What Exactly is This Situation?
Following this question, everyone turned their gazes out the window. Even Xuan Tian Ming and Feng Yu Heng were no exception.
On the lake outside of Refined Deity Building, there was a small boat slowly making its way forward. On the small boat, there was a man sitting with his back to the window. He wore a thin and light-colored top, and he had his hair tied up. Moving a hand-folding fan in his hand, he was engaged in a loud conversation with the woman across from him.
Although they said that it was a woman, it was nothing more than a young girl around eleven or twelve years of age. She wore a red dress and had her hair tied up like two meatballs. Her face was very pretty, and she looked very lively. While speaking, gestured happily, and the sounds of laughter would occasionally come from the boat.
Of the two, one was moving and one was silent. The girl’s jubilation accompanied by the man’s silence complimented each other quite well, creating a very eye-catching scene.
Feng Yu Heng and Xuan Tian Ming looked at each other, a bit of surprised appearing in their eyes. At this time, they heard Duan Mu Qing’s voice from the neighboring room: “His Highness the seventh prince?”
Someone to the side replied: “This is quite refreshing. His Highness the seventh prince has never liked getting close to any women. Aside from getting along a little better with county princess Ji An, today would mark a first.”
“Who is that girl?”
This question caused everyone to freeze. Feng Yu Heng and Xuan Tian Ming were also speculating, but they had no clue. Huang Quan and Wang Chuan also shook their heads, expressing that they did not know.
That girl looked very unfamiliar. It was definitely someone that they had not met before, but for some reason, Feng Yu Heng felt that that person’s smile seemed to be a little familiar.
While they were guessing, the people on the boat had already reached the shore, and the restaurant’s waiter invited them into the building.
In the next room, Duan Mu Qing spoke once more: “Apparently, aside from the owner, his Highness the ninth prince, only two other people are able to come here and eat without a reservation. One is county princess Ji An, and the other is his Highness the seventh prince.”
Someone corrected him: “In truth, it’s only his Highness the seventh prince because county princess Ji An counts as an owner.”
Duan Mu Qing coldly snorted then said: “Nearly six years ago, I came back to the capital once. During a palace banquet, I once met his Highness the seventh prince. At that time, he looked refined like a deity and was quite unforgettable. However, I never thought that upon seeing him again, he would have a female partner as his side. It really is hard to believe! Let’s go. Let’s go and greet his Highness the seventh prince.”
Following Duan Mu Qing saying to go give a greeting, all of the people in the neighboring room got up. When they just exited their private room, Xuan Tian Hua and the girl had already come up.
With Duan Mu Qing leading the way, all of the officials kneeled in front of Xuan Tian Hua, saying: “This lowly official greets your Highness, Prince Chun.”
Very quickly, Xuan Tian Hua’s voice came across: “There is no need to be so modest here. You may all rise.” He then paused for a moment then added: “You refer to yourself as lowly official, but this prince finds you to be very unfamiliar. Are you an official from outside the capital?”
These words were very clearly directed at Duan Mu Qing. Feng Yu Heng heard this from the inside and let out a “pft” and laughed. Although she was very careful to keep her voice down, it was still heard by the man that was refined like a deity. He curled up the corners of his lips, and the kind look on his face became even more profound.
But Duan Mu Qing’s face became green once more. His mind was extremely off-balance, alright? As the deputy leader of the three northernmost provinces, he was quite a powerful official. The North was such an important place. With him entering the capital, more than half of the officials went to the Xiang Palace to visit him. Presently, Da Shun and Qian Zhou were on the brink of going to war. As the deputy leader of the three northernmost provinces, even the Emperor had to give him a bit of face, but why was his presence so weak to Feng Yu Heng, the ninth prince and the seventh prince? Right now, this deity was really quite good, as he actually did not recognize him!
The officials that had come to eat with Duan Mu Qing were very embarrassed, but no matter how embarrassed they felt, they did not dare speak. This was his Highness the seventh prince. Aside from the ninth prince, the only one who dared to argue with the Emperor was his Highness the seventh prince.
Thus it fell silent outside for a while. Finally, Duan Mu Qing became terrified and took the initiative to say: “This lowly official is the deputy leader of the three northernmost provinces, Duan Mu Qing.”
“Oh.” Only then did Xuan Tian Hua react; however, he muttered with a pondering voice: “Duan Mu QIng?” It was clear that he still did not know who he was.
At this time, a clear girl’s voice came: “Seventh brother, let’s go eat. I’m hungry.”
With the words seventh brother being said, Feng Yu Heng, who was inside the private room, nearly choked on her tea. She stared blankly at the door and had an impulse to rush out to take a look. Who exactly was this? They actually called Xuan Tian Hua seventh brother?
She looked at Xuan Tian Ming in confusion and quietly asked: “What is this situation?”
Xuan Tian Ming shrugged, “I don’t know either.”
Outside, Xuan Tian Hua’s voice was raised once more: “You must have come to eat as well, right? This Refined Deity Building has a great number of delicious foods. Since deputy leader has come a long way from the North, you must try them all. Waiter!” He waved: “Send the Refined Deity Building’s 18 dishes to their private room.” He then said: “Please enjoy the meal slowly. This prince will not be accompanying you.”
With these words, the liveliness outside dispersed. Duan Mu Qing’s group returned to the neighboring room and sat down. Not long later, the so-called 18 dishes were brought up by the waiter.
Bai Ze clicked his tongue and quietly said: “His Highness is really quite fierce! Refined Deity Building’s signature 18 dishes are the best in the world. If a normal person wanted to eat that, they would need to book it five days in advance. Duan Mu Qing really is quite fortunate this time.”
