"Prince Yiasu?"

As soon as they heard this voice, the two people in the inner room were startled.

And after the maidservant’s low call, a cheerful, young, and joyful voice immediately followed, "Ah Yue, I’ve bought the things you wanted!"

Saying this, a young man walked in from outside.

Although she had been wanting to meet the Prince Yiasu, whom she had only heard about but never seen, these past few days, at this moment, she had just risen from bed and was already dressed, yet it was still too sudden, so Shang Ruyi instinctively felt nervous, and Lei Yu was also concerned about the fact that neither of them had done their hair, though she herself didn’t mind. She was only worried that Shang Ruyi might feel uneasy.

So she immediately shouted loudly, "Don’t come in!"

But it was too late.

The next moment, she saw a young and handsome man holding something in his hands, happily bypassing the screen and walking in. But as soon as he stepped inside, he heard Lei Yu’s shout, and his footsteps immediately halted. Plus, seeing a strange woman sitting by the bed also startled him, and his hands loosened, dropping the item he was holding.

And it just so happened to fall into the brazier that the maid had moved to one side.

Only to hear a "boom," the flames in the brazier that hadn’t been extinguished suddenly surged, immediately engulfing the fallen item. Thereupon, a pungent smell, spicy yet mixed with a slight fragrance, pervaded the entire tent, invading everyone’s nostrils. Everyone immediately began to sneeze, with Shang Ruyi, sitting closest, even tearing up.

"What is this!?"

Lei Yu was also tearful from the smoke, just about to ask when she heard the young man’s cry, "Ah! My pepper!"

The pepper thrown into the fire, no wonder it’s prickly!

The tent instantly became unbearable to stay in, and the few people scrambled out of the tent, even though the air outside was chilly and damp with rain and snow, they still choked for a while before recovering. Lei Yu’s eyes were red, not at all pleased, as she glared at the young man, "What are you up to?"

Shang Ruyi also barely endured the spicy pain in her nose.

Only at this moment did she have the time to raise her head and look at the Turkic Prince—Yiasu.

This Prince was only twenty years old, his figure still rather tall yet not overly burly, just giving off a sense of clever sturdiness, looking younger than Lei Yu. After being reprimanded, his face immediately split into a smile, his originally large and round eyes turned into curved crescents as he smiled, with a high nose bridge and full lips curved naturally with a smiling arc, handsome yet exuding a childlike charm, making one feel affectionate at sight.

He cheerfully said, "Don’t be angry."

Lei Yu, "lingering anger," said, "Where have you been these days? Can’t find you anywhere, and now you’re back burning—where did you get the pepper?"

Upon mentioning pepper, the Prince Yiasu immediately frowned in a mournful expression. Shang Ruyi thought if he had ears, they would surely droop by now. He appeared aggrievedly, "Earlier, I heard you say you liked to add pepper to the lamb soup, but the pepper here ran out, so I went to buy some."

"You, you went to buy pepper?"

"Yes, I heard people say some Western Regions merchants would travel along the front road, going to Central Plains to sell spices. I went to intercept them on that road, but luck wasn’t on my side; several people I stopped were all buying silk and porcelain. Finally, last night, I encountered a group that had a bag, and they were eating them themselves. They only sold it to me after I pleaded."

Saying this, the Prince Yiasu looked up, watching the maids open the tent door to let the scent dissipate, unfortunate, "I didn’t think, just as I got it back, it was burnt up."

"..."

Lei Yu was momentarily silent.

Her face showed a complex expression, her red eyes from the smoke now seemingly even redder, deeply gazing at the Prince Yiasu.

Standing nearby, Shang Ruyi blinked her eyes, quietening for a while.

She suddenly remembered the lamb soup delivered by servants yesterday, saying Lei Yu mentioned wanting to drink it, yet Lei Yu didn’t drink it in the end. Turns out, that’s what happened.

And this Prince Yiasu, driven by a wife’s remark, went as far as to tirelessly intercept those Western Regions’ Hu Shang on the grassland just to buy a bag of pepper for Lei Yu’s lamb soup...

It seems when Lei Yu said he treats her "well," and also that he gives her whatever she wants, she wasn’t exaggerating.

Thinking this, Shang Ruyi couldn’t help but smile a bit.

And amidst the regret, the Prince Yiasu, wholeheartedly and fully attentive to Lei Yu, finally spared a bit of attention to the "stranger" beside him. Seeing Shang Ruyi clothed in Lei Yu’s garments, he couldn’t help frowning slightly, asking, "Ah Yue, who is she?"

"..."

