Soon, the two realized they had guessed wrong.
Because the hot water Yin Shun had people carry inside was brought back out completely untouched, and he even asked to swap it for cold water.
"This... could it be that His Majesty..."
Nanny Zhou looked toward the inner hall in disbelief, hardly able to fathom that a man could hold back, let alone an emperor.
Yin Shun smiled, glancing at her and Yu Lu with profound aning. "Whether it is how His Majesty treats Her Ladyship, or how Her Ladyship treats His Majesty, those are matters for our masters. It is not our place as servants to wag our tongues. Nanny, wouldn't you agree?"
Nanny Zhou experienced a sudden awakening. She turned her head and said, "Yu Lu, from now on, we must not discuss His Majesty and Her Ladyship. We are Her Ladyship's personal attendants, and our every word and deed represents her. If we were to be exploited by soone with ulterior motives, the consequences would be unthinkable!"
Yu Lu was already regretting her earlier words and hastily agreed, "Yes, I know I was wrong. I won't ever dare do it again!"
The next day, the Emperor and Empress left the palace.
Because this trip was highly confidential, only a few people, such as Yan Zhao and Wen Jing, were notified.
Yan Wenjing hugged Chu Ruoyan's thigh, refusing to let go. "Third Aunt, Wenjing can't bear to part with you..."
Seeing the deep attachnt in the eyes of this little 'black sesa dumpling', Chu Ruoyan crouched down and rubbed his head. "Third Aunt can't bear to leave Wenjing either, so once our business is finished, we will co back to see you very soon."
"Really?" the little dumpling asked in pleasant surprise. "Then can you co back before I finish dealing with Gu Hongzhi and the others?"
Gu Hongzhi?
Gu Sun's eldest grandson and the son of County Princess Kanghe?
Chu Ruoyan looked back at Yan Zheng, her eyes asking how these two children had ended up fighting again. Hadn't Gu Hongzhi been taught enough of a lesson last ti at the Imperial Academy?
Yan Zheng let out a light cough and explained, "A couple of days ago, Gu Hongzhi entered the palace and sohow got into an argunt with Xue Baiqing. Xue Baiqing's eyesight is poor, and he was pushed to the ground. Wenjing happened to be passing by, so..."
There was no need to say more; she knew exactly what had happened.
Chu Ruoyan's mouth twitched, secretly thinking that anyone surnad Gu simply clashed with them.
Gu Feiyan had made things difficult for her at every turn, Gu Bingzhi had almost killed Yan Zheng, and now even this Gu Hongzhi was repeatedly provoking Wenjing...
She really didn't know how Lord Gu had managed to marry such a wife.
If it were any other emperor, the entire Gu family would probably have been executed by now!
"You can deal with them, but don't cause any bloodshed that would be hard to clean up, understand?"
Yan Wenjing obediently agreed on the surface, but inwardly he thought that his Third Aunt was simply too soft-hearted. After she left, he would take his ti dealing with that Gu boy, just making sure she wouldn't see it.
His little sches didn't escape Yan Zheng's notice. The Emperor cast a mild glance at him. "Listen to your Third Aunt."
Yan Wenjing pursed his little lips and said aggrievedly, "Sixth Uncle, say sothing!"
The nad Yan Zhao braced himself and stepped forward. "Third Brother, you must be careful on this trip. The Western Frontier is a treacherous and bizarre place, reeking of evil at every turn..."
"I know. Compared to that, I am more concerned that you pass the autumn imperial examinations. The court doesn't have many generals capable of leading troops, so you need to fill that gap as soon as possible."
Yan Zhao's temple throbbed fiercely. He hadn't expected to be lectured right as they were leaving. At that mont, Cao Yang walked over. "Your Majesty, Your Ladyship."
Yan Zheng put on a solemn expression. "If the Chief Minister has anything else to say, please speak freely!"
Chu Ruoyan thought they were going to discuss state affairs and stepped away to give them privacy, but she had only taken two steps when she heard her uncle-in-law speak up with utmost seriousness. "This old minister only has one thing to say: I respectfully await Your Majesties' early return to the court!"
Yan Zheng was speechless.
