Joy of Life: Me, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!

"Your Highness, His Majesty has decreed that Princess Chang be summoned to the palace immediately to accompany him in the Imperial Study," the attendant replied respectfully.

Li Yunrui paused slightly as he wiped his fingers.

Her gaze met Li Chengze's for a fleeting moment in mid-air. Li Chengze still wore that nonchalant smile, seemingly unsurprised by the sudden imperial decree.

Li Yunrui casually tossed the silk handkerchief onto the tray, turned around, looked at Li Chengze, and said in a flat tone, "Your father's temperament is still so impatient. Take your time pruning these flowers; don't ruin all the spring scenery in my garden."

"Don't worry, Aunt, Chengze knows what he's doing." Li Chengze bowed slightly and made a gesture of farewell.

Li Yunrui didn't say anything more, turned around and walked out of the mansion surrounded by a group of palace maids and eunuchs.

……

The Imperial Palace, the Imperial Study.

The air here always seems a few degrees colder than outside.

A faint scent of ambergris lingered in the spacious hall, yet it could not conceal the suffocating oppressive aura.

Emperor Qing, dressed in loose casual clothes with his hair casually draped over his shoulders, sat on a low couch, holding a delicate file in his hand, intently polishing an arrowhead made of pure steel.

"Sizzle—sizzle—"

The sound of metal scraping echoed in the empty imperial study, monotonous and jarring.

Li Yunrui stepped over the high threshold, walked lightly to the low couch, and gracefully bowed: "Your Majesty, your subject Yunrui greets Your Majesty."

Emperor Qing did not look up, still focused on polishing the arrowhead, as if he had not heard her voice.

Li Yunrui did not get up. He knelt quietly on the cold gold bricks, his expression calm, and even his breathing did not change in the slightest.

A full incense stick's time passed before Emperor Qing finally stopped what he was doing. He held the incredibly sharp arrowhead up to his eyes, examining it carefully in the light streaming in from the window. He seemed quite satisfied with his masterpiece before putting the arrowhead down and wiping his hands with a cloth.

"Get up. The ground is cold. You're frail; don't let it cause you any health problems." Emperor Qing's voice was deep and gentle, revealing a brother's concern for his sister.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Li Yunrui stood up gracefully and stepped aside.

"I heard you've recently become obsessed with pruning flowers and plants in the palace?" Emperor Qing casually pointed to the seat next to him, gesturing for her to sit down. "What, are you planning to ignore all the turmoil in the capital?"

Li Yunrui smiled slightly, a hint of languor in her smile: "Your Majesty is too kind. I've always been a free spirit. I was ignorant before and always liked to worry about things that didn't concern me. Now I understand that this world belongs to Your Majesty. With Your Majesty here, why should I worry about those mundane matters? Cultivating myself and tending to flowers and plants is enough to bring me peace and quiet."

Emperor Qing looked at her, his deep eyes seemingly able to see through all the lies in the world. He smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"I'm pleased that you think that way." Emperor Qing picked up a cup of warm tea beside him, took a small sip, and then asked casually, "When Yao Jing went to deliver the decree earlier, he said that the Second Prince was also with you. That kid, what's he doing at your Changxin Palace all day long instead of doing his proper duties?"

coming.

Li Yunrui sneered inwardly.

She knew her imperial brother all too well.

All his small talk and polite exchanges were nothing more than a prelude to that final, understated probing question.

In this palace, the most dangerous thing is not the wrath of thunder, but this kind of seemingly casual, indirect approach.

Under normal circumstances, in the world created by the invincible demon king F, as depicted in "Joy of Life: I, the Second Prince? Summoning Yuan Tiangang!", Li Yunrui might fabricate a flawless lie, such as Li Chengze coming to seek advice on poetry or to ask for some kind of precious incense.

But this time, she decided to tell the truth.

Li Yunrui raised his head, meeting Emperor Qing's extremely oppressive gaze with a calm expression, even carrying a hint of helpless bitter smile.

"Your Majesty, Chengze... he said he missed my sister and came to see her on his own."

Emperor Qing paused slightly in his hand holding the teacup.

"Miss you?" Emperor Qing raised his eyebrows slightly, his tone carrying a clear hint of surprise.

"Yes." Li Yunrui nodded, her tone very natural. "He ran into my sister's flower garden and insisted on snatching the scissors from her hand, saying he wanted to help her prune the flowers. When Eunuch Yao went there just now, he was there ruining my sister's precious peonies with those scissors."

A brief silence fell over the Imperial Study.

Emperor Qing stared intently at Li Yunrui. He tried to find a trace of lying in Li Yunrui's eyes, expression, and even subtle body movements.

But he found nothing. Li Yunrui's frankness was simply impeccable.

"I miss you..." Emperor Qing slowly savored these three words, then suddenly chuckled and shook his head. "That boy, spouting nonsense. If he truly had such filial piety, why doesn't he come to the Imperial Study to see me more often?"

"Your Majesty is busy with countless affairs of state and is very dignified. Chengze is a mischievous child by nature, and I'm afraid he wouldn't even be able to speak properly in front of you. But he's used to being disrespectful to my sister," Li Yunrui said, going along with the flow.

Emperor Qing put down his teacup and his gaze fell once again on the arrowhead.

He certainly didn't believe that Li Chengze went to see Li Yunrui just to "miss" him and "cut flowers." The second son had just met with the eldest son and then went to Changxin Palace; there must have been an extremely secretive political deal involved.

However, Li Yunrui's answer left him at a loss.

She didn't conceal Li Chengze's arrival, nor did she fabricate any high-sounding reasons. She simply threw Li Chengze's seemingly most absurd excuse at her verbatim.

Even Emperor Qing could only say one thing about this.

"Fine, since he likes cutting flowers, let him do it."

……

On the other hand, after Li Yunrui was summoned away, Li Chengze did not stay in Changxin Palace.

He casually tossed the small golden scissors, stained with flower juice, into the dirt, clapped his hands, and turned to walk out of the back gate of Changxin Palace.

His carriage had been waiting for a long time.

"Your Highness, shall we return to the residence?" the guard driving the carriage asked in a low voice.

Li Chengze leaned back on the soft cushions, closed his eyes to rest for a moment, then slowly opened them, a strange light flashing in his eyes.

"I'm not going back to the manor." A mischievous smile appeared on Li Chengze's lips. "I'm going to see Wan'er."

The carriage traveled smoothly along the paved streets of Kyoto, and soon came to a stop outside the gate of the villa.

Li Chengze stepped down from the carriage, ignoring the astonished looks of the guards at the villa, and walked straight into the gate.

Given his status as the second prince, the servants in the villa naturally dared not obstruct him and could only quickly send someone in to report.

When Li Chengze entered the courtyard, Lin Wan'er was sitting on a soft couch under the eaves, holding a book of poems in her hands, wearing a snow-white fox fur coat, and exuding a quiet gentleness between her brows.

Hearing footsteps, Lin Wan'er looked up and saw Li Chengze. A hint of joy flashed in her eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. Her tone was indifferent.

"Cousin, what brings you here?"