Chapter 61 Chapter 61 “It’s a pity that we haven’t been fiancés…
The maid said, "Liu Lang is here."
Fang Ying stuck her head out and saw Ji Yanlang walking quickly towards her. Behind him were five or six people standing by the road waiting. They were a bit far away, so she couldn't tell which one was the King of Qin.
She hesitated for a moment, then turned back to Zhou Congshan and said, "I'll go down and take a look."
Zhou Congshan nodded, and Fang Ying got out of the car. Ji Yanlang approached her and, upon seeing her get out, spoke first, "It was getting late, so I wanted to come over to greet you. It was such a coincidence that I happened to run into His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin while he was inspecting the river in disguise."
He glanced at the carriage and said, "His Highness heard that you were with the princess, so he came by to say hello." After the decree was issued, he addressed the princess directly.
"I'll ask her." Fang Ying turned around and walked to the front of the car, lifted a corner of the curtain, and asked quietly, "Did you hear it?"
Zhou Congshan frowned and nodded, asking Fang Ying to call the Zhou family's housekeeper who had accompanied her. Then he instructed, "Go and greet His Highness on my behalf. Tell him that I can't get out of the carriage to meet him. I'll be driving back to the palace now. Please focus on your official duties and don't worry about it."
The housekeeper smiled apologetically and said, "Madam, please don't get out of the car. Let me have a few words with His Highness through the car window..."
"Didn't you hear what I said?" Zhou Congshan's face immediately turned cold.
The housekeeper seemed surprised by her sudden change of expression and quickly bowed, saying, "I'm just afraid of being disrespectful to Your Highness..."
Zhou Congshan interrupted with a sneer, "It's not that you didn't hear me, it's that you ignored my words. Fine." She turned to Fang Ying and said, "Sorry to make you laugh, sister. I can't order my own family around, so I have to trouble you to send someone to pass on my message."
Upon hearing this, the housekeeper did not dare to argue anymore. Before Fang Ying could agree, she replied, "Don't be angry, madam. I know I was wrong. I will go to see His Highness now." After saying that, she quickly walked forward.
Seeing that Zhou Congshan looked unhappy, Fang Ying wanted to get in the car to comfort him, but Zhou Congshan waved his hand, indicating that Ji Yanlang was still outside, and asked her to talk to Ji Yanlang and not to worry about him.
Ji Yanlang was standing right next to her, so it was really inconvenient for her to talk. Fang Ying sighed, lowered the curtain, turned back to Ji Yanlang, and whispered, "I picked up Miss Zhou from the Zhou Mansion this morning. We have to send her back first."
"Yeah." Ji Yanlang nodded. He was actually a little embarrassed. He was standing not far away and heard everything that Zhou Congshan and the maid had just said. "Then you can get in the carriage. I'll go talk to His Highness and ride behind you on horseback."
They had just entered the inner city. The streets were bustling with people and cars, making it really not the right place to talk. Fang Ying got back into the car, took Zhou Congshan's hand, and whispered an apology to her: "Don't be angry. I don't think His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin did this intentionally. It must have been caused by Ji Liulang. Wait until I get back..."
Zhou Congshan was indeed very unhappy. It was a rare opportunity for him to come out and relax and have fun, but on his way home he was blocked by the person he least wanted to see, including his own smart-aleck servant...
But after hearing Fang Ying's words to excuse the King of Qin, she couldn't help but ask with a smile, "How about when you get back? Give your Ji Liulang a good beating?"
"..." Still in the mood to tease, seemingly not too angry, Fang Ying feigned embarrassment and glared at her friend, "How could I possibly have that ability? I'm saying we should go back and ask him what's going on. Next time we go out, tell him not to bother to greet us."
"Don't do that. They came to meet you because they care about you. If you say that, wouldn't that be ungrateful?"
