Feng Yuran’s hesitated and uneasy voice that was unusual rang. “Tong’er, do you like me?”
He, who always appeared confident and devilishly attractive, was never so unsure like now.
Smiles appeared on her face, and the corners of her lips lifted unconsciously with warmth in her heart. She leaned still on his chest and clenched a corner of his sleeve, as if only in this way, could the sweetness not pass away.
Feng Yuran was so tenacious that when he couldn’t hear Mo Xuetong’s reply, he stretched out his hand to hold Mo Xuetong’s chin. “Why don’t you speak?”
Mo Xuetong tried to get rid of his hand, but failed. And her chin was held up by his strong hand.
Feng Yuran was really unbending. “Say, do you like me?” His comely red lips lifted, revealing a domineering charm but with a little anticipation in his eyes. With his temperament, it was almost impossible for him to have such a look. But she was able to see the anticipation in his eyes.
Mo Xuetong’s heart softened, and she tried to get rid of his hand, lowered her head on his chest, compressed her lips and murmured, “I pledge that I will hold your hands till death and end.”
Hearing the sentence, the man with good hearing was stiff and collected himself after a while. He lifted his beautiful lips with great joy, turned Mo Xuetong over in his chest, and kissed her tender pink ears. And he said softly, “Just keep your words!”
Mo Xuetong blushed and nodded. She pushed him, opened her bright eyes, and pouted her delicate red lips, “Then tell me what His Majesty asked you for today. I was worried… worried… about you.”
Speaking of this, she could not continue, and bit her lips with a hint of unease flashing in her eyes.
This little cunning thing was waiting for him here.
Feng Yuran gave a warm smile and pinched her nose gently to pamper her. “It’s not a big deal. Since the posthouse has not been built well yet, the prince and princess from the Southern Barbarian Lands will live in King Xuan’s Manor first, and His Majesty asked me to arrange for it.”
“The prince and princess of the Southern Barbarian Lands will live here? Why?” Mo Xuetong was surprised, raised her head suddenly and asked puzzledly. She did not remember that King Xuan’s Manor had to receive the prince and princess of the Southern Barbarian Lands in the last life. And it worried her, and she felt at the subliminal level that they should stay away from the people and the things of the Southern Barbarian Lands as far as possible…
“Yes, I heard that it was the eldest brother who made the request to His Majesty. So rare that he still cherishes the brotherhood.” Feng Yuran got off from Mo Xuetong and pulled her into his arms again. His lips raised into a bright and devilish sneer, with a slight hint of sarcasm. How could he let down Feng Yuxuan’s careful thoughts for him?
Mo Xuetong’s heart throbbed, and her eyebrows wrinkled slightly. She would not believe that Feng Yuran made that request out of good intention. Now Feng Yulei was confined, and Feng Yuzhen was suppressed too harshly to take any movement. Although Feng Yuran had not represented any threat before, Emperor Zongwen reused him now, and Feng Yuran did not stir up any ridiculous matter after marriage.
Did Feng Yuxuan feel threatened, so he took action first?
“What does King Chu want to do?” Mo Xuetong asked uneasily with a hint of doubt in her charming eyes. The Southern Barbarian Lands was close to Great Qin geographically. If Great Qin could make good terms with it, Great Qin could win its support. If Feng Yuran could get its support, it would be of great help to him. So did Feng Yuxuan really not care about it?
“No matter what he wants to do, it is too early to tell. It’s fine. I am here to deal with the Southern Barbarian Lands affairs. Go to bed earlier. Tomorrow, the Empress Dowager will ask you and other grandson’s consorts to enter the palace. She said she missed you so much since she hadn’t seen you for a long time.” Feng Yuran smiled softly with a gleam of darkness flashing in his eyes.
Everyone knew that the Empress Dowager cared about King Ning, Feng Yuzhen most. But it was a pity that King Ning had lost his wife in such a disgraceful way. And the Grand Secretariat Wang lost two daughters unexpectedly, so he was not in the mood to help Feng Yuzhen any longer. He did not know what tricks the Empress Dowager played now.
It was really disturbing!
Astonished, Mo Xuetong shifted her focus from the Southern Barbarian Lands to the Empress Dowager, blinked her eyes and asked curiously, “Just ask me and King Chu’s consort to enter the palace?”
Since she could not get along well with Ling Rui’er, every time they met, some trouble would be caused. Why did the Empress Dowager bring Mo Xuetong and Ling Rui’er together?
“It’s not just you. There’s also King Yan’s consort. It’s said that You Yuecheng’s newly-married wife will come tomorrow, as well as other young ladies and married ladies. The Empress Dowager said she was in poor health and wanted cheering up by the young people’s vigor. So the people she asked are all young.” Feng Yuran’s dark eyes gleamed with a dangerous light, and a trace of coldness appeared on the corner of his lips.
The Empress Dowager’s intention was easy to guess. All she did were definitely for Feng Yuzhen. But where did she get the confidence that Feng Yuzhen could win the throne from His Majesty?
Wang Yueyue had died, and no one knew who would be the next.
Mo Xuetong gave a resigned smile, and her long eyelashes fluttered. Then, she suddenly snorted with laughter when the matter between You Yue’e and the first miss of Ling’s Manor occurred to her. Mo Xuetong had heard about the First Miss Ling’s story when coming to the capital for the first time. Then, she heard that First Miss Ling was rebuked by the Empress Dowager, and was confined in the manor.
Not long after First Miss Ling had been released was she framed up by Feng Yuran. Of course, it was mainly because of Ling Mingyan’s own plot. Surprisingly, the unruly and unreasonable legitimate first miss of the Ding General Manor knew how to frame up others, which was rather unexpected.
