Chapter 3

The bridal chamber, filled with red veils and red silk, was lit up with long-lasting lamps, making it look very festive.

    When Yan Shi walked into the inner room, he saw Hua Ling sitting upright with her red head covered. The wedding maids who were waiting beside him saw him coming and gave him a salute, but Yan Shi waved his hand and told them to leave.

    Soon, only the two of them were left in the large room. There was silence for a while, except for the occasional crackle of burning candles.

    A cold smile appeared on Yan Shi's face as he looked at the person who was close at hand. This Kang Guofu was owned by King Zhaoge, and the mother of King Zhaoge was none other than the current step-mother, who was a sister of the same mother as Yang, and the step-mother was the mother of the murdered royal son fifteen years ago.

    When he was about to turn around and walk out, he heard a gurgling sound, and then he looked at his concubine, whose hands were quickly covering her stomach.

    "Yes, I'm sorry." Unlike the cry he had heard during the day, this voice was clear and bright, with the purity of a young boy's voice, and a little too small to be heard unless one listened carefully.

    "Hungry? There are snacks on the table, come and get them yourself." He had expected the new princess to complain in tears that he had come back too late and left himself hungry, as she had done during the day.

    "I... I have a head covering. Look, you can't see the road." The voice was still small and with a slight tremor, was this fear?

    After thinking about it, Yan Shi said, "It's not a bad idea to lift the head cover since the wedding is already done. Yan Shi didn't expect him to cover his head, so he didn't prepare a weighing rod, he just walked forward and lifted the head with his hand.

    Hua Ling's head was lowered and he could not see his face.

    "Alright, go and eat by yourself." Yan Shi didn't have the curiosity to let him lift his head to see what he looked like.

    Hua Ling grasped the hem of his clothes with both hands and rubbed himself a little on the ground, his buttocks just left the bed and his body leaned forward violently.

    "Ah..." he cried out in shock at the change of events just now, and seeing himself falling into a warm embrace, he went red all the way to the tips of his ears.

    "Many, many thanks." Hua Ling struggled to stand up from Yan Shi's embrace, "I'm so useless, my legs got weak after sitting for such a short while."

    It was only then that Yan Shi saw his face clearly, Hua Ling had a face that was more beautiful than a woman's, but without a trace of femininity, one would not mistake him for a woman. The large, round eyes in particular added a touch of childishness to the face. He looks like a 15 or 16 year old.

    It was not that he was bewitched by beauty, but he did not expect his concubine to look so good. The doubts in his heart deepened.

    "It is all right," he asked when he saw that he was on his feet, "can you go on your own?"

    Hua Ling replied cautiously, "Yes, I can."

    Hua Ling had already walked to the table, and Yan Shi wanted to walk out again.

    "Brother -" came Hua Ling's brittle voice from behind him.

    Brother? No one had ever called him brother before, the royal family would only call him brother.

    Feast Solid turned his head and asked suspiciously, "What else is the matter?"

    "Brother, aren't you eating?" Hua Ling came to see him with a plate of snacks, his eyes blinking with longing.

    "I'm not eating, you can eat." Yangshi tried not to look at those eyes.

    "But I can't eat it if you don't." Hua Ling's eyes instantly became a little disappointed, and her small mouth held back.

    Yangshi said, "You can eat it yourself, don't mind me."

    Hua Ling asked, "Brother, aren't you hungry?"

    If he didn't say it, he wouldn't feel hungry, but when he did, he did feel a bit hungry. Although there was a wedding banquet, he had eaten and drunk a few cups of wine, but had not eaten anything else.

    Seemingly, Hua Ling tugged at his sleeve, "Brother, sit down and eat with me."

    I don't know whether it was because he was really hungry or because Hua Ling looked too pitiful. Anyway, Yan Shi sat down at the table with him.

    Hua Ling picked out some delicious looking snacks and brought them to Yan Shi, "Brother, you eat."

    Only when he saw that Yan Shi had eaten them did he happily take a small bite of the rest of the snacks he had picked out.

    Looking at their respective pastries, Yan Shi asked, "Why are the two of us different?" It was obvious that the one Hua Ling gave him was much better than the one he left for himself s

    Hua Ling put down the half bitten snack and swallowed the contents of his mouth before saying, "I have to save the goodies for my brother, that's what I did in the house too."

    "In the mansion? Aren't you the elder brother?" Yan Shi did not have a good impression of Hua Qian Cheng, and thought that all the children of the Hua family were domineering, domineering, uncaring frogs, but he did not expect that the young prince he had married was quite polite.

    "Mother said that good things should be given to parents and younger siblings." Hua Ling spoke with a straight face, this mother referring to Yang's.