Xuan Tian Ming saw Feng Yu Heng looking at him with an impish expression, letting him know that this was a bad situation. He quickly took the initiative to say: “Next time, next time you’re hungry, I’ll bring you to come and eat.”
“Hmph.” A certain person rolled her eyes and ignored him, but she still muttered: “It’s wasted on Duan Mu Qing. It’s truly a waste.”
Like this, they sat for another two hours, and the neighboring room finally finished eating. They repeatedly praised it, saying: “Refined Deity Building’s reputation is really well-deserved.” Even Duan Mu Qing had to praise the 18 dishes. He then loudly shouted: “Waiter, the bill!”
The waiter ran in and respectfully said: “The total is 2800 taels.”
“What?” Duan Mu Qing immediately let out a shout, “How much?”
The waiter repeated himself, “The total is 2800 taels.”
Duan Mu Qing burped, nearly vomiting everything that he had just eaten. He was a little unable to accept it, “Why is it so expensive? We only asked for a few dishes?”
The waiter said: “Refined Deity Building’s signature 18 dishes on its own is 2666 taels. You also ordered two jars of apricot wine…”
“Wait a moment.” The waiter was interrupted, “The signature 18 dishes were ordered by his Highness the seventh prince.”
“Right!” The waiter spoke as if it was natural: “The dishes were ordered by his Highness, but it was you that ate it. My good sirs, it shouldn’t be that… you don’t have money, right?”
Duan Mu Qing angrily slapped the table, “It was his Highness that invited us to eat this. Why must we pay for it?”
The waiter’s attitude became a little worse: “My lord, your words are not very reasonable. At the time that his Highness the seventh prince ordered this dish, this lowly one was here. If you did not wish to eat it, you could have refused, but you accepted it, and you even ate it. Why is it that you lost your temper when it comes time to pay? How about you go over there to try and reason with his Highness the seventh prince?”
Duan Mu Qing was unwilling to lose that much face. Moreover, he did not quite dare to go. Fortunately, he had brought some bank notes before leaving home today. At first, he was planning to use his connections to take a stroll around the capital; however, who knew that a simple meal would leave him in this state.
When they left, their faces were completely black. Feng Yu Heng leaned against the crack in the door to look out. Duan Mu Qing’s distressed look left her dazed from the laughter. Only after the group had already left the building did Xuan Tian Ming pull her back.
Bai Ze had already shifted the painting back into its original position, and she burst into a loud laugh: “Seventh brother really is good!”
Just after saying this, a clear laugh also came from the door. Immediately following this, a figure that was refined like a deity appeared in front of them.
Feng Yu Heng happily broke free from Xuan Tian Ming’s grasp and rushed over to hug Xuan Tian Hua’s sleeve: “Seventh brother, I’ve missed you.”
Xuan Tian Hua looked at her, his face filled with a doting expression; however, he asked Xuan Tian Ming: “Why has this girl become both darker and skinnier?”
Xuan Tian Ming spread his hands, “It might be from the furnace while working on steel.” He then reached out and pulled her back. “Pay a little attention to your appearance.”
She lost it. It had been nearly half a year since she had seen Xuan Tian Hua. To say that she did not miss him would be a lie, but she saw Xuan Tian Ming point behind him, thus she saw the face of a curious girl.
Feng Yu heng blinked, and that girl also blinked. She pouted, and she also pouted. She tilted her head and leaned against Xuan Tian Ming, and the girl also tilted her head, leaning against Xuan Tian Hua.
Feng Yu Heng’s heart trembled, as a strange feeling filled her heart. When she looked again at Xuan Tian Hua, her gaze was filled with questions.
But he did not pick up on this, only giving her a brief introduction: “This is Yu Qian Yin.” That was all.
Feng Yu Heng was a little unreconciled, but Xuan Tian Ming grabbed her shoulder and used a bit of force. She understood that this meant she should not continue to ask. Thus she gave up and did not speak.
The group once again sat down at the table, and the waiter brought in some more dishes. The girl called Yu Qian Yin swallowed back some drool and asked Xuan Tian Hua: “Seventh brother, can I eat now?”
Xuan Tian Hua smiled and nodded, “Quickly eat. This trip has left you starving.” His voice was gentle, but it did not have that doting tone as when speaking to Feng Yu Heng.
Yu Qian Yin happily picked up her chopsticks and went straight for the pork shoulder without even thinking.
This time, it was not just Feng Yu Heng, as even Xuan Tian Ming was a little on the verge of collapse. Watching the girl eat the pork shoulder, she was practically the exact same as Feng Yu Heng. The corner of his lip subconsciously began twitching.
Wang Chuan and Huang Quan looked at each other then looked at Yu Qian Yin, their eyes contained a bit of hostility.
Xuan Tian Ming took the initiative to speak: “Seventh brother.” It was just a few words; however, he knew that he would understand his intentions.
But Xuan Tian Hua only said: “Ming’er, has the steel been successfully produced?” Changing the subject, he did not want to discuss anything related to Yu Qian Yin.
Feng Yu Heng could no longer endure and simply began speaking to the object of their fascination. She leaned over and asked with a smile: “Do you also like to eat pork shoulder? It’s my favorite.”
Yu Qian Yin saw that Feng Yu Heng was speaking to her and was very happy. Forcefully swallowing the meat in her mouth, she took a sip of water before saying: “The pork shoulder meat is very smooth, and it tastes the best. Especially the places where there are tendons, the texture is the best!” After saying this, before waiting for Feng Yu Heng to ask again, she added: “Aside from pork shoulder, I also love eating pigeon, especially fried. The crispy skin combined with the tender meat is truly very fragrant.”
Bang!
Feng Yu Heng slapped the table with her palm, glaring straight at Xuan Tian Hua, her expression immediately sinking down.