Chapter 7: Qujiang Lake
At the Beiya Forbidden Army’s garrison, Ling Tianshui, exhausted, had just returned to the camp with a group of troops.
Seeing them coming together, he gave them some rough instructions and then turned around to say hello to Qiandeng.
"I heard that the county lady has a new man in her harem, a Uighur prince. This is really cause for celebration."
After not seeing each other for several months, Qian Deng didn't expect that the first words he said after their reunion would be these. Seeing the nonchalant look on his face, a secret depression and anger rose in his heart. He retorted sarcastically: "It's only to my surprise that Ling Sijie was not there at the time. Otherwise, I think he could have fought against the Huihe alone and helped me."
Seeing her angry look, Ling Tianshui raised his eyebrows and looked at Cui Fufeng.
Cui Fufeng briefly recounted what had happened: "It all happened suddenly. I never expected that the Huihe people had already planned to marry the granddaughter of Prince Changhua, and that Prince Mingjiu would actually be willing to move into the palace."
"Now that things have come to this, we can only unite against a common enemy and deal with the Huihe people first. Otherwise, if the county lady really wants to marry someone from outside the Great Wall, wouldn't we all become a laughing stock?" Ling Tianshui said, looking at Qian Deng again, "The Huihe prince has been in your backyard for two or three months, right? Has he ever caused trouble for the county lady?"
Qian Deng shook his head: "It didn't embarrass me, but the backyard is indeed in chaos right now."
Seeing those people stirring up trouble, both covertly and indirect, every day, she felt exhausted. It wasn't Xue Xiyang playing the devilishly noisy piano near Mingjiu's residence late at night, nearly overturning the Rose Pavilion in his rage; it was Shangluo spraying insect-attracting powder in his yard, only to be caught and forced to roll in it, forcing him to go to Yilan Pavilion for an antidote.
Being sarcastic about breakfast this morning was quite restrained and polite.
Even... She looked at Cui Fufeng and thought, even this Cui Shaoqing, who was famous for his noble character and great magnanimity, had a gloomy face for several days because of Mingjiu's arrival.
Cui Fufeng coughed lightly and said, "Mingjiu is a Huihe prince after all, so he certainly can't stay in Chang'an for long. Most of the Huihe envoys who came to offer tribute have already returned, leaving only a team of guards in Chang'an. Now the county lord has to wait. By the time he is forced to return, the matter should be resolved."
Ling Tianshui agreed. After all, he might stay for a month or two, but it was impossible for him to stay for three to five years.
"The county lord has more than two years to mourn his mother, so this is a good opportunity to delay." His voice was as cold and steady as ever, without much emotion. "Don't worry, you won't be going to marry."
Qiandeng looked at his deep and solemn expression, and felt that his mood, which had been in turmoil for two months, had inexplicably calmed down.
It's really strange. Although he is just a small-time official in the Northern Yamen Imperial Guard, as long as he says something, there will definitely be no mistakes.
Just like the paper he asked her to give to the Queen; just like what he said before she was about to officiate, you will get what you wish for.
What he said always had consequences and he would never let her down.
Ling Tianshui bathed and changed clothes, and the three of them headed south and entered Qujiang Pool.
Although Qiandeng didn't know why they came here, he still followed them.
It was spring, the breeze was gentle and pleasant, and the banks of Qujiang Lake were bustling with people.
Ahead is a clear and shallow river with winding bends. Flowers and trees are reflected on the water surface, and the ripples are layered, which is beautiful beyond words.
What is even more captivating than this scenery is the ladies waiting for their lovers in the pavilion beside the river bend, surrounded by jewels, jades, autumn chrysanthemums and spring orchids.
Seeing the county lord coming, Ji Linyou jumped up, Shangluo ran over, and Jintang waved his hand, and suddenly the sound of stringed instruments could be heard faintly from the forest.
The gentlemen came forward with smiles on their faces and bowed to her together: "Congratulations to the county lady on her birthday, may you live long and beautifully year after year."
