Chapter 47 almost made Bai Xuerou think she had seen it...
Bai Xuerou left, the Yu family left, but Madam Fu and a few others, including Madam Gao, were still walking and chatting outside.
Enjoy the evening scenery of Luoxian Mountain.
It's a pity it wasn't autumn or winter, so there was no fog, which made it less interesting.
The news was quickly relayed back. Madam Fu frowned slightly, while Princess Yucheng covered her face with a fan, concealing the smile on her lips.
"Madam Bai doesn't love the sons of noble families, and it seems she doesn't like the sons of generals either. I really don't know what kind of person she likes." She sighed, feigning trouble.
Fu Er Niangzi knew perfectly well that she was just watching the show, and although she was dissatisfied, she couldn't show it on her face.
“The Princess and Madam Bai have a good relationship. Since you are curious, why not ask her?” she said.
"Of course I asked," Princess Yucheng said with a smile.
Fu Erniangzi looked at her, asking with some eagerness, "Oh, I wonder what Madam Bai said?"
"She likes all good-looking people, but for others, it depends on fate," Princess Yucheng said with a smile.
The word "fate" is too mysterious; saying it is as good as saying nothing at all.
Fu Erniangzi was immediately dejected.
Madam Gao shook her head slightly. She was the oldest among them and had even had a grandson last year, so she understood some things more clearly.
“Madam Bai doesn’t like trouble. If we’re talking about fate, the first thing is that I can’t bring her any trouble,” she said gently.
And without a doubt, Fu Wei's identity as a member of the Fu family is a huge problem for Bai Xuerou.
This meant she was destined not to have any romantic feelings for him.
Princess Yucheng seemed to be deep in thought. She really hadn't expected this. So, the Yu family's son was also like this. But speaking of Yu Kai, she said, "The third son of the Yu family is indeed handsome. The Yu family's son is nothing more than this."
The little emperor is eleven years old this year and is already sensible enough to understand his situation.
Although the officials had effectively sidelined the emperor, they still outwardly gave him some face. This young master Yu Kai was now appointed as a remonstrator, and the emperor favored him, granting him the authority to serve in the imperial court.
In Chang'an today, who doesn't know the Jade Prince of the Yu family?
Her affection for Bai Xuerou was obvious, but being from a prestigious family, she had to be more reserved, though these people still knew it.
Both Madam Fu and Madam Gao smiled and echoed her sentiments.
Even within the same aristocratic family, there are different ranks and levels.
When the Great Qi Dynasty was first established, the former aristocratic families such as Yu and Chen looked down on the royal family, and there were even instances of them openly refusing marriage, let alone the Duke's mansion. As for the Lang family, they only gradually rose to prominence after the royal family started the imperial examination system to suppress the aristocratic families. They have only been around for a little over a hundred years and are not taken seriously by the Yu and Chen families.
Not to mention how, over the past hundred years, various newly established families have tried every means to suppress the old aristocratic families, and the various conflicts and even grudges between them have long been irreconcilable.
Therefore, the two pillars of the court today, the Duke of Qing's mansion and the Lang family, are at odds with the Yu and Chen families and other prominent families.
It's lamentable that the royal family used to try every means to suppress the old aristocratic families, but now the young emperor, in order to balance the court, is going to support them.
Everyone present knew the truth about this.
Princess Yucheng saw the two off, but when she was left alone, she was somewhat lost in thought.
Is it really that simple?
The Great Qi Dynasty is now teetering on the brink of collapse. Whether it's the old or new aristocratic families, will they really be of use to the royal family?
There is also the Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion and the Zhenbei Army.
Just thinking about such things made Princess Yucheng feel agitated, so she quickly stopped thinking about it.
Bai Xuerou rested for a few days and stopped playing mahjong, but Princess Yucheng's place was always bustling with people.
She was also reminded by Fu Wei to give up mahjong and take walks in the surrounding mountains every morning and evening, which was indeed very interesting.
After a few days of this, they would go out to play mahjong or have banquets, where a group of women would gather and make the days lively and bustling.
The hottest month of June has passed by in the blink of an eye.
In July, just before the Qixi Festival, everyone returned to Chang'an.
Ling Xun personally came to pick up Bai Xuerou. Everyone in the world knew the Black Riders of the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion. Their journey there caused quite a stir.
Upon learning that it was Ling Xun who brought Bai Xuerou back to the mansion, they couldn't help but sigh once again at the deep affection between the two.
