The sound of mahjong tiles drifted from the distant lakeside. The two old men exchanged a glance and shook their heads.

“Fan Xian’s assessment is correct. The Second Prince has little chance, yet most of the court still doesn’t see it clearly.” Prince Jing waved his hand. “My son is different from me. He’s unwilling to just hole up like I do. I’m a bit worried.”

Fan Jian glanced at him and said, “Hongcheng is indeed getting too close to the Second Prince.”

Prince Jing scoffed, choosing not to continue the topic. “I think the Second Prince has become a pedant from too much reading. Dammit, Wan’er’s mother is a madwoman, and he’s messing around with her. How could that not lead to trouble? And my son is a fool too… Dammit!”

Fan Jian smiled slightly. “You can’t touch the Second Prince’s mother. Consort Shu is His Majesty’s woman. As for the heir’s mother… you’d be perfectly justified in doing so. I won’t stop you.”

Prince Jing laughed heartily and cursed, “Hongcheng’s mother has been dead for years, but I reckon she’s waiting for me down below… You old dog, finally willing to tell dirty jokes. You used to frequent brothels every day. I thought you’d reformed yourself.”

He gently patted the armrest and looked around at the familiar scenery. He then said, “Remember this place? The old Cheng Prince’s residence. The three of us grew up in this house. Our wet nurse raised my brother, then me, but she couldn’t take care of you, her own son. You were always so filthy back then.”

Fan Jian recalled his childhood. The Cheng Prince back then was the current Emperor's biological father. He was far less impressive than Prince Jing, just a minor prince with no power or ambition. Although his family was a branch of the Fan clan, his mother working in the prince's residence to take care of the children was still a loss of face, and she endured much scorn from her relatives.

“No one would have imagined things would turn out this way.” Fan Jian smiled. “I think my mother must be very proud in Danzhou now, having raised such figures.”

“When the three of us fought, you and I always ganged up on our brother, but we could never beat him.” Prince Jing said coldly. “Even though it was when we were kids, you should know how ruthless he was.”

Fan Jian didn’t respond. Prince Jing dared to criticize his brother, but he wouldn’t dare speak ill of His Majesty. He smiled and said, “That’s because Chen Pingping always helped His Majesty. His Majesty was older than you, and Chen Pingping was stronger than me. Naturally, we couldn’t beat them.”

Prince Jing shook his head. “That’s right, so I don’t want to fight at all. I just want peace and quiet, and for my children and grandchildren to be safe. Like this investigation of the Second Prince, Fan Xian knows the situation clearly, but His Majesty needs money and is sending the kids to charge into battle. He’s too ruthless.”

As the Minister of Revenue, Fan Jian was well aware of the state of the national treasury. He said with a bitter smile, “It’s not His Majesty’s fault. The treasury is desperately short of funds. Money is needed everywhere. With the Empress Dowager in power, His Majesty can’t push the Eldest Princess too hard. Since Fan Xian is willing to be the blade, he must have some confidence. Although Chen Pingping’s temper is getting stranger, he won’t let Fan Xian suffer. Let’s just stay out of it.”

Prince Jing looked at him, and after a long while, said with a wheezy breath, “You’re still the same as before, burying all your thoughts. You won’t even tell me the truth.”

Fan Jian smiled without saying anything.

———————————————————————————

After Prince Jing’s birthday banquet ended, the Fan family returned to the mansion in several carriages. Fan Xian took his wife and sister to his own residence, feeling annoyed. “Where did he run off to again? Can’t you嫂嫂姐姐 keep a better eye on him?”

Lin Wan’er stuck out her tongue. She was happy to study mahjong with Fan Sizhe, but take care of a child? She hadn’t completely shed her own childishness yet. However, hearing Fan Xian's words, she couldn't help but quietly touch her lower abdomen, wondering why, after so long, there was still no movement.

Ruo Ruo was two months younger than Wan’er, but her temperament was more composed. She had always been the one to manage Fan Sizhe. However, after the news of the imperial marriage decree came out of the palace a few months ago, a little deer began running beneath an arrow in her heart, making her incredibly nervous. She was preparing to run away from home. Hearing her brother's slightly disgruntled tone, knowing he was talking about her, she responded meekly, "Understood."

