Chapter 939 The Wrath of Xinyang (Second Update)
Princess Xinyang asked with a dark expression, "Why have you come here?"
Yu Jin's eyes flashed, and she said with an embarrassed smile, "The horse... the carriage is broken."
The driver, ever the opportune moment, said, "Oh dear, the wheel is loose! I need to fix it!"
Little Yiyi, nestled in her mother's arms, cried out, "Waaah!"
Princess Xinyang: "..."
She raised her chin like a proud peacock: "Don't do these useless things, I'm not going in to catch them in the act."
How could a princess of a nation lower herself to such a place of pleasure?
Besides, she and Xiao Ji were not a real couple. They had agreed that she would not interfere with his philandering.
She lifted the curtain and said to the coachman, "Is it fixed yet? If it's not fixed, you don't need to come to the princess's residence for duty tomorrow!"
The driver shuddered in fright and glanced at Yu Jin with a troubled expression.
That's all the help I can offer.
If this continues, he'll run out of rice.
Little Yiyi pouted.
Princess Xinyang glared at her fiercely: "You too! Don't cry!"
My mother is very murderous.
Xiao Yiyi shut her mouth, feeling wronged.
Just as Princess Xinyang was about to leave after lowering the curtain, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a furtive figure out of the corner of her eye.
She saw it first, and that's when she lowered the curtain.
It's just that human reactions aren't that fast.
When she lifted the curtain again, the figure had vanished.
She felt uneasy, sensing that something was amiss.
"Hold Yiyi tight and wait for me in the carriage." She handed little Yiyi to Yujin.
Yu Jin was unaware of the true situation she had witnessed, and thought she had seen the Marquis and was going to catch him in the act of adultery: "Princess, don't worry, I won't disturb you!"
Princess Xinyang did not explain to her, and bowed as she got off the carriage.
The man first entered the alley, used his long knife to pry open General Qian's carriage, and found no one inside. He then turned around and entered Ruanxiang Pavilion through the back door.
At this point, Princess Xinyang was certain that the other party was after Xiao Ji or General Qian, most likely Xiao Ji, since he was known for stirring up trouble and was said to have enemies within ten steps of her.
She chased after him.
Ruanxiang Pavilion doesn't look very big from the front, but it actually has several small gardens in the backyard.
As she walked around the corridor to the second small garden, she spotted a figure standing in front of the artificial hill.
She recognized it as Xiao Ji.
"Someone wants to kill me—"
Before you could finish speaking, Xiao Ji raised his knife and plunged it into the assassin's heart.
The assassin didn't even have time to scream before he fell into a pool of blood, his eyes wide open in death.
Princess Xinyang stood there, stunned.
She only spoke when Xiao Ji stabbed her, and it was too late to pull her hand back. She hadn't wanted to be so bloody in front of her.
He kicked the assassin's body into a crevice in the artificial hill, threw the murder weapon in as well, wiped his hands clean with a handkerchief, and then turned to look at Princess Xinyang, casually smiling as he said, "Qin Fengwan, you've followed me all this way just to say this?"
He followed me the whole way... Did this guy know she was stalking him all along?
Princess Xinyang was greatly shocked, but she didn't show it on her face. She calmly said, "I wasn't following you, I was just passing by! But you, knowing that Yiyi was looking for you, still got into the carriage with someone else!"
Xiao Ji turned his head to look at her, a slight smile playing on his handsome lips: "Qin Fengwan, are you jealous?"
Princess Xinyang glared at him fiercely, too lazy to argue with him.
She turned and left.
Just then, General Qian came from another small garden and walked towards this direction.
She couldn't let anyone discover that she was here. Not only would it lower her status, but the rumor that she had caught Xiao Ji cheating on her husband in a brothel in the middle of the night would spread throughout the entire capital the next day!
Qin Fengwan can't afford to lose face like this!
She gritted her teeth and walked quickly toward the artificial hill, intending to hide behind it, but when she got closer, she saw how horrifying the bloodstains on the ground were.
Her foot couldn't step over it—
"My lord!"
General Qian greeted Xiao Ji with a smile.
Qin Fengwan shuddered.
Xiao Ji glanced at her, pulled her over, moved her two steps to the side, and pinned her against the other half of the artificial hill that hadn't been splattered with blood. The grass under her feet was also clean.
He used his broad body to block her, supporting himself on either side of her with his arms.
The two were too close, almost face to face.
Their breaths mingled, and Princess Xinyang, unaccustomed to such intimacy with a man, felt a tightness in her chest, her breathing instinctively becoming rapid and labored, and her body beginning to tremble slightly.
