Indeed, sparks fly when rivals meet.
Su Rong thought to herself, Uncle Xie’s arrow had really hit home.
The Nanchu King’s face immediately turned sour, nearly prompting him to turn around and leave, but with his daughter and son-in-law at hand, and the fact that Xie Yuan was not wrong - he had caused Nanchu to fall into a mess over these years. He had regretted countless times, but there was nothing he could do. Regret was useless. His face stiffened for a moment, but he didn’t think his dignity was that important. Being scolded by Xie Yuan was what he deserved.
Therefore, he forced a smile and continued, "Brother Xie is right. It’s my fault. I failed in my governance and brought trouble to Xiaoqi. It’s my fault as a father. Luckily, you both returned safely, otherwise I would not be able to absolve myself of the blame even upon a thousand deaths."
Xie Yuan heard this and thought that Chu Rong was not completely hopeless. Being able to say such words meant he was self-reflective and was willing to take responsibility as a father. Xie Yuan corrected him again, "It’s ’Master’."
"Oh, it’s Brother Xie." The Nanchu King stepped forward, patting Xie Yuan’s shoulder, "Brother Xie, I’m very glad you could come to Nanchu."
Xie Yuan brushed off the Nanchu King’s hand, "It’s ’Master.’ I came for Xiaoqi."
"It’s just a title, don’t mind it. I know you came for Xiaoqi. You’ve taught her very well, and I must thank you for that." The Nanchu King willingly held Xie Yuan’s hand, and after saying these words, his tone became much more sincere, "Brother Xie, please. I have chosen a residence for you. You can go and see, if you are not satisfied, you can change it. If you are not satisfied with all of them, you can stay in the royal palace with Xiaoqi and me."
Xie Yuan continued to shake him off, "Whatever Your Majesty has chosen must be excellent. You just have to send someone to lead me there."
The Nanchu King was shrugged off twice, and this time he didn’t force his welcome. He immediately said, "I will personally take you there. You have worked hard in guiding Xiaoqi. I must treat you as an honored guest."
Xie Yuan did not expect that the Nanchu King would be this kind of person after not seeing him for many years, but it did not feel too surprising. When he was back in Daliang many years ago, he was extremely fond of Zhenmin, always pestering her. It annoyed Zhenmin to the point where she avoided him at all costs. Later, when Daliang was in crisis and Zhenmin sought his help, he did resist the Nanchu King for her sake and provided significant assistance to Dawei.
As he thought of the past, Xie Yuan was full of emotions. Looking at the Nanchu King again, his face had become much more peaceful, no longer resisting his enthusiasm, "Fine, thank you, Your Majesty."
The Nanchu King immediately laughed cheerfully, "Please, Brother Xie."
After taking a few steps, he exclaimed "Oh!" and grabbed Ye Xiang, "I forgot to introduce you to Brother Xie. This is Ye Xiang, a person I trust most."
Ye Xiang thought to himself, "I’d rather not know you. I don’t want to continue being trusted by you," but he couldn’t voice these thoughts. He could only put on a smile, saying enthusiastically, "Master Xie is a great talent admired by many. I believe you must be very tired from the journey. It’s better to go to the residence and rest."
His words were a reminder to the Nanchu King, urging him not to keep people waiting and to get on with it. After all, even if the King was not tired, others were.
The Nanchu King nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, Ye Xiang is right. Let’s hurry."
So, the Nanchu King personally guided Xie Yuan, accompanied by Ye Xiang. Ye Xiang barely had time to say a word to his son. After a fleeting glance, they were ushered to the Xie Residence. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
Su Rong noticed that once her father saw Xie Yuan, she was left to her own devices. The court officials didn’t know whether to follow the King and Ye Xiang, or stay and accompany the princess, given that the latter hadn’t moved or followed them.
After a moment of confusion, Qin Ruo stepped forward, smiling as he gave his greetings, "Qin Ruo pays his respects to the princess!"
Su Rong smiled at him, "You must have been exhausted gathering provisions all these days. You can take a few days off."
"I am not tired," Qin Ruo shook his head, then turned to Zhou Gu, raising his hand in greeting, "Brother Zhou Gu."
Although he knew that Zhou Gu was Su Rong’s husband, there was no imperial edict announcing their marriage to the world. Therefore, he didn’t directly address Zhou Gu as the prince consort. After thinking about it, he decided to call him by his old name.
Zhou Gu stepped forward, patting Qin Ruo’s shoulder, his smile beaming, "Brother Qin, I’m really surprised that you could come to Nanchu. But our Xiaoqi is insightful, you are a great talent, it’s wise to make a good use of your abilities in Nanchu. From now on, we can drink and be merry together just like before."
Qin Ruo nodded, his face visibly pleased, "Thanks to Brother Zhou’s blessing, we now have plenty of time to spend together. Thank you, Brother Zhou, for taking care of my sister."
After that, he sincerely bowed deeply to Zhou Gu.
"Ah, it was nothing, I didn’t do much. Almost messed up, luckily we had the protection of the Crown Prince in the Eastern Palace of Daliang. I owed him. There’s no need to thank," Zhou Gu reached out to help him up.
With Qin Ruo leading the way, the court officials came forward one by one, surrounding Su Rong, paying their respects to her.
Su Rong nodded to them one by one. She had a good memory, and just by seeing them once, she had memorized the names and positions of the court officials.
Ye Guiyan was very glad to see his younger brother return safely. Seeing that the King and his father had already led Xie Yuan into the city and disappeared from view, he asked Su Rong, "Princess, are you going into the palace first? Or are you also going to the Xie Residence with the King and Master Xie?"
"Don’t I have a residence?" Su Rong asked.
Ye Guiyan shook his head, "The King didn’t arrange for a residence for you. He said that after you return to the royal capital, you will be staying in the royal palace."
"What about Zhou Gu?" Su Rong asked.
"Residences have been arranged for Lord Thursday and the others who came to Nanchu with you." Ye Guiyan said, "The King originally planned to hold a banquet in the palace today to welcome you and the others, but considering your fatigue from the journey, the banquet was rescheduled to the next day."
Su Rong nodded, "Alright, I won’t go to the Xie Residence. Let’s go to the royal palace!"
After she finished speaking, she noticed Zhou Gu tugging at her sleeve. She said seriously, "Zhou Gu will come with me. We are already betrothed. It makes sense for him to stay in the royal palace."
Ye Guiyan hurriedly said, "The King has also arranged for a palace in the royal palace for Lord Thursday to be used for his rest when he enters the palace. It’s fine if Lord Thursday stays in the royal palace."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Gu let go of Su Rong’s sleeve, looking very satisfied.
"What about me?" Cui Yanjin stepped forward, "Big Brother Ye, do I have a residence?"
"Responding to young master Cui, you do have a residence. It is situated right next to your cousin’s residence." Ye Guiyan said with a smile.
Cui Yanjin was delighted, "The King is so nice, thank you Big Brother Ye. I can’t believe I also have my own residence."
Ye Guixue then said to everyone, "Miss Shen also has her own residence. I’ll arrange for someone to take each of you to your respective residences for some rest."
Everyone quickly expressed their thanks.
Shen Yi had no objections, thinking that having her own residence was quite a good arrangement, so she wouldn’t have to disturb her niece and Zhou Gu in the imperial palace.
As such, the group entered the city, and each person went to their own residence with their respective guides at different intersections.
Su Rong and Zhou Gu were personally escorted to the imperial palace by Ye Guiyan.
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