Reborn Daughter: The Young Lady Wants to Make a Trouble

"Wow, what a beautiful face." Li Chenyang couldn't help but hum when he saw Li Xueyue walking tiredly across the pavilion.

The Li family usually enjoys family dinners in a specially built dining room that is different from usual, but today, they decided to eat in a pavilion surrounded by blooming hydrangeas. The air was filled with a faint floral scent and the breeze was refreshing.

It was a great day out. Too bad it was all ruined by a not so great night's sleep.

Li Xueyue snorted at his words, her face darkening from lack of sleep. She had had another nightmare about Zheng Leiyu yesterday - the night she found out he was cheating on her with Bai Tianai. Honestly, she found this part about his betrayal cliché and the stupidest, most predictable thing.

"I didn't sleep well." Li Xueyue sighed and slumped in her seat. The maid handed a bowl of water to her fingers.

"It must be related to the conversation I overheard." Li Chenyang commented casually, as if he was discussing the weather.

"Talk? What talk?" Li Wenmin asked as he separated the fried egg yolk from the egg white. He put the egg white into Xueyue's bowl and the egg yolk into his own bowl - just like usual.

"Well, I didn't hear anything." Duchess Wang Qixing said as she peeled the skin of the braised chicken for King Li Chenyang and put it into King Li Chenyang's bowl.

"Interesting, I heard some very interesting news from a little bird." Li Chenyang said as he was picking fish for Li Wenmin.

"I like to talk in my sleep, did you know that?" Li Xueyue said awkwardly while peeling the skin of the steamed fish with scallion oil for Li Chenyang.

"Is it really now?" Li Chenyanggong asked doubtfully, and skillfully peeled the largest shrimp with chopsticks and put it into Li Wenmin's bowl.

"Great, you can talk to yourself in different tones?" Li Chenyang pretended to be surprised, gasping, and rolled his eyes at her.

"What? You can't?" Although Li Xueyue felt a little panicked by his dissatisfied look, she still teased.

"If I had someone to talk to, I'm sure I could." Li Chenyang continued to stare at her.

"What are we talking about? I'm so confused," Li Wenmin said blankly, finally stopping his gorging motion. He was gorging so fast that one would have thought he was a hungry cub.

"Xiaoyue, why don't you eat?" Li Wenmin asked when he saw that she had no appetite today.

Li Chenyang opened his mouth, "Xueyue, I didn't sleep well last night because--"

"Ouch!" Li Wenmin screamed, "Who kicked me under the table?!"

Li Xueyue immediately buried the food, pretending that she had not missed Li Chenyang's leg. Li Chenyang smiled at her and put some steamed spinach in her bowl.

"I think we should hire someone to check the structure of our manor." King Li Chenyang said with a thoughtful frown.

“What for?” Duchess Wang Qixing was as lost as her son Li Wenmin. The two knew nothing about what happened last night.

"Make sure there is nothing wrong with the wall." Li Chenyang said kindly, then asked his wife to continue eating.

He didn't know that when Mrs. Wang finished her soup, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. For a while, she only ate one mouthful and didn't eat anything. Seeing her like this, lively and cheerful, which husband would not be happy?

"Did we have it at the beginning?" Duchess Wang Qixing asked innocently, tilting her head towards Li Chenyang, waiting for his speech.

"I thought there wasn't any. It seems that what happened in our old manor also happened in our current manor." Li Chenyang muttered, motioning Li Xueyue to taste the morning soup.

Li Xueyue blinked. Did the same thing happen in the old manor? She didn't remember anyone climbing over the wall in the old manor. Unless he was talking about someone else?

Maybe Li Wenmin had sneaked out of his room like this before? But she couldn't imagine him doing that. He loved sleeping as much as Li Chenyang, maybe a little less.

"Hmm?" Duchess Wang Qixing blinked, unsure of what kind of circles her husband and son liked to hang out in.

