Sueño de Jiangshan

Capítulo 81

"My son, didn't you say this time everything would be foolproof? How come that woman is allowed to show herself off again?"

A sinister smile flashed across the second prince's face, and a hint of ruthlessness instantly appeared in his peach-blossom eyes. Pointing at Leng Jie in the pavilion, he replied indignantly:

"Look, it's all because of that brat who suddenly appeared. The old man actually listened to her and stopped taking the elixir, and even sealed up the Imperial Preceptor's alchemy furnace. Now even the Imperial Preceptor has been placed under house arrest."

"That wretched girl again. I finally managed to get Yan Zhi to work for me, but the very next day that brat arrived, that vile Empress sent Yan Zhi to me, saying that Yan Zhi and I are destined to be together, so she was sent to serve me." The Imperial Concubine said through gritted teeth.

"Hmph! Why did she send me red plum blossoms or autumn chrysanthemums, but instead sent me tobacco?"

"Mother, please calm down! This is not the place to talk. Let's go back and talk about it!" With that, the Second Prince pulled the Imperial Concubine away from the Imperial Garden in a hurry.

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The camera pans back into the pavilion, where the Empress suddenly takes Leng Jie's hand and asks solemnly:

Does Xiaojie like Beifeng?

"Oh dear, she's a guest here. How can she say she doesn't like it in front of the host?" Leng Jie chuckled and replied.

"I love it! I love the grassland scenery of Beifeng!"

Upon hearing Leng Jie's reply, the Empress seemed suddenly relieved and smiled with satisfaction:

"Haha, that's good! Your aunt was really worried you wouldn't be used to life here!"

Leng Jie understood the implication in these words. She stared intently into the Empress's smiling eyes, and after a moment, she smiled and said:

"Hehe, thank you for your trouble, Auntie. Although Xiaojie likes the beautiful scenery here, she really can't get used to the lifestyle here."

"Ah!" The Empress seemed completely taken aback by Leng Jie's sudden turn of events, and she couldn't help but exclaim in surprise. However, being the Empress, she immediately composed herself, regained her friendly smile, and said:

"Hehe, it's alright, you'll get used to it after living here for a while."

"Haha, yes, you get used to it after a while!" the emperor chimed in with a loud laugh.

Living here long-term? She had no intention of doing so. It had taken her three years to adapt to life in Jinghe, to rediscover her self-worth, and to find joy in life. She didn't want to start all over again.

Before Leng Jie could answer, the emperor suddenly said in a serious tone:

"Xiao Jie! I said before that as long as you can cure my family of three of the poison, I will grant you anything you want. Now I will fulfill my promise. Tell me, what do you want?"

Leng Jie glanced at Qingfeng, wondering if she could make her demands now. Qingfeng gave her a look that said, "Whatever."

But to the emperor and empress, their expressions looked like flirtatious glances between lovers.

Leng Jie considered it in her mind for a moment and decided to bring it up. Just as she was about to reply, the Emperor preemptively said:

"You're too shy to say it, aren't you? Haha, I can see that. Don't worry, I'll take care of it for you. The first day of next month is the annual festival of the gods in Beifeng Kingdom. I will appoint Feng'er as the crown prince on that day, which will also be Feng'er's wedding day."

Qingfeng is getting married? Why didn't he say anything? Could it be that even he, the person involved, doesn't know? Leng Jie suddenly looked at Qingfeng, only to see him glaring at the Emperor with a dark expression that seemed ready to explode at any moment. Leng Jie immediately understood; so he knew. But Leng Jie was more curious about who Qingfeng was going to marry.

Then the emperor's voice rang out again:

"Although your status is indeed slightly insufficient to be the Crown Princess, I will not wrong you because of your intelligence. I will appoint you as the Crown Prince's Consort Ping, who will be on equal footing with the Crown Princess and serve the Crown Prince together."

The emperor's words struck Leng Jie like a thunderclap, leaving her momentarily stunned. Had she misheard? Leng Jie shook her head vigorously, tapping her forehead, and after a long pause, asked the emperor:

"Uncle, did I hear that right? Did you say you were going to make me a concubine?"

