Chapter 426: So Intelligent

Seeing the current situation, Ji Yuan felt that the matter between Yin Qing and Princess Changping was basically settled. Fortunately, the two of them did not seem to have any resistance, and Princess Changping even seemed to admire Yin Qing a little.

However, Yin Qing was already over thirty years old, while Princess Changping, although definitely one of the oldest among the princes and princesses, was only eighteen. Yin Qing was definitely an old cow eating young grass.

1

After the meal, everyone was satisfied, and it was the perfect time to press their advantage. Emperor Hongwu, using his good mood as an excuse, wanted to stay at the Yin residence for a longer chat. The people of the Yin residence naturally cooperated. How did they cooperate ? Of course, they sent Yin Qing and Princess Changping away so they could have more time alone.

Yin Qing and Princess Changping were not particularly resistant. Since things were like this, the latter suggested that Yin Qing could paint her portrait directly. After obtaining Yin Qing’s consent, the two of them, along with two maids, went to Yin Qing’s study.

The reception hall was warm and comfortable thanks to the stove. A small table was placed on a plush couch, and a chessboard was placed on it. Emperor Hongwu and Yin Zhaoxian sat on either side playing chess.

Consort De and Mother Yin were chatting on a couch on the other side, smiling as they talked about Yin Qing and Princess Changping. The two had already begun discussing wedding preparations and what color fabric to use for their grandchildren’s clothes. Clearly, their thoughts were progressing much faster than their actual plans.

Ji Yuan did not leave immediately after finishing his meal, but politely sat with Yin Zhong for a while before bidding farewell and leaving the guest hall alongside the equally bored Yin Zhong.

Once outside, Ji Yuan led Yin Zhong into the corridor, heading towards the garden and guest wing. The guards outside only glanced at Ji Yuan before leaving him alone, clearly determining him to be a weak and powerless scholar.

Once Yin Zhong was outside, he had no more scruples and, before he had walked too far, he hurriedly asked Ji Yuan a question.

“Mr. Ji, do you think my brother will really be getting married? I’m going to be an uncle! Princess Changping is quite beautiful. I don’t believe my brother can resist her. After all, food and sex are basic human needs!”

Ji Yuan almost flicked Yin Zhong’s forehead again.

“You little rascal, you’ve picked up quite a bit of nonsense. Qing’er was much more well-behaved than you when he was little.”

“I am not as good as my brother anyway. Besides, Mr. Ji, you might not be aware, but despite his scholarly appearance, my brother is quite strong. By the way, you still haven’t told me whether my brother can succeed at getting married this time.”

Yin Zhong was extremely interested in whether Yin Qing could get married; or rather, he was extremely interested in his future nephew. He seemed to think that once his nephew was older, they could play together at the mansion. However, he didn’t realize that by the time his nephew was old enough to run and play, Yin Zhong would be past the age where he could be mischievous and cause trouble at will.

As Ji Yuan walked along the corridor, he gazed at the stars and moon in the sky outside, and answered with a smile.

“It won’t be as fast as you think, but at this point in time the marriage between Yin Qing and that princess is probably a sure thing. After all, the Emperor and your family both want to make it happen, and Yin Qing and Princess Changping don’t seem to have any objections.”

Yin Zhong was delighted to hear this. Since Mr. Ji had said so, the matter was basically settled.

“Mr. Ji, could we please see what my brother and the Princess are doing?”

Ji Yuan looked at him.

“What else could they be doing? Painting, of course. Didn’t you hear them leaving just now?”

“I know, I know, I just want to see how they are painting. Mr. Ji, Could you use some kind of magic so we can see them without my brother finding out?”

“You little rascal, you’ve got quite a few crooked ideas. I hope you can use them for military strategy in the future!”

Ji Yuan seemingly gave an irrelevant answer before replying.

“Your brother is shrewd and a remarkable person. There are few things you can fool or hide from him. Don’t try anything funny in front of him!”

Yin Zhong had a pained expression on his face.

“I’ve experienced that countless times since I was younger. But with you here, how could he possibly see through you?”

“Hah, I’m not interested!”

Ji Yuan laughed and replied, then stopped talking and quickened his pace toward the guesthouse. Yin Zhong had no choice but to follow.

…

In Yin Qing’s study, he had already prepared the Four Treasures of the Study, including several inkstones and inks of different colors, including vermilion and orpiment.

2

Princess Changping watched Yin Qing’s preparations with a curious expression, and then saw him spread a blank roll of Xuan paper on the desk.

“Minister Yin, what should I do? Should I just stand still and wait for you to finish drawing?”

As Yin Qing, who was using paperweights to press down the edges of the paper, looked up at Princess Changping and met her bright eyes.

“No need, standing all the time is tiring. You and your maid can rest on the soft couch to the side, or play chess or card games

3

together.”

“Would that be alright? I’ve heard that one shouldn’t move around too much when painting portraits.”

Yin Qing tucked his sleeves in, picked up a fine brush, dipped it in ink, and tested the color on some papers nearby, answering with great confidence.

“My painting style is slightly different from that of ordinary people. Your Highness, please be as you like. What I want to paint is not just a lifeless portrait, but to capture Your Highness’s every smile and frown. So the more natural Your Highness appears, the better!”

Princess Changping’s eyes widened slightly, then she smiled and said to Yin Qing.

“Minister Yin, you can just call me Yang Ping. Hmm, I’ll call you Yin Qing from now on.”

With those words, Princess Changping called to her maid and they all sat down on the soft couch opposite the desk. They took out the chess and card games from the study, and began to play, passing the time as they nibbled on the snacks and tea that had been prepared beforehand. However, Yang Ping and the maid would occasionally glance at Yin Qing to see if he had started painting.

