Chapter 46: Should I get married?

Yao's eyes suddenly darkened.

To be honest, she has been thinking about this matter from time to time recently.

Sometimes when Jiang Rufei encountered a disaster, she felt that what the old Taoist said was right, but when she saw Jiang Rufei getting better, she felt that she had been cheated.

"When you and Jiang Rufei were little, she did protect you from disasters several times. Have you forgotten? Not long after she came to our house, you accidentally fell off the swing. It was obviously you who should have been hit, but you happened to fall on her when you fell, while you were intact. Isn't it because of that fall that she has no memory of it?"

It seemed like that happened when she was seven or eight years old, and Jiang Rulin still has some impression of it.

There were actually several similar incidents. It was Jiang Rulin who should have been in danger, but in the end it was Jiang Rufei who suffered.

"But..." Jiang Rulin bit her lower lip, "Now it seems to be completely reversed. Jiang Rufei's life is too smooth sailing, while I am always outshined by her."

Yao suddenly remembered and hurriedly asked, "Where's the talisman I gave you? Are you still carrying it with you?"

"I always carry it with me."

Jiang Rulin quickly took the talisman out of her purse. The talisman was very old, with slightly curled corners and the vermilion runes on it were a little dim.

"Could it be that the rune has faded and lost its effectiveness? Or has the one buried in the west wing lost its effectiveness?"

Yao thought it made sense. "We'll just ask the Taoist priest to take a look once. If it really doesn't work, we'll ask him to reinforce it again."

…

Eight eunuchs carried the sedan chair steadily and slowly entered the vermilion palace gate.

The eunuchs who led the way held their breath and concentrated, not even daring to shake the tassel of their whisks. They, the palace servants serving in the Qianyuan Hall, knew best that Prince Zhaoning's moods were unpredictable, and he was a master who dared to slam the door and walk away in front of the emperor.

Pei Jing half-leaned on the cushion, his slender fingers tapping the armrest intermittently, the rhythm sometimes fast, sometimes slow, as if responding to a tune that no one else could hear.

"Stop." Pei Jing suddenly said.

The eunuch leading the way quickly stopped, walked to the side in small steps, and said respectfully, "Your Highness, do you have any instructions?"

Pei Jing did not respond, but cast his gaze towards the palace wall. The silhouettes of the flying eaves and brackets were stretched on the palace wall by the setting sun, and his own shadow was also stretched. He felt inexplicably annoyed when looking at it.

"Forget it, I don't want to go anymore, let's go back to the palace."

The eunuch was horrified and said cautiously, "Your Highness, we are almost at Qianyuan Palace. The Emperor is waiting."

Pei Jing seemed to smile softly, "What does he have to do with me?"

The eunuch broke out in a cold sweat instantly. This was extremely disrespectful. If someone else had said it, they would have been sent to jail. Only this King Zhaoning could make shocking remarks every time he entered the palace, scaring the eunuchs on duty into sweat.

"Your Highness..." The eunuch's voice trembled, and his knees gave way as he knelt on the bluestone. "Please have pity on us servants."

The palace was silent for a moment.

"That's all." Pei Jing said, "We're already here, let's go."

The eunuch breathed a sigh of relief. King Zhaoning was impulsive and no one could guess what he would do next.

The sedan chair stopped at the stone steps in front of Qianyuan Hall, and Pei Jing walked into the hall.

The eunuch announced in a low voice: "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Prince Zhaoning has arrived."

Emperor Zhaowen was reviewing memorials. Upon hearing this, he looked up, then lowered his eyes, wrote the last few words, and put down his pen.

"It's really not easy for me to see you. The eunuch has been there to summon you at least twice, if not four times."

Pei Jing stood in the center of the hall and said, "If the emperor had sent the General of the Household to escort him, I would have arrived long ago."

Emperor Zhaowen held his forehead, as if he was already used to this state of his, but he was not angry. "I heard that you injured your hand. Is it okay now?"

Pei Jing put his right hand behind his back and said, "It's healed now."

"Let the imperial physician take a look later," Emperor Zhaowen said, "to prevent the disease from becoming a chronic problem."

Pei Jing smiled faintly, "Do I still have enough illnesses?"

Emperor Zhaowen frowned, then slowly relaxed his expression. "Did you see anyone when you went to the nunnery this time?"

