After a night of passion, Shen Yunfeng still wore his mask. He hugged Xiang Yunrou in annoyance and said, "Didn't you say the surrender would be soon? From the way the eldest prince is acting, it seems he really intends to continue the war."
The reason Shen Yunfeng was eager to divorce his wife was that in her letter, Xiang Yunrou had claimed that Xiangyun Country was about to surrender. After the surrender, she would marry Shen Yunfeng.
In order for Xiang Yunrou to marry him legitimately, Shen Yunfeng was eager to divorce his wife, even going so far as to kill his own son.
However, something unexpected happened. Shen Yunfeng was forced to divorce and left the capital in disgrace. But he would only tell Xiang Yunrou that he had abandoned his wife and son without hesitation to come to her.
Now, Shen Yunfeng had been in Xiangyun Country for nearly half a month, but there was still no sign of the country's surrender. He was getting impatient. After all, he had sneaked out behind the back of the Shen family. If the old master of the Shen family found out, he would surely break Shen Yunfeng's legs!
Xiang Yunrou ran her slender, fair fingers in circles on Shen Yunfeng's chest. She giggled and said, "It'll be soon. Just let my elder brother achieve some more military feats."
Shen Yunfeng grabbed Xiang Yunrou's hand and was very puzzled. "Since you're going to surrender anyway, why not do it earlier? The Mu family's army is elite. All the old, weak, sick, and disabled were separated early on. Xiangyun Country mainly sells spices and cloth. The soldiers are conscripted on the spot. They have no chance of winning against the Mu family's army. Why keep dragging it on?"
"Moreover, in these three battles, although it seems that Xiangyun Country hasn't let Dayong gain an advantage, in fact, Xiangyun Country has suffered heavy casualties. The only casualty on Dayong's side was a soldier who accidentally broke his leg. How can this be considered a military feat?"
"You don't understand. If the eldest prince can hold out against General Mu for half a year, he'll be satisfied." Xiang Yunrou gave a simple explanation. She knew Shen Yunfeng was impatient, so she explained the reason.
Eighteen years ago, the king of Xiangyun Country personally led the army. In less than three months, they were beaten by Dayong and fled in all directions.
This incident had become a nightmare for the king of Xiangyun Country. Even now, he was still obsessed with it while lying sick in bed.
Shen Yunfeng understood. The eldest prince just wanted to glorify himself. As for victory or defeat, it didn't matter at all.
Thinking of the soldiers who had died in the past half - month, Shen Yunfeng's pupils shrank. He couldn't help but persuade, "Now that there are some so - called military feats, it's better to surrender earlier to avoid more casualties."
Xiang Yunrou didn't care. "How can there be a war without casualties? Besides, if they don't die, how can it prove that the emperor brother has been fighting?"
"Or... do you feel sorry for them?"
Shen Yunfeng didn't have a kind heart. He didn't show kindness to the people of Dayong, let alone feel sorry for the people of Xiangyun Country.
It was just that the longer the war dragged on, the more likely he would be discovered. Shen Yunfeng was still looking forward to next year's imperial examination. He hoped that Shen Heqing and Shen Danqing would pass with good rankings.
He coaxed Xiang Yunrou casually. "How could that be? I can't wait to marry you home."
Xiang Yunrou didn't know what was on Shen Yunfeng's mind. She believed his words and said with a smile, "Don't worry. Father is dying soon. The war won't last long."
The two people in the same bed each had their own thoughts.
...
At the Princess Mansion.
It was quite a coincidence today. Everyone had time to have dinner together.
Shen Haiyan finally took Lin Yu's restorative potion. His body had recovered most of the way, and he no longer needed a walking stick. He sat next to Shen Baozhu.
Chen Miaochun couldn't out - compete him, so she had to sit next to Chen Ruxia. She began to miss the slow - paced Shen Haiyan who used to walk with a walking stick.
On the other side of Shen Baozhu was Princess Jingning. She was happily talking about what had happened today.
While waiting for dinner to be served, Yan Mingli rushed in and sat directly next to Chen Miaochun.
