Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 868 Plum Blossom Arrives on Snow

A thin layer of ice had formed on Qujiang Pool, but the plum blossoms on the shore were in full bloom. The red plum blossoms reflected the snow, and their fragrance wafted in the air. It was the perfect time for the noble ladies of Chang'an to appreciate the plum blossoms.

Today's plum blossom viewing banquet is especially special because His Highness the Crown Prince is about to arrive. Carriages from various mansions were already lined up outside Qujiang Garden early in the morning. Noble ladies dressed in various brocade robes were helped down from their carriages by their maids. Their jade pendants jingled and the air was filled with fragrance. Each of them was dressed up carefully. It must be said that these young ladies are really beautiful. Even some white-haired men would regret not being born a few decades later.

"Have you heard? His Highness will be coming today."

"Sister Pei's fur coat today truly makes her more beautiful than the flowers."

"That eight-treasure pearl hairpin of Sister Cui, it must be a style from the palace, right? It should have been a gift from the Emperor Emeritus."

The girls chatted and laughed, sizing each other up, their eyes and words concealing a sharp edge.

Everyone knows that today's plum blossom viewing is a pretense; the real purpose is to show off in front of the Crown Prince.

Ever since the Crown Prince politely declined the marriage proposal from Prime Minister Changsun, the eligible young ladies in Chang'an have been quite interested. Since even noble ladies from high-ranking families like the Pei and Cui families have been turned away, doesn't that mean everyone has a chance?

When Li Zhi arrived, it was nearly noon. He was dressed rather flamboyantly today; it was an outfit personally chosen for him by Old Zhang, whose aesthetic sense was top-notch, as everyone knew. The overall look was based on the theme of "elegant simplicity, understated elegance."

You know, he was already handsome, and with this makeover, he's even more unbeatable; he stands out from the crowd.

This time, he didn't bring a full entourage, only a dozen or so guards, keeping a low profile. But as soon as he appeared, the entire Merlin fell silent, all eyes focused on him—curiosity, admiration, and also calculation.

"Your Highness, we ladies pay our respects." The noble ladies bowed in unison, their voices soft and melodious.

Li Zhi nodded slightly: "No need for formalities. Let's just treat this as a normal stroll in the garden."

He spoke in a casual tone, yet his regal bearing belied his status, preventing anyone from being truly presumptuous. After the women rose, none of them actually dispersed; instead, they unanimously surrounded the Crown Prince and led him deeper into the plum grove.

Pei Wan, daughter of Pei Sikong, was dressed in a bright red fox fur coat, which stood out against the white snow. She quickened her pace and stood perfectly beside the Crown Prince, pointing to an old plum tree not far away and said, "Your Highness, please look. That green calyx plum tree is the treasure of Qujiang Garden, and it is blooming especially well this year."

Li Zhi looked in the direction she pointed and nodded: "Indeed, it is elegant."

Not to be outdone, Cui Situ's daughter, Cui Lin, followed from the other side, handing over an exquisite food box: "Your Highness must be tired after walking for so long. This is plum blossom cake that Lin'er made herself. I would like to invite Your Highness to try it."

Just as Li Zhi was about to decline, he suddenly heard a commotion not far away. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that Old Zhang had also arrived at some point and was being talked to by several women from the imperial clan. What's more, he was the kind of person who could appeal to people of all ages, and his aura even seemed to subtly overshadow the Crown Prince when he appeared, which was quite unexpected.

"Minister Zhang, you seem to be enjoying the plum blossoms today?" a princess asked with a smile.

Old Zhang, carrying a wine gourd, laughed heartily: "I just heard that the plum blossoms in this plum grove are beautiful today, and the people are beautiful too, so I came to join in the fun. But these plum blossoms are nowhere near as beautiful as the princess. I remember the princess's name is Li Jianmei, which really suits today's scene. As the saying goes, the snow in the river pales in comparison, but the plum blossoms are three layers of fragrance."

"No...no..." The princess blushed instantly, but her eyes became extremely ardent: "I am just a widow, how could I be like what Minister Zhang said? By the way, I wonder if Minister Zhang will be free later in the evening? I have always heard that Minister Zhang loves cats and birds. I have a few very fine cats in my mansion, and I would like to invite Minister Zhang to come and admire them."

