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

Originally intending to ask the woman's name, Ruan Zhaolin came looking for her.

He didn't dare let his sister stay there for too long, so he pulled her onto the carriage and hurried home.

"You're incredibly reckless, coming to a place like this so late at night and rescuing people so casually. Aren't you afraid it's a setup for you?"

Ruan Xianrong pouted, "Didn't you also come drinking late at night? If you hadn't come, I wouldn't have gone out."

"I'm a man, I can protect myself if something happens, you're different."

It's the men who are worrying.

"Brother, be careful when you go out to meet friends in the future, or you might get taken advantage of."

Ruan Zhaolin didn't take it seriously, "My father is the Prime Minister, who would dare to scheme against me?"

"Just because our father is the prime minister, do you think those who want to bring him down will target you?"

Ruan Xianrong sighed helplessly. Compared to Xie Chengyan, her brother was simply a naive and innocent fool.

She had always reminded him since he was a child to be careful in making friends and to be extra cautious when going out, but he hadn't listened to a word she said all these years.

"Anyway, from now on, you have to bring more people with you when you go out, otherwise I'll really get angry."

Seeing her stern face, Ruan Zhaolin poked her, "Okay, I'll do whatever you say."

The following day, Ruan Zhaolin returned to the Imperial Academy early, while Ruan Xianrong went to a book and ink shop in the capital three days later.

Hearing that Linglong Pavilion had acquired a new batch of Huizhou ink, I wanted to select a fine piece to send to my elder brother, hoping that he could concentrate on his studies.

She had chosen her ink stick, paid the money, and was about to leave when she saw two people coming down the stairs from the second floor.

At the head of the procession, surrounded by others, was the Fifth Princess Xie Chengyue, and beside her was the Third Prince Xie Chengli.

Xie Chengyue is the biological daughter of the Empress's aunt, but she is not close to the Ruan family, and even her relationship with her own mother, the Empress, is not good.

Xie Chengli saw her and raised his hand to greet her.

"Cousin Ruan? What a coincidence, running into you here? Are you here to buy books too?"

Just as Ruan Xianrong was about to bow, Xie Chengli waved his hand and whispered, "We're out today, no need to make a scene, so the formalities are unnecessary."

When Xie Chengyue saw her, the expression that had been laughing and joking with her brother instantly faded, and her gaze swept over the ink box in her hand.

A half-smile curled at the corner of her lips. "Who do we have here? Instead of studying your traditional female discipline and needlework at home, you have the leisure to stroll around the shops?"

"Have you forgotten how you humiliated yourself in the palace last time?"

Ruan Xianrong was extremely bad at needlework. At the last flower-viewing banquet, all the noble ladies brought out their proud works, but she alone embroidered a purse crookedly.

Ruan Xianrong knew that Xie Chengyue had never liked her, but Xie Chengyue was a princess and she couldn't afford to offend her.

It's fine if it's directed at her, but it would be bad if she were to cause trouble for her older brother.

She said calmly, "I'm here today to buy Huizhou ink; my elder brother needs it."

Xie Chengyue slowly stepped forward, sizing her up. "You always seem to be talking about your brother. What's wrong? Is Ruan Zhaolin incapable of standing on his own two feet, or are all the servants in your Ruan family so useless that you, a young lady from a wealthy family, have to show your face in public?"

These words carried a hint of harshness.

Xie Chengli interrupted gently, "Fifth Sister, Zhaolin is at the Imperial Academy and can't come back, so it's reasonable for Cousin Ruan to do the shopping on his behalf."

He looked at Ruan Xianrong, his smile as warm as ever, "Cousin Ruan, don't take it to heart. Fifth Sister has always been outspoken."

Although Ruan Xianrong did not want to provoke Xie Chengyue, she was not afraid of her either.

"My cousin is a princess, so I naturally don't mind. However, there is no law in the Great Zhou Dynasty that says women cannot go out. My cousin's idea of ​​showing her face in public is really unreasonable."