Xiao Ji took in her symptoms, frowned slightly, and stepped back a little to create some space between them.
"Eh? Lord Marquis, what are you doing here?" General Qian asked.
"Don't come any closer!" Xiao Ji commanded.
He didn't turn around, his eyes fixed on Qin Fengwan. "I have business to attend to. You should return to your room first."
General Qian stopped in his tracks, puzzled as to why Marquis Xuanping was acting this way. He craned his neck to take a look.
Marquis Xuanping was tall and strong, but while he could block people, he couldn't stop Princess Xinyang's skirt from being blown up by the night wind.
General Qian smiled meaningfully and said, "So, the Marquis has come to meet a beauty in secret. Is it Miss Chenxiang? No wonder the Marquis agreed so readily tonight. He must be longing for the beauty."
Princess Xinyang looked coldly at Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji had a toothache and wished he could turn around and kick the man surnamed Qian.
General Qian, completely unaware that his head was already in jeopardy, continued his reckless act: "Since Miss Chenxiang is here as well, why doesn't Your Excellency take her up for a seat?"
"It's not agarwood!" Xiao Ji gritted his teeth.
"Oh? Who is that?" General Qian asked curiously.
Xiao Ji looked at Qin Fengwan with her cold eyes, narrowed his eyes, and suddenly chuckled in a hoarse voice: "The new beauty is too shy to meet the esteemed officials."
The teasing tone made Qin Wanwan want to raise her knee and kick him.
That place.
Make it so that he can never do it again.
General Qian chuckled and said, "Are there any shy girls in this Soft Fragrance Pavilion? It's nothing more than a way to seduce men. The Marquis has just come down, and she has already created a chance encounter with him. In my opinion, her methods are quite remarkable."
Listen to this, does it sound like something a human would say?
There's a reason why I've never been promoted!
Princess Xinyang wanted to sentence General Qian to death.
Seeing her angry and flustered appearance, Xiao Ji couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips: "Your methods are indeed remarkable."
Princess Xinyang glared at Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji smiled at her with a carefree and unrestrained air, but his words to General Qian were devoid of any warmth: "Go up."
"My lord..."
"Military order!"
General Qian's expression turned solemn: "Yes!"
After he left, Xiao Ji released his arms from her embrace, took two steps to the side, and looked at her calmly, saying, "Don't come to places like this again, and don't follow assassins."
Princess Xinyang said expressionlessly, "Mind your own business!"
Xiao Ji said, "I was followed yesterday. Today I deliberately went to the military camp to provoke them into making a move, but they were very cautious and didn't make any moves."
Princess Xinyang looked at him: "Did I ruin your plans?"
Xiao Ji sighed: "Yes, he discovered you. If I don't kill him, you'll be in danger. But if I kill him, I'll alert him, and all his accomplices will run away."
Princess Xinyang lowered her eyes.
Xiao Ji looked at her, a half-smile on his face, and said, "Qin Fengwan, you've suddenly become so concerned about me. Could it be that you've really fallen for me?"
Princess Xinyang's guilt vanished in an instant.
The king of atmosphere destruction—Xiao Ji!
Princess Xinyang returned to the carriage.
Xiao Ji followed.
Princess Xinyang wouldn't let him onto the carriage: "What are you doing here? Aren't you going to continue visiting your brothels? Your Miss Chenxiang is waiting for you!"
Inside the carriage, little Yiyi burst into tears!
Daddy's here! Time to be a little spoiled!
Sprinkle it all out!
Xiao Ji raised an eyebrow and gestured in the direction she was pointing.
Princess Xinyang glared at the little guy crying loudly in Yu Jin's arms with a dark face: "He really is your father's biological son!"
Upon returning home, the first thing Xiao Yiyi did was to find a washboard for her father with a knowing look in her eyes.
Xiao Ji: "..."
...
Three days later, Xuanyuan Qi and Liao Chen set off, accompanied by Young Master Mingyue and his servant.
They took a force from the Shadow Division with them, entered the Yan Kingdom by water, and then headed northwest, advancing towards the Ice Plains.
On the third day of the seventh month, a junior official examination was held in the capital of Zhao State. It was jointly presided over by the cabinet and the Ministry of Rites. The main examination content was the eight-legged essay and policy discussion.
In order to recruit talents without being bound by convention, Chief Minister Yuan relaxed the application requirements and raised the age limit to under twenty-five, up from the original twenty.
Those who meet the age requirement and are selected from both the imperial examination list are eligible to participate in the examination.