Qian Deng looked at the smiling faces in front of him and was deeply moved. He had never expected that they would quietly gather together to celebrate his birthday.
"Here, County Lady, this is for you." Shangluo held up the colorful wreath in his hand and placed it on her head, which only had a white gauze palace flower on it. "Let's be a little more festive today!"
Qiandeng touched the garland and smiled, then bowed solemnly to the gentlemen: "My small birthday is not worth mentioning. Thank you all for taking me to heart. Lingling would like to express his gratitude."
Shangluo yelled, "Oh, please don't be polite, County Lady. You are our great benefactor. If you hadn't taken me in, I would have nowhere else to go!"
Meng Lanxi looked at her with a smile: "Yes, what are you talking about? If it weren't for you, we wouldn't know where we are now or what our fate would be."
"Perhaps, the County Princess is our destiny. In such a vast world, meeting is destiny. We come from all corners of the world, and to finally gather by the County Princess' side is also a destiny from past lives."
Yan Penglai, who was always aloof and aloof, like an immortal from another world, rarely said such pleasant words, which made the whole group agree with him. Even Xue Xiyang praised him, saying, "Yan Bucheng is actually a wonderful person. I have a new respect for you."
The gentlemen led Qiandeng to a pavilion by the water, adorned with flowers. It had already been newly decorated, with fresh flowers everywhere, gauze curtains draped lightly, and several tables set up for banquets. Listening to the music playing across the water, Qiandeng felt relaxed and happy, his heart overflowing with joy.
Everyone opened the wine and fruits and were about to raise their glasses to toast the Thousand Lamps when they heard suppressed voices and snickers coming from outside the pavilion.
Ji Linyou raised his eyebrows, put down his cup and stepped out to take a look. Qujiang Lake was full of people enjoying the spring outing. Outside the waterside pavilion, a group of people gathered, peeking in and chatting, "Hey, have you seen the Lingling County Lady?"
"No, I only saw her back... Which man do you think she is closest to?"
"Hurry up and take a look! We have to go to Shengfa to make a sure bet!"
Ji Linyou frowned when he heard this and immediately drove them away: "Go away, go away! Stop being an eyesore here!"
Unexpectedly, after the group took a few steps back, they started discussing him: "Who is this?"
"Hey, Ji Linyou, the Imperial Guards' Recorder. The odds are so-so, there's no point in betting on him!"
Ji Linyou was furious and was about to step forward and scold him when Jin Tang came out from behind and asked, "What's wrong? Why are you making so much noise?"
"Hey, isn't this Jin Tang, who currently holds the top spot? Don't buy him, it's useless!"
"Strange, ranking first means that the most people buy it, so why don't they buy it?"
"Don't you know that Shengfa Casino has just changed owners, and the surname is now Jin? To support his family, our Chang'an's richest man, Jin Baoyi, personally put his son in the top position!"
Amidst the laughter, Jin Tang's face turned red with embarrassment and he clenched his fists.
The group of idlers quickly stepped back and peeked inside. "The gentleman in the round-collared Qinglian robe sitting next to the county lady has an outstanding demeanor and is definitely not an ordinary person. Could he be the real number one, Cui Shaoqing?"
"It's him. I originally thought he had a good chance of winning, but recently, he was surpassed by another."
When the others heard this, they were inevitably surprised and asked, "What? There are actually people who can surpass Cui Shaoqing?"
"It's that Huihe prince! Everyone, this is a matter of great importance to the diplomatic relations between the two countries. I heard that at the grand court meeting, the sage personally promised the Huihe people that any noble lady in Chang'an they chose would be crowned a princess and sent to marry. Who would have thought that Prince Mingjiu would choose the bloody Princess of Lingling?"
"What? Doesn't the Emperor's words mean it's final?"
"But the other fiancés were also selected by the court. If this one is abandoned halfway, wouldn't it be like a joke?"
"Well, that's difficult. We might as well divide the county lady into ten..."
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