If ordinary adults were to chat with a dementia patient with the intelligence of a child, they might easily become bored. But Fan Xian was different. In his previous life, his final years were spent bedridden and unable to move, and in this life, when cultivating that strange and domineering skill, he often fell into a semi-vegetative state. Therefore, he had extreme patience. Moreover, feeling pity for this intellectually disabled brother-in-law named Da Bao, he was able to patiently chat and laugh with him.

In Fan Xian's heart, this somewhat slow-moving, chubby man beside him was much more lovable and trustworthy than anyone else in Kyoto.

"I say, big brother, why is Da Bao so fat, but you're so thin?" Da Bao frowned, seemingly greatly troubled by this question.

Fan Xian smiled wryly and replied, "First, you are my elder brother, and I will be your sister's husband in the future. Second, I'm not thin, it's just that Da Bao is a little chubby."

Da Bao shook his head, yawned, took a piece of Jiangnan soft cake from the table beside him, chewed vigorously, and said indistinctly, "Da Bao isn't fat, just likes to eat."

Seeing that the Prime Minister hadn't yet summoned him, Fan Xian's eyes darted around, and he leaned closer to his brother-in-law's ear and said, "Da Bao, when shall I take you out to play?"

"Play...play what...?" Da Bao happily said, "I want to play polo."

"Huh?" Fan Xian felt a headache coming on, thinking he was really asking for trouble. He had originally intended to take his brother-in-law out to enjoy the summer, and incidentally use this as an excuse to also drag Wan'er out of the heavily guarded imperial villa. Who would have thought that this chubby brother-in-law actually wanted to play polo? He quickly changed his tune and said, "Da Bao, would you like to hear a story?"

Da Bao's nostrils flared twice, taking in two breaths, and he said with great excitement, "Okay, okay! Da Bao loves to hear stories the most."

And so, in the Prime Minister's garden, a clear voice began to ring out. This voice was telling a story, a story about a very beautiful Snow White and seven dwarfs who lived happily in a forest. One day, Snow White went to pick small mushrooms...

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"Somewhat unexpected," Prime Minister Lin Ruofu said with a slight smile, watching from afar through the window, "Do you think he's pretending?"

Yuan Hongdao shook his head, "Doesn't seem like it. Judging by how genuine and happy Fan Gongzi looks, it should be from the heart."

"Hmm," Lin Ruofu sighed softly, "Please ask him to come in."

Fan Xian had been somewhat nervous ever since entering the Prime Minister's private residence. When he entered the Prime Minister's private study and saw his future father-in-law's face for the first time, he couldn't help but let his right pinky finger tremble slightly. After all, the death of the other party's only normal son was inextricably linked to him. But his face remained respectful and unusually calm: "Greetings, Uncle Lin."

The form of address was a very important matter. Calling him "Prime Minister" was certainly inappropriate, and calling him "Old Master" wasn't elegant either. Calling him "Uncle" could both bring the Fan and Lin families closer and subtly foreshadow the closeness that this marriage would bring.

Lin Ruofu looked at Fan Xian's calm face and was somewhat pleased with the boy's performance. After a moment of deliberation, he said, "I invited Fan Gongzi here today, and I imagine Fan Gongzi understands what it's about."

Fan Xian quickly replied with a smile, "Uncle can just call me by my name."

Lin Ruofu nodded, "Fan Xian... regarding this marriage, do you have any objections?"

Fan Xian thought to himself, what objections could he have? He was overjoyed. A trace of shyness appeared on his face unconsciously. Seeing his expression, Lin Ruofu felt even more reassured deep down and said with a smile, "You've seen it too. After Gong'er's passing, I only have this one son and one daughter. If Chen'er marries you, you must treat her well."

Fan Xian lowered his head and responded in a low voice, "Yes," without any hesitation.

"The older generation, there will always be a day when they pass on," Lin Ruofu suddenly said clearly, "If I may be so bold as to say, if there comes a day when I want to entrust my son to you in the future, do you have the ability to take on this responsibility?"

Fan Xian pondered slightly, stood up, clasped his fists, and bowed, "It is only natural."

"From now on, we will be considered a family, so there are some things that I can explain to you clearly in person," Lin Ruofu looked into the young man's eyes, as if trying to see into the depths of his heart, and said, word by word, "Although I rarely see Wan'er, she is, after all, my daughter. Her surname is Lin, and she must consider the interests of the Lin family. Once the marriage is completed, I believe that Si Nan Bo (Earl) also understands that our two families will be in a mutually beneficial relationship. I hope that in the future, whether in the court or out in the world, you will firmly remember your identity. From now on, what you must protect is not only the Fan family, but also the interests of the Lin family."

These words were indeed straightforward enough, but only in this way did the Prime Minister finally truly nod his head in agreement to this marriage. A surge of joy welled up in Fan Xian's heart. Although marrying Wan'er was something that the palace had arranged, being able to obtain the approval of his father-in-law would naturally make things more legitimate.

