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Gu Bei's hand paused on the window frame; his keen hearing caught the sound of Ye Xiaohan's laughter.
Moreover, Ye Xiaohan hadn't bothered to lower her voice, so even an ordinary person could hear her clearly.
Silently, he walked over to the table and sat down, not saying a word the entire time.
Ye Xiaohan watched Gu Bei struggle to maintain a poker face and nearly laughed again, but this time she managed to hold it in.
"Gu Bei, did you come here for something today?" She had already seen him earlier; did he come back just to explain why he left so suddenly?
Wasn't that a bit too meticulous?
Upon hearing her question, Gu Bei looked up at her: "About today..."
He hesitated, as the reason for his abrupt departure—being jealous—was too embarrassing to voice.
Instead, Ye Xiaohan quickly interjected, "Li Yang already told me. You had something urgent and had to leave in a hurry. It's fine; the important matters come first. The Third Prince isn't angry, so you don't need to worry."
Gu Bei was taken aback, realizing that Li Yang had helped him save face, which touched him.
Unknowingly, Li Yang had become someone who considered others' feelings; he had truly grown up.
In contrast to Li Yang, Gu Bei felt like an adult yet still far from mature, lacking even the courage to face his own feelings.
"Xiao Han, actually I..." Gu Bei hesitated for a moment, pausing to choose his words carefully.
Ye Xiaohan was busy putting snacks onto a plate and setting it on the table. It felt a bit dull just talking without doing anything.
Hearing Gu Bei's hesitation, she turned her head to look at him. "Hmm? What's wrong? Is there something that wasn't handled properly?"
"It's not that," Gu Bei revealed the truth. "Six Yang made up a reason for me to avoid embarrassment; there was actually nothing to deal with."
Ye Xiaohan paused for a moment while grabbing sunflower seeds, then continued to pick them up, asking as she cracked one open, "So why is it that you... don't like the Third Prince? Did you two have some past conflict?"
At the time, she hadn't noticed anything amiss; their expressions seemed like mere acquaintances, not people with conflicting interests. Surely they weren't both such good actors that they could fool her?
"No," Gu Bei replied. "The Third Prince has never been interested in court disputes, and we have no dealings privately. There’s no conflict between us."
Ye Xiaohan nodded. "That's good. With the Queen favoring the Third Prince so much, if you had a falling out with him, it would be like directly opposing the Queen, right? That's scary."
Seeing how the Third Prince had been rampaging through the capital for so many years without any restraint, it was clear that the Queen was not just a figurehead.
Gu Bei admired Ye Xiaohan's keen perception; she could deduce useful clues from subtle signs, a skill not everyone possessed.
However, his thoughts were far from the Queen and the Third Prince. What truly mattered to him was the person in front of him.
"I have no issues with the Third Prince; I didn't leave because of him," Gu Bei said sullenly. "I just don't want to see you getting too close to other men."
What? She couldn't have heard that right.
Ye Xiaohan leaned in closer, holding a handful of sunflower seeds. "Could you say that again? What exactly are you unhappy about?"
"I just don't want to see you getting too close to other men. Even if it's just a normal friendship, it makes me uncomfortable," Gu Bei confessed his true feelings. This was how he really felt.
"So, you were just jealous?" Ye Xiaohan asked incredulously.
It was simply too strange. Gu Bei had such delicate feelings? It seemed so out of character.
For some reason, it felt rather amusing.
"I know, I'm being narrow-minded and it's not right," Gu Bei said, his hands neatly folded on the table, sitting upright like a student.
Ye Xiaohan was afraid that if she laughed out loud, it would embarrass him, so she forced herself to hold it in and replied, "There's nothing between me and the Third Prince. He's not a bad person; I think we might be able to be friends in the future, but that's all there is to it."
As for any intimate relationship or romance, Ye Xiaohan wasn't willing to think about that now. In her mind, she still didn't belong to this era; she wasn't ready to settle down here.
