The Daye Dynasty, the center of power.
The magnificent palace was brightly lit, and servants came and went without a sound of conversation; only the patter of raindrops on the bluestone slabs could be heard.
The beautifully dressed woman sat in the main seat, her face radiant, and she looked no more than thirty years old. She was Consort Qian, the favored concubine of the court, and the birth mother of Prince Kang, Feng Jingchi.
"Why is my son in such a hurry? Prince Duan is doomed to die today. Hmph, once the news spreads, let's see what those old fogies will have left to oppose my son's succession."
Feng Jingchi could not hide his excitement: "When will the news come out?" Only by getting rid of the fifth prince can he rightfully ascend to the throne. He has been waiting for this day for too long.
“Our people are keeping a close watch, and they will spread any news as soon as it comes out. Just wait and see. But you, my son, must be careful with your words and actions. Your father has been very worried lately, so you must not show any ambition to compete for the throne.”
"Father is unwilling to establish an heir?"
"What can we do if we are unwilling? As long as the Crown Prince is not established, the court and the country will not have peace. Now that his health is deteriorating, it is imperative to establish an heir. Prince Duan is our biggest threat, but not the only one. Do you understand, my son?"
Feng Jingchi said with a look of filial piety, "I will have to trouble Mother to take care of me."
Consort Qian nodded lovingly: "My son is the most outstanding; the position of Crown Prince belongs to him alone!"
"Boom!" The rain poured down harder and harder, and many people were destined to have a sleepless night.
An Ge had a good night's sleep.
In the morning, An Ge walked to the front hall and saw Feng Jinghan and the other person standing there looking helpless.
Dressed smartly, Aunt Dan surrounded Feng Jinghan and said warmly, "Young man, you are so handsome! Do you have a girlfriend? What kind of girl do you like? Tell Auntie, and Auntie will keep an eye out for you."
"What? You're not considering marriage for now. Oh dear, how can a grown man like you be without a wife? Look at how unkempt you are, you just can't do without one."
"Don't be shy, I've been through this before. And you, young man, are quite handsome too. Let me tell you..."
"Ahem!" An Ge, seeing Feng Jinghan and the other woman's faces growing increasingly dark, suppressed a laugh and interrupted Aunt Dan's enthusiasm.
Feng Jinghan and his companion breathed a sigh of relief. They had never encountered such a situation before and really didn't know how to handle it.
Especially after learning that Aunt Dan was a fairy, they dared not be negligent.
"Good morning, manager. Do you need me to clean your room?" Aunt Dan's enthusiasm increased even more when she saw An Ge.
An Ge quickly refused, smiling as she helped Feng Jinghan out of the awkward situation: "There's not much to do at the shop right now, you should go and rest."
Aunt Dan was a little disappointed. Had her young master forgotten that she didn't actually need to rest?
After Aunt Dan left, An Ge explained somewhat awkwardly, "Aunt Dan didn't mean any harm, she just talked too much."
Feng Jinghan chuckled, "To be honest, I've never met someone who cares about me so much, and I'm a little at a loss for what to do." His mother had passed away when he was young, and his maternal grandfather never interacted with him in private to avoid suspicion.
He had never experienced the care and concern of his elders since childhood, due to the coldness of the royal family. This kind of care made him flustered, but he did not feel disgusted by it.
An Ge thought of the chase last night and how the man in black addressed him, and her eyes showed a hint of sympathy when she looked at Feng Jinghan.
It seems the big coffers are playing the role of someone vying for the throne.
An Ge only wanted to be a quiet innkeeper and didn't want to get too involved in the local people's love and hate, so she stopped asking questions.
She said to Feng Jinghan in a relaxed tone, "Our shop has developed some new dishes. Would you like to try them?" After saying that, she took out the menu that Chef Sun had given her earlier that morning.
This menu was created by Chef Sun, taking into account both cost and his own feelings.
Feng Jinghan, recalling the delicious taste of instant noodles, naturally wouldn't refuse. The two of them, familiar with the place, ordered their food.
The food provided by the system tasted good, but since it was Chef Sun's first day on the job, the boss had to do her evaluation. So An Ge ordered a bowl of soup dumplings without any qualms.
Chef Sun truly lived up to his reputation as an intermediate chef; his skills were comparable to the signature dishes of so-called famous restaurants that An Ge had eaten in her previous life. An Ge was increasingly looking forward to Chef Sun's skills when he was promoted to senior chef.
Feng Jinghan originally thought that the instant noodles yesterday were already top-notch, but he didn't expect that these seemingly ordinary steamed buns and porridge were so delicious that he almost swallowed his tongue.
Despite being a prince, those so-called imperial delicacies tasted utterly bland compared to the food of immortals.
After breakfast, Feng Jinghan looked at the continuous heavy rain and was filled with worry.
Since the beginning of this year, the weather in Daye has been abnormal. Spring planting was accompanied by drought, leaving much of the land barren. Now, during the autumn harvest, there have been continuous floods. Yet, the Emperor has neither arranged disaster relief nor is willing to reduce taxes. He has repeatedly remonstrated with the Emperor, only to displease him further.
"I wonder when this heavy rain will end?" Feng Jinghan couldn't help but sigh.
An Ge checked the weather forecast early in the morning and casually said while looking out the window, "It will probably get lighter in about two days, and the sun will shine brightly in three days."
Feng Jinghan had no doubt whatsoever. He bowed to An Ge with a devout expression and said, "What can the shopkeeper do? In fact, the continuous heavy rain has caused great suffering to the people. Many people have left their homes, and there are frequent cases of people selling their children."
No, I can't, I won't!
An Ge refused the triple refusal! The acting had gone too far; the big boss was now convinced he was a fairy. While she sympathized with the people, she was truly powerless to help.
An Ge thought for a moment, then said in a pretentious tone, "I'm just a small shop owner, how could I have that kind of skill? Everyone has their own destiny, the cause of the past life, the effect of this life."
Feng Jinghan sighed regretfully, but then quickly found an explanation. Presumably, the fairy faced many limitations in her mortal trials; otherwise, she wouldn't have kept denying her immortal identity. He was simply making things difficult for her.
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