After some time had passed, Bai Xuerou returned to the manor and found it somewhat novel. She smiled and shared this with Ling Xun.
"If you're happy, go out more often, but make sure you bring enough guards," Ling Xun said reluctantly.
Hearing his tone of support, as if he would do whatever she wanted, Bai Xuerou couldn't help but smile.
Qixi Festival is also known as the Double Seventh Festival, when girls from all families compete to see who can best perform the best skills. In addition, the palace would hold banquets for the concubines to enjoy themselves and for the officials to compose poems. However, since the emperor is still young and the harem is empty, this practice has naturally been abandoned.
As for the Prince of Zhenbei's mansion, Madam Wu lived in a separate courtyard and rarely returned. Only Bai Xuerou was in the mansion, but there was a group of maids. She then told them that they could play around after they finished their work.
And so, the event kept the place lively for most of the day.
Ling Xun was handling matters in his study when he heard the unusual commotion in the mansion. After asking what had happened, he simply smiled slightly.
He was busy for half a day, and finally finished before dinner, so he went to have dinner with Bai Xuerou.
After the meal, it gradually got dark.
Ling Xun didn't leave. He had someone arrange drinks and snacks in the courtyard so he could enjoy the starry sky tonight.
As darkness fell, the night sky was indeed dazzling with stars.
Bai Xuerou and Ling Xun identified the stars Altair and Vega while chatting in hushed tones.
It is said that the King of Wu in the south is shrinking inch by inch, and that undercurrents are surging in Chang'an.
But no matter how strong the wind and rain outside, they couldn't blow into the Zhenbei Prince's Mansion.
The days that followed seemed to remain unchanged. Everything went smoothly on the battlefield, and the Zhenbei Army kept the King of Wu firmly under control in Wu territory. Chang'an was filled with singing and dancing, and everything seemed to be the same as before.
Perhaps only the royal family is panicking, since the more successful the Zhenbei Army is, the more the royal family will fail.
It seems like just yesterday that Mid-Autumn Festival arrived.
Ling Xun told Bai Xuerou that he planned to lead a group to inspect various places.
For the past six months, Ling Xun has stayed in Chang'an and has not gone on any more expeditions. He has focused his energy on the northern lands and the territory he recovered from Xue Wenxian, governing them little by little and bringing them under his complete control, leaving no opportunity for those with ulterior motives.
The stability of the north was also closely related to the battlefield, after all, the daily expenses of hundreds of thousands of troops amounted to a huge sum of money.
In the early stages, we relied heavily on the resources accumulated in the north over the past ten years or so. But no matter how much we had, the battles that took more than half a year to reach Chang'an, and then the battle with Xue Wenxian, had already depleted most of our resources.
Fortunately, during the battle against Xue Wenxian, a considerable amount of food and weapons were captured.
Most of them came from wealthy and powerful families who colluded with the leaders of the regional military governors.
That finally made up for some of our needs.
However, Ling Xun still needed to prepare for the future, as stability in the future was of utmost importance.
Fortunately, the areas that have been recovered in recent years have gradually returned to order, and the abandoned land has been mostly cultivated. In addition, the northern regions have been well managed in recent years.
The grain collected from this year's tax revenue alone is enough to feed hundreds of thousands of soldiers daily, which greatly put Ling Xun's mind at ease.
The Wu region wanted to buy time and allow themselves to recuperate.
Isn't he the same?
The vast areas that have been ravaged need to be properly managed.
From now on, it will only be a matter of whose methods are superior.
All of this has undoubtedly surprised some people and caused them some anxiety.
It turned out that they saw Ling Xun's excellent fighting skills and thought he was a talented commander. However, everyone has their strengths, and since he was so good at fighting, he must have some shortcomings in governing the country, but he was not.
He was well-versed in the appointment of officials, the governance of local areas, and so on. He could even eliminate all the obstacles that the officials tried to trip him up. It was clear that his ability to govern the country was no less than that of fighting a war.
Could it be that the fate of the Great Qi Dynasty has truly run its course, and Heaven has sent down such a figure?
Such extraordinary talent is nothing more than this.
There were countless praises from the outside world, which Bai Xuerou was well aware of, and it was not surprising that she knew Ling Xun was going to inspect the area.
Ling Xun still explained it in detail—
In the past six months, there have been many troubles in various places. Although he has managed to calm them down, he still feels that he should travel around and take a look.
