Chapter 92 Returning South with the Wind

Mu Ji nearly fainted, then gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, the Sikong Mansion has been in trouble for a long time, so they should at least contribute 20,000 taels. I will also contribute another 30,000 taels from my private treasury, making a total of 50,000 taels. How about that?"

The two of them were acting, singing and chanting in unison.

But since the King of Yu had spoken, Mu Xi had no choice but to take the opportunity to express his opinion: "Since Your Majesty has contributed from your private treasury, I would also like to express my opinion. I will also try to raise 30,000 taels of silver to build the main altar, in addition to the 50,000 taels for the construction of the viewing platform. On the day of completion, I would like to ask Your Majesty to personally attend the ceremony."

“Excellent! Your Highness is so kind. I will personally attend the ceremony and host a banquet for all my ministers on the viewing platform to celebrate your achievement.” Mu Ji clapped his hands in delight, but then added, “I hope Your Highness can complete the project before October.”

Um? ? ?

Mu Xi was inexplicably given a deadline again. It was already mid-July, and there were less than three months left until October: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid there won't be enough time?"

Mu Ji said, "Alas, even if there is no time, we must hurry. Autumn is always the time when floods are most likely to occur. If we can offer sacrifices to the gods at the end of October or the beginning of November, we may satisfy the Dragon God and prevent floods. This is all for the sake of the people of Dayu."

Mu Xi sensed something was wrong, but couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Mu Ji had made the final decision: "The matter is settled. Jin Fangjun's Mansion will take charge of this matter, and Sikong Mansion will fully cooperate in the construction of Qifeng Terrace. When Qifeng Terrace is completed, the Grand Historian will set a date and invite the Imperial Preceptor Xian Ling to ascend the altar and perform rituals to worship Heaven, Earth and the Dragon God."

With everything settled, Mu Zhen and his party took their leave.

Mu Xi and Cao Pan'er left the palace together.

After being silenced by Yu Wang Mu Ji's words, Mu Zhen remained silent until they left the palace. Then he shook his head and said, "You know nothing but are self-righteous. Taking on this matter is pure recklessness."

Mu Xi simply said, "She knows I'm a woman."

"Who?" Mu Zhen was taken aback, then realized what was happening and fixed his gaze on Cao Pan'er, who was a few steps away. "Before entering the palace, did she threaten you?"

Before Mu Xi could even acknowledge it, Cao Pan'er had already pounced on him, grabbing his leg and saying, "Your Highness... Your Highness saved my life. I will do anything for you, even die for you."

"Cough cough..." Mu Zhen was no longer able to put on a brave face as she had in Tianjun Palace. She looked exhausted and didn't even want to think anymore. She just gave Mu Xun a look.

Mu Xun understood.

Mu Xi understood what was going to happen, but she patted Cao Pan'er's head and said, "Don't worry, I'll take you back to the manor."

"You..." Mu Zhen was about to explode, but forcibly suppressed his anger.

Mu Xi stepped forward and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "Father, didn't you hear what happened in the hall? Cao Pan'er is my person now, so it's not good for her to die so easily and arouse suspicion. Besides, how does Father know if she has told this secret to others or left any backup plans?"

“Hmm…” Mu Zhen hesitated for a moment, but remained noncommittal. “You don’t need to worry about these things, including the construction of Qifeng Terrace. Delay it as long as possible. I will make arrangements for you in time.”

Mu Xi then asked, "What arrangements?"

"This isn't the place to talk. Let's go back to the manor and discuss this further," Mu Zhen said, turning and getting into the carriage.

Mu Xi shook her head inwardly as she watched her scumbag father get into the car.

If it weren't for his guilty conscience and his eagerness to follow along, Prince Yu Muji might not have had to go through such a long and complicated process. Instead, his father has exposed some of his secrets.

Even if others can't see it now, Mu Xi is certain that her scumbag father must be related to former officials of the previous dynasty, and even the Cao family mother and daughter are definitely not simple.

While Mu Xi was pondering this, Mu Xun led her to the second carriage.

