Chapter 1102 What a good way to entertain guests!
Feeling the force around her waist getting stronger, she whispered in his ear, "My Lord, who was it that made the secret guards jealous in the hot spring villa?"
Xiao Zhan's ears turned suspiciously red, and he lowered his head to bite the silk ribbon around her neck: "Lan Feng blocked a poisonous arrow for you, and Yun Zhen and you were childhood sweethearts..."
Jiang Xue held his face and said solemnly, "But you are the only one who has seen me covered in blood on the battlefield and heard me cry when I lost my brother.
She guided his hand to her belly and said, "Now...even the child will be named after you."
The years of walking side by side in the war at the border have forged a life-long friendship between Lan Feng and Jiang Xue.
The hidden feelings of the young general at that time once caused frost in Xiao Zhan's eyes.
It was not until Lan Feng rode his horse for thirty miles at night and stabbed the black iron dagger, which symbolized brotherhood, into the pillar of the tower that the oath of "I will only be your brother in this life" finally melted the ice between the three of them.
But Yun Zhen's appearance made Xiao Zhan tense again. Under that face that was exactly the same as his old friend Jiang Ke's, the undercurrent in his eyes always became obscure when Jiang Xue turned around.
Whenever the shadow cast by the rosewood screen passed over Yun Zhen's brows, Xiao Zhan would silently protect his wife behind him - he knew too well those blood-devouring whirlpools in the court.
"You always say there's something in Yun Zhen's eyes."
Jiang Xue leaned against the jade table and lightly touched her husband's frowning brows with her fingertips: "Do you still remember the autumn hunt last year? When he blocked the arrow for me, the wound on his right shoulder was so deep that the bone was visible."
Xiao Zhan held her slightly cool fingers and placed them on his forehead, the scent of sandalwood mixed with ambergris intertwined: "Xiaoxue, you know that the most dangerous thing is never the bright sword."
He finally swallowed his unfinished words. The portrait in the secret compartment of Yun Zhen's study in the secret report presented by the secret guard on that rainy night still weighed on his mind.
The overlapping figures were reflected in the diamond-shaped mirror. Jiang Xue suddenly chuckled: "If you frown like this every day, when Heng'er is old enough to tie his hair, he will probably be recognized as a grandfather."
Her slender fingers stroked the corners of the man's eyes, but were caught and pressed against his chest.
"Even if I am gray-haired and old, you have to admit it."
Xiao Zhan lowered his head and rubbed the lotus hairpins in her hair. As he listened to the person in his arms say with a smile, "Who wants this old man?", the gloom in his eyes gradually dissipated.
He knew that his paranoia was laughable, but when Princess Yun Yun's carriage rolled over the blue bricks of Zhuque Street, the feeling of uneasiness came over him again.
Outside the city gate, the princess from the east swung the golden whip, and her fiery red outfit swept across the locust flowers on the ground.
Jiang Xue looked at this rumored "mad woman", but was stunned the moment she raised her eyes - those amber eyes were so clear that they could reflect cloud patterns, how could she look crazy at all?
"Fourth brother said he would come to pick me up!"
Yun Yun suddenly grabbed the attendant's sword, shocking the ceremonial officer so much that he took three steps back.
Jiang Xue raised her hand to stop the guard, looking at the old scar faintly visible on the princess' wrist, and suddenly remembered the secret report from the imperial physician three days ago: Yun Zhen's pulse is stable, so how can he have a cold?
Yun Yun's fingers holding the reins suddenly tightened, and her eyes pierced the person in the carriage like a knife: "How could you catch a cold in the middle of summer?"
Her nostrils twitched as her eyes swept across Jiang Xue's pale face. "The princess's words are even more clumsy than those tricks used to win favor in the palace."
Jiang Xue leaned against the soft golden pillow and chuckled, a sweet taste rising from her throat: "The Third Princess might as well ask the doctor herself."
She tapped the carriage wall with her fingers, and the guard leader rode out immediately: "Fudong, lead the distinguished guest to the embassy."
"Wait a minute!"
Yun Yun threw away her whip and stopped Fu Dong: "Since Fourth Brother is fine, why not let him come out to meet us?"
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly saw several hideous scars on the rolled-up cuffs of Jiang Xue's sleeves, as if new wounds were stacked on top of old ones.