The Empress and Emperor, thinking Leng Jie was dizzy with joy, burst into laughter. The Empress quickly reminded her:

"Hehe, silly girl, you heard right, the Emperor has bestowed upon you the title of Crown Princess Ping. Hurry up and thank your uncle for his generosity! The Crown Princess is my own niece, and she is also a smart and good girl. I believe you two will get along well!"

Good heavens! The royal family is incredibly narcissistic! Leng Jie immediately picked up on the key point:

"Wait! Uncle just said he would agree to whatever Xiaojie asks for, right?"

Upon hearing this, the Emperor and Empress's expressions changed drastically. "This girl seems quite sensible! How can she be so ungrateful?" they both thought simultaneously. The Empress reprimanded her in a stern voice:

"Xiao Jie, as a woman, I understand your feelings. However, as a royal wife, you should abide by the virtues of womanhood and must not harbor jealousy!"

Damn! It was sunny and calm just a moment ago, and now there's a thunderstorm. The royal family changes their minds faster than flipping through a book! Even Leng Jie would be ashamed of her speed.

If she didn't still have demands to make, Leng Jie wouldn't bother with them at all. But now she had to prioritize the bigger picture! Leng Jie forcefully suppressed the anger rising within her and, with a smile, said to the Empress:

"Your Majesty the Empress's reprimand is absolutely correct, and Xiao Jie will remember it well. However..." She then changed the subject, turning her gaze to the Emperor and saying:

"However, as the supreme ruler, His Majesty's words are law, so surely he wouldn't go back on his word?"

"You..." The Emperor glared angrily at Leng Jie, his gaze as cold as the falling snow outside the pavilion, and said in a harsh tone devoid of any emotion:

"I always keep my word! Name your terms!"

Upon hearing this, Leng Jie immediately took out the peace treaty she had prepared beforehand, respectfully handed it to the emperor, and said:

"Xiao Jie has never had the idea of becoming the Crown Princess. Xiao Jie's only wish is to avoid being enemies with her senior brother. However, if Jinghe and Beifeng go to war, then my senior brother and I will be serving different masters, and we will inevitably end up fighting each other. Therefore, Xiao Jie humbly requests Your Majesty to sign this agreement on peaceful coexistence and non-aggression with Jinghe. It already bears the signature and seal of the Jinghe Emperor."

After hearing Leng Jie's words, the Empress was clearly taken aback! Her expression changed several times in an instant, like a face-changing act in Sichuan opera.

After the emperor read the well-organized, concise, and profound contract in his hand, which was indeed stamped with the imperial seal of Jinghe, his gaze towards Leng Jie suddenly became even sharper!

He didn't doubt that the divine physician's junior sister knew medicine, and he could understand her ability to disguise herself as a palace maid and infiltrate the palace. But for a mere girl to be able to carry such important documents and stay in a foreign palace for a whole month without attracting attention—her cunning was truly unimaginable! And this happened just as he was planning to cooperate with Xiping to deal with Jinghe. This couldn't help but make this arrogant and disdainful emperor feel a chill run down his spine.

The emperor's face suddenly darkened, and he sternly questioned:

"What exactly is your identity? Since you have Emperor Jinghe's letter of state, why did you wait until now to produce it?"

"This has nothing to do with Xiaojie, it's my fault..." Seeing that the emperor was truly angry, Qingfeng quickly stepped forward to block the emperor's view, trying to take the blame. However, before he could finish speaking, Leng Jie pushed him away.

Leng Jie raised her eyes, meeting the emperor's inquiring gaze with an extremely innocent look, and said in a sincere tone:

"My identity in Jinghe is also that of Qingfeng Gongzi's junior sister. Few people in Jinghe know me, but everyone knows that Qingfeng Gongzi is the sworn brother of the Jinghe Emperor. Thanks to my senior brother, I naturally became the sworn sister of the Jinghe Emperor, and thus I have some relationship with him. As for this letter of state, the Emperor should have seen it; the date on it is after Xiaojie came here."

Xiao Jie's trip to Beifeng was originally just to visit her senior brother. A few days ago, she overheard in the Emperor's palace that Xiping had sent an envoy to discuss trade with your country. Since Xiao Jie had met the Xiping Crown Prince twice before leaving Jinghe, she naturally assumed that the Xiping Crown Prince was the one who had come to Beifeng.

