New Year's Eve

  Yongzhao didn't know how he had persuaded Yongyu to leave, nor did he know how he had arrived at the imperial study. He only knew that it wasn't until he saw that bright yellow figure that he suddenly came back to himself, his confused consciousness finally finding its way back on track.

  He habitually knelt down and mechanically said the words he had already spoken tens of thousands of times: "Your son Yongzhao pays his respects to Your Majesty."

  "Rise." Long Yitian slightly raised his head, looking at Yongzhang with a hint of puzzlement, before shifting his gaze back to the memorial in his hand. In a flat tone, he asked: "Yongzhang, what's so urgent that you came to find me?"

  Because tomorrow is the eve of the Lunar New Year, Long Yitian took advantage of the holiday to give these brothers a special break, allowing them to leave the palace and have some fun. It's also a good opportunity for those busy ministers to go back and rest for a few days, after all, it's only by balancing work and rest that they can be efficient.

  At this time, however, Ke Yanxiang suddenly ran into the imperial study to find himself, which also made Long Yitian feel puzzled.

  He straightened up and Yongzhang slightly opened his mouth, but unexpectedly didn't say a word. He wasn't unwilling to ask, but rather he didn't know how to ask.

  Is it asking why the emperor wants to give him a marriage? Or is it saying that he doesn't want to take in good fortune at all? Doesn't want to marry a woman he's never met before?

  How can he say it out loud as a brother?

  Born into royalty, marriage was originally extremely difficult to take charge of on one's own, especially when it came to taking a primary wife. These things were all closely related to family interests, and this principle he understood.

  But understanding the truth is one thing, and seeing it with your own eyes is another. Otherwise, how can you explain the irrepressible helplessness and torment in your heart?

  For a long time, there was no response from Yongzhang. The doubts in Longyuan Tian's heart grew even more. He finally put down the memorial in his hand and looked straight at Yongzhang, asking: "Yongzhang, did you come here today just to pay your respects? If there is anything on your mind, speak directly, don't keep it bottled up inside."

  "Your son...", Yongzhao gritted his teeth secretly and finally spoke carefully, "I heard that... the Emperor has given me an imperial decree to marry, but I haven't received the sacred edict yet, so... I wanted to come and confirm with the Emperor..."

  "It was this matter...", Long Yitian casually picked up a freshly written imperial edict from the table and nodded to Gao Wuyong, who handed it over to Yongzhang. "I had just given a verbal decree when I went to visit Consort Chun earlier, but the imperial edict hadn't been issued yet. Since you're here, it saves the trouble of sending someone else."

  As he looked at the imperial edict presented before his eyes, Yongzhang felt as if a huge stone was pressing on his heart, making it not only harder to breathe but also spreading pain from his heart to his limbs and bones with each heartbeat, even his fingertips were numb with cold.

  Jian Yongzhuo was slow to react, and Gao Wuyong, who was holding the imperial edict, kindly reminded him in a soft voice: "Congratulations, Third Prince, this is an imperial edict of betrothal."

  Gao's words made Yongzhang suddenly wake up, he knew that at this moment he absolutely could not disobey the imperial edict, no matter who the emperor let him marry, he couldn't refuse, because he didn't have the qualifications or the right.

  Pale hands trembled as they received the imperial edict, and Yongzhang felt that the originally light silk brocade now weighed like a thousand pounds, with inexpressible fear and loss spreading wildly in his heart.

  Gao Wu Yong was a perceptive person who noticed the unusual behavior of Yong Zhen, so he naturally asked in a soft voice: "Third Brother, are you okay?"

  "It's nothing." Yongzhang forced out a smile, but his downcast eyes refused to lift again. He was afraid that the emperor would see something in his eyes, although at this moment he himself didn't understand what he was afraid of.

  Although Long Hui Tian was a bit far away, he could still see Yong Zhuang's reaction clearly from his high vantage point. However, Yong Zhuang's pale face and trembling hands made him somewhat worried.

  After receiving the imperial edict, Jing Yongzhang didn't seem to have anything to say. He simply spoke in a commanding tone: "Yongzhang, I think you don't look well, so it's better for you not to go out and play with Yongying and the others this afternoon. Just rest quietly in your room for a few days and recover your strength. It won't be too late to go to the Ministry of Rites to study after you've recovered."

  Long Yitian's words of concern brought a hint of warmth to Yongzhang's heart, but the interweaving of cold and warmth instead made his heart even more distressed.

  He knew he couldn't stay any longer, afraid that he would do something irrational, so he lowered his head and suppressed his voice, saying: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your concern. I will rest well. Your Majesty is busy with state affairs, so I will take my leave first."

  Although Long Yintian still didn't understand what Yongzhang was in such a hurry for, he couldn't bear to see him in this state, so he hesitated slightly before finally agreeing to his request: "Mm, go back and rest well."

  Watching Yongzhang's figure that could be said to have fled in disarray, Long Yitian gently stroked his lower lip with the tip of his finger, as if lost in thought.

