Chapter 134: Different

 Chapter 134: Different 

"Did I say something wrong?" Daohua quietly asked Xiao Yeyang.

Xiao Yeyang glanced at her, speechless, and replied softly, "Your older brother is right. You should avoid reading those idle books in the future. Don’t keep mentioning beauties every time you speak."

Daohua suddenly understood. So it was because of this. But soon, she became a bit dissatisfied and said, "What's wrong with talking about beautiful women? Everyone has an appreciation for beauty. I don't believe that if you see a beauty, you wouldn't look at her a little longer."

She paused and thought about what she had just said: "I didn’t say anything excessive. Is it really necessary to react like this?"

Now it was Xiao Yeyang's turn to open his mouth, unsure of what to say. After a long pause, he finally said, "Anyway, in the future, you should try not to say these things in front of others."

Daohua pouted. She understood that in ancient times, some things she felt were harmless, but others didn’t see it that way. Sighing, she muttered, "I’ll be careful in the future."

Seeing Daohua fall silent, Xiao Yeyang thought for a moment and said, "Of course, I don’t mind. You can say whatever you want in front of me."  

Upon hearing this, Defu glanced at his master and suddenly felt too embarrassed to look, so he tilted his head up and began staring at the sky.

He noticed that whenever the Yan family's eldest daughter was around, his habit of looking at the sky seemed to increase.

Seeing Xiao Yeyang comforting her, Daohua smiled and tilted her head, speaking softly to him, "My older brother is like this—serious and full of rules. I can't even joke in front of him."

Xiao Yeyang nodded in agreement, "Indeed, your older brother is not as fun as your fourth brother."

Seeing that the atmosphere had become a bit dull, Zhou Chengye quickly stepped forward to lighten things up: "This opera troupe is the most popular one in the Central Zhou Province right now, loved by many. Every time they perform, it’s said to be hard to get a seat."

"This time, to celebrate my grandfather’s birthday, our family put in a lot of effort to invite them."

Daohua, curious, asked, "Are opera troupes really that popular?"

Xiao Yeyang answered, "Troupes with famous performers are like that. This Double Joy Troupe has two famous performers—one is the beauty you just pointed out, her name is An Xi, and the other is Ning Xi."

"Both of them are known for their singing skills, figures, and looks, so they’re very popular."

Daohua asked, "How do you know so much about them?"

Xiao Yeyang replied, "During the Mid-Autumn Festival, my uncle hosted a banquet for the officials of Central Zhou Province, and he invited this Double Joy Troupe. I overheard their performance."

Daohua nodded and didn’t ask any further questions.

At that moment, Zhou Jingwan, accompanied by her maids, brought over the tea and snacks.

"What’s this?" Daohua asked, curious about the Zhou family’s pastries, which smelled quite fragrant.

Xiao Yeyang pushed the plate toward her, "This is bird’s nest cake. Go ahead, try it."

Daohua's eyes brightened, "Bird’s nest? Then I must try it." She took a piece and ate it. "Hmm, it’s really good. You should try it too!"

Seeing Daohua enjoying the treat, Xiao Yeyang took a piece and slowly chewed it. Noticing Daohua reaching for another, he asked, "Do you like this?"

He thought the taste wasn’t as good as the pastries he had eaten at Daohua’s house before.

Daohua nodded, "Mostly because I’ve never had bird’s nest before."

Xiao Yeyang remained silent for a moment. "If you like it, I’ll have someone send you some. I have high-quality blood bird’s nest, but I don’t really like it. I’ll have it brought to you."

Daohua hesitated, "Isn’t this a bit too much? I feel like I’m always taking your things." She touched the pocket watch in her pocket. She hadn’t even properly thanked him for that yet.

Defu: Be more confident, it's not just a feeling, it’s actually the case.

Xiao Yeyang didn’t care much: “Anyway, I won’t eat it. It’s just going to waste if it’s left there.”

Defu: It's not a waste; he’s keeping it well.

Daohua was silent for a moment. She knew that the bird's nest Xiao Yeyang had was probably the rare kind that couldn’t be bought outside, and it would be great for her grandmother and mother to nourish their bodies.

But it feels wrong to just take other people's things. After thinking for a moment, Daohua softly asked Xiao Yeyang, "Do you want some ginseng?" The ginseng she grew in her space was the most expensive.

"Huh?" Xiao Yeyang immediately looked over, and even Defu lowered his head to look at Daohua.

"The kind I gave you last time, I still have some left." Daohua raised her right index finger, then, remembering she hadn’t returned the pocket watch yet, she raised her middle finger as well.

