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

Chapter 870 Zhongshan Misty Rain Rises in the Vast Yellow Mountains

The snow on Zhongnan Mountain falls softly and quietly.

Li Zhi and Cui Lin's carriage creaked and groaned as it crunched through the fresh snow along the mountain path. Inside, a charcoal fire burned warmly, creating a cozy atmosphere that seemed like a completely different world from the icy, snowy landscape outside.

Today, Cui Lin specially changed into a Hu-style dress that was easy to move in. The scarlet brocade made her neck look as white as snow, and the jade belt around her waist made her waist look even more slender.

She was in high spirits, pointing out the scenery outside the window all the way, her voice as clear as a nightingale's: "Your Highness, look at that icefall! Doesn't it look like a white ribbon hanging down?"

Li Zhi looked in the direction she pointed and saw a waterfall cascading down the mountainside, crystal clear. He smiled slightly and said, "It is indeed a wonder. However, it is still somewhat inferior to Sister Lin."

These words, though flippant, were exactly what Cui Lin wanted to hear. Her cheeks flushed, and she gave Li Zhi a coquettish glance, but involuntarily leaned closer to him: "Your Highness is just making fun of people."

The carriage arrived at a residence halfway up the mountain. The location was quite high, overlooking the surrounding mountains. The courtyard was exquisite and had already been kept clean by the eunuchs, with the stove burning brightly.

The two enjoyed the snow scene in the courtyard for a while, and then had lunch in the warm pavilion. After lunch, Cui Lin ordered her maid to bring a zither with a scorched tail, and said with a smile, "I have heard that Your Highness is skilled in music. Lin'er has learned a new piece, and I would like to ask Your Highness to give her evaluation."

She washed her hands, burned incense, sat upright before the zither, and with a light touch of her fingertips, clear and melodious music flowed out. Li Zhi leaned against the soft couch, watching the increasingly dense snowflakes outside the window, listening to the melodious zither music in his ears, and smelling the faint fragrance emanating from the girl.

In fact, by the time Li Zhi was that age, as his late father would say, he could get hard for three days even if you dug a hole in his pillow. How could he possibly withstand this situation? At that moment, he began to control his head from below and manipulate his brain nerves with his corpus cavernosum.

When the music ended, Li Zhi clapped his hands and praised, "Sister Lin's musical skills are exquisite; the melody lingers for three days."

Cui Lin rose and walked to his bedside, her eyes sparkling: "Your Highness is too kind. It's just... this mountain is so quiet, the snow falls silently, and Lin'er suddenly feels a little cold."

Her voice lowered, carrying a barely perceptible tremor and anticipation.

Looking at her flushed cheeks and watery eyes, Li Zhi felt the urge that Old Zhang had stirred in his heart rekindle. He reached out, took her slightly cool fingertips in his hand, and gently pulled them apart.

Cui Lin let out a soft moan and fell into his arms, embracing his warm and soft body.

Wouldn't that generate heat through friction?

Li Zhi recalled Old Zhang's words, but he still felt a little flustered. However, the problem was that things had come to this point, and he had no choice but to act now.

Inside the warm room, the charcoal fire crackled, filling the air with a fragrant aroma. Outside the window, a blizzard raged, isolating the room from the world.

Li Zhi looked down and could see her trembling eyelashes, like a startled cat. He wasn't oblivious to romance; when he and Xiao Wu were whispering sweet nothings in Fuliang, he was no longer an innocent boy.

With the beauty in his arms, and her offering herself to him, all his worries vanished.

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, his warm breath brushing against her sensitive earlobe: "I'm here to warm my little sister Lin..."

The brocade curtain had been drawn at some point, obscuring the spring light within. Only the incense burner on the zither table remained, its smoke curling and rising, mirroring the sudden increase in body temperature and rapid breathing within the warm chamber.

It wasn't until the next morning that Li Zhi ordered his men to prepare a carriage to descend the mountain. His face showed undisguised fatigue, but even more so, excitement.

Cui Lin's hair was disheveled, but her eyes and brows held an undisguised springtime joy and smugness. She carefully tied the belt of Li Zhi's cloak, her voice so soft it could melt water: "Your Highness, the mountain road is slippery, please be careful."

Li Zhi patted her hand, his smile somewhat enigmatic: "Sister Lin, you've worked hard. Go back and get some rest."

When will Your Highness come to see me again?

"Let's do it another day," Li Zhi said, raising his hand in farewell before leaving the room.

The carriage slowly drove away from Zhongnan Mountain and disappeared into the vast snow.

Afterwards, several inconspicuous figures, carrying different messages, sped towards several magnificent mansions in Chang'an City.

"Bastard!"

Inside the Pei family study, Uncle Pei slammed the secret letter he was holding onto the table, his hair and beard standing on end. Standing before him was his pale-faced son, Pei Wan's father.

"Father, please calm down..."

"Calm down? How can you expect me to calm down!" Uncle Pei's chest heaved violently. "That little bitch from the Cui family! How could she be so shameless! And the Crown Prince... he actually dared to... does he even respect the Pei family anymore!"

He was breathing heavily, his eyes filled with malice: "How is Wan'er doing?"

"Wan'er... After Wan'er heard the news, she locked herself in her room and smashed a set of her beloved tea set..." Pei Wan's father said in a low voice, "The Grand Master Changsun also sent someone to ask, and his words implied that he was blaming our Pei family for being too slow."

