Dress up as a sickly person to capture the villain princess!

Pretending to be very curious, Xia Zhiyuan obediently moved his head closer and stared at the vermilion food box. The fresh fragrance of glutinous rice drifted into his nostrils.

Smells very good.

"Your Highness, it's thoughtful, but dinner is coming soon. If you eat these snacks now, I'm afraid... you won't be able to eat later, right?"

Xia Zhiyuan looked at His Highness's actions, poked Zhao Changlin's cheek with his finger, and asked curiously.

The flying snow outside the window has gradually stopped. There has been less heavy snow in the past few days, and it has been snowing continuously. It will be the Spring Festival soon.

The entire Jinzhou city will be decorated with lights and colors to celebrate the arrival of the new year and the survival from the disaster.

"Eat one or two first, and have them with dinner later."

"If they can't eat it, give it to them as a reward."

Zhao Changlin picked up a piece of dessert without hesitation. It seemed to have a lingering floral fragrance, but Xia Zhiyuan couldn't tell what it was. After sniffing it carefully, Xia Zhiyuan smelled the scent of tangerine peel.

Could it be that His Highness saw me stealing oranges every day? That's why he ordered someone to make this dessert?

In this case, Your Highness is thoughtful.

"it is good."

Zhao Changlin did not stop her movements, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong. During the time she had been with Xia Zhiyuan, she was too familiar with Zhiyuan's little habits.

It includes exactly where the paperweight is placed, where the brush is hung, and where the manuscript is placed after it is finished.

But now it's all... too neat.

This is not like the usual Zhiyuan, but rather Zhiyuan who is worried.

Zhiyuan had never told him about being on guard, and Zhao Changlin was undoubtedly the one who knew this best. But now that the desk was empty, it was obvious that Xia Zhiyuan was trying to hide something from him.

Is it really what she thought?

Zhao Changlin's fingertips turned red and her movements became more intense, but she still didn't show it.

She didn't want to get into an argument with Zhiyuan.

Right or wrong, she is much more important than reason.

Using the chopsticks from the food box, I picked up the cut pieces of pastry, which were soft and fragrant.

Zhao Changlin handed it to Xia Zhiyuan's lips and stuffed it into Xia Zhiyuan's mouth.

His Highness was still as overbearing, willful and arrogant as before, and he wouldn't even give any explanation when feeding him. Xia Zhiyuan's cheeks were bulging, but there was nothing he could do.

I could only let Zhao Changlin feed me. I took a bite and it was indeed delicious. The floral scent was very strong and blended perfectly with the fragrance of glutinous rice.

Not sweet nor greasy.

With his fingers clasped together, Xia Zhiyuan touched His Highness's wrist and took the chopsticks.

She took another bite, but there was still half of the pastry left, with only a small tooth mark on the milky white pastry.

"Your Highness... don't you want to eat?"

Mainly anti-customer.

Xia Zhiyuan came closer holding chopsticks, looking at Zhao Changlin with smiling eyes. The hall was quiet with only the two of them left.

The other palace maids and eunuchs all retreated outside the hall, waiting for the two men to come for dinner, and were not in the inner hall.

Looking at the crystal clear water color on the pastry, Zhao Changlin showed no disgust. She covered it again without giving in, with her fingertips resting on the back of Xia Zhiyuan's hand.

It took some effort.

He took a bite and swallowed the remaining half of the cake, then put down his chopsticks.

His Highness has taken off his heavy crown, leaving only a light golden crown to hold his hair. Compared to the majestic His Highness, Zhao Changlin at this moment looks more like he did when he was in the Eastern Palace.

Xia Zhiyuan felt the heaviness of his wrist and almost couldn't hold on, and his body leaned forward.

This time it was not intentional, but because she had been sitting for too long and stood up suddenly, her vision went dark and she felt dizzy.

Xia Zhiyuan knew that this body was starting to get sick again, but there was nothing she could do. Since she was born into a sickly body, she had to accept her fate.

Xia Zhiyuan staggered, and his hands rested weakly on His Highness' chest, which felt limp.

"Your Highness... I'm sorry... I... I didn't mean it..."

She swore to God that she really didn't mean it.

Zhao Changlin was somewhat displeased with Xia Zhiyuan's apology. She put her hand on Xia Zhiyuan's back and pulled him forward.

Their shoulders touched, the silk rubbing against each other.

Looking at the pair of autumn eyes in front of him, Zhao Changlin's heart moved, and he was the first to speak: "Always... do you want to be so distant with me?"

"You are not feeling well, you don't need to apologize to me."

She stroked Xia Zhiyuan's shirt with her palm and felt that Zhiyuan seemed to have lost weight since this midwinter, almost to the point of being out of shape.

Some of the flesh that had grown in the autumn has also returned.

It makes people feel heartbroken and pity for them.

"I sent it to you eagerly, and you didn't even say thank you?"

"Hmm? Zhiyuan... But if that's the case, my sister will be very sad."

Zhao Changlin raised the end of her eyebrows slightly. She didn't like the distance that Zhiyuan deliberately kept from herself. If Zhiyuan wanted to take a step back, then she would take a step forward.

There was almost no gap between the two people, and the pastry on the porcelain plate was still emitting white smoke rising up.

It has been a long time since His Highness has been like this, so frivolous, so charming, and so enveloping of me.

Xia Zhiyuan found that she was really despicable. Not only was she not angry, she actually liked the way His Highness treated her both mentally and physically.

It's over. Could it be that I am...

No no no.

What are you thinking about?!

The most important thing now is to calm His Highness down, otherwise I will be in big trouble later.

“No… Ji Won, I like it very much.”

"Your Highness, please don't be angry anymore."

Putting the chopsticks in his hand on the table, Xia Zhiyuan reached out and pinched Zhao Changlin's cheek, rubbing it, trying to make Zhao Changlin happier.

"Well, I won't bother with you about this."

"I want to tell you something."

Zhao Changlin hugged her and walked out. The smell of food wafted from the hall. Xia Zhiyuan's cheek was pressed against Zhao Changlin's, and she heard a sentence in her ear: "If you want to leave the palace, I agree."

"I will give you the task of rebuilding Xizhou City. I will send shadow guards to follow you. They will protect your safety."

"This will be your first step into the court."

"Zhiyuan, do whatever you want to do boldly. I will transfer them over to guard the border of Xizhou City... It's time to get rid of those pirates."

When Zhao Changlin was dealing with King Wen, he had already seen that King Wen was colluding with pirates, murdering royal salt merchants, and using his position to trade with foreign countries to earn official silver.

Therefore, the Daluo Kingdom bought a lot of military equipment, all of which came from King Wen's own private treasury.

But she kept it to herself and didn't say anything. The reason was very simple. This was a royal scandal. If it were to be made public, the people in Xizhou City would probably be in chaos. They would no longer trust the royal court and would instead arm themselves.

So even though King Wen had become the target of public criticism, Zhao Changlin did not make the matter public.

"I want you to rise to the top."

"I also want you to be safe and sound."