But it was not bad anyway. At least You Yuecheng, the pesky person, had no time to bother Mo Xuetong.
Mo Xuetong did not know why You Yuecheng hated her so much, and had some sympathy for Mo Xuemin, as he had taken things too far for Mo Xuemin.
But Mo Xuetong did not pay attention to these, instead, her focus was on the Peony Garden.
She held against Feng Yuran’s chest and sat up. Holding Feng Yuran’s hand, Mo Xuetong asked with a little curiosity, “Why did you make the peony garden, and disguise yourself as ‘Peony Master’?”
She wondered about it for a long time, but could not find a proper time to ask. In the last life, Feng Yuran dressed up as Peony Master, who was the only stranger kind to Mo Xuetong, but she was also curious about it. With Feng Yuran’s status, did he have to bother to do that? No matter how mysterious Peony Master was, it was of no use for him. Therefore, it was not worthwhile to create another identity.
Feng Yuran himself pretended to be a weak one, but always preyed on the strongest opponents. His flamboyant and arrogant reputation was surely enough to conceal him.
“Do you still remember the first time we met in the Repayment Temple?” Asked by Mo Xuetong, Feng Yuran did not hide it, reached out his hands to pull her hands, and twined his hands into hers. A charming smile appeared on the corner of his lips.
Every time he recalled the meeting with her, he was full of joy. Of course, it was actually not the first time he met her.
“As for the paper that my mother left for me, why did I take it to you? My mother could not have let me find you.” Speaking of this, Mo Xuetong was more confused. In the last life, Mo Xuetong did not know to whom Sima Lingyun had given the paper that her mother had put between the pages, but the person Mo Xuetong herself looked for was really Feng Yuran.
Given Feng Yuran’s identity and age, it was impossible for Mo Xuetong’s mother to know him.
Her watery and enchanting eyes blinked, full of confusion.
“Little fool.” Her blank expression pleased him. He rubbed her head maliciously and complained jokingly, “If your mother had known me earlier, I would have got engaged with you immediately so as to avoid the trouble that she commanded you to the wrong person, and you had suffered a lot but no one came up to seek justice for you.”
Thinking of the engagement paper in Bai Yihao’s hands, Feng Yuran felt inexplicably depressed. But soon, he raised his eyebrows with delight, and his eyes gleamed brightly. No matter how well Bai Yihao had hidden it, the paper had been burnt to ashes. At the thought, Feng Yuran felt triumphant, and his face broadened into a glamorous smile.
“Every time he talks about this topic, the man becomes kind of jealous.” Mo Xuetong thought.
Mo Xuetong pushed him, pretending not to find the obvious jealousy in his words, and took a sideways glance at him. “So tell me, who I should give the paper note to at that time?”
Feng Yuran gave a gentle smile and said unhurriedly, “The abbot!”
Mo Xuetong did not expect the answer and was stunned at that moment. She opened her bright eyes, and got shocked at the answer. “The abbot of the temple?”
“What are you thinking about now. Little fool!” Looking at her shining and clear eyes, Feng Yuran could not help but tease her in a good mood, and did not conceal it. “The abbot of the Repayment Temple took Aunt Mingzhu’s orders. But when I was young, she had assigned them to me, and even His Majesty did not know it.”
“Have you not been in the capital for a decade?” “Princess Royal’s people?” Mo Xuetong’s heart missed a beat and felt a little weird.
“That year, I was heartbroken and irritable when my mother passed away. No one could come close to me. So His Majesty was worried about me and asked Princess Royal to take care of me. Then, Princess Royal assigned those people to me secretly but asked me not to tell His Majesty.” Feng Yuran retracted his smile and turned to look out of the window with some grudge flashing in his eyes.
When Consort Xian passed away, Feng Yuran was just a kid at a young age. How helpless and lonely he was at that time! Heartbroken and panic-stricken as he was, he was unable to vent his feelings, so he had to separate himself from others under the disguise of the explosive disposition. Thinking that his little and lonely figure reflected on the wall of Consort Xian’s palace, Mo Xuetong felt her heart ached.
She took the initiative to hold his hands, looked at him with tenderness, and bit her lips, not knowing how to comfort him at that moment. Before speaking, she felt her nose had twitched sorrowfully.
“When I left the capital, His Majesty made good arrangements for me, so I did not bring those people. But when I returned here, Aunt still gave them to me and told me that I should try my best to meet the requirements of the person who brought the paper note to me.”
Seeing Mo Xuetong’s eyes glistening with tears, Feng Yuran felt warmth in his heart. He patted her hand, sat up and embraced her tenderly in his arms. Her delicate fragrance soothed his disturbed and fractious mood.
“But what does it have to do with the Peony Garden?” Mo Xuetong paused and shifted the topic simply. Feng Yuran was flamboyant and powerful and was in charge of others. Mo Xuetong did not like sensing the sadness and fragility in his breath just now. It was not him, but the kid in the past.
His experience made her distressed. Although Mo Xuetong had also had a hard time, at least her mother had protected her for more than 10 years. But he had lost his support at a young age and had to leave his hometown to a distant place.
“The existence of the Peony Garden is naturally for me to take action conveniently. The Princess Royal had assigned me some people, and she let His Majesty know it. His Majesty also assigned me some. But it was too conspicuous to keep them in the King Xuan’s Manor, but it was totally different in the Peony Garden. A mysterious Peony Master was powerful, but stayed away from the power, so no one dared to offend rashly. Compared to the identity of King Xuan, the Peony Master provided greater facility for me to do some things.”