Fan Xian also felt that his temper was unreasonable. How could he expect a sixteen-year-old girl to act as a nanny every day? He quickly comforted her. "Don't be angry. I was just saying it."

The three entered the house, and a young maid quickly served tea. Fan Xian picked up a small white porcelain cup and took a sip, asking curiously, "Where are Sisi and Siqi?"

Wan’er said with a smile, “They went to the Prince’s residence with us. They need to rest first.”

Fan Xian laughed. “They are indeed big maidservants, more precious than the young ladies of ordinary families.”

Hearing his words, Wan'er suddenly thought of something and asked playfully, "That Xiren... is that Sisi?"

Fan Xian spat out a mouthful of tea, waving his hands repeatedly. "Where did that come from?"

Ruo Ruo frowned, thinking. "Sisi's personality is like Qingwen, straightforward and likable."

Fan Xian remained silent, thinking how fortunate it was that he hadn't copied the seventy-seventh chapter of Dream of the Red Chamber yet. Qingwen didn't have a good ending. Actually, he was quite troubled by the issue of Sisi and Siqi. Logically speaking, Sisi should have been taken into his household long ago. He and Sisi had grown up together, and their relationship was deeper than that of ordinary masters and servants. However, if he took Sisi, he would also have to take Siqi, the big maidservant Wan'er had brought with her. This was something Wan'er insisted on!

Whenever he thought about this, Fan Xian couldn't help but feel a foolish, blissful annoyance.

But... he and Sisi might have some emotional foundation, but with Siqi... damn it, their only relationship was from the time he investigated the other courtyard, when she constantly used sleeping incense on him. It was difficult to imagine lying in bed with that girl.

But Sisi was getting older, and if he didn't make a decision, it would be difficult for her to marry in the future.

Looking at Lin Wan'er's confused expression, Fan Xian affectionately pinched her cheek. The soft feel was excellent. He decided not to think about it for now and gave her a meaningful look. Wan'er understood that the siblings had something to discuss, so she got up and left the room, dismissing the servants serving in the hall.

……

……

“Do you know what I admire most about you?” Fan Xian poured a cup of tea for his sister himself, saying with a smile.

Fan Ruo Ruo tilted her head slightly, flipped her jade-like palm, and deftly removed the hairpin from her head, loosening her scalp. She shook her head gently, and her black waterfall-like hair cascaded onto the white clothes on her shoulders.

She dipped her finger into the teacup, dabbed some tea on her forehead, and rubbed it in, saying with annoyance, "Brother, I'm almost worried to death. Don't make fun of me anymore."

Dipping tea and rubbing her forehead to clear her mind was Fan Xian's habitual little action. Ruo Ruo had also adopted this habit, but Fan Xian liked cold leftover tea, while Ruo Ruo liked warm, slightly hot fresh tea. The siblings were not very different.

“I’m not teasing you.” Fan Xian sighed. “Sister, you’re really composed. Like today at Prince Jing’s mansion, when the two families were discussing the marriage, it was difficult enough for me to pretend to be indifferent. You’re the person involved, yet you could remain expressionless and calm. You’re truly remarkable.”

Ruo Ruo had a light temperament, but the reason she could remain calm when it came to her own future was another reason. She looked at her brother and smiled slightly. “I panic when brother isn’t home. I don’t panic when brother is home. I can count on brother for everything.”

Three "brothers" were like three mountains pressing down on Fan Xian, preventing him from shirking responsibility. Fan Xian said with a worried face, "His Majesty has decreed the marriage, the prince is willing, Father is happy. Although the heir has some philandering reputation, he’s also the most outstanding young man in the capital. It’s really not easy to withdraw from this marriage. Sister trusts me so much, it’s really putting some pressure on me."

Ruo Ruo pursed her lips and said, "Anyway... I'll listen to brother in everything."

Fan Xian thought for a moment and then said very seriously, "You should remember Si Lili, right?"

Fan Ruo Ruo looked at her brother's expression and nodded in surprise. "The woman who wanted to kill you."

Fan Xian smiled. "That's right. I always felt she was a bit different from other women in this world. Regardless of whether her actions are right or wrong, at least she dares to think what she wants and do what she wants... The day I left Northern Qi for the capital, I asked her why. Si Lili said that perhaps it was because she lost her family at a young age and was forced to flee, wandering all over the world, so she had traveled more roads and experienced more things than ordinary women."

