Tang Xiaobai noticed his intentions, feeling both ashad and awkward. She tried to push him away but couldn’t, so she angrily whispered, "Li Mu!"
He finally stopped his actions and raised his head.
His eyes were slightly red at the corners, dark and mysterious, but the corners of his mouth curved up as he spoke softly, "Ah Jiao slls so good, I really like it..."
Tang Xiaobai pushed him again and finally managed to push him away.
She clutched the thin blanket tightly, glared at him, and said, "What do you an ’slls good’? If you like the sll, go back and use incense yourself!"
Li Mu leaned close to her again to take a sniff and said, "What kind of incense does Ah Jiao use? Get a blend too."
This trivial matter was sothing Tang Xiaobai had no reason to refuse. She simply said, "Sit up properly. I’ll have Cheng Zi bring you a batch!"
She didn’t use incense herself, but because the Duke Yan Mansion was a place of wealth, everything was scented before being delivered to her. Cheng Zi was in charge of this.
Li Mu finally stood up reluctantly and sat on the couch.
After summoning Cheng Zi and giving her instructions, Tang Xiaobai turned her head to see him staring at her without blinking. Her face turned red again as she said fiercely, "You should leave now! If my brother finds out—"
"Does he also co into the backyard after dark?" Li Mu asked with a frown.
Tang Xiaobai felt both amused and irritated.
Was he really one to talk about others?
"He won’t co in, but this is the Duke Yan Mansion!"
She understood Little Ancestor’s eagerness to co visit her and felt touched.
But entering the Duke Yan Mansion as if it were uninhabited was a bit excessive.
Li Mu, sensing her displeasure, took the incense Cheng Zi brought and unwillingly stood up, saying, "Then I’m leaving."
Tang Xiaobai nodded and said, "Let this be the last ti."
Li Mu pressed his lips together and said, "Didn’t you say we could et outside?"
Tang Xiaobai couldn’t help but laugh and thought for a mont before saying, "On the first and fifteenth of each month, my mother goes to the Wulou Temple for incense."
Li Mu frowned, "Only twice a month."
This seed to suggest he was dissatisfied with such infrequent etings.
Tang Xiaobai looked up at him.
He stood in front of the couch, tall and slender, with features as delicate as a painting, staring at her with unwavering affection and longing.
Tang Xiaobai bit her lip and beckoned him over.
He obediently sat back down beside her.
Tang Xiaobai leaned against him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and whispered softly in his ear, "Once my foot injury heals, I’ll send you a ssage... You should quickly resolve everything that needs to be handled. Then my family won’t have to pretend to have a rift with the Eastern Palace. Once that’s done, won’t we be able to et as we please? Plus—"
As she spoke, he couldn’t help but turn his face to look at her.
By the end, their foreheads were touching, allowing them to clearly see the affection in each other’s eyes.
"Plus what?" Li Mu asked, holding her, wanting to kiss her but also wanting to hear what she had to say, so he opted to softly peck her cheek.
Tang Xiaobai felt it tickle and tried to dodge while saying, "Plus, if we resolve this sooner, we can get engaged..."
Li Mu froze for a mont, then suddenly cupped her face and kissed her forcefully, his eyes radiating with intensity, "No need! We can get engaged right now!"
Tang Xiaobai was stunned.
Right now?
Didn’t we just have such a big argunt that the emperor had to diate today?
Li Mu didn’t explain further, he just said, "Wait for my news!"
That could work...
Tang Xiaobai hurried to send him off, without asking more questions.
Li Mu paused at the door, thought for a mont, then returned to say, "Do you rember the mute girl?"
"Hua Jian?"
Li Mu nodded and said, "I’ll bring her to the Eastern Palace in a few days—" Suddenly his expression turned sober, "Don’t worry, I’ll have Mo Ji watch her, she won’t have the chance to approach !"
Tang Xiaobai laughed, "Of course I trust you," and after thinking for a mont, said, "If you’re able, start with Hua Jian to dismantle Tonghua Valley; I suspect Tonghua Valley might be controlled by Li Shu or soone else, severing their limb would be an achievent."
He nodded, "Ah Jiao always considers things thoroughly."
Even after saying that, he still hadn’t left, looking at her expectantly, as if waiting for her to speak.
Tang Xiaobai did indeed have one more thing to tell him, "The palace has been unsettled lately, my father wants to bring my sister out of the palace, you—"
"Don’t worry." Without waiting for her to finish, Li Mu took this matter upon himself.
...
But even with Princess Ji requesting entrance and Li Mu working behind the scenes, Tang Jiaojiao still did not leave the palace.
"Jiaojiao’er said it’s not easy to enter the palace, and since it’s a tumultuous ti, being there gives her another set of eyes and ears," Princess Ji frowned, showing resentnt, "How did you teach her? Does the family lack an extra set of eyes and ears?"
Gu Ning had just laughed, but now it turned into a sigh, "The children have grown up; they have their own ideas."
At this point, both Gu Ning and Princess Ji simultaneously turned their gaze to Tang Xiaobai.
Tang Xiaobai laughed awkwardly twice, "I don’t have any idea..."
Princess Ji scoffed, "You have no idea, yet how did you get those ankle and knee injuries? Who taught you all to rush forward? Your father and brother are here, did you need to resort to this self-harm tactic?"
Tang Xiaobai chuckled, "I know, and my sister knows too, that while we may not be strictly necessary at the mont, one day Duke Yan Mansion and the Gu Family will rely on us. We can’t just be clueless and thrown out when the mont arrives—that would be too late."
Princess Ji still wasn’t convinced, "But don’t you have a brother? And so many sons in the Gu family; your mother can just have another brother later to protect the two little girls."
Tang Xiaobai lowered her gaze, looking at Gu Ning’s abdon.
Gu Ning subconsciously touched her belly, her expression infinitely gentle.
She had been diagnosed with a two-month pregnancy.
Tang Xiaobai smiled and said, "Regardless of whether it’s a brother or a sister, they’re much younger than us; we’ll always be the ones protecting them."
Princess Ji also laughed, patting Gu Ning’s belly which wasn’t showing yet, suddenly worried again, "With Jiaojiao’er in the palace and you expecting, can you manage the mansion?"
"I am here!" Tang Xiaobai patted her chest and said.
Princess Ji ignored her, focusing on what’s important, "Ziqian’s marriage should be set; having a daughter-in-law help out would make things easier for you."
Gu Ning nodded, "I’ll ntion it to my husband later."
Tang Xiaobai pressed her lips, feeling a bit uneasy.
Years ago, Tang Ziqian had brought up the subject of marriage, first with Gu Wan, and then with Princess Runan, but both ca to nothing, and then he continued to fight battles.
Now, it was indeed ti to discuss marriage.
But...
Who knows what’s in brother’s heart...
Princess Ji and Gu Ning continued discussing Tang Jiaojiao’s marriage.
The previously favored Wang Jian was no longer an option, and the two were mainly torn between Pei Xuan and Xue Shaojian.
They certainly didn’t consider Li Xingyuan, who was still mourning.
They discussed Tang Ziqian and Tang Jiaojiao in front of Tang Xiaobai for nearly half an hour.
Only at the end did they ntion her twice.
"Xiao Bai is still young, there’s no need to hurry," Princess Ji said.
Gu Ning was quite agreeable, "She only just returned; I don’t even want to think about marriage discussions, I just want to keep her close for a couple of years."
That statent was barely an hour old when news ca from the palace—
"The Crown Prince has submitted a proposal to marry Second Miss as his consort!"
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