Chapter 48 Lu Jiangnian Didn’t Fall into the Trap

The little palace maid led Yuan Wanru through a rose wall, passed by a cluster of autumn chrysanthemums in full bloom, and walked onto a long corridor. There was a large water tank with water lilies in it placed at regular intervals along the corridor, which was quite poetic.

"Madam, the toilet is just ahead."

They had been walking for nearly a quarter of an hour. Yuan Wanru thought, this place is really big, it takes such a long way to go just to go to the bathroom.

As I was walking, a dark shadow suddenly ran out from the corner of the corridor. It was a cat.

The cat pounced directly onto Yuan Wanru.

Liu Yan hurriedly stepped forward to resist: "Madam, be careful."

Yuan Wanru managed to dodge it, but the little palace maid was so frightened that she sprained her foot.

Then, a palace maid in light blue clothes and a eunuch came running.

The eunuch was quick to catch the cat, and then he knelt down with the palace maid to beg for mercy: "Please forgive me, my lord. This is Xu Liangdi's cat. I don't know how it got here. It's all our fault for not doing our job well."

This is the Eastern Palace. Can Yuan Wanru still hold these two people accountable for this incident?

Yuan Wanru was just trying to dodge, and the hem of her clothes hit the water jar and got wet.

Liu Yan said worriedly, "What should I do? My clothes are all wet. I can't go back like this."

It is impolite to meet guests in wet clothes.

The light blue maid carefully suggested: "In reply to your Excellency's question, there is a guest room not far away, which is specially for distinguished guests to change clothes. Why don't I take Madam there to wait, and this sister go get a set of clean clothes?"

Liu Yan was worried about Yuan Wanru staying here alone, so Yuan Wanru suddenly changed her mind and said to her, "Go to Liuyun Pavilion and ask Aunt Sun for help. Ask someone to get clothes from the car. Go quickly and come back soon. I'll go to the toilet first."

Other things can wait, but there are three urgent things in life, and she can’t wait for this one.

Liu Yan could only return the same way, while Yuan Wanru followed the palace maid Qianlan to the toilet, and under her guidance, she pushed open the door of a side room.

There were simply tables and chairs in the room, as well as a large eight-sided floor-to-ceiling screen that blocked the view, making it difficult to see what was going on inside.

"Madam, please wait inside. I will be guarding the door."

The maid seemed to want to leave, but Yuan Wanru grabbed her hand and held her pulse tightly: "I'm scared, you should stay with me."

The maid tried to struggle, but Yuan Wanru stared at her back and asked in confusion, "Why are you here?"

-

But let’s talk about the other side.

There are several rows of straight Metasequoia trees planted on the martial arts field. In autumn, the colorful leaves of Metasequoia add a bright landscape to this empty martial arts field.

There were flags flying around the martial arts arena, fluttering in the wind. A chestnut horse was galloping across the arena at lightning speed.

The man on horseback was dressed in black, holding a bow with his long arms, and his pair of bright black eyes were aimed at the target in front of him.

The horse leaped high, and he was in high spirits, shooting several arrows in succession, one, two, three, four..., the horse's hooves landed on the ground, and four arrows were fired in succession, without a single one missing, all of them hit the bull's eye steadily.

The onlookers burst into thunderous applause and cheered: "Great!"

Wan Bin was wearing a green gown and had the temperament of a scholar. When he saw this scene, he jumped up excitedly, his eyes widened, and he rolled up his sleeves and clapped his hands repeatedly until his hands turned red.

"Brother Lu is too strong."

The look in his eyes was full of obsession and admiration. Such tough masculinity was what he longed for.

Unfortunately, he has only been studying since he was young and has no martial arts skills. He will never be able to ride a horse and draw a bow like Lu Jiangnian in his entire life.

In his heart, there was only envy and admiration.

Seeing his fanatical look, the prince couldn't help but shook his head and said, "Fortunately you are not a woman, otherwise you would have to go to the mansion of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery and offer yourself to him."

Wan Bin touched his nose and smiled embarrassedly.

Should I tell the prince that even though he is a man, he wants to be with Brother Lu more often and learn some skills?

Drawing the bow and shooting on horseback, how heroic!

Lu Jiangnian handed the horse to the palace servant and walked over. He did not sit directly next to the prince, but walked up to Wan Bin and looked at him with a critical eye.

She was thin, like a piece of dry firewood, and would fall down if the wind blew. She was shorter than him.

His face is too pale, his hair is greasy and his face is powdered, he looks unreliable.

What kind of vision does my mother have?

The little liar actually said that Wan Bin is good. What's good about him? He is not comparable to him in any way.

Anyone with eyes can see that Wan Bin is not as handsome as him.

Wan Bin was very nervous, not knowing what Lu Jiangnian meant by looking at him like that.

The prince was also surprised: "What's wrong, you don't recognize him?"

That shouldn't be the case. Wan Bin and Lu Jiangnian have only not seen each other for two or three years, so they shouldn't not recognize each other.

Lu Jiangnian sneered: "You are not as good as me."

…

The prince really didn't know what to say. Why did he suddenly attack Wan Bin like this? How did Wan Bin offend him?

Wan Bin, however, did not think this was a blow at all. He felt it was a spur. Brother Lu must have a different eye for him and that was why he wanted to motivate him to make progress.

He didn't know what to do with his hands and feet: "That's right, the gap between me and Brother Lu is like a chasm. I will definitely work harder to catch up with Brother Lu."

Lu Jiangnian looked at Wan Bin with a dark face. This guy wasn't very smart and it was obvious that he looked down on him. Why was he so excited?

The second and third princes also came over to greet him: "How enviable! When father was selecting a study partner, why couldn't we meet an outstanding study partner like Jiang Nian?"

As soon as the second prince Murong Xiao finished speaking, the third prince Murong Ji sneered, "Who do you think you are? My eldest brother is the legitimate son of the Empress Dowager, and was made the Crown Prince when he was young. He is the apple of our father's eye. We are just given the title of prince for nothing."

The prince was already tired of hearing Murong Ji's sour words.

He had not originally invited the third brother to come today, but he insisted on coming and brought the annoying Zhao Liangfeng with him.

Murong Ji is the son of Concubine Zhao, and Zhao Liangfeng is his cousin. His father is currently the Minister of War. Zhao Liangfeng himself is also a talented general, serving as the captain of the city gate, which is also a position of real power.

Zhao Liangfeng has always been dissatisfied with Lu Jiangnian. Just now, he was not as good as Lu Jiangnian in shooting. Now he has no idea where he is going to sulk about.

Lu Jiangnian was impatient to talk to the Third Prince, so he found an excuse to leave the martial arts arena. A palace maid stopped him and said, "Prince Lu, there was a message from Liuyun Pavilion just now. The prince's wife's clothes were soiled, and she is changing clothes in Ziyun Pavilion in front."

"But, Lord Zhao seemed to be walking towards Ziyunxuan just now."

Zhao Liangfeng was well-known for his disregard for food and he already had seven or eight concubines at home.

The maid looked nervous and frightened. Lu Jiangnian stared at her sharply: "Really?"

She said tremblingly, "I dare not deceive the prince. Lord Zhao has been gone for about a quarter of an hour."

Ziyunxuan is located at the junction of the front and back of the East Palace. Yuan Wanru came to the banquet, and her spare clothes must have been left in the carriage. It makes sense for her to come to Ziyunxuan to change clothes.

However, Lu Jiangnian did not go to Ziyunxuan.

"Xuanying, keep an eye on her."

He took a few steps, called out to Xuanying, and then headed towards Liuyun Pavilion with the gait of a dragon or a tiger.