Chapter 99 Meeting (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
In the end, Fu Mingzi quickly changed the subject to avoid embarrassing him, and Zhou Xiaoyan's expression returned to calm.
The two of them mounted their horses together, heading towards the capital. Fu Mingzi glanced at the guards and Uncle Fu following behind him, and raised his chin: "You should go back to the Duke's mansion first and tell Father that I have an appointment with His Highness and may be back a little late."
Uncle Fu had witnessed the entire scene, and his expression as he looked at Fu Mingzi and Zhou Xiaoyan was somewhat complicated. After a long while, he said, "Then I'll head back first. Fifth Master, please come back soon too."
Fu Ming smiled and nodded in agreement.
Then Uncle Fu and several guards rode their horses quickly toward the Duke's mansion.
After watching them leave, Fu Mingzi whispered to Zhou Xiaoyan, "Your Highness, let's go too."
Zhou Xiaoyan pursed his lips and said in a low voice, "Who was that old man just now?" He could tell from Fu Mingzi's expression that he seemed to respect that Uncle Fu, but he was also a little curious, since he had never met this person in his previous life.
Fu Mingzi smiled, and couldn't help but lean closer, whispering, "Does Your Highness care so much about the people around me?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaoyan's ears flushed red again, and he turned his head away somewhat awkwardly: "I didn't, I was just asking casually."
Fu Mingzi laughed even harder, which made Zhou Xiaoyan's face turn bright red with anger.
Finally, fearing that Zhou Xiaoyan would upset her, Fu Mingzi stopped laughing and said softly, "That man was originally a guard by my father's side. Later, when my third brother left the capital, my father gave him to my third brother. I was very close to him when I was young, so I helped him out this time."
Speaking of this, Zhou Xiaoyan's expression immediately turned serious, and he turned to look at Fu Mingzi: "I haven't asked you yet, how was this matter handled? The Duke submitted your third brother's resignation at court a few days ago, and the Emperor immediately approved it. However, that old fox from the Xia family claimed to be ill the next day, and he hasn't come to court for several days now."
Fu Mingzi glanced at Zhou Xiaoyan's attendant behind her, her eyes shifting, and said softly, "I'll tell you when we get back."
Zhou Xiaoyan's expression was stubborn as he whispered, "They are all trustworthy people."
Fu Mingzi remained silent: "It's not that I don't trust anyone, it's just that I only want to tell Your Highness about this."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaoyan felt a warmth in his heart, and his expression softened considerably.
"Okay," he replied obediently.
Seeing his obedient appearance, Fu Mingzi felt a warmth in her heart and couldn't help but stroke his head, whispering, "Let's go back quickly, I want to hug you now."
Zhou Xiaoyan's face flushed red instantly, and he froze, his eyes wide open as he stared at Fu Mingzi.
Seeing him like this, Fu Mingzi couldn't help but laugh, but she didn't dare to tease him outside anymore. She just squeezed his palm without making a sound, then quickly spurred her horse and galloped away towards the capital.
Zhou Xiaoyan watched his dashing figure, bit his lip, and felt a burning pain in the place where he had just pinched him. He wanted to scold him for being reckless, but his heart softened. In the end, after thinking it over and over again without any result, he still spurred his horse and followed.
The two walked quickly, one in front of the other, and soon arrived at the city gate.
The guards at the city gate were all sharp-eyed; as soon as they spotted them, they would immediately bow and scrape to make way for them.
Fu Mingzi smiled and glanced sideways at Zhou Xiaoyan, saying softly, "Today, I've actually had a moment of glory thanks to His Highness."
Zhou Xiaoyan knew he was just joking, and said helplessly, "Stop fooling around, let's dismount and go into the city, be careful not to startle the horse." After all, there were still many common people around, and riding a horse into the capital would be too high-profile, which was not in line with Zhou Xiaoyan's personality.
Fu Mingzi naturally understood this principle, and with a smile, he dismounted and led his horse into the city with Zhou Xiaoyan.
The two went straight to the Prince of Jin's residence upon entering. When they returned, Wei Baocheng and several other servants had not yet arrived. Fu Mingzi was in a hurry and pushed Zhou Xiaoyan into the inner room of the main courtyard. Before Zhou Xiaoyan could speak, he lowered his head and kissed Zhou Xiaoyan's lips.
His kiss was like fire, burning Zhou Xiaoyan to the point of losing all reason. In a daze, he was pushed down onto the chair and kissed.
Fu Mingzi's lips and tongue swept across Zhou Xiaoyan's mouth, as if she wanted to devour him whole. Her hands were also restless, moving up Zhou Xiaoyan's waistline and trying to slip into his clothes.
When Zhou Xiaoyan felt a slight chill on his waist, he suddenly woke up and immediately pressed down on the restless hand inside his clothes.
"No!" His face flushed red as he pressed against Fu Mingzi's chest, trying to create some distance.
Fu Mingzi ignored him and kissed him again, licking and biting his lips and tongue while mumbling, "It's okay if you don't touch me, just let me kiss you."
Zhou Xiaoyan was completely unable to resist Fu Mingzi. His slight resistance was more like a kind of fun. In the end, under Fu Mingzi's passionate kiss, he softened and let him kiss him.
The two kissed until they reached a point of arousal, at which point Zhou Xiaoyan could no longer bear it and finally pushed Fu Mingzi away. His face flushed, he turned his head to the side and whispered, "Don't do this."
