Chapter 425: Compete (Two)
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Mr. Meng was shaken awake and thought something big had happened. When he heard that Ying Wang wanted him to accompany him out of the city, he understood. He sighed and asked, “What about Wangfei?”
Wei Tiande replied, “She went back to her maternal home.”
Mr. Meng fell silent for a moment and asked, unwilling to give up, “Horse or a carriage?”
Wei Tiande replied impatiently, “His Highness said taking a carriage would delay the time, so he rode a horse directly.” Thinking about the feeling of riding a horse in the wind and snow, he shuddered and quietly asked Mr. Meng, “How did you offend her?”
Mr. Meng shook his head with a bitter smile. Indeed, it was touching the dragon’s inverse scale, something one must not do. He hastily got ready and rushed to the gate. Another round of heavy snow had already fallen. Yuwen Chu was waiting for him, wearing a cloak and hat, mounted on a horse. Seeing him coming, Yuwen Chu didn’t say much and rode ahead.
Mr. Meng saw that he was also riding a horse against the wind and snow, so he had no choice but to follow suit and mount his horse. He listened to Jing Song’s complaints on the side, “What are you worrying about? His Highness has his own arrangements. Why bother about such matters? This is the Wangye’s family affair.”
Although Mr. Meng felt bitter, he didn’t regret it. He retorted, “The emperor has no family affairs?!”
Jing Song whispered, “But our Highness isn’t the emperor yet. Isn’t it normal for him to be willful?”
Mr. Meng gave him a look, “If there’s another incident like this, I’ll have to discuss it with Wangfei. If Wangfei didn’t say anything, why are you making trouble?”
Jing Song said, “Wangfei has good manners and respects your age, giving you face. If it were someone else, you’d have been splashed with water. Alright, stop trying to be obedient. Hurry up and catch up.”
Mr. Meng ran his horse for a while against the wind and snow, feeling the cold wind and snow penetrating his clothes, and soon his hands and feet were numb. His old bones were really suffering.
Yuwen Chu walked steadily ahead. When he saw Mr. Meng stop, he sent someone to urge him on. The two of them continued to compete, leaving the city. After walking in the snow for a long time, Mr. Meng’s eyelashes were covered with snow before he said, “Your Highness, I can’t stand it anymore!”
Yuwen Chu glanced at him, “I can endure it. How can Mr. Meng not endure it?”
Mr. Meng was a smart man. He knew he was indirectly criticizing himself, indicating that he wasn’t Yuwen Chu and didn’t understand his thoughts and feelings. But Mr. Meng was unwilling to concede, believing he was completely in the right. He stubbornly followed Yuwen Chu, and as the snowfall grew heavier and the horses struggled, Jing Song intercepted them. “The snowstorm is too intense, Your Highness, you should go back!”
Mr. Meng simply slid off his horse and sat stubbornly in the snow, refusing to get up. He was being stubborn, waiting to see what Ying Wang would do. Did he expect his most trusted adviser and strategist to freeze to death in the snow?
Yuwen Chu also dismounted and silently sat down beside Mr. Meng, allowing layers of snow to accumulate on him like goose feathers.
Jing Song helplessly looked at the two of them, anxiously urging, “You’ll get sick if you continue like this!” Then he turned to Mr. Meng, “Sir, you’re quite old now, why are you still being so stubborn? Are you only satisfied when His Highness falls ill?”
Mr. Meng felt a bit uneasy but still refused to give in. He was not wrong! He was doing it for the good of His Highness! For everyone’s sake! What was wrong with the Wangfei conceding a little? Wasn’t she just a woman? Which respectable man didn’t have multiple wives and concubines? Was the Fu family expecting to monopolize the harem when His Highness became emperor in the future? That was impossible!
Yuwen Chu pursed his lips tightly, half-closing his eyes, and remained silent. If it were someone else, he would have already questioned him for acting on his own, but for a capable and loyal adviser like Mr. Meng, scolding him wouldn’t work. He could only compete with Mr. Meng and see who could outlast the other. After all, he was young, and he could endure it.
Both of their faces and lips turned blue and white from the cold, but the snow showed no sign of stopping. Mr. Meng was already unable to bear it, trembling and wanting to find a ladder to climb down. “There will probably be snow disasters in many places this winter.”
Yuwen Chu ignored him. After enduring for a while longer, Mr. Meng couldn’t bear it anymore and sneezed loudly several times. He struggled to ask Jing Song to help him up and angrily said, “Disaster from a beauty!”
Yuwen Chu opened his eyes and looked at Mr. Meng expressionlessly.
Mr. Meng trembled and sneezed while feeling resentful, “His Highness spoils Wangfei too much! You value love and affection too much! How can you not care about your own body for such matters? I was doing it for His Highness’s own good, but His Highness is willing to gamble with his own body. I have become disloyal and unjust! You’re so ruthless! I admit defeat, alright? I won’t meddle in such matters in the future, alright?”
“Alright.” Yuwen Chu stood up with Wei Tiande’s help and said calmly, “Being heartless doesn’t necessarily make one a hero, and being merciful doesn’t necessarily make one less of a man. How can I marry someone just because they are useful to me? What kind of person would I be then?”
Mr. Meng was freezing cold, and he loudly exclaimed, “Yes, yes, you’re right!” Then he muttered under his breath, “A curse to the country and the people!” He was cursing Mingzhu.
Having achieved his goal, Yuwen Chu pretended not to hear the last sentence. It’s not easy to find loyal and capable advisers. Being too dominant wouldn’t work, and being too submissive wouldn’t work either. It’s quite tiring to compete with them in wits and strength.
Jing Song and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly called the two back, “Quick, find a place to drink some ginger soup and warm up, don’t catch a cold!”
Fu’s Mansion.
Mingzhu smiled as she looked at Fu Mingcheng and Fu Zifei, father and daughter. They were clearly related by blood, and one could tell from their looks that they were from the same family as Fu’s Mansion.
With their naturally good looks, coupled with the gentle and fair skin of the people of Jiangnan, Fu Zifei was the number one beauty of her generation. Although the girls of Fu’s Mansion might have more elegance, none of them could compare with her in appearance.
The Great Empress Dowager was very good at picking people. Mingzhu even suspected that the Great Empress Dowager had sent someone to inquire about the family in Jiangnan long ago, which was why she was able to pick out Fu Zifei. Looking at cousin Fu Mingcheng, who was chosen to compete with Fu’s Mansion, he looked determined and ambitious, as if he wanted to make a big move. He had been trapped in Jiangnan for too long, watching the second branch’s prosperity, and it was impossible for him not to be tempted. Ambitious and with the Great Empress Dowager pushing behind the scenes, the Fu family’s division was inevitable.
Mingzhu withdrew her gaze from Fu Mingcheng and took off the seven-colored rainbow bracelet from her hand, putting it on Fu Zifei’s wrist with a smile. “You came in a hurry, and there wasn’t enough time to prepare another place for you to stay. So, you can stay at the place where I lived before getting married. The location is good, warm in winter and cool in summer, with a nice view. You should be able to stay comfortably there.”
Fu Zifei had long heard of this proud and arrogant cousin, but she had always thought she was ignorant. Now that she saw her in person, she realized that rumors weren’t always true. Thinking about her own behavior of secretly rushing to the capital without informing the mansion, she couldn’t help but feel ashamed. “If I stay at Aunt’s place, then where will you stay?”
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