Fu Dong held his sword horizontally to block Yun Yun's sight: "The Fourth Prince cannot stand the wind right now."
She caught a glimpse of her master's hand hanging on the carpet, which was twitching slightly. Her tone suddenly turned stern: "If you want to see someone, follow me!"
In front of the embassy, Yun Yun caught a glimpse of the crossbowmen hiding in the eaves when she dismounted from her horse.
The gate guards held their spears in front of them, and the clashing of bronze armor made a clanging sound.
"What a great way to entertain guests!"
Yun Yun drew out the soft sword wrapped around her waist with her backhand, and the nine silver bells on the sword tassel jingled: "Although the Eastern Prime Minister is weak, I will not allow you to humiliate the heir to the throne!"
Fu Dong's scabbard hit the bluestone slab hard, and spider web cracks spread instantly: "Why didn't your country's guards appear when the assassin shot an arrow at Zhuque Street half a month ago?"
She suddenly stepped forward and whispered in Yun Yun's ear: "Your crazy brother was shouting in his sleep that he wanted to burn the marriage documents."
The quarrel alarmed the inner courtyard. Yun Zhen staggered out wearing a black fox cloak, with faint purple finger marks on his neck.
He stared at the silver bell swinging on Yun Yun's waist, his pupils suddenly contracted: "Who allowed you to wear this?"
There were the sounds of footsteps under the eaves. When Yun Yun's eyes fell on the figure in the green bamboo-patterned brocade robe, her smiling brows suddenly lit up, and she walked past Fu Dong and walked quickly towards him.
The hem of her scarlet skirt spun open half a peony on the stone bricks. She raised her head and held the silk handkerchief in front of the other person: "I am here on the order of the crown prince to bring fourth brother back to the country. The dark pattern on this silk handkerchief can be used as a token of trust."
Yun Zhen lowered his eyes and glanced at the silk handkerchief embroidered with the totem of the Eastern Prime Minister, and raised the corners of his lips slightly: "It's hard for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to be so considerate."
"Of course, I have my own selfish motives."
Yun Yun's fingertips trembled lightly as she tried to hook the silver thread on his sleeve, but was brushed away without a sound.
She was not annoyed, she tilted her head and shook the pearl hairpins on her temples, making them jingle, "Si Ge has been away from the palace for half a year, and I can't even taste the sweetness of the freshly made candied fruits in the kitchen."
Fu Dong leaned against the pillar with a sword in his arms, his eyes passing over the girl's red ears.
The day before yesterday, when Jiang Xue met Princess Yunchu, he was also staring at his brother's clothes in a trance. The kinship ties of the Dongxiang royal family are more intriguing than those of Dayong.
"So, it's me who ruined the princess's appetite?"
Yun Zhen suddenly turned his head to look at Fu Dong, who was concentrating on counting the icicles hanging from the eaves, as if he wanted to carve every edge into his eyes.
The veins on his forehead throbbed slightly, and he raised his hand to lead the way to the side hall: "Please tell the princess that she must be on time for the banquet tonight."
When the figure of the Black Armor Guard passed the screen wall, Yun Zhen suddenly turned around.
Yun Yun staggered two steps and bumped into his back, the golden hairpin in her hair entangled with the tassel of the jade pendant.
She lowered her head to untie the tangled silk ribbons, but put her nose close to the outer robe stained with the scent of agarwood.
"One last question."
Yun Zhen held her hand that was about to touch the jade pendant with his fingertips: "Who taught you to trick me into meeting you with the war report from the southern border?"
"It's really me..."
Yun Yun hurriedly explained, and the red coral string on her wrist suddenly broke, and the vermilion beads rolled all over the floor.
She looked at the beads rolling around, and suddenly remembered the way the candlelight danced in the eyes that looked very similar to hers when the prince handed her the secret letter before leaving.
Yun Yun twisted her belt with her fingertips, her eyes burning: "Before leaving, the Crown Prince repeatedly reminded me that the country of Gan might be deliberately trapping Fourth Brother..."
She suddenly grabbed Yun Zhen's wrist and said, "Tell me the truth, did Jiang Xue use force to force me? If so, I will immediately bring the Dark Guards to destroy her princess's mansion!"
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