There are some things that can never be seen in Chang'an or in the palaces of princes.
The habit of going out to patrol was also present in the former Prince of Zhenbei, and Bai Xuerou was quite used to it and expressed her understanding.
She was uneasy, but this was not a trivial matter of going to see her; it was something she had to do. So she didn't say anything, but repeatedly told Ling Xun to be careful.
Ling Xun hesitated for a moment and asked, "Sister-in-law, would you like to come with me? Didn't you want to go back to Yandu to see Master and Mistress? It would be perfect if we went together."
This departure would last for a long time. The thought of not being able to see Bai Xuerou again filled him with reluctance, and he couldn't help but have this idea.
Bai Xuerou was immediately surprised and was indeed somewhat tempted, but after considering it for a moment, she shook her head.
"No need," she said. "You have important business to attend to, and it would be inconvenient for me to follow you. I would only be a burden to you." She added that women should not travel with the army, as it would only slow Ling Xun down.
"It's alright." Ling Xun quickly tried to persuade her again—
"Your Highness," Bai Xuerou interrupted, smiling with relief as she advised, "I know you're thinking of me, but it really doesn't have to be."
"Focus on doing the right thing. If you mix things up, you won't do either well. Then you'll have to consider me, and I'll inevitably worry about affecting you. Why bother?"
"Yandu isn't too far away. I'll go there when I have the chance."
After listening to Bai Xuerou's advice, Ling Xun felt a little down, but he didn't say anything more.
He didn't care about anything else, but Bai Xuerou was right. If he went, she would definitely have to consider him, and he was afraid it would be hard for her too. He didn't want that.
"Then take good care of yourself in Chang'an, sister-in-law."
“Of course,” Bai Xuerou affirmed, then gave him further instructions, which Ling Xun readily agreed to.
After going back and forth like this, the two couldn't help but smile at each other and then stopped talking about it.
Afterwards, Ling Xun arranged everything properly, taking more than ten days until almost September before setting off to lead his men to inspect the northern lands and the territory of Xue Wenxian, which had been subdued the previous year.
This busy period will likely last until the end of the year.
The vast Zhenbei Prince's Mansion was suddenly left with only Bai Xuerou alone.
At first, she didn't feel it was a problem, but after a while, without Ling Xun coming over for meals and conversation every day, she couldn't help but feel a little lonely.
That's how habits are; you don't realize their importance until you lose them.
But life goes on.
Bai Xuerou goes about her daily household chores and attends banquets, seemingly no different from before.
If I had to say, there is.
That is, Yu Kai stopped following her and looked at her with unusual distance and indifference.
Bai Xuerou was somewhat puzzled and couldn't help but be curious, wondering what caused his change in attitude, and even felt particularly bothered.
When she sensed her mood, she couldn't help but think of the male protagonists in the novels she had read who became curious because of the female protagonist's sudden change of attitude.
Bai Xuerou didn't know what the male protagonists were thinking. Her concern had nothing to do with romantic feelings, but rather with worry and anxiety about losing control of the situation.
There must be a reason for her sudden change in attitude, but she didn't know why.
But Bai Xuerou was not one to dwell on such things. She sent someone to investigate, but to no avail. After a few days, she put the matter aside.
Who cares? Things will work themselves out.
September will pass and then it will be October.
Chang'an is warmer than the north, and the mountains block out the cold winds.
In the blink of an eye, Ling Xun has been gone for more than a month.
I had heard before that he had arrived in Yandu, but now it seems he has already turned back.
In October, Bai Xuerou, on a whim, took her personal guards and stayed at Luoxian Temple for a few days.
In early winter, fog rises from Luoxian Mountain every morning and evening, slowly spreading upwards from the foot of the mountain, lingering among the forests and the buildings and pavilions of Luoxian Mountain.
Whenever this happened, Luoxian Mountain seemed to truly become a transcendent place that could attract immortals to descend.
Bai Xuerou even got up early just to see the fog.
She stayed at Luoxian Mountain for quite some time. One morning, she got up, put on her cloak, and went out to the ancient pine tree.
The maid opened the courtyard gate, and Bai Xuerou looked up and saw Ling Xun standing outside the gate, his cloak damp with morning mist and dew.
"Sister-in-law," he called out with a smile.
Her smile was so beautiful that Bai Xuerou almost thought she had encountered a spirit from the mountains.
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