Chapter 31
In the end, Yuan Liu Niang's wish to call Prince Cheng "father" was not fulfilled.
Lin Qiang returned just as she left.
“............”
Feng's plan to watch a good show failed. He touched his nose and immediately slipped away, leaving Yuan Liu Niang alone to face her eldest son who was returning to the mansion.
"......You dead wind, I'm going to smash your head in tomorrow!!!"
The irritable Liu Niang is cursing online.
Lin Qiang, dressed in black, sighed helplessly: "Alright, you should go back to sleep too. We have to travel tomorrow. I'm going to see that Prince Cheng." He had something to tell him.
Yuan Liu Niang did not leave immediately upon hearing his words.
Lin Qiang asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
She clenched her fists tightly, hesitated for a moment, and then mustered up the courage to ask, "Boss, why do you insist on sending me away?"
"I haven't caused any trouble, and I've completed the mission perfectly. Why does the chief insist on getting rid of me? Is there something Sixth Sister did that didn't satisfy you?"
As soon as she asked the question, she became even more uneasy, but she still wanted to know the reason, so she insisted on standing still.
She couldn't understand why Lin Qiang initially refused to let her come to Beijing. She pleaded with him for a long time, and with the help of her fourth and sixth brothers, he finally reluctantly allowed her to come to the capital. Now, she'd only been there for less than six months, and she was being transferred again… Why?
"Don't overthink it. The reason I sent you to Jiangnan is simply because Lao Liu is too busy." His smile was gentle, and for the first time, he reached out and ruffled her hair.
Lin Qiang had witnessed Yuan Liu Niang's changes over the past few years, and theoretically, he shouldn't have anything to worry about. However, the power of the plot can be very strong at times. Putting aside the original owner's pleas for him, from a purely personal perspective, he couldn't just stand by and watch her follow the same path as in the book.
"Go back to sleep."
"oh......."
The sudden touch startled Yuan Liu Niang, her mind going blank for a moment. She had no energy left to think about how perfunctory his reason was. She blankly responded and then turned and left.
As she walked, the image of the Boss's beautiful smile kept playing on repeat in her mind... The Boss ruffled her hair...
Her heart suddenly raced, and she couldn't help but think of the way the leader doted on Wang Yao three years ago... that kind of pampering and care made her extremely envious.
While she was practicing horse stance under the scorching sun, Wang Yao read and learned to read in his arms.
While she practiced basic skills with heavy sandbags strapped to her feet, Wang Yao learned internal energy cultivation techniques under his guidance.
She fought the bandits, drenched in sweat, and when she fell, she could only grit her teeth and get up. He was extremely distressed when Wang Yao suffered a minor injury while practicing martial arts.
Wang Yao called him Big Beard, but she could only call him Boss.
When Wang Yao got angry, she would scold him and playfully pull his beard. He would just smile indulgently, afraid that she would get pricked by his beard.
She could only watch from afar, secretly envious. Because his smiles towards her, like those towards the brothers in the village, never touched his eyes…
Why Wang Yao?
What is so good about that woman?
How enviable...
Thinking of all this, her wildly beating heart slowly calmed down. She gave a bitter smile and held back the tears welling up in her eyes.
The man who was like a god in her heart did not belong to her...
After Yuan Liuniang left, Lin Qiang went directly to where Prince Cheng was.
Under the moonlight, the man in the wheelchair was as aloof as an immortal, his exquisite features perfectly flawless. He looked at Lin Qiang, who appeared like a ghost, without the slightest surprise on his face.
"A big black beard?"
Yuwen Zhe frowned, looking at the bandit he had personally killed and beheaded in his previous life.
"You're not Black Beard."
Their faces were the same, but their temperaments were completely different. The man before them was like a deep, ancient well, tranquil yet dangerous, far surpassing the rough-and-tumble bandit of their past lives.
Therefore, the changes in Liu Niang in this life must be related to the person in front of her!
Lin Qiang grinned, completely ignoring the probing look in his eyes. He pushed himself up on the wall without a care for his image and sat down, looking down at Yuwen Zhe below.
"Your Highness, why are you here at my humble residence in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?" His roguish tone carried a hint of mockery.
"I've come to find you."
He would never say that he was coming to see Sixth Sister; moreover, he also wanted to meet this bandit leader whose temperament had changed drastically.
Yuwen Zhe now suspects that this person, like himself, has also been reborn.
"Looking for me?" Lin Qiang smiled knowingly. "Did Prince Cheng come to see why this humble subject is still alive?"
"Over the past four years, you have secretly sent men to carry out forty-six ambushes on Black Cloud Stronghold. Does Prince Cheng still remember this debt?"
This was something Lin Qiang couldn't understand: why was Yuwen Zhe so obsessed with Black Cloud Village? Was there some secret involved?
Yuwen Zhe stared at him, his face still expressionless, but a tidal wave of emotions raged within him. This bandit actually knew it was him?!
He tentatively said, "Don't you know what you have? Once the news gets out, you won't just face a few ambushes, you'll be hunted down by the whole world."
A global manhunt?
Oh ho, do you think I'm easily scared?
Lin Qiang scoffed, uninterested in wasting any more time with him, and said directly, "I'll remember the debt Your Highness owes me for now, and we can settle it later. Now, I have a business deal to do with you. I wonder if you're interested?"
"Buying or selling?"
"You don't need to give me an answer now. I will send a great gift to Prince Cheng's residence tomorrow. We can talk after you have seen it."
