Tonight, besides Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling's men, Ji Shaocheng and Wen Bin also brought a few men to protect them when they went out to stroll through the night market. The Southern Ling Kingdom is not peaceful right now, and since they are conspicuous, they must be careful.
The group chatted and laughed as they walked, enjoying themselves immensely. However, because everyone was so outstanding—handsome men and beautiful women—they hadn't initially attracted attention, but soon became the focus of everyone's gaze. Many people on both sides of the street looked on, whispering about their identities. Their every move exuded nobility and grandeur, and they carried an air of power, clearly indicating that they were either rich or noble.
Some astute people guessed their identities and were then pleasantly surprised.
Looking at everything before her, Hailin realized that attracting so much attention wasn't a good thing, so she suggested they go back to the post station. After all, it was getting late, they had already visited the night market, and everyone should head back.
As everyone turned to leave, a pleasant voice suddenly rang out.
"So it's the Emperor and Empress of the Northern Lu Kingdom. No wonder they've attracted so much attention."
Ye Lingfeng, Hai Ling, and the others looked up and quickly glanced at the large group of people walking towards them. The woman at the head of the group was gorgeous and alluring, none other than Queen Ruan Jingyue of Feng Kingdom. Ruan Jingyue had already seen Ye Lingfeng and Ji Hailing and the others. Originally, she wanted to avoid them, but seeing Ye Lingfeng's doting expression towards that woman, she felt a surge of anger and finally couldn't help but speak up.
As soon as Ruan Jingyue finished speaking, she walked over and stopped in front of Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling. Seeing their slightly cold expressions, she spoke indifferently.
"Since we've all met, why don't we go shopping together?"
After she finished speaking, she quietly raised her eyebrows and glanced at Ye Lingfeng, a faint red glint in her eyes. This man was someone she had fallen in love with long ago. Even now that she was married, she still felt a surge of attraction when she saw him. If Ji Hailing had been the empress and she had been a concubine, she would have been willing to marry him. But Ji Hailing had refused to let him take concubines, and unexpectedly, this man had agreed. In the end, he even broke one of her arms. All along, she thought she hated him, but after seeing him this time, she realized that she did not hate him and was still infatuated with him. Why did the world have to give birth to Ji Hailing when there was already a Ruan Jingyue like her?
As Ruan Jingyue was lost in thought, Hai Ling spoke up calmly, "We are about to return. Please make yourselves at home, Your Highness."
Seeing the hint of affection in the woman's eyes, Hai Ling's expression darkened. How could she not be angry that another woman was thinking of her husband? She just didn't show it on her face. Ruan Jingyue was a smart woman, and seeing Hai Ling's expression, she understood. So this woman already cared so much about Ye Lingfeng. That was great.
With that thought, she completely ignored Hai Ling and looked at Ye Lingfeng with a charming smile: "Emperor Xie, I have something to discuss with you. I wonder if we can talk about it?"
Ye Lingfeng's expression remained unchanged. His delicate face was framed by slightly raised, narrow eyebrows. He was immediately aware of this woman's petty tricks, so his expression turned cold as he spoke icily, "I have nothing to discuss with Queen Zanhua. I should return now."
After saying that, she reached out and pulled Hailing away without even glancing at Ruan Jingyue behind her. Ruan Jingyue stomped her feet in anger, feeling extremely resentful. The palace maid beside her immediately went over to support her: "Your Majesty, don't be angry. It's late, and we should go back."
Ruan Jingyue stopped talking and followed Ye Lingfeng and the others back to the post station. This time, Ruan Jingyue represented the Feng Kingdom, so she naturally stayed in the post station. Although it wouldn't be a problem for her to stay in the palace with her status, she knew that Ye Lingfeng and the others were staying here, so she also chose to stay here.
The two groups separated only at the gate of the post station, one group living on the east side and the other on the west side.
Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling returned to Luohua Pavilion, and Wen Bin and Ji Shaocheng withdrew. In the main hall, Shi Mei and Shi Lan also left.
Hai Ling's little face was still stern, and Ye Lingfeng asked with amusement, "What's wrong, Ling'er?"
“That Ruan Jingyue is too annoying.”
I never expected that after so much time, she would still love Ye. It seems that cutting off her arm that day did not teach me a lesson. Logically, I should have cut off her brain so that she wouldn't have any wild thoughts.
"Why do you care about her?" Ye Lingfeng was not interested in Ruan Jingyue's affairs, but he had another serious matter to discuss with Hailing: "Ling'er, I am thinking that as soon as we return to Beilu, we should find a wet nurse and a governess for Xiao Mao'er. They can take care of all his daily needs from now on."
While strolling through the night market tonight, he noticed that the kitten was becoming increasingly attached to Ling'er. He hadn't paid much attention to it before, but now he realized that this wasn't a good thing. If this continued, the kitten would hate everyone and only rely on his mother, which wouldn't be good for his growth. After all, he was destined to be the ruler of Beilu in the future.
