The drifting firelight flowed around like water, and colorful umbrellas fell in all directions. People came and went, and the puddles on the ground after the rain reflected the lights and layers of human shadows.
Mu Wanyao and Yan Shang hid under an umbrella. He held her face in his hands and took a closer look at her.
When he came closer, and his breath almost blended with hers, Mu Wan was startled and her eyes opened wide, and her cheeks suddenly became even hotter.
Mu Wanyao was puzzled by his bold behavior. She was happy but puzzled. She whispered: "Are you not angry with me anymore? Have you forgiven me?"
Yan Shang's voice was low, absent-minded and tender. He muttered, "I'm not angry today, but I'll be angry tomorrow."
Mu Wan shook: "..."
When she was frustrated, his fingers were resting on her cheek, and his eyes were almost touching her face, which made the always willful princess feel a little uncomfortable. She felt that his golden eyes were looking at her inch by inch. And she couldn't help feeling uneasy and full of insecurity——
Is her hair well combed?
Is the makeup on your face evenly applied? Has your lip balm been accidentally bitten off?
Is she still pretty? Does he like her?
She was shy and nervous: the last time he saw her, she was still a girl. Three years later, she must have grown up a lot and changed a lot. Countless people admired her beauty, but she was uneasy about her changes and whether she was good enough in Yan Shang's eyes.
After three years of separation, when she saw him again in the rain in Nanyang, she looked at him for the first time, fixed her eyes on him and could not forget him; and during the night tour of Jinling, was he also the same as when she saw him that day - all kinds of emotions surged in her heart?
Yan Shang didn't blink, because he still felt that he couldn't see things clearly, and there were always double images in his eyes. He wanted to see Mu Wanyao so much that he suppressed his shyness and timidity, and wanted to lean on her face and carefully count each of her eyelashes.
His heart was beating hot in his chest. He caressed her delicate cheek with his fingertips reluctantly. He looked at her intently, wanting to remember her in his heart. In his heart, he admired her incomparable beauty:
The girl reflected in the swaying firelight had grown a lot older than he remembered.
When she was young, her cheeks were a little chubby and her chin was very pointed. At that time, when she was imposing, she would occasionally show a bit of fragility, which made people feel pity for her.
Now, her frame is wider, her cheekbones are wider, and the flesh on her face hangs thinly on the bones, smooth and crisp. Her chin is no longer pointed, but has a curve.
She began to bloom, like the most beautiful peony, stretching out its branches and leaves, blooming gracefully and elegantly. She was not at her best in her teens, as people's temperament and beauty change with age. After her anxiety and hesitation faded, her confidence and grace were reflected in her eyebrows and eyes... Now she smiled gently, with a beautiful face and fragrance, and the whole Chang'an would be shocked by her.
He looked up at her brilliant and magnificent beauty with great humility.
Seeing Yan Shang's look, Mu Wan's cheeks felt hot again. She was convinced that his eyes showed his fascination with her.
When she saw the look in his eyes, she knew that he liked her right now. He was obsessed with her right now. Someone admired her in his heart... What girl wouldn't like to see her lover staring at her like this?
Mu Wanyao blushed at Yan Shang's focused gaze, and couldn't help coughing. A smile escaped from the corner of her lips, and she tilted her face. Mu Wanyao said to him in a low voice: "Do I look good?"
Yan Shang's slender fingers that were holding her cheek trembled.
She was smiling, staring at him intently, which made her eyes look even more charming. Yan Shang's heart beat fast and his face became hot because of her gaze. He gradually felt a little uncomfortable, thinking that it was a bit abrupt for him to secretly hold her face and look at her so closely in public.
Yan Shang wanted to withdraw his fingers, but his fingers were held by Mu Wanyao. He realized it later and leaned back. This time it was Mu Wanyao's turn to hold his fingers tightly and asked again with a smile: "Do I look good?"
Yan Shang raised his eyelids slightly and looked at her again. It was a normal look, but after he looked at her, his face turned red. Mu Wanyao was moved, and saw that the corners of his lips seemed to be straightened, but he couldn't hold them back, and a smile overflowed from his lips.
