L'hibiscus comme peinture

Chapitre 61

Ao Jun didn't say anything, but just smiled mysteriously: She didn't know Jin Xuan's character yet. Although she went to see him every day, he would never tell her the truth about his injuries. Every day he would say that he was fine and nothing was wrong. If she believed him, she would be an idiot. The person who knew his injuries best, besides himself, was his attending physician, Huang Ying. If she didn't ask her, who else would she ask?

"Fine, I don't understand you at all. You always act so mysterious." Huang Ying pouted and muttered to herself, but Ao Jun just smiled mysteriously. Huang Ying completely surrendered and said dejectedly, "Do you want to hear about the Empress again? I've told you everything I know. Two months ago, I left the palace because of some matters at the Holy Immortal Sect, so I have no idea what earth-shattering achievements the Empress has made since then. But judging by the dates, the Empress should have given birth by now!"

When the Empress was newly pregnant, the Emperor "kidnapped" her to the palace to help with the pregnancy. To say he was there to help, it was more like he was putting her to the test. She considered herself a well-traveled woman, but she had never seen a pregnant woman like the Empress, who was so unpredictable and always chose the most dangerous and terrifying things, constantly pushing her limits. What was worse, the Emperor was powerless against her. Finally, two months ago, due to the chaos surrounding the Holy Chi incident, she found a chance to leave the palace, thinking she was finally free from her misery. But slowly, she realized she was wrong. She wondered if the Empress had cast some spell on her, because she began to worry about the Empress. She wondered how she was doing; the Empress was about to give birth, and with her restless nature, she didn't know if something would happen without her. Even the imperial physicians couldn't handle her. Alas, could she have been poisoned by the Empress?

Upon hearing this, Ao Jun became excited and grabbed Huang Ying's shoulder. Just as he was about to say something, a slightly unhappy voice rang out: "Brother, the Prince sent someone to say that he has something to discuss with you."

Ao Jun looked at Yue Ying strangely, just about to ask her what was making her unhappy, when a soldier appeared in the tent and respectfully said to Ao Jun, "Strategist, His Highness has sent me to invite you over, saying that someone from the capital has come and wants to see you." As he spoke, he kept his head down and did not look at Ao Jun, with a suspicious blush on his face.

A visitor from the capital? Who is it? Such a serious matter, must be someone important. But what does it have to do with her? Why do they want to see her?

Despite his doubts, he said to the soldier, "I'll go over now." He then turned to Huang Ying and Yue Ying and said, "Huang Ying, I'll go over first. We'll talk about what we were saying later. Ying'er, I'm leaving now."

Under the watchful eyes of Huang Ying and Yue Ying, Ao Jun followed the soldier toward Jin Xuan's tent.

As soon as Ao Jun left, Yue Ying glared angrily at Huang Ying and asked, "What did you say to my brother?"

Seeing Yueying's face turn red with anger, Huang Ying found her extremely cute and wanted to tease her. She gave her an ambiguous smile and said, "It's a secret. Hehe..." Then, with a smug smile, she slowly walked out under Yueying's angry glare, leaving Yueying there stomping her feet in frustration.

With a sense of doubt, Ao Jun walked into Jin Xuan's tent. Who exactly was this person from the capital?

"Jun, you've arrived." As soon as he entered, Jinxuan's suppressed voice rang out.

Ao Jun was feeling puzzled, but before she could speak, a flippant voice rang in her ear: "This is the number one strategist in the world—Young Master Mo Jun. He is indeed incomparably handsome."

Ao Jun looked up and saw that, besides Jin Xuan, there was another handsome man dressed in brocade robes who looked somewhat like Jin Xuan sitting next to her with a flirtatious expression, staring at her with interest.

Ao Jun ignored the man and walked straight to Jin Xuan, sitting down in front of him. She said to Jin Xuan in a calm tone, "Jin Xuan, what brings you here?"

Jin Xuan calmly said, "Let me introduce you. This is my fourth brother, Prince Ouyang Yixuan." His words were brief and to the point.

Ao Jun simply nodded indifferently to Yi Xuan, waiting for him to continue.

"Hehe..." Yi Xuan chuckled nonchalantly, "Military Advisor Mo really is a lot like Third Brother! Both are so cold. However, I've long heard of Military Advisor Mo's great name! This battle against Cang Liao was truly thanks to the strategist, and also to Sheng Chi's Blood Soul Heavenly Stem Eight Trigrams Formation. I just heard Third Brother mention it; Military Advisor Mo is truly a divine being!..." Yi Xuan praised Ao Jun to the best of his ability.

