Chapter Seventy-Six The Watermelons Are Ripe

Li Yanhe heard Sun Ziwen’s words and revealed a sardonic smile, tilting his head to look at Sun Ziwen coldly. His voice was icy and detached, and Sun Ziwen felt the oppressive aura emanating from Li Yanhe. Sun Ziwen staggered back two steps, coughing up blood.

"You’re nothing but a dog. What’s wrong? Just because you feel favored now, you think you can…”

Li Yanhe’s tone was light, and as Sun Ziwen listened to the calm, almost serene man smile faintly, he felt a sudden chill run down his spine. Sun Ziwen said nothing, quietly watching this renowned young man walk away step by step.

Sun Ziwen knew well, to the royal family, he was just a dog. His arrogance was only due to the emperor’s trust in him. There were too many like him in the Shadow Dragon; men whose greatest value lay in their usefulness.

Sun Ziwen left in silence, having received the emperor’s command to monitor Prince Li Yanhe of Shengxuan County.

Lin Miaomiao was snoring away in bed, completely unaware of what had happened the previous night.

The next morning, Lin Miaomiao got up early. Li Yanhe had to go to the military camp, so Lin Miaomiao specially prepared a heartfelt lunchbox for him.

Li Yanhe looked at the adorable, pinkish lunchbox and his lips twitched slightly. Lin Miaomiao said to him, “This is a love lunchbox. Take it with you, and remember to heat it up at noon before eating.”

At lunchtime, Li Yanhe brought Lin Miaomiao’s lunchbox to the kitchen. The chef opened the prince’s lunchbox, and everyone saw the general’s cute, pink lunch. Every cook’s lips twitched in surprise.

Was their great general about to get married? This meal was clearly made by a young lady; it was just too adorable!

Thus, news of Li Yanhe’s charming lunchbox spread throughout every corner of the camp.

When Li Yanhe met with the soldiers, the rough men’s expressions changed as they looked at him. Li Yanhe noticed the peculiar glances and couldn’t help but feel a little baffled.

That day, Lin Miaomiao went to the factory with Lin Qi and Lin Jiwang. She found everything in perfect order and realized Lin Qi was truly capable.

Lin Miaomiao said to Lin Qi, “You’ve really helped a lot lately. Without you, the factory wouldn’t be running so smoothly.”

Lin Qi glanced at Lin Miaomiao and replied, “Miss, you don’t need to be so polite. This is what I should do as your subordinate. You gave me a second chance, so I must do everything with my utmost effort.”

Hearing his words, Lin Miaomiao felt unexpectedly moved. She suddenly thought of her watermelons grown in the drought city and asked Lin Qi to take her there to check on their progress.

That afternoon, Lin Miaomiao arrived at the drought city and saw her watermelon field lush and green; the fruits had grown ripe.

She picked a mature watermelon and shared it with the local farmers. Seeing that the watermelons were almost ready for harvest, Lin Miaomiao said to Lin Qi, “They’re ripe now. It’s about time for harvest.”

When Li Zheng received Lin Miaomiao’s letter saying the watermelons were ripe, he hurried back to Da’ankou.

Li Zheng smiled upon seeing watermelons, previously grown only in the small frontier states, cultivated successfully in the Great Yong Dynasty.

Lin Miaomiao, looking at the watermelons, said to Li Zheng, “This year, the watermelons will fetch a good price. Next year, let’s distribute their seeds to the farmers. Though the price will drop, at least the people will have a livelihood.”

After she spoke, Li Zheng nodded. Lin Miaomiao then told Old Tian, “Let’s share these seeds with the nearby villagers and let them grow their own watermelons.”

Old Tian didn’t quite understand why Lin Miaomiao would do this, since watermelons were valuable. If they gave the seeds to the villagers, they wouldn’t be able to make as much money.

When Li Zheng and Lin Miaomiao returned to Da’ankou, it was already night. Lin Miaomiao saw Li Yanhe waiting for her at the door.

For some reason, in that moment, Lin Miaomiao felt deeply touched—here, in this unfamiliar time and space, someone was willing to be her home.

Lin Miaomiao bounced to Li Yanhe, who said, “You’ve been gone for days. I couldn’t eat your cooking at noon.”