Fang Ying was about to reply when the housekeeper who had gone to deliver the message to the King of Qin returned. "His Highness said, 'I didn't mean to be rude. It's just that there have been banditry and unrest in the outer city lately. I heard from Commander Ji that the two ladies had gone out together and hadn't returned yet. I was worried, so I came to check on them and say hello. Please forgive me.'"
"I understand. Thank Your Highness for me. Let's go." Zhou Congshan replied indifferently.
This time, the housekeeper didn't dare to say much and left quickly. Soon the carriage started moving. Zhou Congshan never looked out of the window from beginning to end and just said goodbye to the King of Qin.
"The Princess of Qin is truly amazing." After returning to the Ji Mansion, Ji Yanlang and Fang Ying exclaimed.
Fang Ying knew he was going to say that Zhou Congshan had embarrassed the King of Qin in front of so many people, but due to their close relationship, she didn't say it out loud. She sighed and said, "You don't know, she was already angry. When the imperial edict came yesterday, Uncle Zhou changed his mind and didn't want her to go out with me. Father and daughter had a quarrel. This morning, when I went to the Zhou Mansion, I didn't even go in to see Madam Zhou. I waited for her in the sedan chair hall."
Ji Yanlang: “…”
"And do you know? She hasn't been to Fantai to enjoy the spring since Empress Zhaomu passed away. She finally got rid of her mourning period this year and is willing to go out, but because of the arranged marriage, Uncle Zhou wants to restrict her. How can she not vent her anger on him?" The death of the former crown prince is still a mystery and cannot be revealed. Fang Ying had to find this ready-made excuse to explain for her friend.
Unless it is discovered before the marriage that the King of Qin is the murderer who poisoned the prince, and there is irrefutable evidence, Zhou Congshan will have to marry the King of Qin in a few months. Fang Ying does not want to make the King of Qin unhappy or harbor a grudge against Zhou Congshan because of what happened today. It just so happens that Ji Yanlang can speak to the King of Qin, so she will start with him.
Sure enough, after hearing her words, Ji Yanlang immediately changed his attitude and showed sympathy. "I see, that's why. If I had known this, I wouldn't have mentioned her and would have just said I was going to meet you."
Fang Ying smiled and said, "That's what I said when I advised her. It's all your fault. If you hadn't gone, how could this have happened?"
"It's my fault, it's my fault. Please apologize for me. Next time, try to invite her out for a trip to relax."
"I paid for it. But she didn't blame you," Fang Ying said, glancing at Ji Yanlang from the corner of her eye, "and she told me not to be ungrateful."
She hadn't changed her clothes when she got home. She was still wearing the bright dress she'd worn when she went out, with a flower hairpin in her hair. Her face was delicate and beautiful. When she glanced at him, Ji Yanlang felt his heart pounding. He couldn't help but move closer to her and said in a pretentious tone, "That's right. If I wasn't thinking about you so much and couldn't stay at home, why would I have come all the way to the southern suburbs?"
Fang Ying looked at him for a moment, lowered her head and smiled, and asked, "When did you return home from the camp?"
"I came back at noon. I took a nap and you didn't come back. I remembered that they said Kaifeng Prefecture was busy chasing thieves recently. I was worried that you didn't have enough people with you and that it would be troublesome if you came back late, so I told mother and went to pick you up."
"Are there really thieves?" Fang Ying was surprised. "Is there such a thing happening under the emperor's feet?"
Ji Yanlang laughed and said, "Of course it's true. The King of Qin is the prefect of Kaifeng. How could he speak so carelessly about such a thing?"
That's true. "But didn't you say he was going to inspect the river?"
Ji Yanlang said, "He's going to inspect the river. It's not like His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin needs to go there in person to catch thieves. But if he doesn't inspect the river first, dredge what needs to be cleared, and reinforce what needs to be reinforced, when the flood season comes, if there's a breach somewhere, it will be a big deal."
"From catching bandits to managing the river, Kaifeng Prefecture is indeed overwhelmed with affairs." Fang Ying sighed, "His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin has a heavy burden on his shoulders."
