Liu Huashan was chatting with a group of bodyguards in the yard. When he heard Caiyu's call, he immediately squeezed out a big smile.
"Miss Caiyu!"
He took the wine jar from Caiyu's hand and said with a grin,
"You're really too kind. You've only been at the Lotus Sound Pavilion for a short time. You just got your monthly allowance and yet you're spending money on us. We... we're really embarrassed! A bunch of big guys always mooching off you..."
Caiyu returned his smile. "What are you saying? We all work here. I'm alone and have no one to rely on. I'll have to count on you guys to take care of me from now on!"
"You bet!" The men who'd received the wine beamed with joy. Each took a bowl and laughed heartily. "From now on, if Miss Caiyu has any problems, just come to us. Even if it means going through fire and water, for a beauty like you, brothers will charge ahead!"
Loud laughter instantly filled the yard, and the fragrance of wine wafted everywhere.
Caiyu had also brought a pack of dried meat she'd made herself and some stir - fried peanuts for everyone to go with the wine.
Since Song Yinghuai was a Buddhist practitioner, no one dared to drink in the Lotus Sound Pavilion. Over time, it had become a habit.
But these days, with Song Yinghuai away, their taste buds had been spoiled by Caiyu.
For a while, laughter and joy echoed over the Lotus Sound Pavilion.
In the row of rooms on the east side of the outhouse, Huaping and the others listened angrily to the continuous laughter coming from the other side of the wall.
"Such a vixen!" Huaping gritted her teeth, barely suppressing the jealousy in her heart. "I've never seen someone so shameless. Taking advantage of the prince being away from the pavilion and hanging out with a bunch of men!"
Zhuyue spat in that direction. "Bah! Such a shameless woman!"
Xiangye said, "Sister Huaping, if we let her keep building her clique, the three of us will have even less status in the Lotus Sound Pavilion!"
Huaping forced herself to swallow her anger. "Calm down. We can't make the same mistake as Sister Bailu and Taoyao. That vixen is too cunning. We can't confront her head - on. We need to find a good opportunity."
On the west side, the laughter and the fragrance of wine continued.
Suddenly—
"What are you all doing?"
Song Yinghuai's voice rang out from behind.
The man's voice was cold, sounding as icy as the clinking of jade.
However, to Liu Huashan and the others, it was like the soul - reaping sound from the netherworld.
"Your Highness!" Liu Huashan and the others jumped up in shock. "We... we were just munching on some peanuts... peanuts..."
Several wine bowls on the ground were knocked over, and all the wine at the bottom of the bowls spilled onto the ground. The smell of alcohol became even stronger.
They huddled together nervously, not daring to look at Song Yinghuai's face.
Caiyu also didn't expect Song Yinghuai to come back at this time.
But it didn't matter.
Because she'd originally intended to introduce some indulgence into the Lotus Sound Pavilion.
If she couldn't break through Song Yinghuai himself, she'd start with those around him.
She didn't believe that with the daily temptation of good food and wine, Song Yinghuai wouldn't feel tempted!
Song Yinghuai's gaze fell on the knocked - over wine bowls on the ground, and his voice was filled with anger:
"Who gave you permission to drink?"
Liu Huashan stole a glance at Caiyu and took all the blame on himself:
"Your Highness, it was this lowly servant's own idea. I saw that the weather was getting colder, and some of the bodyguards accidentally caught a cold. So I got a jar of chrysanthemum wine for them to warm their stomachs. Please forgive this lowly servant!"
Song Yinghuai's eyes flashed, and there was a look of surprise in his eyes as he looked at Caiyu.
It had only been a few days, but this girl had already won people's hearts.
She'd even managed to get Liu Huashan to take the blame for her?
What a troublesome woman!
"What are you doing here?" Song Yinghuai looked at Caiyu and demanded, "You brought the wine?"
Before Caiyu could say anything, Song Yinghuai continued, "I don't like liars."
Caiyu never intended to let Liu Huashan take the blame, so she calmly replied, "Your Highness, this lowly servant brewed the wine. It has nothing to do with Guard Liu. If Your Highness wants to blame someone, just punish this lowly servant."
Song Yinghuai was so angry that he laughed. "You're really something. Just when one trouble is over, you start another. I'm afraid your life is in danger!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the air around seemed to freeze, filled with tension and oppression.