Hearing Ye Xiaohan say this, Gu Bei felt a lot more at ease. He rationally understood that there was really nothing between Ye Xiaohan and the Third Prince, nor with anyone else.
However, hearing Ye Xiaohan explain it herself made him involuntarily breathe a sigh of relief.
With the burden lifted from his heart, he became even more dramatic.
"You even made him so many new dishes," Gu Bei recalled the table piled high with plates and bowls, jealousy bubbling up inside him again. "From now on, you can't just find anyone to taste your food. If you need someone to taste it, come to me. I can be your taster."
In the past, he was always the first to try Ye Xiaohan's new dishes; he didn't want to give that honor to anyone else.
Ye Xiaohan couldn't help but laugh at his tone; it sounded so pitiful that she couldn't bring herself to argue with him.
"Got it. From now on, I'll let you taste first before anyone else. Is that okay?"
She truly felt defeated by him—a general acting like a child.
Once a person becomes stubborn, it's truly frightening.
With Ye Xiaohan's assurance, Gu Bei felt much better and smiled at Ye Xiaohan.
"Put that away, what a funny expression," Ye Xiaohan said. Having grown accustomed to Gu Bei's usual indifferent face, seeing him smile sometimes made her feel a bit uneasy.
"I think you might not express yourself enough, which has led to the stiffness in your face," Ye Xiaohan suggested, staring at Gu Bei's face. "You should show more expressions and let your facial muscles move a bit; that way, your smile will come more naturally."
Gu Bei humbly accepted the advice, though he couldn't guarantee whether he could actually change.
Unknowingly, the night deepened. Ye Xiaohan heard the sound of the town crier beating his drum, realizing that it was already past the first watch.
"Oh no, it's so late! I thought we hadn't talked for long!" Ye Xiaohan adjusted the oil lamp and indeed noticed that the oil had lowered a layer.
Gu Bei felt the same way; if he could, he would want to stay with Ye Xiaohan forever.
"It's already this late; you should head back quickly. Otherwise, you'll be staying up all night," Ye Xiaohan said as she stood up to see him off. Staying up late was not a good habit; it had direct negative effects on internal organs and skin.
Gu Bei understood that his wish to be with Ye Xiaohan was still just a wish for now.
Only by resolving his identity issues could he truly return to this home.
"Then I'll take my leave for now," Gu Bei said reluctantly. "I'll come back to see you both in a couple of days."
Ye Xiaohan nodded, pointing one hand at the window and the other at the door, asking, "Which way are you going out?"
Gu Bei hesitated for a moment before exiting through the door.
Ye Xiaohan leaned against the door, watching Gu Bei's figure quickly disappear into the night before closing the door and heading back to bed.
The next morning, Ye Xiaohan got up early only to find that Liu Yang had risen even earlier and already prepared breakfast.
As soon as he saw Ye Xiaohan, Liu Yang eagerly approached her, asking about the events of the previous night. "Sister-in-law, did you and Big Brother make up?"
"You talk too much!" Ye Xiaohan flicked Liu Yang's forehead with her finger. "I already know. At your age, you've learned to lie. Gu Bei told me everything; you’re just helping him out!"
Liu Yang laughed. "How can that be considered helping him out? I'm just trying to get you two to reconcile sooner! Come on, Sister-in-law, try the porridge I just made."
He quickly changed the subject. Seeing his sister-in-law's reaction, it seemed everything was fine now, and he could retreat successfully.
After serving Ye Xiaohan a bowl of porridge, Liu Yang filled another bowl for himself and set it aside. He then took a plate and carefully picked out some dishes to pack into a box.
"Sister-in-law, this is for White Maiden; it's all packed up for you to deliver," Liu Yang said, placing the box on the table.
Ye Xiaohan took a sip of porridge and mumbled in response. Once she swallowed, she remarked, "You're being too generous! I haven't even finished eating yet!"
She teased him, "Liu Yang, don’t you think you're being too nice to beautiful women? You’re not this attentive with Qi usually, are you?"
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