The whispers of his colleagues were quickly swallowed up by the north wind. Not far along, they saw a horse-drawn carriage soliciting passengers parked by the roadside.
Nangong Zeyue quickened her pace and asked, "Master, shall we go to the Jiang residence on Guixiang Street?"
The weather changed abruptly today, and it was difficult to see a single pedestrian on the street.
The driver hid inside the carriage, with only his head sticking out.
Upon seeing someone arrive, he quickly stepped out of the carriage and said, "If you're leaving, please get on the train. We'll call it a day after this trip."
Nangong Zeyue lightly touched the ground with her toes and landed gracefully on the carriage shaft.
The Honglu Temple was some distance from Guixiang Street, and there weren't many pedestrians on the road, so the carriages moved very fast.
Upon arriving at the Jiang residence, Nangong Zeyue took out five coins and handed them to the driver, saying, "It's cold today, let's go buy a pot of wine."
Originally, only two coins would have been enough, but the driver, seeing that he had been given three extra coins, grinned from ear to ear and hurriedly bowed, saying, "Thank you for your generous tip, sir."
"Why are you back so early today, young master?" Shuanzi heard Nangong Zeyue's voice from the gatehouse and quickly opened the door.
Nangong Zeyue stepped inside and asked habitually, "Has your young lady returned?"
Shuanzi closed the door and pointed inside with a smile, "Miss hasn't left the manor today. Miss Du came for lunch and then went back."
Upon hearing that Jiang Shuyue was in the mansion, Nangong Zeyue rushed to the warm pavilion as fast as the wind.
As he walked to the veranda outside the warm pavilion, he happened to meet Lan'er passing by. Lan'er curtsied and said, "Young master, you've returned very early today. Miss has only been up from her afternoon nap for a short while."
"Miss Lan'er, could you please bring me a cup of hot tea? This weather is so cold."
Lan'er turned around and called out into the warm pavilion, "Miss, Young Master Nangong has arrived."
"Please come in."
Hearing the warbling voice from inside the room, Nangong Zeyue felt excited and instantly felt all the chill in her body disappear.
Nangong Zeyue lifted the thick curtain and strode inside.
Jiang Shuyue was wearing that strange robe and was reading a travelogue with great interest.
Xue'er curled up in her arms, and when she heard the noise, she opened her eyes, glanced at herself, and then went back to sleep.
Jiang Shuyue closed the book in her hand and asked, "Have you been very busy these past few days?"
"That's right. He's just a former prince of the previous dynasty. The emperor doesn't care about him, but the officials of the Court of State Ceremonial actually treat him like someone important and take care of him in every possible way."
"However, it's not all about a few outdated vassal kings. I heard that a neighboring country is coming to Wanling to form an alliance. As the envoy, I need to learn the etiquette and customs of many countries."
As she spoke, Nangong Zeyue lay down on the soft couch opposite Jiang Shuyue, saying, "I'm exhausted."
"Is it that serious?" Jiang Shuyue asked, expressing disbelief.
"I need to learn more things next, such as everyday conversational phrases from different countries. Yue Niang, the Emperor has given me a lowly ninth-rank official position, but I'm doing the work of a first-rank minister."
"If I were to die for no reason, it would surely be because he worked me to death."
Nangong Zeyue opened one of his handsome eyes and gave Jiang Shuyue a playful glance.
Seeing Jiang Shuyue looking at him calmly, he wailed again, "Really, if that day ever comes, Yue Niang must avenge me!"
Jiang Shuyue glared at him, annoyed. "Come on, I went through nine years of compulsory education and I didn't die from exhaustion. You're going to act like you're going to die if you learn about a few more countries? Are you even a man?"
Men are most afraid of being told they are not men, especially when someone they like says that.
Nangong Zeyue sat up abruptly, wanting to explain, but opened her mouth without knowing how to begin.
Finally, all the protests in my heart turned into a muttered remark, "Of course I'm a real man."
"Wait, what did you just say? Nine-year compulsory education? I've never heard of that before."
"Cough cough."
Jiang Shuyue coughed twice to cover up her guilty conscience, but accidentally let it slip again.
She composed herself, picked up her teacup, and took a sip.
“I started learning music, chess, calligraphy, painting, needlework and other traditional arts when I was a few years old. It took me nine years of hard work. It was much more tiring than learning several languages.”
Nangong Zeyue nodded as if she understood, "Aren't all young ladies from respectable families so well-mannered? Many of them haven't even learned anything. I'm different. If I say the wrong thing, I'll embarrass the Emperor. You can imagine how much pressure I'm under."
Seeing that Nangong Zeyue didn't seem to be lying, Jiang Shuyue comforted her, "Don't worry, you're not the only one who serves as the Director of Foreign Affairs. When interacting with foreigners, try to speak as little as possible."
"That won't do either. For example, a couple of days ago, the prince from the north asked me privately about the emperor's preferences. If I didn't tell him, people would think I was being unhospitable. If I answered truthfully, it would be considered a breach of confidentiality and disloyalty to the emperor."
Jiang Shuyue: "So, that dried meat was the information he bought?"
"Sort of, but not really. I don't know what the Emperor likes, so I have no information to sell."
Seeing Nangong Zeyue's unreliable behavior, Jiang Shuyue's heart was in her throat.
The position of the Clerk is insignificant, but the chances of him courting disaster are high.
Jiang Shuyue swallowed hard and asked, "What did you say to that person?"
Nangong Zeyue: "Guess..."
Jiang Shuyue: "..."
After a moment, Nangong Zeyue smiled mischievously and said, "I told him that the emperor likes beautiful women, and then without saying a word, he sent me a big bag of dried meat."
“At the Court of State Ceremonial, I was the only person who received a private gift from a prince.”
Seeing Nangong Zeyue's mischievous smile, Jiang Shuyue shook her head, "If you talk about the Emperor like that, you'll be punished."
"The Emperor is a man too. I'm right to say he likes beautiful women. If he doesn't, then there's something wrong with him."
Jiang Shuyue was speechless. What she said seemed to make sense, but something about it also seemed off.
Jiang Shuyue realized that he hadn't revealed anything important, so she didn't press him for more information.
Seeing that Nangong Zeyue had worked hard for several days, Jiang Shuyue instructed the kitchen to prepare the remaining half of the grilled fish and some grilled meat skewers.
Less than half an hour later, the kitchen delivered meat skewers and grilled fish.
Qiuju was carrying a tray with several refreshing side dishes.
After setting out the bowls, plates, and side dishes, Qiuju asked, "Miss, Manager Hu sent over a few jars of peach blossom wine. Would you like some hot water poured over?"
"No need to heat it up, the room is warm, so it doesn't feel cold when you drink it."
The peach blossom wine has a subtle sweetness and leaves a pleasant aftertaste; Jiang Shuyue fell in love with it after just one sip.
Xue'er was eating dried fish with her head down.
Jiang Shuyue and Nangong Zeyue drank and chatted about interesting things in the capital.
Inside the palace.
Outside the imperial study, several beautiful women with ethereal beauty were striking poses, waiting for the emperor to summon them.
After reporting, Eunuch Ma caught a glimpse of the Emperor's face, which was as dark as ink. At that moment, the temperature in the Imperial Study seemed even colder than outside.
A roar came from the imperial study, "Who sent this? Get out of here! And those who sent the beauty, convey my decree: the Sheng Dynasty will never recognize the former vassal states. If you disagree, you may lead your troops to attack the capital."
Eunuch Ma was startled and quickly bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please calm down. This servant will send the beauty out of the palace immediately."
Just as Eunuch Ma reached the door, he heard the Emperor's cold voice, "Wait."
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