After the spy left, the Second Prince handed the guqin to the maid beside him and stood up from the carpet.
Ji Feiyu watched him walking towards her and asked, "What good news has made the Second Prince so happy? Is it related to me?"
The Second Prince replied, "My elder brother is back."
Ji Feiyu couldn't help being curious. "What do you mean by 'back'? Doesn't the First Prince live in the palace?"
The Second Prince knew she would ask this, so he explained, "My elder brother has been preparing for the autumn hunting. This year's autumn hunting is scheduled to be held in the Western Desert, so he has been living in the Western Desert Palace recently."
Ji Feiyu said, "I've long heard that the autumn hunting is your grandest event. I didn't know it wasn't held here."
The Second Prince said, "Yes. When the autumn hunting starts, we'll have to go to the Western Desert."
"We?" Ji Feiyu frowned. "What does this autumn hunting have to do with me?" If she remembered correctly, the Second Prince had said that Yong Yaxuan was officially invited to the autumn hunting. What about her? What did this grand event have to do with her? Since Yong Yaxuan was going, she didn't want to go at all.
The Second Prince could more or less guess what she was thinking when he saw her expression. He couldn't help but tempt her, "It's really fun. It's a kind of pleasure you can never experience in the Great Yong. You really shouldn't miss it."
Ji Feiyu shook her head firmly. "No, I won't go."
The Second Prince laughed. "Who are you avoiding? The Emperor of Yong? What on earth happened between you two? The rumor of your disharmony has even spread to the Northern Cold."
Ji Feiyu really wanted to roll her eyes at him. Wasn't he talking nonsense? If they got along well, would it be his turn to talk to her in the Northern Cold?
Ji Feiyu said, "Sure enough, good news never goes beyond the gate, while bad news spreads far and wide. Tell me the truth. Did you deliberately capture me here after you heard that I left the palace?"
The Second Prince said, "Don't wrong me. It was my elder brother who wanted to invite you here. I'm just doing things for him."
Ji Feiyu squinted her eyes. "But aren't you two on bad terms?"
The Second Prince said, "We seem to get along very well on the surface. I can do anything to please him."
Ji Feiyu said, "So your elder brother is back, and you're going to carry out your plan? What, is your plan to send me to him?"
The Second Prince emphasized again, "It's not'send'. I've said that it was my elder brother who invited you here. Since he's back, he'll naturally want to meet the guest he invited."
Ji Feiyu pretended to understand but then asked, "So why do I have to learn your Northern Cold etiquette?"
The Second Prince said, "This was also my elder brother's order."
Ji Feiyu then said, "Okay. When will you tell me your plan? To be honest, I feel like you've been keeping me in suspense and waiting for some opportunity. You've been trying every means to keep me here."
The Second Prince said sincerely, "I'm waiting for you to meet my elder brother. I'll tell you my plan after you meet him."
Ji Feiyu said, "So I can't avoid this meeting?"
The Second Prince nodded. "Yes, you have to meet him."
Ji Feiyu had no choice but to say, "Okay, okay."
Early the next morning, Ji Feiyu was woken up by the maid to get dressed and made up. This makeup was obviously more elaborate than before, so she understood that she was going to meet the First Prince.
Speaking of which, the First Prince was the one who really held power in the Northern Cold Palace. The Second Prince could only offer advice in front of the First Prince. Ji Feiyu couldn't help but sigh. So why did the First Prince "invite" her to the Northern Cold?
After a series of grooming, Ji Feiyu was taken to a place in the palace she had never been to before. She knelt and sat there in the Northern Cold etiquette, waiting for the First Prince to come.
Rich incense was burning in the room. After confirming that it was non - toxic, Ji Feiyu still felt a bit dizzy from the smell. She had taken an anti - poison pill before coming, which could be regarded as taking precautions.
Steady footsteps sounded, and there was a cry of "The First Prince is coming!" With a click, the door opened.
Ji Feiyu stood up to salute. Her movements were as smooth as flowing clouds. When the First Prince saw her, he said, "Empress Feiyu, how have you been?"
She hadn't heard this title for a long time, and this voice sounded a bit familiar. Ji Feiyu looked up, and it was really a familiar face.
In the Great Yong, he and the Second Prince had both disguised themselves as envoys with beards. At that time, she had only thought that the Second Prince's beard was too fake, but she hadn't expected his to be fake either.
Looking at the First Prince's smooth chin now, Ji Feiyu couldn't help but sigh that beards could really be deceiving. Although his appearance was not as delicate as the Second Prince's, he had the unique ruggedness and masculinity of a northern man, and he wasn't that ugly after all.
So was there no one else in the Northern Cold during that envoy mission to the Great Yong? Two princes had come. Maybe they were here for experience. Ji Feiyu recalled the previous events. No wonder the First Prince had captured her here. At that time, she seemed to have caused him internal injuries and made him vomit blood. Well... The situation was different now. Back then, it was her home court, and she could act as arrogantly as she wanted. But now, it was their home court, and she'd better be more cautious.
"Your Highness, the First Prince." Ji Feiyu nodded slightly, looking extremely dignified.
The First Prince laughed happily when he saw this. "After so many days, Empress Feiyu has become even more beautiful. Borrowing a line from your Central Plains poem, 'There is a fair one, with clear and bright eyes. Meeting her by chance, my heart is filled with joy.'"
Hearing this, Ji Feiyu said, "Your Highness, the First Prince, you are really elegant. But it's not very appropriate for you to say this poem to me."
The First Prince laughed out loud. "Really? I'm not very good at your Central Plains culture. I'm making a fool of myself."
Ji Feiyu didn't want to beat around the bush with him anymore, so she directly asked, "I wonder why Your Highness, the First Prince, invited me to the Northern Cold?"
The First Prince sighed. "It's all because Ran Wei misses her elder brother and sister - in - law and came to plead with me. I had no other choice. Coincidentally, I heard that Empress Feiyu was no longer in the palace. So, out of desperation, I had to use other means to invite you here."
"Really?" Ji Feiyu laughed mockingly. The ability of the Northern Cold royal family to tell lies with their eyes open was really getting stronger and stronger. "I see. But why haven't I seen Ran Wei during my days in the Northern Cold?"
The First Prince stared at Ji Feiyu's face, looking extremely pleased. He didn't answer for a long time.
Ji Feiyu couldn't help but cough lightly. Only then did the First Prince come back to his senses and say, "Ran Wei... Ran Wei unfortunately fell ill. She was afraid of passing on the illness to you, so she didn't come to see you."
"I see..." Ji Feiyu thought thoughtfully. They had used Ran Wei as an excuse to invite her here. It seemed that Ran Wei's illness was also just an excuse to deceive her. Speaking of which, she also wanted to see Ran Wei, but it seemed impossible in the current situation. In her current situation where she could hardly take care of herself, she really didn't want to trouble Ran Wei.