled: "That is actually better. That shop already has a stable flow of customers; the people entering are there to buy rouge and powder. As long as our floral waters are superior, we won't have to worry about customers."

Compared to the dazzling array of goods opposite, the Lin Family Fragrance Shop planned to specialize in floral waters in the future; in truth, the two were not direct competitors.

Seeing Lin Hao's confidence, Lin Chan could not bear to discourage her and smiled: "Then let's give it a try. It won't require much capital anyway."

Rather than the loss of capital, she was more worried that her confident sister would cry if she lost money.

Lin Hao smiled brightly and took Lin Chan's arm: "Big Sister, I even ran into Young Master Han on the street."

Lin Chan's face flushed, losing her previous composure: "If you ran into him, you ran into him."

"Oh," Lin Hao chuckled.

A moment later, Lin Chan's voice lowered: "So, what did you say to him?"

***

Back at the inn, Princess Lingque pulled off her veiled hat, her distress over her hair not yet growing back momentarily fading: "I didn't expect the plan to go so smoothly. Brother Wang must reward Tianming and the others well."

The Yuliu Prince smiled indifferently: "Sister Wang is satisfied with the Great Zhou Zhuangyuan, I assume?"

Princess Lingque raised her chin slightly, her face showing an undisguised determination: "He was already a satisfactory choice, but seeing him in person makes me even more satisfied. Brother Wang, hurry and propose this to the Emperor of Great Zhou, lest that couplet reaches Princess Yi'an's ears and makes her wary."

Urged by Princess Lingque, the Yuliu Prince soon entered the palace to request an audience with Emperor Taian.

Upon hearing that the Yuliu Prince requested an audience, Emperor Taian's first thought was of Princess Lingque's injuries.

"Have him enter."

Not long after, the Yuliu Prince walked into the hall and bowed to Emperor Taian.

"There is no need for such formality, Prince." Emperor Taian signaled an attendant to bring a brocade stool for the Yuliu Prince to sit on, then inquired about Princess Lingque's condition.

The Yuliu Prince showed a look of worry: "My sister is fine in all other respects, but she still cannot remember her past, which is quite distressing."

Emperor Taian's eyes flickered.

It seemed he had come to ask for favors.

Between the two nations, there was only interest to be discussed; it would be strange if Yuliu did not use Princess Lingque's injury to seek some benefits. He had known this would happen since the incident involving Princess Lingque; it remained to be seen how much the other party would demand.

Emperor Taian said apologetically, "Such an incident was truly unexpected. However, I believe Princess Lingque is a person of good fortune; she will remember sooner or later."

The Yuliu Prince was not as composed as Emperor Taian; hearing this, the corner of his mouth twitched.

*Sooner or later?*

Was such nonsense meant to comfort a three-year-old?

The Yuliu Prince sighed: "I, too, believe my sister is blessed. However, when we return to Yuliu and my father learns of her condition, I truly will have no way to explain it!"

Emperor Taian waited quietly for the Yuliu Prince to continue his performance.

The Yuliu Prince paused, then said: "Since childhood, my sister has loved and admired your country's culture. Before her departure, my father jokingly said that if she encountered an outstanding man of Great Zhou, she could stay in Great Zhou as long as she was happy. Perhaps it is a fated connection; although my sister has lost her memory, she fell in love at first sight with a man from Great Zhou. I was thinking that if we could allow them to marry well, it would be a win-win for both sides."

"I wonder whom Princess Lingque has fallen for?" Emperor Taian asked impassively.

The Yuliu Prince raised an eyebrow, a look of joy appearing on his face: "The one my sister loves is your country's new Zhuangyuan from last year."