The calm before the storm is always so beautiful and short-lived. The wedding of Zhu Sheng and Li Shang is still in full preparation, and a strange rumor is spreading in the capital.
It is said that there is a goddess in the capital who has come all the way from afar. She is a beautiful couple bestowed upon the emperor by God. Her beauty is unparalleled in the world. She knows everything about music, chess, calligraphy and painting. She is born with the fate of a phoenix. If she gets the destiny of the emperor, the country will be prosperous and immortal for thousands of years.
After this rumor spread, almost everyone below knew who the goddess was hinting at, but they also began to worry about the situation of King Zhu Sheng of Qi.
A long time ago, King Qi revealed in court that he had no intention of becoming emperor, but now, even if he still fulfills his promise, Li Shang is bound to become the target of the emperor's fuss due to these rumors. In any case, he is a good man for life.
Or beauty is a disaster, the choice is all in Zhu Sheng's hands.
The reason why he did not marry Li Shang immediately was to minimize the possibility of rumors and speculation, and during this period he also needed a certain amount of time to stabilize the criticism and obstacles below. He wanted their marriage to be successful.
To perfection without leaving any regrets.
But now, Zhu Sheng didn't know whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that the marriage was not brought forward. The whole capital was discussing whether the oiran he brought from his subordinate territory was the so-called goddess in the rumors, and the so-called emperor's luck came to him.
As for King Qi...then what does today's life mean when he is sitting on the dragon's throne?
In the magnificent palace, the man frowned and sat on the dragon couch, listening to the report of the imperial master——
"You said... the woman that my good emperor brother is going to marry is really a goddess with a natural beauty?"
"It's absolutely true! I watched the stars last night, and the phoenix stars moved strangely, conflicting with the emperor's energy, but..."
"But what?" The pressure on the man was also extraordinary, and the Imperial Master, who had received the benefit, licked his lips nervously.
"I apologize for the offence! The phoenix star and the dragon energy accompany and depend on each other, creating a peaceful and peaceful atmosphere!"
Regardless of whether the emperor believes this nonsense or not, the meaning is already there. The position of queen beside him is still vacant, and the marriage of Zhu Sheng and Li Shang is approaching. It is clear at a glance who Feng Ge will achieve!
He couldn't fail to see who the Imperial Master was being instructed to talk nonsense about, but it was true that his good brother, the Emperor, had indeed been a lot crazy recently... just because of a woman?
"Since that woman is recognized by the Imperial Master as a natural beauty, as the emperor, I have the obligation to take her to my side..." The man stood up and raised his hand, "I gave a secret order to King Qi to send the goddess to me in five days."
If anyone around you resists the decree... he will be punished as a crime of treason!"
He was curious, between his own situation and a promiscuous woman, what choice would his good brother make?
After accepting the emperor's will, the Imperial Master withdrew from the palace in a cold sweat. He didn't know what the emperor meant...
Back then, the Queen was indeed ashamed of King Qi's mother-in-law. Such a law-abiding woman ended up with...
However, since he was born in the imperial family, this kind of thing should be commonplace. Moreover, after the King of Qi became more powerful, he also carried out brutal revenge on the emperor's biological mother. The relationship between the two brothers could not be said to be harmonious. If the King of Qi had not declared
He had no intention of taking the throne, and the emperor also needed King Qi to contain the evil-minded forces in the court, which allowed the delicate balance to continue until now.
However, King Qi's recent activity and his growing popularity among the people gradually made the emperor unable to sit still.
This is not the first time similar rumors have appeared, but they were quickly suppressed...
Logically speaking, he had suffered so much from women in the past. Even though Zhu Sheng looked romantic on the surface, in fact, there was no woman who could get close to him. He went to another place and actually brought back a promiscuous woman, and even wanted to marry her with great fanfare.
Being a wife is so interesting! It also makes him more and more curious about what kind of woman can be attracted by his good brother!
On the other side, faced with a plethora of ingredients, Li Shang fell into a difficult situation in the kitchen of Prince Qi's Mansion.
"Girl...you don't have to do it yourself...can't you just teach the servants to do it?"
Xiaolan was very worried when she saw Li Shang picking up the kitchen knife and looking confused.
Although Li Shang is extremely talented, she is still a woman who has no fingers in the spring water. She is very delicate and cannot do things like cooking.
"...No!" Li Shang faced the still beating ingredients and was immediately filled with fighting spirit. "Today is his birthday. I don't even have time to prepare. I have to at least cook a meal for him!"
As he spoke, he reached out and picked up a live fish, and was about to cut it when the struggling fish suddenly swung its tail and slapped Li Shang on the face. The pain was so painful that she let go of her hand and the kitchen knife fell directly to the ground.
"Girl! It's too dangerous! And I don't know if the prince will come back tonight!"
