Chapter 139: Chapter 125, Colorful_1
“Going out like this isn’t great because you can’t tell the exact time. For someone like me who can only tell early, mid, or late daylight, it’s easy to lose track of time if you’re not careful.”
Daohua and Zhou Jingwan walked shoulder to shoulder towards the middle of the mountain.
Zhou Jingwan: “Don’t you have servants? Surely there must be someone among the servants who can read the sky.”
Daohua shook her head, “What others can do is after all theirs; it’s never as convenient as knowing how to do it yourself.” That was the trouble with ancient times, there wasn’t anything like a wristwatch, and for time, she was flying blind.
Xiao Yeyang, who was walking in front, glanced back at Daohua, with a flash in his eyes.
By the time Daohua and the others returned to the temple on the mountainside, it was already a quarter past the hour of the rooster (5:15 PM), but it wasn’t too late. Quite a few ladies and young misses were still out admiring chrysanthemums and the scenery.
When the Madam Zhou saw them come back, she instructed the servants to call the other ladies and get ready to leave the mountain.
“It will probably take a while to get all the ladies and young misses back. It’s boring to wait here in the temple, so why don’t we start walking down?”
Xiao Yeyang looked at Daohua.
Daohua thought for a moment and felt he was right, “I’ll go and let my mother know.”
At that moment, Zhou Chengye came over with a smile, “No need. I’ve already spoken to your mother and Aunt Li; they already know and have agreed to let us go down first.”
Xiao Yeyang immediately said, “If that’s the case, then let’s go.”
Daohua, finding no objection, shrugged her shoulders and took Zhou Jingwan by the hand to follow.
It was a quick descent from the mountain, and Xiao Yeyang led the two of them to their pleasure boat.
“I didn’t feel it while walking, but now that I’ve stopped, I realize how sore my legs are!” Daohua, sitting on a stool, continuously patted her legs.
Zhou Jingwan was in the same boat.
Yan Wentao: “Big sister, what’s the fuss about? Our first time practicing the horse stance was truly miserable; we couldn’t even walk afterward.”
Daohua rolled her eyes at him, “Fourth brother, there’s no point comparing with us!”
Yan Wentao was at a loss for words.
The others, seeing this, laughed without reserve.
Amidst the laughter and chatter, Madam Zhou came down the mountain with a group of ladies and young misses.
“Jingwan, let’s go. We should join them too.” Seeing that the other ladies and young misses were already boarding the boat, Daohua quickly stood up, smiling as she spoke to Dong Yuanxuan and the others present.
“I had fun today, thanks to all the brothers’ care. If there’s an opportunity in the future, please visit my house, and I will be sure to welcome you warmly.”
Dong Yuanxuan: “Miss Yan, you’re too polite. We also enjoyed the barbecue you made today, but… there wasn’t quite enough. Next time, you’ll have to make more.”
With a smiling nod, Daohua turned to Xiao Yeyang, “Little Prince… take care of yourself!”
Xiao Yeyang’s face fell, “What, you’ll invite them to your home, and all I get is a simple ‘take care’ as a send-off?”
Daohua tilted her head with a smile, “That’s because you can come to our house anytime, but for Big Brother Dong and the others, I worry they might feel embarrassed to just show up without an invitation.”
Seeing that there was no hint of estrangement in Daohua’s tone, the corners of Xiao Yeyang’s mouth curved up, but he quickly straightened his face: “So you’re saying I’m thicker-skinned than they are and I’d show up uninvited, is that it?”
Daohua shrugged nonchalantly, “If you think you’re thick-skinned, that’s fine by me, I don’t mind.”
Hearing this, everyone else covered their mouths and snickered.
Xiao Yeyang gave Daohua a glare, his face stern but without a trace of genuine displeasure.
Daohua took Zhou Jingwan by the hand, “Alright, we really have to go now. You guys should hurry back to the academy.” With that, the two of them made their way down to the boat.
“I’ll escort them!” Zhou Chengye spoke up.
“Wait!”
Xiao Yeyang called to Zhou Chengye.
Zhou Chengye: “Little Prince, is there something you need?”
Xiao Yeyang glanced at Daohua who had just walked down the boat, “Didn’t they win the mountain climbing contest earlier? I haven’t given out the prize yet.”
Hearing this, Dong Yuanxuan and the others all looked over.
