Chapter 17

  On the other side, Murong Feng knelt down to pay respects to the Emperor and Empress, with a warm and respectful attitude. "Murong Feng has seen the Emperor and Empress." The words were spoken in a gentle and natural tone, like a warm breeze blowing by, giving off a comfortable feeling, neither humble nor arrogant, and his movements were dignified and elegant.

  The emperor was taken aback and listened to this voice, which should be a delicate little girl. "Lift up your head."

  The queen was taken aback, thinking to herself: "What's wrong with the emperor? Why is he speaking so rashly and looking so distracted? Could it be that Mu Rong Xue has such great charm that even the emperor can't resist?"

  Looking at Murong Feng, she felt a little worried. She liked this gentle and warm little girl. Compared to Murong Xue, Murong Feng made her more loving and protective. Marrying her useless son without any complaints, although there was a history of refusing the marriage, it didn't make the Empress dislike her. If it were herself, she probably wouldn't have agreed either.

  Murong Feng slowly raised his head, neither hastily nor tardily. In his heart, he secretly thought: This emperor is also too impolite. However, on the surface, he was as calm as water, dignified and composed, quietly gazing at the emperor in front of him.

  The man in front of him, about fifty years old, with a few strands of white hair at his temples, but not many wrinkles on his face, only some vicissitudes hidden at the bottom of his eyes. His eyes looked cold and not easy to get close to, with a hint of scrutiny, sizing up himself in front of him, exuding an aura of majesty that commanded respect.

  These days, Murong Feng had been reading the history of the Daxing Dynasty. This emperor was the fourth ruler of the Daxing Dynasty and had been in power for twenty-five years. Murong Feng thought: Being able to govern the Daxing Dynasty into such a state is also a wise and just ruler, so let's forgive his irrationality.

  The emperor was also quietly sizing up Murong Feng, standing in front of him without any fear, unlike Murong Xue, who had a look of reverence on her face and a hint of shyness in her eyes when she saw the emperor. Murong Feng was completely different, standing tall and returning the emperor's gaze with clear and calm eyes, his expression warm and gentle, with a hint of curiosity in his eyes that did not make the emperor feel abrupt. His eyebrows were clear and elegant, his face clean and beautiful, surpassing even Murong Xue's beauty, with a natural freshness that seemed to be unadorned, especially the elegance and warmth between his eyebrows and lips. He was wearing a light purple dress, the color soft as a lotus flower on the pond, fragrant as the flowers on the branch, moving with dignity and lightness, his black hair hanging down from his shoulders, tied with a ribbon of the same color, only a pale yellow butterfly fluttering lightly between his words. He did not have Murong Xue's exquisite luxury, but he had a calm and natural demeanor that Murong Xue did not possess. The two were truly unique, each having their own merits, just like the lily and the peony, one being holy and the other being majestic.

  "Are you Rui'er's consort?" The emperor's tone was much softer, looking at such a lovely woman, he really couldn't bear to keep a straight face. This Murong Feng and Murong Xue were truly different, and it was unknown how Murong Qingliang had made his choice back then. If it were him, he probably wouldn't have been willing to marry either of them off to such an unruly person as his own son.

  Murong Feng smiled slightly, without any fear, and nodded his head.

  Just as he was about to speak, he saw Sima Rui walking over in this direction. He seemed to still be searching for the Mu Rong Feng of his impression, and his whole body carried a dangerous aura. As he passed by Mu Rong Xue, he didn't even raise an eyebrow, and Mu Rong Xue was startled once again, causing him to worry about San Jie.

  On the side, Wu Meng whispered to his wife Murong Yu: "I don't know why I feel that Sanmei is different from before. I'm talking about her words and deeds, she seems more elegant now. If it's not just my imagination, but I also think Sanmei looks prettier than before. Is it really like what Eldest Sister said, after getting sick and recovering, her personality has changed?"

