Rêve de Jiangshan

Chapitre 184

"I heard the General's Mansion has been quite lively these past few days?" Mu Wenchen and Rufeng sat together under the starry sky. They were already in Mu Wenchen's newly purchased villa. The villa was small, just for their occasional meetings, so Mu Wenchen hadn't planned to renovate it yet.

Ru Feng hummed in agreement and continued to lie in his arms. At this moment, their position was such that Ru Feng was almost half-lying in Mu Wenchen's arms on a large rattan recliner, with both of them looking at the sky and watching the stars twinkle, occasionally exchanging a few words.

"Yes." Ru Feng became troubled when she talked about this. "These past few days, many people have sent me tonics. It seems that my joke the other day caused a misunderstanding." Fortunately, apart from Murong Yinghe, the other women only expressed their feelings through waiting for her to come to them or sending love letters, so Ru Feng's ears were much quieter.

Mu Wenchen smiled slightly, stroked Rufeng's long hair, and said, "I also heard that your threshold has been worn out by people walking on it. It seems you are really popular."

Ru Feng grabbed his hand and played with it, laughing, "That threshold should have been replaced anyway. I was just making an excuse. But you, are you jealous? Are you feeling uncomfortable?" Ru Feng teased.

Mu Wenchen nodded sullenly and replied, "I'm really uncomfortable. My brother has been giving me a lot of things to do lately, and Yujue and Yuxuan keep coming to see you. Sigh, besides the men, I also have to worry about the women, so I'm feeling very uncomfortable." Speaking of this made Mu Wenchen even more uncomfortable. These past few days, Yuxuan had been advising Rufeng to open her eyes wide and see who the good people were, telling her not to be so naive. Unfortunately, Mu Wenchen had run into him once, which was why he had chosen such a secluded place to meet Rufeng.

Mu Wenchen's frankness surprised Ru Feng, who couldn't help but turn to snuggle into his chest and comfort him, "Don't be afraid, I like you the most, I won't change my mind." As she said this, she couldn't help but secretly smile.

Mu Wenchen patted Ru Feng's head, naturally understanding the meaning behind her smile.

Ru Feng suddenly frowned and said, "Sigh, if you show your face in public, your charm will definitely be greater than mine, and then I'll be the one who gets jealous." As Ru Feng spoke, she gave Mu Wenchen a tight hug. Lately, she seemed to have developed a skin hunger syndrome, always hoping to soothe her uneasy feelings through hugs.

Seeing this, Mu Wenchen smiled and said, "Rufeng, you have no idea how happy I am right now! I never knew that falling in love with someone could feel so wonderful." He wasn't good with words, so it was quite rare for him to say such cheesy things.

Ru Feng also spoke with rare sentimentality, saying, "Yes, me too. This is the first time I've ever liked someone so much."

After a long while, both of them remained silent.

Mu Wenchen suddenly asked, "Aren't we being very romantic right now?"

Ru Feng was speechless. She sat up, glared at him fiercely, and said, "Could it be that everything you just said was just for the sake of romance?"

Mu Wenchen frowned slightly, pulled Ru Feng back, and explained, "I was speaking from the heart."

"Never mind, let's not talk about it anymore." Ru Feng thought of the flowers he gave her that day. Sigh, after everything has come to this, how could he still have any romantic feelings?

Seeing Ru Feng like this, Mu Wenchen didn't dare say anything. He simply hugged her and they gazed at the stars together. If it weren't for the fact that it was the middle of the night, Mu Wenchen would have really wanted to play the zither for Ru Feng.

"Wenchen, do you think it will be a death sentence if my identity is exposed? Then I might really have to break out of prison." Rufeng suddenly asked, her tone a little downcast. For some reason, she was filled with unease about the grand flower viewing party the day after tomorrow.

Mu Wenchen patted her shoulder reassuringly and said, "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you."

Upon hearing this, Ru Feng felt a little more at ease and then asked, "When the envoys from both countries arrive tomorrow, will Yun Tianze also come?" In fact, Ru Feng had a feeling that she had seen him that night, but they were at a considerable distance, and with Yu Jue and Yu Xuan present, she hadn't been able to see him clearly.

Mu Wenchen responded, "Yes, he will come. Not only him, but another person you know will also come." The implication in his words made Ru Feng's heart skip a beat.

So she asked hesitantly, "Could it be... Rong Yiying?" Ru Feng remembered that her grandfather had told her that the pill she had left on him, with Zui Yue's help, had allowed her grandfather to clearly know where he was going. Then, with the combined efforts of Yu Xuan and her grandfather, they finally managed to find out his identity after a great deal of hard work.

