The king's army was stationed outside the city. The King of Rui set off with half of the servants from his mansion.
The Princess of Rui stood at the gate all the time until the figures disappeared completely.
She turned around and went back, only to find Li Jiuge standing at the door with red eyes, constantly looking into the distance.
"Alright, the prime minister and the others have gone far away."
All of a sudden, Li Jiuge blushed. Her unspoken feelings as a young girl were directly exposed. She immediately cleared her throat and said, "Auntie, don't talk nonsense. I'm just looking at Yunxi, cousin and uncle."
"Okay, okay, okay. Our Jiuge can look at whomever she likes."
Being teased made Li Jiuge feel a bit better. She knew that her spiritual power cultivation was not strong enough. If she went to the battlefield, she would only be a burden. So she kept all her worries to herself without saying a word.
The Princess of Rui took her hand and said, "Come on. Do you want to eat a big pork knuckle? I still have a little in the small kitchen. It's just that your uncle has gone out. Let's eat it!"
Her tone was relaxed, as if her husband had just gone out for a stroll.
Li Jiuge couldn't help laughing. She supported the Princess of Rui and closed the big gate of the Mansion of the King of Rui.
A large group of people swaggered out of the city. They had planned to leave quietly, but unexpectedly, almost all the people in Rui City knew that the King of Rui was going to war.
A lot of people gathered at the city gate, holding newly made shoes in their hands.
"Your Highness! The harvest has been bad this year. We have no food to offer. We only have these shoes for the soldiers. May you come back safely!"
Ji Yunxi sat on a tall horse, looking at the people raising their hands. Her eyes felt a bit sour.
In fact, the common people were the easiest to please in the world. As long as you gave them a little favor, they would return you with a whole expanse of green.
She thought the King of Rui would not accept the shoes, but unexpectedly, he finally reached out and took them.
"Thank you, folks! We will surely come back safely!"
After saying that, the King of Rui stuffed the shoes into his bosom and shouted, "Open the city gate!"
After they left, the people started to talk among themselves.
"Am I seeing things? There's a girl sitting on that tall horse!"
"I know about this! She's the eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion. She's a genius with extremely high spiritual power cultivation since childhood!"
Ji Yunxi didn't know that she had already caused quite a stir. At this time, as soon as the King of Rui arrived at the camp where the army was stationed, he gathered several people together to discuss the route.
He pointed to a gorge and said, "Now Ye Minghua is heading straight for the capital. We must stop him as soon as possible. We'll go from here. Although the mountains are high and the terrain is dangerous here, we can quickly intercept Ye Minghua."
Feng Xingzhi looked at it and felt a bit worried. "Marshal, could Ye Minghua have already anticipated that we'll be waiting for him at this place?"
"Maybe not. He hasn't been in a war for so many years, and he has hidden himself so well. He may not think things through comprehensively. Moreover, when we first came here, I sent a small team to occupy the strategic location to ensure our smooth passage."
Unexpectedly, the King of Rui's actions were so swift. Both Feng Xingzhi and Ji Yunxi felt admiration for him.
"Your Highness has thought everything through. We'll just follow your orders."
The news came quickly. In just the time it took to burn two sticks of incense, the gorge had been taken control of by the King of Rui's men.
It seemed that Ye Minghua didn't take the King of Rui seriously. He thought that the King of Rui had been living a leisurely life here and was no longer useful, so naturally he didn't send any special troops to encircle and suppress him.
They walked out of the gorge safely. The two armies met on a flat sandy land.
Ye Minghua had been chatting and laughing all the way, dreaming of ascending the throne. He didn't expect to be blocked right on the way by the King of Rui.
"King of Rui?"
The King of Rui was wearing armor, looking extremely imposing. "Ye Minghua, quickly surrender. I'll surely plead with the emperor to spare the lives of your nine generations of relatives!"
"Haha, old friends meet. There's no need to be so aggressive, is there?"
The King of Rui frowned. Looking at Ye Minghua, who showed no sign of fear and was as calm as if nothing had happened, he felt angry. "Ye Minghua, why did you do this? What else are you not satisfied with? Do you have to cause the deaths of countless people?"
"Bah!" Ye Minghua spat. "You Feng family members always talk like this! How many years has our Ye family guarded the border for you? What benefits did Feng Jiangming give us after he ascended the throne?"
"Even businessmen won't do things without profit. Why should I do the most difficult jobs but get nothing in return?"
Feng Xingzhi stepped forward. "Then what do you want?"
"Humph! Your Feng family doesn't see our hard work. You only know how to hold the Ji family in high regard!" He glanced at Ji Yuchen, his eyes full of contempt. "The whole family is so powerful in the capital! Finally, that old man Ji Qilin died, but Feng Jiangming was even more concerned than his father. He was busy sending the younger one up."
Ji Yuchen was extremely disgusted when he heard Ye Minghua's vulgar words. This kind of person was always good at putting baseless charges on others.
Seeing that Ye Minghua was full of complaints, the King of Rui thought that he had really rebelled just because of these things. So he tried to persuade him. "We've known each other for so many years. I know what kind of person you are. If it's because of these things, we can surely discuss them properly..."
Before he could finish his words, Ye Minghua interrupted him. "You're talking so easily. There's no room for discussion!"
His attitude was very tough. "My father and elder brother both died on the battlefield. I've also guarded the border for many years. Back then, I was willing to marry my only daughter to the Prince Feng, but they didn't agree. Now I'm asking for the hand of Princess Jiuge, and he still refuses. There's nothing more to say!"
Feng Xingzhi looked at Ye Minghua coldly and retorted. "Really? The emperor chose a concubine for me. Naturally, it should be the most capable one. May I ask what advantages your daughter has compared to Ji Yunxi of the Ji Mansion?"
Ye Minghua was just about to praise his daughter's beauty and talent, but suddenly remembered that Ji Yunxi was the most beautiful and talented woman in Southern Yan. He couldn't bring himself to say anything.
Seeing that he didn't say a word, Feng Xingzhi continued on his own. "I don't know about other things, but back then when you wanted your daughter to enter the capital, the emperor had already prepared a position for her as a noble concubine. Isn't the position of a noble concubine good enough for your daughter?"
"You... Fine, even if we don't talk about my daughter, what about the princess?" He was being unreasonable and avoided the topic of Ji Yunxi.
Before Feng Xingzhi could say anything, the King of Rui caught on. "You still have the nerve to say that? How old is Jiuge? And you proposed marriage. Moreover, proposing marriage is a matter between two families. You instigated the court officials and tried to force the marriage. Your intention deserves to be punished!"
Hearing the King of Rui's accusation, Ji Yunxi turned her eyes to Feng Xingzhi beside her.
She heard him say, "All your actions are just an excuse for rebellion. You even dragged in the matter of marriage. It seems that you're angry because your children can't get married. It's really ridiculous."
Ji Yunxi nodded. "You're just looking for a fig leaf for your greed. It's a pity that the fig leaf you found is so incomplete."
Their voices were neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for Ye Minghua to hear. He was so angry that his face and neck turned red. "Whether it is or not, it's up to you to think!"
"Since the Prince Feng is here today, you can all die together!"