Seeing the green mountains
"Your Highness, General Wenren has arrived."
The short eunuch who led Wenren Cuo came in first to report. He lowered his eyebrows and looked submissive, and if you listened carefully, you could hear that his voice was trembling slightly.
Wen Rencuo frowned, his curiosity about the Crown Prince growing even stronger. Just how terrifying was that man?
Actually, he is three years older than Si Pei. There are five boys in his father's branch of the Wen family alone. He is the eldest of this generation. Together with the second and third wives, Wen Rencuo has too many younger brothers to count.
In addition, he had been fighting outside for many years and was familiar with life and death. Therefore, in Wenren Cuo's eyes, anyone younger than him, even if they were over the age of 15, was still a kid.
Since returning to the capital a few days ago, he had often heard rumors about the regent prince. It was said that he had been calm and elegant in his youth, but his temperament had changed drastically since he became regent. In court, he always had the final say, and anyone who dared to contradict him would be immediately dragged away and severely punished with a caning.
Previously, a minister impeached him for shielding Jing Yao, and the next day the minister immediately retired and returned home with his family.
Such ruthlessness made everyone inside and outside the palace afraid of this self-willed prince.
There are even violent rumors circulating among the people - this boy will become a tyrant in the future.
Some people also say that Si Pei was bewitched by Jing Yao. With the evil concubine paired with the tyrant, Xijing is doomed!
Wenrencuo thought it was very interesting.
He didn't believe that a woman could influence a man to this extent. Could it be that this was really a sudden change in temperament without any warning?
In his opinion, it was just that Si Pei no longer pretended to be a gentle gentleman after gaining real power.
A prince with only virtue cannot sit firmly on the throne of the crown prince, and a person who is too kind cannot become an emperor.
But with such cruel methods, it is hard to say what kind of emperor he can be.
Wen Rencuo didn't like Si Pei from the beginning. Even though he had never met him, he just felt vaguely uncomfortable.
Especially at this moment, the closer he was to Si Pei, the more uncomfortable he felt in his heart.
"Um."
From the cold and short promise, it was obvious that the person did not care at all.
Wen Rencuo snorted silently in his heart, walked around the screen in the front hall and entered the inner hall. At first glance, he saw a young man sitting on an ebony chair in front of the desk, looking down and reading a book.
"I have heard that people are wrong. I pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
Wen Rencuo was a military commander. He knelt on one knee to pay his respects. His voice was deep and powerful, and his shout made Si Pei's forehead twitch slightly and his face became gloomy.
"General Wenren, there's no need to be so polite." Si Pei raised his head from reading a book and glanced at the man in front of him.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Wen Rencuo didn't act pretentiously. He stood up and looked at his boss Pei.
The prince looked different from what he had imagined. He had thought that the lustful tyrant would be weak and thin, with a pale face but ghostly eyes.
When he was in the northwest, he strangled Prince Xin, the second generation of Dayong, who was known for his lust and tyranny. That man looked like this.
Si Pei still looked gentle and kind, but his phoenix eyes added a bit of sharpness and heroism. He had an upright figure with broad shoulders and back. Not to mention being weak, he looked like he could put on armor and go into battle to kill the enemy.
Wenren Cuo has always admired the strong, so his attitude softened a lot and he no longer had a stern face.
Si Pei's eyes quickly caught sight of the gift box in his hand, but he calmly withdrew it, forcing a cold smile. "General Wenren, why did you suddenly come to the palace to ask for an audience?"
Although Wen Rencuo was not sensitive to other people's expressions and attitudes, he was not stupid enough to think that Si Pei wanted him to repeat his purpose.
He curled his lips and leaned slightly to the side. "Your Highness, I have been back in the capital for several days and have yet to formally pay you a visit. I had hoped to see you at the court tomorrow morning, but a few days ago I accidentally bumped into Madam Jing in the capital, causing your displeasure. Today I have brought some gifts to apologize, and I would like to ask Madam Jing to pass on some of my gratitude to Your Highness."
