An Ke had been keeping a close eye on Qing'er's movements and naturally saw what was happening. An Ke was naturally pleased that Qing'er had taken that step she had been longing for. That was good enough; she hadn't even seen General Ji's smile—it was almost blinding!
The Emperor looked down at the several young couples gazing at each other with obvious affection, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips. Youth is truly wonderful; even their emotions are expressed so intensely. Even the usually composed and self-possessed Qing'er couldn't escape the whirlpool of these feelings.
Spring is just around the corner, it seems it's time to grant them their wish.
The Emperor was already shipping the couple, so how could the Empress not see it?
The Empress was seen holding Rong Momo's hand excitedly, her mind still reminding herself that she was the Empress of the Qing Dynasty and needed to maintain her dignity and composure.
However, judging from the tightness with which the Empress held Rong Momo's hand and the excitement in her eyes, it was clear that the Empress was also shipping the couple.
Surprisingly, this time the Imperial Uncle was right. Unlike in the drama, he didn't randomly pair up characters. He immediately realized that General Ji liked Qing'er, which is quite incredible.
As Mu Feng watched the couples saying goodbye, a bitter feeling spread through his heart, especially after seeing An Ke and General Na Fu reluctantly parting ways, the sourness in his heart surged up uncontrollably.
But he couldn't give her the happiness she wanted, nor could he give up the throne that was within his grasp, so he forced himself not to think about her anymore.
However, Musa witnessed this scene. She rode over on her tall horse, approached her brother, and stabbed him in the heart, saying, "Why are you so jealous? Why didn't you try harder to seduce her back in the Qing Palace? Otherwise, it wouldn't just be you going back alone, but both of you."
Mu Feng glanced coldly at Mu Sha, and for the first time ever, retorted, "Do you think I can't see through your little scheme? At the banquet, weren't you staring intently at General Fu? I didn't see you actually win him over, and you still couldn't have him, did you?" Only those who can't have something say sour grapes. The two of them are equally bad, so neither of them should criticize the other.
Mu Sha was uncharacteristically dumbfounded. Firstly, she hadn't expected her usually mute brother to talk back to her, and secondly, she hadn't expected her brother to be so observant. Mu Sha's expression turned somewhat unpleasant, and after realizing what had happened, it quickly darkened.
Seeing that it was almost time, the Emperor instructed them to set off early so that they could return before the Spring Festival.
Since the Emperor has said so, what reason would the soldiers who escorted the Burmese envoy back to Burma have to object?
At the Emperor's command, they set off immediately. Standing atop the city wall, watching the Burmese people's departing figures, the Emperor let out a barely perceptible sigh of relief. Then, he returned to the palace; after all, they were already gone, what was the point of standing there any longer? Just standing there dumbfounded in the cold wind?
The Empress glanced at the Emperor, gave a simple bow, and went straight back to her Kunning Palace. After all, the stove was still burning when she came out, and she figured she could warm her hands there.
An Ke glanced at the soldiers who were no longer in sight, then turned to see Qing'er still gazing expectantly. An Ke and Xin Rong exchanged a look, both seeing a hidden smile in each other's eyes.
"Alright, stop looking. If you keep going like this, I bet we'll have to get Physician Hu to come to Cining Palace to treat you," An Ke joked with a smile.
For the first time ever, Qing'er didn't say anything; she just stared blankly at the road they had gone.
Anke sensed something was wrong and waved her hand in front of Qing'er. "Qing'er, what's wrong?" Xinrong was also a little nervous.
Qing'er rubbed her sore eyes and whispered, "An'an, you said they would return safely, right?" Her voice was choked with emotion.
An Ke hadn't expected Qing'er to be so deeply in love. She couldn't help but step forward and gently hug Qing'er, patting her back softly to help her catch her breath. "Don't worry, the plan is very thorough. They'll be fine and return safely."
Qing'er also felt that she was being cowardly. She had clearly said that she was only there to see him off, but at the last minute she couldn't help herself and wondered what she would do if she never saw him again.
Thinking of this, Qing'er secretly regretted her previous hesitation. If she had known they would be risking their lives to go to Myanmar today, she should have confessed her feelings sooner. But now it was too late to say anything; she could only hope they could return to the capital safely.
