Finally Meeting Xuan Tian Mo
This voice was very unfamiliar, and the person’s appearance was not common. His skin was dark and a bit rough. His hair was not combed as tidily as the other men, nor was it tied up. It was just casually left free with a few small braids mixed in. That person also had a bit of stubble. His body was sturdy and strong; however, his face looked beautifully symmetrical like the other sons of the Xuan family.
Feng Yu Heng had seen this person two years earlier; however, she was only able to see a faint resemblance to his appearance at that time. For the most part, it had changed. It could be known without needing to think about it. This had to be the eighth prince, who had been stationed in the South, Xuan Tian Mo.
Feng Yu Heng thought that he really did look exactly like the young misses at Jing Ci Palace had described. The eighth prince did indeed have a certain something that others did not have; however, it was not something that could easily be seen. Instead, it needed to be carefully examined. The girls of the ancient world were too embarrassed to say it; however, she was able to analyze it accurately. Put plainly, what was it? It was just the smell of a man! Compared to the other princes, he had a bit less of a noble aura but was a bit rougher. It was also this roughness the made him seem even more different from the others. He had even more of a manly aura. At a glance, it looked as though he had a greater sense of security than the sixth prince and seventh prince.
Speaking of, Xuan Tian Ming had also gone to fight in the Northwest for a full two years. But speaking of that, Xuan Tian Ming was rather finicky. Thinking about it, even if he went to fight, he would definitely not allow himself to become like this. As he saw it, this was not much different from what a barbarian looked like.
As Feng Yu heng thought about it, she could not stop herself from glancing over toward Xuan Tian Ming’s handsome face, and she could not help but faintly smile; however, it just so happened that Xuan Tian Ming also looked in her direction. It was as though he could guess what she was thinking, as he did not hold back in rolling his eyes at her. Xuan Tian Ge saw this small interaction between the two and secretly laughed at Feng Yu Heng for a long time.
Everyone was seated according to priority. Xuan Tian Ge was not at all reserved when it came to the eighth prince wanting to give her a luminous white jade cup. After giving her thanks, she shouted that not wrapping it up enough was no good, which caused Tian Mo to laugh loudly. At the end of it all, Xuan Tian Ge was the Xuan family’s only daughter. All of the princes felt a bit of doting love for her.
The tables that had jade cups were occupied by the imperial concubines, lords, princesses, princes, imperial grandson, palace princess and imperial daughter. The female family members of officials could only look on from a distance in envy; however, there were people that looked forward to finding a chance to go over and try to form a connection. In any case, they wanted to get closer to admire them. After all, for people from normal families, seeing this sort of thing was truly a rare occurrence. Even the families of high-ranking officials rarely saw them.
At this time, the Emperor spoke up. He did not make a speech celebrating the new year. Instead, he praised the eighth prince: “Mo’er came back from the South and did not just bring back these luminous white jade cups, he also brought back a number of treasures from the small desert countries. We have also expanded our horizons, as there are quite a few things that cannot be found in our Da Shun, and the tribute that Gu Shu sends each year has hidden these things. In the end, going and fetching them ourselves is best, just taking whatever we want.”
These words caused everyone to blush with shame, and even Xuan Tian Ge could not bear to continue listening, as she quietly muttered: “Why does he sound like a bandit. Imperial Uncle really…is sounding more and more like a bandit.”
Feng Yu Heng agreed, saying: “Doesn’t this basically just mean that His Highness the eighth prince entered the desert and stole it?!”
Xuan Tian Ge nodded: “It was definitely stolen; otherwise, do you think that the things from the desert would end up here with us? Did you not hear Imperial Uncle say it? When Gu Shu sends it annual tributes, it’s reluctant to give us more. Here are so many luminous white jade cups. Only the heavens know how many countries eighth brother stole from.”
“But he managed to obtain some results.” Feng Yu Heng said, “Even with the stealing, the majority of the small countries have submitted themselves to him. Not only do they fear him, but they also respect him. It’s possible that they will join forces to help him ascend the throne and create a reign of terror in the court.”
Xuan Tian Ge furrowed her brow from listening but was not surprised. She told Feng Yu Heng: “My Imperial Father does not like paying attention to the struggle for the throne, and he never mentions the matters of the court at home, but I heard quite a bit from Xi Feng. General Ping Nan was stationed in the South, after all. When he heard about his former subordinates being killed, he nearly headed down there on his own in anger. Fortunately, he was talked out of it by his family. Xi Feng said that General Ping Nan said that there would be unrest in the South within half a year. Also, this would not just be a small bit of unrest in the South. The goal ought to be to cause unrest around the entirety of Da Shun. I think that this unrest is definitely related to eighth brother; however, I don’t know how exactly he plans to cause it.”
Feng Yu Heng had a bit of preparation for this matter. She and Xuan Tian Ming had analyzed the situation in the South, and Xuan Tian Ming had just returned from the South not too long ago. He was very clear on the situation over there. It was just that she did not tell Xuan Tian Ge. It was enough to have one person keep this worrying matter at heart. There was no need to drag other people down and worry with her.
At this time, the Emperor had already moved on from the earlier topic, beginning his dignified speech to celebrate the new year. It was erudite, and she had a bit of difficulty understanding certain words. After all, the words and sentences used by the ancient people in books and standard situations were a bit hard to understand. It was unlike usual conversations, Feng Yu Heng felt her head ache over this.
Either way, she had nothing to do. While fiddling with the luminous white jade cup before her, she also turned her gaze on the princes across from her. Today, round tables had been brought out, and it felt a bit like a reunion feast, but this meant that there would be some people whose backs would be turned to her. The eldest prince, second prince and fourth prince all happened to be sitting with their backs facing her, while she could see the sides of the fifth prince and the sixth prince. As for those that faced her, it was Xuan Tian Hua, Xuan Tian Ming and the earlier Xuan Tian Mo, which allowed her to see them clearly.
