Chapter 65
Princess Yongning's figure completely disappeared around the corner, and Zheng Dehao slowly emerged from the shadows of the bamboo forest, his eyes still closely following the direction the princess left.
His eyes were full of complexity, confusion, heartache, and a hint of unspeakable emotions.
He murmured to himself in a soft voice, "What on earth has caused the princess to become so thin?"
Luo Sanrong felt a headache coming on, and quietly closed his eyes, trying to calm the waves in his heart.
When he opened his eyes again, his expression was filled with helplessness. He looked up at the person beside him and sighed, "I'll be in the palace many times in the future. I can't just panic and hide every time I see the princess. How are you going to deal with this in the future?"
Zheng Dehao's expression was equally solemn, his brows twisted into the shape of the Chinese character "川", and his eyes were full of confusion and hesitation.
After a long silence, he stammered, "If Her Royal Highness recognizes me, it will probably cause trouble! I can only try my best to avoid her. What else can I do?"
He slowly withdrew his gaze and turned back to look at Luo Sanrong, his brows still furrowed. There was a hint of stubbornness in his tone: "But honestly, the princess is too thin."
Luo Sanrong: “…”
In the imperial study, His Majesty held the rolled-up memorial with his fingertips, and the word "准" (approved) written in cinnabar was rubbed to a shine by his fingertips.
He suddenly slammed the memorial on the table. The jade paperweight bounced up half an inch and rolled over several unopened secret letters with a dull sound.
He sighed and said to Shang Gong, who was beside him, "Shang Gong, the Crown Prince has just taken over the government, and these court officials are starting to get restless again. It's obvious what's going to happen next. Everyone will unite..."
He didn't continue the conversation, but both he and Shang Gong knew what might happen in the future if they left it alone.
Lord Shang reminded him, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince's state wedding that we mentioned earlier, do you want to continue?"
His Majesty said without question, "Of course we will continue. Not only that, we will also have the Ministry of Rites make preparations as fast as possible."
Then he continued, "Isn't the Crown Prince's marriage a national celebration? To win back the hearts of the people, we must hold a grand ceremony to show them that the royal family is still alive and well."
Lord Shang was silent for a moment, then cautiously asked, "If that's the case, then who should be the Crown Princess?"
His Majesty pondered for a moment, then ordered, "Secretly summon the Minister of War, Zhao Wanyong!"
Lord Shang: "Yes, Your Majesty!"
When Zhao Wanyong first received the secret order from His Majesty, he was a little overwhelmed, thinking: "Could it be that His Majesty knows that he and the Prime Minister have joined forces..."
With this apprehensive mood, he came to the imperial study, bowed, and cautiously asked, "I wonder why you secretly summoned me?"
His Majesty didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "Then I'll be frank with you! Please lend a hand to me and the Crown Prince."
It wasn't what he thought. The fingers hanging in his sleeves curled up almost imperceptibly, and his back, which had been tense like a bowstring, slowly relaxed. Then, upon hearing His Majesty's words, his heart, which had just been relieved, began to hang in the air again.
His Majesty said solemnly, "I want Yan'er to be the Crown Princess and always stand by the Crown Prince's side."
Zheng Wanyong: “?”
In just an hour, the news spread like wings, flying out from the vermilion corridors inside the palace gate, flying over the bluestone slabs of Suzaku Street, and crashing into the red gates of various mansions.
In just half an hour, the hanging flower gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion was almost broken down.
With a "bang", the Minister of Personnel rushed in with his hot court beads in his pocket, and ran into the Vice Minister of Revenue who was tiptoeing into the main hall.
"Have you heard everything?" someone asked in a low voice.
The sandalwood eight-immortals table in the main hall was squeezed and moved half a foot. The usually dignified and solemn Imperial Censor was pacing back and forth, holding a teacup in his hand. The beautifully glazed covered bowl was turning rapidly in his palm. He was completely unaware that the splashed tea had wet the hem of his moon-white brocade robe.
"A state marriage, this is a state marriage. Aren't you trying to join forces with Zhang Wanyong to decide the Crown Princess in advance?" He stopped abruptly, his voice trembling without him even noticing.
