Chapter 203 Who's putting on an act?
After Pei Siyan left, she turned over and went back to sleep. He had been too rough with her last night, and her whole body felt sore and weak, as if it had been run over.
It was almost noon when she slowly got up, and the palace maids rushed in from behind the screen to help her wash and dress.
Just after lunch, a palace maid came in to say that Consort Shu wanted to speak with her.
Dou Wenyi's eyes darkened, and she secretly guessed that Consort Shu had come to her because of Zhang Chengxian and Pei Siyan.
Passing through the winding covered bridge, surrounded by jade railings and shaded by trees, the warm winter sun shines through the gaps in the branches, casting dappled light. Looking up, the plum blossoms in the distance are in full bloom, their fragrance wafting in the air.
Princess Fu'an walked towards her, took her hand, and said with undiminished enthusiasm, "It's rare to run into you in the palace. You stay in the East Palace every day, aren't you bored? How about we go to see a play another day?"
It seems that Princess Fu'an did not deliberately distance herself from me because of Xie Guidu's matter, which is good.
Dou Wenyi smiled slightly, "Okay, you set the date."
"I heard that the delegation and the Ministry of Rites had a fight today. The Emperor was furious and punished many people... Sigh, it's really troublesome."
Dou Wenyi's eyelids twitched violently. "Why were those people punished?"
Princess Fu'an sighed, "Many officials in the Ministry of Rites have been punished, including your father, Lord Dou. Yesterday, the Northern Di delegation insisted on eating their hometown dishes, but the officials in the Ministry of Rites ignored them and, as is customary, only prepared dishes from the Great Zhou Dynasty. It seems they also prepared a lot of Shu cuisine, so they all got diarrhea..."
Dou Bochang has always preferred to protect himself, so he wouldn't have such audacity. Could it be that he was instructed by the Crown Prince?
Princess Fu'an continued, "His Majesty specially arranged for a different group of people to receive the Northern Di delegation today."
Dou Wenyi was slightly taken aback. Pei Siyan had only mentioned a few words to her, and she had no idea what he was going to do.
"Fu'an—"
A familiar, clear voice sounded from behind. Dou Wenyi turned her head and saw Xie Guidu wearing an exquisitely crafted sky-blue narrow-sleeved brocade robe. He had clear eyebrows and eyes, broad shoulders, and large bamboo leaves embroidered on his robe. His hair was tied up with a jade crown, and he looked every bit the elegant gentleman. He was holding a sprig of green plum blossom in his hand and walking towards them.
"Guidu, I'm here!" Fu'an waved excitedly at Xie Guidu, beaming with joy.
His eyebrows twitched slightly, and his gentle smile froze on his lips the moment he saw her, before quickly returning to normal.
"Fu'an, I've been looking for you everywhere."
Princess Fu'an beamed, lifted her skirt, and nimbly darted past her, affectionately taking Xie Guidu's arm with a shy expression. "Guidu, is this plum blossom for me?"
Xie Guidu seemed to have only Fu'an in his heart and eyes, his voice unusually gentle, "Hmm, is it pretty?"
Princess Fu'an smiled brightly and innocently, turning her head to look at her. Her tone was neither too light nor too heavy, yet it was intriguing.
"Wenyi, do you think it looks good?"
Dou Wenyi remained calm, secretly amused. "As long as the princess thinks it looks good, then it naturally looks good."
If I'm not mistaken, Princess Fu'an was deliberately waiting for her to assert her dominance, while also testing Xie Guidu's loyalty.
Love makes people blind; no one can wake someone who is pretending to be asleep.
Fu'an has already begun to fall. If Xie Guidu were to betray her one day, how could she bear it?
Xie Guidu's willingness to compromise his principles for power suggests he has grand ambitions.
Xie Guidu seemed to only just notice her, and respectfully bowed to her, saying, "Greetings, Crown Princess."
