Chapter 288 Winter Lake Cruise
During the time he returned to Beijing, the Crown Prince spent most of his time training soldiers in the Shen Ce Camp, while Qian Huan bought a new shop and was busy decorating it with plans to open a new soy sauce shop.
After finishing their respective tasks during the day, the prince took Qianhuan out for dinner in the evening, and then the two of them went to the night market hand in hand. The young couple in love were very affectionate and enjoyed their own little world to the fullest.
Ever since she was saved by Qian Bolin, Qian Huan instructed the staff of Tianxia No. 1 Garden, "If you run into Commander Qian on duty on the street and pass by our teahouse, remember to give him a cup of hot Misty Rain Oolong pure tea every time. If he refuses to accept it, you can tell him that I told you to do so. If he doesn't accept it, I will deduct your wages."
"Yes, the little one knows."
Sure enough, when the waiter offered tea to Qian Bolin, Qian Bolin directly refused. The waiter then began to play the victim as Qianhuan had instructed. Qian Bolin was a very compassionate person and could not bear to see ordinary people being bullied, so he finally accepted the tea.
Qianhuan saw through this point about Qian Bolin and asked the waiter to say this on purpose. In Qianhuan's opinion, young people like Qian Bolin are truly righteous people who serve the country and the people, and are worthy of everyone's respect.
Although I visited him and gave him gifts last time, those gifts were too insignificant compared to his life-saving grace. Although a cup of hot tea is nothing, it is also a way for me to express my gratitude.
Qian Bolin also felt very warmed by Qianhuan's actions, although General Qian had also told him to try to keep a distance from people related to the Young Master.
But for some reason, from the first time he saw Qianhuan on the street, when he saw her phoenix eyes that were similar to his mother's, he couldn't help but feel a sense of intimacy towards her, so even if his father had told him to do so, he forgot about it.
Sometimes he even thought that if his sister had not been lost, she would have been born so beautiful. If his sister was still alive, his mother would not have stayed in the Buddhist temple all day chanting and praying.
Unfortunately, they have been searching for so many years but have not found any trace of their sister.
Prince An selected many young talents for Li Yutong to choose from, but Li Yutong was still fantasizing about being with the prince and was unwilling to marry anyone else, so she was deliberately picky and pointed out the various shortcomings of these men. In the end, she couldn't choose a husband of her dreams.
Li Yutong was filled with resentment and was planning how to destroy Qianhuan.
However, before Li Yutong could make a move, Zhao Yanran and the Ninth Princess had already made their move.
It turned out that one day, the Ninth Princess called Commander Qian into her palace on the pretext of teaching her martial arts. The Ninth Princess took the opportunity to express her feelings to him, "Commander Qian, this princess has liked you for a long time. Originally, the marriage of princesses in the royal family was out of her control, but my father and mother dote on me very much. If I cry and beg my mother, she will definitely try her best to persuade my father to grant us a marriage. Commander Qian, are you willing to marry me?"
It was the first time that a woman confessed her love to him so boldly, and the other party was a princess of noble status. Qian Bolin not only did not feel happy, but also a little panicked.
He has kept in mind his father's teachings since he was a child, to be a good man who defends his country. Although the world is peaceful now and he is not needed to go to the battlefield, his mind has never been on love affairs.
Madam Qian had urged him several times to get married and have children as soon as possible, but he didn't have any girl he liked in his heart, so he declined the offer on the grounds that a good man should first make achievements and establish his career.
Now that the princess suddenly confessed her love to him, how could he not be overwhelmed with fear?
Seeing that he did not answer, the princess continued to ask, "Commander Qian, are you willing to marry me?"
"I am deeply grateful for the princess' kindness, but I cannot agree to her request."
The Ninth Princess didn't expect that she would be rejected by the other party after she mustered up the courage to confess. She asked excitedly, "Why? Is it because I am not worthy of you?"
"No, the princess is a daughter of a rich family, and I am not worthy of her. I am just a humble man, and I am afraid that I cannot bring happiness to her. Please choose another good husband."
No matter how dumb the Ninth Princess was, she could tell that this was his polite refusal. The noble lady, who had always been proud, could not stand being rejected. She shouted out of control, "Is it because of County Lady Jingrou? You like her, so you rejected me. Why am I inferior to her?"
"Please be careful with your words, Princess. Although I have feelings for Princess Jingrou, it is definitely not a romantic relationship. Please do not implicate innocent people."
When the Ninth Princess saw Qian Bolin was so anxious to protect Qianhuan, she felt even more that her guess was correct, and she ran away crying.
Afterwards, the Ninth Princess became more and more unwilling to accept it. She always felt that it was Qianhuan's fault that Qian Bolin rejected her, so she invited Zhao Yanran into the palace, and the two discussed how to teach her a lesson.
The Ninth Princess then sent an invitation, inviting Qianhuan to attend her birthday party.
Qianhuan only wanted to make money and didn't want to go to the palace to attend the banquet at all, but there was nothing she could do. A higher-ranking official could crush one to death. As a mere county lady, how could she have the courage to refuse the invitation from the Ninth Princess?
So Qianhuan had no choice but to enter the palace with her maid Yinhua, bringing the prepared gifts on the Ninth Princess' birthday.
It is now winter and the weather is very cold. The birthday banquet is held in the palace, and the emperor and the empress also come personally to give the ninth princess a birthday gift.
The noble ladies were originally playing around, but when they saw the emperor and the empress coming, they immediately fell silent, then knelt down and kowtowed to greet them.
The Ninth Princess received the gifts and immediately started to chase people away, "Father, Mother, today I have invited young ladies from official families. If you were here, they would definitely be very reserved. Father and Mother, you can just go and do your own things. I will be with you at this banquet."
The emperor said lovingly, "Okay, okay, today is my son's birthday, so naturally my son has the final say. Your mother and I will leave first."
The Ninth Princess immediately said, "Farewell, Father and Mother."
The ladies shouted in unison, "Farewell, His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Empress."
After the emperor and empress left, the hall became lively again. Everyone sat down and chatted, ate melon seeds, and finally the ladies even composed poems together.
Qianhuan just thought that this kind of banquet was quite boring. Later, someone stood up and said that there was no inspiration for composing poetry in the hall, and suggested going to the largest Ziyang Lake in the palace to take a boat to enjoy the winter scenery, which would be more inspiring.
The ladies all agreed, "Great, great. I heard that His Majesty has built a large cruise ship and placed it on Ziyang Lake for people to enjoy. We can take this opportunity to write poetry while sailing on the lake."
Qianhuan just thought that these noble ladies were really leisurely and leisurely, going boating on the lake in the middle of winter, but she didn't dare to say anything to refute, so she had to follow the group and get on the cruise ship.