Yan Shang did not answer her, but leaned over and hugged her. He put his arm around her back, and his face brushed against hers gently, and his somewhat cool breath completely enveloped her. When Mu Wanyao was a little stunned, he had already let go of her and retreated. He did not speak either, but just squatted in this small world, looking at her and smiling.
Mu Wanyao was hugged by him until her face turned red and her heart beat fast, and she felt a little dizzy. But he suddenly let her go, and she looked at him blankly, not understanding what he meant.
Then Yan Shang lowered his eyes to look at her, and couldn't help but lean over and hug her again. After hugging her again and again, he stepped back and looked at her with a hint of smile in his eyes.
Mu Wan shook his head and burst out laughing.
She glared at him, but he couldn't help hugging her again and again, so she knew what he meant without him saying anything. This was Yan Shang's very bold response despite his shyness. Mu Wan turned her head away, squinted at him, and cursed in a low voice: "Coward.
"coward."
She grabbed an umbrella nearby, covering the light source on the left side of the two of them, and leaning against the wall behind them. She changed from squatting to kneeling, holding the umbrella with her left hand, and resting her right hand on Yan Shang's face, holding his face. She didn't say anything more to the coward, but leaned over and kissed his lips.
He was sweating, feeling uncomfortable and resisting. But when the girl's hand was on his face and her sweet scent was beyond his resistance, he no longer wanted to resist. So he was nervous and eager. He hated his own contradiction and was annoyed at why he was so inconsistent.
But who can resist desire?
The light flickered, sometimes far away, sometimes near, and the shadows of the two people were floating in the puddle. The two hid in the corner, kissing and hugging each other again and again. They hugged each other again and again, reluctant to leave, unable to stop, and then looked at each other, unable to help but smile embarrassedly——
So stupid.
-----
In the desert north of the Great Wall, Wei Shu and Princess Zhao Lingfei escaped from the Guhu Kingdom and went to the two neighboring countries as envoys of the Great Wei to ask for help. He argued with both countries and took a tough attitude, demanding that the two countries must help the Great Wei.
One of the small countries was attached to the Great Wei, and had long been afraid of the expansion of the Southern Barbarians. When the Great Wei envoy came to ask for troops, it did not hesitate to lend 20,000 soldiers to Wei Shu. Wei Shu used the decisiveness of this country to persuade the other small country, and the other country dragged its feet and also gave 10,000 soldiers.
Wei Shu thought 10,000 soldiers were too few, but the other country was small and couldn't give more. Wei Shu changed his words: "Then let's exchange them for cloth."
The Wei Kingdom was powerful, and the small kingdom could not refuse. For the sake of the friendly relationship between the two countries, they had to give the amount of silk cloth that Wei Shu needed. And Wei Shu then asked that all the cloth be made into battle robes. He specified the style and color of the battle robes.
Concubine Zhao Ling walked out of the palace with him and tilted her head: "I don't understand what you want the battle robe for. I thought Brother Juyuan wanted the cloth to exchange for silver, and then use the silver to hire barbarian soldiers who specialize in fighting to deal with the Guhu Kingdom."
Wei Shu replied: "Ling Fei, we are envoys from the Great Wei. We want everyone to know and see that it was the Great Wei army that destroyed the Gu Hu Kingdom."
Concubine Zhao Ling: "But the Great Wei is eight thousand miles away from us...ah."
Wei Shu said: "So I want them to make battle robes. I want them to make red robes and red flags overnight. Red battle robes, red command flags... these are all symbols of the Great Wei. The Guhu Kingdom was once a vassal state of the Great Wei. It now dares to rebel against the Southern Barbarians, but it is only because the Southern Barbarians are strong and it feels that the Great Wei cannot control this place. And at this time, the red robes and red flags that symbolize the Great Wei appeared in front of them..."
Zhao Lingfei murmured, "They will be horrified and scatter. You took advantage of their psychology..."