As he spoke, Wenren Cuo handed over the wooden gift box with both hands. Eunuch Ming took it and presented it to Si Pei.
He opened it and took a look, and found that two copies were indeed prepared.
One set of jewelry was obviously for the girl, and the other was a set of brushes packed in a separate wooden box.
"These are all brought back from the northwest. I heard that Your Highness enjoys calligraphy and painting, so I specially presented you with a gift of fine wolf-hair brushes. I think Madam Jing will like those rare jewels."
"Hmph." Si Pei sneered twice and closed the wooden box. He always sent people to find the most precious and beautiful jewelry and put them on Jing Yao's dressing table as soon as possible. How could his Yao Yao be short of such gems?
"General, I appreciate your kindness on Yaoyao's behalf." Si Pei pushed the gift box aside. "It's just that I have countless fine calligraphy works, and Yaoyao doesn't need these jewels."
Although Wenren Cuo was very unhappy that his kindness was rejected, after all, this man was the prince, so he could only endure it.
Seeing him endure his humiliation, Si Pei felt relieved. What a General Wenren, he wanted to use Yao Yao to get in touch with him, but he couldn't hide his obvious intentions.
What he couldn't tolerate the most was that Jing Yao was innocently dragged into this mess. Although Wen Rencuo looked righteous and awe-inspiring, he actually didn't recognize Jing Yao's identity and status at all.
Wen Rencuo felt from the bottom of his heart that Jing Yao was just as others said, a disaster who seduced the emperor, and he also felt that such a woman was despicable.
Si Pei didn't mind people who simply wanted to please Jing Yao. After all, he knew Yao Yao also liked the feeling of being the center of attention. So he tolerated others praising Jing Yao. As long as it didn't turn into coveting, it was just a tool to please Yao Yao.
But Si Pei had seen too many people who both looked down on Jing Yao and wanted to use her. At first, he almost thought Wen Rencuo was in love with Jing Yao, but fortunately, it wasn't. The self-important and sour look in Wen Rencuo's bones made him laugh and couldn't help but feel nauseous.
"If there is nothing else, General, please go back first."
Si Pei said he was sending him away but didn't even look at him.
Wen Rencuo felt like he had something stuck in his throat and was speechless. He didn't understand how he had offended the Crown Prince.
Little did he know that his dissatisfaction with Si Pei had been discovered by him from the very beginning.
For over a decade, Si Pei wandered alone in the inner palace, his life even more miserable than that of a motherless prince due to his partial "empress mother." Appointed Crown Prince at the age of one, everyone knew Si Pei was the Emperor's favored successor, meticulously groomed. Little did they know that the Emperor only cared about his abilities and cared little for his well-being.
Days like this have given Si Pei an exceptionally keen ability to read people's expressions. Although he no longer needs to use it in recent years, the gaze in his eyes is still as sharp as before, and he can easily analyze and understand the psychological activities of the people in front of him.
This is also the reason why Si Pei has always intended to weaken the Wen family. His eldest son Wen Rencuo has been away from home for many years and has a bad relationship with him. If he inherits the title in the future, he will definitely be the main force to trouble him.
Si Pei was also taking precautions, and not having any plans to wipe out the Wen family was already his greatest kindness.
The young man raised his eyes, and the cold gaze made Wen Rencuo's body tremble violently.
He had never seen anyone with such a solemn and majestic look in his eyes and eyebrows. It was the symbol of dragon energy.
It seems that this Si Pei is indeed extraordinary...
Outside Yilan Palace, Zuo Yuanwu escorted Jing Yao back. Jing Yao was a little worried: "Are you really going to meet Si Pei?"
Although she said that she would not let her go if Si Pei was petty, she also knew that Si Pei was sad now and although he would not do anything to her, he would be sad alone.
Jing Yao still didn't want to make him feel so sad and pitiful.
