Ruge smiled without comment, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, please take care of yourself."
Xiao Yichen smiled calmly and nodded, "Ruge, are you interested in competing with me to see who catches more fish?"
Ruge: "Obedience is worse than respect." As she said that, she sat down on the chair next to Xiao Yichen, and the palace maids prepared fishing utensils and brought them to her.
Ji Lingxue was puzzled. She had just beaten up a clumsy flower thief last night, and today Xiao Yichen, with a bruised face, asked her and Ruge to go fishing together. There must be a connection between the two.
Besides, Xiao Yichen was good at martial arts and he was the emperor. Even if he went to bed with servants serving him, the chance of him tripping when getting up in the middle of the night to drink tea was too small. It was clearly a lie. As an emperor, he always had to save his face. She could understand that.
But she couldn't understand why Xiao Yichen had to ask them to go fishing today with such a bruised face. Did he want her to see his latest "masterpiece"? He had already found other excuses for his injury, so was he deliberately making things difficult for her because of this
While Ji Lingxue was thinking, Ruge's fishing rod moved. He raised the fishing rod and said with a smile, "The fish is hooked!" Then he began to reel in the line. A small fish the size of a thumb was hanging on the hook, swaying with the fishing line.
Ruge's face turned dark instantly. How could he be so unlucky? He had put a lot of bait, but how come he only caught such a small fish
Xiao Yichen smiled and said, "Congratulations. I think I'll have to raise this fish for half a year before I can eat it."
Ruge's mouth twitched and she turned her gaze to Ji Lingxue behind her, but she saw that her eyes were empty and her thoughts had long since flown away.
"Zhixue?!" Ruge shouted.
Ji Lingxue came back to her senses and looked at Ruge blankly, "Brother...what's wrong?"
Ruge said a little dejectedly: "I caught a small fish."
Ji Lingxue nodded, with an expression that said "I understand", took the fishing rod from Ruge's hand, patted her chest and said, "Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
Xiao Yichen raised his eyebrows and saw Ji Lingxue flicking his sleeves, sitting on the chair with great pride, swinging the fishing rod in his hand towards the lotus pond, staring at the pond surface motionlessly.
Xiao Yichen asked, "Princess Zhixue is quite interested in fishing?"
Ji Lingxue shook her head and said, "Even if you haven't eaten pork, you have seen a pig unable to run away. Isn't it the same when you go fishing?" She didn't believe that she couldn't catch a big fish with her fishing rod.
Xiao Yichen smiled brightly, but said nothing else. He stared at the pond in silence.
Time passed by, and the warm spring sun made Ji Lingxue's forehead break out in a thin layer of sweat. Ruge was waiting anxiously, but there was no movement from the other end of the fishing rod.
Ruge held her stomach and frowned, then turned around and let her father-in-law lead the way to the toilet.
Xiao Yichen turned his head to look at Ji Lingxue. The sun shone on her face. There were beads of sweat on her forehead, like the most dazzling jewels in the world. Xiao Yichen raised his hand and a handkerchief fell into his palm. "Wipe it off."
Ji Lingxue looked at the handkerchief, and when she looked up again, there was a hint of smile in her eyes at Xiao Yichen. The hatred she had for Xiao Yichen disappeared instantly. Was he the one who beat up last night
"Thank you!" She took the handkerchief and looked away, missing the smile on Xiao Yichen's lips.
Ji Lingxue blinked and yawned, "Half a day has passed, and there is still no movement on the fishing rod. Is there no fish in your lotus pond?"
Xiao Yichen raised his eyebrows, the fishing rod in his hand sank down, and Xiao Yichen smiled and said, "Look, the fish is hooked!"
Ji Lingxue curled her lips, and a thin blade appeared in her hand with a thought. With a move of her fingers, the thin knife slid through the air and flew towards Xiao Yichen's fishing line.
The fish has been hooked, so get back into the water!
Xiao Yichen's eyebrows twitched, and he looked around. He had already seen Ji Lingxue's little movement. The moment her hand moved, he raised his foot and kicked the stone at his feet away. With a crisp sound, Ji Lingxue's blade fell into the pond, splashing water.
Xiao Yichen quickly put the fish into the bamboo basket and said with a smile, "Another big fish, quickly put it away, otherwise it will be stolen by jealous people!"
Ji Lingxue curled her lips and rolled her eyes to the sky. Who was jealous? It was just a fish. She acted as if she had never seen a fish before.
Xiao Yichen was so angry that he pointed his finger at Ji Lingxue and said, "One to one."
Ji Lingxue smiled and complimented reluctantly, "Your Majesty is really amazing."
Xiao Yichen once again lowered his fishing rod into the lotus pond and began to close his eyes and rest. The palace maid who was fanning him softened the intensity. The sun was shining brightly, and it was a perfect time to close his eyes and take a rest.
Ji Lingxue fanned herself with her sleeves, and wisps of fragrance drifted out from her sleeves and drifted into Xiao Yichen's nostrils with the wind...
Half a minute later, Ji Lingxue turned her head and looked at Xiao Yichen. He still had his eyes closed and there was no movement. At this moment, his fishing rod drooped slightly, and ripples appeared on the water surface, as if another fish was hooked.
He leaned close to Xiao Yichen and whispered, "Your Majesty?"
Xiao Yichen closed his eyes and seemed to be fast asleep. Ji Lingxue raised an eyebrow, quietly picked up Xiao Yichen's fishing rod and pulled it hard. She thought she could easily pull the fish ashore, but she didn't expect the fishing rod to bend into an incredible arc and the fish didn't show up.