As expected of a prince! He's been rambling on for so long without getting to the point. What is he trying to achieve?

Seeing that Ao Jun remained unfazed even after talking for so long, Yi Xuan couldn't help but admire her inwardly: Good, patient, composed, and not arrogant or impatient. She truly deserves the position of strategist. And she is stunningly beautiful, more beautiful than any woman he has ever seen. It's such a waste that such a beautiful face is on a man, sigh...

Why is Ouyang Yixuan sighing for no reason? He looks so frivolous, nothing like Jinxuan at all. I wonder what kind of personality her brother-in-law has.

"Fourth brother, have you finished rambling?" Jin Xuan's cold voice suddenly rang out. Ever since Yi Xuan arrived at the military camp, he had first chatted with him about all sorts of things, and then showed great interest in Jun, constantly asking about Jun. If it weren't for the fact that Jun was involved, he would have thrown this kid out long ago. Now he was going too far, not only demanding to see Jun, but also chatting with Jun about a lot of random things, stammering and refusing to reveal the purpose of his visit. He didn't believe that he really missed him and that's why he came to the military camp.

"Enough, enough! Actually, the reason I left the capital this time was to find someone. My second brother had something for me to tell you, so..." Yi Xuan's face fell, and he lowered his head, muttering to himself. Under Jin Xuan's immense pressure, he knew he had reached his third brother's limit. If he continued to ramble on, he would probably really be thrown out. And this Mo Jun didn't seem to be someone to be trifled with; he certainly wouldn't plead for him.

"What does Your Majesty have to say?" Jin Xuan's short and steady voice rang out coldly, interrupting Yi Xuan's incessant chatter. Really, when did this kid become so long-winded?

"It concerns the matter of Cangliao's unprovoked invasion of Longxuan's borders. Your second brother has a secret letter for you." Yixuan shrank back slightly, took out the secret letter his second brother had given him before he left the capital, and handed it to Jinxuan.

Jin Xuan's cold voice sent a chill down Yi Xuan's spine. He had always been most afraid of his third brother, because not only did he always have a cold face, but he was also like a taciturn gourd, completely lacking in romance. Unlike his brother, who used to have such a colorful life, surrounded by beautiful women. But now... sigh, who would have thought that the carefree Prince Yi would fall from grace? He wondered where she was now. This trip out of the capital was to find her. Really, why did he have to go out and have an affair? He deserved it, Yi Xuan cursed himself inwardly. He really missed her…

While Yixuan was reflecting on his own actions, Jinxuan had already read through the secret letter given to him by the Emperor. He frowned, handed the letter to Aojun, and said, "Jun, take a look."

Ao Jun reached out and took the letter, which read: "Recently, the King of Cangliao secretly sent an envoy to the court, saying that this war was started without cause because of the troubles left over from when you and I were envoys to Cangliao when we were young. I'm sure you understand, Third Brother. Yelü Ying has vowed to defeat you, and therefore insisted on sending troops despite the King of Cangliao and everyone's objections. Since the start of the war, the Cangliao treasury has been overburdened, and the people are full of complaints. However, the military power of Cangliao has fallen into Yelü Ying's hands. Moreover, the King of Cangliao loves his son dearly and cannot bear to hurt him. However, a rebellion broke out in Cangliao half a month ago. Although it was suppressed, it was undoubtedly adding insult to injury for the Cangliao. For the sake of the Cangliao, the King of Cangliao has no choice but to endure the pain." I have already sent people to investigate and it is indeed true. The King of Cangliao has sent men to the border. The King of Cangliao knows about Yelü Ying's massacre of my Mo Family Village. My third brother will certainly not let this go, but please, for the sake of his gray hair, spare his life. He has already issued an edict to strip Yelü Ying of his military power, remove him from his position as crown prince, and imprison him forever in the palace. I hope our dynasty can calm down and, for the sake of the innocent people of both countries, cease hostilities and make peace. Cangliao is willing to offer three cities to our dynasty for this battle. The specific implementation is entirely up to my third brother. I await your good news.

Half a month ago? She was imprisoned in his tent then, while he was nowhere to be seen all day. Now it seems it was because of the rebellion. Then, a few days later, he suddenly appeared before her and said those things. He must have known that the King of Cangliao was prepared to sacrifice him and abandon him for the sake of Cangliao. No wonder he looked like a lost child that day, so helpless. Yelü Ying must have loved his father very much! And yet, at his most helpless and heartbroken moment, she stabbed him in the heart again. How cruel she was! Yelü Ying, I wonder how he is now?

