Since it was a celebration for Lu Yan, he naturally had to be present. The two of them rushed to the other side of the lake in a hurry. There they saw that all the officials of the court had already arrived. The Divination Hall had also quickly erected the sacrificial altar. When they saw Lu Yan and Shen Qingfeng coming one after another, everyone showed strange expressions.
Everyone knew that Shen Qingfeng and Lu Yan had a very unpleasant rift, but King Xia Jie just wanted to matchmake this marriage. Such a juicy piece of gossip was something everyone was eager to hear about. After all, both the Shen and Lu families were powerful aristocratic families not to be trifled with. People were eager to watch the drama, waiting to see the feud between the Shen and Lu families come to the surface.
It was Shen Shiqiu who stepped forward first. He pulled Shen Qingfeng away, giving him a way out. Lu Yan could only take a hasty glance at Shen Qingfeng before being led by Chen Qi, who had rushed over, to King Xia Jie's side.
Shen Shiqiu was naturally unhappy that his son had been forced to spend the whole morning with the Marquis of Dingbei. He pulled Shen Qingfeng to stand among the aristocratic families. Frowning, he looked at Shen Qingfeng, hesitating to speak.
It wasn't until Shen Qingfeng shook his head at him and gave him a reassuring look that Shen Shiqiu let out a long sigh of relief. "Later, I'll stand in the front row with the important ministers. Your elder brother will also be with me. You stay here and don't go anywhere. When it's over, I'll come and take you back."
"I understand, Father." Shen Qingfeng nodded.
Shen Shiqiu cast a worried look at him before turning around and walking to the front.
The sacrifices presided over by the Wang family usually had very complicated procedures. Moreover, this time it was also in the name of celebrating Lu Yan, so there were even more formalities. Although Shen Qingfeng didn't hold any official position and was only standing among the aristocratic families, he could still see Shen Yu, not far away, bustling around in his sacrificial robe. He couldn't help but frown.
Just then, someone nudged his arm. Shen Qingfeng turned his head and saw an acquaintance.
The person beside him was Qi Siyu, from the same clan as Queen Qi Yan. However, he was an illegitimate child of the Qi family. Qi Siyu had no status in the Qi family. He was barely considered a noble scion, but in fact, the Qi family never shared any good opportunities with him. However, although Qi Siyu grew up in the Qi family, he wasn't influenced by Qi Shuhuan and Qi Yan. He remained kind and gentle. In his previous life, Shen Qingfeng only recognized him among the Qi family. So when he led the people of the Listening Wind Pavilion to wipe out the Qi family, he specifically told Yu Shuang to spare Qi Siyu's life. But unfortunately, they never found him in the end.
Just like his personality, Qi Siyu had a harmless and gentle appearance. He nudged Shen Qingfeng. When he saw Shen Qingfeng turn his head to look at him, he said shyly, "Mr. Shen, hello. My name is Qi Siyu."
Speaking of which, in his previous life, Shen Qingfeng didn't meet Qi Siyu at this time. After that, Shen Qingfeng and Qi Siyu got along very well, and he really admired him. Under the current circumstances, noble scions usually wouldn't want to make friends with him. He didn't expect that Qi Siyu would strike up a conversation with him. So he replied with a smile, "So it's Mr. Qi. Nice to meet you."
Qi Siyu smiled sheepishly. "They all say that Mr. Shen is extremely handsome. Now that I've seen you, you're really different from ordinary people."
Shen Qingfeng smiled. "Mr. Qi, you flatter me. But I find Mr. Qi very familiar. Although this is our first meeting, I feel like I've seen you somewhere."
Seeing Shen Qingfeng smiling at him, Qi Siyu was stunned for a moment. Scratching his head, he said, "This... Mr. Shen, you're joking. I rarely leave home. We should never have met before."
Qi Siyu had no presence in the Qi family, so he rarely participated in the interactions among the noble scions. Shen Qingfeng could understand. "Oh, I see. Maybe we just have a good rapport."
Qi Siyu also smiled. "Mr. Shen, stop teasing me. By the way, just before you came, as soon as the King arrived, he told Eunuch Chen to look for you. Did something happen?"
Hearing this, Shen Qingfeng cursed silently in his heart. What could happen? The King just wanted to see if he and Lu Yan had fallen out.
"I don't know," Shen Qingfeng replied.
"Then Mr. Shen should go and see the King later. Maybe it's something urgent."
Shen Qingfeng nodded and said against his will, "Okay. Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Qi."
"Qingfeng!"
Shen Qingfeng was startled. He turned his head and saw Xia Chuli running towards him out of breath. Xia Chuli grabbed his shoulder and asked, "Why are you standing here? Why don't you stand in the front? I've been looking for you for a long time."
Shen Qingfeng didn't expect Xia Chuli to leave his position and come looking for him. He was stunned for a moment and said, "A Li, I don't hold any official position, so I can only stand here."
"What do you mean no official position? Aren't you my reading attendant?" Xia Chuli frowned and immediately grabbed Shen Qingfeng's wrist, pulling him forward. "I don't care. You have to stand with me!"
"A Li." Shen Qingfeng struggled and pulled his hand back. "I can't stand in the front. It's against the rules."
He said it was against the rules, but in his previous life, he had stood proudly in the place closest to the sacrificial altar, beside Xia Chuli.
"Qingfeng!" Xia Chuli looked at him. His eyes were red, like a wounded little leopard looking at his once dearest person. He questioned, "Why won't you come with me?"
"I..." Shen Qingfeng looked at Xia Chuli's hurt expression. There were noble scions around watching the show. He didn't know what to say, so he could only say, "A Li, be good. Go and stand in the front first. Come and find me after the sacrifice, okay?"
Xia Chuli trembled his lips and whispered, "If I come to find you, will you come back to the Eastern Palace with me?"
Shen Qingfeng was stunned. For a moment, he really didn't know how to answer this question.
Xia Chuli bit his lower lip. He glanced at Shen Qingfeng and stepped forward in front of him. Their noses were almost touching. "Qingfeng, haven't you forgiven me yet?"
Shen Qingfeng remained expressionless.
"I won't let Qi Mengmeng into the Eastern Palace. Come back, okay?" Xia Chuli pleaded, grabbing Shen Qingfeng's sleeve with both hands.
Shen Qingfeng said, "If you don't let her into the Eastern Palace and reject Queen Qi in front of your father, I'll come back."
This time it was Xia Chuli's turn to be stunned. He took a step back and stood there, unable to say a word.
Shen Qingfeng knew that Xia Chuli wouldn't reject. He was very calculating. He could endure for more than a decade for the sake of seizing power. How could he show his edge and expose his true purpose because of Shen Qingfeng?
Xia Chuli, in my previous life, I always thought you never lied to me. But in fact, how many of the words you said to me were from your heart?
Xia Chuli pursed his lips. Just then, Chen Qi came looking for them. Seeing the strange atmosphere between them, a sinister look flashed in his eyes. "Your Highness the Crown Prince, the sacrifice is about to start. The King asks you to return to your position quickly."
Xia Chuli remained unmoved, standing there and staring at Shen Qingfeng.
Just seeing Xia Chuli made Shen Qingfeng exhausted both physically and mentally. He sighed and said, "A Li, go back. Come and find me after the sacrifice."
Xia Chuli gritted his teeth and turned around to leave with Chen Qi, leaving behind a sentence, "I will, Qingfeng."
No, you won't.