"Master, master, what do you think Feng Manshu is doing here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
Feng Yunshu shook her head. "I'm not sure. But it seems that she's waiting for someone. We'll probably find out who it is soon."
Just as Feng Yunshu had said, soon a tall and thin man came from the other direction. With the moonlight, Feng Yunshu saw the man's face clearly and was a bit surprised.
At first glance, this man seemed rather unfamiliar to her. But upon closer inspection, some information about him popped up in her mind. This man was none other than the eldest son of the Duke of Dingguo, the Marquis Wu.
The reason why Feng Yunshu had an impression of this man could be traced back to the imperial banquet she attended with Helan Yanting not long after she came to this other world. At that imperial banquet, this Marquis Wu and a few other playboys from the imperial city ganged up to bully Helan Yanting in a very unfriendly manner.
Feng Yunshu was a bit puzzled. How could Feng Manshu be involved with this Marquis Wu?
Soon, her doubt was answered.
Below, beside the willow tree.
Feng Manshu looked a bit complicated. Seeing Marquis Wu approaching, she hesitated and walked towards him.
"Zijun, I... I don't know what to do. Today, Eunuch Fu came to the prime minister's mansion with an imperial edict. The emperor has betrothed me to the crown prince. Now, I'm afraid everyone in the country knows that I'm going to be the crown princess."
"I've already heard about this," Marquis Wu Zi jun frowned. He held Feng Manshu's shoulders with both hands and looked at her.
"Manshu, my father has been sent to the border where the two countries are at war. He's ordered to escort the third prince and General Li, who have committed serious crimes, back, and at the same time lead the troops to capture the city of the Yuan country. If my father can successfully take Stone City, maybe the emperor will grant our relationship for my father's merit."
Saying this, Marquis Wu Zi jun couldn't help but hug Feng Manshu in his arms. "Manshu, we're in love with each other and have already had an intimate relationship. If you marry the crown prince, on the wedding night, the crown prince will surely find out that you're no longer a virgin. By then, I'm afraid..."
Feng Manshu naturally knew this. She had lost her virginity to Marquis Wu Zi jun. If she concealed this and the crown prince found out, it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor, and in a serious case, it might even implicate the nine clans.
Knowing Marquis Wu Zi jun's feelings for her, Feng Manshu was somewhat relieved. However, she couldn't be with him.
"Zijun, this is an imperial edict, and the emperor seems to be in a hurry about this. I heard from Eunuch Fu that the Ministry of Rites has already started preparing for the grand wedding. I'm afraid I can't wait that long..."
Marquis Wu Zi jun's face suddenly changed. "Manshu, what do you mean by this?"
Just now, Feng Yunshu clearly saw that when Feng Manshu was hugged in Marquis Wu Zi jun's arms, her expression was a bit distorted, a kind of expression that made one's hair stand on end.
"Zijun, I don't want to take risks, and I can't. If this incident implicates my father, mother, and your family, I'll never be able to forgive myself..."
"So you're going to marry the crown prince?!"
"What else can I do? Do I have any other choices? Zijun, I asked you out today just to say goodbye to you. We can't resist this. The best choice is to obey the imperial edict."
Saying this, Feng Manshu gently pushed Marquis Wu Zi jun away. Her face became a bit colder. "What happened between you and me is only known to the heavens, the earth, you, and me. We must never let a third person know."
Marquis Wu Zi jun couldn't help but frown. He seemed to feel Feng Manshu's cold attitude. "Manshu, we're so in love with each other. Are you really going to give me up for him? Can you just forget all the memories between us?"
"Marquis Wu, today is the last time we meet privately. From now on, when we meet again, we'll be strangers. You'll still be Marquis Wu, and I'll be the crown princess."
Marquis Wu Zi jun seemed unable to believe Feng Manshu's coldness. "Manshu, you were still talking to me about our future life yesterday. How can you be so cold all of a sudden..."
"Marquis Wu, you should know that I'm doing this for your own good and for everyone's good."
Feng Manshu had already made up her mind. Although she really couldn't let go so quickly, she had to force herself.
Because for her, only becoming the crown princess was the most powerful weapon. If she could only be a marquis's wife, the gap would be too big.
"Marquis Wu, this is the love token you gave me. Now I'm returning the jade pendant to you. It's getting late, and I should go back. Otherwise, my father and mother will be suspicious."
Feng Manshu stuffed the jade pendant in her hand into Marquis Wu's hand and turned around, striding back without any trace of nostalgia.
"Manshu!" Marquis Wu Zi jun couldn't accept such a sudden separation. He took a few steps forward and tried to grab Feng Manshu. "Manshu, wait. I'm sure I can come up with a way. Don't be like this..."
Feng Manshu shook off Marquis Wu Zi jun's hand. "Marquis Wu, please respect yourself. We're not three - year - old kids. We should know what's more important."
In the end, Marquis Wu Zi jun still couldn't catch up with Feng Manshu. He watched her walk further and further away, tightly clutching the jade pendant in his hand. His heart - broken look was really pitiful.
"Master, from the conversation between these two people, we can confirm one thing. The emperor has betrothed the crown prince to Feng Manshu. That means Feng Manshu will soon become the real crown princess!"
Feng Yunshu couldn't help but frown and slowly nodded.
"Indeed. But Xiaoling, you also saw that the crown prince, Dongfang Qi, was assassinated by the third prince and died on the spot. There was no way to save him."
Xiaoling nodded thoughtfully. "Oh, right. Master, when you put it like this, this thing is really strange. The crown prince is already dead, so why did the emperor of the Dan country issue such an imperial edict? Does he want Feng Manshu to have a ghost marriage with the crown prince?"
Saying this, Xiaoling couldn't help but shiver. She had seen a lot in these years and had experienced all kinds of difficulties. But the idea of a ghost marriage really made her scalp tingle.
Feng Yunshu frowned. "There's something even stranger. According to what the prince and the others said, the emperor of the Dan country suddenly fell seriously ill a few days ago and couldn't even get out of bed. Then how did he issue this imperial edict?"
Hearing this, Xiaoling couldn't help but say, "Could this imperial edict be a fake one in the name of the emperor of the Dan country?"
Feng Yunshu nodded. "Yes, this possibility is very high. And I suspect whether this matter is also related to that Concubine Mu. Maybe it's her doing again."
What puzzled Feng Yunshu now was that according to the previous pattern, Concubine Mu wanted to harm her. Why did she take Feng Manshu as a pawn?
If it was really her doing, what good would this matter do to her?
Feng Yunshu thought she had sorted out some clues, but unexpectedly, she was confused again.
"Forget it. It's getting late, and my spiritual power is almost running out. Let's go find Third Senior Brother to rest and then make plans."
Xiaoling nodded in agreement. Looking at Ziyuan, who was sitting motionless on the cloud like a wooden person, she said, "We really have to go down and rest quickly. I'm afraid if Sister Ziyuan continues like this and can't recover, she'll really become a wooden person. That would be terrible."
The master and servant soon came to the national teacher's mansion. Feng Yunshu landed directly in the mansion without alarming the others at the door. She was quite familiar with this place.
When she walked to the door of Kong Ze's room, Feng Yunshu saw that the room was completely dark without a candle lit. Could it be that Third Senior Brother had gone to bed so early?