"Jinxuan, what do you want to do?" Aojun looked at Jinxuan expectantly. As for what she was expecting, she didn't know. She only knew that in her heart, she hoped that Jinxuan would let Yelü Ying go.

"You're from Mo Family Village. What do you want me to do?" Jin Xuan turned his head and asked in a deep voice, not wanting to see the expectation in Ao Jun's eyes. He killed the villagers of Mo Family Village, so why do you still want me to let him go? Is he really that important to you? More important than the entire Mo Family Village?

"I know you've already made your decision, there's no need to ask me," Ao Jun said coldly, as if the matter truly had nothing to do with her. She knew that Jin Xuan had already made up his mind about this. Although she hoped that Jin Xuan would let Yelü Ying go, justice for Mo Family Village had to be served. But how could she, as a member of Mo Family Village, ask Jin Xuan to let Yelü Ying go? What she owed Yelü Ying was her own personal matter; how could she speak up in the face of matters of national importance?

“Although I have made my decision, Yelü Ying will never sit idly by and wait to die. You should understand that.” Jin Xuan’s calm and steady voice echoed in the tent.

Both fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts, not uttering a word.

Yi Xuan was stunned when Jin Xuan handed the secret letter to Ao Jun: his third brother had actually shown such an important secret letter to Mo Jun, and Mo Jun had accepted it so naturally, without any concern that the Emperor's secret letter was something that couldn't be seen. Was this person incredibly arrogant, or simply an idiot? And why were their conversations so strange? He was completely confused; what kind of riddles were they playing? And why did his usually cold and aloof third brother act so strangely around Mo Jun, like... no way! Although Mo Jun was very beautiful, but...

Yi Xuan stared intently at the two who were deep in thought, his mouth agape. For a moment, the three people in the tent remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts.

Until… “Your Highness, Cangliao has sent a letter of challenge.” A soldier announced loudly from outside the tent.

"Come in," Jinxuan said in a deep voice to the outside of the tent.

A soldier handed the token to Jinxuan and left; even he could feel the oppressive atmosphere inside the tent.

"Yelü Ying has issued a challenge to me, wanting to have a real decisive battle with me." After reading the letter, Jin Xuan raised his head and looked at Ao Jun.

"What do you mean?" Ao Jun asked coldly and indifferently. Yelü Ying, as expected, would not surrender easily.

"I accept the challenge." Jin Xuan closed his eyes, his voice flat. Since this whole affair started because of him, then let him end it!

"This is your decisive battle with Yelü Ying, and I will not interfere." As if he already knew Jin Xuan's decision, Ao Jun said calmly as soon as Jin Xuan finished speaking.

"I understand." Jinxuan opened her eyes and looked directly at Aojun. This was a feud between him and Yelü Ying, and no one else could interfere, let alone Jun. She didn't want anything to happen to Yelü Ying.

Silence fell between them again, but Yi Xuan, who had been silent for a long time, finally couldn't stand the suffocating atmosphere any longer. He was already annoyed enough, and now he was even more annoyed. No, he had to find something happy to talk about, otherwise, if the two of them could hold on, he would definitely die young. What should he say! Ah, right, Third Brother definitely doesn't know about that matter.

"Alright, let's not talk about such dull topics anymore, Third Brother. I have something happy to tell you. This is a joyous occasion for everyone..." Yi Xuan winked mysteriously at Jin Xuan.

He deliberately paused, trying to pique their interest, but he miscalculated. The two remained unchanged, not even lifting an eyelid, completely ignoring him. How could he forget that these two were utterly devoid of any sense of humor!

No one paid him any attention, so he had to continue his monologue. He refused to believe that his third brother could remain so cold-blooded. Yi Xuan chuckled mischievously and continued, "That matter is... my sister-in-law..." Sure enough, as soon as he said this, Jin Xuan immediately raised his head and stared at him coldly. Hehe... I knew it! But why was Mo Jun also staring at him so anxiously? I don't understand? From the moment we met until now, she had always maintained a calm and indifferent demeanor. Even when Yelü Ying sent the challenge, she had never been this anxious.

"Speak quickly!" Ao Jun urged impatiently, her voice no longer calm as before, but slightly raised, revealing her urgency.