"Your Majesty is not only arranging Tangtang's marriage, but also planning to send me to marry into another country without even telling me?!" Qi Xutao forcefully shook off Xue Wuyou's hand that was holding hers.
Her rationality was completely consumed by anger. She was desperately trying to argue with the emperor to prove her point.
However, the emperor's face darkened. His condescending and scrutinizing gaze made Qi Xutao feel like he was a complete stranger.
"As the eldest princess, do you think it's appropriate to behave like this?"
The face in front of her no longer had the gentle look she remembered.
Qi Xutao suddenly lost the desire to argue.
She wanted to escape, to flee from this imperial city that could completely change a person's appearance!
Ignoring Qi Xutao's struggles, Xue Wuyou stepped forward and blocked in front of her.
Having been in the Yan Kingdom for more than a month, Xue Wuyou could perform the Yan Kingdom's etiquette quite decently.
"Xutao was just too anxious for a moment and didn't mean to offend Your Majesty."
Looking at Xue Wuyou, his ally, the emperor rarely showed a gentle expression.
The emperor glanced at Qi Xutao standing beside them, lost in thought, and sighed, showing a bit of anger at her for being so unworthy.
"My younger sister has always loved to be mischievous since she was a child. I hope Prince Xue will forgive her in the future."
Xue Wuyou smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Yes."
"The envoys from the Shu Kingdom are already on their way. In a few days, the two of you will get married and become a family. Since that's the case, Prince Xue doesn't need to stay in the palace for hostages anymore."
The emperor paused for a moment, ignoring Qi Xutao's angry eyes. "Move to the Eldest Princess Mansion today! It's better to cultivate your relationship earlier."
Xue Wuyou readily agreed. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
The emperor turned slightly and walked towards Qi Xutao. He lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear and said, "Eat the emperor's salary and be loyal to the emperor. For the sake of the people in the Shu Kingdom, stop causing trouble!"
He paused for a moment. "Also, the Golden Guards you left in the northwest military camp will be handed over to Lu Dongzhi from today on."
Lu Dongzhi was a newly - rising general in the court recently.
Although he was a general, it was said that he had passed the imperial examination two years ago.
Qi Xutao looked at him in disbelief.
She had never felt that he was so strange.
——
Cui Jintang was not a person from the palace, so she had to leave the palace before the palace gates were locked.
She threw the dagger that Pei Zhaolin had stuffed into her hands onto the couch.
Under the illumination of the candlelight, the red gem on the dagger was particularly dazzling.
A cool breeze blew in through the half - opened window lattice.
Cui Jintang sighed and was about to turn around to close it.
But then she saw a slender figure cast on the window.
Cui Jintang's heart skipped a beat.
Frowning, she directly pushed the window open completely.
Chu Yingfeng, who was pacing outside the window, was stunned for a moment and then slowly looked up.
The person he had been longing for was half - leaning against the window, looking at him with a confused look in her eyes.
"Miss Cui."
His voice was extremely soft, as if he had seen the tiredness between her eyebrows.
"A letter came from home. There's something wrong at home. I'll be returning to Yihe in a few days. I'm here today to ask you for a favor."
Cui Jintang replied indifferently, "Come in and talk, Mr. Chu."
Chu Yingfeng felt a sudden nervousness in his heart. It took him a long time to react. He answered and then quickly moved his feet.
The tea on the table was steaming.
Cui Jintang didn't look up. She just rubbed the rim of the teacup with her fingers. "What do you want from me, Mr. Chu?"
Chu Yingfeng was silent for a moment. Suddenly, he lifted his robe and knelt down. His back was straight, but his fingertips were pressing on his belt.
Under the illumination of the candlelight, his features looked even more gentle and elegant.
But the tips of his ears were so red that it seemed as if blood would drip from them.
"I'm willing to offer myself as a lover, using my body as a bribe, to ask the girl to accompany me back to Yihe once. From then on, I'll only belong to the girl. Whether it's life or death."
After saying that, Chu Yingfeng lowered his head.
His jaw was tightly clenched, as if it had taken all his dignity to say these words.
Chu Yingfeng gritted his teeth and undid the first button of his clothes.
The collar of his clothes was slightly open, revealing his straight collarbone and the lines of his chest.
His shoulders and back were straight, his muscles were firm, and his waist and abdomen were narrow.
Under the candlelight, his chest was rising and falling slightly.
The candle wick suddenly popped out a spark and landed on Cui Jintang's hand.
Cui Jintang winced in pain and curled her fingers.
Frowning, she stopped Chu Yingfeng's action. "Mr. Chu is a gentleman. Is there something wrong in Yihe that has made you degrade yourself like this?"
After a long time, Chu Yingfeng sighed and smiled. There was a hint of desolation between his eyebrows.
"A message came from Yihe. My mother is seriously ill. The doctor said that she might not survive this winter."
After saying that, he looked up, with hope hidden in his eyes. His voice was urgent but full of sincere emotion.
"In the dilapidated courtyard, the girl reached out to help me out of the mud. Everyone in the world abandoned me like a worn - out shoe, but only you bent down to wipe the dust off my clothes and the ashes off my heart. At that moment, I realized that there could be light in the world."
Chu Yingfeng paused for a moment. There were ripples in his eyes, as if he had returned to that day.
"Since then, when the girl smiles, I feel that spring has returned to the earth. When you frown, I feel that the wind and snow are pressing on the branches. The girl doesn't need to do anything. Just standing there, I feel that the wind is gentle and the lamp is warm."
Chu Yingfeng walked towards her eagerly. "Now this capital city is a place of heartbreak for the girl... Could the girl just think of it as a trip to Yihe with me, okay?"
His voice became softer, as if he was pleading.
Chu Yingfeng gave her a faint smile, with a bit of expectation and bitterness in it.
The place where the spark had landed on her hand felt like it was being gnawed by thousands of ants. The pain made Cui Jintang frown involuntarily.
Cui Jintang turned her head and avoided Chu Yingfeng's burning gaze.
She said gently, "Mr. Chu, I understand that you need to go back to Yihe to fulfill your filial piety because your mother is seriously ill."
"But all I can do is understand."
Hearing this, Chu Yingfeng was stunned for a moment, then smiled dejectedly and lowered his head.
"Sure enough, you will reject me."
He buttoned up his clothes again.
Chu Yingfeng no longer had the courage to look up and see her expression.
But he still managed to squeeze out a smile. "I didn't think it through. I've made the girl embarrassed. Then... I won't bother the girl anymore. I'll take my leave now."
Saying that, he turned around and was about to leave, but his steps were unsteady.
Cui Jintang pretended not to see and got up to close the window.
Thinking of Chu Yingfeng's embarrassed back as he fled, she sighed.
Cui Jintang called out, "Zhu Er."
Zhu Er appeared immediately. "What are your orders, girl?"
"Go and get some silver from the account. If Mr. Chu refuses, tell him that our two families are old friends and it's only natural."
"Yes."
Cui Jintang walked back. Her wandering gaze suddenly fell on the dagger that she had casually thrown aside.
After staring at it for a long time, she suddenly found that there was a strange symbol under the dazzling red gem.
It was just two or three horizontal and vertical marks.
A sudden inspiration came to Cui Jintang. She stepped forward, picked up the dagger, and turned it around to observe.
She turned the dagger upside down.
The strange symbol that she had thought was strange just now suddenly became a character "Wang" (king).
Those who were called "king" were mostly kings in barbarian lands.
But in Cui Jintang's memory, there was only one place that inlaid red gems.
Dongman!