How could I not visit an old friend I met? Xiao Jie took the liberty of visiting the Xiping envoy, but to her surprise, she overheard him discussing with the Second Prince of your country, who was currently overseeing the country, about joining forces to attack my Jinghe. Xiao Jie was quite frightened at the time.

After confirming with my senior brother that Xiping indeed had this intention, and knowing that my uncle had no such intention, I went out of my way to draft this agreement and then sent it back by carrier pigeon. My emperor was very sincere in his desire to establish friendly relations with Jinghe, so he immediately affixed the imperial seal and sent it back.

At the same time, my Emperor also instructed me to convey to my uncle that since Xiping is determined to provoke war, Jinghe will not sit idly by and wait for its doom. Jinghe's 200,000-strong army has already reached the border of Xiping, and Jinghe's soldiers are determined to avenge the unprovoked invasion of Jinghe by Xiping six years ago! If Beifeng were to ally with Jinghe at this time, it would surely be able to take down the belligerent Xiping in one fell swoop, and then Beifeng and Jinghe could divide and rule each other.

Conversely, if Beifeng and Xiping join forces against Jinghe, two scenarios will occur. One is a lose-lose situation where none of them gain an advantage. The other is that Jinghe is defeated, and then Xiping's blade will unhesitatingly turn towards neighboring Beifeng. However, Xiaojie personally believes there is a third possibility…”

Leng Jie explained the whole story clearly in one go, including the cause and effect, the ins and outs, and the stakes involved. Seeing that the old emperor was listening very attentively, she deliberately stopped at the last point to see his reaction.

Sure enough, just as she accepted the tea from Qingfeng, the old emperor's anxious voice rang out.

What is the third one?

Leng Jie unconsciously raised an eyebrow and smiled, slowly taking a sip of fragrant tea before replying:

"The third option is that Jinghe will destroy Xiping and Beifeng in one fell swoop, thus breaking the tripartite balance of power and unifying the entire continent."

"Hmph! You're delusional!" Before Leng Jie could finish speaking, the old emperor roared in fury.

From the moment Leng Jie learned that he was practicing the elixir of immortality, she knew that this old emperor's ambitions were definitely greater than those of the so-called Western Ping Kingdom. Therefore, she decided to subtly expose his intentions. She smiled meaningfully at the emperor and said:

"Uncle is right, this is indeed just Xiaojie's delusion. There is no doubt that Emperor Jinghe has never had such ambitions. But Xiaojie is not the only one with such delusions! At least the King of Xiping must also have such delusions, right? What do you think, Uncle?"

The old emperor was momentarily taken aback! Then, he composed himself, reverting to his gentle and approachable elder persona, and chuckled at Leng Jie:

"What a quick-witted and intelligent girl! Emperor Jinghe has a talent like you but hasn't given you the status you deserve, which is his loss. Feng'er has a junior sister like you who is his husband! I take back what I just said about making you the Crown Prince's Consort Ping, and instead make you the Crown Princess. From now on, you will lead the three consorts and six maids of the Crown Prince's palace!"

“Uncle…” Leng Jie wanted to retort, but the emperor didn’t give her a chance at all.

"Let me finish speaking. Now you are a member of the Beifeng royal family, and as a member of the harem, it is not appropriate for you to concern yourself with the affairs of Beifeng and Jinghe. However, I will consider your request. Alright, the Empress and I are going back to rest now. You all can play a little longer!" With that, he took the Empress's hand and left with his large entourage without looking back.

Leng Jie, looking exasperated, and Qing Feng, looking equally embarrassed, stared at each other. Qing Feng hadn't been able to get a word in edgewise, yet he remained caught in a dilemma the entire time.

On one hand, he loved Xiaojie and longed to marry her. But after spending more than half a month together, he knew clearly that Xiaojie still only saw him as her senior brother. So when the emperor said he would betroth Xiaojie to him, his heart wavered. But he knew that if he accepted the emperor's arrangement, it would be tantamount to submitting to imperial power, and he would have no choice but to take the position of crown prince.

