Nanchu King and Ye Xiang accompanied Xie Yuan back to the Xie Residence, chatted warmly for a while, before returning to the palace.
After leaving the Xie Residence, Ye Xiang was speechless to Nanchu King, "Your Majesty, why are you so enthusiastic? Fortunately, Master Xie is patient, otherwise he would have been at odds with you."
"No one hits a smiling face, he wouldn’t quarrel with me for Xiaoqi’s sake," Nanchu King glanced at Ye Xiang.
Ye Xiang sighed, "You are really too enthusiastic. Even if it’s for the Princess, you don’t need to act like brothers with Master Xie, as if you’ve been longing to meet. Isn’t there any dignity as a king in you? Aren’t you afraid that Master Xie will make fun of you?"
"Let him make fun of me! There’s nothing he hasn’t seen of me anyway." Nanchu King had a reckless look, "He has been tutoring my daughter for years, not only did she grow up safe and sound, but he taught her really well. Even if I treat him more enthusiastically for this point alone, it’s not too much."
"Well, that makes sense. But didn’t you see, Master Xie is really speechless at you?" Ye Xiang looked at Nanchu King.
Nanchu King brushed it off, "It’s just a trifle. If I become closer to him, he will tell me what Zhenmin has been doing all these years. I want to know how she has lived all these years. You have seen Xiaoqi. She probably has no patience for such trifles, and she may not have much memory of her childhood."
Ye Xiang understood. It turned out that the King had this intention behind the scenes. No wonder he was so enthusiastic that it was hard to bear. He nodded, "Master Xie’s mouth will not be easy to pry open. Your Majesty, I’m afraid you will have to grind it out."
"No problem. Anyway, he is staying in Nanchu, so there is plenty of time in the future." Nanchu King was determined. When Xiaoqi took office in the future, he would find Xie Yuan to chat when he had nothing to do. He didn’t believe that he couldn’t get something out of him over time.
He waved his hand to Ye Xiang, "Alright, you go back, I’ll go back to the palace."
Ye Xiang bowed, watching Nanchu King get on the jade carriage. He himself got on a horse carriage, he hadn’t said a word with his son yet, and wanted to rush back.
Nanchu King quickly returned to the palace. After getting off the jade carriage, he asked the attendants, "Where is the princess?"
"The princess just took a rest after having her meal," replied the eunuch.
Nanchu King nodded, and walked toward Feng Hall.
Upon arriving at Feng Hall, Nanchu King waved his hand to stop others from announcing his arrival. He walked in himself. The wet nurse Zhao and Yuewan heard the footsteps, looked out, saw Nanchu King, and quickly greeted, "Your Majesty."
Nanchu King asked, "Where is Xiaoqi? Is she resting?"
Both of them nodded, "Yes, she is."
Nanchu King said, "Just let her rest, I just came to see."
He asked them a few questions about what Xiaoqi had done since she arrived, and whether she was satisfied with the palace. They answered each question and said that the princess was very satisfied. He was relieved and walked out, "I will go see Zhou Gu."
Yuewan and wet nurse Zhao looked at each other and smiled, bidding farewell to His Majesty.
Nanchu King arrived at Huang Hall, which was also very quiet. He also didn’t let anyone announce his arrival.
Little Fuzi still came out in a hurry, "Your Majesty."
"Is Zhou Gu resting?" Nanchu King asked.
Little Fuzi shook his head, "The fourth young master hasn’t had his meal yet. He just got out of the bath and is changing clothes."
Upon hearing this, Nanchu King walked in, "I’m hungry too, I’ll have dinner with him."
Little Fuzi hurriedly sent someone to the Imperial Kitchen to send a message, asking for more food, and then quickly went in to inform Zhou Gu.
With a clean dress on, Zhou Gu walked out and saw Nanchu King. He greeted with a smile, "Father-in-law."
Nanchu King looked at him with a bright smile, "Hm, you look handsome and energetic, and the war didn’t roughen you. This cloud brocade suit adds more elegance to you. Nice. I just visited Xiaoqi, and she had already gone to rest, so tired. I thought you would also be resting. After all, you are a man and can handle it."
Zhou Gu smiled and sat down beside Nanchu King, "Father-in-law, you have a sharp eye to identify this as a cloud brocade. This was given to me by Xiaoqi when I was in Jiangning County. She gave me ten sets of top-grade clothes made from imperial materials and ten bolts of cloth. When I came to Nanchu, the bolts of cloth were not convenient to carry, so I brought all ten sets of clothes with me. We were hiding from the Nangong family and fighting while outside, I kept them wrapped and didn’t dare to wear them."
Nanchu King was surprised, "No wonder you treasured your package all the way for two or three months."
Zhou Gu nodded, "I’ve never worn such precious materials before. Only Xiaoqi would give it to me. My mother and grandmother didn’t have the heart."
Nanchu King sighed, "Xiaoqi is really good to you. I heard that on the day when the Heiya Pass was about to be breached, she asked Ye Guixue to protect you and escape."
"Hm." Zhou Gu nodded. Although he was no longer angry about this matter, it still made his heart ache. He almost lost her.
Nanchu King seemed to understand his thoughts and patted him on the shoulder, "Xiaoqi is like her mother. They appear gentle and weak, but they are extremely strong in their bones. Her mother didn’t want to drag me or Daliang down, nor did she want to be exposed and break the peace that had finally been achieved among the three countries. So she chose to live in Jiangning County under a pseudonym until she died, without sending me a message."
Zhou Gu didn’t know what to say, only said, "Xiaoqi told me, she promised me, she won’t do it again in the future."
Nanchu King laughed, "You little boy are quite lucky to understand her character. They respond to tenderness but not toughness."
Zhou Gu slightly smiled, thinking that Su Rong was in fact soft-hearted towards him, wasn’t she? Otherwise, the person sitting here today would be Ye Guixue, and it wouldn’t have anything to do with him.
The Imperial Kitchen quickly brought the food, filling the table.
Nanchu King asked Zhou Gu, "Shall we have a few drinks?"
"Sure."
So, the father-in-law and son-in-law filled their glasses. They didn’t need anyone to serve them, so they drove everyone away. There were fewer rules. As they were having their meal, they chatted about how to defeat Dawei’s troops and how to fight back later, leaving Dawei without the strength to fight back. When they got excited, they clinked glasses and laughed in celebration.
Nanchu King was half-drunk and he commended Zhou Gu, "My son-in-law, thanks to your maternal grandfather’s Cui family, I must thank Mister Cui for not making me lose my daughter. Why don’t you write a letter to Mister Cui, inviting him to Nanchu?"
Zhou Gu was a bit dizzy from drinking, but he was still sober. He shook his head, "My grandfather won’t come. He is the head of the Qinghe Cui family. The base of the Cui family is in Qinghe. It was already very difficult for him to send Xingzhi. As for himself, I’m afraid it’s not possible."
"Just ask him. Write to him. Who can’t be the head? Let someone else do it." Nanchu King said.
Zhou Gu saw him being persistent and nodded, "Alright, I’ll write and ask."
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