As soon as Ye Lingfeng finished speaking, Hai Ling's eyes widened. She didn't understand why Ye Lingfeng had brought up the matter of finding a wet nurse for the kitten. She was a little confused.
“You’ve forgotten that the kitten was almost killed by Xixiu. I’m not comfortable finding him a wet nurse and a governess now.”
The thought of her son almost dying at the hands of Xi Xiu and Feng Zixiao still pained her heart, so she disagreed with finding a wet nurse for the kitten. With this in mind, Hai Ling's attitude hardened: "I want to feed the kitten myself. He's still so young."
Ye Lingfeng squinted at the kitten in Hai Ling's arms. It was indeed very small, only five months old, not even six months old yet. But he knew his own son. This boy was smarter than anyone else. If he was taught well, he would definitely be a wise and virtuous ruler of Bei Lu. But if he was not raised well, he would become a completely different person. Thinking of this, Ye Lingfeng did not give in to Hai Ling.
His delicate features hardened with a stern expression as he spoke calmly, “Ling’er, the kitten is growing up day by day. You should learn to let go and let more people take care of him.”
Hai Ling refused. Just thinking about how the kitten had almost been killed made her unwilling to let anyone get close to the kitten. What if those people were bribed to harm the kitten again? So she held the kitten tightly and confronted Ye Lingfeng.
I disagree.
Ye Lingfeng still insisted on his own ideas, but he patiently tried to persuade Hailing to agree with his opinion.
"I know you're afraid that the kitten will get hurt again, but that was an accident. From now on, I will send more people to protect the kitten and make sure nothing happens to him."
"I don't trust anyone."
Hailing shook her head, her clear eyes showing a rare hint of anger. This was the first time they had argued and confronted each other since they got married.
Before Ye Lingfeng could say anything more, there was a knock at the door. Shi Zhu came over and presented a letter: "Your Majesty, Feng Zixiao of the Great Zhou Dynasty has sent a letter."
Ye Lingfeng reached out and took the letter, opened it, and quickly glanced at it.
It turned out that Feng Zixiao had invited him to a gathering in the back garden of the post station to discuss some confidential matters. What were these confidential matters? Ye Lingfeng raised an eyebrow. Did Feng Zixiao want to talk to him about the cooperation between the Southern Ling Kingdom and their Great Zhou Dynasty? Thinking this, he stood up and said coldly, "Let's go and meet him."
He started to walk out, but after a few steps he stopped, turned around and looked at Hailing, saying slowly and deliberately, "Ling'er, I have made my decision on this matter."
Then she walked straight out of the main hall of Luohua Pavilion. In the main hall, Hailing was so angry that her face changed color. She held the little cat tightly in her arms. The little cat was unaware that his father and mother were arguing about him. He slept very soundly. He slept very soundly whenever he was in Hailing's arms.
As soon as the Emperor left, Shi Mei and Shi Lan came in.
They had overheard some of the argument in the main hall earlier, so as soon as they entered, they spoke softly: "Your Majesty, the Emperor meant no harm. In fact, he was worried about you and wanted to find someone to share your burden."
No other royal empress was as tired as theirs. She did everything for the little cat herself. The emperor wanted to find a wet nurse for the little cat, which was naturally because he felt sorry for the empress.
"I will not agree."
Hai Ling stood up, holding the kitten, and walked towards the room. Behind her, Shi Mei and Shi Lan looked at each other in bewilderment. To say that the Empress disagreed was actually because she felt sorry for the kitten, but what did these two great figures mean by this stalemate?
The two followed Hailing into the room, and they heard her say, "When the Emperor returns, I will absolutely not agree to his decision to let him sleep in a side room."
Shi Mei and Shi Lan were both stunned. Could it be that the Empress has punished the Emperor's concubine again? Will the Emperor compromise this time? The two maids looked thoughtful.
The post station palace, the back garden, a long corridor runs through it, winding and turning, with countless exotic flowers on both sides, their fragrance flowing under the moonlight. Not far away, melodious music rises, enveloping the entire back garden. Walking in front of Ye Lingfeng is a subordinate sent by Feng Zixiao, who respectfully says: "The Crown Prince is in the pavilion ahead. Emperor Xie, please?"
The group rounded another bend and saw a tall pavilion standing out prominently from the crowd outside the long corridor. At that moment, someone was playing the zither outside the pavilion, and inside, one could vaguely see someone dancing gracefully. Feng Zixiao really knew how to enjoy life.
A mocking smile appeared on Ye Lingfeng's lips as he led Shi Zhu and the others over. They quickly passed through the layers of defenses outside and arrived at the pavilion. The subordinate who had invited them earlier went into the pavilion to report. Ye Lingfeng lifted the thin curtain, and a faint fragrance wafted out of the pavilion. Ye Lingfeng subconsciously frowned; the fragrance seemed strange.
At the same time, Shi Zhu also smelled the fragrance. Then the curtains were lowered and the fragrance faded away. However, this short time was enough for him to know that someone had put an aphrodisiac in the pavilion. He never expected that shameless man Feng Zixiao would dare to plot against them. Good, very good. Shi Zhu sneered with a smirk.