Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Xie Run finished watering the flowers before returning indoors to wash her hands and attend to His Highness.

Seeing Prince Jing seated on the couch, she immediately clutched her head, feigning a headache, and said softly, "Your Highness, how about we skip chess today?"

"This morning, I kept thinking about last night's game, and my head aches from it."

"I haven't even said a word yet." The Prince drawled leisurely. "No chess then. It's still early. What shall we do?"

Xie Run's eyes shifted. "I've recently taken a liking to practicing calligraphy, and I'd like to ask Your Highness for guidance."

With that, she gazed at him expectantly.

Confronted with eyes so clear and washed, Prince Jing couldn't bring himself to refuse. He simply treated it as another form of boudoir amusement.

He waved his hand grandly. "Alright then, write a couple of characters first so I can see."

Moments later, the smile on Prince Jing's face vanished completely, replaced by an expression that was hard to describe.

"You call these characters?"

Xie Run said sheepishly, "I did mention before that of the eight arts—zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, wine, tea, and flowers—I only know a little of each."

"This is not 'knowing a little'." The Prince was both amused and annoyed, bluntly. "In all my years, I've never seen such ugly writing."

Xie Run's eyes widened, an aggrieved look instantly spreading across her face. Her eyes pooled with tears in the blink of an eye, threatening to fall.

She extended her hand, her slender fingers tugging at Prince Jing's sleeve, her voice soft and undulating.

"Your Highness~, since I don't know how, won't you teach me?"

"When my handwriting improves, on your birthday, I could write you a Hundred Longevity Chart..."

The Prince couldn't help it—he burst out laughing.

"A Hundred Longevity Chart? Even if you dared to offer it, I wouldn't dare to accept it." Just imagining one hundred of Xie Run's ugly "longevity" characters all together...

It would be a grotesque mess, indeed.

Xie Run: "..."

The Prince's look of disgust was unmistakable, and Xie Run felt wounded.

Seeing Xie Run with her head down, looking dejected, Prince Jing waved his hand and sat gracefully on a chair. "Enough. Later I'll have Shi An go to the storeroom and get you some copybooks to practice. At least..."

The Prince glanced at Xie Run's writing and quickly looked away, as if he had been poisoned.

Xie Run tried to save face. "At home, my writing wasn't this ugly. It's... it's the ink! And this brush is no good!"

Prince Jing suddenly burst out laughing, finding Xie Run's stubborn little expression too amusing.

Her peach-blossom eyes were teary, her red lips tightly pursed, and her cheeks puffed up with grievance (actually anger), looking oddly cute and playful.

Unable to resist, Prince Jing reached out and pinched Xie Run's cheek.

Xie Run's eyes flew wide open, stunned as she stared at the Prince, as if she couldn't believe it.

The dignified and refined Prince Jing, pinching someone's face—wasn't that a bit out of character?

The Prince also realized his lapse in composure. He coughed into his fist twice and pretended to be serious.

"Very well. Then let him also bring new ink and a new brush. If it's still no good, then what do you propose?"

Xie Run: "...Then punish me by making me write ten large sheets of calligraphy every day?"

The Prince raised an eyebrow. "As you wish."

In the end... Xie Run was unsurprisingly punished.

The Prince said without hiding his disdain, "The Xie family is at least a scholarly household. How did they raise a daughter whose handwriting is so shameful?"

If any ordinary woman of that era had heard that, she would have been mortified.

But Xie Run, thick-skinned as she was, retorted with perfect justification, "It was my father and elder brother who studied, not me! I went to school for two years and barely practiced writing before my mother kept me home to learn embroidery..."

"And how is your embroidery? Since entering the manor, I haven't seen you embroider a single thing for me..."

The Prince stopped mid-sentence, suddenly noticing that Xie Run had fallen suspiciously silent.

He looked at her with a half-smile. "It seems the embroidery didn't go too well either..."

Xie Run widened her eyes, looking at the Prince with an innocent expression, steadfastly refusing to respond.

She couldn't do any of that. And the original owner... had only been a half-baked learner.

It would be better if I didn't know anything at all.

The Prince was amused by Xie Run's feigned ignorance.

"Alright. In addition to copying the copybooks, you're also punished by having to embroider a pouch for me. I won't make it hard on you—in a month, I'll send someone to collect it."