On the other hand, he was unwilling to force Xiaojie, and even more unwilling to see her suffer.

Meanwhile, Leng Jie was preoccupied with figuring out how to persuade the old emperor to abandon the alliance with Xiping. She didn't care at all about the old emperor bestowing upon her the title of Crown Princess, until Qingfeng cleared his throat and asked seriously:

"Xiaojie, what do you think about the wedding next month?"

"Ah!" Leng Jie realized what was happening and stared at Qingfeng with wide eyes, asking, "Senior brother, you're not really going to listen to your father and become some kind of crown prince, and then marry a bunch of concubines and maids, are you?"

"I don't want to be the crown prince, nor do I want to marry a bunch of concubines. But I want to marry you!" Qingfeng shouted out his true feelings for the first time.

"You want to marry me?" Leng Jie asked in astonishment. "Just because your father wants you to marry me, does that mean you'll be at his mercy?"

Qingfeng was speechless.

Seeing Qingfeng staring blankly at her without saying a word, Leng Jie then coldly questioned:

"What if he orders you to lead troops to attack Jinghe? Would you go?"

Qingfeng immediately shook his head and said, "Impossible, I won't let that happen."

"What gives you the right to stop that from happening? Do you think you can wield power just because you've become the crown prince?" Leng Jie pressed.

"Of course not." Qingfeng's face darkened, and he immediately replied, "Now you know why I hate them so much! They are the dirtiest, most ruthless, and most selfish people in the world."

Seeing Qingfeng suddenly become dejected, Leng Jie realized that she had vented her anger at his cunning father on him. Leng Jie softened her tone and said apologetically:

"I'm sorry! I wasn't targeting you."

Qingfeng smiled slightly and gazed at Leng Jie, saying:

"Xiao Jie wasn't wrong, I really did waver just now." After a pause, Qingfeng turned his gaze to the outside of the pavilion and said softly:

"However, I know that by appointing me as crown prince, he is forcing me to fight against the second prince. He thinks I don't know that he has been instigating the second prince to cause me trouble, because in the three years since I returned, I have neglected state affairs and have no confidants or followers. He wants the second prince to provoke me, then seek his protection, and finally control me step by step, making me help him achieve his ambition of unifying the world. But I have remained unmoved by the second prince's provocations..."

Although she had always known that people in the royal family were perverse, experiencing it firsthand still sent a shiver down Leng Jie's spine. She now truly understood why Qingfeng treated the Emperor and Empress with such hostility. She had always assumed that even the Emperor and Empress would have some affection for their son, which was why she had tried so hard to ease their tension. If she had known how much Qingfeng had suffered these past few years, she wouldn't have bothered with those two at all. Leng Jie interrupted Qingfeng, asking:

"So, his behavior toward you these past few days is because you saved his life after he was poisoned?"

Qingfeng turned his gaze back to Leng Jie and nodded, saying, "Yes! Master sent me back to protect him for three years. He said that after three years, it was up to me whether I stayed or left. Now the three years are almost up. Shall we go back to Wuyou Valley together then?"

"If we could go back, that would be great!" Leng Jie shrugged and said, "Let's think about how to deal with the problem at hand."

As she spoke, she recalled the emperor's cunning face, and Leng Jie couldn't help but curse him angrily:

"Your emperor father is a real scoundrel. What kind of golden words does he have? I think he's just spouting nonsense! I should have known better than to give him the antidote!" Oh right! How could she forget? His poison wasn't completely neutralized yet! Leng Jie immediately regained her composure, pulled Qingfeng closer, and whispered:

"Senior brother, I've thought of a way! Come on, let's go back and talk about it in detail." With that, he grabbed Qingfeng and ran towards Qingfeng Hall.

Upon entering Qingfeng Palace, Ziying immediately greeted her and asked:

"So? Has the Emperor of Beifeng signed the agreement you drafted?"

Seeing that Leng Jie and Qing Feng both shook their heads, Zi Ying asked again:

"Didn't he sign it? Could it be that he figured out the stamp was fake?"

“How could he possibly tell the difference between a real and a fake seal that I made?” Leng Jie retorted immediately.