Chapter 258: Chapter 259: A Hero’s Weakness for a Beauty

It was a painting from the Fourth Prince, Li Ying.

"I have nothing of great value to offer Prince Zhao, so I painted this Horse Painting myself. I hope Prince Zhao will not find it lacking."

He presented the scroll with both hands, but his gaze passed over Prince Zhao to land on Hua Manman.

Li Ji took the scroll and unrolled it for a glance. "It’s quite well done. The Fourth Prince is very thoughtful."

Hua Manman couldn’t tell if it was her imagination, but she felt that Prince Zhao’s tone had been particularly heavy on those last few words, as if he were implying something.

When Li Ying saw that Hua Manman wouldn’t even spare him a glance, his heart sank with disappointment.

Next, it was the Fifth Prince Li Yan’s turn.

He rose to his feet, a particularly warm smile on his face.

"I know the Prince Zhao Mansion is filled with treasures, so you probably wouldn’t care for anything I might offer. That’s why I’ve brought you a rather special gift this time. I’m certain you’ll like it."

With that, he clapped his hands.

A woman in a pale blue gauze dress glided into the room.

Half her face was veiled by a silk scarf, revealing only a pair of beautiful, misty eyes.

The figure beneath the gauze dress was curvaceous and graceful.

Even without seeing her features clearly, her form alone marked her as a rare and peerless beauty.

A hush fell over the Tangli Building.

The smile on Li Ji’s face slowly faded.

But Li Yan, as if he hadn’t noticed, continued to smile genially.

"I came across this Miss Lan by chance.

Seeing her tragic fate in the pleasure quarters, I was moved by pity.

Since Prince Zhao’s birthday was fast approaching, I paid to buy her freedom and now present her to Prince Zhao as a gift.

Prince Zhao may not know this, but Miss Lan, just like Princess Consort Zhao, was born on the fifth day of the fifth month—the day of the Dragon Boat Festival. Her destiny is exceptionally compatible with yours.

Tell me, is this not a match made in heaven?"

Despite his eloquent reasoning, the Emperor remained somewhat displeased.

"On an occasion such as this, how could you bring a woman from the pleasure quarters here?"

Li Yan quickly explained, "Imperial Father, please rest assured. Miss Lan was in the pleasure quarters for only a short time. She remains pure."

Consort Liu chimed in to support him. "Yan’er is not one to act rashly. If the girl were no longer pure, he would never have offered her to Prince Zhao."

The Emperor’s frown slowly relaxed.

It was quite common for nobles to exchange concubines. The Fifth Prince giving a woman to Prince Zhao was nothing remarkable, so long as her origins were clean and her background unsullied.

The Emperor was not alone in this thinking; most others present shared a similar view.

She was just a woman of lowly birth, unworthy of their concern.

Of all those present, only the Fourth Prince, Li Ying, was in a foul mood.

Li Ying’s own mother had been a woman from the pleasure quarters. Despite being as beautiful as a flower, she had been despised for her low status, and Li Ying himself had suffered greatly as a result.

It had always been a thorn in his side.

Now, with the Fifth Prince, Li Yan, gifting a woman from the pleasure quarters to Prince Zhao, Li Ying couldn’t help but be reminded of his own mother.

’Back then, was his mother also treated like a plaything, passed around so casually?’

The mere thought of it was excruciating for Li Ying.

He raised his cup and downed the wine in one gulp, hoping its heat would burn away the memories of the past.

At a signal from the Fifth Prince, Li Yan, Miss Lan glided before Prince Zhao and performed a delicate, swaying curtsy.

As she straightened, she raised a hand and removed the veil from her face.

The stunning face she revealed left everyone in the room breathless.

Even Hua Manman had to admit that the girl was truly beautiful—so beautiful that, as a woman herself, she couldn’t help but look twice.

But when Li Ji saw Miss Lan’s face clearly, his brow furrowed ever so slightly.

He had intended to refuse the gift, but he changed his mind at the last second and had Chen Wangbei lead the woman away.

Seeing this, a smug look appeared on Li Yan’s face.

’They say even heroes have a weakness for beautiful women. No matter how difficult Prince Zhao might be, he still fell for a beauty’s charms in the end!’

Hua Manman was filled with complicated emotions.

’She knew this sort of thing was normal in ancient times.’

’But at the end of the day, she wasn’t from ancient times. She simply couldn’t accept the practice of treating a living person as a gift.’

’What’s more, the one receiving the gift was her husband, at least in name.’

’No matter how broad-minded she was, she couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed right now.’ 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Lost in his own thoughts, Li Ji didn’t notice the shift in Hua Manman’s mood.

After several rounds of wine, the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, and Princess Ningyang had all departed. The atmosphere at the banquet grew even more lively.

Prince Anshun had the unfortunate habit of grabbing people for long, rambling conversations whenever he got drunk.

Tonight was no exception.

Clutching a wine pot, he staggered drunkenly over to Prince Zhao and said with a cheeky grin.

"Congratulations on your new beauty, Prince Zhao! Come on, let’s toast!"

Princess Anshun was nearly scared to death.

’Everyone in Shangjing City knew Prince Zhao was a murderous Evil God. What gave Prince Anshun the gall to provoke him?!’

Princess Anshun scrambled over and tried to pull Prince Anshun back.

But the drunken Prince Anshun, clumsy as a block of wood, shook off his wife’s hand and plopped down right in front of Prince Zhao.

"Huh? That’s a unique pouch you have there, Prince Zhao. Where’d you get it?"

Li Ji replied expressionlessly, "It’s none of your concern."

Unafraid of death, Prince Anshun clapped him on the shoulder and grinned as if they were the best of friends.

"I get it. A pouch that ugly... you’d only wear it if some pretty little lady made it for you by hand, right?"

’Princess Anshun was about to lose her mind.’

’How could this blasted man say such things?!’

While grabbing Prince Anshun’s arm and trying to drag him away, she offered an awkward apology to Prince Zhao and his wife.

"I’m so sorry. He tends to spout nonsense when he’s had too much to drink. Please, don’t take it to heart."

Prince Anshun protested grumpily, "I’m not spouting nonsense! That pouch really is ugly! If you don’t believe me, take a look! It’s even uglier than the ones you make, isn’t it?"

Princess Anshun laughed in exasperation and gave his waist a vicious pinch.

"Say one more word. I dare you."

Prince Anshun yelped in pain, "You’re murdering your own husband!"

Princess Anshun pinched his waist again.

Harder this time.

Prince Anshun burst into tears from the pain.

Just then, Li Ji suddenly spoke.

He stated with perfect composure, "This pouch was made for me by the Princess Consort. I think it looks quite nice."

Princess Anshun hurriedly agreed. "This pouch is indeed beautiful! Princess Consort Zhao is very skilled. You two are truly a match made in heaven."

After showering them with a flurry of compliments, she dragged Prince Anshun away.

Prince Anshun no longer dared to struggle, following his wife back while sniffling and sobbing.

Before she left, Princess Anshun didn’t forget to apologize to Hua Manman.

"I am truly sorry. My husband spoke out of turn tonight. I will be sure to pay a formal visit to apologize properly another day."

As the couple moved away, Prince Anshun’s voice could still be heard faintly.

"I can’t believe Prince Zhao has gone blind at such a young age. That pouch is so ugly, yet he actually thinks it looks good."

Li Ji: "..."