Lin Xianzhi was very grateful. His life had always been unfortunate, but he was fortunate to have met Leng Qingning, who was like a ray of light in his dark life, warm and bright.
He never imagined he could become her attendant. Even when he first met her, he only dared to imagine that Leng Qingning would take him away and keep him by her side as a concubine or a servant.
This is the best possible outcome; he should be content.
Meanwhile, Cang Yuan's act of sleeping with the Cangwu Sword in his arms sparked outrage. How could Fu Guang and the others tolerate this? The guards slept on a large communal bed, and with such a precious sword right in front of them, yet someone insisted on sleeping with it, it seriously disrupted the harmony among the roommates.
Thus, a major battle was inevitable.
That night, chaos erupted in the men's quarters. When they awoke the next morning, the room was in disarray, with branches that had already shed few leaves lying scattered on the floor. The once handsome men were now covered in bruises and cuts.
Cang Yuan had his head down all morning. Leng Qingning was puzzled. What was wrong with him? Wasn't he quite happy last night? What's going on?
Taking advantage of Cang Yuan's inattention, Leng Qingning grabbed his face with a pinch, not too hard, not too soft, and lifted his face, forcing him to look into her eyes.
One of her eyes was surrounded by a bluish-purple bruise, which startled Leng Qingning.
Her jade-like fingers touched the eye sockets gently, a hint of heartache in her voice: "Cangyuan, what's wrong? Who bullied you?"
Cang Yuan said in a low voice, "Your Highness, I am fine. No one bullied me. I was just playing around with Fu Guang and the others."
After saying that, he added, "They are worse off than their subordinates."
Leng Qingning sighed, pulled Cang Yuan into the room, and gently applied the medicine to him.
The handsome young man lowered his eyes, his cheeks flushed, and his hands nervously gripped the corner of the table.
Rationally, Cang Yuan felt this was against the rules—how could he allow his master to apply medicine to him? But emotionally, he hoped this moment could last longer; he also wanted to receive His Highness's care, even just a little bit.
"Cangyuan, would you be willing to serve as my vice minister?"
The question caught Cang Yuan off guard.
Seeing him standing there blankly without speaking, Leng Qingning assumed he was unwilling. Could it be that he thought the position of Vice Minister was too low?
(The imperial family had a rule that princesses of the rank of Attendant-in-Ordinary could only marry the sons of officials. The title "Attendant-in-Ordinary" meant "master" or "husband." Attendants-in-Ordinary could refer to themselves as "this Attendant-in-Ordinary" when addressing those of lower status. Those below the rank of Attendant-in-Ordinary were concubines, such as Attendant-in-Ordinary, Virtuous Attendant, and Chamberlain.)
(Whether it's the emperor or a concubine, they all have to be listed on the jade tablet. Given Cangyuan's status as a secret guard and Lin Xianzhi's status as the son of a disgraced official, they can only serve as the lowest-ranking concubine, that is, a maid.)
Forget it, I won't force them if they're unwilling. "If you're unwilling, I won't force you..." Sigh.
The Emperor's appointment of Lin Xianzhi as a Vice Minister was already an extraordinary act of kindness; the most she could offer Cang Yuan was the position of Vice Minister.
"Your Highness, I am willing."
Cang Yuan remained silent, and Leng Qingning assumed he was unwilling. In reality, he was incredibly excited. He simply wanted to be closer to His Highness and would be happy to be by her side to protect her.
Now, she's actually going to openly and legitimately bestow upon him a title—the position of Vice Minister. How could he not be overjoyed…
Unconsciously, Cang Yuan's lips curled up, his eyes filled with deep tenderness, his cheeks like the evening sun, and his ears like smoky clouds. He looked completely different from his usual serious and unsmiling self.
In this moment, Leng Qingning stared at the handsome young man's crimson lips, feeling an urge to break free from constraints and to rush towards her dreamland.
Glug~
As I drew closer to his alluring lips, my heart raced…
Gently, emotions stirred, with a touch of coolness.
"Knock knock knock".
"Your Highness, are you there?"
Leng Qingning instantly regained her senses, while Cang Yuan opened his hazy eyes, his eyelashes trembling slightly.
Upon opening the door, Mo Shuang noticed that her master's expression was not good. She lowered her head and said nervously, "Your Highness, what should be done with Lu Xianshi? Please give your instructions."
Hearing this, Leng Qingning's face darkened even more: "Arrange it however you want, why bother Your Highness with such a trivial matter?"
Seriously, that damned Mo Shuang! She'd barely touched it, hadn't even tasted it yet, and she'd already ruined her good time. So annoying!
Mo Shuang didn't dare to raise her head. She was only doing this on someone else's behalf: "Your Highness, Lu Xianshi has been staying in the guest room these past few days. I dare not make any decisions on my own. I would like to ask Your Highness to bestow a courtyard and name upon him."
Leng Qingning remembered that all the husbands of the young king, regardless of their rank, were assigned their own courtyards, even the lowest-ranking servants had their own courtyards.
"Assign the courtyards according to rank. There are too many courtyards in the manor, and I don't have time to visit them all. Let's call it Hehuan Courtyard. Is there anything else?"
"Young Master Fu sent an invitation, saying that Your Highness's restaurant will open tomorrow, and he would like Your Highness to come and cut the ribbon."
Tomorrow? Etiquette class. "Send someone to the Imperial Academy to draft a leave slip for me. I won't be attending class tomorrow. Go reply to Young Master Fu." She still needs to go to the new shop opening, and Leng Qingning has another plan…
"Yes. This servant takes her leave." Mo Shuang quickly retreated. It wasn't easy for her; if it weren't for Minister Lin's request for her help… Sigh, His Highness was truly frightening today…
After closing the door and returning to the room, I saw that Cangyuan had returned to his usual coldness, and the blush on his face had faded.
Well, that's it! ...Never mind.
"Cangyuan, you should move to Guanyun Pavilion. I will report to Father and register you on the Jade Register and change your indenture."
Cang Yuan asked in surprise, "Your Highness, Guanyun Pavilion is a residence for those who serve the emperor. How can I possibly stay here?"
She gently tapped Cang Yuan's forehead with her jade-like hand. "Silly boy, still calling yourself 'subordinate'? I am your mistress now, so you are not allowed to refer to yourself as 'subordinate' anymore. As for Guanyun Pavilion, if I say you can stay there, then go ahead and stay. Understand?"
"Furthermore, do you know what it means when the character '纤' is combined with the character '凝' from my name?"
Cangyuan shook his head.
Leng Qingning: "Qianning means cloud. Do you understand?"
Cang Yuan immediately realized: Guan Yunxuan, Guan Ning. He then nodded gently, "I want to stay at Guan Yunxuan!"
With nothing else to do, Leng Qingning took Bai Yulingze to the painting studio to check on the sales of their new book.
Biluo angered Leng Qingning yesterday and was "locked in a dark room." Cangyuan wanted to go with her, but Leng Qingning wouldn't let him. She gave him five thousand taels of silver and told him to go out and buy the items he liked, and move into Guanyunxuan that night.
Biluo lay sullenly on the railing of the small pond, watching the fish swimming freely in the water. She felt a tightness in her chest and difficulty breathing, and she didn't even notice Fuguang approaching.
"Your Highness is only angry for a moment, he will be fine in a few days."
Biluo looked up at Fuguang in a daze: "What are you doing here? You didn't make a sound." After saying that, she snorted and turned her head away.
"If someone shuts down their five senses and grieves in silence, how can they blame others for remaining silent?"
What happened to your face? Who could have hurt you?
Fu Guang smiled nonchalantly, "Who else could it be but fifty thousand taels!"
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