Anke and Xinrong stayed with Qing'er at the palace gate for a while, leaving Yongqi, who looked numb, to stand on the city wall with them, feeling the cold north wind blowing.
Yongqi: There's nothing I can do, they're so close. Xinrong is here with them, so it's no big deal for me to keep my cousin company too.
*
The people in the city were bewildered as they watched the Burmese envoy return. Hadn't he just arrived recently? Besides, they had been puzzled when he came—who would visit someone so close to the Lunar New Year? And now his departure was equally absurd.
"Sigh, what's going on with Myanmar?"
"What's going on? Haven't you been living in fear these past few days? Why don't you want them to leave?" The woman who spoke winked at the woman who had just spoken.
"No, I was just curious. They came when winter was already here, and now the mountains are blocked by heavy snow, making it difficult to travel. Why did they have to choose this time to come to the Qing Dynasty?"
"Who knows? Maybe their brains are different from ours."
"Who says otherwise? Never mind, I need to buy some meat to make dumplings."
"Yes, it's so cold, we should hurry home."
Liu Qing and Liu Hong also saw the Burmese envoy returning to Burma from the Huibinlou restaurant, and both of them saw solemnity in each other's eyes.
"Brother, when do you think we should leave?" Liu Hong was a little unsure at this point.
Liu Qing gritted her teeth and made a decisive decision without hesitation, "We'll leave after tomorrow, but this matter must not be publicized. Tell the shop's employees to come to my room for a small meeting tonight. Make sure they are all settled before we leave." How could she feel at ease otherwise? Although she hadn't known them since childhood, she had come to regard them as friends and family after spending so much time together.
Liu Hong nodded heavily. If it weren't for their safety, she probably wouldn't have left the capital, after all, it was the place where they were born and raised.
Xiao Jian watched the departing group fall into deep thought, then noticed Ji Chu and Fu Ertai in the group, and a smile crept onto their faces. It seemed they needed to speed up their plans.
Xiao Jian arrived at the Fu family's gate again and relayed his message to the gatekeeper once more. Unfortunately, this time he was caught red-handed by Fu Lun.
However, Fu Lun happened to be hiding nearby. He originally wanted to leave earlier, but when he heard that the boy had something to say to Fu Er Kang, he lingered there for a moment.
Thinking about how his eldest son sometimes didn't return until after dark these days, Fu Lun fell into deep thought. Especially when he heard the name Huibinlou, Fu Lun's heart jumped. Wasn't this the restaurant that Xiao Yanzi and Ziwei had funded to build?
What are they trying to do? Besides, they were basically heading towards this restaurant when they left the palace. Could there be some secret inside? It seems we need to find some time to investigate properly.
After watching the boy walk away, Fu Lun slowly emerged from behind a pillar, then glanced subtly at the gatekeeper before leisurely boarding the carriage.
The gatekeeper was completely bewildered by the look his master had just given him. He unconsciously wiped his face, wondering if he'd gotten something dirty on it. No, he hadn't.
*
Jin Suo quietly knocked on Ziwei's door. "Miss, this is the letter we just found in the corner." Jin Suo handed Ziwei the letter she had hidden in her sleeve. "It looks like Young Master Erkang's handwriting."
Ziwei, who had been looking listless, immediately perked up when she heard that it was a letter from Erkang. "Really? Then let me see it quickly."
Ziwei took the letter from Jin Suo and read it carefully. As she read further, her expression became serious.
"What's wrong, Miss?" Jin Suo asked with some concern. No matter what, Jin Suo had served Ziwei since she was a child, so even after Ziwei became a princess, Jin Suo still called Ziwei "Miss".
"Erkang told me to go to Father Emperor and ask him to set our wedding date sooner. But I still feel uneasy." Ziwei clutched the letter tightly in her hand, even suspecting that someone might have forged Erkang's handwriting and thrown it in.
Ziwei carefully examined the characters, afraid of missing a single one. But no matter how she looked at it, it was indeed Erkang's handwriting. Why would Erkang make such a request?
Back then, wasn't it Erkang who said that he hadn't been reinstated to his original official position, and marrying her might not be as good as he imagined? So why is he now telling her to go to her father, the Emperor, to discuss getting married earlier?