"It's not light." Ji Yanlang nodded, "But only by bearing this burden can you take on a heavier one."
That’s right, only by taking care of all the major and minor affairs in Kaifeng can the emperor feel at ease to hand over the country to the King of Qin.
Fang Ying stood up and said, "I'm going to change my clothes. I'm afraid mother will be serving dinner soon."
Ji Yanlang responded and watched her walk towards the inner room. When they reached the door, Fang Ying suddenly stopped and turned around to say, "By the way, when you see His Highness again, remember to explain a few words on behalf of Sister Zhou. It's always impolite for an engaged couple to meet outside without their parents or elders present. Besides, she's really unhappy today..."
"I know, don't worry. In fact, I don't think His Highness took it to heart. He has always been kind to others. How could he bear a grudge against his fiancée?"
Fang Ying smiled and said, "That's hard to say. Some people are kind to others outside, but they take their temper home and take it out on their wives."
After she finished speaking, she walked into the room and changed her clothes without waiting for Ji Yanlang to reply.
Ji Yanlang laughed and shook his head. He took two sips of tea and suddenly realized, "It's a pity that we haven't been engaged as a couple. I don't know what it feels like."
Today he was riding a horse along the Bian River towards Lijing Gate when he ran into the King of Qin and his entourage. They greeted each other and when the King of Qin heard that Fang Ying was going to the outer city to pick up his wife, he made a few jokes. Ji Yanlang remembered that Fang Ying was going with the King of Qin's fiancée, so he told her directly and asked the King of Qin if he wanted to go with them.
Although the King of Qin tried to remain calm at the time, he could still see that he was surprised. Unfortunately... Thinking about the King of Qin's expression of disappointment at the end, Ji Yanlang no longer envied them. What's the point of being an unmarried couple? It's better to be married!
Being together day and night, being affectionate and affectionate, wasn't that much better than an engaged couple like them who never even saw each other? Moreover, his Ying'er had long been devoted to him, her love as deep as the sea, unlike that young lady from the Zhou family who treated the King of Qin coldly and indifferently? The more Ji Yanlang thought about it, the more proud and satisfied he became. When Fang Ying came out after changing her clothes, he wanted to hug her and spin her around.
It's a pity that she didn't like it - it was still daylight and there were several maids standing in the room. They still had to go to her mother's room to have dinner. If they carried out a bunch of wrinkles on the clothes she had just changed, she would definitely be angry.
Ji Yanlang controlled himself, stood up with a smile, and went out with Fang Ying to have dinner with his mother. After chatting for a while, he walked back to the room. After washing and going to bed, he hugged her tightly and whispered in her ear all the random thoughts in his mind.
Unfortunately, Fang Ying didn't understand his passion at all. She held his hand and asked, "Are you saying that the King of Qin has feelings for Sister Zhou?"
"I mean..." Ji Yanlang smiled and blew into her ear, "We are in love."
Fang Ying turned her head away: "But you just said..."
"It's getting late, let's not talk about others..." Ji Yanlang blocked her mouth with a kiss, and his hands were not idle either. He soon took her to a wonderful place that only husband and wife can reach together.
Unexpectedly, Fang Ying woke up the next day and still remembered the incident with the King of Qin. She asked about it again. Ji Yanlang was about to speak when he suddenly remembered that they had discussed that it would be a bad thing if the King of Qin had already had feelings for the young lady of the Zhou family. He hurriedly said, "This feeling is not that feeling. The marriage is already set, and it's normal for him to have some longing for his future wife. If he doesn't care at all, you should be worried."
This makes sense, but Fang Ying felt a little frightened when she thought about the fact that Zhou Congshan still hadn't let down his suspicions about the Prince of Qin and his mother. What if the Prince of Qin really had fallen in love with Zhou Congshan a long time ago? Then he would be much more suspicious than the Imperial Concubine and the Prince of Wei and his mother.
I really don’t know whether their marriage is a good one or a bad one.
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