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

Ruan Xianrong sat in the waterside pavilion, not caring who disliked her.

A young palace maid walked in and whispered a few words in her ear.

She looked up and saw a slender figure standing behind the willow trees on the opposite bank of the lake.

He instructed Yinque to take good care of Miaoyin, then got up and went over.

Shen Qinghe popped out from behind the tree, a bright smile on his face, "Arong."

She asked helplessly, "What do you want?"

"Well, it's nothing much, I just rarely see you and wanted to talk to you."

"You know, it's getting chilly today, so if you're not feeling well, you shouldn't go out unnecessarily."

Shen Qinghe took two steps forward, his face still pale, but his tone was cheerful, "I'm much better. My older brother said my complexion is much better, and the doctor also told me to go out for walks. You can see for yourself."

She chuckled but didn't expose him.

"Okay, I believe you."

Shen Qinghe then stopped, "Oh, right, I have something else I want to give you."

She took out a wooden hairpin from her sleeve, her ear tips slightly red. "I know you don't lack jewelry, but... this is different."

The hairpin is carved with plum blossoms, its simple and elegant design showing considerable effort.

"Did you do this?"

"Hmm." Shen Qinghe clenched his fist, afraid she wouldn't like it.

"I didn't expect you to have such good craftsmanship at such a young age. But why did you suddenly give me a hairpin?"

Shen Qinghe coughed a few times, his eyes darkening. "You don't want it?"

Seeing her eyes redden and tears about to fall, Ruan Xianrong was at a loss. How could this child cry so much?

"Yes, of course I want it! I really like it."

The clouds parted and the moon shone brightly over the boy, his hair ribbon fluttering in the wind, brushing past his smiling lips, as if even the wind itself seemed to leap with joy.

"As long as Arong is happy."

Inside the waterside pavilion, Miaoyin looked at the two people on the opposite bank of the lake, pursed her lips, and asked Yinque:

"Is Sister Ruan on good terms with that young master from the Shen family?"

"My daughter and Mr. Shen have known each other since childhood, so their relationship is naturally good."

Miao Yin pursed her lips even tighter. Yes, their relationship was good, so good that even Sister Ruan was seduced by him.

At such a young age, he's already learned to be a male demon.

He got up and headed to the other side of the lake.

"Sister Ruan."

Her voice was sweet and clear. As soon as she finished speaking, she took Ruan Xianrong's arm, but her gaze fell on Shen Qinghe. "And this is?"

"You met him when you went boating on the lake last time. He's the young master Shen from the General's Mansion. Don't you remember?" Ruan Xianrong said.

"Oh, so it's Young Master Shen."

Miaoyin stared intently at him, making Shen Qinghe feel a little embarrassed.

"Miss Miaoyin, why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's nothing, I just think Young Master Shen is quite handsome."

These words were so blunt that Shen Qinghe's ears turned bright red, and he awkwardly avoided looking at them.

Ruan Xianrong raised her eyebrows slightly.

What does that mean? The female lead has taken a liking to Shen Qinghe?

Miao Yin's gaze was fixed on Shen Qinghe, and she smiled brightly.

I understand.

As expected of the female lead, she exudes charm at all times; Shen Qinghe is probably going to be completely captivated.

The atmosphere was a little awkward, and the two said their goodbyes after exchanging only a few words.

Upon returning, Ruan Xianrong asked, "Is Miaoyin interested in Young Master Shen?"

Miaoyin was about to deny it, but then she remembered that Young Master Shen's gaze towards Sister Ruan was not innocent, so she subtly reminded him, "He is good-looking, but he doesn't seem to be in good health."

As he spoke, he glanced across the river.

Does this mean the male lead is about to have another love rival?

The two did not continue the topic, at which point a commotion arose not far away.

Miaoyin asked curiously, "It looks lively over there, shall we go take a look?"

The nanny beside the Empress announced loudly, "Her Majesty acquired a rare and precious treasure the other day and invites everyone to appreciate it."

The red cloth was lifted, and everyone craned their necks to look, curious about what it was.

The object was small, cone-shaped, and its appearance was dazzlingly colorful in the sunlight; no one had ever seen such a strange object before.

Ruan Xianrong only glanced at it briefly before recognizing what it was.

An item that doesn't belong to this era: a kaleidoscope.

They're the more expensive kind, the modern kind, which can sell for over a thousand yuan each.

The crowd couldn't help but step forward to look, letting out gasps of surprise.

The kaleidoscope was dazzling and magnificent, attracting more and more people, and even Miaoyin couldn't resist going to see it.

Squeezing into the crowd, Miaoyin looked through the telescope and exclaimed in amazement.

The appearance of this thing proves that the female lead's best friend is coming, and she is also the most important female supporting character in the book.

In the book, Ruan Xianrong only causes trouble in the first half. After she leaves the story, the female lead's best friend should appear.

She will become the female lead's greatest help, but also her greatest enemy.

When she left the palace, the Empress Dowager kindly allowed Ruan Xianrong to take the kaleidoscope home to play with.

This is the first time she's seen anything from her own world in all the years she's transmigrated into books.

But she wasn't very interested; it was Miaoyin who held her and watched the whole way.

Back home, Silver Sparrow held it up to her, examining it closely, and exclaimed in surprise, "It's so beautiful! Won't you take a look, young lady?"

"No, just leave it there. I'll send it back to my aunt in a few days."

She prefers things that can be exchanged for money to things that are unrealistic.

*

Hanzhou.

Xie Chengyan sat in his study, looking at the letters sent from Kyoto.

Xie Chengyan's furrowed brows remained furrowed.

Lu Shao walked in and said, "Your Highness, I have found out that the bandits in Dongyang Mountain only recently came up the mountain, and the missing tax silver is also in Dongyang Mountain. Among the six counties under the jurisdiction of Hanzhou, the magistrates of five of them have connections with Yu Chengzhi."

"Throw him in jail, then escort him back to the capital." Xie Chengyan put down the letter. "Have you caught the person who contacted Yu Chengzhi?"

Lu Shao shook his head: "No, but we've found out that this person came from Kyoto, and... this was found on him."

A waist tag was placed on the table, with a qilin stepping on clouds on it. It was made in the palace and had a special pattern—it was the symbol of the Second Prince's residence.

"Your Highness, could it be that the Second Prince harbors ulterior motives?"

"Whether they have ulterior motives or not will only be known after further investigation."

Lu Shao roughly guessed some of it. "The Second Prince knows that Miss Ruan will become the Crown Princess in the future, so he wants to eliminate the Prime Minister's Mansion. He must be eyeing the position of Crown Prince. Your Highness, we need to make plans as soon as possible."

Cao Shen glanced at the prince's expression and knew that the investigation could only be traced back to the prince.

Xie Chengyan understood perfectly well that even if it was truly His Majesty's doing, how could he criticize the Emperor?

However, the second prince's birth mother died early, and he had no powerful maternal relatives. How could he get the prefect of a prefecture to obey him?

Someone has to step forward and take the blame in this matter.

He looked at the dark sky outside, snorted coldly, and said, "Now that the matter has been investigated and clarified, it's time to go back."