"Ah!" Bai Li cried out as she fell, before she could grab onto anything.
Yan Fei on the bridge was also frightened, but Jun Jiuxian's expression remained unchanged as he watched the bright yellow figure jump down to save people.
Zongzheng Shen was already distracted by Bai Li's beautiful face, but he could only try to restrain himself because of her identity. He had been sitting here ever since he left the banquet, and he never expected to run into her again.
Zongzheng Shen climbed out of the water, soaking wet, and angrily said, "My dear minister, is this how you take care of your wife?"
Jun Jiuxian knelt down neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Your subject dares not, but although Bai is my wife, Consort Yan is the Emperor's concubine. I am but a scholar with no strength to even kill a chicken, and I dare not lay a hand on Consort Yan."
"You dare not? I dare!" Zongzheng Shen's eyes were red. He held the woman in his arms tightly and ordered the eunuch, "Remove the title of Consort Yan and send her to the Cold Palace. As for Minister Jun, since the barbarians are invading from the southern border, I will make you a general and send you to the border."
Jun Jiuxian hesitated before saying, "Your subject accepts the imperial decree and expresses gratitude, but regarding the Bai family..."
"If you can bring peace to the southern border, you will be a meritorious official, and I will naturally take good care of your family. But if you unfortunately perish, I, as the ruler of the country, will naturally take good care of your widow." The implication behind these words is that he intends to blatantly seize power?
Even Jun Jiuxian couldn't help but feel his forehead veins throbbing. Is there such a king in this world? Should someone like him be the king of this world?
However… Jun Jiuxian finally knelt down in humiliation: “Your Majesty, I thank you for your kindness.”
Jun Jiuxian's clenched teeth as he spoke each word reassured Zongzheng Shen considerably; it seemed this wasn't a scheme after all.
Consort Yan stared wide-eyed at the scene and lunged forward, grabbing Zongzheng Shen's robe tightly: "Your Majesty, I am not convinced! She is merely a subject's wife, while I am the Emperor's woman. Why is the Emperor punishing me like this for her sake? Does he have some ulterior motive towards me, or is he dissatisfied with me?"
"Your Majesty, why are you so good to her? Is it because she resembles someone?" Consort Yan's voice grew louder and louder, frightening everyone present into lowering their heads and not daring to utter a word.
Zongzheng angrily said, "Give me death!"
They wouldn't even spare this life?
The next morning at court, Jun Jiuxian received an imperial edict from the Emperor Zongzheng ordering him to go on a campaign. While Jun Jiuxian was in the palace for court, Lu Qingyan sent someone to slip him a note inviting him to a meeting.
But Jun Jiuxian either didn't see it, or he saw it but didn't want to come. Instead, he packed his bags and led his troops out to war two days later.
In fact, Jun Jiuxian did receive that note. He didn't come to see Lu Qingyan because of it, nor did he send her any message. He simply folded the note in his hand and placed it against his heart, murmuring, "Qingyan, you must wait for me to come back." In that instant, his gaze held a deep affection that Bai Li had never seen before.
In reality, he never harbored even the slightest romantic feelings for his nominal wife, Bai Li. His desires had long been locked away within high walls, never to be seen again.
No sooner had Jun Jiuxian left than Zongzheng Shen, under the pretext that Bai Li and the Empress had hit it off immediately and that he wanted to protect General Helian's wife, brought Bai Li into the palace.
Lu Qingyan: Hehe, you can flirt with people just like that, and you even use your own name to disgust them. You are really shameless.
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