    Yan Shi asked curiously, "Then what kind of things are yours?"

    "Naturally, it's the leftovers from my parents and siblings."

    "Don't you feel aggrieved?"

    Hua Ling gave him a surprised look, "Doesn't brother know the story of Kong Rong letting the pear go?"

    Yan Shi choked for a moment at his words, then smiled, "Naturally, I do know it."

    "You are older than me, and I am younger than you, so good things have to be given to you. And as my younger siblings are younger than me, I, as an older brother, should give way to them." When Hua Ling finished, his eyes went back to the snacks on the table.

    "Hurry up and eat." When he saw him eat, Hua Ling took another bite of the pastry. After eating five or six in a row, he seemed to be full, so he poured a cup of tea and brought it to Yangshi, "Please use the tea, brother."

    When he took a sip, he poured himself a cup and drank it too, then his big eyes blinked at him.

    Yan Shi was not in a hurry to leave, "Did your mother teach you a lot?"

    "Yes!" Hua Ling seemed to be less formal than before, "She teaches me a lot of things, such as playing the qin, chess, calligraphy and painting, and making clothes."

    Yan Shi frowned, this was a good idea, but what about making clothes out of fabric? Isn't that what women are supposed to learn?

    "Brother, look, I have embroidered the design on this head." Hua Ling presented the red head to Yangshi with both hands as if it was a treasure, and his words were full of pride.

    The red head was beautifully embroidered with a picture of mandarin ducks playing in the water. It was beautifully embroidered with a circle of gold threads around the red head, making it look elegant. He had not noticed the red head, but thought it was embroidered by the Duke of Hongle's family, but he did not expect it to be by Hua Ling's hand.

    When he looked up, he saw Hua Ling looking at him with an expression that begged for praise, he coughed softly, "It is quite beautiful.

    "And the wedding dress I'm wearing, I also made it myself." Hua Ling said, "When I was little, my mother always told me that I must learn how to make women's dress, so that when I come to my husband's house, I won't be disliked."

    Yan Shi frowned slightly, "When I was little? Often? This meant that she had never thought of giving him a wife?

    He thought Hua Ling's wedding dress was made by the palace, but he didn't expect it to be made by his own hands.

    "You..." Yan Shi paused and asked, "Have you learnt to ride a horse and shoot arrows?"

    "Never," Hua Ling shook his head and said with a smile, "Mother said I don't need to learn that, it's too hard for me, so I should just let my younger brothers suffer. Although she is not my real mother, she loves me very much and doesn't want me to suffer a bit."

    "How are you doing with your studies?" Yan Shi asked again.

    "Yes," Hua Ling replied, "I can write poetry."

    Yan Shi said, "Then write a poem."

    "What should I write?" Hua Ling's eyes looked around the room, "I have one, today is our big day, I will make a poem on this topic."

    Hua Ling softly spoke with his voice and began to compose a poem -

    "There is a great joy today."

    Yan Shi almost spat out the tea in his mouth.

    "I got married to my brother."

    Yan Shi let out a deep breath and listened as he continued to read.

    "From then on, we were one heart."

    "Well ..." the last sentence seemed to be stuck, Hua Ling cocked his head and frowned, thinking for a short while, "Love and grace for a hundred years."

    When the poem was finished, Hua Ling didn't forget to ask, "Brother, how did I do with this poem?" Although he  was asking, his face was full of confidence.

    "No, not bad." Looking at his smiling face, Yan Shi complimented him with his conscience.

    "Mother also said my poems were well done," Hua Ling, who had received the compliment, smiled even more happily, "and often praised me, she also said that my brother's poems were too complicated and not as good as mine."

    "Then the husband thought so too?"

    "At first a master said that my poems were not good, and Mother said that he was not very learned and misleading, so she drove him away, and then invited another master back. This master knows a lot, and he often praises me."

    "Didn't your mother say when you could take the imperial examination?" Yan Shi continued, "After all, if you are so well educated, you should serve the court earlier."

    Hua Ling said, "Mother said that I don't need to take any examinations, and that the position of Duke of Kangle will be mine in the future. Accompanying the ruler is like accompanying a tiger, so it's better to just be a relaxed prince."

    At this point, what Yan Shi wanted to know was almost known. What a clever woman, what a ruthless ploy.

    The little prince was blinking his big beautiful eyes at him, not knowing what he was thinking. Yan Shi sighed silently, what a poor little fool.

(T/N: Oops I don't think he is a fool Yan shi and you might have invited a tiger over)

    He was not completely unguarded by Hua Ling, but he still needed to observe him later.

    He had decided to be a husband in name only, but perhaps the same experience of losing his mother at a young age had made him feel compassionate. If you are as innocent as you seem, I will let you go when you find a good man.