The new emperor's first decree upon ascending the throne was to forcibly take his cousin as his

"I have something to say to you." Shen Qinglian's tone was stiff and cold.

A boat laden with autumn colors, ten miles of lake scenery, Shen Qinglian stood with his hands behind his back, his features indifferent, looking unapproachable.

He didn't speak, but stood there and refused to move.

Ruan Xianrong sighed slightly. What kind of lunatics are these people in the book?

Just as she stood up, Yinque blocked her way. "Miss..."

"I'm fine, you wait here."

Yinque was worried, but Ruan Xianrong had already walked towards the bow of the ship.

"Speak."

"What were you planning with the gun you gave me last time?" he finally asked.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Xianrong frowned.

Although I know Shen Qinglian isn't good at saying nice things, isn't it a bit much to start with malicious speculation?

Their relationship wasn't good, but he saved her at the hunting grounds and kept his personal and professional life separate. She wouldn't be so heartless.

"What, are you afraid I'll put poison on that gun?" She looked up to meet his gaze.

Shen Qinglian's expression darkened.

Ruan Xianrong continued, "You guessed right. I coated that gun with a deadly poison. Once you hold it, the poison will stick to your hand. In a few months, the person who uses the gun will die from the poison in a gruesome manner."

Having said that, he added rather provocatively, "General Shen, your days are numbered."

"Miss Ruan, I'm not joking with you." He stared intently at her. "What exactly do you want to do?"

Ruan Xianrong sighed, "General Shen, have you always been this self-righteous?"

What could the Shen family possibly have that would make her go to such lengths?

"You saved me at the hunting grounds that day, and I was very grateful, so I sent you that gun. If you don't want it, give it back to me. I'd rather throw it away or melt it down than give it back to you."

Shen Qinglian frowned, as if she was considering the truth of her words.

The two were mortal enemies, and although he was a general, she was not afraid.

She may be low-key, but she's not one to be bullied. In the past, whenever Shen Qinglian said those hurtful things, she would retaliate tenfold or a hundredfold.

"I hope Miss Ruan is telling the truth."

Ruan Xianrong laughed in anger, "You're wrong about that. Everything I said was a lie."

"I may have had designs on your Shen family, but what can you do about it?"

Shen Qinglian harbored an innate hostility towards her; even if she did nothing, he still felt that she had ulterior motives.

If the female lead were to appear, who knows how many warnings and precautions would be taken against her.

If that's the case, why bother trying to explain? They won't believe it anyway.

She's already exhausted enough dealing with just one male lead.

As he walked past her, Shen Qinglian gave her a deep look, but unexpectedly, the girl in front of him suddenly turned around and rolled her eyes at him.

Upon reaching the second-floor deck, Shen Qinghe immediately greeted her, "Arong, where have you been? I..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ruan Xianrong ignored him and headed towards the bow of the ship in the distance.

Shen Qinghe was at a loss for what to do. He wanted to ask her what was wrong, but someone grabbed his arm.

"You think you can just sit there and be ignored? You're not allowed to go."

He didn't understand. "Big brother, what happened to Arong? She was fine just now!"

Shen Qinglian didn't say anything, but pulled her younger brother away.

On the second-floor deck, the third prince set up an easel and began painting portraits of several noble ladies.

Ruan Xianrong couldn't help but gasp. They were all brothers, but Xie Chengyan's painting was simply unbearable to look at, while the Second Prince's painting skills were exquisite.

Someone in the crowd said, "The Second Prince is truly extraordinary. Not only is his archery superb, but his paintings are also so lifelike. In the entire capital, only Young Master Gu can rival him."

Upon hearing the name Gu Xingzhi, Ruan Xianrong realized that she hadn't seen him in a long time.

"However, I heard that Young Master Gu has been away from the capital for a long time and hasn't returned yet."

Tch, none of them have any conscience. Even if they were leaving the capital, they should have told her. She even ran into the male lead at the manor that day.

Listening to the conversations around him, Ruan Xianrong distanced himself from the noise and sat at the bow of the boat to start fishing.

Only when I went over did I see that the Third Prince was on the other side. He had taken a fishing rod at some point and had already caught half a basket of fish.

Silver Sparrow placed the roasted beans and sweet potatoes beside her.

The aroma of the sweet potato wafted out as soon as it was broken open, immediately attracting the attention of those around it.

But when he saw what she was holding, he gave her a disdainful look.

Zhao Xuelan said with disdain, "As the daughter of the Prime Minister, you have no manners at all, eating such vulgar food in public. You are truly unfit for such a social occasion."

Ruan Xianrong pouted, thinking, "It must be so tiring for a lady from a high-ranking family."

Not only can she not eat in front of others if she wants something to eat, but she also has to put on a disdainful attitude. She says it's just some common stuff, but it smells so good, she doesn't believe these girls haven't eaten it before.

However, it's not something you can openly display; you have to resist the urge to eat it, and you can only indulge when no one is around.

Luckily, she's always been a bit of a simpleton and doesn't care about these things, otherwise it would have been too tragic.

In modern times, a roasted sweet potato like this would cost her more than twenty yuan, which she usually can't bear to spend.

Ruan Xianrong remained silent, and Zhao Xuelan felt like she had punched cotton, unable to vent her anger.

Look at her, what is it about her that makes Her Highness the Crown Prince treat her differently?

What is it about her that makes her inferior to her?

Aside from looks, she is better than her in every way, including talent and upbringing. Why is she not as good?

Is Ruan Xianrong a suitable candidate for the Crown Princess and future Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty?

Unfortunately, Ruan Xianrong was shameless. She held a fishing rod in one hand and a sweet potato in the other, and ate happily.

"Does Cousin Ruan want a portrait?" Xie Chengli asked from not far away.

She shook her head. "Thank you, Third Prince, but I won't need it."

Xie Chengli didn't ask any more questions, but instead continued drawing on his own.

Amidst the mountains and rivers, a man and a woman leap from the paper; the woman is about to ride the wind away, while the man lingers, reluctant to part, clutching her sleeve.

A sentence was written in the lower left corner of the drawing paper: "Flowers bloom on one wall, and the moon shines in two places."

The women exclaimed in admiration, but upon seeing the two figures in the painting, they asked in confusion, "Why don't the people in the painting have faces?"

Xie Chengli's eyes curved into a smile: "The essence of a painting lies in its meaning. If you add a face, it loses its original artistic conception and becomes superfluous."

Having said that, his gaze fell on the person in the painting, and the smile in his eyes deepened.

Ruan Xianrong glanced back and couldn't help but sigh, "What a smiling tiger!"

She stood on either side of Xie Chengming at the bow of the boat, without disturbing each other.

A quick glance revealed that Xie Chengming sat motionless, like an old monk in deep meditation.

Perhaps her gaze was too obvious, for Xie Chengming suddenly turned around. "What are you looking at?"

Ruan Xianrong was startled, then gave an awkward laugh, "It's nothing."

Xie Chengming glanced into her basket. "You want these fish?"

Ruan Xianrong shook her head: "No."

Xie Chengming ignored her and continued fishing. In less than 15 minutes, he caught two more fish.

I couldn't help but look over again. Xie Chengming's profile was upright, and he looked somewhat like Xie Chengyan, but with a tough and sharp look.

No royal child is ugly. Because he was a marginal figure, she was actually quite interested in him at that time.

However, this person was aloof and not close to anyone except Xie Chengli, so she gave up the idea.

Lost in thought, he didn't move for a moment. After a while, a cold voice came from the other end: "Stop looking."