Ji Zeming hadn't heard of the Crown Prince's upcoming wedding until today, when all the ministers gathered at his house. He suddenly learned the news and quickly came over to confirm, "Are you saying the Crown Prince is getting married?"
"Yes!" a court official answered casually.
"Could it be that all along, the reason for repeatedly postponing the marriage with Zeming is..." The Minister of Rites hurriedly pulled his sleeve, and out of the corner of his eye he saw a gray shadow flash behind the screen. It was the Prime Minister's personal servant.
Everyone fell silent, leaving only the clatter of heavy breathing against the beams. The cicadas outside the window had ceased chirping at some point, leaving only the rustling of locust tree leaves in the wind, a sound even more unsettling than the chattering earlier.
"In my opinion..." The Minister of Works was about to speak when he was interrupted by a burst of hurried footsteps.
The housekeeper lifted the curtain and shouted, "The Prime Minister is back." Everyone in the room suddenly quieted down, lowered their heads, and the panic that was just in their eyes and eyebrows turned into respectful silence.
The Minister of Revenue observed the Prime Minister's expression and said softly, "Doesn't this demonstrate that Your Majesty is resolute in his resolve to stabilize the chaotic court, centering around the Crown Prince?"
A minister nearby who was also concerned about this said speculatively, "The Crown Prince has already started to take charge of government affairs. If he asks the Crown Princess for help,..." He didn't forget to steal a glance at the Prime Minister's expression.
A minister said righteously: "We must stop this situation..."
"If the Crown Prince and the Minister of War join forces, and if another grandson is born during this period..."
"Now that the queen is pregnant with a prince, we absolutely cannot miss such a good opportunity."
The ministers were talking at once, but the prime minister remained expressionless.
The prime minister placed the teacup on the table with a thud, and the ministers fell silent. Seeing the time had come, the prime minister said, "Don't worry."
The ministers looked at him, only to see him slowly say, "How can Your Majesty decide the Crown Princess alone?"
The Minister of Revenue asked earnestly, "So, do you have any good ideas to stop the state marriage?"
The Prime Minister did not answer, but instead asked, "How old is your little daughter?"
The Minister of Revenue looked confused.
——
Li Yin saw that Luo Sanrong had not returned for a long time, so he wanted to find out where she had gone. Unexpectedly, he saw Luo Sanrong sandwiched between two eunuchs.
Although eunuchs are not men in the clear sense, they are still men before entering the palace.
Li Yin stepped forward and heard one of the eunuchs say to Luo Sanrong, "Eunuch Luo, lift your feet and rest your arms on our shoulders."
Another eunuch beside him was laughing and agreeing.
Li Yin walked up to the three of them and asked in a serious voice, "Why are you so happy?"
One of the eunuchs saw that it was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and instinctively wanted to salute, but he didn't realize that he was carrying someone on his shoulders. He stopped halfway through the salute and explained dully, "Um, Your Highness, Luo Neiguan just sprained his ankle..."
Another eunuch took over and said, "Yes, so we want to send Luo Neiguan to the East Palace safely..."
The tall eunuch saw the prince's dark face and seemed to have just remembered something. He gently put Luo Sanying down and quickly pulled another eunuch away.
Luo Sanrong hadn't noticed anything unusual yet and was still thanking them sincerely, not noticing that Li Yin's face had turned even darker.
After they left, Li Yin finally said, "You are really capable!"
Luo Sanrong explained, "I was trying to pick persimmons from the tree, so I accidentally fell down..."
Li Yin: "You're really capable. You dare to put your arm around anyone and smile so brightly at them, and you're still hurt."
Luo Sanrong didn't say anything.
Li Yin slowed down his expression and said in a stiff voice, "Don't get hurt again. This is an order."
Luo Sanrong muttered, "Do you think I got hurt because I wanted to get hurt?"
Li Yin continued, "In front of others, even if you want to laugh, you have to hold it in. This is also an order."
Luo Sanrong turned around and said angrily, "I don't want it."
Li Yin: "What, no?"
Li Yin put his arm around Luo Sanrong's cheek and kissed her on it. Luo Sanrong's eyes widened suddenly, but she did not push him away.
After waiting for an unknown amount of time, Li Yin smiled contentedly and said to Luo Sanrong, whose face had turned red, "This is the punishment for disobeying my orders."
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