He Sanlang didn't know what he was doing outside and didn't return until after dinner.

He first went to Qingwen Hall before returning to Songtao Court.

He had been out for an entire day and had two dinner parties. He didn't eat much but drank a lot of wine.

Lai Yue could clearly feel the low pressure from his young master today.

That handsome but callous face hidden in the darkness, his slightly pursed thin lips, and his eyes that shone under the starlight. All of this made his master look like a goshawk that was hibernating in the darkness, waiting for an opportunity to hunt.

At this moment, this bloodthirsty goshawk was staring at Third Young Madam's Songtao Court with narrowed eyes.

Lai Yue braced himself and reminded him, "Young … Young Master, it's getting late. You're out socializing, so you should return to your room to rest."

As soon as Lai Yue said this, He Changdi didn't even look at him and strode into the courtyard.

The two maids guarding the door saw their male master return and hurriedly bowed to him.

He Changdi entered Songtao Court and stood in the hallway of the reception hall. He looked at the master bedroom that was already hidden in the darkness and the corners of his mouth twitched coldly.

Sure enough, it was the same as in his previous life. This vicious woman had never treated him as her husband and didn't even greet him when he returned late. It was his own stupidity to have wavered in her actions these past two days!

Lai Yue didn't dare to say anything and followed He Sanlang to the study of Songtao Court.

He raised his head and saw the dark circles under the young master's eyes. He didn't look too good and thought of those dinner parties where they only drank wine. He immediately said, "Young Master, this lowly one will go to the kitchen and bring you a bowl of hangover soup."

He Sanlang rubbed his throbbing temples and waved at Lai Yue. Lai Yue was about to turn and leave when he heard He Changdi say, "See if there's anything to eat and bring it over."

Lai Yue sighed and quickly left the study.

He Changdi leaned against the study table. There was only a flickering lamp on the table in the study, illuminating his handsome face and making him look even more pale and haggard.

He Sanlang's second brother was on duty in the Left Guard.

The Emperor's Left Guard was part of the Imperial Army and was divided into the Dragon Guard and Tiger Guard.

The Dragon Guard was selected from the various military families while the Tiger Guard was selected from the top experts of the military examinations and the various battalions.

Since they were born differently, there would naturally be many conflicts.

The Tiger Guards were responsible for patrolling the palace today, but because the commander of the Imperial Army, He Lin, had to bring some men with him when he left the capital, the Tiger Guards were mobilized. He Lin was born in the Tiger Guards and was naturally close to the Tiger Guards, so the duty fell into the hands of the Dragon Guards.

Among the Dragon Guards patrolling the palace today was the second young master of Count Jing 'an's estate, He Changjue.

In his previous life, because he was on duty that day, the Second Young Master was convicted and removed from the ranks of the Left Guard. The entire Dragon Guards were punished according to military law, and He Changjue, who was the captain of the team, was severely punished. His legs were disabled and he could never practice martial arts.

The Dragon Guards were also suppressed by the Tiger Guards and lost their edge. Two months later, the Dragon Guards were drastically reduced. A year later, the Royal Guards were all gone.

Today, in the afternoon, He Sanlang specially went to find his second brother who was going to be on duty. He then followed him into the Palace. He stood guard under the verdant red apricot tree outside the Palace and caught the little girl who fell from the red apricot tree.

The little girl was Imperial Consort Wei and the emperor's daughter, Princess Leyao. She was ten years old this year. Imperial Consort Wei was favored in the Palace, so Princess Leyao naturally became the emperor's darling.

Imperial Consort Wei didn't have any princes, so she naturally valued her only daughter, Princess Leyao.

In his previous life, Princess Leyao had been naughty and climbed up the apricot tree. She fell from the courtyard wall and hit the back of her head, killing her.

The emperor and Imperial Consort Wei flew into a rage and punished the patrolling Dragon Guards.

In this life, He Sanlang had saved Princess Leyao, so naturally, he was spared from punishment.

This incident should have been rewarded generously, but Princess Leyao was already ten years old. If news of this were to spread, it would inevitably damage the princess's reputation. Thus, He Sanlang begged the emperor to keep this matter a secret.

When the emperor saw that He Sanlang was tactful, he immediately had a good impression of him. He asked him what kind of reward he wanted, but He Changdi didn't say anything. He only asked the emperor for a small favor and tactfully rejected Imperial Consort Wei's goodwill.

After he left the Palace, his second brother brought him to a restaurant. The disciples of the generals on duty in the Dragon Guards immediately expressed their gratitude to him.

A meal of wine was inevitable.

He Changjue drank a little too much. He put his arm around his third brother's shoulder and asked him why he didn't use this opportunity to enter the imperial court. He Sanlang looked at his second brother who was leading a muddle-headed life and could only shake his head helplessly.

The imperial court and Shengjing were not places where it was easy for disciples of military families like them to mingle.

Unfortunately, the current imperial court was no longer the era of the late emperor. The emperor valued civil affairs more than military affairs, and disciples of military families like them couldn't participate in the civil examination. Only military families could make a name for themselves. They might not be able to see the signs yet, but if they couldn't gain a foothold in the next three to five years, the days of the military families in the capital would be even more difficult. Even those who had great generals guarding the borders were no exception.

He returned to the residence with a heavy heart and saw the dark courtyard. Naturally, He Sanlang wasn't happy.

He thought about how his grandmother had told him when he was young and how she and her grandfather had gone through thick and thin together. He felt that it was extremely laughable when it came to him.

When he thought about his previous life, he felt that women were the most untrustworthy people in the world. Beneath their beautiful appearances, they all had hearts like snakes and scorpions.

He gently closed his eyes. Light footsteps could be heard from outside. Not long after, Lai Yue came in.

"Young Master, this is a hangover soup. Drink it while it's hot."

He Changdi's deep gaze swept over the table. He only saw a bowl of hangover soup and nothing else. His gaze fell on Lai Yue's face. Lai Yue immediately felt awkward and stammered, "The small kitchen doesn't have any good food left. For the past two days, the food in the small kitchen has been prepared by Third Young Madam and her personal servant girls. The kitchen maids that were originally assigned to the kitchen have also been sent back. There's only a rough old woman guarding the door.

And this little one … this little one doesn't know how to cook either. "

What he meant was that although there were ingredients in the small kitchen, without a chef, they wouldn't be able to eat supper.

In this hot summer, in order to prevent food from spoiling, they had to cook one meal at a time. Coupled with the secret recipe that Chu Lian had taught them, the food was delicious. Even if they ate until they were full, there wouldn't be any leftovers.

Lai Yue was distressed. He furrowed his brows and carefully glanced at his young master's expression.

When he saw He Changdi's gloomy expression, Lai Yue's eyes widened as he tried to think of a way to salvage the situation. "Young … Young Master, this little one saw that the small kitchen still has something to eat."

"Hm?"

Lai Yue's expression turned bitter. He could only say, "The old woman guarding the door said that Third Young Madam made crystal sugar white fungus and lotus seed porridge. She specially simmered it over a small fire for the morning meal. She also … also said that the taste would only be good if the fire was high enough."

Chu Lian made it?

She kept it for herself?

He Sanlang snorted coldly and said, "Bring it over."

This evil woman made it for him. How could he not give her face and taste it?

"Ah?"

Lai Yue's expression turned bitter. This … this wasn't good. What was wrong with Third Young Master? Why was he always thinking about stealing Third Young Madam's food? He was like a naughty child who didn't get any attention. He was trying to think of ways to attract the attention of the person he liked.

Of course, he didn't dare to say this out loud.