Lei Yu reached out to rub her nose tip, yet when she opened her mouth, her voice carried a trace of unnoticed awkwardness, "She is my friend."

"Friend?"

Prince Yiasu was taken aback, suddenly recalling something, his eyes wide as he looked at Shang Ruyi, "Are you that—Ruyi?"

Turns out, he knew of her existence too.

It seems in these days on the grassland, Lei Yu’s longing for her wasn’t just empty words.

Shang Ruyi smiled, tidied up her clothes, and then saluted the Turkic Young Princes around her, saying, "Prince Yiasu, it’s been a long time."

Prince Yiasu immediately beamed with joy. Despite the gloomy weather and heavy clouds overhead, when he smiled, his eyes curved, and his mouth revealed a row of white teeth. He seemed like a little sun, brightening the whole grassland. He joyfully said, "It’s been a long time indeed. I’ve always heard Ah Yue talk about you. She always says you’re good, as well as your husband and your friends..."

Lei Yu beside him said, "You should speak less."

Prince Yiasu immediately touched his mouth and then smiled at her, saying, "I’m just happy for you. Since you came to the grassland, you have always missed these friends. Now that she is here, you must be happy too."

"..."

"By the way, whoever brought her here has been very good to you."

"It was me."

A voice with a hint of coldness came from the side.

Upon hearing this voice, Shang Ruyi’s heart instantly skipped a beat, and standing nearby with her back to the direction of the sound, Lei Yu’s body also trembled slightly.

Shang Ruyi looked up to see Ashina Zhuxie walking towards her.

Their conversation about him last night was still fresh in their minds. Shang Ruyi wasn’t overly disdainful of him, but thinking about how he would covet her friends, and all her current predicament was thanks to him, inevitably bred some hostility.

Moreover, it was only at this moment she suddenly realized why Ashina Zhuxie abducted her in Qi County.

For a long time, she vaguely believed it was because she was Yu Wenye’s wife, and he took her to Western Turks to atone for the loss of Taiyuan. But now, knowing his feelings for Lei Yu, this action took on a deeper meaning—

After seeing her, Lei Yu worried about her safety, but also genuinely felt happiness.

He wanted to make Lei Yu... happy.

The thoughts of the two women were turning endlessly, yet Prince Yiasu was completely oblivious, seeing Ashina Zhuxie approaching and exclaiming with joy, "Elder brother!"

"Yiasu, you have finally returned."

"Elder brother, you’ve had a hard time these days. I heard about the matter in Taiyuan, but don’t worry, with your skills, you’ll certainly retake Taiyuan soon."

"..."

Ashina Zhuxie looked at him deeply and said, "Hmm."

After speaking, he added, "By the way, where have you been these past two days? Father Han couldn’t find you."

Prince Yiasu laughed, "I went to buy pepper for Ah Yue. She can’t drink sheep soup without pepper. I managed to buy a bag, but unfortunately, it got burned up right after I brought it back." Saying this, he regretfully glanced at their tent, the smell had almost dissipated by this time, and several maidservants carried the bonfire far away to pour it out.

Ashina Zhuxie also glanced back, then lowered his gaze towards Lei Yu who still faced away from him, thoughtfully saying, "You drink sheep soup with pepper added?"

Lei Yu still didn’t turn to look at him, just said softly, "It’s alright."

Shang Ruyi quietly watched them.

At this moment, Prince Yiasu looked up at Ashina Zhuxie again and smiled, "By the way, elder brother, is there something you needed when you came over?"

Ashina Zhuxie then withdrew his profound gaze, and when looking at this younger brother, his expression turned complex, but his voice remained calm and cold, saying, "Father Han just heard you came back and asked you to go to the King’s Tent immediately and take me along. He seems a bit angry."

Prince Yiasu stuck out his tongue.

Then he smiled again, saying, "It’s okay, I’ll go over and accept the penalty."

Though he said so, from his carefree smile, it was apparent that accepting penalty never truly frightened him, as his smile remained so light-hearted, and Ashina Zhuxie looked even deeper at his cheerful expression.

He said, "Hmm."

Then stepped aside, "Let’s go."

"Hey,"

Prince Yiasu nodded but didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he looked down at Lei Yu whose face was still somewhat displeased, and said gently with some flattery, "You go back to the tent first. If the smell is bad, I’ll find some flowers later. The scent of flowers will be good. Don’t stay outside, you’ll get cold."

Ashina Zhuxie turned around and headed towards the King’s Tent.

Lei Yu nodded, then looked up at Prince Yiasu and said, "You hurry up and come back, I... I have something to tell you."

Prince Yiasu immediately widened his eyes, "What is it?"