Grandpa was quite surprised at the time, but no matter how much Ru Feng asked him, he wouldn't say, which made Ru Feng very frustrated.

Mu Wenchen simply smiled and said, "You'll find out then."

Ru Feng frowned: "I can't figure out who else I could know in Fanlu Kingdom. Oh well, I'll find out when the time comes." There will be a welcome banquet tomorrow night, and the flower viewing banquet the day after tomorrow.

"By the way, did the Kingdom of Fanlu send anyone to arrange a marriage alliance this time? Like a princess or something?" After thinking for a moment, Rufeng still asked.

"It is said that there are none, because Fanlu Kingdom has no princesses, only princes."

Ru Feng sighed and said, "That's fine then. If they come here for a political marriage, they probably won't be very happy. However, our Zi Luo Kingdom does have a princess, who is said to be very beautiful, but I haven't seen her yet since I came back." His tone seemed quite regretful.

Mu Wenchen smiled silently, shook his head, and said, "You'd better not see her, because she's very willful."

"Oh, you see her often?" Ru Feng asked curiously.

Mu Wenchen quickly denied it: "No, we only met once by chance."

"Oh—" Ru Feng drew out the last syllable and asked again, "Wen Chen, do you think the princess that Yun Tianze brought will be allowed to marry you?" She was uneasy. Mu Wen Chen was of marriageable age but had not yet married. She was really afraid that the emperor would arrange a marriage for him. Should she snatch the bride or resist in some other way?

As Ru Feng was pondering, Mu Wenchen answered her question with certainty: "No, my brother will not let me marry the princess, and I will definitely make my own decision about my marriage."

Upon hearing this, Ru Feng gradually felt relieved. What's meant to happen will happen; he might as well figure something out then.

Then, the two started chatting about all sorts of things. This left Yu Xuan and Yu Jue quite frustrated, as they had come to the General's Mansion only to find it empty.

The next day, both Ru Feng and Yu Chi Huaiyang attended court in their official robes, as envoys from two countries were scheduled to arrive that evening. It was said that the ruler of Chun Teng Kingdom would personally represent them, while a prince from Fan Lu Kingdom would do so – both high-ranking officials who attracted the attention of the entire capital. For the past two days, the talk of the town revolved around Ru Feng and Yu Jue, particularly the Chun Teng Kingdom's princess. Rumors circulated that the princess was exceptionally beautiful, noble, and elegant, and some even paired Ru Feng with her, leaving Ru Feng both amused and exasperated.

In the main hall, the emperor finished speaking about a number of noteworthy matters and then came to a close.

"Alright, my esteemed ministers, speak if you have something to say, otherwise the court is adjourned." The emperor said this with great authority, then glanced at all the ministers.

Ru Feng breathed a sigh of relief; finally, he could go back. He glanced around at the officials, all of whom were unfamiliar faces. In the past few days, he had tried to keep a low profile as much as possible since taking office. Fortunately, with Yu Xuan and Yu Chi Huaiyang protecting him, Ru Feng had hardly gone to that so-called office location. Anyway, there was no war going on at the moment.

No one spoke, but the emperor suddenly said, "Then let's adjourn the court. Vice Minister of War Yuchi Rufeng, please stay."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's eyes turned to Ru Feng.

Ru Feng looked up in astonishment, glancing at the inscrutable emperor, completely bewildered.

After the emperor left first, the other court officials also stepped out of the main hall one by one.

Yujue and Yuxuan walked over and patted Rufeng on the shoulder, saying, "Go on, Father might want to see you about something." Although they couldn't figure out what it could be, Yujue and Yuxuan couldn't help but think of something, and a hint of worry flashed in their eyes.

When Ru Feng saw this, she was even more alarmed. She wasn't stupid. During the meeting, the emperor kept glancing in their direction without making a sound, and his gaze made Ru Feng feel as if she were in a frozen wasteland.

Sigh, could this be what people call the aura of a king?

After finishing his business with the other ministers, Yu Chi Huaiyang came over and said to Ru Feng, "Go quickly, don't keep the Emperor waiting."

So Ru Feng had no choice but to follow the little eunuch, feeling wronged, glancing back at Yu Jue and Yu Xuan along the way. As for her grandfather, well, don't count on him.

This was the first time Ru Feng had been alone with the emperor. In fact, Ru Feng had met the emperor three times in total. The first two times, he had met him with other people. This was the first time he had met the emperor alone.

The meeting place between Ru Feng and the Emperor was not in the Imperial Study, but rather in a pavilion in front of it. The pavilion was built on a lake, not the small lake in Yu Jue's mansion, but a very large lake with unfathomable depths. "However, the water looks so good," Ru Feng sighed, "dazzling like emerald."