Chapter 17

Chapter 17 Xie Run finished watering the flowers before returning indoors to wash her hands and attend to His Highness. Seeing Prince Jing seated on the couch, she immediately clutched her head, feigning a headache, and said in a soft voice, "Your Highness, could we skip chess today?" "Ever since I woke this morning, I've been thinking about last night's game, and my head aches from all that thinking." "I haven't said a single word yet." Prince Jing said leisurely. "No chess then—the sky is still bright this early. What shall we do instead?" Xie Run's eyes darted around. "I've recently taken a liking to practicing calligraphy, and I was hoping Your Highness might offer some guidance." With that, she looked at Prince Jing with eager, pleading eyes. Faced with those water-washed eyes, Prince Jing found it hard to be stern, and simply treated it as another form of intimate amusement between them. He waved his hand grandly. "Very well then, write a couple of characters first so I can see." Moments later, the smile on Prince Jing's face vanished completely, replaced by an expression that was difficult to describe. "You call this calligraphy?" Xie Run said with a guilty conscience, "I did mention before. Music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, wine, tea, flowers... I only know a little of each." "This is hardly 'a little.'" Prince Jing nearly laughed in exasperation, speaking without the slightest restraint. "In all my years, I have never seen such ugly writing." Xie Run's eyes flew wide open, a wounded expression instantly spreading across her face. In the blink of an eye, her eyes pooled with tears that threatened to fall but didn't. She reached out, her slender jade-like fingers tugging at Prince Jing's sleeve, her voice soft and lilting with a pleading cadence. "Your High~ness~, I don't know how. Won't you teach me?" "Once my calligraphy improves, when your birthday comes around, I could write you a Hundred Longevity Chart..." Prince Jing couldn't help it—he burst out laughing. "A Hundred Longevity Chart? Even if you dared to give it, I wouldn't dare accept it." The thought of Xie Run's ugly handwriting producing a hundred 'longevity' characters crammed together... It would truly be... ugly in a thousand bizarre ways. Xie Run: "..." Prince Jing's look of disdain couldn't have been more obvious. She was wounded. Seeing Xie Run sulking with her head lowered, Prince Jing waved his hand and sat down gracefully in the chair. "Enough. I'll have Shi'an fetch some calligraphy copybooks from the storeroom for you to practice with. At the very least..." Prince Jing glanced at Xie Run's writing, then immediately averted his gaze, as if poisoned by the sight. Xie Run tried to salvage some dignity. "My writing at home wasn't this ugly. It's... it's the ink that's no good, and the brush is terrible too!" Prince Jing suddenly burst into laughter, finding Xie Run's stubborn little expression utterly amusing. Her peach-blossom eyes were glistening, her rosy lips pressed tightly together, and her cheeks puffed out from grievance (though really, it was anger), making her look inexplicably charming and adorable. Prince Jing couldn't resist—he reached out and pinched Xie Run's cheek. Xie Run's eyes flew wide, staring at Prince Jing in shock, utterly incredulous. The dignified and proper Prince Jing, actually pinching someone's cheek—wasn't that a bit out of character? Prince Jing also realized he'd been a bit undignified. He coughed into his fist and put on a serious air. "In that case, I'll have Shi'an bring new ink and a new brush as well. If it's still no good, then what do you propose?" Xie Run: "...Then punish me by making me write ten pages of large characters every day?" Prince Jing raised an eyebrow. "Then so be it." In the end... Xie Run was unsurprisingly punished. Prince Jing said without any pretense, "The Xie family is a scholarly household after all. How did they raise a daughter whose handwriting is unfit to be seen?" Had this been said to an ordinary woman of ancient times, she would have died of shame. But Xie Run had a thick skin at this moment and said with complete confidence, "It was my father and elder brother who did the studying, not me. I only studied for two years and barely practiced calligraphy before Mother kept me at home to learn embroidery..." Prince Jing asked, "Then how is your embroidery? You've been in the residence for quite some time now, and I've yet to see you embroider anything for me..." After asking, Prince Jing suddenly noticed that Xie Run had gone suspiciously quiet. He looked at her with a knowing smile. "It seems the embroidery wasn't learned very well either..." Xie Run blinked, looking at Prince Jing with an innocent expression, firmly refusing to take the bait. She didn't know any of these things. The original owner... was also a half-baked amateur. Better to pretend she knew nothing at all. Prince Jing was amused by Xie Run's feigned ignorance. "Alright then. Besides the calligraphy punishment, I'll also punish you by embroidering a pouch for me. I