"I have two more plants. I’ll give them all to you!"

Xiao Yeyang stared at Daohua for a while, then asked, "Are they fresh?"

Daohua shook her head: "No, I’ve processed them." The last time she gave him fresh ginseng, it was because she was in a hurry. If she gave him fresh ginseng this time, he might suspect where it came from.

Xiao Yeyang furrowed his brows: "You know how to process it?"

Daohua sat up straight: "Of course I do! I’ve read plenty of medical books."

Xiao Yeyang was speechless. A ten-year-old girl, how many medical books could she have read? He concluded that Daohua must have made things up again, and he wondered if the ginseng had been ruined by her.

Speaking of ginseng, he thought of the medicinal bath bags, so he asked, "The medicinal bath bags you gave to Yan Wentao and the others, did you make them yourself?"

"Of course, aren’t they effective?" Daohua looked at Xiao Yeyang with a smug expression, secretly proud. Even though he was a royal, the medicinal bath recipe was something she brought back from the future. It had gone through several improvements, and all the ingredients were from her space, so the effect was definitely impressive.

Thinking of this, she felt much better. She hadn’t just been taking things; she had given Xiao Yeyang quite a few good things as well.

Xiao Yeyang hesitated: "Do you have the recipe?" He quickly added, "I’ll buy it!"

Daohua was stunned for a moment, then waved her hand grandly: "The recipe? You don’t need to buy it. I’ll give it to you, it’s not anything special!" As a master of traditional Chinese medicine, she had no shortage of recipes in her mind.

Seeing that Xiao Yeyang and Defu were both looking at her without speaking, Daohua smiled modestly: "What, are you intimidated by my boldness?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Xiao Yeyang and Defu both quickly turned their gazes away, looking elsewhere.

Daohua pouted, uninterested in continuing.

"I can finally take a break!" After serving tea and snacks to everyone, Zhou Jingwan sat down next to Daohua.

Daohua immediately pushed the bird’s nest cake toward her: "You’ve worked hard, please eat something."

Zhou Jingwan nodded: "I’m a bit hungry."

At this moment, everyone no longer looked toward them as they had when Xiao Yeyang first arrived. However, the number of women at the stage was increasing.

Daohua thought for a moment, then turned to Xiao Yeyang, curiously asking, "Aren’t you going to meet the others?"

Hearing this, Xiao Yeyang’s expression became a bit more indifferent: "No need."

Originally, he thought Daohua would be like everyone else, advising him to temper his temper and engage in more socializing, but after waiting for a while without any movement, he turned around and saw her looking at him with shining eyes.

"What is it?" Xiao Yeyang was a bit puzzled.

Daohua looked at him with envy: "You’re really lucky, you can do whatever you want and don’t have to please anyone."

Xiao Yeyang’s expression shifted: "Don’t you think I’m too arrogant?"

Daohua shook her head: "No, since you have this status and confidence, why lower yourself to do things you don’t like?"

If she were a noble princess, she certainly wouldn’t do things she didn’t like. She would just happily live a carefree life, watching the power struggles from the sidelines.

Xiao Yeyang nodded in agreement: "Exactly. Why bother with all those pleasantries, making connections with officials? Why should I do that?"

He didn’t need them, nor was he a prince needing to form factions. He couldn’t understand why his uncle always wanted him to meet some irrelevant officials.

Even if his father didn’t pass the throne to him, so what? Couldn’t he make a future for himself?

"But people will definitely talk behind your back." In the capital, his reputation wasn’t very good.

Daohua was surprised: "I haven’t noticed that you care about what others think. As long as you’re living comfortably, why care about them?"

She blinked mischievously, saying with a bit of dark humor: "Don’t you think it’s fun to watch others get angry but be powerless?"

At this, Xiao Yeyang was truly stunned.

From the first time he met Daohua, he knew she was not someone to mess with—if anyone provoked her, she would definitely retaliate.

But back then, she was dressed as a boy, and boys were usually more mischievous, so it was normal. But now, she was dressed as a delicate young lady—weren’t girls supposed to be gentle and quiet?

Daohua noticed that Xiao Yeyang was stunned and didn’t continue. She smiled and turned back to chat with Zhou Jingwan.

Life is short, only a few decades. If one can live comfortably, why go through the trouble?

Xiao Yeyang calmed himself down, and his gaze involuntarily turned toward Daohua, who was whispering with Zhou Jingwan. The corner of his mouth slowly curved up.

This girl was really different—she shared the same mindset as him.

(End of chapter)