Ji Lingxue: No way, the pond is so small, could there be a big fish in it that can move it by just a thread
Ji Lingxue gritted her teeth, not believing that she couldn't even catch a fish. She exerted force, leaned back, and the fishing line was swung high up by her. Her body fell back involuntarily and fell into a warm embrace.
Ji Lingxue's eyes were always on the black thing hanging on the fishhook. It was not until it fell down that she could see clearly. The corners of her mouth twitched. It was not a big fish at all, but a thousand-year-old turtle.
Ji Lingxue felt disappointed and also realized that she was feeling a little uncomfortable. A pair of large hands were hugging her waist and getting tighter and tighter. She turned her head and stared at Xiao Yichen in shock.
Their eyes met, a strange atmosphere flowed between them, time seemed to stand still at this moment, only each other was left...
"You... this is..." An abrupt voice broke the awkward ambiguity, and Ji Lingxue came back to her senses and jumped away like a deer.
Xiao Yichen smiled calmly, turned to look at Ruge, and explained: "Just now I accidentally fell asleep, and it was the princess who helped me pull up the fish that was hooked... Oh, that's not a fish..."
Only then did Xiao Yichen see the turtle crawling slowly on the ground, and the corners of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
Ruge quickly pulled Ji Lingxue behind her, like a mother hen protecting her chicks, "I didn't know the rules and disturbed the emperor. I hope you can atone for your sin."
Xiao Yichen waved his hand and said, "It's okay! It's getting late. Let's go and grill the fish we caught." Then he stood up and walked into the villa.
Ruge looked at Ji Lingxue inquiringly. Ji Lingxue had an innocent look on her face with a faint pink color on her cheeks.
Ruge said, "Keep your distance." If gossips spread the news that Ji Lingxue was embraced by the Emperor of Dayan, she would have to marry him.
Ji Lingxue stuck out her tongue and said innocently, "Accident." She didn't mean to do that. She just didn't want to accept that she had been fishing for such a long time without catching any fish. Seeing that Xiao Yichen was already asleep, she wanted to steal a fish from him, but... She ended up losing more than she gained.
You've seen a rooster jumping over a wall and a rainbow after the rain, but you've never seen Xiao Yichen, the king of a country, grilling fish himself.
Ji Lingxue blinked and looked at Xiao Yichen in silence as he rolled up his sleeves. Under the stunned eyes of a group of palace maids and eunuchs, he skewered the fish on bamboo sticks and grilled it on the charcoal basin. He was very serious in his actions.
Xiao Yichen said: "Don't look at me with such surprise. I am just used to doing things myself. You are in for a treat today."
Ji Lingxue added in her heart: Your Majesty, you are so bored that you are thinking about grilling fish. You have just ascended the throne and you don’t care about state affairs. Aren’t you afraid of being impeached
Ruge said, "It looks like fun, I'll try it too." Then she rolled up her sleeves and started grilling the fish imitating Xiao Yichen's movements.
Xiao Yichen looked up and saw Ji Lingxue looking eagerly at the grilled fish in his hand. He smiled and said, "Princess, you must be hungry. Don't worry. I'll give you a taste of this fish when it's cooked."
Ruge said: "Don't trouble the emperor, I will take care of my sister myself." Ruge emphasized her identity and reminded Xiao Yichen not to set his sights on Ji Lingxue.
Xiao Yichen seemed not to understand and continued, "It's just grilled fish. It's also nice to see who has better cooking skills."
Ji Lingxue: You two should eat your own food. I’m not particularly interested in grilled fish.
Ji Lingxue turned to the maid behind her and ordered, "Go and prepare some lettuce and meat for me." Then she turned to Xiao Yichen and said, "Your Majesty, it's not just grilled fish that has a special flavor, grilled vegetables are also delicious."
Xiao Yichen's eyes lit up, today's move was just to test whether Zhixue could cook. Ji Lingxue's cooking skills were impeccable, she could cook everything, which made him still remember her to this day. If Zhixue could also cook, then it would prove that he was Ji Lingxue without a doubt.
The lettuce and meat were quickly served. Ji Lingxue skewered them with bamboo sticks, handed them to Ruge with one hand and to Xiao Yichen with the other, and said with a smile, "Thank you!"
Since there were two laborers present, she would not do it.
Xiao Yichen looked at the skewers of vegetables and meat in his hand that looked like candied haws, then raised his head to look at Ji Lingxue. This girl really dared to bother him to grill meat for her.
Ruge was in a good mood. She grilled a piece of meat and vegetables in each hand and chatted with Ji Lingxue from time to time. The aroma of the meat was everywhere. Ji Lingxue took some seasoning and brushed it on the meat. She took it from Ruge's hand with satisfaction and started to eat happily.
Ruge looked at Ji Lingxue lovingly as she ate the food he had grilled contentedly, and couldn't help but remind her, "Be careful with the heat!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yichen looked up at Ji Lingxue. Due to a moment of negligence, the fish in his hand was burnt by the fire. When he discovered it, the grilled fish had turned into charcoal.
Ruge coughed and said, "Your Majesty, the fish is burnt!"
Xiao Yichen raised his hand, put the fish aside, and without getting discouraged, skewered another one and continued grilling.
After the barbecue, Xiao Yichen saw enough of the deep love between brother and sister, and he didn't know whether to give the grilled fish in his hand to Ji Lingxue.
Ji Lingxue touched her stomach and said contentedly: "Brother, the meat you grilled is so delicious. I am so full!"
Ruge smiled and said, "If you like it, I will bake it for you often in the future!"
"Crack, cough, cough..." Xiao Yichen suddenly started coughing. Ji Lingxue and Ruge turned around and saw him covering his throat and coughing painfully.
Ji Lingxue said: Could it be that a fish bone is stuck in his throat? How pitiful!
(End of this chapter)