It's all your fault
Xiao Chengyan and Xuan Ru both looked at her at the same time.
Gu Jinghong smiled and pulled Xiao Chengyan back to his seat, then said, "Your Highness Prince Jin, you may not know, but my sister here is most skilled at playing the jade flute. Shall we have her play a tune for you?"
As she spoke, Gu Jinghong glared at Xie Yan again, and Xie Yan reluctantly took out a jade flute from his waist and played a tune.
As soon as the flute began to play, it was like a clear spring flowing over jade, melodious and gentle, or like the cold moon shining on a frigid river, ethereal and far-reaching, causing everyone to hold their breath.
Gu Jinghong held the wine glass to Xiao Chengyan's lips with her slender fingers, her voice sweet and charming: "Your Highness Prince Jin, please have some wine."
Xiao Chengyan glanced at her.
A moment later, she suddenly leaned forward and whispered, word by word, in a voice only the two of them could hear: "Bringing your 'best friend' and flaunting your charm in front of so many people... Gu Jinghong, you're really something."
Gu Jinghong replied with a smile, "Bringing my good sister to the banquet, Your Highness is truly admirable."
Xiao Chengyan suddenly felt depressed.
Why did he bring Xuanru along? It was because he was afraid that Gu Jinghong might actually be poisoned and persecuted in the prince's mansion. With Xuanru by his side, at least she would be a doctor from one of his own people.
What does Gu Jinghong mean now? Is he blaming Xuan Ru for taking him on this adventure?
...Therefore, in Gu Jinghong's heart, Xiao Chengyan was far less important than Xuan Ru?
He couldn't catch his breath, and the previously enchanting atmosphere suddenly turned cold.
Xiao Chengyan rested his right hand on the long table, showing no intention of drinking.
Gu Jinghong looked at the usually cold and aloof prince and suddenly burst out laughing. After a moment's thought, she slipped into the crook of Xiao Chengyan's right arm.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, their breaths mingled, creating a very romantic and ambiguous atmosphere.
Gu Jinghong didn't seem to care: "Your Highness, please have a drink."
Everyone was stunned!
The guests secretly admired her; she was indeed a girl trained by "Drunken Flower Shade," bold and alluring. However… everyone held their breath for the girl. King Jin was not one to be seduced by beauty; it seemed this girl's fate was sealed.
Xie Yan waited for Gu Jinghong, but Gu Jinghong did not respond to him.
Seeing Gu Jinghong's eyes and heart filled with Xiao Chengyan, Xie Yan trembled slightly for some reason—a feeling of heartache he had never experienced before spread through his body.
Meanwhile, Xiao Chengyan, with a beauty half in his arms, still kept his right hand resting on the long table, his face icy, showing no intention of drinking.
He even looked at Gu Jinghong three times from beginning to end, making Gu Jinghong feel inexplicably guilty.
Then, as if he had made up his mind about something, he leaned back slightly, increasing the distance between himself and her.
Gu Jinghong thought for a moment, a cunning glint of desperation flashing in his eyes.
Instead of backing down because of his rejection, she leaned against his outstretched arm, bent her slender waist, and amidst a collective gasp, gracefully sat down in Xiao Chengyan's lap!
"hiss--"
A suppressed gasp suddenly erupted from the banquet.
The guests were stunned, and Zhao Qian's pupils also contracted sharply.
No one could predict what Gu Jinghong was planning. In everyone's eyes, Gu Jinghong was nothing more than a songstress who constantly challenged the prince's bottom line because of her good looks.
A songstress could never possibly catch Xiao Chengyan's eye.
When the warm, soft body suddenly entered his arms, Xiao Chengyan stiffened violently, and the muscles in his arms that were holding her waist instantly became as strong as iron.
The gazes cast by the guests did not sway Xiao Chengyan in the slightest. Instead, the warmth and softness of the body in his arms made him feel a scorching heat gushing out from within him!
"Gu Jinghong! Do you insist on provoking me in this setting?"
His voice was low and dangerous, and the hand under the table was already clenched into a fist.
Gu Jinghong seemed not to hear him, and gently leaned her body against his chest.
She held a glass in one hand, but her other arm, like a water snake, wrapped tightly around his waist from an angle unseen by others, her fingertips even pinching the muscles on his side.
She tilted her head back, her expression alluring and innocent, her voice soft and sweet.
"Your Highness, look, if you don't drink this wine, all the guests are staring at us... Please do Ah Hong a favor and drink it, otherwise, Ah Hong will be too ashamed to face anyone..."
Gu Jinghong was adept at using someone else's strength against them.
Xiao Chengyan was so angry that he laughed instead.
Okay, that's great.
Not only did she dare to come, dare to jump, and dare to protect others, but now she even dares to use this occasion and everyone else to pressure him!
He looked down at her.
Her eyes, reflecting the dazzling lights, shone with an astonishing brightness. There was no fear in them, only a gambler's desperate gamble. Yet, even in those eyes, Xiao Chengyan keenly caught a glimpse of pleading that only he could understand.
At that moment, Xiao Chengyan clearly felt as if his heart had been violently struck by something.
The anger suddenly lost its footing.
The entire arena was eerily quiet; everyone was waiting for Jhin's reaction.
Should he fly into a rage and shove the ungrateful dancer away, or...?
In the suffocating silence, the chill emanating from Xiao Chengyan slowly subsided, and the raging storm in his eyes transformed into a bottomless darkness.
He suddenly chuckled softly, gazing at Gu Jinghong with tenderness in his eyes.