Fan Ruo Ruo nodded slightly and said softly, "Brother once said that traveling ten thousand miles and reading ten thousand books are both extremely beneficial to life."

"That's right, and that's why I was willing to go on a diplomatic mission to Northern Qi. But reading can be done at any time." Fan Xian looked at his sister's pure eyes and said gently, "But walking around this world and seeing different scenery and lives is extremely rare. Especially for you ladies from official families in the capital."

Fan Ruo Ruo smiled self-deprecatingly. "Besides living in Danzhou for a year when I was a child, the farthest sister has traveled is Cang Mountain. I naturally don't have the fortune to see the Mist Crossing River and the people and scenery of Northern Qi that brother talked about."

"Do you want to see it?"

Fan Ruo Ruo hesitated slightly, then nodded heavily after a moment.

Throughout her upbringing, Fan Xian's "tireless destruction of people" teaching had been at work, so she was very different from ordinary ladies from official families. Whenever she thought of the scenery and life experiences that her brother had described, her heart would stir. Women in Qing, before marriage, might be able to wander around the capital, but after marriage, they would be locked up in their homes. Even if they went out, they wouldn't be free. Such a confined life... the thought of spending her life in such a daze made her extremely unwilling and unresigned.

Fan Xian sighed deep down. Since he had opened a window in his sister's heart since she was young, allowing her to see the scenery outside, he had a responsibility to help her open a door and help her walk out.

"Before you marry the heir, I will find a way to send you away." Fan Xian said, narrowing his eyes. "Everything is in the planning stages. Looking at Prince Jing and Father's reactions today, I know that this matter is indeed feasible, and not as impossible as I originally thought."

Ruo Ruo was a talented woman in the capital, intelligent and perceptive. She immediately guessed her brother's meaning and said in shock, "Could it be... brother wants me to become a disciple of Grandmaster Ku He!"

Fan Xian gently tapped her head, his fingertips brushing past her softly, and said with a smile, "Finally come to your senses?"

Ruo Ruo opened her mouth wide, her face full of disbelief and shock. After muttering for a long time, she finally organized her words. "How is that possible?"

"Why is it impossible?" Fan Xian raised an eyebrow and said, "Ku He is opening a mountain to accept disciples. What a major event! Since he used the auspicious omen from heaven trick, and it's not limited by territory, my sister is a famous talented woman. Making her his disciple is giving him face. Would he dare not accept her?"

Ruo Ruo knew this was a joke. She lowered her head and said, "I don't know... martial arts."

"All paths lead to the same destination." Fan Xian cheered her up. "A talented woman can not only write poetry, but also learn to fight quickly. Ku He is a grandmaster of the Heavenly One Way. Of course, he understands this principle."

Fan Ruo Ruo suddenly raised her head and looked at him with a half-smile. "What about that auspicious omen from heaven?"

Fan Xian shook his head with a smile. "Leave that to me. There's no such thing as auspicious omens in this world. In a few days, I'll catch a fish in the kitchen at home and stuff a note inside."

Fan Ruo Ruo still had that faint smile on her face, pressing him. "This matter... I'm afraid brother arranged it in advance, right?"

Fan Xian was stunned, and after a long time, he said with a bitter smile, "To be honest, I started arranging this matter when I was in Northern Qi. I just thought that if you were willing to marry Hongcheng, this matter wouldn't need to continue. If you weren't willing, I would have to do this."

"Northern Qi?" Fan Ruo Ruo looked at him with a smile. "It seems that Miss Haitang's relationship with brother... is indeed not bad."

Fan Xian had no way to defend himself on this matter. Being able to get a grandmaster to reopen his mountain to accept disciples meant that the relationship was not shallow. However, Fan Xian had also paid a great price for this matter, otherwise how could he have gotten a grandmaster comparable to an emperor to cooperate with him in acting? However, he didn't want to worry his sister, so he didn't explain it clearly.

"Do you want to go to Northern Qi to read some books and travel? Studying abroad is very comfortable." Fan Xian asked his sister directly.

Fan Ruo Ruo thought for a long, long time, seeming to be considering something important, and still didn't nod her head.