She grabbed Wei Shu's sleeve at once, her eyes sparkling, and she said excitedly: "Brother Juyuan, you are so smart! You are so calm and so smart... I believe in you now, our envoys will definitely be rescued, we will definitely be able to show our national prestige in the desert, and we will definitely make all the surrounding small countries obey us!
"We can complete our mission! We will return to Wei safely!"
Wei Shu was pulled by her sleeves. She was so strong that he staggered. Zhao Lingfei spoke quickly and her voice was lively. She was like ten thousand birds chirping in his ears, making him dizzy. Even a quiet person like him didn't understand what she was saying.
His face was already red, and he lowered his head: "Let go of my sleeve."
Zhao Lingfei was startled, loosened her hand, and quickly let him go, gently smoothing out the wrinkles on his face. She looked up and smiled at him shyly, but Wei Shu turned his face away, not looking at her, and walked away quickly. Zhao Lingfei bit her lip for a moment, standing there at a loss.
Wei Shu had already reached the palace gate. He turned his head slightly and said softly, "Are you still not leaving?"
Concubine Zhao Ling laughed instantly, she even jumped a little before rushing over to catch up with him.
The battle between them and the Guhu Kingdom was not difficult to fight, because the Nanman did not have the time to worry about the situation. When the soldiers of the Guhu Kingdom recognized the "red robe and red flag" of the Wei Dynasty on the corner tower, the leader was frightened.
Wei Shu rode on horseback, leading 30,000 soldiers to attack the city. The country of Gu Hu was in chaos. They finally managed to get some soldiers to fight, but they showed their cowardice at the beginning. They desperately asked the Nanman for help, hoping that the Nanman would send troops to rescue them. Concubine Zhao Ling followed Wei Shu throughout the whole process, watching him ride a horse, watching him command the battle, and watching him remain calm in the face of danger.
His back is elegant, his robes fluttering. In this vast desert, he is such a dazzling young man.
Princess Zhao Ling thought that the Wei Dynasty really underestimated Wei Qilang. During the military exercise in Chang'an many years ago, they actually let Wei Shu only take charge of food and grass and the rear... and Wei Shu's talent was far from being that!
He can fight, command wars, ride horses and shoot arrows, and debate with scholars... Wei Qilang just doesn't like to talk, just likes to stand outside the crowd and doesn't like to communicate with everyone. But if you get to know him, you shamelessly approach him every day and talk to him, then you will see the real him.
The Guhu Kingdom was conquered within seven days, and the Wei envoys were rescued. When the envoy came out of prison, he saw Wei Shu and Concubine Zhao Ling, who were covered in dust and blood. The envoy was moved and didn't say much, just patted Wei Shu on the shoulder.
Wei Shu said to the envoy in a low voice: "Mingsir, the King of Guhu fled the country and troops have been sent to hunt him down. We need to support the new royal family of Guhu to take the throne. At the same time, we may be able to learn about the situation of the Nanman from Guhu... I am a little uneasy. I think the Nanman have expanded too much and their power is getting stronger. If Wei doesn't learn about it first, I'm afraid we will just sit there and wait for death."
The envoy sighed, "Do whatever you want. Juyuan, what else can I not trust you about?"
That night, the Wei envoys celebrated their survival, and they toasted one by one around the bonfire, all to their savior, Wei Shu. Wei Shu usually spoke little, and he didn't say much at this time. He drank when someone offered him wine. Concubine Zhao Ling couldn't bear to see this, so she knelt down and leaned over.
She pushed Wei Shu behind her and patted her chest, saying, "I'm here to drink with you! You guys are just bullying Brother Juyuan for not speaking!"
She turned around and smiled playfully at Wei Shu, who was staring at her with dark eyes and a dazed look, and made the shape of "leave it to me". Wei Shu was probably a little confused after drinking, and his mind was not working, staring at her blankly. He swayed, and when Concubine Zhao Ling's eyes widened, he fell to the side and hit his head on Concubine Zhao Ling's back.
Concubine Zhao Ling's back stiffened. She couldn't hide at all, and it was tiring to sit there.