Yan Wenkai: “Really going to give a reward? Little Prince, why not forget about it? In the final stretch, if it weren’t for Daohua’s trickery, surely you would have won.”
Xiao Yeyang spoke with a stern face: “A true man admits defeat when he is defeated. I said I’d give a reward, how can I go back on my word?” Then, looking at Zhou Chengye, “I’ve already sent De Fu to fetch it. In a while, you’ll deliver it to them.”
Zhou Chengye smiled and said: “Then on behalf of the two young ladies, I thank the Little Prince for his generosity!”
Yan Wenkai’s face fell: “What should I give? I only have a few hundred copper coins on me.”
Dong Yuanxuan also joined in with a laugh: “We don’t have anything on us that could serve as a reward.”
Xiao Yeyang waved them off: “I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about it.”
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately dropped the subject, knowing that their means paled in comparison to the Little Prince.
Before long, De Fu arrived carrying two exquisite jewelry boxes.
Xiao Yeyang was somewhat dissatisfied: “Why did it take so long?” He had originally planned to give them to Daohua in person, but now he couldn’t very well go to the neighboring boat himself and had to entrust Zhou Chengye with the task.
De Fu bent his body slightly: “There are too many items, and my lord wanted something appropriate for ladies, so this servant had to carefully search for a while.”
The main reason was that the Little Prince valued the eldest Miss of the Yan Family greatly; he couldn’t just pick any random gift to dispatch the matter.
Xiao Yeyang said no more and used his fan to point at Zhou Chengye: “Give it to him!”
Zhou Chengye hesitated to accept, murmuring: “This is too valuable…”
“It’s not for you. Am I supposed to wear these myself?” Xiao Yeyang cut him off. All these items were left by Uncle Rui Wang, who said they were for him to use as rewards.
Only then did Zhou Chengye take the jewelry boxes and leave with them.
After he left, Xiao Yeyang thought for a moment, called Wentao over, and whispered something in his ear. The others watched as Wentao quickly took his leave.
De Fu, watching his own Little Prince’s actions, couldn’t help but shed bitter tears.
Not only did the Little Prince give the Yan Family’s eldest Miss the Qilin Jade Pendant awarded to him by the Emperor, but today he even gave away the pocket watch that he always wore, a tribute from a foreign country.
Could he be any more wasteful?
Daohua was unaware of their side of events; after boarding the Zhou Family’s boat, she and Zhou Jingwan received warm greetings from the Madam and young ladies of various families.
At that moment, she was frantically trying to respond to them!
Not until Zhou Chengye came over with the jewelry boxes did the attention shift from them, giving the two young ladies a reprieve.
Zhou Jingwan didn’t say a word; she grabbed Daohua and escaped to the third floor of the boat to hide.
Luckily the two of them left in time; otherwise, when Zhou Chengye announced that the jewelry boxes he brought over were rewards from the Little Prince to them, everyone would undoubtedly have insisted on seeing them opened on the spot.
The Madam Zhou accepted the rewards on behalf of the two of them, and although the other Madams were curious about the contents of the boxes, they were all promptly dispatched by Madam Zhou’s few words.
Soon, the boat began to move slowly.
By the time the boat arrived at Xingzhou Port, it was nearly dark.
The two jewelry boxes were identical, but Madam Zhou still happily let Madam Li choose first.
Madam Li hastened to decline, her face showing hesitation.
Before getting married, she had always followed her elder and second brother and had seen quite a few fine things. The jewelry boxes were made of fine materials and featured exquisite carvings that immediately appeared very valuable.
The Little Prince presented such gifts to her daughter, and she truly felt they were too hot to handle.
Madam Zhou, skilled at reading people, instantly knew what Madam Li was thinking and pushed the jewelry box in her hands into Madam Li’s: “Rest assured and take it. Didn’t the Little Prince say that these are for the competition’s reward? To speak the truth, it is my Jingwan who is basking in the light of your Daohua.”
Madam Li shook her head with a smile: “Miss Zhou is cute and lovable, who wouldn’t like her? It is my foolish girl who is benefiting.”
The two mothers complimented each other’s daughters, stopping only when Daohua and Zhou Jingwan came down from the boat.
Seeing both were worn out, they didn’t say much more. After saying goodbye, each took a jewelry box and boarded their respective carriages.