However, thinking about the other meaning in these words, Fan Xian couldn't help but feel a headache. This father-in-law, whom he had just met for the first time, had clearly abandoned the Crown Prince, but he didn't know if he was preparing to lean towards the Second Prince. The world said that the Fan residence and the Jing Wang (Prince) residence were both aids to the Second Prince, but Fan Xian knew that his father had much more complex thoughts in his heart.

…

…

Without dwelling on trivial matters, let's just say that after this successful trip to the Prime Minister's residence, Lin Wan'er finally found a gap to enter the palace and show filial piety to the Empress Dowager for half a day. She also somehow persuaded the Emperor, her uncle who usually had an iron face, and received an imperial decree. She was finally able to leave the imperial villa and wander around.

Lin Wan'er's body had recovered extremely well under the careful care of Fan Xian and the imperial physicians. She could have gone out for a walk long ago. Although the root of her illness hadn't been removed, always hiding in a small building wasn't a solution. So, upon hearing that the palace had finally lifted the ban, Fan Xian was overjoyed. The next morning, he arrived at the imperial villa early in the morning with a carriage and all the prepared items, waiting outside.

After waiting for who knew how long, the courtyard finally became lively. First, several guards led the way, followed by several old women, and several pretty maids clearing the path. Finally, Lin Wan'er, supported by her head maid, Si Qi, walked out gracefully from inside.

Lin Wan'er was wearing a refreshing white dress, and on her head was a woven bamboo hat from Longxi. This kind of hat was extremely light, and the brim of the hat was a thin layer of light gauze, shielding the sunlight and her beautiful face, only faintly showing the joy in her eyebrows, eyes, and lips.

Fan Xian stepped forward to greet her, but the old women became nervous upon seeing this new son-in-law and bravely blocked in front of the Junzhu (Princess), staring at him fiercely with several pairs of electric eyes.

Fan Xian was furious, thinking that he had to be disturbed by these guys even when he was dating. If they really annoyed him, he would give them some laxatives, glaring at them with eyes like lightning, making their stomachs hurt so much that they couldn't leave the toilet!

Lin Wan'er gave him an apologetic look, but forcefully pinched the head maid next to her. Si Qi felt the pain and almost cried out, wondering who she had offended again. But she understood her lady's meaning and quickly stepped forward to say to the Gongzi (Young Master), "Fan Gongzi, let's go in two groups. We'll meet again at the Summer Villa in the west of the city."

The Summer Villa was an imperial summer garden, about twenty li outside the west side of Kyoto. If not for Lin Wan'er's outing today, Fan Xian wouldn't have been qualified to enjoy its comforts.

Fan Xian snorted softly, but he also knew that if he and Wan'er rode in the same carriage before the wedding, she would be shy, and those old women would go crazy. So he didn't say anything more, but gave Ruo Ruo beside him a look. Ruo Ruo understood, smiled slightly, walked to her future sister-in-law's side, gently took Lin Wan'er's hand, said a few words, and then followed the group from the villa into the imperial carriage.

"Brother, being a Fu Ma (Imperial Son-in-Law)... is really an annoying thing," Fan Sizhe looked at Fan Xian sympathetically from the side.

"Let autumn come quickly," Fan Xian sighed, "There shouldn't be a problem with letting your sister follow your sister-in-law. Those damned old women wouldn't think that lilies will bloom in the carriage too, would they?"

"What are lilies?"

"A kind of sacred plant."

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Both sides left very early, setting out just as the sky was beginning to brighten. But by the time the convoy arrived at the Summer Villa, the sun had already woken up, shining on everything on the earth with unmatched warmth and enthusiasm, as if treating a comrade.

Fortunately, the imperial palace had long considered these issues. The delicate members of the royal family refused to accept the sun's enthusiasm, so the villa was built beside a dense forest, overlooking a lake near the mountains. It was shaded from the sun and welcomed the wind. The lake surface was calm, but a gentle breeze still blew slowly, taking away the last trace of heat from the forest and returning a refreshing coolness to everyone.

Fan Xian stood on the grass by the lake, looking at the scenery before him, and praised it in his heart. The Son of Heaven's farmhouse activities were indeed different. The living conditions were much higher than those of ordinary officials.

It was said that when entering the Summer Villa, Ruo Ruo didn't know what tricks she used, but she actually persuaded the imperial guards to leave all those old women in the front villa to drink tea and play mahjong. Only a group of young people were left by the lake. The guards stood or sat in the distance, standing guard. The maids rarely came out to play, chattering non-stop, which reduced the tranquility of the lake by three points. However, without those fish-eyed old women disturbing his peace, Fan Xian still felt very comfortable.

Moving away from the crowd and making a grimace to scare away the head maid, Si Qi, Fan Xian was finally able to be alone with Wan'er for a while.

"So difficult," Fan Xian sighed, his right hand like a snake, sneaking through the green grass, grabbing Wan'er's soft little hand like lightning, while his face remained calm as he looked at the lake, "It's so difficult to meet with the girl."

Her hand was caught, and Lin Wan'er's face immediately turned red, and she lowered her head in shame. But she didn't pull her hand back, only whispered a scolding, "Now you're calling me 'the girl' again, I wonder who it was who was shamelessly climbing over walls and windows every night."