"Very well, I will certainly keep my appointment."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over the ladies, and he suddenly pointed at Pei Wan's fiery red fox fur coat and said, "This young lady is dressed so festively that from a distance, one might mistake her for a bride who has run away from home."

Pei Wan blushed instantly, feeling both ashamed and angry, but dared not retaliate.

Cui Lin quickly stood up and said with a smile, "Minister Zhang is joking. Sister Pei's dress is very expensive. It was personally bestowed by His Majesty. His name is even written on it. It's something that others can only dream of."

"It looks nice, but it's too flashy. Wearing red in the snow, what a clever mind." Old Zhang strolled over, unceremoniously took a piece of plum blossom cake from the food box in Cui Lin's hand and threw it into his mouth, saying indistinctly, "You're not bad either. This craftsmanship is the work of Gu Hefeng, the head chef of Yingchunlou. He was once the imperial chef of Emperor Hongbao. There are thirty-eight steps in the process alone, which is extremely complicated."

Upon hearing this, Pei Wan and Cui Lin's expressions changed. Pei Wan was annoyed that Cui Lin had contradicted her, while Cui Lin was surprised that her pastry had been detected so easily, even though she had just said that she had made it herself.

Although the other noble ladies around did not dare to laugh openly, their eyes all carried a hint of schadenfreude.

Seeing this, Li Zhi had no choice but to speak up to defuse the situation: "If Uncle likes these plum blossom cakes, then take them all. I'm not hungry."

Old Zhang didn't stand on ceremony. He took the food box, glanced at the eager ladies behind Li Zhi, and lowered his voice, saying, "Nephew, you're like a lamb entering a pack of wolves. Be careful, or you'll get devoured alive."

“Xiao Wu isn’t here right now, Uncle, let me tell you, every single one of them here is beautiful…” Li Zhi said, biting his lip, almost bursting out laughing: “What do you mean?”

"Who cares if she's pretty or not, we're out having fun..." Old Zhang glanced around and said, "Ugly ones are all good! Just flirt with her, pick her out, touch her if you can, pinch her if you can."

“This isn’t right… Uncle, I’m not that kind of person.”

"Yes, so even if you did something, they'll just think you're after her. And if you don't act wildly, how are you going to keep this up until your deadbeat dad comes back?"

Just then, Xiao Wu appeared from the other end of the plum grove. She was still dressed in a simple light blue dress, which made her stand out even more amidst the vibrant colors of the plum blossoms. "Your Highness, Prime Minister Zhang," Xiao Wu stepped forward and bowed, "Someone from the Prince of Qin's residence has come to say that His Highness is in better spirits today and wishes to see you."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhi immediately said to everyone, "Please make yourselves at home. I have important business to attend to, so please excuse me."

He nodded to Old Zhang, then hurriedly left with Xiao Wu, leaving behind a group of noble ladies in the garden looking at each other in bewilderment.

Old Zhang watched their departing figures, then glanced at Pei Wan and Cui Lin, whose faces were full of resentment. He chuckled, shook his wine gourd, and recited to himself, "The fallen flowers yearn to follow the flowing water, but the flowing water has no heart to love the fallen flowers..."

After reciting the poem, he ignored everyone's expressions and swayed leisurely into the depths of the plum grove.

Once outside Qujiang Garden, Li Zhi breathed a sigh of relief and said to Xiao Wu, "Thank you for helping me out, Senior Sister."

Xiao Wu smiled and said, "His Highness Prince Qin really wants to see you. But judging from the scene just now, if I had arrived any later, His Highness might have been devoured by those noble ladies."

Li Zhi recalled the scene just now with lingering fear: "These noble ladies are all like wolves."

"This is just the beginning," Xiao Wu said softly. "Since His Highness has indicated that he is not in a hurry to establish a concubine, they will naturally use their own methods. Today it is plum blossom appreciation, tomorrow there will probably be a poetry gathering, polo, burning incense and praying to Buddha. In short, they will always find a way to show their faces in front of His Highness."

Li Zhi frowned: "When will this commotion end?"

Xiao Wu glanced at him, his gaze deep and unsettling: "Unless Your Highness decides on the Crown Princess soon, I'm afraid this will never end."

Li Zhi looked at her and suddenly asked, "Would Senior Sister be willing to help me with this favor?"

Xiao Wu was taken aback and turned his face away: "Your Highness is joking."

The two were silent for a moment, walking side by side in the snow, the only sound being the crunching of the snow under their feet.

