flstandardbreds Chapter 334
Chapter 334
Nalan Jingwen looked down at him, who was holding her tightly, and after a moment of silence, she gripped his hand back.
"I know."
Ah Nian's eyes were red-rimmed, his lips trembled slightly, and his voice was trembling. He looked pitiful, and Chi Chenyi wanted to tear his face apart. The two of them holding hands tightly was really an eyesore.
Is this how he is in front of you, which is why you developed feelings for him?
Chi Chenyi questioned, his eyes fixed on Nalan Jingwen.
Nalan Jingwen sighed and said to Anian, "Go back to the palace first, we can talk about it later."
Anian's eyes showed disbelief. He opened his mouth, thinking that Nalan Jingwen would protect him unconditionally as before and explain to him, but he did not expect Nalan Jingwen to let him go.
"elder sister……"
"A Nian."
Nalan Jing called out to him, "Be good."
"You should return to the palace first."
His fingertips trembled, his heart felt as if a huge rock was pressing down on it, a heavy and painful feeling. Tears welled up in his eyes but wouldn't fall. He lowered his head slightly and whispered, "Okay."
Anian let go of his hand, and the servants outside the door obeyed and stepped forward to support him. He walked slowly, and when he reached the door, he suddenly stopped, turned around, and a breeze brushed his hair, revealing his pale and beautiful face. He gave Nalan Jingwen a soft smile, "Sister, I came here today to tell you that tomorrow is the day to worship heaven and earth and pay respects at the ancestral temple. We can not return to the palace until the day before the coronation."
He paused, lowered his eyes, as if he didn't want Nalan Jing to see the vulnerability in his eyes.
"I originally wanted to ask my sister if she wanted to go with me, but since she has something to do, I won't bother her."
After saying that, he turned and left without looking back.
Nalan Jingwen stared at his slender back, momentarily lost in thought. She remembered that before the new emperor of Baiji ascended the throne, he would stay at Changming Temple outside the city for four days to worship at the ancestral temple, signifying that the emperor's power was divinely ordained and that he was the son of heaven. At that time, a large number of soldiers would guard the temple for four days, and he could not return to the palace until the day before the enthronement.
Chi Chenyi stepped forward, blocking her view, and hugged her waist.
"Ah Wen, don't go."
Nalan Jingwen snapped out of his daze, pulled the person into his arms, and spoke in a soft voice, making it impossible to discern his emotions.
"Don't go."
Unseen by anyone, a dangerous glint flashed in Chi Chenyi's eyes, and he silently tightened his grip around her waist.
……
In the days that followed, perhaps because Chi Chenyi knew she would go to find Anian, she clung to her every day, inseparable and always by her side. Chi Chenyi's clansmen also arrived the next day. She assigned tasks to everyone, asking them to bewitch Shen Xi's subordinates one by one. The effect was remarkable, after all, the fox clan's magic was not something ordinary people could resist.
They will become so engrossed in the pleasures of love that they will gradually neglect everything else. As time goes on, Shen Xi will have no one left to rely on.
Shen Xi now commands an army of 100,000, as does Xiao Jin, while the Imperial Guards in the palace number about 50,000. The current leader of the Imperial Guards, Wei Zhao, is a fence-sitter, trying not to offend either side and playing both sides. He maintains a strange balance between the two forces largely due to Wei Zhao.
This information was obtained when I took over the mission of escorting Anian. Although Wei Zhao is cunning, she is different from Shen Xi; she has a weakness.
Wei Zhao was a person who favored daughters over sons. Due to her own circumstances, it was extremely difficult for her to have children, so she married more than twenty husbands in a row. Even so, she only had three sons. Later, she sought medicine everywhere and prayed to gods and Buddhas. Finally, at the age of forty, she had a daughter.
However, Wei Zhao was clever and cunning. Even though she loved her daughter very much, she never showed it. In fact, she would beat and scold her daughter, being extremely strict with her. But she was exceptionally good to her three sons, giving them whatever they wanted and spoiling them to the extreme. People outside Wei Zhao's mansion said that Wei Zhao only liked her sons and not her daughters. If anyone married one of Wei Zhao's sons, they would probably be able to get most of Wei Zhao's family property.
But that was just a way for Wei Zhao to cover her tracks. In reality, it was all for show. She wanted to give all her family property to her daughter and protected her so well that she never let outsiders see her. So almost no one knew what Wei Zhao's daughter looked like. On the other hand, her three sons were always showing up in front of outsiders. Moreover, the court was currently in turmoil. If anyone knew that she loved her daughter so much, they might use her daughter to threaten her.
Wei Zhao was well aware of this, and had secretly sent his daughter away from the capital long ago, and no one has been able to find her to this day.
Of course, this did not include Nalan Jingwen. She had given this task to Jingchi because she had found out that Wei Zhao had sent his daughter outside Fengtian City, but the exact location was unknown. However, this was enough.
This is one of the reasons why she had Jingchi escort Rong Hengyu back to the capital. Now that Wei Zhao's daughter has been found and is in her hands, Wei Zhao naturally has no choice but to take sides.
When A-Nian went to Changming Temple, Wei Zhao led the team and guarded outside the temple. Therefore, she was not worried at all that Shen Xi would take this opportunity to harm A-Nian. If A-Nian died, Wei Zhao and Wei Zhao's daughter should die with A-Nian.
However, Wei Zhao loved his daughter dearly and dared not make a mistake.
Nalan Jingwen spent the day with Chi Chenyi, and in the evenings they would go outside the city to meet up with the army and discuss matters. This continued for three days in a row. On the fourth day, Chi Chenyi was too tired the night before, so she had time to go to Changming Temple.
Outside Changming Temple, pear blossoms are in full bloom, and they fall in a rustling sound when the wind blows, mixed with a light drizzle, creating a beautiful scene.
When Wei Zhao saw that it was Nalan Jingwen, she bowed and lowered her voice. Since no one was around, she deliberately kept her voice down.
"Your Highness, His Highness is in the east wing."
Nalan Jingwen nodded and walked towards the east wing. Wei Zhao saw this and hesitated to speak.
"Your Majesty..."
Nalan Jingwen turned around, "What?"
"Shen Xi is here too. She's been coming these past few days."
Nalan Jingwen's gaze paused slightly, but he remained silent.
Wei Zhao continued, "At first, Shen Xi would only stay here for a short while before leaving, but in the last two days, Shen Xi has been staying for longer and longer. I think Your Highness..."
Looking into Nalan Jingwen's dark eyes, Wei Zhao swallowed hard and said, "It seems like you're quite happy being with her."
Nalan Jingwen remained expressionless and did not reply, but instead walked towards the east wing.
The east wing was the closest room to the Buddhist temple, so she could hear the sounds of chanting and worship all the way. However, she stopped when she reached the courtyard and silently watched the two people in the courtyard.
A-Nian sat on a stone bench with a faint smile on his face. Beside him was Shen Xi, dressed in a black robe, who was talking to him. It was a harmonious scene.
Nalan Jingwen watched silently, with her attendant standing beside her, gazing inside as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
A gentle breeze swept by again, and pear blossoms fell in profusion. A snow-white pear blossom drifted gently down onto her shoulder, so softly that it was almost imperceptible.