Chapter 128

  Some things, he knew so clearly, yet never mentioned or spoke of, instead giving Sima Qiang a sense of fear. Unfortunately, this person was not the eldest prince; otherwise, if the Great Xing dynasty fell into his hands, it would not be worse than falling into Sima Zhe's hands. Sima Zhe was born with a gentle and hesitant nature, unsuitable for governing the country. On the other hand, this Sima Rui seemed unruly but was actually clear-headed and intelligent. No wonder Murong Feng liked him.

  Watching Sima Qiang leave, Sima Rui let out a soft sigh, thinking about Murong Feng in the house, thinking about some deep-seated concerns in his heart, not knowing how to help her turn danger into safety, fearing that it would more or less involve her, hoping to let her avoid any harm.

  If, if she had to choose between that person and him, would she hate him for the rest of her life? After all, that person was also one of the most important people in her life; if she knew what that person did, wouldn't she have to make a choice too?

  It's just a soft sigh, I truly hope to give Feng'er a space that is never disturbed, let her live happily in happiness, and be with herself for generations.

  No matter what situation arises, the first person he wants to protect is always Feng'er. Even if it makes him a thorn in other people's eyes or leads them to think he's unfilial, he won't regret it. Feng'er is his greatest concern in life; he can't let go of her, though he can let go of himself.

  The emperor was troubled from early morning, the envoy of Wumeng country came to propose a marriage on behalf of the prince of Wumeng country, wanting to marry a princess of the Great Xing dynasty as his wife. However, there is currently no suitable princess by his side, and he looked at Murong Qingliang, the prime minister who had always helped him get out of trouble, but saw that Murong Qingliang was looking down at the ground with a calm expression, not saying a word.

  Ever since Murong Xue was proclaimed Snow Empress by herself, Murong Qinglang has been like this. He just stands there, not speaking, not listening, not hearing, and not asking.

  The emperor kept Sima Zhe and Murong Qingliang behind to discuss this matter. Now that there is a beautiful concubine in the harem, it's not easy to find someone to fool the Wumeng country. But for now, where can we find a suitable princess?

  "Murong Ai Qing, what do you think is the best course of action?" The Emperor asked patiently, but in his heart, he had already scolded this former most trusted minister several times. In the Emperor's opinion, after marrying his daughter, he should be grateful and obedient, not wearing a misfortunate expression.

  Murong Qinglang remained silent for half a day, and the Emperor waited impatiently, thinking that he would not speak again. Just when he thought so, he heard him say slowly: "This old minister is old and weak, and can't think of any good solution."

  The Emperor almost got choked with rage, his face stern and voice severe: "Mu Rong Ai Qing, don't try to deceive me! Don't think that just because Xue Fei is here, I will let you off easily. If you provoke me, I will deal with you in the same way. As the Prime Minister of the Great Xing Dynasty, you should be helping me resolve my worries, but instead you came up with a sentence like 'This old minister is old and feeble-minded, can't think of any good solutions' to deceive me!"

  Murong Qingliang hung his head low and remained silent.

  Simazhe hastily mediated, saying: "Your Majesty, it is indeed true that no suitable candidate can be found at present. The princesses in the palace are either already married or not yet of marriageable age. It's really difficult to handle, and it's not that Prime Minister is deceiving Your Majesty."

  The Emperor glared at Murong Qingliang and said with a scowl: "I don't care if you're old, but you must come up with a plan for me right now. I know you resent me, resent me for taking your beloved daughter Murong Xue away from you, but she's married to me, is it necessarily worse than marrying someone else?"

  Murong Qingliang hummed softly, his voice extremely light, even Sima Zhe standing beside him didn't hear it clearly. That disdain, fearing the Emperor would be heartbroken if he heard it. "This old minister dare not, but this old minister originally thought in his heart, only hoping that this young girl could spend her life with one person, and receive love from one person, but did not dare to wish for sharing one person with others, Your Majesty must have misunderstood this old minister's heart."

  The Emperor was taken aback.

  "If we're talking about the main idea, it's not that there isn't one, it's just that it goes against common sense." Murong Qingliang said slowly, "Not all of the princesses born to the emperor's consorts are below marriageable age. When Xiaoxue got married, she was only fifteen and still underage. I suppose the emperor must have some daughters around fourteen or fifteen years old, can't he just choose one casually?"

  Simazhe was taken aback, just about to say something, but saw Murong Qingliang looking at him coldly and said with a double meaning: "Crown Prince, haven't you also been overly generous with your love? The old minister's idea sounds absurd, but it's not too much for the Daxing Dynasty. Besides, since Concubine Li is already in the palace, let her choose one for her own brother herself, where's the difficulty?"

  Simazhe's heart skipped a beat, feeling somewhat guilty. He and Hongyu's affair had been kept hidden so well, how could anyone have known? It must be because Murong Qinglang was resentful of him for being cold to Murong Xuan recently. He smiled awkwardly and remained silent.

  As for the sudden appearance of Li Fei, Murong Feng was somewhat unexpected. Sima Rui accompanied her to sit down, and the two were chatting idly when Chun Liu brought in Li Fei. Li Fei still looked the same as before, staring at Chun Liu for a long time, making Chun Liu's hair stand on end.

  "Empress Li, what brings you to my place so early in the morning?" Sima Rui said with a hint of a smile. He and Empress Li had a decent relationship; actually, she wasn't a bad person, just hot-tempered, but kind at heart. "Why are you staring at Chunliu like that? You're scaring her half to death. Stop intimidating her."

  Li Fei smiled happily and said, "Don't mention it, I really do have something to attend to, otherwise I wouldn't be bothering you all so early in the morning. As for Chun Liu, I'm not trying to scare her, but rather want to give her a generous gift."

  Murong Feng smiled lightly and remained silent.

  "Today, an envoy came to our country of Wumeng, wanting to choose a wife for my brother. Just now, the Emperor found me and told me to choose one myself. However, there isn't a suitable princess in the harem, which is good because if there was, I would really dislike it. I don't want to choose any of these pampered princesses as the queen of Wumeng, they all look so spoiled that it makes me angry. So, I decided to choose someone else. The first one I thought of was Chunliu. This little girl is quite likable, what do you think?" said Li Fei with a smile.

  Murong Feng smiled faintly and said in a soft voice, "What the Empress said is indeed good, but it depends on Chun Liu's own thoughts. However, I don't quite agree with this. It sounds like a good thing, enjoying wealth and glory without suffering as a slave anymore. But your brother will be the future king of Wumeng, if Chun Liu marries him, she might not be able to enjoy exclusive love. Even sitting in one of the three palaces, what's the fun? Why not let her marry an ordinary commoner and live a comfortable life, devoted to one husband?"