Chapter 39: Smash His Own Foot With a Stone

“That’s right. Why else would I put on the immortal phoenix tail hairpin to see him?” Yao Mowan hooked her lips. It was like the sight of a lively daisy blooming in the lush green hills.

“You’re the imperial noble consort of great Chu, how can you like Feng Yihan!?” said Ye Junqing angrily as if she had committed a great crime.

“You’re the esteemed prince of great Chu, but hadn’t you liked Yao Moxin?” Yao Mowan’s words immediately caused Ye Junqing to choke. When Yao Mowan saw that he was completely speechless, she smiled.

“Don’t worry, Mowan would sooner like you than Feng Yihan. Linxi’s worth way more than just five hundred thousand gold taels. The iron mine there is worth one million or even five million!” Yao Mowan’s crafty look made Ye Junqing’s heart chill. He should’ve known that there didn’t exist anyone in this world that could get the upper hand with Yao Mowan. He couldn’t help but feel sympathy for Feng Yihan. If he saw Yao Mowan’s current expression, he’d probably die from anger.

“How did you know that there was an iron mine in Linxi?” asked Ye Junqing.

“Mowan’s iron mine in Mangyuan isn’t meeting supply demands, so of course there was a need to expand. Mowan had also only obtain this news just recently. Who would’ve thought a chance would come this soon?” Yao Mowan took a sip of tea happily.

“As of now, Linxi belongs to the imperial court so the imperial court will naturally start mining its resources. There’s no way you’d have a chance!” Ye Junqing didn’t agree.

“Prince should remember just one sentence: money can even make a ghost toil. Silver is white and people’s eyes are black. When black eyes encounter beautiful white silver, they turn red. There’s no one in this world that holds a grudge against money. The parents of the officials in those counties know this best of all, so as long as Mowan offers enough silver, they definitely won’t report Linxi’s situation.” Yao Mowan was filled with confidence. The lively craftiness in her eyes made Ye Junqing dazed for a moment. Back then, Yao Moxin would often have this sparkle in her eyes as well.

“Is Prince too stunned? Don’t you feel that Mowan is peerlessly wise?” When Yao Mowan saw that Ye Junqing’s eyes were fixed on her, but his gaze was distant like he was looking beyond her, she knew that he was trying to find traces of Yao Moxin in her. Even though she had already tried to restrain herself a lot, since she was still the same person in the end, there were some movements that she subconsciously did that were the same. Fortunately they were biological sisters, so it wasn’t too hard to explain.

“It should be that you’re peerlessly crafty. Feng Yihan is sure pitiful,” sighed Ye Junqing. However, internally he wasn’t really feeling pity. He even felt a little bit of delight.

Ten days later, once the troops returned to the imperial city, Eternal Peace Street was once again filled with people. This time, all the citizens were looking towards Ye Junqing. He had taken down three cities in three days, and had even obtained Linxi and captured the king of Qi. This event was enough for Ye Junqing to regain his past glory and more. The halo on his head shone even more brightly than it did in the past. Of course, there were some people that still looked towards Yao Mowan, but it was just with contempt.

“She’s truly a femme fatale!” Someone remarked.

“A femme fatale that can’t succeed at much but fails at much!” added another person.

“An idiot of a femme fatale that can’t succeed at much but fails at much!” Another person joined the verbal chain.

On the dazzling golden chariot, Yao Mowan wasn’t able to hear their remarks, but she was certain that they were extremely unpleasant. However, the more they cursed at her, the happier she felt. She had truly helped Ye Junqing make a profit.

When she saw the tall walls and green roof tiles in front of her, she couldn’t help but sigh. She was finally back. Ye Hongyi, Yao Suluan, have you two been doing well…

The moment she entered the palace doors, she was pulled out of the sedan chair by Ye Hongyi and into his arms.

“Our Wan er ah! You must have been so scared! It’s all our fault for having you go on this campaign. What would we have done if anything happened to you?” His hoarse voice was filled with unconcealable guilt and regret. Yao Mowan lifted her delicate face to look towards Ye Hongyi.

“We won this battle, but Wan er isn’t someone competitive!” Yao Mowan sounded like she was about to cry even as a trace of contempt floated up in her heart. She could tell from how haggard Ye Hongyi looked that he really had been worried.