Mu Xi had just gotten into the carriage when she became worried: "Have Cao Pan'er come over and have her ride back to the manor with me in the same carriage."

Mu Xun was about to object, but it was really not appropriate to linger at the palace gates.

Mu Xun then turned around and let Cao Pan'er get into the carriage as well.

Finally, the carriages of Doctor Luo and Bao Fan followed behind.

Mu Xun had arranged everything and was about to mount his horse when suddenly someone behind him shouted, "Brother Chengfeng, Brother Chengfeng..."

"Chengfeng" is Mu Xun's courtesy name.

Mu Xi's courtesy name was "Gui Nan".

The courtesy names of the two individuals both come from a sentence in "Jiuyuan Ji," a book describing the landscape of the Nine Realms Continent: "If the mountain's terrain is not steep, it is difficult for it to gather clouds. Therefore, at a height of a thousand fathoms, the mist gathers, and then the wind blows; those who embrace the universe and are not obstructed by anything then all return to the south."

Mu Xun often made friends outside, and was naturally often addressed by his courtesy name.

As for Mu Xi, whether it was the original owner or the current her, she disliked the name "Gui Nan" and always felt that her scumbag father, Mu Zhen, deliberately chose the homophone "Nan" (南) and "Nan" (男), so she avoided using it whenever possible.

Mu Xun turned around: "She Yu? What are you doing here?"

Mu Xi lifted the carriage curtain and looked out.

The newcomer was a young man in his early twenties, of medium build, with a round face and fox-like eyes. He wore a scarlet official robe, and two servants dressed as bailiffs followed far behind him.

The man said, "I heard that your elder brother, Prince Jin Fang, rarely enters the palace, so I came here specifically to see him."

"Don't joke around, my father is still in the car," Mu Xun warned.

The man had a smile on his face and spoke casually, clearly an outgoing person. Upon hearing this, he composed himself, quickly stepped forward, bowed to Mu Zhen who was lifting the carriage curtain, and said, "Your subject Yan Shu greets Your Majesty."

Mu Xun then introduced, "Father, he is Yan Shu, the Junior Chamberlain, and the son of Yan Liang, the Chief Secretary. He used to help out at the Military Equipment Department, which is where we met."

Mu Zhen nodded perfunctorily: "Yan Liang is a cautious and honest official, and his son is also a young prodigy."

Yan Shu replied with a serious and humble tone: "Your Excellency is too kind. I heard that the Crown Prince has taken on the task of building the Qifeng Terrace, so I came here to offer my assistance."

"Oh?" Mu Zhen asked, puzzled.

Mu Xun followed up with, "You've been on duty at the Military Equipment Bureau, how are you involved in civil engineering? Besides, the King just nodded, and hasn't officially issued the decree yet, how did you know so quickly?"

Yan Shu then chuckled and said, "Brother Chengfeng, you may not know this, but whether it's the Military Equipment Bureau or the Sili Prefecture, all sorts of miscellaneous matters fall under the jurisdiction of the Shaofu (Minister of the Imperial Household Department). As an official in the Shaofu, I'm in charge of everything. For example, this batch of escaped slaves that were captured has been assigned to the Crown Prince to build the Qifeng Terrace. They need to be re-registered, so I'm in charge of taking over. I'll also be there to supervise the construction site in the future."

"Besides the distribution of slaves, what else are you doing?" Mu Xun asked.

"Is the construction of the altar really just a matter of using slaves?" Yan Shu grinned as he faced Mu Xun, counting on his fingers, "The divination for the site selection, determining the altar's shape, gathering earth, stone, and timber, requiring bronze, jade, and silk, conscripting craftsmen, using convicts and laborers, sacrificing animals to the gods before construction, all the taboos during this period, preparing the bronze tripods, jade discs, and sacrificial animals for the ceremony after completion, arranging shamans and musicians, and formulating the grand ceremony's procedures. Ensuring timely completion and not missing the auspicious day for the sacrifice—which of these tasks doesn't require people?"