Yin Qing simply stood in front of the desk, gazing at the person opposite for a while. Only when he was calm and composed did he begin to paint. His eyes seemed to capture the essence of an individual, leaving an impression on them. Every stroke flowed incredibly smoothly.

While the maids were playing card games on the soft couch over to the side, they secretly observed Yin Qing, and couldn’t help but say to Yang Ping.

“Your Highness, Minister Yin is painting so diligently!”

“Hmm, play your card quickly!”

Princess Changping urged her maid to play her cards, while glancing at Yin Qing out of the corner of her eye. He would look at her for a while and then sit down and draw for a long time, instead of simply glancing at her and drawing a single stroke.

‘I wonder how the painting is going…’

Just as she was thinking this, she happened to meet Yin Qing’s gaze as he looked up. Yang Ping panicked and quickly looked away, continuing to play with the card game.

On the roof beam inside the room, a paper crane continued watching what was happening below. Sometimes it would look at Yin Qing, sometimes at Princess Changping, sometimes it would focus on Yin Qing’s painting, and sometimes it would watch Princess Changping and her maids playing a card game very carefully.

Behind the little paper crane was a ball of fiery red fluff: which was a red fox curled up in a ball.

Hu Yun also crouched on the roof beam, looking down and occasionally sniffing the air.

“Little paper crane, you found a perfect spot!”

Hu Yun’s voice was barely audible. Upon hearing this, the little paper crane tilted its head to look at Hu Yun, then turned back to focus intently on the scene below.

Before long, Hu Yun’s fox-like face stretched into a wide grin, even revealing sharp teeth, but he didn’t look scary at all. Instead, for a moment, he gave off a lewd feeling.

“Hehehe, the princess is excited. This is their first time meeting. As expected of Yin Qing, he’s so quick!”

The little paper crane tilted its head to look at Hu Yun again, and this time it didn’t turn back for a long time, leaving Hu Yun somewhat bewildered. After a while, he suddenly realized what was going on, and then answered in a very low voice but with a clear hint of an amused smile.

“Of course I could tell by smell! You can’t tell male from female paper cranes, you wouldn’t understand!”

Upon hearing this, the little paper crane turned its head again, this time focusing intently on Princess Changping Yang Ping.

About an hour and a half later, Emperor Hongwu was finally ready to return to the palace. However, when he sent someone to inform Princess Changping, Yin Qing’s painting was far from finished. This made Yang Ping a little anxious, as she did not want the painting to be affected.

However, Yin Qing was good at comforting people, and said to her with a confident smile.

“Princess, please return to the palace with peace of mind. Every smile and frown of yours is etched in my heart, and I will ensure that the painting is flawless!”

This smile successfully dispelled Yang Ping’s anxiety and amplified the feelings in her heart that she herself was not yet aware of.

“Then I’ll wait for your good news in the palace. By the way, call me Yang Ping!”

After saying this, Princess Changping left with her maids, and Yin Qing naturally accompanied her to see her off.

…

Emperor Hongwu’s carriage had already left the Yin residence, and outside, guards were jogging alongside in the cold wind. Inside the two carriages were charcoal stoves, hot tea, and snacks.

In the second carriage, Princess Changping and Consort De sat together, the mother and daughter whispering to each other.

“Ping’er, tell your mother honestly, what do you think of Minister Yin?”

Princess Changping dared not look at Consort De, fiddling with the tea and snacks, her mind preoccupied with the painting. She wondered how Yin Qing’s work was progressing, and the phrase “every frown and smile of yours is etched in my heart” kept coming back to her. A smile involuntarily appeared on her lips.

No one knew a daughter better than her mother, and Consort De was overjoyed to see this.

“So, our Ping’er has taken a liking to him?”

“Mother, what are you saying? I haven’t…”

…

At the same time, in the guest courtyard of the Yin residence, Yin Zhong had already been sent back to sleep by Ji Yuan. Now, only Ji Yuan, the Paper Crane, Hu Yun, and several of the small calligraphy spirits who had been instructed to “go out for a breath of fresh air” were in the room.

Unlike usual, the room was completely quiet; everyone was listening to Hu Yun talk.

When Hu Yun finished speaking, even Ji Yuan looked puzzled.

“Qing’er is such a capable kid!”

“Yeah, I never expected that!”

Hu Yun waved his paws excitedly, then said very seriously.

“I need to learn this skill too; I’ll need it sooner or later!”

Ji Yuan smiled, unexpectedly agreeing with this.

“That’s right. If he writes a book on this, it might spread even faster than Master Yin’s classic works!”

“Haha, Mr. Ji, do you want to learn too?”

“What utter nonsense are you spouting?”

With a flick of his sleeve, Ji Yuan swept Hu Yun aside like a ball, sending him rolling to the door of the guesthouse. The door opened at the same instant, and he rolled out of the room.

The group of small calligraphy spirits immediately flew to the door, laughing and joking at Hu Yun.

“Damn it, Hu Yun is a bastard!”

“Hahaha, serves you right!”

“You scoundrel, how dare you slander our Master!”

“You damned fox, Little Hu Yun!”

“Rolling like a ball!”

“Hahahaha…”

Just as Hu Yun was about to retort, the door slammed shut, and Ji Yuan’s voice drifted back out.

“Go back to your room and go to sleep.”

T/n: you can probably guess what this means, but basically Yin Qing is way older than Chanping

Orpiment, also known as yellow arsenic blende, is a bright yellow sulfide mineral that was historically used for yellow pigments. It’s also extremely toxic.

“Leaf games” (translated here as “card games”) are the precursor to modern card games, and include suits or other images.

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