"Changsun Wuji!" Uncle Pei sneered. "He certainly has a good plan, wanting our families to fight to the death so he can profit from it! Now the Cui family has gotten the first win!" He pondered for a moment, a resolute glint in his eyes: "We can't wait any longer! Go tell Wan'er to go see His Highness tomorrow! Be ruthless! Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures!"

"Father, Wan'er probably has her own thoughts..."

"Thoughts? What else could they be thinking? The Crown Prince is Xia Lin's son. Don't you know what Xia Lin has done? Only by becoming in-laws with him can we ensure the safety of my family. Don't you understand? Besides, the Crown Prince is handsome and has the looks of a celestial being. In what way is he not worthy of Wan'er? Besides, if the Cui family can do it, why can't we?"

"It's... father."

At the same time, inside the martial arts training ground of the Wei residence.

Upon hearing the maid's report, Wei Tong shot the long arrow in his hand into the bullseye with a "whoosh," the force so great that the arrow's tail still trembled incessantly.

"Cui Lin? With her frail body that could be blown away by a gust of wind, she doesn't even deserve it?" She wiped the sweat from her forehead, her face full of disdain: "His Highness the Crown Prince is also too. He doesn't even bother to choose carefully. It seems that any kind of trash can get into his dragon bed."

Madam Wei frowned and said, "Tong'er, watch your words! Now that the Cui family girl has gained the upper hand, we can't afford to fall behind. You spend all your time practicing martial arts; you should learn how to dress properly, how to..."

"How can I act like them, all alluring and seductive?" Wei Tong interrupted her mother, raising her chin. "I, Wei Tong, act with integrity and uprightness! If you want me to imitate those vixens, you might as well kill me! If the Crown Prince really likes that kind of woman, I don't care!"

Even so, her fingers, which were tightly gripping the hunched back of her hand, turned slightly white from the force.

The Prince of Longxi's residence, the Prince of Hejian's residence... almost every mansion that paid attention to the Crown Prince's movements was sleepless tonight. Candles burned late into the night, and secret talks, schemes, angry outbursts, and anxieties unfolded behind every vermilion door.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the storm, the Cui family was filled with suppressed joy.

Cui Situ stroked his beard, pacing back and forth in the study, his face beaming with undisguised joy: "Good! Good! Lin'er has indeed not disappointed her father! This step was risky, but also brilliant!"

Cui Lin's mother, however, was somewhat worried: "Master, if this gets out, it will damage Lin'er's reputation..."

"Such a woman's view!" Cui Situ rebuked. "Reputation? Once Lin'er enters the Eastern Palace and gives birth to the imperial grandson, who will dare to discuss her reputation? The most important thing right now is to strike while the iron is hot and get His Highness the Crown Prince to grant her a title as soon as possible!"

He paused, then instructed, "First thing tomorrow morning, go and deliver invitations to the several imperial concubines in the palace. Make sure they are properly taken care of!"

That night in Chang'an, the undercurrents suddenly accelerated due to the enchanting beauty of a snowstorm in the Zhongnan Mountains. Everyone sensed the unusual atmosphere, as if they could hear the roar of the river rushing faster beneath the ice.

Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace, after bathing and changing his clothes, Li Zhi stood alone by the window of the hall, gazing at the snow that was still falling.

The eunuch quietly stepped forward and whispered the movements of the various households outside the palace.

Upon hearing this, Li Zhi showed little expression on his face, only giving a soft "hmm".

He recalled Cui Lin's smug look as he descended the mountain, Pei Wan's anger upon hearing the news, Wei Tong's possible disdain, and Xiao Wu, who was far away in Bingzhou.

"Senior sister..." he murmured to himself, a complex emotion flashing across his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

Old Zhang strolled in again, still carrying that wine gourd, a knowing smile on his face: "How's it going, nephew? How's the snow scenery in Zhongnan Mountain?"

Li Zhi turned around and saw that it was Old Zhang. His expression turned somewhat lewd, a stark contrast to his usual dignified demeanor.

"The snow scene is so beautiful, so beautiful..."

"Are you tired?"

"It's... alright. It's alright, it's alright." Li Zhi chuckled, "Just as Uncle said, they took the bait with the slightest touch."

Old Zhang chuckled and patted Li Zhi on the shoulder: "Kid, don't get carried away. Remember, these days of intimacy are just your political mission. Now that you've had your fun, put her aside and start looking for other women. Go and have your fun with them one by one, from the easy ones to the difficult ones. Don't delve into their desires, anger, or infatuation. Always remember that your heart belongs to your sister Wu. With them, it's all just intimacy."

"Is it just physical intimacy...? I think Cui Lin is quite considerate."

"Damn... the women in brothels are more considerate. They'll even clean you up after you're done. Why don't you marry a brothel girl?" Old Zhang chuckled after sitting down. "Remember this, Your Highness."

Upon hearing the words "Crown Prince," Li Zhi immediately knelt down, saying in a panic, "Uncle... you're short-lived, I dare not address you like that."

"Get up, get up." Old Zhang waved his hand. "They all depend on you because of your power. To put it bluntly, these women are not close to you because you are Li Zhi, nor will they share your bed because you are handsome. The reason they do this is simply because you are the Crown Prince. They want to be the Crown Princess or the Empress, and they don't care who the Crown Prince or the Emperor is, understand? It's all about interests. They will give you what you want, but when they ask you for something, whether you give it to them or not depends on your mood. You must control your own desires. You must be in control and not let a few women lead you by the nose."

"I understand..."

"Hmm." Old Zhang nodded. "Alright, I've taught you the first lesson. Now let's begin the second: the art of checks and balances. Listen carefully..."

(End of this chapter)