After dismissing his ministers, Yuwen Yi leaned on the desk and slowly sat on the dragon throne.
Pressing his head and with his eyelids lowered, he shouted at the empty Yangju Hall, "Investigate for me, I want to see who issued the assassination order!"
"Yes!"
A person emerged from behind a pillar, acknowledged the command, and then disappeared.
...
Wang Yuyi felt uneasy.
In the past, after clearing away the fog and uncovering the truth, his favorite pastime was to lie in the rocking chair under the grape trellis in his courtyard and bask in the sun. Even in winter, if it snowed or was cloudy, he would move the rocking chair indoors, leaning by the fire while looking out the window.
Leisurely and carefree, at leisure.
But today, he felt an agony as if falling into a sea of fire or plunging into a cold abyss.
He had personally peeled back the Emperor's secret, yet he suppressed his anger in his fear.
Even if His Majesty wanted the envoy from Da Li to die in Linyuan, how innocent were the people of Linyuan? Those were thirteen living souls!
Hateful and pathetic, he knew all this yet could do nothing? He couldn't even make this matter public!
"Bring me wine!"
Wang Yuyi shouted to the outside of the door. The young servant in the manor brought good Hua Diao wine. Thinking that his master always paired it with dried fruits, he went to get dried fruits freshly bought from the dried fruit shop.
"Master, was this matter investigated and concluded so quickly? You..."
"Scram!"
In the past, the young servant would always say something pleasing at this moment, but today, before he could finish, Wang Yuyi snatched the entire jar of wine with one hand, his eyes wide and fierce as if he wanted to bite someone.
Seeing that he was in a bad mood, the young servant dared not say more and quickly retreated.
Wang Yuyi uncorked the jar, picked up the jar, and gulped down the wine, not like drinking, but more like transferring the wine from one jar to another.
As he drank, he laughed.
As if he were mad.
...
The civilian houses destroyed by fire needed to be rebuilt, and the Minister of Personnel was as busy as a spinning top at the end of the year.
Nan Shiying went to Tongji Pharmacy every day to treat and change bandages for the civilians seriously injured in the fire. Although the injuries were severe, their lives were no longer in danger.
Yu Chengxuan and others were 'invited' into the imperial palace and lived in the Sili Pavilion, located between the inner and outer palace walls surrounded by the imperial guards.
Wang Qiancheng had also been very busy these days, learning negotiation skills for bilateral talks.
Lord Liu had not forgotten to find a job for his grandson-in-law. Now, taking advantage of the bilateral talks, he had inserted the man into the negotiation team. Accompanying him to gain experience was Lord Liu's legitimate grandson, Liu Cheng.
"So annoying, so annoying, why are there so many words!"
Liu Cheng irritably threw the book away. It was just peace talks. They, Linyuan, were the victors, so why did they need to look at these techniques? If Da Li dared to bargain, they would continue to fight until they didn't dare to bargain anymore. What need were there for techniques?
Fists were the best technique.
Wang Qiancheng agreed with this and praised Liu Cheng as a contemporary Zhuge Liang.
"Scram!"
Upon realizing his sarcasm, Liu Cheng offered him the most sincere greetings and the friendliest words.
With two days left until the New Year, the Da Li negotiation delegation arrived in Linyuan. Liu Cheng woke up early, wishing he could drag out the ancestors of the Da Li delegation for eight generations and curse them all.
As the Spring Festival approached, he actually had to get busy!!
Wang Qiancheng sat with the negotiation officials at a long table long enough to accommodate officials from both countries. He quietly asked, "Lord Zhang, what should I pay attention to during the talks later?"
Lord Zhang picked up his teacup and smiled gracefully. He said, "Just pay attention to our national demeanor. It's just talks, so just talk. Don't get angry, don't get on the table, don't point at the other person's nose and curse. Persuade them with reason!"
Wang Qiancheng listened, his expression odd.
What Lord Zhang said was a bit too specific. How could he feel that the other party had not done many things like cursing on the table?
Seeing Wang Qiancheng's strange expression, Lord Zhang realized he might have revealed something. He coughed and added, "Of course, if the other party is too much and doesn't play by the rules, then we don't need to indulge them. We treat them with sincerity, and if they bully us, then we'll screw their grandmothers."
Wang Qiancheng: "..." Well, that sounds right!
When the peace talks began, Wang Qiancheng experienced a scene of spitting saliva for the first time. Let alone getting on the table, the cap on Lord Zhang's head next to him almost flew off. If he hadn't held him back, the other party would have taken off his shoes.
Well, persuading with virtue, the initial results were evident!
After a day of bickering, Wang Qiancheng felt more exhausted than if he had done a day of manual labor. All he wanted was to lie in bed and do nothing.
Liu Cheng was fine; he just watched and didn't break up fights.
If it weren't inappropriate, he would have wanted to stuff a few pastries into his pocket and eat them while watching.
This was more interesting than listening to courtesans sing!
The talks were still ongoing.
The day before the New Year, the Prince's mansion was lit up. In previous years, the mansion had not been so lively, being rather quiet and desolate. The Prince preferred quiet, so the concubines dared not make too much noise. Unlike this year, the mansion was not only decorated with lanterns and colored banners, but also invited a troupe.
Miss Yin'er from Huancai Pavilion had also arrived and was now singing on stage for the Princess Consort. However, the Prince's expression was not very good. Since Miss Yin'er appeared on stage, his expression had been somewhat unpleasant.
"Does it look good?"
Yin'er was beautiful, had a good voice, and even better figure. Nan Shiying was captivated, while Ji Jinmo's face was so grim it seemed water could drip from it. Although she was in his arms, her thoughts were all drifting to the stage. What, was the person on stage that good-looking? So good-looking that she couldn't take her eyes off him?
"It looks good!"
Nan Shiying pointed at Yin'er's slender, willow-like waist that could be held in one's grasp, looking as if she wanted to go on stage and touch it. She completely failed to detect that the man beside her had already appeased his jealousy until a hand gripped her chin, forcefully yet controlled, turning her head to the other side. Only then did Nan Shiying notice the man's incredibly dark expression.
She blinked and let out a chuckle.
Ji Jinmo looked at her bright, sparkling eyes and asked again, "Does it look good?"
Nan Shiying raised her eyebrows slightly and provocatively replied again, "It looks good!"
"Do you like it?"
Nan Shiying nodded, "I like it!"
"Good-looking people, regardless of gender, I like them all!"
Nan Shiying leaned close to Ji Jinmo's ear and whispered softly. The warm breath sprayed on Ji Jinmo's earlobe, causing a tingling itch. This was the first time Ji Jinmo had heard her use the word "朕" (zhen - Imperial I).
Ji Jinmo's heart trembled slightly, and he felt that at this moment, she possessed an indescribable charm.
He pulled her entirely into his embrace, wrapping one arm around her slender waist, making her sit on his lap. The posture was so intimate that Lu Wan and others turned their heads away, not daring to look.
Nan Shiying wrapped her arms around Ji Jinmo's neck, their eyes met, and her lips curved slightly, "You are the most handsome person I have ever met. No one in this world can compare to you."
"朕, love you!"