"My lady, His Highness is different from your brother and me. If you think these formalities are unnecessary, that's fine. But as a subject, since I've come to the Eastern Palace, I naturally have to pay my respects to the Crown Prince before leaving."
"Okay, okay."
Jing Yao was most confused about the twists and turns of their officialdom, so she only remembered to ask him to pay more attention to Si Jue and help her investigate Yue Ningning.
"I asked Si Pei to investigate, but his investigation wasn't thorough enough." Jing Yao secretly told Zuo Yuanwu, "There's definitely something fishy about Yue Ningning. You don't need to investigate her and Si Jue. Just help me investigate her history of success."
"Okay." Zuo Yuanwu agreed. The young eunuch guarding the door saw them coming and was about to go in to report, but Jing Yao stopped him, "No need."
"Miss……"
"Well, since you're going, let's give him a surprise."
Jing Yao suddenly became evil-minded, and his previous kindness of feeling reluctant and pitying Si Pei disappeared instantly. He was eager to anger Si Pei.
The eunuch wanted to explain: "No, Madam Jing, inside..."
"It's okay, let's go in."
Jing Yao pulled Zuo Yuanwu and pushed the door open. The young eunuch was now in a dilemma. He didn't know whether to say anything or not.
Jing Yao had never guessed that Si Pei would actually meet with court officials in Yilan Palace, so he didn't make any mental preparations and naturally didn't care about the eunuch's advice.
Both of them in the inner hall heard footsteps. Wen Rencuo frowned: "He just walked in without announcing anything?" Who was this person to be so rude in the East Palace?
Of course Si Pei knew who it was, and couldn't help but smile.
But when he saw that there were actually two figures approaching behind the screen, the smile silently changed its meaning, and even seemed forced.
The two men's true faces finally appeared in front of the screen. The tall young man knelt on one knee and said, "Your Highness the Crown Prince."
"...General Zuo, please excuse me."
Si Pei wanted to speak every word one by one, and he deliberately gritted his teeth as if to tell Jing Yao how he felt at the moment.
Seeing his resentful look, Jing Yao smiled playfully. She quickly walked behind Si Pei, put her arms around his neck and placed them on his chest: "What's wrong? We're chatting, aren't you guys chatting too?"
As she spoke, she finally looked at Wen Rencuo who had been in a daze for a long time.
Wen Rencuo hesitated to speak: "You are..."
The moment the girl appeared, he couldn't help but stare at her in a trance.
His eyes were fixed on her, unable to move away. She had a graceful, ethereal figure, clad in a long, deep blue dress, like a fairy among flowers. Her face was like a peach blossom, her eyes were slightly tilted at the corners, and her lips were rosy red, exuding a natural allure. And this strikingly beautiful face, paired with the innocent, naive expression of a young girl, was a beauty that was breathtaking.
Wen Rencuo's heartbeat quickened, and he seemed to be drawn to something, unable to move an inch. He simply stood there, sighing. He had never seen such a beauty before...
"General Wenren is a noble man who forgets things easily. We just met a few days ago and we had a quarrel."
Jing Yao felt a little regretful when she mentioned this incident. When she recalled it later, she always felt that she didn't curse enough at the time.
It would have been nice if I had cursed a few more times at that time.
"So it's you...you are Jing Yao?"
Wen Rencuo also had a deep memory of the girl in blue with a veil. The girl was very clever and likable with her sharp tongue.
Seeing Jing Yao nod, Wen Rencuo was stunned for a moment. The beautiful face in front of him coincided with the figure in his memory. Before he could be happy that the girl he loved was so beautiful, he immediately realized that she was actually the enchanting concubine in the rumors?
Wen Rencuo's mind was in a mess, as if it had exploded, and he was a little flustered.
He couldn't help but look up at the beautiful girl, and an idea suddenly popped up in his mind -
Rumor has it that Si Pei would go against the law and ancestral rules for her and dote on her wholeheartedly...that's really human nature.
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