Chapter 364
~ THE SIX PRINCESSES FANCY SU QINGWU ~
“Shut up!”
On the high platform, the Emperor suddenly slammed the wine glass on his hand. The power in his eyes was like a mountain, covering the entire sky as it spread out. Instantly, all the people on the field kneeled on the ground as they fearfully shouted, “Please calm down, Your Majesty!”
Only then did Meng Yanran realize what she had said. She wanted to open her mouth and beg for mercy, but she was intimidated by the Emperor’s rage. Her eyes rolled up, and she fainted. The Emperor walked down from the stage and looked at Meng Yanran as if she was looking at a dead object, “Meng Yanran was rude to the royal family, so she was sentenced to death! Meng Yu had no way to teach his daughter, and the rule of the family is not strict, so the top and the flower feathers were taken off from him. In addition, he is not allowed to be employed for five years. Even his own daughter was not taught well, so how can I be at ease and hand over the Imperial Court’s matters to you? You…”
“Your Majesty,” The Grand Princess Yi De walked down from the high platform, stopping the furious Emperor. “Your Majesty, a good banquet is about to begin, so what’s the need to be angry at a good banquet? Today all the officials and their families are all here. It’s a rare occasion that the Emperor and the ministers have fun together, so you should be happy.”
The Grand Princess Yi De looked at Yue Wang and then looked at Mu Yunyao, who was stand by the side with her head lowered. She waved to them to return.
The Emperor suppressed his anger and waved to the guards to take Meng Yanran and Meng Yu down: “A good banquet reception is almost disrupted. Don’t worry about them. Let's continue.". Let’s continue the banquet.”
Princess Yide took a look at Yue Wang and Mu Yunyao, who was standing on one side with her head down. She then waved to them to return.
Even though the Grand Princess Yi De had persuaded the Emperor, everyone was still trembling with fear, fearing that the wrong words would anger the Emperor. It wasn’t until the Emperor had lightly ordered his subjects to display their prey that he became slightly more interested. “Is Su Qingwu the winner?”
Su Qingwu hurriedly stood up and said, “It’s the grown-ups who have given way.”
“Not bad. You’ve also won first place in the past few years. This year’s prey seems to be even more numerous than the previous years. I believe that your riding and shooting skills have improved. I remember that your swordsmanship is also not bad. It’s rare to have fun today. Let’s show it.”
The eyes of Su Wenyuan and his wife, who were sitting in their seats, lit up at the same time. Previously, the Emperor was indifferent to the Su family and allowed Shen Binghuai to investigate, which made them panic all the time. Now, seeing that the Emperor still values Su Qingwu so much, they feel more at ease.
Su Qingwu took the long sword from a nearby guard, then cupped his hands and bowed towards the Emperor and the Grand Princess Yi De. “This humble subject is making a fool of himself.”
Su Qingwu was extremely proficient in swordsmanship and was able to move around as he pleased. Under the light of the night fire, the long sword in his hand was like a swimming dragon, causing silver light to shine wherever it went.
The long sword sliced through the dark night with a whistling sound. Waves of cold light and peerless sharpness were released from it. His moves sometimes were quick and slow, like thunder that had been retracted from its rage. They are like the light of the river and the sea!
The crowd was filled with amazement, all of them praising Su Qingwu for being the most talented youth in the world. He truly deserved his reputation.
The Emperor’s expression became a lot happier as well. He had tossed the unhappiness from before to the back of his mind and said, “Not bad.”
“Imperial Father,” A light voice rang out. Everyone sees that the Sixth Princess Ning Huaiyang standing up, and her eyes shining as she cupped her fists, “Imperial Father, a few days ago, I also learned a few moves from the master who taught martial arts, and I would like to compete with Lord Su.”
“You?” The Emperor smiled, then shook his head. “With your martial arts skills, don’t make things difficult for Su Qingwu.”
“Father, I am your daughter. How can you help him? I want to show him that I’m not one of those embroidered pillows.”
The Emperor doted heavily on the Sixth Princess. Seeing how persistent she was, he could only say to Su Qingwu, “Why don’t you accompany the Sixth Princess for a few more moves and then stop at once.”