Li Wenmin just shrugged. His mind was filled with what he had learned in his tutoring class—if he didn't get it the second time, then he would never get it until the tenth time—and frankly, he was too lazy to think in the morning.

Under Li Chenyang’s accusing gaze and Wang Li Chenyang’s humorous smile, Li Xueyue drank the soup awkwardly.

"Let's start with Xueyue's room." Li Chenyang suggested. "We need to make sure there are no corners or gaps in the walls. Right, Xueyue?"

She fiddled with the food and nodded. "Right."

"Great. We are all on the same side." Li Chenyang smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes. He was angry, but the Duke was happy.

"What makes Chen Yang so protective of Xue Yue?" King Li Chen Yang muttered to himself, watching Chen Yang nod at Xue Yue's untouched rice and untasted dishes. His son didn't eat until Xue Yue finally started eating normally.

When the family finished breakfast, everyone went their separate ways and focused on their own tasks for the day. Li Xueyue thought that the rest of the day would be spent practicing archery, but as soon as she picked up the bow and arrow, Li Chenyang rushed into the archery range.

He was dressed in a proper court attire, with an angry expression on his handsome face. Li Xueyue wished he could smile more. It often brightened his entire countenance.

"Is there a problem?" Li Xueyue asked curiously. Li Chenyang stopped directly in front of her, crossed his arms, and pursed his lips into a line.

"Who was in your room last night?"

Li Xueyue scratched her cheek awkwardly. "Can we end this conversation?"

"Xueyue, what bastard dared to knock out five of our guards and then sneak into your room? If this matter gets out, you will be in trouble."

"Did my guard tell you?"

"No, don't try to change the subject." Li Chenyang told her firmly. "Is it Wen Jinkai?"

"I don't want to be the reason why you are no longer friends." Li Xueyue said hesitantly and put the bow and arrow on the equipment table.

"What makes you think we're no longer friends?"

"You guys are always so tense, like you two had a fight or something." Li Xueyue muttered as she looked at the ground, watching the evergreen leaves swaying in the breeze.

Li Chenyang's expression became gentle. He slowly touched her head and smiled. "Xueyue, you don't have to worry about us."

Li Xueyue realized that he hadn't answered her correctly. "Are you still friends with him? Two years ago, I heard that you were very good friends, but during the competition, Wen Jinkai and you reacted with hostility."

"I didn't expect you to see these things." Li Chenyang said.

"You did not answer my question."

"We're..." His voice trailed off, searching for the right words that wouldn't offend Xueyue or Jincai. "We can talk."

"Talk about conditions?"

"Yes," Li Chenyang said briefly, not revealing anything more. He also wouldn't reveal what they had talked about the afternoon before the banquet. There had been a violent argument, chairs had been overturned, teacups had been smashed to the ground, and tables had been overturned. The discussion about history repeating itself was enough to tear their trust in each other to pieces.

Li Chenyang stared at Xueyue, his eyes memorizing every inch of her appearance. He looked at her as if he was about to lose her. Perhaps what happened in the past traumatized him and made him no longer trust Wen Jinkai and women.

Li Chenyang knew that Wen Jinkai rarely fell in love, but when he did, he always fell badly. Without warning, he hugged Li Xueyue tightly and pressed her face against his chest.

"Brother Chen...?"

"I will keep you safe," Li Chenyang vowed. "I promise you that you will not perish because of palace politics."

There was a lot of emotion in his voice, which made Li Xueyue understand something. This had happened before in the past. He had lost someone, whether involuntarily or not. Does Wen Jinkai have any relationship with the palace?

She looked up at him, eyes wide and curious, and his face was filled with pain, fear of losing her, fear of her losing her smile.

Li Chenyang closed his eyes and held her a little tighter. Just a little, because he knew that her life from now on would not be smooth sailing. Just like Li Minghua's life when she got involved in the court. History was repeating itself, but this time, it would not have another victim. He would make sure of that.