The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan
Chapter 120 He’s been acting a bit strange lately (first update)

Chapter 120: 120 He’s been acting a bit strange lately (first update)

Everyone turned their attention to the entrance upon hearing the sound, and a line of maids entered, each holding a very large tray, with each tray containing a fruit carving of a bird in full flight.

The Divine Bird was carved from various fruits, so exquisitely and life-like that no one could resist offering continuous praise.

The appearance of the fruit carving caused quite a sensation.

As it was a family banquet, many children and female relatives attended.

While the jujube cakes and mung bean cakes were served, these ladies were still able to control their children.

But now, with the appearance of the fruit carvings, the children were completely beyond control.

They stood up excitedly, talking and laughing with each other.

"Look, a green bird, such a beautiful green bird!"

"This is magical, is it made from fruit?"

"Impossible, it must be fake, I have never seen a green bird made from fruit before."

"You’re wrong, it’s real, look closely, it’s made out of fruit."

...

Seeing that they couldn’t control their own children, the ladies simply gave up, since it wasn’t just their children who were speaking.

The neighboring female relatives also couldn’t help but point at the fruit carvings and whisper to each other.

Guli gritted her teeth hard at this scene.

She took another careful look at the maids serving the dishes; there were many unfamiliar faces, none of her people were present.

Could it be that her scheme had been seen through by Li Xianyun? How could that be?

She refused to believe that the Han Ethnic Group woman was that clever.

Yelu Yan leaned his robust body close to Li Xianyun, whose tiny figure next to him only enhanced her delicate and endearing appearance.

Looking into her watery eyes, Yelu Yan smiled and said, "Did you make this?"

Li Xianyun turned her head to look at him, nodded slightly, and smiled, "Isn’t it quite good, what I’ve done?"

Yelu Yan laughed, "It’s not just quite good, it’s incredibly impressive."

He was quite good at giving compliments.

Li Xianyun couldn’t help but smile sweetly.

Every time she left the palace, she paid close attention to the customs of the Khitan people.

In their carpets and accessories, she often saw a colorful Divine Bird.

The Divine Bird looked similar to a phoenix but had differences in its crest and tail.

Li Xianyun had asked Zhuo Ma and learned that this Divine Bird was known as the green bird.

A Khitan legend says that when Khitan was first established, a man riding a white horse and a woman driving a gray ox met on the Liao River, became husband and wife, and bore eight sons, who were subsequently the eight tribes of Khitan.

The meeting of the couple was due to the green bird delivering messages, so the green bird holds a very high status in the hearts of Khitan people.

When Li Xianyun planned to do fruit carvings, the first thing she thought of was the green bird.

The princely relatives were astonished to see Yelu Yan approaching Li Xianyun and speaking to her with a smile, almost dropping their jaws.

Yelu Yan had always given the impression of being mature beyond his years, never joking with others; as he grew older, he became more solemn and had never been seen smiling.

Everyone had doubted whether he could smile at all.

So, seeing him smile today was such a surprise for the princely relatives.

The grand hall slowly quieted down due to the intimate gesture of Yelu Yan toward Li Xianyun.

When the adults quieted down, the children were naturally stopped by their mothers as well.

Seeing everyone’s tense expressions, Yelu Yan said calmly, "There’s no need to be tense, today is just a family banquet, a joyful gathering; there’s no need to discuss anything else."

Everyone relaxed upon hearing this.

Yelu Yan glanced at Li Xianyun and said, "This is a banquet specially prepared for everyone by the Consort; please feel free to enjoy it."

The crowd hurriedly got up, bent their arms in a salute, and said, "Thank you, Princess Consort!"

It was said that the Grand Imperial Consort had angered the Khan, having been stripped of the Phoenix Seal; it seemed to be true.

Otherwise, how could the Princess Consort be in charge of holding the Palace banquet?

Li Xianyun smiled and said, "Dispense with the formalities."

Yelu Yan glanced at the Palace servant beside him, who respectfully saluted Yelu Yan before raising his sharp voice and announcing, "Nobles, begin the feast!"

Guli watched everyone with cold eyes as they began to eat.

Although she had vaguely guessed that her schemes had failed, she still harbored a sliver of hope that the guests would be dissatisfied with the food.

But as the guests began to eat, they all enjoyed the meal immensely and were full of praise. Could it really be that delicious?

The useless bunch in Haoyang Palace couldn’t even manage this task properly; it was utterly infuriating.

During the meal, Yelu Yan occasionally picked food for Li Xianyun, and before long, her plate was visibly piled high.

Li Xianyun couldn’t help but let out a light laugh.

She looked very beautiful when she laughed; her cheeks would flush with a pink warmth.

The delicate and fair skin on her face flushed with a faint pink, a beauty that was hard to describe with words.

Yelu Yan leaned in slightly and asked with a smile, "What are you laughing at, hmm?"

Li Xianyun sat up straight, raised her slender, fair fingers that were as delicate as the roots of an onion, pointed at her plate, and said with a smile, "Have you seen this?"

"What about it?" Yelu Yan had already guessed her meaning, but pretended not to know.

He liked talking with her.

"It’s full," she said.

"And then?" Yelu Yan looked at her with a smile brimming with indulgence.

Li Xianyun let out a light "hmpf" and said with a smile, "I’m not a pig; I can’t eat so much."

Yelu Yan couldn’t help but let out a hearty laugh.

His laughter drew the attention of the nearby nobility. Many royal relatives looked up, including Guli.

Guli clenched her hand into a fist under the table. This damned woman was surely a disaster-bringing enchantress; she had only been here a few days but had already charmed Yelu Yan into utter distraction, making him seem like a completely different person.

Yelu Yan stared at the delicate beauty of Li Xianyun’s small face and said with a laugh, "I actually want to fatten you up into a little pig, you’re too thin."

Li Xianyun put down her chopsticks, cupped her small, white hands around her face, and showed it to him, seriously saying, "Look, there’s plenty of flesh on my face."

She had a baby face with some baby fat, her cheeks had a bit of flesh, but other places were not so fleshy, except for... and... which were very fleshy. (Author’s note: Those who understand, understand, haha)

Yelu Yan couldn’t help but swallow hard. He barely recognized himself anymore; what was he thinking?

Li Xianyun, seeing Yelu Yan’s dazed look, put down her small hands and asked, "Khan, what’s wrong? Are you not feeling well?"

"No, nothing," he replied.

Yelu Yan just felt his throat dry; once certain thoughts began, they spread like a wildfire from a spark.

He then picked up his chopsticks and started eating.

Li Xianyun gave Yelu Yan a glance; he had been acting quite strange lately.

As Li Xianyun turned her head, she caught sight of Yelu Xuan.

The little boy was looking at her with a beaming smile.

Children’s eyes truly were so dark and bright, when they looked at you, it was as if there were stars in them.

How could one not like such a child?

Li Xianyun responded with a smile.

Seeing that Yelu Yan had stopped conversing with Li Xianyun, the royal relatives finally got a chance to show themselves before the Khan.

One by one, they came forward, raised their cups, and extended their blessings to Yelu Yan and Li Xianyun. Then they tilted their heads back and drained the wine in their cups as a gesture of respect.