“Yes.”
Mu Yunyao’s eyes were filled with smiles. She had originally thought that with Meng Yanran’s interference, she would not be able to witness this good show. She hadn’t expected that the Sixth Princess, Huaiyang, would still seek out Su Qingwu.
In the middle of the open space, Su Qingwu remained defensive and doesn’t attack. He wants to deal with the Sixth Princess. But he doesn’t expect that the other party won’t let go. The long sword in his hand is very disorganized, and he didn’t want to continue to struggle. Su Qingwu uses his cleverness to pick the sword out of the Sixth Princess's hand and bows to her, “If this humble subject has offended you. Please forgive me, Princess.”
The Sixth Princess’s eyes lit up when she saw Su Qingwu. With a blush on her face, she stomped her feet and walked to the side of the Emperor on the stage: “Imperial Father, after seeing Lord Su today, I know that the master who taught me martial arts is not good. I want to learn from Lord Su.”
“Don’t mess around. Su Qingwu is a first-tier imperial bodyguard and won’t be playing with you.”
The Sixth Princess couldn’t help but roll her eyes when she heard the Emperor’s tone, “Imperial Father, a would it be nice for Lord Su to teach me these days in the hunting grounds? There were no official matters that needed to be settled by him in the past two days, right? Besides, Lord Su had obtained the top position today, so it was likely that he was quite tired. It just so happened that while taking a break, he could teach me swordsmanship.”
The Emperor’s forehead twitched. “This …”
“Imperial Father, you doted on your daughter the most. When your daughter has mastered her martial arts, I can display my skills and defeat the three Imperial Brothers and seize the first place to let Imprial Father see.”
The Emperor couldn’t help but chuckle. “Your tone is really not small. Good, then I’ll agree. By the end of the Autumn Hunt, it’ll be a good lesson if you can kill one or two rabbits.”
The redness on the Sixth Princess’s cheeks deepened. “Imperial Father, you just wait and see. I will definitely learn well, so you won’t underestimate me.”
The banquet ended peacefully. In the end, no one mentioned Meng Yanran and Meng Yu anymore. Even their tents were arranged for other use.
Mu Yunyao slightly lowered her head and followed beside Yue Wang, arriving at an empty spot at the edge of the tent before stopping in her tracks. “Fourth Master, thank you very much for saving me today.”
Yue Wang turned his head to look at Mu Yunyao. In the darkness of the night, he could not see her expression and could only vaguely make out the outline of her eyes. Those eyes were always clear and transparent, even brighter than the stars in the sky. “The little snake on Meng Yanran’s body was put by you?”
“I just sprinkled a bit of snake luring fragrance on her clothes, but I didn’t expect it to be such a coincidence that it actually made the snake got into her clothes.”
Yue Wang couldn’t help but laugh softly. This was just like how she always did, whatever revenge she had, and it was immediately avenged: “Did you guess that it was her who had people place poisonous snakes in your tent?”
“I didn’t know before. When I was packing up, Jin Lan picked up an earpiece. It was exactly the same as the one worn by the maid next to her. I saw it once, and with a slight impression, I guessed that she was put it.”
“It turned out to be so.”
The night was dark, and Yue Wang’s voice was expressly clear. It slowly flowed into her ears as if it was able to captivate others.
Mu Yunyao slightly moved a step. Her heart was not at peace: “Fourth Master, you took action to save me today. Will it bring about trouble?”
Yue Wang lightly shook his head, afraid that Mu Yunyao wouldn’t be able to see it clearly. He then continued to explain, “There won’t be any trouble.”
Mu Yunyao fell silent. After the defenses in her heart had weakened, she deliberately overlooked many problems, the most important of which was the difference in status between her and Yue Wang.
Even if Yue Wang was not favored, he was still the prince of the Dali Dynasty. His abilities, tenacity, bearing, and magnanimity … wasn’t any weaker than the other princes. He was just like a bright pearl covered in dust. One day, his gray veil would fall off, and he would bloom with a unique grace. At that time, where would she be? Meng Yangran was right about one thing. Her background was low. No matter how much silver she earned, it wouldn’t change the fact that she was born in the countryside.