Chapter 103 It's your own fault, nothing is as big as the world...
After bidding farewell to Zhilan, Fu Yun left the palace. Seeing that Zhilan was about to leave the palace with him, Fu Yun quickly stopped her, saying, "You have so many official duties to attend to, so don't waste your time seeing me off."
He knew that Zhilan meant well, worried that something unexpected might happen again, and didn't feel comfortable letting him go back alone, so she thought of personally taking him back to the tea shop.
However, he cannot accept Zhilan's efforts without feeling at ease just because she has good intentions; doing so would only make things harder for her.
Zhilan is so busy with official duties that she's practically on her feet every day. How could I waste her precious time on something as trivial as going back?
Before Zhilan could respond, he reassured her, "Don't worry! With you in charge of Lingzhou City, no one will dare to commit a crime in broad daylight."
Seeing that Fu Yun insisted on not being escorted, Zhi Lan didn't want to force him to escort her herself, so she said, "In that case, Guard Fang and Guard Zhang will escort you back."
"Someone come here."
Fu Yun was slightly taken aback, wondering if these two guards, Fang and Zhang, were the two people she knew.
Two somewhat familiar figures emerged from the shadows of the palace gate. They first raised an eyebrow at Fu Yun, blinked, and then bowed respectfully to Zhi Lan: "Your Majesty, what are your orders?"
Zhilan calmly ordered, "From now on, the two of you will be Young Master Su's personal guards. If anything happens to him, you two will have to answer to him with your heads."
Guard Zhang and Guard Fang were startled and immediately replied solemnly, "Your subordinates obey."
Zhilan raised her hand and waved gently: "Go! Report any unusual phenomena immediately."
"yes!"
After receiving their orders, the two men consciously stepped aside and waited silently.
Zhilan stared at Fu Jun for a moment, then whispered, "If you encounter a problem that even Guard Fang and Guard Zhang can't solve, have them go find Ye Lan. She will find a way to handle it."
Zhilan's careful advice touched Fu Yun deeply: "I know. Don't push yourself too hard. Don't get so busy that you forget to eat and sleep. A healthy body is the foundation for continuing to strive. Be sure to pay attention to the balance between work and rest."
Zhilan was amused by Fu Yun's words: "Where did you get the idea that I was working day and night?"
Fu Jun said with certainty, "I guessed it. I feel like that's just how you do things."
Zhilan chuckled and shook her head, seemingly somewhat helpless: "Alright, it's getting late, you should go now!"
Fu Jun said no more, turned and left: "Then I'm leaving."
He turned around and waved: "Goodbye."
Zhilan nodded, gazing quietly at his handsome back as he walked away and disappeared into the crowd.
Fu Yun resisted the urge to look back and walked away from the palace gate step by step.
Actually, what he just said wasn't fabricated out of thin air, nor was it a guess; it was something he deeply understood.
During this period, he only had a few interactions with Zhilan before one trouble after another came knocking on his door. It is conceivable what kind of difficulties Zhilan, as the person at the center of the storm, would encounter. In the court, there were princes and generals forming cliques for personal gain, vainly trying to seize power and replace the emperor, and there were also old ministers with ulterior motives who relied on their seniority and tried to use the name of the late emperor to give instructions, and were reluctant to hand over important power.
The bloodshed in the imperial court is no less intense than in the business world. Although Zhilan had already carried out a major purge during the years she was in power, it was difficult to uproot the towering trees left over from the previous dynasty all at once, not to mention that after a period of recuperation, there would be newcomers who could surpass her.
Moreover, in addition to internal troubles, there are also external threats. Foreign powers are making constant moves behind the scenes and have long been eyeing us covetously.
It's not hard to imagine the predicament Zhilan, as the ruler of a country, is facing now; she must be overwhelmed with worry!
There's no doubt how he knew all this. He's been recuperating in the palace these past few days, and although he can't attend court in person, he's still managed to glean some inside information from Zhilan's snippets of conversation.
Even though Zhilan, due to her status, did not have the intention to discuss matters of the court in depth, and usually only touched upon them briefly, revealing only a few details, Fu Jun, as the person in charge, could naturally deduce the general situation. In addition, with Xiao Ba filling in the gaps, he was already very clear about the current situation in the court.
Fu Yun vividly remembers that on the third day after he woke up, Zhi Lan came over after court, looking particularly heavy-hearted. After having dinner with Fu Yun, she didn't go back to attend to government affairs, but instead went to the outer room to rest and sat by the window reading for half an hour.
Fu Jun wanted to chat with her briefly, but seeing that she was looking down at her book, he didn't want to disturb her and quietly lay down on the couch for a nap.
Just as he was dozing off, Zhilan walked in slowly and spoke her first words after the meal. With a deep look in her eyes, she asked Fu Jun, "If your own sister wanted to kill you, what would you do?"
Fu Yun remained silent for a long time because he didn't know how to respond appropriately. After all, he was an only child and it was difficult for him to truly empathize with others.
However, if we consider Su Fuyun's current situation, he roughly has an answer in mind, but it may not necessarily apply to Zhilan.
However, the fact that Zhilan finally asked this question after remaining silent for so long proves that she is having a headache over this matter.
This also shows that Zhilan is not as cold-blooded and cruel as described in the original work; she also experienced hesitation and confusion.
Fu Yun replied, "First, you are yourself; second, you are the monarch; and lastly, you are the sister."
Zhilan's pupils dilated slightly as she stared at Fu Jun, remaining silent for a long time.
Fu Yun knew that his words, in Zhi Lan's eyes, somewhat overturned her imagination of him, but he still had to say them.
Fu Jun smiled and added, "Actually, life is only a few decades long. It's not wrong to shoulder great responsibilities, but it's also good to live life freely. Since others no longer treat us as family, why should we care about this little bit of kinship?"
Zhilan's gaze deepened: "But fratricide ultimately violates human ethics and morality."
Fu Yun gently shook her head: "I don't mean to kill him immediately. I just want to remind you to think more about yourself. There's nothing wrong with being sentimental, but we have to be selective about who we are with. Some people really aren't worth wasting our emotions on. Nothing is more important than your own happiness. Don't be bound by so-called family ties. I believe that besides life and death, you must have other ways of dealing with things in your heart."
He suddenly remembered the time when Zhilan was assassinated. Zhilan had disguised herself, and even Ye Lan and the people from the Censorate did not recognize her, but the assassin recognized her accurately.
Given Zhilan's confusion, the answer is self-evident. Just as he had guessed, the mastermind behind the assassination was someone close to her, either her older sister or younger sister.
Fu Yun was unaware that Zhi Lan had any siblings, and Xiao Ba had not mentioned it before.
It might just be a dispensable cannon fodder in its eyes, a passerby who gets mentioned or not mentioned.
As members of the royal family, having brothers and sisters is essential; the question is how many will survive the struggle for the throne.
After Fu Yun finished speaking, Zhi Lan remained silent for a long time, her gaze towards Fu Yun like a deep pool, with undercurrents surging in her eyes.
Finally, she smiled slightly, a faint smile playing in her eyes, revealing a hint of relief: "What you said makes some sense. I'm leaving now. Take good care of yourself."
Fu Yun didn't know how Zhi Lan handled it in the end, but she never showed the same expression she did that day again.
Fu Yun walked forward in deep thought, and before she knew it, she had returned to the tea shop.
Upon seeing Fu Yun's appearance, the previously bustling entrance instantly fell silent.
Everyone stared at him, their eyes filled with amazement.
Su Mang was the first to react, her eyes brimming with joy. She hurriedly came out from behind the counter and strode towards the door: "Young master, you're back?"
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