  Murong Yu smiled slightly, "I was just wondering. In the past, Sanmei wouldn't have dared to be so bold, seeing the Emperor and not being scared pale? Maybe Eldest Sister is telling the truth, at first I didn't believe it when she said that Little Sister was rescued by Sanmei, but now it seems like it might really be true. I really want to ask her how she managed to persuade that stubborn Fourth Prince. I estimate no one can handle him. But now, how will she deal with Sima Rui? I see his temper is quite big, what a huge fire!"

  "Murong Feng!" Sima Rui took a step forward and grabbed Murong Feng's arm. He was worried that he couldn't find Murong Feng, but Wang Bao spotted him and said the one wearing purple clothes upstairs was Murong Feng. He wanted to see how big Murong Feng's guts were. "You came back and didn't stay in the house properly, running around everywhere! You don't understand any rules at all! Are you looking for death?!"

  Murong Feng raised his head, smiled slightly and said with a hint of sarcasm: "Fourth Prince, could you please be gentle? Are you planning to punish me directly? Would you at least let me explain?"

  "Rui'er, you're being rude!" The empress said unhappily, "What's with the commotion in the garden? After Feng'er returned, she came to see me. I was the one who asked her to accompany me to the garden to admire the flowers. Why are you being aggressive now? Let go of Feng'er quickly."

  Simarui stared blankly at the face in front of him, his voice trembling as he spoke word by word: "Bai! Min! How is it possible that it's you? Are you male or female?"

  Murong Feng smiled innocently again, "Fourth Prince, what joke are you telling? What White Mian? Feng'er is naturally a girl. Isn't that right, Grandmother?"

  Simarui's body was stiff, and his eyes were filled with flashing images that couldn't be connected. Staring at Murong Feng, how could it be?! How could this happen?! What exactly was the relationship between Bai Min and Murong Feng? For a moment, he felt like his brain was in chaos, and this Murong Feng was completely different from the one he had imagined. It was as if a withered tree had suddenly bloomed, and his emotions were in turmoil. He felt a bit disappointed, a bit lost. He absolutely would not have liked Murong Feng, such an insipid woman, a wooden beauty, really uninteresting. But who exactly was the woman in front of him? Bai Min or Murong Feng? For a moment, Simarui could only stand there stupidly, holding onto Murong Feng's arm, feeling like a fool.

  "Rui'er, let go of Feng'er." The empress dowager walked over and pulled on Sima Rui's arm, finding it strange that her grandson was reacting as if he had seen something terrifying, his eyes wide with a stunned expression. But Murong Feng just smiled faintly and stood there without moving. "Feng'er is obviously a girl, what's wrong with you? Talking nonsense in broad daylight."

  Simarui stared at Murong Feng, still a bit dazed, and let go of his hand. Murong Feng smiled slightly and bowed to the empress dowager, saying softly, "Thank you, Grandmother." His eyes flickered briefly towards Simarui, and there was a hint of mischief in his smile that no one noticed. Everyone only saw that Murong Feng didn't seem to mind Simarui's behavior at all, but instead appeared calm and collected, whereas Simarui looked a bit foolish.

  "Are you Mu Rong Feng or Bai Min?" Sima Rui stared at Mu Rong Feng, his mind clearing up a bit, completely ignoring the gaze of others, even disregarding his grandmother's attempts to stop him. He had to get to the bottom of what was going on with Bai Min and Mu Rong Feng right now.

  "Of course, I am Murong Feng." Murong Feng said calmly, with bright eyes, but a smile in his heart. "Who is Bai Min? Fourth Prince, what's wrong with you? Did you mistake me for someone else?"

  "I'm not blind, how could I mistake someone?" Sima Rui said irritably, spat out a mouthful of air, looked at Murong Feng and said hatefully, "Alright, Murong Feng, go back and we'll settle the score." After finishing speaking, he turned around and walked away. Just two steps later, he turned his head to look at Murong Feng, raised his voice and said, "Murong Feng, come with me."