How laughable! Ye Hongyi, you truly couldn’t tell good from bad. Back then I had wholeheartedly done everything for your sake, but you had forgotten grace to the point that you killed your own wife and child. Now that I’m wholeheartedly doing all I can to hurt you, you treasure me to the point you can’t sleep soundly without me in your arms. Say, aren’t you just complete trash?

“We know, we’ve always known! Let’s not talk about this anymore. Wan er, we’re extremely happy that you were able to come back safe and sound. We must have a banquet tonight in the imperial garden for you to welcome you back and get rid of any of the misfortune you picked up!” Ye Hongyi took Yao Mowan’s hand gently as he walked with her back to Guan Osprey Palace.

“Your Majesty, Esteemed Prince saved my life this time, so he told Wan er to ask Your Majesty to let him return to his residence…” said Yao Mowan. Behind her, when Ye Junqing heard this, he froze. When had he ever said anything like that?

Perhaps it was because Ye Hongyi had truly been too worried about Yao Mowan because he had completely forgotten about the fact that Ye Junqing was behind them. This time he had ended up smashing his own foot. Not only had he failed to get rid of Ye Junqing, he had allowed Ye Junqing to become even more famous. Ye Hongyi regretted this to no end.

“Junqing ah, we know that you’ve helped greatly in the achievement this time. We will definitely reward you properly, but as for where you’ll live… If you’re in Guan Osprey Palace, it’s convenient for us to discuss matters of the nation with you, so you should stay a while longer.” After a moment of consideration, Ye Hongyi rejected the idea with feigned civility.

“This subject brother will do as you bid.” Ye Junqing cupped his fist with his head lowered. As he watched Ye Hongyi walk in front of him while hugging Yao Mowan, his heart felt a little heavy, a little hurt, and he even felt faint heartache. Yao Mowan clearly didn’t like His Majesty. Pretending all the time was probably very difficult.

Ye Hongyi didn’t break his promise. The next night, an extravagant banquet was hosted in the imperial garden for Yao Mowan. The consorts and concubines that had been praying that Yao Mowan would die on the expedition had to curtsy and congratulate her for surviving this frightening incident and politely dance in order to entertain her. During this entire event, Ye Hongyi kept Yao Mowan in his arms. From time to time, he would personally feed her fruit wine and some of the delicacies. This scene made those consorts and concubines realize that truly, no one could compare to how much Yao Mowan was favored.

It was a sentimental night filled with soft promises. Yao Mowan accompanied Ye Hongyi in this game of deep affection and half-heartedly responded to all his pledges of undying love. As of now, even if Ye Hongyi dug out his own heart and offered it to her, she still wouldn’t feel moved.

After being tormented for a night, Yao Mowan only got out of bed at noon. Even after Ting Yue helped her wash up and get dressed, Yao Mowan still felt very weak.

“This servant kowtows in salute to Your Highness.” When Yao Mowan stepped into the main hall, Liu Xing had already been waiting there for two hours.

“Rise and speak.” It had been a month. Yao Mowan had missed Liu Xing quite a lot. However, fortunately Liu Sha was there to protect him so she hadn’t worried too much.

“Replying Your Highness, this servant found that Consort Li has been meeting with the luminescent prince a lot lately in a room behind the cold palace’s forest,” reported Liu Xing.

“The luminescent prince… She sure has good taste. What about Yao Residence? Has Li Qingqing calmed down?” A trace of cold light flashed through Yao Mowan’s eyes. After a month of not seeing Yao Suluan, it seemed that Yao Suluan’s guts had grown a lot. This unretractable path was something she herself had picked. Did she think that Ye Zixiao was someone she could manipulate? In the end, she’d probably be chewed up so badly that not even her bones would be left.

“Replying Your Highness, ever since Madame was placed under house arrest by Master for half a month, she had calmed down. Probably on the young master’s behalf, Master finally let her out. However, Liu Xing discovered that Madame has recently started to embezzle the prime minister’s family assets and has been secretly meeting with that scholar Wu Zicheng. It seems that they’re planning to elope,” reported Liu Xing.

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