He said excitedly, "Godmother, I did a great thing today. A few days ago, I found a brothel... I've arranged a good place for all those girls. I'm really a kind - hearted person."
Yan Mingli boasted about himself. Suddenly, he remembered Xu Yutang. He quickly turned to Chen Miaochun and confessed affectionately, "Miaochun, I..."
"Baozhu, today Ning Shanyuan took me to read history books. I just realized how interesting the people in the past were. Let me tell you!" Chen Miaochun was chatting happily with Shen Baozhu. She only showed Yan Mingli her side profile.
In order to regain Chen Miaochun's attention, Yan Mingli silently apologized to Xu Yutang in his heart and then said, "Miaochun, today Baozhu and I met a pair of star - crossed lovers. They were so miserable!"
"Not only were they forcibly separated by their families, but the man didn't even have the money to buy the woman a meal."
Yan Mingli's summary was simple and clear, but it didn't sound right.
Shen Baozhu had a good impression of Yuan Qingxi. She quickly defended Yuan Qingxi, "It's not like that. It's because Sister Yutang is engaged. This was their last meeting. Yuan Qingxi took out a lot of silver for Sister Yutang to have a good meal, and he himself was going to copy books to earn money."
Since it was someone else's private matter, Yan Mingli just told it as a small piece of gossip and deliberately blurred the names. But Shen Baozhu didn't understand the mystery and directly said the names of the two people.
Princess Jingning stroked Shen Baozhu's little face. "Mother has learned a new thing recently. Do you want to know, Baozhu?"
"The good things in life need to be fought for by oneself. If someone says they like you in the future but makes a lot of excuses to justify their actions, it means they are lying to you."
"Just like Baozhu likes to eat shrimp dumplings and is willing to share them with others. Would Baozhu be willing to share mother with others?"
Shen Baozhu quickly shook her head. She could share shrimp dumplings, but not her mother. "Baozhu can give father to others, but not mother."
Dragon King: [Give the scumbag father away? I'm afraid no one would dare to take him.]
Lin Yu: [What Baozhu's mother means is that Yuan Qingxi and Xu Yutang were in love, but he just watched Xu Yutang get engaged without fighting for it. Maybe he's a scumbag who's lying.]
After Lin Yu's explanation, Shen Baozhu understood what Princess Jingning meant. She looked at Yan Mingli. "Brother Mingli didn't lie. He liked Sister Miaochun, so he immediately annulled his engagement. Later, when he found out that he was engaged to Sister Miaochun, he didn't annul it again."
Lin Yu: [That's right. At least one should be like Yan Mingli.]
Master Qingyun: [Be a bit dumber so it's easier to control.]
...
Not far away, at the Yong'an Marquis Mansion.
Mrs. Chen also forced the truth out of Xu Yutang. Her face darkened.
The candle on the table flickered. Xu Yutang became more and more afraid. She was afraid that Mrs. Chen would be angry and tie her up and send her back home.
"Was this marriage arranged by your father? Did that Chen Liang suddenly appear?" Mrs. Chen suddenly asked.
This question made Xu Yutang stunned. She nodded timidly.
She added, "Grandfather wanted Chen Liang to stay in the capital, so he brought me here and planned to let me and Chen Liang get married in the capital."
Mrs. Chen asked very carefully, from Chen Liang's appearance and family background to how he found the Xu family and why the Xu magistrate had betrothed Xu Yutang to him.
Xu Yutang only knew that Chen Liang's grandfather was an old acquaintance of her grandfather and they had a good relationship. After marriage, Chen Liang would live with her. As for Chen Liang's character and even his appearance, she knew nothing.
Back then, Mrs. Chen's marriage had been privately decided by the Xu magistrate. She was just like Xu Yutang, knowing nothing.
It wasn't until her eldest son got seriously ill and her husband found excuses to stay out all night that Mrs. Chen saw the true face of the man beside her.
Mrs. Chen clenched her fist. "There must be something wrong with this marriage. Just delay it for now."
"Tomorrow, I'll send you to Princess Jingning's mansion. Miaochun and Ruxia are there. You won't be lonely. Don't worry about anything else."