Today, Zhu Sheng said that he was going out to deal with important matters. Although this situation had happened before, today was still his birthday. Moreover, Li Shang also asked the housekeeper of Prince Qi's Mansion. Zhu Sheng had not been at all since he returned to the capital.
He didn't have a good birthday. She entered his life this year, so she wanted to experience this special day with him no matter what.
But it was too late when I found out, and I didn't have time to prepare a birthday gift for him. After thinking about it, I could only cook him a meal first.
Besides... isn't it the wife's duty in ordinary families to cook for her husband?
Thinking of this, Li Shang's face turned red involuntarily. Although she had not officially married him yet, she had already begun to become familiar with her role as the mistress of Prince Qi's Mansion.
Anyway...it's just a matter of time anyway! Although she didn't do what a couple should do...but she also did other things that should be done!
So she had to complete this birthday dinner no matter what!
Turning over again, Li Shang pounced towards the live fish - the sound of pots and pans falling to the floor was endless in the kitchen, and all of a sudden, the chickens were jumping.
"...He...he really said that?!"
After receiving the secret order, Zhu Sheng even omitted the honorific, and his whole body was shaking with anger——
It was not that he had not noticed the rumors. Even if he tried his best to suppress them, they could not be quelled. This was also the reason why he could not stay with Li Shang these days. Therefore, the preparations for the marriage were further postponed. He originally thought that after the rumors passed,
Everything will be fine, but who would have expected that the emperor would actually give himself such a multiple-choice question!!!
"The Imperial Master observed the stars at night and said... that Miss Li Shang was born with a noble character, so... so the Emperor..."
Zhu Sheng punched the pillar next to him, and he didn't notice the blood on the back of his hand.
"What bullshit Fengge! He just accepted the instigation of those traitors voluntarily! Let me hand her over! He is dreaming!"
"But...but if Miss Li Shang is not sent to the palace in five days...if the emperor takes the blame..."
Zhu Sheng knew that now was not the time to take action, let alone the time to go against the emperor... But if the price of stabilizing the relationship between the two was to hand over the love of his life, then he would rather burn down the entire imperial city of Kyoto, and then
Take Li Shang to the far end of the world!
He didn't know how he came up with this idea, let alone how he would face Li Shang in the future. The choice was not difficult for him, but the price he paid was too huge. All he needed to do was to reduce the loss to
lowest!
"There's no way to come up with a countermeasure tonight... You go ahead and tell everyone not to act rashly, and to listen to me in everything!"
"yes!"
It was already late at night when Li Shang brought all the dishes to the table, but Zhu Sheng still showed no sign of coming back. The woman felt disappointed. At this time, there was a sound of footsteps. It was raining heavily in the late autumn night, and the man came in.
After that, I rushed straight to the front hall and saw the woman pouting and poking at the good-looking dishes on the plate with chopsticks, with a look of disappointment in her resentful little eyes.
The aroma of the food spread out little by little. Seeing that the woman was elegant and graceful but she was tainted with the worldly atmosphere, the man stretched out his hands from behind her to wrap around her body. He felt that the other woman's body temperature was slightly lower and frowned slightly.
"Been waiting for a long time?"
Regarding his late return, the woman was first surprised and then a little resentful, and deliberately turned her head away——
"What do you think? Does it seem very early now?"
When the man saw the appearance of his little woman, his heart was filled with joy. He looked at the dishes on the table and was very surprised.
"You did it?"
Obviously, if it were a chef in Prince Qi's Mansion, the food would not be of such quality. Moreover, Li Shang waited for him so late today, so it was obviously a masterpiece cooked by her herself.
The woman did not continue to argue——
"Yes, I just learned from the housekeeper yesterday that today is your birthday. I didn't have time to prepare a gift for you, so I had to cook it myself..." He looked at his side face with some worry, "This is my first time.
Cooking! I’m sure there’s no chef who can do it well...you...don’t dislike it!"
The man chuckled - he would be disgusted, and it would be too late to be moved!
Zhu Sheng smiled slightly, hugged Li Shang and sat on the chair, letting her sit on his lap——
"Since I am the birthday girl today, can I be forgiven for making some excessive demands?"
Li Shang looked wary——
"You...don't take advantage of others' danger..."
There was a hint of joking on the man's face, and his hands restraining her tightened——
"I just want you to feed me... Of course... If you want to fully feed me... I can't..."
As he was about to get closer, Li Shang reached out and covered his mouth——
"What a beautiful idea!" She let go, picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth, "If it doesn't taste good, no objections are allowed!"
The man slowly chewed the not-too-delicious piece of meat in his mouth, his eyes filled with the woman he loved most in his life, and his heart was extremely happy.
"It's delicious... everything you make tastes delicious!"