  Black Cat Shura's Divider Line

  On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the emperor, as usual, hosted a banquet in the palace, ostensibly to entertain officials and princes, but also a rare political gathering, with various political purposes going without saying.

  Those princes and ministers also brought their sons as usual, who knows which one will be favored by the emperor, and the benefits in the future are unpredictable.

  As for those concubines and gege, they would naturally be accompanying the empress dowager to have reunion dinner in the inner palace. Of course, the daughters of those high-ranking officials wouldn't be absent either, after all they were candidates to become future consorts and secondary consorts of the princes. This was also a good opportunity for the empress and the empress dowager to observe them.

  At the banquet, listening to those officials coming and going with their empty words, Yong Ruo was on one hand playing with the jade pendant on his body, while observing his surroundings with a hint of restlessness.

  Originally, with his straightforward and lively personality, he disliked the hypocritical things in official circles. Moreover, being young, he was just an insignificant supporting character at such banquets, so it's natural that he would feel bored after a long time.

  It wasn't easy to wait until the second half of the banquet, but Yong Ruo quietly took the opportunity to leave the main hall. He had originally planned to sneak into the imperial kitchen to steal some food after visiting his mother, but who would have thought that as soon as he came out of Yi Kun Palace, he saw a guy who made him grit his teeth in anger.

  He emerged from under the shade of a tree, and with an enigmatic smile, gazed at Yong Ruo, saying in a leisurely tone: "Sixth Brother is indeed in high spirits, to be strolling alone in the Imperial Garden on this moonlit night, yet not even bringing a single servant along?"

  "How are you here?" Yong Yao's face sank, and he looked at Yong Bi with great displeasure. He couldn't figure out where he had offended Yong Bi. Ever since Mu Lan returned, Yong Bi had been thoroughly hostile towards him. Not only had he been caught several times sneaking out of the palace by Yong Bi, but Yong Bi also used this as a condition to blackmail him, forcing him to agree to those unreasonable demands.

  In his impression, once he ran into Yongbi, there was absolutely no good thing.

  "You can be here, why can't I?" With a seemingly carefree pace, he walked to the front of Yong Yao, Yong Bi slightly bent down and whispered in his ear: "Sneaking out alone like this, aren't you afraid of bringing trouble to yourself? Even if you're not afraid of trouble, what about Consort Chun?"

  Yong Yao heard the words and didn't say anything, he just secretly gritted his teeth and glared at Yong Bi fiercely. He only wanted to come and see how his mother's illness was doing, and hadn't thought too much in his mind. This time, he didn't even know how to refute, after all, when it came to human relationships and intrigue, he was far inferior to Yong Bi.

  "Well, considering our fate...," said Yung Ping, straightening up and revealing a charming smile as he stepped aside to clear the path. "I'll personally accompany you on a night tour of the Imperial Garden."

  "Who wants you to accompany me, hum!" Looking at Yongbi's fox-like appearance, Yongyao was really angry and couldn't help but throw down a sentence before turning around and leaving. He didn't care whether Yongbi followed him or not, but in his heart, he inexplicably believed that Yongbi would definitely follow him.

  Facing Yongyu's cold treatment, Yongbi didn't get angry either, he just smiled and followed closely behind. He wasn't willing to let Yongyu wander around alone at night, after all the imperial palace was different from other places, if something happened it would be troublesome.

  Furthermore, Yongzhao was recently betrothed, and now many people are keeping an eye on Chunfei and Yongzhao. As a result, Yongyao's situation is no longer as calm as it used to be. However, Yongyao has not noticed this at all, and his behavior remains the same as before. This is also what Yongbi worries about most.

  So just now at the banquet, Yongyao slipped out and Yongbi followed suit. He didn't want Yongyao to be taken advantage of at this critical moment. It's rare to have an older brother who understands his temper, so it would be a pity if he lost him. Since they were both serving the imperial family, he naturally wanted to choose someone he approved of.

  Sneaking into the imperial kitchen, after eating a plate of pastries in a gusty and cloudy manner, Yongyu's mood improved significantly. Looking at Yongbi beside him, he no longer felt so annoyed.

  He kindly handed another dim sum to Yongbi and said, "I think you haven't eaten enough either. Since we're all here, let's not eat for nothing."

  Yong Bi slightly raised an eyebrow, and the smile on his face deepened a lot, but he was not as reckless as Yong Yao.

  He suddenly pulled out a food box from somewhere, packed all the pastries that Yong Rong had found, and even casually put in two jars of wine. Then he took Yong Rong's hand and said: "If we stay here for too long, we'll be discovered sooner or later. Why not find a secluded place to eat slowly?"

  Yong Yao thought for a moment, feeling that Yong Bi's proposal was not bad. If they were discovered sneaking food, they would be scolded again, so he let Yong Bi pull his hand and slipped out of the imperial kitchen together.

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