"Very well." He finally spoke, "I will naturally give you face."
After speaking, he suddenly lowered his head and, with Gu Jinghong's hand, drank the glass of wine in one gulp.
Oh my god!
Everyone was then surprised to realize that it wasn't that His Highness King Jin was indifferent to women, but rather that he looked down on those ordinary and vulgar women!
Although the girl offering the toast was just a songstress, she possessed an overall aloof and noble air, with flawless features. A red mole at the end of her eyebrow added an indescribable allure to her aloofness.
"Excellent! Your Highness has a generous heart! The beauty is indeed skilled!" Zhao Qian was the first to cheer loudly, overjoyed.
The hall erupted in thunderous applause, and the sounds of string and wind instruments resumed, instantly transforming the atmosphere into one of intense fervor and ambiguity.
But only Gu Jinghong could feel that the arms wrapped around her waist were as hot and firm as branding irons, locking her tightly in his arms, unable to move an inch.
Xiao Chengyan threw the empty cup onto the table, making a crisp sound.
He slightly raised his thin lips, his eyes looking at Gu Jinghong.
Gu Jinghong smiled knowingly and slowly wiped the wine stains from the corner of his lips with her fingertips.
Xuanru, her mouth stuffed with food, stared at Gu Jinghong without moving—good heavens, when did she become so skilled! They say "a scholar should be looked at with new eyes after thirty days of separation," but Jinghong should be described as "a scholar should be reborn after three months of separation"!
Xiao Chengyan leaned down slightly as if he didn't see anyone and whispered in her ear.
"You've put on a fantastic show... I'm very satisfied. Now that the show's started, don't think you can just walk away easily. Keep up the good work, and I'll... stay with you to the very end."
The warm breath brushed against Gu Jinghong's earlobe, and Gu Jinghong's entire face turned bright red.
The crowd couldn't help but whisper among themselves. Wasn't Prince Jin always averse to women? Even if this woman was extremely beautiful, it shouldn't have caused him to act this way!
Zhao Qian initially thought that Xiao Chengyan was putting on an act, after all, Prince Jin's reputation was well-known in the Southwest and he was by no means a good-for-nothing.
Seeing the way Xiao Chengyan looked at Gu Jinghong, he was surprised to believe that His Highness Prince Jin was truly in love—he had been familiar with matters between men and women for many years, and such a tender look coming from the eyes of someone as cold as Xiao Chengyan could not possibly be just an act.
Zhao Qian seemed to have been led inside, and it took him a little struggle to regain his senses.
He picked up his wine glass and toasted Xiao Chengyan.
"His Highness Prince Jin has graced my residence with his presence to celebrate my birthday. This is a great honor for me, my entire household, and even my relatives and friends in the southwest! Since His Highness took charge of military affairs in the southwest, there have been no more border disturbances in our territory, and the people can enjoy peace. My position as a prince is secure, all thanks to His Highness's protection."
"Today, all of you, my relatives, friends, and colleagues, have gathered here not only to celebrate my birthday, but also to express your gratitude to Your Highness. I am unworthy to offer Your Highness a toast first, and I ask that you all rise together—let us all toast Your Highness, wishing you good health and peace year after year; and may our Southwest be free from turmoil and enjoy lasting tranquility!"
After he finished speaking, everyone present stood up, including Xiao Chengyan.
Just as Zhao Qian was smiling and offering a toast, he suddenly looked up and loosened his grip.
With a "crash," the wine glass shattered on the ground.
The next moment, a series of neat and heavy footsteps thundered from behind the curtains and outside the side doors around the hall.
Countless warriors clad in black armor, their faces grim and wielding sharp blades, surged in like a tidal wave, instantly filling the entire banquet hall. The clash of swords replaced the previous music, and a chilling aura of killing intent permeated the air.
One of the leading warriors wielded a long spear that gleamed with a cold light, its tip pointing precisely and steadily at the master—right before Xiao Chengyan's Adam's apple!
"ah--!"
"What...what is this?!"
"The soldiers...the soldiers have mutinied?!"
The guests were stunned for a moment. Many civil officials turned pale with fright, their legs so weak they almost slipped off their chairs. The women were even more terrified, huddled together, trembling.
They were just there for a birthday banquet, how could they have imagined that they would step into a battlefield of carnage in the blink of an eye!
"quiet!"
Prince Ning, Zhao Qian, roared, and the humility and gentleness on his face vanished completely.
"Fellow colleagues, please calm down! Today's matter has nothing to do with you! My target is only Xiao Chengyan!"
"As long as you all stay where you are and keep your eyes and mouths shut, I can guarantee that after this is over, you will all be able to go home safely, and today's events will be as if they never happened."
"But!" His tone suddenly turned stern, and he pointed sharply at several old ministers who were trying to stand up and argue, "If anyone wants to be a loyal minister, wants to play the hero, or wants to shout loudly... then don't blame my sword for being merciless and sending you and your family to serve His Highness Prince Jin!"
The guests were pale-faced, exchanging glances filled with fear and despair. They realized they had become hostages and spectators in Zhao Qian's conspiracy.
A suffocating silence enveloped the entire banquet hall.
Zhao Qian smiled coldly: "Xiao Chengyan, do you know why I'm determined to kill you? Because you and your father, Xiao Jue, are both worthless! The Crown Prince died during the Southwest epidemic, so why are you still alive, Xiao Chengyan? And to make matters worse, you led troops and reversed the situation that my father had worked so hard to achieve!"
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