The men burst into laughter when they saw this.
They had been with Concubine Zhao Lingfei for a long time, and after understanding her lively nature, they dared to joke with her: "You are drinking for Juyuan, what identity do you have to drink for Juyuan?
"Ling Fei, come and see. Our Juyuan has good looks and brains. She doesn't have any messy confidantes. She is always clean and refreshing wherever she goes... When will you marry our Juyuan as a daughter-in-law?"
Even the envoys, watching the young people laughing and joking, couldn't help but joke along: "I can be a matchmaker for you guys."
Zhao Lingfei's face flushed, and she wanted to jump up and chase them, but she didn't dare to stand up because the drunk Wei Shu was holding her back. She shouted, "You bastards! You're making fun of Brother Juyuan again! Just wait, I'll beat you up tomorrow!"
The bonfire was dimming, and the young people were laughing. After laughing enough, they fell silent, looking at the moon above their heads, and someone began to sigh: "It's been four years... When can we go back to Dawei? I miss my wife.
"Don't say that. My daughter won't recognize me when I go back.
"All the letters my mother wrote to me were lost when we encountered the bandits last time. She is blind and I miss her so much."
As they talked, everyone's voices became lower and more sobs sounded. Everyone was in a low mood. Zhao Lingfei carefully changed her sitting position, hugged her knees, and also looked up at the moon.
She also missed her mother and father.
I miss my brothers and sisters at home.
Although she ran away from marriage, her father told her to get out before she left and never come back. But she often thought of how good her father was to her. She liked to wield swords and guns, and although her father never watched, he did not demolish her small martial arts arena.
He carried her out to buy candy when she was little, and he didn't disown her as his daughter even when she yelled at him...
Concubine Zhao Ling sighed softly, her eyes filled with tears, and she looked at the moon quietly.
Wei Shu's voice came from behind: "Are you homesick too?"
Concubine Zhao Ling’s back suddenly stiffened and her hair stood on end: Wei Shu is not drunk?
Wei Shu whispered: "I don't want to drink anymore, so I just pretended to be unconscious. Don't scream. After we deal with the matter of Gu Hu Kingdom, we should be able to return to Wei, and you can go home."
Zhao Lingfei also followed his example and lowered her voice. She sat up straight, not daring to let the people around her see her abnormality: "Why?"
Wei Shu: "We need to tell Wei the intelligence about the Nanman and the situation in the Western Regions. After the affairs of the Guhu Kingdom are resolved, we can open a complete trade route here... We can return to Chang'an."
Zhao Lingfei's eyes curved, and she responded heavily, trusting his judgment. Under the cold moon, her heart was burning, and she was happy because of his unique way of comforting her——
Chang'an, Chang'an.
Chang'an is the place that haunts their souls, the place that they dream of at midnight. The prosperous capital that they can't see, the unforgettable restaurants and teahouses... Can they finally go back?
-----
The funeral of Lord Li in Jinling City was over, and Mu Wanyao and his group packed up and prepared to return to Chang'an.
At this moment, the imperial edict from Chang'an finally arrived in Jinling with several eunuchs and was finally handed over to the princess.
Mu Wanyao was in the bedroom of the Li family's inner house, meeting the messengers from Chang'an. When she saw the imperial edict addressed to her, she was moved. It was the change of the candidate for the son-in-law. Mu Wanyao took the imperial edict and saw that it was exactly as she thought. She couldn't help but smile. However, when she saw the seal, her smile froze.
"Why is there no seal from the Secretariat? Why does the Secretariat oppose my marriage?"
The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict hastened to dispel the princess' misunderstanding: "Your Highness need not worry as the Secretariat has not made its position clear. Your Highness's marriage has been arranged. The Secretariat is just a little hesitant for some reasons, but it has absolutely no intention of stopping Your Highness from getting married."
Mu Wan paused, thinking that there was something behind it, so she wrote it down first. She handed the imperial edict to Qiu Si and asked the maid to keep it, ready to show off in front of Yan Shang later. She looked at another eunuch: "Are you here to issue an imperial edict as well?"