Li Shang also smiled brightly after seeing Zhu Sheng eating all the food she cooked. She was also very happy that the man she loved could accept everything she had worked hard for. He was reluctant to let go, but how could she be willing to let go?
After finishing the meal and arranging Li Shang to sleep, Zhu Sheng left the palace without stopping, went to the usual place where he and his family members gathered on weekdays, and issued an order to quickly gather all the forces in the dynasty.
Standing on the pavilion in the capital, in the wind and rain, the dark and fierce luster in Zhu Sheng's eyes looked very scary.
Thinking of the secret decree, his anger could not be calmed down. It was definitely not that his imperial brother did not know that someone was deliberately instigating the relationship between the two. Zhu Sheng could give him anything else, but Li Shang was the only one he would not retreat from.
!
Even though he knew that now was not the time to take action, the situation forced Zhu Sheng to give up his love to others without fighting for anything.
He was not completely sure, not to mention that the emperor was definitely ready now. This move was extremely dangerous, and it was still unknown who would win in the end.
In Prince Qi's Mansion, Li Shang did not sleep peacefully. She had always slept very lightly, a habit she had developed many years ago while avoiding pursuit, so when an uninvited guest stood on her window sill, she woke up at the same time.
come over.
The emperor's chamberlain saw the stunning woman quickly getting up from the bed. He was first shocked by her beauty. After seeing her panicked but graceful reaction, he had a preliminary impression of Li Shang's evaluation in his mind.
When she saw a stranger breaking into her room late at night, she must have made some assumptions in her mind and did not choose to shout for help immediately. Such a kind of heart is definitely not what ordinary women in the world can achieve.
Although Li Shang didn't know who the visitor was, the abilities of the guards installed in Prince Qi's Mansion were all there. Now that the other party was able to quietly establish a presence, it at least meant that his abilities were definitely above those of those guards and that he could come to Prince Qi's Mansion.
You can go freely...First of all, your ability is good, and secondly, your status must be extremely special.
As for the people who can still dominate Zhu Sheng in the capital, then the only ones left are those who sit high on the dragon's throne in the palace.
She visited secretly late at night because she definitely didn't want outsiders to know about it. In this case, she absolutely couldn't cause a disturbance. Otherwise, if things got bigger and she went against the person's wishes, she would be in more trouble than just a little bit.
"The nobleman who serves the dragon side comes late at night. What business do you have to ask Li Shang?"
The woman stood up and straightened her clothes. Her calm and unhurried attitude made the waiter admire her.
She had guessed most of her identity, and now there was no need to continue playing riddles. The chamberlain took out a simple jade pendant from his arms, stretched out his hand and showed it to Li Shang——
"Please accept it, girl. This is the Phoenix Ping Yin. Anyone who holds this object can freely enter and leave the harem. Anyone who sees it is like seeing the queen."
It was not that Li Shang had never met Feng Pingyin, and it was not that she was deaf to rumors from the outside world, but she never expected that the emperor would be so concerned about the malicious propaganda of some well-intentioned people.
Seeing the woman's confused eyes, the waiter also sighed——
"Girl, you don't have to be so surprised. Yesterday, the Imperial Master observed the stars all night, and the phoenix star moved strangely, and the two dragon auras competed. Only the phoenix star can accompany it, and it can become a true dragon."
Li Shang felt cold all over and fell directly onto the bed - how could she believe in the so-called Fengxing fate, but the status of the imperial master in the court has been passed down from generation to generation, and to some extent, he can influence the existence of the emperor, even if he is now very powerful
Weakened, but if the Imperial Master insists that the so-called Fengge is her fault, then there is no way she can rely on it.
And the so-called struggle between dragons and spirits, isn't it talking about the wrestling between Zhu Sheng and the emperor? And Feng Pingyin was sent directly here... The emperor's meaning is already obvious...
Seeing Li Shang's eyes gradually becoming filled with despair and confusion, the waiter also felt a hint of ridicule in his heart.
Everyone said that the oiran and the King of Qi were getting married soon. Such a shocking news, no one could accept it, right?
It's a pity that what he is going to say next is even more cruel——
"I can tell you clearly now that the emperor has tightened control over the entire capital. If you fail to show up in the palace after five days, no matter what your relationship is with the King of Qi, he will be designated as a traitor and the Qing will be suppressed.
"
The woman also expected that this would be the case, and when she learned about it from the people around the emperor, her judgment was confirmed.
In the end, she became his weakness. She became his only flaw, and if this flaw was not handled well, it would directly kill him!
Li Shang took a breath of cold air, and the sudden determination in her eyes seemed to cut off all the warmth that had appeared tonight.
"I understand...Feng Pingyin can just stay here..."
"Girl, think twice. I believe you also understand that once King Qi and the Emperor completely fall out, not only the entire capital and court, but also the country will suffer from the loss of life."