Fu Mingzi, however, acted like a rogue, showing no shame whatsoever. Instead, he laughed and said, "Your Highness, I'm already like this, aren't you going to do anything about me?"
Zhou Xiaoyan bit his lips, which were red from Fu Mingzi's sucking. His eyes were slightly red from the kiss, revealing a hint of lust. He subconsciously glared at Fu Mingzi, but when he saw Fu Mingzi's eyes full of desire, he seemed to be burned and quickly withdrew.
"Figure it out yourself!" he mumbled, then hurriedly ran out.
Fu Mingzi watched his retreating figure, squinting her eyes and chuckling softly. Such a grown man, yet still so easily amused.
**
Fu Mingzi waited until she finally calmed down before coming out of the house.
When he came out, he saw Zhou Xiaoyan talking to Wei Baocheng. He no longer looked as glamorous as before. He seemed to have washed up and changed into a new outfit. His face was cold and indifferent, just like the calm and aloof Fifth Prince before.
Looking at Zhou Xiaoyan like this, Fu Mingzi felt a tickle in her heart.
“Your Highness,” he said softly.
Zhou Xiaoyan's originally upright figure suddenly stiffened, and then he stammered to Wei Baocheng, "You go ahead and do what I just said. You can leave now."
Wei Baocheng subconsciously felt that something was wrong with His Highness, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. In the end, he could only nod and leave with a puzzled expression.
After Wei Baocheng left, Zhou Xiaoyan turned around and looked at Fu Mingzi somewhat awkwardly: "Are you feeling better?"
Throughout the entire process, Fu Mingzi watched Zhou Xiaoyan with a smile. When she heard him ask this question, she pretended to be aggrieved and said, "With me in such a state, and Your Highness leaving me all alone, how could I possibly be alright?"
Zhou Xiaoyan bit his lip, somewhat embarrassed and angry: "You still dare to say this? It's all because of you..." He couldn't finish his sentence.
Fu Mingzi finally couldn't keep up the act anymore and burst out laughing. She stepped forward and loosely put her arm around Zhou Xiaoyan, saying, "Alright, alright, it's all my fault. I was blinded by lust. I'm sorry, Your Highness."
Seeing his shameless attitude, Zhou Xiaoyan couldn't bring himself to curse, and could only say indifferently, "You know that's good."
Fu Mingzi's smile deepened. He always felt that Zhou Xiaoyan was sometimes no different from a child, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked him.
The two hugged for a while longer, enjoying a moment of quiet tenderness.
Zhou Xiaoyan finally said, "You still haven't told me about the results of your trip to Qinghe County."
Fu Mingzi lazily rested her chin on Zhou Xiaoyan's shoulder, her tone languid: "What results could there be? My third brother colluded with the Xia family to conceal the iron mine. In order to protect him, the old man had no choice but to submit his resignation. Then he made me clean up the mess in Qinghe, which is why I came back so late."
"How dare he be so bold?" Zhou Xiaoyan couldn't help but exclaim, then he turned to a thoughtful expression: "If that's the case, then it's no wonder..."
"No wonder what?" Fu Mingzi released her grip on Zhou Xiaoyan and looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Zhou Xiaoyan pursed his lips: "In my previous life, I was always puzzled about how Zhou Xiaoheng led his troops to capture me. At first, I thought he colluded with the emperor and used the imperial guards, but now that I think about it, I don't recognize any of the people he brought. Now that I hear you say this, could it be that Zhou Xiaoheng used these iron ore to raise a private army?"
Upon hearing this, Fu Mingzi couldn't help but laugh: "I read those letters and guessed it too. However, we still have no clue where that batch of iron ore went. Moreover, with the Emperor protecting the Fourth Prince so much, I'm afraid these letters won't be of much use. They could be used to restrain the Xia family, since their collusion with the Third Brother is a done deal."
Zhou Xiaoyan nodded: "You're absolutely right. Even the old fox from the Xia family doesn't dare to stay in the court now, probably because he's worried about this matter."
"Don't worry about this." Fu Mingzi hugged Zhou Xiaoyan again: "I think the old man and my elder brother will handle it. The Xia family's good days are over."
The Xia family's good days are over, and Zhou Xiaoheng will definitely be affected. Zhou Xiaoyan and Fu Mingzi are both well aware of this.
However, Zhou Xiaoyan was still not too relaxed. He said, "The Crown Prince and the Emperor are pressuring me more and more. The Emperor is forcing me to fight the Crown Prince, and the Crown Prince is forcing me to stand on his side. I am now in a difficult situation."
Upon hearing this, Fu Mingzi felt a pang of heartache and hugged Zhou Xiaoyan tightly, holding his cold hand firmly.
After a long while, he finally stroked Zhou Xiaoyan's hand and said softly, "The tighter they press, the more they're going to reveal their true intentions. You should stay out of the limelight these next few days while you're sick. They can't force a sick person to do anything, can they?"
Pretending to be sick was a last resort, and Zhou Xiaoyan could only nod in agreement.
Seeing him like this, Fu Mingzi's heart softened again. She gently kissed his forehead and said softly, "Don't be afraid, I will always be with you."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaoyan's previously fearful heart suddenly calmed down. He raised his head and smiled at Fu Mingzi: "I'm not afraid." His tone was as gentle as spring water in April.
Looking into his eyes, Fu Mingzi couldn't help but lower her head and kiss his lips gently.
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