The eunuch stretched his neck to look into the back hall, feeling very embarrassed: "Your Highness, the two imperial edicts here are for County Magistrate Yan. Why hasn't County Magistrate Yan come out to receive the edicts?"
Mu Wanyao was used to being overbearing, so he said casually, "His eyes are injured, and the imperial physician is applying medicine to him. He can't come out for a while. You read his imperial edict, and I'll just listen."
The eunuch hesitated.
Mu Wan looked at him with her beautiful eyes, smiling: "Why, he is going to be my consort, am I, a princess, not worthy of listening to you read the imperial edict? Or do you want me to kneel down to receive the edict and thank the emperor for his grace?"
How could the eunuch dare to make the princess kneel down?
He did not dare to read the imperial edict in front of the princess, and quickly handed the two imperial edicts to Yan Erlang to the maid beside the princess. Qiu Si opened the imperial edict and glanced at it casually. A puzzled look appeared on her face, and she leaned close to the princess's ear to speak.
Mu Wanyao's expression changed slightly, and he snatched the imperial edict -
The first letter was to praise Yan Shang for his three years as the magistrate of Rang County, which had been promoted from a medium-sized county to an upper county. In the Wei Dynasty, the upper, middle and lower counties were divided according to population and economy, and the magistrates of different levels had different ranks. Therefore, Yan Erlang was supposed to be a seventh-rank official, but now that Rang County was promoted to an upper county, he directly became a sixth-rank official.
Let Mu Wan shake in shock.
She thought that Yan Shang didn't want her to ruin his position as county magistrate because he was waiting for this news.
The second letter was that since Yan Shang was now a county magistrate of Shangxian County, a sixth-rank official, and his achievements were clear, the central government asked him to return to Beijing to report on his work and to be promoted. Due to the shortage of personnel in the Ministry of Personnel, Yan Shang was promoted to the position of Kaogong Lang of the Ministry of Personnel, a fifth-rank official. The central government asked Yan Shang to return to Chang'an to take up his post immediately, and because Yan Shang was promoted to the fifth-rank official, from then on, he could not be absent from court every day without reason.
The two imperial edicts were issued by the Secretariat at the same time. The Secretariat drafted the edicts, the Ministry of Personnel reviewed and approved them, and the emperor approved them... The two imperial edicts left the capital, crossed mountains and rivers, and arrived in Nanjing, to be personally delivered to Yan Shang.
When Mu Wanyao saw the two imperial edicts and the seal of the Secretariat, and then thought of the missing seal of the Secretariat on her own imperial edict, she instantly understood that the Secretariat was tactfully handing the power of the son-in-law to Yan Shang, and that the Secretariat would not force Princess Yan Shang.
It is even possible that the Secretariat would confront Princess Danyang in order to protect Yan Shang, a new fifth-rank official.
Mu Wan shook her face gloomily and said nothing. She grabbed the imperial edicts and went straight to the inner house.
In the bedroom, Yan Shang was leaning against a table, and the imperial physician checked his eyes and changed his medicine. Yan Shang could see now, but his vision had not fully recovered. He would occasionally see double when looking at people, so the imperial physician naturally had to help him recover completely.
The old imperial physician kept on telling Yan Shang some precautions, such as eating less spicy food, shedding tears as little as possible, and not letting foreign objects come into contact with the eyes... As the two were talking, they heard the sound of heavy footsteps.
Yan Shang looked towards the window and saw the maids outside, holding up their skirts and trotting towards him in a hurry. The next moment, the door curtain was lifted, and Mu Wan came towards him with a glacial face and a few yellow scrolls in her hands.
The old imperial physician had no time to avoid it, and Mu Wanyao didn't care whether there were outsiders around. She directly threw several imperial edicts at Yan Shang.
It was very fierce and sudden.
The old imperial physician standing beside Yan Shang was terrified. Yan Shang quickly turned his upper body to avoid the sudden disaster, but his shoulder was still hit by the imperial edict she threw. He felt pain and picked up the imperial edict that fell on the couch, saying, "What's wrong with your highness?"