Ziwei sat in front of the dressing table, completely puzzled as to why the beauty in the mirror also had her willow-leaf eyebrows tightly furrowed.
Jin Suo, however, was happy for her young mistress and said excitedly, "Maybe it's because Young Master Er Kang wants to marry the young mistress as soon as possible."
Ziwei said blankly, "Really? Then why does her heart feel so uneasy?"
Just then, Little Swallow burst in from outside, shouting, "Ziwei, come quick and see the snowman I built for you!"
Nothing could stop Xiao Yanzi's laughter, even when she was confined to this small world of Shufangzhai.
According to Xiao Yanzi, the Emperor would definitely not keep them locked up in Shufangzhai forever; it would only be for a short time. So it wouldn't be a problem for them to eat and drink well there.
If it were the Little Swallow of the past, she would have yelled and refused to help her up. This is the first time Ziwei has ever seen such a well-behaved and obedient Little Swallow.
Little Swallow: Life couldn't be better these days! This is so much better than the Cold Palace, okay? At least here I have hot meals to eat and a soft bed to sleep in.
Ziwei called Xiaoyanzi in and described to her again what Erkang had just told her, and then told Xiaoyanzi that she was feeling very uneasy.
"What? Erkang actually told you to say such things to the Emperor?" Xiao Yanzi stood up in shock. "Ziwei, are you sure Erkang wrote this?"
"I've looked at it many times, and it's definitely written by Er Kang himself." Ziwei also suspected that it wasn't written by Er Kang, but by someone else to tease her. However, the handwriting and the habit of adding a stroke at the top were undoubtedly Er Kang's writing habits.
"Ziwei, what do you think?" Xiaoyanzi had now learned to see the other side of things, so she couldn't help but ask Ziwei for her opinion.
But Ziwei's mind was completely muddled, so how could she clearly see the essence of the matter? "I don't know, I just feel that I shouldn't have said that."
Ziwei's heart was far from calm; she even felt that this was the calm before the storm. Ever since that day at the banquet when she drunkenly begged, or rather pressured, her father, the Emperor, to arrange a marriage between her and Erkang, the Emperor's gaze towards her had grown increasingly cold, and he had even ordered the Shufangzhai (Hall of Fragrance) to be sealed off.
Ziwei was already filled with regret, after all, this was the father she had traveled all the way from Jinan to Beijing to find. But now, it seemed as if her father no longer cared about her. How could she not be terrified?
"Then why don't we wait and see?" Little Swallow was also unsure of what to do.
But Jin Suo chimed in sarcastically, "Little Swallow, don't give Miss any bad advice, okay? Miss is trapped in this Shufangzhai like a bird in a cage, without any freedom. If she had married Young Master Erkang, things wouldn't be like this now."
Xiao Yanzi was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say, and even doubting whether the idea she gave Ziwei was wrong.
Ziwei bit her lip secretly. To be honest, she still wanted to marry Erkang, even though he was just a cook in the imperial kitchen right now. But she believed that one day her father would forgive her mistakes and see Erkang's talent.
"Miss," Jin Suo called out to Ziwei again, as if she wanted her mistress to make up her mind sooner.
Ziwei pondered for a moment, then made up her mind to go and tell her father about this matter.
But just as she was about to step out the door, she turned back, took Xiao Yanzi's hand, and asked, "Xiao Yanzi, have you thought about what you'll do in the future?" At this moment, Ziwei still wanted to be Xiao Yanzi's sister forever.
Otherwise, there would be no concern about what would happen to Xiao Yanzi if she married Er Kang.
Little Swallow was clearly taken aback, as if she had never thought about this question before. "Well, I don't know either."
Ziwei glanced at Jinsuo and told her to go out and wait for her. Then she said to Xiaoyanzi earnestly, "Xiaoyanzi, why don't you come with me when I get married? Then we can get far away from this palace. You can go to Huibinlou to find Liu Qing or Liu Hong. Just don't stay in this palace."
Ziwei also felt a little guilty. If it weren't for her, Xiaoyanzi would still be Xiaoyanzi and wouldn't be trapped in this palace at all.
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