Xie Run: "..."

Strangely enough,

There were so many women in the inner courtyard, each with a different temperament.

There was the Princess, who was proper and aloof; Concubine Fang, who was whiny and clingy; and Concubine An, who was timid and cowering.

Only Xie Run seemed ordinary on the surface yet always carried a hint of uniqueness.

She was gentle and agreeable most of the time, occasionally stubborn, and when provoked, she showed a little temper—but never sharp, merely puffing up and staring at you with a look that said she dared to be angry but not to speak.

Prince Jing might not love her deeply, but he found it comfortable to be with her. She could make him smile from time to time, and he felt completely at ease.

In his heart, he simply thought she was like a real person, full of life.

To use a cliché: Prince Jing hadn't laughed like this in a long time.

Prince Jing stayed at Linxuan Pavilion for four consecutive nights.

On the fifth day, matters at the Ministry of Revenue kept him busy, and he never entered the inner courtyard.

Xie Run maintained friendly relations with Fang Yuaner, regularly sending her medicinal herbs and receiving many items in return.

Fang Yuaner was truly generous—gold hairpins, jade bracelets, all sent in boxes, and even more silver.

Xie Run instantly appreciated the benefits of being friends with a wealthy patron. A month passed like this. As soon as Fang Yuaner finished her month of confinement, she came to visit Linxuan Pavilion.

Xie Run knew that Fang Yuaner hadn't fully believed her last time. Suspecting this visit might be another attempt to probe for information, she had prepared tea and was ready for anything.

As soon as they met, they exchanged a few pleasantries.

Of course, both were pretending.

During the conversation, Fang Yuaner brought out a box. "Sister Xie, I recently acquired something and would like your opinion on it."

Xie Run held her teacup, blinking innocently. "Sister Fang's things are always the best. Why would they need my opinion?"

Fang Yuaner smiled mysteriously. "This one is different."

With that, Qiu Xiang approached, carrying a small box.

Fang Yuaner opened the box and pushed it in front of Xie Run.

The moment Xie Run saw the soap before her, a phrase echoed in her head.

She's here! She's here! She's finally here!

Xie Run didn't show any curiosity. She merely leaned in for a closer look and said softly, "Is this... a balm? It smells really nice."

Fang Yuaner had been watching Xie Run's expression closely and saw no trace of pretense.

She smiled and said, "This is called soap."

"Soap?" Xie Run asked curiously. "What is this? Is it like those soap pods used for bathing?"

Fang Yuaner nodded slightly. "Exactly. It works similarly to soap cakes but is more effective, and it can be infused with various scents. I'm planning to open a soap shop in the capital city, and I'd like to ask if Sister Xie is willing to join me."

Xie Run was taken aback and softly reminded her, "Sister Fang, we're both part of the prince's household. According to the rules... we're not allowed to run our own shops."

Fang Yuaner's bright smile faded.

Since she transmigrated from a book, she didn't fully understand the regulations of this era.

Moreover, before entering the mansion, Fang Yuaner's dowry included dozens of shops, so she didn't know concubines weren't allowed to run shops.

And that wasn't all.

If Xie Run could have spoken freely, she'd have told her that not only could she not open shops, but she couldn't even own any personal property.

After all, a concubine herself was the personal property of the prince's household.

Has anyone ever seen personal property that also owned personal property?

Fang Yuaner smiled nonchalantly. "That's a small matter. There's always a way."

Xie Run reminded her again, "What you brought into the mansion as dowry before is one thing. But if you run a business on the side without telling the household after you've moved in, you could get severely punished if found out."

Fang Yuaner looked thoughtful. "Thank you for the reminder, Sister. I will... consider this carefully."

But inside, she thought Xie Run was way too timid.

Then again, if Xie Run was really a native of this era, her fear made sense.

Fang Yuaner lowered her voice and asked, "Sister Xie, the Fang family is great at business. If I were to offer this formula to the prince, do you think I could win his favor again?"

Xie Run acted innocent and timid, shaking her head. "This... I wouldn't know."

Normally, Fang Yuaner wouldn't have asked Xie Run something like that.

Now that she had, whether she meant it or was testing her, Xie Run just played dumb.

Playing dumb could ward off everything.

Seeing that she couldn't get any information or pick up any clues from Xie Run, Fang Yuaner headed back to her own courtyard.