Pei Jing's face darkened. "Everyone in the nunnery is the emperor's people. Shouldn't they be the ones who know whether they have met the emperor or not?"

"Do you really have to challenge me?!" Emperor Zhaowen's voice became a little deeper.

"Your Majesty insists on seeing me, but I don't want to provoke you in front of me. If Your Majesty wants to live a long life, it would be best if you don't summon me as often as possible in the future."

"Pei Jing!" Emperor Zhaowen slammed the table so hard that the teacups on it clinked.

The eunuchs guarding inside and outside the hall were so frightened that they all knelt on the ground. The air was so stagnant that water seemed to drip out.

After a long while, Emperor Zhaowen took a deep breath and slowly leaned back on the dragon throne.

But still maintain that nonchalant attitude

The air was so stagnant that water seemed to drip out.

After a long moment, Emperor Zhaowen took a deep breath and slowly sat back on the dragon throne. "I heard that when you were in the mountains, you were close to Marquis Dingyuan and the girl from the Jiang family. You are already old enough to get married. As for the girl from the Jiang family, it's fine. I heard that she is already engaged to Wei Sanlang. Marquis Dingyuan's girl is not yet engaged. If you like any other girl from another family, I..."

"Your Majesty." Pei Jing raised his eyes dimly. "From what you said, the ministers chosen by Wei Sanlang cannot be touched. We have to choose the ones he has left?"

"Why do you have to misinterpret my meaning like this?" The emperor's voice was filled with suppressed anger. "I am thinking about you!"

Pei Jing had a faint sneer on his face. "Your Majesty is indeed thinking of me. It's a pity that it's a little late. If I were a child..."

Outside the hall, before the eldest prince Pei Yi stepped onto the stairs, the eunuchs at the entrance of Qianyuan Hall came down to greet him.

"This servant pays homage to King Jing."

Pei Yi raised his foot and walked up, "Is the emperor still reviewing the memorials?"

The eunuch lowered his voice very low, "Your Highness, the Emperor is discussing matters with Prince Zhaoning. I'm afraid..."

Pei Yi raised his hand to stop the eunuch from speaking, a gentle smile on his lips, "It's okay, I will wait here."

He stood outside the hall with his hands behind his back when suddenly the sound of a teacup breaking came from inside the hall.

"You're not even allowed to talk about this?" Pei Jing said sarcastically, "If the emperor had been so considerate of me when I was a child, why would it be like this today?"

The palace door creaked open, and Pei Jing met Pei Yi's gaze outside the palace, and his steps paused slightly.

The undried bloodstain on his neck was particularly glaring in the setting sun.

Pei Yi took a look and said, "You are injured."

Pei Jing raised his hand to wipe his neck. There was some blood on his fingertips, probably from the broken porcelain pieces that were splashed when Emperor Zhaowen smashed the cup.

He was about to leave when Pei Yi suddenly spoke up, "Father is old, why are you still—"

"Why what?" Pei Jing suddenly stepped closer, still carrying a lingering anger. "Why make him angry? Or why live until now?"

He chuckled softly and said as he passed by, "You'd better stop worrying about other people's affairs and think about whether you, the eldest son, can sit in that position first."

The atmosphere when they left was even heavier than when they came. Although the sun had already set and the weather had gotten cooler, the eunuch who led the way still felt sweat all over.

He followed the sedan chair with his head down, and suddenly a piece of pure white gauze fell in front of his eyes.

The eunuch quickly picked it up, held it in both hands and looked up.

King Zhaoning's previously bandaged left hand was seen hanging beside the sedan chair. It slowly clenched into a fist, and the wound that had already healed began to split open bit by bit.

Blood immediately overflowed from the wound and dripped onto the ground along the back of his hand.

"Oh, Your Highness..." The eunuch's voice trembled, and he was at a loss as to what to do while holding the gauze.

Pei Jing seemed oblivious. He stared at the darkening sky in the distance and suddenly asked, "Do you think it's time for me to get married?"

The eunuch dared not answer, but he couldn't pretend not to hear, so he picked his words and said, "If the prince has such a plan, all the girls in the world will surely flock to him."

Pei Jing tilted his head and chuckled, "We should avoid them like snakes and scorpions."