"You haven't met him, so you don't understand. Xun Rong is a person with very similar thoughts to mine, especially his mindset as a working - class person. It's really in perfect harmony with mine."
Tang Youyou became more and more excited as she spoke. She was a bit eager to see him again, but it had nothing to do with romantic feelings.
She noticed that the person beside her was a bit jealous. His gloomy expression was really hard for her to ignore.
However, it was quite interesting. Rong Xun's persona was originally that of a cold - hearted person. She never expected that this man would truly fall for her.
Tang Youyou couldn't help but tease him, "I'm just simply interested in him. It's pure friendship. Do you understand? Can't I have a few bosom friends?"
As soon as she said this, she saw Rong Xun's expression turn even uglier.
"Friends? How long have you known each other, and you already call each other friends?"
Tang Youyou pouted, "For truly like - minded people, just one word is enough to tell if they can be friends. So what if it's a short time? We feel like we've known each other for ages but just met too late."
Rong Xun sneered. He thought to himself, there's no such thing as meeting too late. If she were to find out later that they were actually the same person, he wondered if she'd fly into a rage.
Imagining her surprised look was quite amusing, but considering the current special situation, it was better not to provoke her.
It seemed that he still had to let Xun Rong show up from time to time. He didn't want to see her disappointed.
"Oh? When will you introduce him to me?"
Tang Youyou said excitedly, "Sure. He should be back after he finishes his business. I'll let you two meet then."
She could already imagine the scene of Xun Rong and Rong Xun meeting. One was a working - class person full of office - drudge attributes, and the other was a shrewd and deep - scheming boss. If these two could have a conversation, it would surely be full of drama.
Little did she know that her imagination would never come true in this lifetime.
On the day of departure, Tang Youyou was overjoyed when she saw Zhuifeng.
"Why are you here?"
Zhuifeng didn't know how to explain to her. In fact, she had always been following her, just making sure no one noticed.
"I came here as soon as I got the news. Are you okay, madam?"
Hearing this address, Tang Youyou frowned. Madam? What a strange address. It sounded really awkward.
"You can just address me like you used to."
Zhuifeng didn't dare. After all, the pavilion master was standing right in front of her. If she addressed Tang Youyou wrongly on a whim, she didn't know what punishment awaited her.
She gave a faint bitter smile. She glanced up at Wenxue, who was pretending to be a coachman. This man looked serious and had no intention of revealing his true identity.
"You and Yue have really worked hard during this period. Rong Xun, you should give them a raise."
Tang Youyou nudged the person beside her with her elbow. They were both like working - class people. They had worked so hard to protect her. If she were the boss, she would surely reward them handsomely.
"Okay."
This single word made Yue and Zhuifeng shiver all over. They didn't dare to ask for a raise because their current salary was already quite high.
Wenxue glanced at the pavilion master's wife from the corner of his eye. It seemed that she was a kind - hearted person who cared about her subordinates. The pavilion master had chosen the right person.
Tang Youyou planned to go to Fengdu City in the Great Ming Kingdom first. It was the place most severely affected by the war.
It was said that the common people there were extremely loyal to the Great Ming. It was the place that had received the most benefits during Rong Xun's reign. So once foreign enemies invaded, they resisted to the death, but the final result was also very tragic.
Tang Youyou wasn't a very kind - hearted person. She thought that kind - hearted people were most likely to be misunderstood as having ulterior motives, so she didn't easily show her kind side.
But when disasters struck, she still couldn't help but offer help.
"It seems that the most loyal people are also the most severely injured."
Tang Youyou couldn't help but sigh. There came a document from the front - line sent by Rong Xun's people. She saw that it detailed the situation in Fengdu City and its surrounding areas.
Tang Youyou sighed several times in succession, "I'm afraid they won't have such deep feelings for the Great Ming in the future. In the face of war, the Great Ming just remained indifferent. They didn't send troops to assist. They just let them fend for themselves."
Rong Xun said, "The food, supplies and troops have been arranged. They will arrive in Fengdu City in the next two days."
She nodded and looked at Rong Xun meaningfully. She wondered what this former emperor was thinking when he saw his former subjects suffering.
When she learned that he had faked his death, she somewhat understood that Rong Xun didn't value the throne very much. He didn't even care about it at all. It was insignificant to him.
It was imaginable that the common people of the entire Great Ming were also dispensable to him.
Later, when she learned about his real power, she even thought that this man didn't take the whole country seriously at all, because what he had now was enough to resist all the countries on the entire land of Shenzhou.
She lifted the curtain and looked out of the carriage window. The road they were passing through was also within the scope of Rong Jiangyu's attack.
The originally intact houses outside the window were now in ruins after being attacked by the war. The shops along the road had been looted, the doors of the common people's houses were tightly closed, and the homeless people could only huddle by the roadside. When they saw someone coming, they immediately ran away warily.
It was imaginable how much harm the war had brought to them. This couldn't be repaired just by time.
"Stop the carriage."
Tang Youyou got out of the carriage and came to the roadside. She saw two siblings huddled against the wall. Their dirty clothes and the big, flickering eyes on their dirty and thin little faces were particularly attractive.
But the look in their eyes was full of panic. The older sister was protecting her younger brother who couldn't even walk yet. She wanted to escape, but the injury on her foot made it impossible for her to pick up her brother who was about the same size as her.
Seeing this scene, Tang Youyou suddenly felt a lump in her throat, and tears welled up in her eyes.
To have survived the war, it was likely that their parents were no longer alive.
"Don't be afraid. I'm not here to bully you." Tang Youyou took out two baked cakes from her bag and offered them.
It seemed that they hadn't eaten for a long time. The older sister swallowed her saliva when she saw the fragrant baked cakes, and her eager eyes were fixed on them.
"Take them. They're for you."
Tang Youyou was afraid of scaring them, so she just wrapped the baked cakes in a handkerchief and placed them on the ground, waiting for them to come.
"See? Once the war starts, it's always these helpless common people who suffer."
Rong Xun wiped away her tears and said softly, "Don't worry. I'll settle them properly."
She believed Rong Xun's words, but perhaps her maternal instinct was suddenly aroused, and the tears just wouldn't stop. She could only lean on his chest to calm her excited emotions.