Neither of them noticed that on a distant pavilion, Changsun Wuji was gazing into the distance, taking in the entire scene that had just unfolded in Qujiang Garden. He stroked his beard, a smile playing on his lips.

"Go." He instructed his trusted aides behind him, "Send a message to each family, saying that the Crown Prince is young and may be misled by some people of dubious origin. Tell them to think of ways to make the Crown Prince understand what a good match is, and to have their daughters add fuel to the fire."

The palace path was swept clean after the snow, and Li Zhi and Xiao Wu walked hand in hand.

"Senior Sister just said that they won't let this go on." Li Zhi suddenly stopped and turned to look at her, his eyes clear. "After thinking it over, I've decided that this matter needs to be resolved. But this resolution cannot be done according to their wishes."

Xiao Wu looked up and saw the unmistakable seriousness in his eyes. Her heart trembled slightly, but her face remained calm: "What are Your Highness's plans?"

"They want to force their way in, don't they? Fine, let them. But getting into the Eastern Palace is easy, but gaining a foothold depends on their own abilities, and even more so on whether I'm willing to give them that position." Li Zhi's lips curled into a cold smile that seemed out of place for his age. "Senior Sister, tell me, what would it be like if the Eastern Palace suddenly had several more Consorts and Consorts, each checking and balancing the others, with their respective families having different interests?"

Xiao Wu immediately understood his intention: to directly introduce the existing conflicts within the Guanlong Group into the Eastern Palace, causing them to fight amongst themselves, while the Crown Prince could remain above them and find an opening to take control. Although this plan was risky, it was more sophisticated than simply refusing, and it would also buy more time.

She pondered for a moment, then said softly, “Your Highness’s plan is excellent. However, the selection of people must be carefully considered. The Pei family is powerful, and the Cui family is not weak either. If it’s just the two of them, they will inevitably join forces. It would be better to add a few more people, preferably those who can rival the two of them but are not strong enough to dominate on their own. I’ve heard that Consort Wei’s niece, Lady Wei, is spoiled and her father has considerable influence in the army. There’s also the daughter of Vice Minister Yang, whose family has ties with the Shandong gentry. If we could bring them into the Eastern Palace to check and balance each other, that would be excellent.”

A look of gratitude flashed in Li Zhi's eyes: "However, my idea is not mature enough. We still have to wait for Father's decision and arrangements. Mother has already written. She said she will not get involved in these matters and will let my father handle them... I think he should be on his way. But if he really takes action, Senior Sister will feel wronged."

Xiao Wu smiled calmly, a smile that held a hint of the same carefree arrogance as Xia Lin's: "Why does Your Highness say such things? They are vying for fame and position, but I care about whether Your Highness can truly control your destiny. A few empty titles are not worth mentioning. Besides, only by staying outside the vortex can one see more clearly and act more accurately. Furthermore, I have no intention of competing with them for anything. I am just an ordinary commoner, and it is neither reasonable nor right for me to compete with them."

Her composure and calmness put Li Zhi at ease and inspired admiration. His senior sister, who usually kept a low profile, displayed insight and courage in crucial moments that rivaled even the most cunning and calculating officials in the court.

"Don't worry, Senior Sister. I will never abandon you, no matter what, even if I have to give up the position of Crown Prince!"

“If Master hears this, he’ll beat me.” Xiao Wu rolled his eyes. “Don’t talk nonsense! By the way, Uncle really shouldn’t get too involved in this matter right now. I’m worried that things are changing too fast and I won’t be able to handle it.”

"You can rest assured about your uncle, Senior Sister. However, our parents are far away in the Western Regions, and it takes a long time for news to travel back and forth. I need to stabilize the current situation first. Let's stall for time until our father returns. He is the most powerful person in the world, and nothing can stump him."

"As Your Highness says."

While the noble ladies were chatting away, Old Zhang had already gone to the princess's residence with her to observe the cats. However, the young widowed princess, who was only twenty years old, was giving him a rather suggestive look. It was hard to say what kind of cat they were observing today.

Daosheng keeps saying "dirty Tang, dirty Tang," and Tang is indeed dirty...

As for the group of sisters who were chasing and intercepting the young prince, Old Zhang wasn't worried at all. As long as these little sisters got obsessed and kept pestering him, the more they pestered and fought, the better, until that guy came back.

Choose, it's your turn to choose!
(End of this chapter)