A ruthless glint flashed in Wu Jianfeng's eyes as he slowly turned his gaze to An Yunyi. As if he had made up his mind, he gritted his teeth.
He was standing at the back, so no one saw his expression. Even An Honghan, who was good at observing people's hearts, failed to notice his expression this time.
Situ Feiyu gained a lot of face from this banquet.
In the imperial court, he has recently been enjoying immense prestige, and he seems to be subtly overshadowing Liu Fuqing.
Too lazy to pay attention to their infighting, Xi Xizhi held her silver chopsticks and ate her own food.
Xi Xizhi picked up a piece of Phoenix Golden Scale Fish and put it in her mouth. After chewing it a couple of times, she always felt that she could eat it again and again without getting tired of it.
The saying goes that good things should be shared, and it is immoral to eat alone, so Xi Xizhi consciously picked up a piece of fish and put it into An Honghan's bowl.
"Don't just drink, the food's getting cold." Xi Xizhi raised her head, glanced at his bowl, and gestured for him to eat quickly.
It was rare for the little guy to serve him food, so how could An Honghan not do him the honor?
However, this scene, witnessed by Situ Feiyu, further solidified Miss Xi's position in His Majesty's heart.
His Majesty is very particular about cleanliness and tidiness, and he has never liked others to serve him food, especially when he is eating.
I remember once a concubine tried to please the emperor by placing a piece of food on his plate in front of everyone. But the emperor not only didn't appreciate it, he also had her dragged away and beheaded.
Under everyone's gaze, An Honghan used silver chopsticks to pick up a piece of fish and put it in his mouth.
His movements exuded an air of nobility, making people feel pressured.
"Today, Lord Situ is the main character. All of you ministers, stop crowding around me and offer Lord Situ a toast." An Honghan found an excellent excuse to get rid of the surrounding ministers and push the trouble onto Situ Feiyu.
These words sounded so grand and dignified that it was impossible to refuse them.
Immediately, a large group of officials swarmed over and surrounded Situ Feiyu.
Seeing the shift in the situation, Xi Xizhi couldn't help but give a thumbs up. "An Honghan, you're so cunning! Making so many ministers toast him, are you trying to get him drunk?"
An Honghan's lips curled into a cold smile. "It's better that he's drunk than that I am."
The banquet continued, filled with laughter and joy.
After a hearty meal, most of the time had already passed.
Xi Xizhi, who was used to taking a lunch break every day, yawned one after another.
"If you're tired, go back and rest," An Honghan said, squeezing Xi Xizhi's small hand.
Xi Xizhi didn't want to stay here any longer. She came to Liuyun Palace to solve her hunger problem. Now that her stomach was full, she should get a good night's sleep.
Just as he was about to nod in agreement, Liu Fuqing suddenly walked over from not far away.
"Greetings, Your Majesty." Liu Fuqing first bowed, then bowed to the Fourteenth Princess beside him, demonstrating the proper etiquette of a subject.
Although Liu Fuqing enjoys competing with Situ Feiyu, the two are fundamentally different.
Liu Fuqing's request to see An Honghan must have something to discuss. Unlike other ministers who liked to offer toasts and curry favor, he did not carry a wine cup when he came down from his seat.
An Honghan's expression turned serious, and he asked, "Does Minister Liu have something to discuss with me?"
Although An Honghan's expression remained cold, Xi Xizhi had a feeling that An Honghan valued Liu Fuqing more than Situ Feiyu.
He used Situ Feiyu as a pawn to avoid creating an imbalance of power and thus prevent a power struggle, simply to balance the power dynamics within the court.
Liu Fuqing first glanced at the Fourteenth Princess beside him, then nodded to An Honghan and said, "Your Majesty, I do have something to report."
Xi Xizhi patiently waited to hear what Liu Fuqing would say next, and sat quietly next to An Honghan, her two little radish legs swinging back and forth.
Seeing her sitting so leisurely, especially so close to her brother, An Yunyi immediately felt uncomfortable.
"Minister Liu, tell me, what is it that you chose to report at this time?" An Honghan tapped the table, waiting for Liu Fuqing to speak.
Liu Fuqing flicked his sleeves and said, "Your Majesty, I only chose this time to report because the Fourteenth Princess was present. It is my fault for disturbing Your Majesty's enjoyment."
"Enough with the pleasantries, Minister Liu, let's get straight to the point." An Honghan put his arm around Xi Xizhi's shoulder and sat down with her, his gaze fixed on Liu Fuqing. He was more lenient with this official than others, because he was a rare good official.
Although they love to fight and argue, none of these struggles will endanger the safety of Fengze Kingdom.
Liu Fuqing nodded again and calmly took out a letter from his sleeve. "Please trouble Steward Liu to pass this on to His Majesty."
Xi Xizhi's gaze was fixed on the letter. She blinked, unable to fathom Liu Fuqing's intentions. She had a good impression of this minister, and a letter that he would keep so carefully must be extremely important.
Taking the letter from Lynn's hand, An Honghan shook the paper and began to read it.
After reading it, An Honghan's expression remained unchanged, but a hint of worry seemed to appear between his brows, and his gaze gradually shifted to the Fourteenth Princess.
Xi Xizhi leaned on An Honghan's arm, wanting to see the contents of the letter, but unfortunately, she was not very familiar with the language of this world, and her reading speed was much slower than An Honghan's.
An Honghan had read the entire letter in a short time, while she herself had only read two lines.
Moreover, there were a few characters in those two lines that she didn't recognize...
With a helpless pursed lip, Xi Xizhi once again experienced the tragedy of being 'illiterate'.
"I told you not to study hard to learn to read, now you finally understand the use of reading?" Seeing the deep sorrow on the child's face, An Honghan ruthlessly exposed her true feelings.
Xi Xizhi snorted, turned her head away in embarrassment, and refused to look at An Honghan.
An Honghan didn't tease her any further, because the matter written in the letter wasn't a big deal, but it wasn't insignificant either.
"Does Minister Liu mean that... the Fourteenth Princess should be sent for this marriage alliance?" Seeing Liu Fuqing staring intently at the Fourteenth Princess, An Honghan had already guessed what the other party meant.
Liu Fuqing nodded without hesitation, "This humble subject believes that the Fourteenth Princess is the only suitable candidate this time."
The Fourteenth Princess was just preoccupied with how to bring down Xi Xizhi and monopolize her brother's favor.
Suddenly hearing someone call his name, he snapped out of his daze and looked over, "Wh...what marriage alliance?"
Her voice trembled, and An Yunyi's eyes widened in disbelief at what she had just heard.
A marriage alliance?
The Emperor wants her to be sent for a political marriage?
An Yunyi's heart was pounding, her face was pale, and she broke out in a cold sweat.
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