The Young Master Becomes a Wife Chapter 73 Part 1

Chapter 73: Arrangements

Arriving at the commandery Prince of Rui's residence, once inside the door, Yan Jingshu discovered that besides Xiao Yanchu, there was another person extremely familiar to him waiting for him and jiajia. This person was Xie Huan.

Speaking of Xie Huan's presence at the commandery Prince of Rui's residence, it was arranged by the Prince of Chuxiang. Xiao Yanchu was still young and needed a teacher. Having him go into the palace daily to study at the imperial academy with his young imperial uncles would be too troublesome. Thus, the Prince of Chuxiang suggested directly finding a teacher for Xiao Yanchu outside the palace, and this teacher was Xie Huan, the closed-door disciple of a great Confucian scholar.

It worked out well as Xie Huan had previously taught Xiao Yanchu for a period when they were in Ningcheng, so they were already familiar with each other, and Xiao Yanchu wouldn't have to adjust to a new teacher.

However, what Yan Jingshu and Jiang Chenghan did not know was that the true reason for the Prince of Chuxiang's meticulous arrangement was to create more opportunities to see Xie Huan. Although the commandery Prince of Rui's residence and the Prince of Chuxiang's residence seemed to be on two completely unconnected roads, the rear garden of the commandery Prince of Rui's residence actually adjoined part of the Prince of Chuxiang's residence's garden.

Since Xie Huan had become Xiao Yanchu's teacher, he naturally had to live in the prince's residence. Xiao Yanchu, following the Prince of Chuxiang's instructions, arranged for the place where Xie Huan taught him and resided to be the courtyard closest to the garden.

Therefore, on his first night at the commandery Prince of Rui's residence, just after bathing and while airing his hair in the courtyard, Xie Huan watched in astonishment as Mu Chongyan, a first-rank prince, disregarding his image, climbed over the wall into his courtyard. Fortunately, due to his solitary nature and dislike of having people around, he had declined the servants Xiao Yanchu arranged for him, so Mu Chongyan's appearance was seen by Xie Huan alone.

Jiang Chenghan and Yan Jingshu remained completely unaware that, from this point onward, Xie Huan's peace would be perpetually disrupted by an almost daily stream of uninvited visits. Their attention was solely on jiajia, who, upon returning from the commandery Prince of Rui's residence, had returned to his usual cheerful and smiling self. Seeing him restored to his old self finally set their minds completely at ease.

After settling jiajia to sleep, Jiang Chenghan and Yan Jingshu returned to their own bedroom, dismissed the servants, and sat on the couch by the window to talk.

"It wasn't until I arrived at the commandery prince's residence that I found out the Prince of Chuxiang had invited father to be the imperial grandson's teacher." Taking a small sip of tea, Yan Jingshu said to Jiang Chenghan with a smile.

Jiang Chenghan was somewhat surprised but also found it reasonable. However, remembering something, he couldn't help but shake his head with a smile and said, "The Prince of Chuxiang truly expended a great deal of effort and thought in arranging this."

Unlike Yan Jingshu, since joining the inspectorate, he often worked outside and was very familiar with the locations of the Prince of Chuxiang's residence and the commandery Prince of Rui's residence. Now thinking about it, the choice of location for the commandery Prince of Rui's residence probably involved the Prince of Chuxiang's influence.

Thinking this, Jiang Chenghan told Yan Jingshu his guess. Yan Jingshu's expression immediately became somewhat complex.

That day at the commandery Prince of Rui's residence, Xie Huan didn't seem uncomfortable and didn't mention the Prince of Chuxiang at all, which led Yan Jingshu to have some vague suspicions about the relationship between Xie Huan and Mu Chongyan.

And as it turned out, Yan Jingshu's thoughts were correct.

Just over ten days later, it was the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth of the eighth lunar month. Xie Huan had long severed ties with the Xie family and was unwilling to return there himself. Yan Jingshu naturally couldn't let him spend the festival alone, so he invited him to their home.

At the banquet, out of respect for Xie Huan's seniority and considering his consistently somewhat frail health, Yan Jingshu and Jiang Chenghan only toasted him one cup of wine and didn't let him drink more. However, Xie Huan, feeling genuinely happy within, could not restrain himself from indulging in a few more cups.

Fortunately, Jiang Chenghan, to take care of Yan Jingshu, had chosen a mild fruit wine for the banquet, so drinking a bit more was harmless. However, Xie Huan had a low alcohol tolerance, even with fruit wine, by the end of the banquet his face was flushed red, and he was a bit unsteady on his feet.

He refused Yan Jingshu's offer to personally see him back to his courtyard, telling Jiang Chenghan to just take good care of Yan Jingshu. Xie Huan himself, supported by a maid, returned to the courtyard where he was staying.

Having traveled extensively for years, Xie Huan was used to taking care of himself and wasn't accustomed to personal service from others. So when he reached the door, he dismissed the maid, pushed the door open, and entered the room himself.

Although he had drunk quite a bit and was somewhat drunk, he was still conscious. Therefore, the moment he entered the room, Xie Huan immediately detected a very familiar, rich and potent scent—one that absolutely should not have been present there at that moment.

Frowning slightly, Xie Huan rubbed his temples as if uncomfortable or helpless and said softly, "Come out."

A light laugh, barely concealing delight, followed. The next moment, a tall figure emerged from behind the bed curtains—none other than the Prince of Chuxiang, Mu Chongyan.

Xie Huan glanced at him but paid no attention. He just walked to the table, sat down, and poured himself some tea to drink.

Mu Chongyan didn't mind at all, still looking cheerful. He sat down beside Xie Huan, stared at him, and asked, "How did Wenzhao know it was me?"

Xie Huan, however, answered a different question, saying, "There's a banquet in the palace tonight. Why didn't the Emperor keep you in the palace?"

Mu Chongyan was alone. To show favor and win him over, the emperor would specially invite Mu Chongyan to celebrate together in the palace during festivals.

Mu Chongyan said, "Mid-Autumn Festival is for family reunions. One should be with family and loved ones. My dearest blood relatives are all here, so naturally, I must be here too."