"Very well." Dou Wenyi rolled her eyes inwardly. "I have something to do, so I'll take my leave first."
"Wenyi, where are you going? Guidu and I are on our way to express our gratitude."
Princess Fu'an beamed with joy. "His Majesty has agreed to bestow a marriage upon us. Gui Du will be working at the Ministry of Rites from now on. You will bless us, won't you?"
"That's good. It's best to sever all ties with the past." Dou Wenyi said meaningfully.
As the saying goes, one should allow loved ones to hit a wall, and watch their dearest ones take detours. The detours they are meant to take will not be missed, and the walls they are meant to hit will not be missed.
She genuinely hoped that Xie Guidu could repent and treat Princess Fu'an well.
Unfortunately, based on her understanding of Xie Guidu, this was probably wishful thinking; she had no idea what kind of amazing move he would come up with.
But none of this mattered to her. What bothered her was that she had once considered Fu'an a friend, but it seemed that Fu'an didn't see it that way.
Xie Guidu nodded, "What the Crown Princess says is absolutely right."
Fu'an County smiled again, "I trust my judgment. After returning to the capital, you'll definitely treat me well, right?"
Xie Guidu gave a soft "hmm".
Dou Wenyi really didn't want to watch Xie Guidu perform, so she walked towards Jingkun Palace.
Just then, a number of palace servants and imperial guards gathered on the nearby white marble avenue.
Dou Wenyi squinted her eyes, as if she saw Pei Siyan and Zhang Chengxian, and rushed over there. However, when she arrived, the two had already disappeared.
"...General Zhang offended His Highness the Crown Prince. The two of them even got into a fight at the entrance of Chongzheng Hall. He's incredibly audacious."
"This young General Zhang is too arrogant and domineering because of his merits in the rearguard action. That's a capital offense."
"Isn't that right? I heard even the Crown Prince was injured."
"Who made the first move? I'm not sure, it seems to have been the Crown Prince..."
"Aren't General Zhang and the Crown Prince from the same school? They're like brothers, so what's the grudge between them?"
"Well, who knows?"
"Maybe they're fighting over a woman—"
The murmurs rose and fell, but when they suddenly realized that Dou Wenyi was standing right behind them, they all fell silent.
Dou Wenyi's expression suddenly changed; her worst fears had come true.
This place is open and frequented by court officials; this matter will surely reach the Emperor's ears.
Even if there is a rift between them, they shouldn't act so impulsively!
A gentle voice sounded in my ear, "Zhang Chengxian has always been impulsive. It's not surprising that he would do something like this. You know better than I do what kind of person Pei Siyan is."
“No matter what, he’s still better than you.” Dou Wenyi’s face was filled with anger as she retorted, only to catch a glimpse of Xie Guidu’s clothes when she looked up.
——
After an incense stick had burned, Dou Wenyi arrived at Jingkun Palace.
Consort Zhang looked worried and had already dismissed the palace servants around her. "Yi'er, you've heard about what happened between them, haven't you? It's really worrying me to death."
Dou Wenyi frowned, knowing the situation perfectly well, but she always felt that Pei Siyan was not such a muddle-headed person. "I don't know the specifics either. When I got there, they had already left."
Consort Zhang pinched the bridge of her nose. "That wretched Zhang Chengxian is waiting to be punished in Chongzheng Hall. If the Crown Prince wants to spar with him, he should at least find a different place... I wonder how His Majesty will deal with him!"
Dou Wenyi had already realized what was going on, and stopped there, saying, "Your Majesty, don't be anxious. Every cloud has a silver lining. Their relationship being too good is actually not a good thing."
Zhang Chengxian is a rising star among young military generals. He is impulsive and reckless. If he were to wholeheartedly side with the Crown Prince, it would only make Emperor Muzong wary of him.
Why did Pei Siyan cause such a scene?
Was he trying to use this opportunity to get rid of the job of receiving the delegation?
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