won't make it difficult—I'll send someone to collect it in a month." Xie Run: "..." It was strange, really. There were so many women in the inner court, each with a different temperament. There was the Principal Consort, proper and aloof; Concubine Fang, coquettish and clinging; and Concubine An, timid and shrinking. Only Xie Run—seemingly ordinary—carried a hint of something different. Gentle and sweet on ordinary days, occasionally stubborn, with a temper when provoked, yet never sharp-edged—she would simply puff up and stare at you, looking like she dared to be angry but didn't dare to speak. Prince Jing might not love her deeply, but he found her comfortable to be around, and she could bring him a knowing smile from time to time, leaving him completely at ease. In his heart, he felt that she was like a real person, full of life and warmth. To use an old saying: Prince Jing hadn't laughed like this in a very long time. Prince Jing stayed at Linxuan Pavilion for four consecutive nights this time. On the fifth day, matters at the Ministry of Revenue demanded his attention, and he became busy, not visiting the inner court at all. Xie Run maintained friendly relations with Fang Yuan'er, occasionally sending medicinal herbs over, and receiving quite a few gifts in return. Fang Yuan'er was truly generous, sending boxes of gold hairpins and jade rings, not to mention silver. Xie Run instantly experienced the benefits of being friends with a wealthy patron. A month passed this way, and once Fang Yuan'er finished her month of postpartum confinement, she came to visit Linxuan Pavilion. Xie Run knew that Fang Yuan'er hadn't fully trusted her last time, and suspected this visit was another attempt to probe for information. She had tea prepared in advance, on high alert. The two exchanged pleasantries upon meeting. Of course, it was all an act. Amid their conversation, Fang Yuan'er produced a box. "Sister Xie, I recently acquired something new and wanted you to take a look and give me your opinion." Xie Run held her tea, blinking innocently. "Sister Fang's things are naturally all fine—why would you need my opinion?" Fang Yuan'er smiled mysteriously. "This one is different." With that, Qiuxiang approached carrying a small box. Fang Yuan'er opened it and pushed it in front of Xie Run. The moment Xie Run saw the soap in front of her, a phrase rang out in her mind. She's here! She's here! She's finally here! Xie Run didn't show any curiosity on her face. She merely leaned in to examine it for a moment, then said softly, "This is... a scented balm? It smells quite fragrant." Fang Yuan'er had been watching Xie Run's expression the whole time and could detect not a trace of pretense. She smiled. "This is called soap." "Soap?" Xie Run asked curiously. "What is this? Is it like soap pods, used for bathing?" Fang Yuan'er nodded slightly. "Exactly. Its effect is similar to washing soap, but it's much better, and it can be made with various fragrances. I want to open a soap shop in the capital and was wondering if Sister Xie would be willing to join me?" Xie Run was taken aback and reminded her softly, "Sister Fang. We are both people of the Prince's household. According to the rules... we are not permitted to privately open shops." Fang Yuan'er's radiant smile faltered. Having transmigrated into a book, she didn't have a thorough understanding of this era's various rules. Moreover, Fang Yuan'er had brought dozens of shops as her dowry before entering the household, and had never known that a concubine's status prohibited her from opening shops. And that wasn't all. If Xie Run could say it, she would have told her that not only could she not open shops, she couldn't even possess private property. After all, a concubine herself was the private property of the Prince's household. Have you ever seen someone's private property owning private property of their own? Fang Yuan'er smiled dismissively. "This is a small matter. There will always be a way." Xie Run reminded her again: "The dowry you brought before entering the household is one thing. But if you privately do business without informing the household after entering, I'm afraid you'll be severely punished if discovered." Fang Yuan'er looked thoughtful. "Thank you for the reminder, Sister. This matter... I will consider it carefully." But inwardly, she was a bit disdainful of Xie Run's timidity. Then she reconsidered—if Xie Run was truly a genuine ancient person, it was only natural she'd be afraid. Fang Yuan'er asked in a low voice, "Sister Xie, the Fang family excels at business. Tell me, if I were to present this formula to the Prince, could I win back his favor?" Xie Run pretended to be innocent and timid, shaking her head. "This... I wouldn't know." Strictly speaking, Fang Yuan'er shouldn't have asked Xie Run such a question. Now that she had, whether sincere or deliberately testing, Xie Run pretended to know nothing. Playing dumb could deflect everything. Seeing that she couldn't extract any information and found no clues from Xie Run, Fang Yuan'er returned to her own courtyard.