But Caiyu remained calm. She looked at Song Yinghuai with a pair of innocent big eyes:
"Your Highness, this lowly servant doesn't know what trouble I've caused. Please enlighten this lowly servant."
"You led the bodyguards in the pavilion to drink, and you still dare to play dumb?" Song Yinghuai was slightly shocked by her audacity.
"Your Highness, it's just drinking, not excessive drinking." Caiyu said calmly. "Your Highness has entrusted the affairs of the pavilion to this lowly servant. Of course, this lowly servant has to manage well and boost everyone's enthusiasm for their duties."
"A little drink in moderation can cheer people up and cultivate one's sentiment. Back then, the Poetic Immortal once said, 'When life is booming, enjoy it to the fullest. Don't let your golden goblet face the moon empty.' Since the Poetic Immortal recommended it so much, of course we do too."
"Your Highness wouldn't object, would you?"
Song Yinghuai said coldly, "You're so glib - tongued. Do you know that I'm practicing Buddhism? Alcohol, lust, and meat are not allowed in the Lotus Sound Pavilion."
Caiyu pretended to be surprised. "This lowly servant has never heard of such a rule in the Lotus Sound Pavilion! When this lowly servant entered the pavilion, Chief Steward Ji told me there were a total of forty - eight rules, and none of them was what Your Highness mentioned."
"Moreover, doesn't Your Highness think such a rule is unreasonable?"
"Your Highness is practicing Buddhism, but this lowly servant and others are not. We're not destined for Buddhism. We're all ordinary people in the mortal world. We need alcohol, lust, and meat. Your Highness can't force everyone to follow the strict precepts with you. If everyone practiced Buddhism like Your Highness, the Buddha might be too busy to handle all of us."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Han Fen was standing behind Song Yinghuai. Hearing Caiyu's long speech and her saying that the Buddha might be too busy, he couldn't help but let out a laugh.
Then he quickly tried to hold it back. But he didn't hold his breath well and let out a thundering cough.
Song Yinghuai gave him a cold look, and the voice squeezed out between his teeth was filled with cold air. "Funny?"
Han Fen quickly straightened his expression and shook his head. "Not funny! Miss Caiyu, you're really wrong! As servants, we should create the best conditions for His Highness to practice Buddhism. If you guys flaunt your feasts in front of His Highness and His Highness has worldly desires, can you take the responsibility?!"
Caiyu quickly showed a repentant look and took the opportunity to defuse the situation. "Guard Han is right. It was this lowly servant's thoughtlessness. Instead of sharing His Highness's worries, I've added to His Highness's troubles. This lowly servant will surely remember this in the future."
First, Caiyu reasonably defended the act of drinking and having fun, avoiding the serious charge of excessive drinking and wanton drinking in the Lotus Sound Pavilion.
Then, she only lightly admitted her minor mistake, giving Song Yinghuai a way to calm down.
For a moment, Song Yinghuai's temples throbbed.
These days, Han Fen had also specially investigated Lan Caiyu's background again, but still found no flaws.
Finally, they came to the conclusion that either Caiyu's identity was indeed real, or the person behind her was extremely powerful and had fabricated her false identity perfectly.
The only people who could make it impossible for Song Yinghuai to find any flaws were the Emperor and the Crown Prince.
Looking at the wine flowing on the ground and smelling the fragrance he hadn't touched for many years in the air, Song Yinghuai calmly ordered Han Fen:
"Go and tell Ji Ming to add a rule to the Lotus Sound Pavilion: No alcohol or meat is allowed in the Lotus Sound Pavilion!"
"Yes!" Han Fen quickly took the order.
Caiyu bit her lips tightly and secretly sighed.
The Prince of Yan was really a tougher mountain to climb than the Sichuan Path.
She didn't expect Song Yinghuai to hit the mark directly and block her way for the future!
Seeing the embarrassed look on Caiyu's face, Song Yinghuai's mood immediately improved.
Ji Ming came in with Han Fen and said to Song Yinghuai,
"This lowly servant has come to pass on a message from the old princess. She said that the maple leaves on Fragrant Hill have turned red recently, and the old princess is inviting everyone in the mansion to go to Fragrant Hill to enjoy the red leaves."