Feng Lin and Lin Chengye were the same age, but unfortunately, in the palace examination, one ranked 123rd and the other 99th, and both were only Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examination). Du Ruohan, on the other hand, ranked 13th and was listed as a Jinshi in both categories.
He was exactly one day shy of turning twenty-five.
Empress Dowager Zhuang held a letter in her hand, which was addressed to the border.
Zhuang Yuheng was the runner-up in the previous competition; he was only one year older than Xiao Heng.
But the exam application was never sent out.
"He can't pass the exam as well as Aheng. I just want to take this opportunity to let him return to the capital and show me what he's made of."
"I'm getting old, and I don't know how many more years I have left to live."
"I want to see him."
But that child might not want to return to the capital.
...
Xiao Heng had registered for the Junior Assistant Examination last year. During that year, while the other candidates were preparing for the exam day and night, Xiao Heng went to the State of Yan and was completely unaware of this.
After returning to China, he was busy with the Ministry of Justice and the wedding, and rarely had time to prepare for the exam. Even Princess Xinyang felt that her son had neglected his studies for too long and that his chances of passing the exam were slim.
When the results came out, everyone was stunned.
In all three exams, Xiao Heng won first place with an overwhelming advantage.
Looking at the examination paper sent by the Ministry of Rites, Princess Xinyang could hardly believe her eyes: "You're always like a naive young man who's just had sex, clinging to your wife all day long, and I've never seen you study..."
Little Jingkong also ran over and looked at his bad brother-in-law's test paper.
After reading it, he nodded seriously and turned to go to Xiao Heng's study.
"I heard you're going to be the Junior Assistant Minister." He cut to the chase. "Is the Junior Assistant Minister a powerful position? Is it a very high-ranking official?"
Xiao Heng boasted, "Of course it's impressive, a third-rank official, just like my great-uncle's rank."
The joke about being last place can finally be over, right?
Xiao Jingkong waved his hand and said seriously, "Now that you've become a high-ranking official, the rent in Biyue Hutong should be raised! A special price for families: one hundred taels a month! Payable annually!"
Xiao Heng: "..."
...
On July 18th, a month after their wedding, the people of the Marquis of Changping's residence could no longer stay in their new home and set off back to their fiefdom.
Gu Jinyu did not bid farewell to anyone, including Old Madam Gu, who had orchestrated the marriage.
The procession marched out of the east gate in a grand procession.
Gu Jinyu and Chunliu sat silently inside the carriage.
A gentle breeze lifted the curtain, letting in light.
Gu Jinyu's expression was indifferent, and she still wore a veil inside the carriage, but it was still difficult to hide the bruise above her brow bone.
...
The day after Gu Jinyu left the capital, Xiao Heng and Gu Jiao discussed their future accommodations.
The princess's mansion that Auntie gave to Gu Jiao was ready for her to move into at any time, but both Yao Shi and Auntie were used to Bishui Hutong, so they decided to live at the other end of Bishui Hutong, where Princess Xinyang's mansion was located.
Sometimes a small decision can affect the entire family's dynamics.
Because the children were here, Princess Xinyang did not mention moving back to Zhuque Street again.
Shangguan Qing was also preparing to take his leave.
He's stayed in Zhao Kingdom long enough; he needs to go back and keep Shangguan Yan company.
However, since the two new muskets that Xiao Heng promised him were not yet fully completed, he had to wait a few more days.
In late July, a thunderbolt flashed across the sky above the capital, with the force of ten tons of gunpowder exploding, causing the window frames of the princess's residence to tremble.
Little Yiyi was woken up by a thunderclap during her afternoon nap and cried loudly in fright.
Yu Jin and Princess Xinyang were in the flower room, where the wet nurse was keeping watch.
The wet nurse quickly picked up the little master.
Little Yiyi screamed at the top of her lungs, her loud cries seeming to try and silence the thunder.
The wet nurse was momentarily unsure whether she or Lei was noisier.
But then, as she was crying, she suddenly stopped.
She stared unblinkingly at the doorway with her large, teary eyes, where a handsome, aloof young man in black robes had appeared.
The terrifying, winding lightning, like a demonic dragon, hovered above his head, yet it seemed as if he had blocked it all.
Little Yiyi stared blankly at him, tears streaming down her face.
The young man in black walked in, thought for a moment, took out a candied hawthorn from his hand, handed it to her, and said, "Want some?"
Xiao Yiyi: "???"
Little Yiyi: Fairy sister, could I vote for you with a monthly ticket? Double the vote!
(End of this chapter)
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