Mu Wan stood in front of the screen with her hands on her hips. She was so angry at him that her face turned red, and she looked at him coldly.
"What's wrong with me? I was about to ask you what's wrong with you! It turns out that you have it all planned out. I kept you under house arrest all the way, and I didn't let you know the news from the outside world, but you were not anxious at all... because you knew that the imperial edict would definitely come. Once the imperial edict comes, you will be promoted to a new position and return to Beijing to report on your work, and I will not be able to keep you under house arrest.
"That's what you've been hiding from me. Before your four-year term is up, you've managed to use the county-level rank changes to change your rank from seventh to sixth. I admire your ability, Yan Suchen.
"Why are you hiding this from me? Are you planning to keep it a secret forever? When you return to Chang'an, you will go to the Secretariat and sue me, saying that I forced you to marry my wife? As a fifth-rank official, the Secretariat will definitely protect you."
Yan Shang looked down at the three imperial edicts. He read his two very quickly because he had expected it in his heart. However, he was surprised to be promoted to a fifth-rank official. When he was guessing why the court arranged this for him, his eyes fell on the edict that changed Mu Wan's marriage to a prince consort.
The new prince consort is Yan Erlang from Lingnan, Yan Shang.
Yan Shang gently brushed the words with his fingertips, but the words did not disappear or change.
Mu Wan looked at him looking down at the imperial edict, not panicking, and became even more furious, feeling that she was being fooled. She felt wronged and was about to burst into tears.
"You hid this from me, and when the time comes, I think you will go before my father and say that you don't want to be my consort.
"You are such a petty person, such a scheming person! You have been calculating the time and everyone... I was wondering why your third brother and little sister were in Chang'an, you should have stayed in Nanyang for four years... It turns out that you knew you would return to Chang'an this year, so you asked your brothers and sisters to wait for you in Chang'an!
"Are you taking revenge on me? Revenge for me putting you under house arrest, so you deliberately didn't tell me that you were going to be promoted, so as not to give me time to prepare? Do you really not want to marry me? Because I don't respect you? Because I didn't apologize to you? So you want to trick me? You bastard, you jerk, you disgusting..."
Her eyes were red, and her voice was a little trembling. She relied on her own guesses to imagine, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt that Yan Shang wanted revenge on her. He remained calm, and he was not anxious even though he was under house arrest by her. He had been waiting, waiting for this moment...
Yan Shang raised his eyes and looked at her quietly. He could sense her uneasiness and fear.
He interrupted her while she was cursing at him and said, "Let's go back to Chang'an and get married."
Mu Wan was startled and looked at him blankly.
She was puzzled and hesitant: "You... don't want to refuse the marriage?"
Yan Shang whispered: "I'm just taking a small revenge on you... I don't have any other intentions."
He turned his head away, clenched his fingers around the imperial decree of marriage, and traced his name over his fingertips again. He said, "It has come to this, why should I refuse the marriage?"
Mu Wanyao looked at him, and all the curses she had intended to say to him disappeared from her lips. The atmosphere in the room quieted down, and she looked at him, her eyes starting to change. The water was sparkling, and the spring water was flowing.
The old imperial physician coughed.
The old imperial physician said, "I have something to remind you. Erlang's eye disease has not yet healed. It is better for him to abstain from sex in the short term."
Yan Shang was stunned, then his face turned red instantly and he was speechless.
Muwan shook his head and smiled.
She was only surprised for a moment, but she was very relaxed. She didn't even blink, and said to the old imperial physician seriously: "What are you talking about? My husband and I are very polite. How could we do such a thing before marriage?"
Yan Shang felt so ashamed that he was speechless. He didn't know where Mu Wanyao got such a thick face from.
The old imperial physician actually smiled calmly, "I know. I'm just reminding you that indulging in lust is not good. Of course, I'm not talking about Your Highness and Erlang."
Yan Erlang didn't dare to raise his head, his face was burning hot.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
