Chapter 309: Emperor Xie Zhen of Nan Zhao

The carriage rolled over the Kowloon Imperial Road and stopped steadily in front of the palace gate.

Xie Lan personally lifted the car curtain:

"Xiyan, we've arrived at the palace."

"Yes." Xiyan responded softly, and she and Manluo got off the carriage one after another.

Under the vermilion palace wall, the chief eunuch Sun Cheng was already leading a group of eunuchs to greet them quickly.

Upon seeing the two princes, he hurriedly bowed and saluted:

"Your servant respectfully welcomes His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Royal Highness the Second Prince! His Majesty has been waiting in Yaoguang Palace for over two hours, and just now he had people question him several times."

"Okay, I got it. Lead the way." Xie Lan nodded.

When Eunuch Sun raised his eyes, his gaze fell on Xi Yan's face behind Xie Lan. He was so frightened that he almost bit his tongue:

"Empress..." The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them back. He hurriedly lowered his head to lead the way, but he couldn't help but steal a glance at Xiyan out of the corner of his eye.

Queen Jiang Jingyue was clearly still sleeping in Liuxia Palace, and the person in front of her looked like a young girl. It seemed that she must be the Princess Zhaoning who had been missing for many years.

Along the way, passing through layers of flying eaves and brackets, the glazed tiles shone with golden light in the sunlight, and the white marble railings were carved with lotus patterns. Palace maids, eunuchs, and guards came and went, shuttling between them.

Xiyan and Manluo discovered that the Nanzhao Palace was similar in shape to the Tianqi Palace, except that it had a more watery and elegant air.

"Xiyan, Miss Manluo, we're here!"

Just as the two sisters were carefully looking at the scenery of the Nanzhao Palace, Xie Lan's gentle voice suddenly rang out.

The two of them subconsciously stopped and looked towards the palace gate.

But outside the magnificent Yaoguang Palace, four palace maids were holding up a yellow silk umbrella.

A middle-aged man was standing under the umbrella. He was about forty years old, with a golden crown on his hair and a golden dragon robe that made him look tall and straight. The jade belt buckle around his waist was inlaid with a pigeon-blood ruby, which glowed faintly in the light.

He was born with high brow bones, a sharp nose, and a handsome face with a gentle air. Although his temples were slightly frosted, it only added to his mature and elegant charm, making people feel close to him. However, there was a sense of imperial majesty in his eyes that made people hesitate to act rashly.

At this moment, the man was pacing back and forth anxiously, with the palace maid behind him holding an umbrella, following him closely.

"That's father." Xie Zhan leaned over to Xiyan's ear and whispered.

Xiyan only felt her heart pounding, causing pain in her chest and her fingertips to feel cold.

Manluo, on the other hand, looked at Xie Zhen for a moment and muttered softly:

"Tsk tsk, so this is the Southern Zhao Emperor Xie Zhen, he's quite good looking!"

Xie Zhen seemed to hear some noise and looked up suddenly.

His gaze passed through his two sons and stared straight at the girl in white standing behind them.

Coincidentally, Xiyan also raised her eyes, and the moment their eyes met, his gaze suddenly froze on her face. Shock, ecstasy and unbelievable pain surged in his deep eyes. The dignified Emperor Nanzhao actually lost his composure for a moment.

In a trance, his consciousness went back to more than 20 years ago. The young girl Jiang Jingyue smiled sweetly, and her bright eyes seemed to be rippling with spring water, but it was difficult to conceal her natural beauty, which was unparalleled.

The girl in front of him had pupils like autumn water and dark eyebrows like cold smoke. Apart from a more cold temperament, she looked exactly like the beloved wife in his memory.

But when he suddenly came to his senses, he found that his own Jingyue was still fast asleep on the couch in Liuxia Palace. Could the girl in front of him be their daughter?

But Xie Zhen stumbled forward half a step, his voice hoarse and incoherent:

“You…you are…”

Xiyan's throat choked with sobs, and she bowed deeply:

"I, Xiyan, a commoner, pay my respects to the Southern Emperor."

Before he could finish his words, Xie Zhen quickly helped him up.

He said "OK" twice, calmed himself down, and then looked at Xie Lan and Xie Zhan behind him.

The two brothers saluted at the same time: "Your sons pay their respects to the emperor, father."

"Thank you for your hard work."

Xie Zhen patted his son's shoulder and his eyes fell on Manluo beside him:

"Who is this girl?"

Manluo smiled openly and walked forward gracefully:

"I, Manluo, grew up with Xiyan. We are both colleagues and sisters. I pay my respects to the Southern Emperor!"

"So you are a distinguished guest, welcome."

Xie Zhenqi nodded, but his eyes were still glued to Xiyan's face, and his tone softened unconsciously:

"We have been rushing all the way, let's go to the palace first."

After saying that, he turned around and entered the Yaoguang Palace first.

The banquet table had already been set up in the hall, and the crystal chandeliers cast a dazzling light on the delicacies on the table.

Xiyan and Manluo stood there stiffly with their hands hanging down, until Xie Zhen personally pulled away the embroidered cushion next to the main seat, and then they dared to sit down.

Xiyan was arranged to sit next to Xie Zhen, while Manluo sat next to Xie Zhan.

After a few pleasantries, Xie Zhen personally picked up a piece of lotus cake and put it into Xiyan's bowl, and asked in a gentle voice:

"Have you gotten used to being in Tianqi these years?"

In fact, Xie Zhan had already reported Xiyan's experience to him, and he knew what was going on.

At this moment, he deliberately skipped the part between her and Xiao Nanyue, and only asked about some trivial matters about her time in Tianqi, and Xiyan answered them one by one.

Manluo, on the other hand, became very hungry when she saw the dazzling array of Nanzhao delicacies.

She rolled up her sleeves and was about to reach for her chopsticks when Xie Zhan quickly grabbed a piece of crispy grilled lemongrass fish for her. He then placed a bone dish in front of her filled with delicious dishes like tamarind cake, coconut milk jelly, braised pork elbow, and five-spice tea duck...

Manluo looked at the mountain of food in the bowl and gave Xie Zhan a knowing smile.

I thought to myself: I thought this Second Prince was stupid and innocent, but I didn’t expect that he is so good at pleasing women!