"My cousin is out shopping too, so why can't I?"

What kind of double standard is this?

She came to buy a piece of ink and it got in her way? Isn't she just trying to cause trouble?

"You've become quite eloquent in just a few days."

"It seems my cousin doesn't understand me very well. My father is the prime minister, so I can't embarrass him in public."

Xie Chengyue glared at her fiercely, "Ruan Xianrong, you're a piece of trash, how dare you speak to me like that?"

"So what if I'm a good-for-nothing? My parents don't care about me."

The implication is that meddling in other people's business is like a dog trying to catch a mouse.

Xie Chengyue could never win an argument with her, so she grew to dislike her more and more over the years. In addition, Xie Chengyue felt that she had stolen her mother away because of her close relationship with the Empress.

Actually, it was because she was instigated by Consort Jia when she was young that she was not close to her own children, but had a good relationship with Xie Chengli. As she grew up, she blamed Xie Chengli for competing with her for the emperor's favor.

Ruan Xianrong, unwilling to linger, bowed and turned to leave.

Xie Chengyue's expression turned cold as she watched her retreating figure.

"Fifth Sister, Cousin Ruan is, after all, the Empress's niece. She's related to you, so you should be more polite to her in the future," Xie Chengli advised.

"Ha, my mother treats her much better than she treats me. I don't think she cares about me at all!"

She frequently went to the palace to please her mother, but in her mother's eyes, even her own daughter couldn't compare to this niece.

"She's just a bit pretty, but she's still a useless piece of trash. If she hadn't been born into the Ruan family, she would..."

Xie Chengli quickly stepped forward, covered his sister's mouth, and pulled her away. "Alright, alright, stop talking. Didn't you make an appointment with your second brother to go to the teahouse to listen to music? Let's go."

After Ruan Xianrong walked away, she looked back once more.

Xie Chengli was born to Consort Jia and was the emperor's favorite son besides the crown prince.

In the book, Consort Jia covets the throne and is determined to fight for it for her son.

Xie Chengli, on the other hand, is only focused on competing with the male lead for the female lead.

They are mortal enemies, both in their careers and in their love lives.

But Xie Chengli was warm and easy to get along with, and was more popular than the male host.

When she was little, Xie Chengyan bullied her, so she would take her anger out on him. He even took her to collect bird eggs and used her as a stool to climb over walls. No matter how much she threw a tantrum, he never got angry and took the younger children to play everywhere.

At that time, she thought that there was probably no easier target in the world than him.

However, if she chooses to go down the path of opposing the male lead, her final outcome is unlikely to be good. Therefore, getting close to the second male lead can easily lead to being mistakenly hurt.

Yinque pouted, "This Fifth Princess is clearly closer to you than you are, Miss. She makes things difficult for you every time we meet."

She leaned against the car wall. "After all these years, I'm used to it. Aren't you used to it yet?"

Xie Chengyue didn't like her, so she didn't bother her and just stayed far away. Out of respect for the Empress, she didn't bother with her.

Anyway, she would leave Kyoto when the time was right and would never see Xie Chengyue again, so there was no need to risk trouble.

"This servant just feels that the Fifth Princess is siding with outsiders."

Ruan Xianrong touched her elbow, which naturally bent outwards.

Upon returning home, he sent a messenger to deliver Huizhou ink to his elder brother at the Imperial Academy, and then entrusted the remaining items to Yinque, who sent them to the palace.

The Empress had sent people to invite her several times, but she hadn't gone. She should return the favor with some gifts to express her apology.

The messenger quickly returned to report that the goods had been delivered to Fengyi Palace, and the Empress was very pleased, even rewarding the Empress with a purse. However, they encountered people from the Eastern Palace on the way.

People can't stand being nagged. Before the servant had even left, someone from the Eastern Palace arrived. "Miss Ruan, His Highness the Crown Prince requests your presence."

Ruan Xianrong was speechless. Why was he getting involved again?