Hall of Mental Cultivation
"Foster father, foster mother, Yicheng and An'an greet you two. This time, I came back on the orders of my father, the king, and my mother, the queen, to discuss with you two about my marriage to An'an. Please make the final decision."
Hearing this, Leng Yu nodded with satisfaction.
"Yicheng, you have become a real man. Your adoptive father and mother are very happy to see you. However, now that An An has recognized her biological father, you still have to discuss this marriage with her biological father."
Hearing this, Leng Xi waved his hands.
"Your Majesty, your words make me ashamed. An An grew up under your laps. I was given a daughter for nothing. How dare I decide her marriage? It's better for you and the Empress to make the decision!"
Seeing him being humble, Luo Lan immediately gave a wry smile.
"The matter of the two children is here. They agree. As parents, what else can we say? All etiquette will be handled according to the will of Dongyang State. We can just prepare more dowries later."
Hearing this, Yi Cheng and An An knelt down in unison to express their gratitude. Leng Yu waved his hands hurriedly.
"Okay, stop bowing. You've been gone for five years, and your mother has missed you more and more these days. Go and talk to her!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Lan waved at her impatiently.
"An An, come here quickly, let me see if you have changed."
An An lifted her skirt and came to Luo Lan, looking at her with a smile in her eyes.
"Mother, no matter what time it is, I am still your daughter and I will never change. But you, five years have passed, and time seems to have left no trace on your face. You are still as young and beautiful as you were back then."
Luo Lan held An An's hand and nodded with satisfaction.
"An An has grown up, become beautiful, and can make mother happy. Come, accompany mother to Feng Yi Palace to talk. Mother misses you."
After saying this, she looked at Leng Yu,
"You guys chat first, I'll take An An back to Fengyi Palace."
Leng Yu knew that the mother and daughter must have endless private conversations, so he did not try to persuade her to stay, but waved his hand.
"Go! Let Yicheng come along, and you and your mother can have a good chat. Prince Xi and I have a few words to say."
Seeing this, Yi Cheng bowed to the two of them, then followed Luo Lan and An An towards Fengyi Palace.
Seeing them leave, Leng Yu looked towards Leng Xi.
"As soon as you arrived, An An came back right after you. You two really have a destiny!"
Leng Xi sighed with emotion.
"Actually, I know that An An knows my schedule very well. She often sends people to Mianzhou to see me. I am very touched by this. But I think this is all thanks to the good teachings of you and the Queen. You have made An An a good child who knows how to be grateful."
Leng Yu waved his hand with a smile on his face.
"Before An An left, she said she forgave you. The Queen and I suspect she returned five years later because she must have known your return date. By the way, you've worked hard on this trip to Mianzhou. You've made an invaluable contribution to enabling the people of Mianzhou to live a stable life. So, I'll host a banquet tonight to welcome you. Tomorrow morning, I'll reward you. Just ask for any reward you desire."
As soon as he finished speaking, Leng Xi waved his hand.
"Your Majesty, I don't want anything. Everything I did was what I should have done. Now that I have An An's forgiveness, this is the greatest reward for me. There is no need to deliberately reward me. Oh, by the way, on my way back, I heard something... I don't know how to start..."
At this point, he hesitated. Leng Yu looked at him puzzledly.
"I haven't seen you for a few years. When did you become so hesitant? What happened?"
Leng Xi looked up at him and reminded him cautiously,
"I heard that the imperial mausoleum is not very peaceful. Do you want to send someone to check it out?"
Imperial tomb?
Hearing these two words, Leng Yu's brows furrowed.
But then he looked at Leng Xi in surprise.
"I went to the imperial mausoleum to pay homage years ago and didn't notice anything unusual, except that Yu'er has grown a lot taller."
"Didn't you notice anything else? For example, is there anything unusual about Concubine Li?"
This sentence made Leng Yu even more confused.
"Empress Dowager Li? She eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist scriptures every day, and nothing unusual has been noticed. If you have anything to say, feel free to speak directly..."
Leng Xi looked at him with a frown and said tentatively:
"I heard that a force has gathered around the imperial mausoleum, and someone is secretly controlling this force. You should investigate this matter."
Leng Yu looked at him warily.
"You mean, Concubine Li is plotting a rebellion?"
Leng Xi breathed a sigh of relief and shook his head uncertainly.
"It's hard to say right now, but I think Yu'er is still young and wouldn't have such a plan. The person who did this could only be Concubine Li."
"But Concubine Li seems to be indifferent to worldly affairs. Could she have the intention of rebellion?"
"Oh……"
Leng Xi suddenly smiled.
"Someone who looks harmless isn't necessarily truly harmless. You should investigate this matter thoroughly..."
Looking at Leng Xi's cold face, Leng Yu knew that he was not joking. It seemed that he needed to order someone to investigate the matter.
However, he really hoped that Leng Xi had misunderstood, or that there was another force at work.
He really didn't want Yu'er to be involved in this matter. Before his father died, he promised him that he would protect Yu'er no matter what...
Besides, Yu'er is not even ten years old yet, he wouldn't do such a thing...
…
Leng Yu's decision to hold a welcoming ceremony for Leng Xi was rejected by Leng Xi. In the evening, he simply came to Fengyi Palace to listen to Luo Lan share with him about Yi Cheng and An An.
Sure enough, as soon as he stepped into the door, Luo Lan couldn't wait to talk to him.
"An An said that the King and Queen of Dongyang treated her very well and treated her like their own daughter. After Yi Cheng returned, he quickly adapted to life there. She had wanted to come back a long time ago, but she couldn't bear to leave Yi Cheng. It's no wonder, two children expressing their affection for each other must be inseparable. I can understand this, my husband, do you know? When I heard her say this, my heart finally settled down. I can finally rest assured."
She said a lot of things, but Leng Yu didn't respond, which made Luo Lan quite dissatisfied.
She frowned and looked at him.
"My husband, what are you thinking about?"
Only after hearing her call did Leng Yu come back to his senses.
He looked at her solemnly.
"Xi'er just said that there's something unusual going on at the imperial mausoleum, that a mysterious force is gathering there, and he suspects Concubine Li is responsible. Do you think this is possible?"
His words left Luo Lan unable to react for a moment.
The last time they mentioned the topic of the imperial mausoleum was probably years ago. At that time, she was still envious of Concubine Li's comfortable life.
How come a mysterious force has gathered in less than half a year?
She looked at him in disbelief, then shook her head.
"No, Concubine Li is just a woman. She couldn't have done this."
Leng Yu also nodded in agreement.
"I think so too, but Yu'er is still young and wouldn't have such thoughts at all. Who else would do such a thing?"
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