But would Ji Feiyu really be willing to sacrifice herself? Of course not. When it came to things she didn't want to do, she had a hundred ways to back out.
It was all just for show. Although she was reluctant, she was forced by the situation.
Yong Yaxuan clenched his fists. At this moment, he was itching to send a message to the garrison commanders in the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, ordering the 100,000 troops he had prepared there to launch a full - scale attack and raze the Northern Cold Kingdom to the ground! Since he dared to come to the Northern Cold Kingdom, how could he not have a backup plan? If anything happened to him or Ji Feiyu, the iron cavalry of the Great Yong would directly break through the border and catch them off guard. However, this was a way to completely fall out, and he wouldn't use it unless it was absolutely necessary. After all, starting a war was too costly in terms of both manpower and resources.
This was originally a deadlock, but it was loosened because of the intervention of the Second Prince.
"Elder brother, there's no need to be in such a hurry." Seeing this, the Second Prince stepped forward and walked to the side of the Great Prince. He leaned over and whispered a few words in the Great Prince's ear. The Great Prince rolled his eyes, thought it made sense, then nodded and said, "It's still you, younger brother, who think things through."
After saying that, he turned to Yong Yaxuan and said, "Today, I was just joking with the Emperor of Yong. Please don't take it to heart. I won't touch her today. Someone, escort Queen Feiyu back!"
Ji Feiyu was stunned. The title was back to Queen Feiyu again. When the Great Prince had evil thoughts before, he directly called her Ji Feiyu. What was going on?
Yong Yaxuan also frowned and couldn't help but say, "Great Prince, you're really audacious! A joke? I can't accept this explanation!"
The Great Prince said, "Your Majesty of Yong, please calm down. I will definitely give you an explanation for this matter."
Strange. What did the Second Prince say to him to cause this change in attitude? Ji Feiyu glanced at the Great Prince and then at the Second Prince. Just then, someone was about to take Ji Feiyu back. When the Second Prince saw Ji Feiyu looking at him, he said to the Great Prince again, "Since I'm here anyway, why don't I take on the task of escorting Queen Feiyu back?"
The Great Prince replied, "Sure. Thank you, younger brother." Then he said to Yong Yaxuan, "Your Majesty of Yong, this way, please!"
Yong Yaxuan couldn't help but look at Ji Feiyu. Seeing her give him a slight nod, he then followed the Great Prince, while Ji Feiyu followed the Second Prince.
The Second Prince naturally brought his own people. The people escorting him and Ji Feiyu were also his subordinates.
As the group was walking towards Ji Feiyu's residence, seeing the Second Prince looking so at ease, Ji Feiyu said, "The Second Prince is really amazing. You only said a few words to the Great Prince, and he changed his mind."
The Second Prince waved his jade fan and turned back to smile at her. "What? After not seeing each other for so long, shouldn't you first thank me for saving your life?"
Ji Feiyu couldn't help but roll her eyes at him. "It would be nice if you didn't set traps for me. If you hadn't tricked me and sent me to the Great Prince, would I be in this situation now?"
"Hey?" The Second Prince waved his hand after hearing this. "I won't take this blame. I've long said that it was my elder brother's idea to invite you to the Northern Cold Kingdom. I was just doing things for him. So there's no such thing as me sending you to the Great Prince."
Ji Feiyu said, "But it was all your tricks."
The Second Prince laughed. "This is also my ability. You could have chosen not to fall into this trap."
"So I'm convinced." Ji Feiyu complimented him insincerely.
The Second Prince immediately said with a smile, "I'm not worthy of such praise."
"So what exactly did you say to the Great Prince?" After a moment, Ji Feiyu couldn't help but ask.
The Second Prince said, "I naturally told him that you still have some value. If the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun can't be exchanged, we can exchange for something else. Do you believe it?"
Ji Feiyu stared at him. "So you're going to use me as a kind of currency forever?"
The Second Prince said, "I told my elder brother that the autumn hunting hasn't started yet. You and the Emperor of Yong still have a chance to talk. If he does something he shouldn't do out of impulse at this moment, it would completely cut off other options."
Ji Feiyu thought about the meaning of these words and couldn't help but say, "It seems that the Second Prince really saved me this time by using the delaying tactic."
The Second Prince said, "I really don't want to hurt you, but I can't guarantee about others."
"At least you still have a bit of conscience."
The two walked back to Ji Feiyu's small courtyard. The Second Prince reminded her, "The number of guards watching you tonight will probably be doubled. My elder brother probably won't come. But if you're still scared, lock your door well. I'll go back first!" He turned to leave, but suddenly remembered something and added, "By the way, our next meeting should be at the autumn hunting. I'm looking forward to your hunting performance!"
Ji Feiyu watched him leave, closed the courtyard gate, and then returned to her room. Only after locking the room door did she dare to breathe a sigh of relief. It was really too close just now! At this moment, she didn't know what the Great Prince had said to Yong Yaxuan and how they were. When they got back, would they understand the real meaning of the signal she had given?
Yong Yaxuan had also returned to his own courtyard at this time.
There were his own men patrolling around his courtyard non - stop for 24 hours to avoid being spied on. However, even so, when he entered the room to discuss countermeasures with Xi Zhuang and Zhan Shan, he was still very cautious.
Just now, the Great Prince had called him over, mainly to indicate that although he had given up on the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, he still didn't give up the idea of negotiating peace with him. His previous actions were just to scare Ji Feiyu. The Great Prince said that in the next negotiation, they would put forward reasonable requests and avoid involving Ji Feiyu so that Yong Yaxuan could exchange her back smoothly.
Although the Great Prince repeatedly guaranteed that he wouldn't do anything out of line to Ji Feiyu, Yong Yaxuan was still very angry. Such blatant behavior, he wouldn't let the Great Prince off!
Seeing Yong Yaxuan looking unhappy, Xi Zhuang silently closed the door and asked Zhan Shan to check the room again. Then he told them about the thing that Ji Feiyu had secretly stuffed into his hand before.
Yong Yaxuan's expression improved after hearing this. He looked at Xi Zhuang. Zhan Shan was also curious. Xi Zhuang opened his hand and showed them what was inside. It was actually one of the ear - drops that Ji Feiyu had worn today.
"This is..."
When Yong Yaxuan saw this ear - drop, his mind raced. He exchanged a glance with Xi Zhuang and understood what Ji Feiyu meant.
Zhan Shan saw the two of them looking at each other and nodding, looking as if they understood. He was completely confused. He really didn't understand what it meant.
So he walked over, picked up the ear - drop and looked at it carefully again. Finally, he put it back into Xi Zhuang's hand and said, "So what riddle is the Empress trying to solve by giving this to you?" Zhan Shan really wanted to find out the truth and didn't feel ashamed to ask. He didn't think there was anything wrong with his IQ being lower than those two.
Xi Zhuang said, "It's so obvious. Can't you understand?"