Prime Minister Li must have gotten used to Xiao Changyi always ignoring him, as he quickly recovered his composure and briskly walked over to An Jing and the others. Bowing in respect, he then said to An Jing, "Earlier, this humble official forgot to thank the Princess Consort. When my daughter was in Hecheng County, not only did you take great care of her numerous times, but also gifted her an excellent horse. This humble official is hereby expressing his gratitude; you have been too generous."
This was not flattery—the horse truly was of fine stock, likely worth a few thousand taels.
After all, he could not afford it.
The horse he had previously at home was given to him by the Emperor to facilitate his travel.
An Jing looked towards Li Wuyu. Clearly, the horse was given by Wang Youbao, so how did it become her gift instead?
Li Wuyu immediately gave An Jing a pleading look.
Only then did An Jing smile at Prime Minister Li and say, "Since I have accepted Wuyu as my apprentice, I must give something to express my intent as a mentor. It’s not a big expense, so Prime Minister, you don’t need to be so formal."
After a pause, An Jing added, "I came to take Wuyu out to play. Would it be possible for the Prime Minister to allow Wuyu to accompany us for an hour? We’ll just roam around within the Imperial Capital, not going elsewhere."
Even if Prime Minister Li was reluctant at heart, he could only say, "We are honored by Prince and Princess Consort’s generosity, and my daughter will certainly accompany you."
Then, Xiao Changyi, An Jing, and Li Wuyu left the Prime Minister’s residence.
As soon as they exited the Prime Minister’s residence, Li Wuyu thanked An Jing, "Master, thank you. Otherwise, my father would definitely investigate thoroughly where that horse came from. My father is an honest official and does not allow me to accept things from others casually."
An Jing said, "You should be proud of your father."
Li Wuyu instantly replied, "Of course!" Her father had always been her pride.
Immediately after, Li Wuyu excitedly asked, "Master, master, did my baby ask you to bring me anything when you were coming to the Capital?"
An Jing fell silent for a moment, then honestly shook her head.
Li Wuyu immediately looked disappointed but still murmured, "I expected he would do this... it’s always been just my wishful thinking..."
An Jing hesitated for a moment but still said, "The piece of jade you gave him, he carries it on him every day."
Upon hearing this, Li Wuyu’s mood was instantly healed as she smiled and said, "That’s what my mother left me. I didn’t know what else would be good to give him, so I thought of giving him that piece of jade."
Isn’t that akin to a token of love?
A pity, indeed, that Wang Youbao, that blockhead, had no clue.
An Jing sighed softly to herself but said nothing in response to that.
Li Wuyu only accompanied An Jing and Xiao Changyi around the Capital City for half an hour before she really returned to the Prime Minister’s residence; An Jing and Xiao Changyi went back to the palace.
On the way back to the palace, Xiao Changyi commented indifferently, "The Prime Minister will report the matter of the military boxing."
An Jing said admiringly, "Prime Minister Li truly does give his all for Xiyun."
Xiao Changyi remained silent.
Recalling what Li Wuyu had told her about Linghe at the Prime Minister’s residence, An Jing then said with a smile, "My lord, I have something to tell you. That Linghe seems to have started targeting you again."
Xiao Changyi snorted lightly, "When should we deal with her?"
"Pfft." An Jing instantly laughed out loud. Her lord was truly authoritative. A mere Commandery Princess didn’t even register in his sight. No, even the Emperor of Xiyun was always disregarded by him.
Then, she shared her own thoughts, "Let’s see what tricks she wants to play first. As long as she dares to send something our way again, we will make sure she is so embarrassed she won’t want to show her face again."
"Hmm." Since his wife wanted to play, he would naturally go along with her wishes.