Chapter 05
Her voice was gentle, as soothing as a spring breeze.
A slender hand then lifted the carriage curtain. The young woman wore a dark blue cloud-patterned dress. She was graceful and slender, with long, silky hair cascading down her back. A faint, delicate fragrance drifted toward them with the breeze.
Zhou Li stepped down from the carriage with elegant poise and lightly patted Zhou Qiao.
“This is the palace gates. How can you laugh so loudly here?”
Then she turned to the young man standing before them, who had frozen in place.
“And this is…?”
“He’s Gu Tingwei, the son of Uncle Gu, the one I’ve mentioned to you before.”
Only then did Zhou Li meet Gu Tingwei in person.
He looked nothing like the ferocious, hideous man Zhou Qiao had described in her letters. Seeing him now, calling him handsome, dashing, and carefree suited him perfectly.
Zhou Li gave a slight curtsy.
“Greetings, Young Master Gu.”
Gu Tingwei had grown up surrounded by soldiers in the military camp. Aside from his mother and the maids in his household, the only woman he interacted with regularly was Zhou Qiao, who was more than capable of splitting a grown man in half with a single strike.
When had he ever had the chance to speak with a young lady who was so soft-spoken, gentle, and beautiful as an immortal?
He stood there stunned for quite a while before remembering to return the greeting with a cupped-fist salute.
“Greetings, Miss Zhou!”
He had long heard Zhou Qiao endlessly praise how wonderful her elder sister was, but he had always let those words go in one ear and out the other. He had never imagined that the smooth-talking youngest child of the Zhou family could actually tell the truth.
It was also the first time Zhou Qiao had ever seen Gu Tingwei looking so utterly dumbfounded.
Though he was usually irritating, on the battlefield he was brave, resourceful, and decisive. Never had he looked as foolish as a stunned goose like he did now.
She looked from Zhou Li to Gu Tingwei and immediately understood what was going on.
“Well, Gu Tingwei? Shocked by my sister’s beauty, aren’t you? I told you everyone in the Zhou family is good-looking, but you wouldn’t believe me. Now you’re finally convinced, aren’t you?”
Zhou Li had no way of dealing with Zhou Qiao’s complete lack of modesty. Seeing Gu Tingwei staring at her so openly made her cheeks grow warm, so she quickly tugged on Zhou Qiao’s sleeve.
“Enough. If we don’t enter the palace now, we’ll be late.”
As an unrelated man, Gu Tingwei couldn’t walk too closely with the ladies entering the palace. He could only follow the Zhou sisters at a respectful distance.
Surprisingly, he remained unusually quiet the entire way.
When Zhou Qiao glanced back, Gu Tingwei immediately looked away, pretending that he was merely walking in the same direction rather than following them.
“Qiao’er, Young Master Gu doesn’t seem at all like how you described him in your letters. He actually appears quite courteous.”
Seeing the sisters lean close together and whisper, Gu Tingwei felt as though a cat were scratching at his heart. He desperately wanted to move closer and listen, afraid Zhou Qiao was speaking ill of him.
Sure enough, Zhou Qiao was doing exactly that.
“He’s just pretending! Big Sister, don’t let that worthless pretty face fool you. That scoundrel keeps boasting that because he’s handsome, he’s going to marry every beautiful woman in the world. Tsk, tsk. He’s a complete womanizer.”
“He’s really that kind of person? Then… then during the seven years you spent together in Hujiang, did he ever…”
“Not at all. There wasn’t really any distinction between men and women in the military camp. Besides, Uncle Gu’s training was so brutal that it took half our lives every single day. Who had the energy to think about anything else?”
Only then did Zhou Li finally relax.
Before entering the main hall, she happened to glance back and met Gu Tingwei’s gaze.
She gave him a gentle smile.
Gu Tingwei stumbled and nearly tripped into the hall.
At the third quarter of the You Hour, music filled the palace as the grand banquet officially began. The Emperor of Northern Jin and the Empress entered the great hall together.
