The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 227 His Highness and I are best friends~
It was the height of summer.

The cicadas chirped incessantly, and the trees cast dappled shadows.

The scenery on Fu Ri Lake is beautiful and can be seen from all angles.

Jiang Jinshuang was the last to board the ship. A gust of wind blew by, and the ship rocked twice, becoming unstable.

Jiang Jinshuang quickly regained her balance, only to find a hand outstretched in front of her.

Lin Qingyan's eyes were gentle as he extended a hand to her: "Your Highness, it will be more stable for me to hold on."

Jiang Jinshuang smiled, and before she could place her hand on Lin Qingyan's arm, a cold and gentle voice came from the ship.

“Young Master Lin, His Highness dislikes contact with outsiders, so please let me do it.”

As he spoke, Si Ning took a few steps toward the side of the boat, stretched out his hand, and looked at her with a smile.

Jiang Jinshuang shrank her neck.

She gave a dry laugh, withdrew her outstretched hand, and instead lifted the hem of her skirt.

"It's alright, I can come up myself."

Ignoring the outstretched hands of the two people, Jiang Jinshuang boarded the ship and saw Si Ning's ambiguous smile.

A layer of cold sweat broke out on my back.

The ship departs from the shore.

Qian Yao stood at the edge of the boat, his posture upright, not daring to get any closer.

Lin Qingyan and Si Ning began to talk, seemingly about the emperor's questions during this year's imperial examination.

Jiang Jinshuang had no interest in these things, so she secretly took a few steps back and came to Qian Yao's side.

Sensing Jiang Jinshuang standing beside him, Qian Yao straightened his posture even more.

Jiang Jinshuang coughed lightly, facing the cool breeze from the lake, and asked in a low voice, "What exactly is going on?"

Don't even mention that she suddenly felt like taking a boat trip; Jiang Jinshuang would be a fool to believe that excuse!

Qian Yao glanced at Jiang Jinshuang with a complicated expression, and whispered, "Your Highness, what's the situation between you and this Young Master Lin?"

Jiang Jinshuang: "Can't you tell? We're going on a boat trip together."

Qian Yao swallowed hard: "What I mean is, you're planning to... arrange a marriage between yourself and Young Master Lin?"

Jiang Jinshuang nodded: "That's the idea."

Qian Yao was on the verge of tears: "My dear prince, if you have any ideas, you can first...discuss them with my young master..."

His young master is clearly angry!

Jiang Jinshuang scratched her cheek: "I know Si Ning is angry, but it was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. I haven't had a chance to tell him yet!"

Who knew he would find out so quickly?

Facing the wind, Qian Yao sniffed: "Your Highness, you should think about how to explain this to my young master."

After a pause, Qian Yao said, "Moreover... my master has already told Yan Jue about your intention to marry this Young Master Lin..."

"I reckon Yan Jue is waiting for you at the Princess's residence around this time."

Jiang Jinshuang: "..."

That guy Si Ning!

He's just a mean-spirited person!

Thinking of this, Jiang Jinshuang glared fiercely at Si Ning in the distance.

In the distance, Si Ning was having a long talk with Lin Qingyan about the principles of ruler and subject. Seemingly sensing Jiang Jinshuang's gaze, he turned his eyes to Jiang Jinshuang.

His gentle eyes remained soft and warm.

It was crystal clear, like a still lake.

Jiang Jinshuang looked away.

Qian Yao dared not stand with Jiang Jinshuang any longer and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, I will go help row the boat first. Please make yourself at home."

After Qian Yao left, only the three of them remained on the boat.

The conversation seemed to have come to an end. Lin Qingyan bowed slightly to Si Ning and said, "I have learned much." Si Ning smiled indifferently, but waved to Jiang Jinshuang in the distance: "Your Highness, some tea and snacks have been prepared on the ship. Please have some."

Jiang Jinshuang twitched the corner of her mouth: "Okay."

The three of them sat down together.