After leaving the capital, the group traveled at full speed toward the Western Frontier.
Inside the carriage.
Chu Ruoyan leaned exhaustedly against Yan Zheng. Suddenly, she heard him ask, "A-Yan, I just rembered that dream you ntioned. Was that the reason you insisted on marrying ?"
She hadn't expected him to bring up this old topic and quickly propped herself up to explain, only to et a pair of smiling eyes.
"As I thought, A-Yan, you married because of that dream... Was it to save your father?"
Chu Ruoyan rubbed her forehead. How could he see through all her secrets?
She couldn't help but throw caution to the wind. "Yes, is Your Majesty going to punish ?"
"Punish you? I couldn't bear to." The man reached out and pulled her into his arms, lightly biting her earlobe. "However, A-Yan, you lied to . Shouldn't you offer so compensation?"
A question mark practically popped up over the young woman's head.
The next mont, the man took her hand and guided it downward. "Don't worry, I won't touch you until your body is fully recovered, but you can do what you did yesterday in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility..."
Chu Ruoyan's face flushed bright red upon hearing this, and she said resolutely, "No! Don't even think about it!"
Yesterday she had been overco with emotion, which was why she had done things she would never normally do. If she had to do it again now, she would die of embarrassnt!
Yan Zheng didn't force her, letting out a faint sigh. "Very well, I'll have Yin Shun prepare so water again."
As he was about to get up, Chu Ruoyan stopped him. "Didn't you already take a cold bath yesterday? Are you... are you still not fine?"
The Emperor nodded. The young woman froze for a mont, and realizing that she was the one who had roused him in the first place, she hesitated before mumbling, "Then... then just this once. There absolutely won't be a next ti..."
"Alright, there won't be a next ti."
In the end, there was no rest for the entire journey. Having tasted the sweetness, the man couldn't get enough. And unlike in the palace where he had to show so restraint, he was by her side almost every single day.
Chu Ruoyan's hands ached terribly. She longed day and night, finally making it to the Western Frontier.
Fortunately, Yun Lang had left a map before departing. Mount i was in an extrely remote location, surrounded by overlapping mountains. If they had searched blindly, they might never have found it!
After traveling for a few more days like this, they finally reached the foot of Mount i.
Shadow returned from scouting ahead and quickly gestured, indicating that there was miasma, venomous Gu insects, and traps up ahead.
The Emperor and Empress exchanged a glance. Chu Ruoyan smiled bitterly, "I have to say, the old master is truly thoughtful. In addition to sending a letter back, he even sent a large batch of pills to counteract the Gu and miasma..."
After speaking, she had Yu Lu distribute them. Once everyone had taken the pills, they continued forward.
But the further they went, the more alard they beca.
Plum blossoms covered the mountains and plains. Even though it clearly wasn't the season for them to bloom, they blossod with incomparable brilliance.
An intoxicating scent filled the air. They kept walking along the plum blossom forest, but it seed as if they could never find their way out.
"Shadow! Break the formation!"
Yan Zheng gave a low shout, and the youth abruptly drew his sword and slashed downward.
A plum tree right in front of them instantly moved away.
Then, tree after tree shifted, parting to the sides at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow, opening up a path.
And at the end of the path stood a cold, desolate, and solitary figure.
He seed to be plucking plum blossoms from a tree. Not expecting anyone to break the formation, he flicked his finger, shooting out a single plum petal!
"Your Majesty, watch out!"
A guard shouted loudly and stepped forward, while Shadow also drew his sword just in ti.
Yet, unexpectedly, they couldn't block that tiny petal. Shadow's hand went numb from the impact, and the guard fared even worse; struck in the chest by the petal, he flew backward, violently coughing up blood.
Chu Ruoyan was startled. Then, as if teleporting, the man appeared right in front of Yan Zheng. "Are you from the Murong family?"
Yan Zheng had never seen such a terrifying person in his entire life. Clenching his fingers tightly, he slowly replied, "No, my surna is Yan."
"Yan Xu? The Yan family?"
The other party seed to chuckle, yet on that face which no one dared to look at directly, there wasn't the slightest hint of a smile. "Then you deserve to die even more."
User Comments
0 comments from readers