Chapter 9 What a Night

Bang!

Along with the sound of broken porcelain, the rich aroma of candied fruit also came into the carriage.

Qiu Xuan stretched her arms, trying to free herself from Jing Beian's grip. However, the seemingly loose grip was actually very tight, so Qiu Xuan gave up.

"Is it the East Market? Send your men to Qingliangju to buy some candy. I don't think they can remember all the varieties, so just bring a little of each."

Jing Beian frowned and looked at Qiu Xuan like a vigilant wolf.

"It will be there in a while." Qiu Xuan urged in a low voice.

Jing Beian let go of her hand, lifted the curtain and gave a few instructions to his men.

Qiu Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. Jing Beian remained calm, so everything could be discussed. At the same time, Qiu Xuan concluded that his previous impetuous personality was just an act.

"You told the princess my identity."

"No."

Facing Jing Beian's suspicious eyes, Qiu Xuan blinked innocently: "Really not."

"Why?" Jing Beian put his hand on his sword, and occasionally pushed up the hilt with his fingers. The exposed half of the blade was white and looked very sharp.

Suitable for wiping someone's neck.

Qiu Xuan laughed and said, "Because this matter is meaningless. No one cares whether you are real or fake."

As she spoke, she gathered the notes scattered around the carriage.

"The Marquis' Mansion needs you to keep his title, and the Fourth Prince still needs you to lead the troops in battle. The Princess might be furious if she knew about this, but right now, she needs the Yunyang Marquis' Mansion to set an example and get more generals to side with the Fourth Prince. To these people, you must be genuine, and only genuine."

Jing Beian frowned slightly: "No one cares?"

Qiu Xuan paused her work and tilted her head to think for a moment, "His Highness's political enemies would be very interested, but with the eldest princess acting as regent, they wouldn't be able to cause any major upheaval."

At this point, Qiu Xuan raised his lip and said, "Your Majesty will certainly not be happy if someone treats him like a fool. However, as you heard, Your Majesty is at a critical moment of ascension. How can he be disturbed by such mundane matters?"

"What about you?" Jing Beian gripped the hilt of the knife tightly. "Aren't you angry?"

It's inexplicable, why should I be angry?

"I've never met the real Jing Bei'an." Qiu Xuan pursed her lips. "I don't know what his personality or temper is like. But you, what happened to that impulsive temper at first?"

"I thought I could scare you. But you didn't buy it, so why bother?" Jing Beian slapped his sword to his side. "Since you're a smart person, let's be frank."

"The princess used the manor to send you away, aren't you angry?"

"I thought you were going to ask me what my purpose was in pretending to be Jing Beian."

"Even if I ask you, you might not tell the truth. Answer my question quickly."

"I was quite angry at first." Jing Beian spread his hands. "But I listened to your advice. Making a scene at that time wouldn't have done me any good. Besides, Zhuangzi is fine too. It's better to have him than not."

As he spoke, he touched Qiu Xuan's lips with his index finger.

"Let's keep this Zhuangzi a secret between us. Don't tell the old lady about it, okay?"

Qiu Xuan opened Jing Beian's hand and said, "Give me the deed."

"No, the old lady knows exactly what's new in your room."

"Then you can ask your people to take me out again, right?"

"Carrying the old lady on her back?" Jing Beian nodded. "Okay. I'll have them wait at the eastern corner gate during the first few days of the morning."

"I want to see the princess again."

"That's not difficult, but since you mentioned two conditions, I'd like to add one more to be fair."

"You speak first."

"What was written in the note given to the princess?"

"You are still thinking about this." Qiu Xuan showed a fox-like cunning smile on his face.

Outside, Jing Beian's men had returned and handed bags of candy and snacks into the car.

"I didn't hand her anything."

Qiuxuan opened a package and picked up a piece of pear paste.

"Don't you think that the Fourth Prince's performance today is enough to deserve a scolding?"

"Shouldn't we seize the opportunity to pursue our victory now?"

"The heaviest punishment the Fourth Prince has ever received was a public spanking by the Queen. If even his own mother treated him this way, how could the Princess punish him so severely?"

The pear paste is very sweet, with the aroma of pear and honey intertwined, which makes Qiuxuan, who has not tasted sweets for a long time, feel happy.

"I originally thought he wouldn't tell the princess anything, so I told her about Feifei's situation. Now that he's already said it himself, if I continue to fan the flames, won't I just be asking for trouble?"

Qiu Xuan picked up another piece, but before she could put it into her mouth, Jing Beian bit it and ate it.

"Madam, you have good means."

*

"If it weren't for the Yunyang Marquis and his wife who understood the overall situation, I wonder how you would have gotten away with it today."

The eldest princess was so angry that her hands were shaking. Jiang Jue stood in front of her with his head lowered, not daring to breathe.

"Speak!" The princess slammed the table. "I asked you to prepare your speech for the banquet and the courtiers' formalities, but where have you gotten to?"

"I... I just forgot..." Jiang Jue argued, "It was so sudden for my father to make me a king. I just... I just forgot..."

"Then you should at least take this opportunity to claim credit for Marquis Yunyang. If you take all the credit for yourself, even the most loyal people will become dissatisfied over time."

"Didn't I ask for credit for Feifei...but you won't let me..."

"Since Feifei loves you, why are you trying to win her over now?" The princess was very disappointed. "All the civil and military officials are watching how well you treat the Marquis of Yunyang, your follower. You've forgotten the most important thing!"

Jiang Jue didn't dare tell the princess that he had hired someone to impersonate Jing Beian, so he could only bow his head and let the princess scold him. The princess became even more angry when she saw him like this.

"If you can't even take care of such a small matter, how are you going to inherit the throne in the future?"

"You always tell me to learn how to be an emperor. I'm just a slow learner, not unwilling to learn!" Jiang Jue stamped his feet anxiously. "Father is still very young. I still have plenty of time. Why do you push me so hard?"

"Your Majesty, at your age, is already able to command the whole court and the people. How can I not be anxious?"

"Then don't let me be the emperor. It's not like I want to be the emperor!"

Jiang Jue ran out yelling, "I'm going to tell my father right now that I don't want to be emperor!"

"Hurry up and chase him!" The eldest princess was so angry that she couldn't even stand up. She ordered the eunuchs, "Hurry up and chase him. Don't let him talk nonsense in front of Your Majesty!"

Jiang Jue ran very fast, and by the time he reached Qingyun Palace, the eldest princess's eunuch had been left behind.

"I want to see my father!"

The eunuch guarding the gate bowed and said, "Wu Zhuang and Ji Zhuang are currently lecturing Your Majesty. Your Highness Prince Lu, please return."

Jiang Jue had no choice but to return home.

At this time, the side door of Qingyun Hall opened.

"Why is Second Brother here?"

"Your Majesty has an errand for you."

This is not something Jiang Jue can ask.

He was about to turn around and leave when Jiang Jinhan called him, which was rare.

"Does Fourth Brother know about Marquis Yunyang's affairs?"