When she looked over, there was another gaze that immediately met hers. It met hers in a timely manner, and it was very forceful. Feng Yu Heng faintly felt as though that gaze was one that belonged to a wild wolf, its unruliness being conveyed. When the eighth prince, Xuan Tian Mo, looked toward her, he did not hold back his aura in the slightest. He just glared straight at her as if to provoke her, and it was also as if he was declaring war on her.
Feng Yu Heng, however, did not have the same force to compete with him. Of course, it was impossible for a young girl like her to truly have the same masculine violence. She just smiled to that person, easily showing that person that skill was better than strength. This showed Xuan Tian Mo that this punch had landed on nothing but fluff and had no effect. But Xuan Tian Mo truly did something that gave Feng Yu Heng a shock. In this competition, he had lost a round; however, he did not have an embarrassed or irritated expression. Instead, he very naturally put on a smile and raised his cup toward her then took a sip, instantly regaining his aura.
Feng Yu Heng raised her cup and took a drink. In her mind, however, she had no choice but to sigh with emotion. It was no wonder Xuan Tian Ge had said that her eighth brother was not like old third. Now, it seemed that there was not just a difference in background, but there was also a difference in their actions. The former third prince, Xuan Tian Ye, could not even remotely be compared to this eighth prince. In her memory, Xuan Tian Ye only knew how to apply pressure to his opponents. If this pressure lost out, he had no other methods. Aside from his anger, Xuan Tian Ye did not have anything else. But Xuan Tian Mo was different. Whether he was cold or warm, fierce or smiling, these were all things that he could change in the blink of an eye. He was indeed a good opponent!
She then looked at Xuan Tian Ming, as the two shared a bitter smile. It was very clear that Feng Yu Heng’s observations were things that Xuan Tian Ming already understood. Having been brothers for many years, he understood his eighth brother too well. Thus he silently mouthed to Feng Yu Heng: “Be careful of old eighth.” He did not say anything else, as he turned his head to listen to the Emperor’s long speech.
Feng Yu Heng retracted her gaze and began to fiddle with the cup in her hand; however, at Xuan Tian Ming’s table, there was another gentlemanly gaze looking over. It was not one that carried a look of distress that enticed people like Xuan Tian Hua’s, but it carried an admiration and a yearning that could not be described clearly.
When the Emperor’s speech finally came to an end, Feng Yu Heng very visibly let out a sigh of relief; however, it could be seen that the officials did not appear as tormented as her. Instead, they all appeared to be quite inspired. Thus everyone stood up and bowed to the Emperor, saying: “Your Majesty is brilliant!”
Following this was the time for the presentation of gifts. Clearly, this side had not reached this stage while the female guests were still in Jing Ci Palace. This allowed Feng Yu Heng to watch people in their willingness to spend money to present gifts to the Emperor. All sorts of unique treasures appeared, which allowed her to expand her horizons, and it also allowed her to see some of the things that were made of jade that came from her jade mine.
Zi Rui was also among the people to present their gifts. The child had been brought in at Xuan Tian Ming’s side, but Xuan Fei Yu had also entered the palace. The two children once again gathered together. Xuan Fei Yu’s injury had already gotten much better, and there were no impediments to his movement; however, Zi Rui was very understanding and did not mess around like they did in the past. Instead, he carefully protected Fei Yu, fearing that he would get hurt. This caused the second prince to commend him.
Zi Rui was prepared by Feng Yu Heng. Although it was not as dazzling was the gifts that the other people had presented, Feng Yu Heng’s things could not be compared to by others. Regardless of whether it was the fountain pen or the ink, or even the stack of paper that had come from her space, they were all things that this era just did not have. They had never been seen before. The Emperor expressed his curiosity toward Zi Rui’s things while carefully listening to his explanation. He immediately learned how to fill the fountain pen with ink. He then copied Zi Rui and wrote a few words on a piece of paper.
The Emperor was not too accustomed to the awkward way of holding a pen, and the first few words that he wrote were messy and not very pretty. But after writing a little more, he had clearly found his stride. The more he wrote, the smoother it went and the happier he became. By the end, he could not help but sigh: “If this sort of thing could be used in my Da Shun, it would really be a great benefit!” As he spoke, he immediately looked toward Feng Yu Heng. The Emperor naturally understood where a young child like Zi Rui would get this sort of nice thing. Also, the majority of the strange and curious things that he had seen over the past two years had come from Feng Yu Heng.
Feng Yu Heng knew that this would be the outcome. Thinking about it, the construction of a fountain pen was not extremely difficult. Now that steel existed, producing steel was not a problem. As long as there were skilled artisans, producing fountain pens would not be a difficult matter. As for the ink, it was nothing more than a different type of ink, and it would not be a problem.
Thus she nodded and stood up to face the Emperor: “This was something that daughter-in-law received from my Persian master. At the same time, he taught daughter-in-law how it was made. After the new year, daughter-in-law will find some craftsmen to try and make some. Father Emperor should not be disappointed.”
The Emperor was very happy and immediately ordered Feng Yu Heng to have this matter taken care of. After it was taken care of, spread its use, and there would definitely be a great reward.
But once these words came out, another voice suddenly came, asking Feng Yu Heng: “Imperial Daughter said that those things came from Persia? Are those words the truth?”
Feng Yu Heng suddenly turned to look at the person that had spoken. It was the wild eighth prince, and a bad feeling suddenly filled her heart…