Lin Qiang stood up, stepped against the wall, patted off imaginary dust, and smiled gently. Before leaving, he deliberately left a message.
"If Your Highness doesn't want Sixth Sister to know that she has been in danger several times because of your men, then please don't come climbing over the walls of my Lin residence late at night anymore. Our residence is too small to accommodate such a great figure as yourself."
Yuwen Zhe's face instantly turned ashen.
This bandit actually dared to threaten him!
In fact, his face turned pale rather early. The next day, he first saw the people Lin Qiang had sent to his residence, and then received news that Yuan Liu Niang had left the capital. His face turned from pale to black, and he gritted his teeth in hatred.
"What do you mean by this? I don't know these people!"
The people bound hand and foot on the ground were none other than those who had assassinated Yuan Qiong outside Chang'an Temple.
These past few days, Yuan Qiong and Yuwen Ting have been locked in a fierce battle, and he's been planning to reap the benefits while others are at it! If news gets out that he sent someone to assassinate Yuan Qiong, that woman will definitely not let it go!
The fourth brother's face was full of a warm smile: "Oh, Your Highness, please don't misunderstand. Our eldest brother didn't mean anything by it. He just felt that these people were destined for Your Highness, so he specially sent them here for you to take a look. If you don't like them, this humble subject will take them back later."
"You're threatening me?"
Yesterday the bandit threatened him, and today the bandit's henchmen are threatening him too. This is outrageous!
**
At the end of Chen Shi (7-9 AM), inside Zhaoyang Palace, Yuan Qiong sat in the main seat with a cold face, casually looking at the concubines kneeling on the ground below.
As Empress, she was fully aware of everything happening in the harem. Last night, Yuwen Ting had slept with Yuan Zhen, and she received the news immediately, feeling a mix of emotions.
After the disappointment came a deep sense of fatigue.
Fine, since he doesn't care anymore, there's no need for her to persist any longer.
Where is Consort Yuan of Cuiyuan Palace?
Xiaoyu stepped forward, holding a light yellow silk cloth in her hand.
Amidst the throng of beautiful women, Yuanzhen, her face beaming with spring-like joy, stepped forward. She glanced smugly at her elder sister, only to find that her sister wasn't even looking at her, and lowered her head in resentment.
Hmph! You're putting on quite a show. His Majesty has favored me, I bet you're not upset inside!
Thinking of this, she felt a little more at ease and replied, "Your Majesty, I am here."
"By imperial decree, Consort Yuanzhen of Cuiyuan Palace, for her meritorious service in serving Your Majesty, is hereby promoted to the rank of Zhaoyi. It is hoped that the other noble ladies will take this as an example and serve Your Majesty more often. This is the decree."
After Xiao Jin finished speaking, she handed the silk cloth in her hand to a palace maid, asking her to pass it on to Yuan Zhen.
Leaving aside Yuanzhen's ecstatic joy, for everyone else, hearing this news was like a boulder thrown into a lake, stirring up a tidal wave in their hearts.
Every woman in the harem knew that before the wedding, when they were in the Eastern Palace, the Emperor would occasionally visit his concubines and palace maids. But after the wedding, the Emperor favored only the Empress and never touched another woman again!
Even when he argued with the Empress recently and went to other concubines' palaces, he simply slept under a quilt. But last night, the Emperor actually slept with another woman?!
Does this mean they have a chance?!
"Your Majesty, I thank you for your divine grace! May Your Majesty live a thousand years!"
Yuanzhen hurriedly accepted the imperial decree, basking in the shocked, envious, and jealous gazes of the many concubines, feeling somewhat elated.
The others then realized that Yuan Zhen and the Empress were both daughters of the Yuan family, so it was only natural for them to support each other. If they dared to do so, wouldn't the Empress...?
Yuan Qiong saw the concerns of the crowd, smiled slightly, and said sincerely, "The lack of an imperial heir in the harem has been a great worry for me, causing me to blame myself every night and making it difficult for me to sleep. I hope that all of you sisters can be like Consort Yuan, accompany the King more often, and give birth to imperial heirs for our Great Yan as soon as possible to continue the royal bloodline."
The implication is: don't hesitate, go for it! Whoever can seduce the emperor gets to keep him! Whoever gives birth to the emperor's eldest son is the ultimate winner!
"Yes, I will heed Your Majesty's instructions..."
The concubines below, regardless of their rank, were all filled with excitement.
The day they had been dreaming of had finally arrived!
"Alright, I'm tired. You may all leave."
"promise."
Full of fighting spirit, the concubines rushed out of Chaoyang Palace, hoping to get back quickly to dress up and décor, lest they be outdone by other vixens!
Yuanzhen glanced back at her superior elder sister, only to find that she hadn't even spared her a glance, as if she were just an ant, utterly insignificant. This only fueled her resentment.
Sure enough, this woman couldn't stand to see her doing well, so she instigated other concubines to compete with her for the emperor's favor and deliberately made trouble for her!
Xiao Jin noticed Yuan Zhen's gaze and looked at her master questioningly.
"Your Majesty?"
Yuan Qiong stood up indifferently and said calmly, "Let her be."
Ideally, her half-sister would inherit Lady You's fertility and be able to give birth to a prince.
"Send more imperial physicians to help the concubines in the palace recover their health."
"promise."
Yuwen Jing was physically weak, so these women were the ones who had children.
Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the [nutrient solution]:
35896691 10 bottles; The top bunkmate who's terrible at naming things also got 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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