Lin Miaomiao heard his words, her smile curving gently, showing her good mood.

Together, they went inside, and the two children, Lin Langluan and Lin Langze, hopped around, calling out, “Sister! Sister!”

Lin Miaomiao asked Lin Qi to toss the three big watermelons they’d brought into the well, turning to Li Yanhe, “Tonight we’ll have chilled watermelon.”

After saying this, she flashed a beautiful smile, and Li Yanhe couldn’t help but laugh at her delight.

That evening, Lin Miaomiao cooked dinner, with Cui Liu helping at her side. Jiang Luohan leaned against the door and said to Lin Miaomiao, “I could smell the food from far away—I knew you’d returned.”

Lin Miaomiao glanced at Jiang Luohan, amused. “You’re back? Finished your business?”

Recently, Jiang Luohan’s family had encountered some trouble, and she had said her farewells to Lin Miaomiao, who wasn’t particularly curious about other people’s affairs.

So Lin Miaomiao hadn’t asked what happened, and Jiang Luohan found it strange, asking, “Aren’t you curious?”

Lin Miaomiao looked at her and replied, “Not really. Just go home and handle your family matters. No need to rush—come back when you’re ready.”

Jiang Luohan was stunned for a moment before leaving; her family’s Ten Thousand Flowers Valley had faced some traitors. After dealing with them, she hurried back, catching the scent of food long before she arrived.

In that moment, Jiang Luohan felt the warmth of home—an extraordinarily pleasant feeling.

Because Jiang Luohan had unexpectedly returned, Lin Miaomiao decided to cook an extra dish and steam more rice, so there’d be enough food.

She prepared two tables full of dishes, and afterward, her waist felt strained. She realized being a chef was truly exhausting.

That night, Li Yanhe seemed to notice Lin Miaomiao’s back was aching, so he massaged her gently.

Lin Miaomiao felt wonderfully comfortable, drifting into sleep. Watching her, Li Yanhe began to feel sleepy as well.

He cradled Lin Miaomiao in his arms, lying on the bed, and gradually fell asleep. When Lin Miaomiao woke up the next morning, she felt a warm heater beside her.

Feeling overheated, Lin Miaomiao began kicking the covers. Li Yanhe woke instantly when she started kicking.

Lin Miaomiao opened her eyes to see his profile, and her heart began to race inexplicably.

Her cheeks flushed, and Li Yanhe noticed the girl staring at him, face red.

He reached out, thinking she might have a fever from all her rushing around lately.

His large hand rested on her forehead, and Lin Miaomiao’s mind went blank for a moment.

She shook her head internally, telling herself, “Handsome men are dangerous!”

Li Yanhe touched her forehead and said, “You’re not feverish—why is your face so red?”

Flustered, Lin Miaomiao sat up. “Why are you sleeping in my bed? Of course my face is red if you’re here! And really, you know how scary it is for someone to suddenly appear in my bed in the morning?”

She quickly made excuses for herself, and Li Yanhe watched her babble nonstop, unable to help but laugh and shake his head.

Lin Miaomiao jumped off the bed and clattered downstairs.

Li Yanhe called after her, “Slow down, don’t trip.”

His voice was deep and hoarse, making Lin Miaomiao feel as if her ears were tingling.

Li Yanhe watched her ears turn crimson, mumbling to himself, “My little girl—is she growing up?”

Lin Miaomiao ran to the well, grabbed her washbasin, and muttered, “Li Number Two, you pervert, sleeping in my bed for no reason!”

When Sun Ziwen came out, he heard Lin Miaomiao cursing Prince Li Yanhe and felt speechless.

Just days ago, he’d accidentally offended Li Yanhe, who immediately released his inner power and left Sun Ziwen with internal injuries.

Yet today, Lin Miaomiao spoke so bluntly about Li Yanhe, and the prince acted as if he hadn’t heard, still lounging comfortably in the young lady’s bed.

The watermelons Lin Miaomiao and Li Zheng had grown were all harvested and sold throughout the capital.

Lin Miaomiao kept quite a few for herself; she was actually rather particular—in summer, she never liked eating watermelon, preferring it in winter instead.

Her mother used to say she’d spoiled Lin Miaomiao from a young age, letting her grow up eating watermelon in winter.