The tea and snacks were placed on the table. Si Ning poured tea for Jiang Jinshuang and said in a gentle tone, "This is the third brew of tea. Your Highness, please try it and see if it suits your taste."

Upon hearing this, Lin Qingyan remained calm and spoke in his usual gentle tone: "I had forgotten that Mr. Si Ning and Your Highness should be old friends who have known each other for a long time."

Si Ning smiled and said, "Your Highness and I have indeed known each other for many years."

As she spoke, Si Ning looked at Jiang Jinshuang with a smile in her eyes: "Your Highness, how long have we known each other?"

Jiang Jinshuang scratched her cheek and chuckled dryly, "Three...three or four years, right?"

"Ah, so we've known each other for so long," Si Ning said with a surprised expression, then smiled. "Your Highness and I have known each other for a long time, and there is very little that we hide from each other. Your Highness and I have always been completely honest with each other."

Jiang Jinshuang felt as if her heart had been pierced by a sharp arrow.

—That bastard Si Ning, he clearly did it on purpose!
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingyan smiled and said, "In that case, Mr. Si Ning and I should meet more often in the future."

Si Ning understood the unspoken meaning in Lin Qingyan's words.

He poured another cup of tea.

His tone was casual: "Perhaps Your Highness has recently found a good match and has become much colder towards me. It seems that Your Highness has not mentioned much about Young Master Lin to me."

Si Ning paused for a moment, then continued with a smile, "Your Highness is really something. If you had informed me earlier, I could have prepared some gifts in advance and avoided feeling rushed."

Jiang Jinshuang was getting a headache listening to their back-and-forth conversation.

Boats glide across the lake, with beautiful scenery on both banks and bustling human activity.

There is an extremely narrow section of the river in Lake Furi, and the banks of this section are lined with vendors selling fruits and flowers.

If passengers on the cruise ship want to buy some fruit, they only need to shout to the vendors on the riverbank and throw their money bags over, and the vendors will throw the fruit onto the boat.

Many fishermen sell live fish, shrimp, and crabs on both sides of the river. If you want some, you just need to call out, and a young man who is an excellent swimmer will bring a cage and swim it directly to your boat.

It is quite a sight to behold on Fu Ri Lake.

Vendors from both sides of the strait would call out their wares to the passing boats, some speaking in broken Mandarin, which added a unique flavor to the scene.

"Young master, would you like to buy a bouquet of flowers for your wife?"

There weren't many cruise ships today.

Think about it and understand.

—After all, Si Ning had chartered all the boats on Fu Ri Lake.

The ship that Jiang Jinshuang and the others were on was enormous, clearly the work of a wealthy family.

Therefore, merchants from both sides of the strait enthusiastically called out their wares to Jiang Jinshuang's boat.

It's unclear whether these words were directed at Si Ning or Lin Qingyan.

In short, Lin Qingyan took two steps toward the merchant on the shore and threw the silver ingot from her waist toward him.

The aim was excellent, and the vendor caught it securely.

"Please trouble the merchant to choose a bouquet for me," Lin Qingyan said with a smile.

"Got it!"

The vendor responded, picked out the most vibrant red flower from the basket of bouquets, tied it in the basket, and threw it straight toward the boat.

Lin Qingyan took the flower basket and handed it to Jiang Jinshuang with a smile.

“These flowers suit Your Highness very well,” Lin Qingyan said with a smile.

Jiang Jinshuang wasn't particularly interested in flowers and plants, but since someone had given them to her, she wouldn't be ungrateful.

Accepting the basket of flowers, Jiang Jinshuang raised her eyes and smiled, "Lord Lin's kindness is appreciated, I will accept it."

On the other side, at some point, a young man swam onto the deck and placed a cage of live fish and crabs on the bow.

The boy had dark skin and a bright white smile that revealed a row of clean teeth. He spoke in broken Mandarin: "Young master, here are the fish and crabs you ordered."

These words were spoken to Si Ning, who was standing to the side.