The officials and their families immediately rose and knelt.
“Long live Your Majesty! Long live Your Majesty! Long, long live Your Majesty! Long live Your Majesty, Your Highness! Long, long live Your Highness!”
Emperor Dugu Liang was already nearing seventy years of age. Despite being occupied with state affairs day after day, he showed no sign of fatigue. Coupled with the nation’s peace and prosperity and abundant harvests year after year, he remained energetic and in excellent spirits.
After taking his seat at the head of the hall, the Emperor smiled and raised his hand.
“Rise, my ministers. Since everyone has brought their families today, let this be treated as a family banquet. There’s no need to be overly formal. Relax and enjoy yourselves.”
“Yes. Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Although everyone answered in unison, they remained respectful and quiet, with no one daring to speak out of turn.
The Emperor laughed.
“As the saying goes, wine brings merriment. There can be no merriment without wine. Bring the wine!”
Along with the fine wine came graceful singers and dancers. Accompanied by music, wine, and elegant performances, the atmosphere in the hall gradually became lively.
Seated beside Zhou Li, Zhou Qiao obediently followed her sister’s advice and simply buried herself in eating.
After one dance ended, the Emperor and Empress had each enjoyed several cups of wine.
The princes then rose one after another to offer toasts. Their clever, witty remarks delighted the Emperor and drew hearty laughter from him.
“Fourth Son, whose seat is that beside you? Which one of my troublesome sons has skipped the family banquet this time?”
The Fourth Prince, Dugu Xun, immediately set down his wine cup and bowed.
“Reporting to Father Emperor, it belongs to Prince Rui.”
Zhou Qiao stretched her neck to look in that direction.
“Big Sister, is there actually a prince among the imperial sons who’s already been granted the title of Prince? Who is it?”
Zhou Li lowered her voice.
“It’s the Sixth Prince, Linzhou.”
Taking a bite of a piece of fruit, Zhou Qiao asked,
“If he’s already been granted a princely title, doesn’t that mean he’s completely out of the running for the position of Crown Prince?”
Zhou Li lightly tapped her on the head.
“Children shouldn’t be thinking about such things.”
Though Zhou Qiao’s words were blunt, they were essentially correct.
The Sixth Prince, Dugu Linzhou, was born to a mother of humble birth who had never been favored. She died shortly after giving birth. Having lost his mother at an early age and lacking anyone to guide him, he eventually grew into a carefree and unrestrained playboy.
The Emperor had never thought highly of this son. However, the First Prince had died young, while the Third and Fifth Princes had passed away from illness one after another. That left only the Second Prince, born to the late Noble Consort, the Fourth Prince, born to the Empress, and the once-neglected Sixth Prince.
Now advanced in age and with no more children being born in the imperial harem, the Emperor, perhaps out of a father’s guilt, granted the Sixth Prince the title of Prince, ensuring him a lifetime of endless wealth and privilege. At the same time, it also permanently ended any possibility of him succeeding to the Eastern Palace as Crown Prince.
Just then, a carefree male voice sounded from outside, drawing nearer.
“We have arrived late. We beg Father Emperor’s forgiveness!”
Everyone turned toward the entrance.
Two tall, broad-shouldered men strode into the hall side by side.
The man on the left wore a black brocade robe and casually twirled a jade flute in his hand. A mischievous smile played upon his lips, giving him a slightly wicked air.
Without needing an introduction, everyone knew this was Dugu Linzhou, the Prince Rui of Northern Jin personally invested by the Emperor.
Beside Dugu Linzhou stood a man dressed in white.
At that very moment, Zhou Qiao became exactly like Gu Tingwei had been moments earlierâcompletely captivated by beauty.
She stared blankly at the man, unable to recover her senses for quite some time.
He was even slimmer than Dugu Linzhou. Clad in white with black hair, his entire bearing was elegant and unadorned.
Only the blood-red jade pendant hanging at his waist stood out, like a drop of blood fallen upon pure snow, lending his otherwise graceful appearance a faint aura of cold menace.