There was a wry smile on Li Shang's lips - the smile was filled with helplessness and ridicule - now that the world's justice is being forced upon her, do you really think she cares? She has never cared about other people's life and death, there is always only one person she cares about.
.
But now she no longer hopes to persuade Zhu Sheng to let go, not even herself, let alone King Qi who fell first?
She doesn't care who the real dragon is, and as long as she wants, she believes that he can put aside everything as the King of Qi and take her away. No matter how hard it is, there is nothing to be afraid of when the two of them are together.
But if her existence becomes a sharp blade that threatens his life, then she would rather break her body to pieces than hurt him in the slightest!
She slowly stood up, pinched the phoenix-shaped jade pendant, and put it into her sleeves. Dark clouds were gathering outside the window, just like her gloomy heart.
"Zhu Sheng... We are two people in this life. I didn't expect that I would be the first to break the promise..."
He raised his eyes and looked out the window, a drop of clear tears slipped from the corner of his eyes and fell to the ground silently.
The next morning, in the empty mansion, Zhu Sheng's furious voice seemed particularly harsh——
"How come such good people are missing! Are you blind?!"
The secret guards all knelt down in a row. They were all Zhu Sheng's dead soldiers, and their skills were all top-notch. No one could believe that a woman with no martial arts skills left without leaving any trace.
What's more, Zhu Sheng is well aware of the abilities of these secret guards.
In fact, Li Shang didn't do anything. When she showed the Feng Ping Yin in front of the secret guards, the secret guards immediately understood the emperor's meaning and even more understood Li Shang's choice.
They did not stop Zhu Sheng according to his will. For these secret guards who followed Zhu Sheng all year round, Zhu Sheng was their master, and Li Shang was just an outsider who had not even officially become their mistress.
Furthermore, those who achieve great things do not stick to trivial matters. In order to protect King Qi, it is not impossible to sacrifice her.
The secret guards knew that Zhu Sheng had already made a choice, and they also knew that if Li Shang failed to make the right choice this time, the dynasty would be turned upside down.
Fortunately, this promiscuous woman also knows how to deal with things. If she retreats or panics now, they will feel that their master has made a mistake.
But Li Shang just took out the Feng Ping Yin in his hand, with a cold smile filled with determination——
"I think you also know about this, right? The emperor's secret decree may have been in his hands before..."
Li Shang lowered her eyes, thinking of Zhu Sheng's reaction before, her lips curled up——
"He must have already known it. There is only one reason for hiding it from me... He wants to have a showdown with the emperor..."
She sighed softly, then turned around and left amid the heavy defenses of the secret guards. No one stopped her.
"I know you have a strong balance in your heart, and my weight is not as good as his after all," the woman tightened her tight clothes, "but please believe that it is the same in my heart."
Turning around and leaving, the secret guards watched Li Shang get on the carriage outside the gate of Prince Qi's Mansion. With the sound of hoofbeats, the woman headed directly towards the outer gate of the imperial city.
When Zhu Sheng returned to the mansion the next day, Li Shang had long disappeared, and the emperor was no less capable than him. He couldn't find any clues during the information blockade.
Zhu Sheng did suspect the emperor at the first moment, but he didn't have a shred of evidence in his hand. If he presumed the emperor on his own, the current situation would only become more unfavorable.
So now he can do nothing, all he can do is stand still.
"Are you the rumored courtesan?"
Li Shang was taken to the imperial city overnight. After entering the palace, she was served and changed into extremely gorgeous clothes. She never liked wearing these skimpy and revealing clothes, but those maids had a tough attitude, and presumably it was the emperor's instructions. As for
What it really means...
It was just to remind her of her identity as an oiran... a prostitute!
Her graceful and perfect figure was outlined to the extreme by this dress. She was as plump as it should be and as delicate as it should be. Coupled with an extremely beautiful face, she was truly a stunning beauty that would captivate the entire country.
Although the rear position is vacant, it does not mean that the emperor is a young child. With this status, although he is not addicted to women, he is also a person who knows how to appreciate women. But in terms of appearance, Li Shang is indeed a very coveted person.
woman.
Facing the emperor's up and down gaze, Li Shang still felt a little uncomfortable and knelt down.
"My little daughter Li Shang, please pay homage to the Emperor..."
"Now that I have taken Feng Pingyin, there is no need to do any more false gifts. You...come forward and let me take a good look at it."
Li Shang's movements were very natural. After accepting the order, she squinted her eyes and smiled brightly, which made the emperor's eyes confused.
"My little girl obeys the order."
The makeup and clothes that were originally extremely coquettish, under the woman's interpretation, showed a sense of uprightness and elegance. But there was no sense of disharmony. The combination of coquettishness and Huarong was exceptionally harmonious. The emperor looked at it.
His mouth went dry for a while, and he seemed to gradually understand why his brother was so fascinated by this woman.