Published at 6th of January 2021 12:15:54 PM
Chapter 25: 25
The charming and gentle thoughts in Rong Jin’s mind dissipated instantly .
Chu Liuyue is the one who has affected my reputation for years because of her status as a loser . She even sold the hunting ground without consulting me, causing me to lose face in front of the imperial families’ sons .
If he didn’t take his revenge by ten times or more, he would have been the Crown Prince for nothing!
Rong Jin forced himself to suppress his anger and walked straight forward .
The crowd was shocked to discover that he was actually heading towards Chu Liuyue .
He looked condescendingly at Chu Liuyue while maintaining a calm demeanor, but anyone could see the turbulent waves beneath his seemingly calm disposition .
Countless pairs of eyes stared intently at the two .
First Elder and the others immediately stood up and bowed . “Pleased to meet Your Highness . ”
However, Rong Jin ignored them . His eyes were trained on Chu Liuyue as he asked pointedly, “Are you Chu Liuyue?”
Chu Liuyue met his eyes and answered frankly . “Exactly . ”
Rong Jin slowly clenched his hands in his sleeves . He thought Chu Liuyue would panic, but the young girl before him was calm . He couldn’t see any uneasiness in her at all! Where did she get her courage from?
“You’re not very old, but you have a lot of guts . I thought you wouldn’t dare to come today . ”
Chu Liuyue blinked her eyes . “What made you think that I wouldn’t dare to come? Your Highness, didn’t you send word to the Chu family and demand that I come today?”
Rong Jin choked at once . Then, he sneered . “You really have a sharp tongue . ”
Chu Liuyue smiled and responded, “Thank you for your compliments, Your Highness . ”
Rong Jin glared at her before he turned around and headed towards his seat .
First Elder turned and gave her a disgusted look . “You don’t know…”
“First Elder, if you wish to embarrass yourself in public, feel free to scold me,” said Chu Liuyue lightly and sat down again calmly .
It suddenly dawned on First Elder that they were in Mingcui Palace, not the Chu family estate .
Everyone was waiting to see them make a fool of themselves . It would be bad if they made a scene now .
After much self-restraint on his part, First Elder finally waved his sleeve violently and kept quiet .
4
The Crown Prince obviously hated Chu Liuyue and was bound to throw a fit later . He would simply have to kick her out when the time came .
The palace quickly resumed its bustle, but many people were still secretly checking out Chu Liuyue .
She didn’t seem to mind as she sat peacefully in her seat . In reality, she had already swiftly checked them out .
Apart from the topmost position in the middle where His Majesty and the Empress were seated, the main hall was divided into two parts from the left and right .
The ones sitting at the very front were the princes and princesses of noble status .
As she had already inquired earlier, His Majesty had given birth to a total of nine princes and three princesses . Among whom three princes and one princess had died prematurely .
Currently, there were only six princes and two princesses alive .
Seated across from the Crown Prince was a man dressed in a black powerful suit . He looked about the same age as the Third Prince, but his features were rigid yet handsome . Even his temperament was completely different . He had a murderous aura . It could only be honed on the battlefield .
He was the Third Prince, Rong Jiu .
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He joined the Northwest Army at the age of 15 . As a young general, he had a prestigious reputation in the army . For this precise reason, he could stand up against the Crown Prince even though his birth mother was only a noble lady .
The court had long been secretly divided into two factions . The Crown Prince might have the advantage, but Rong Jiu was also not to be underestimated .
On Rong Jin’s side was naturally the Fifth Prince, Rong Qi, who was born from the same mother . He was also one of the only two princes with a title other than the Crown Prince .
The Eighth Princess and the Ninth Prince, Rong Shu and Rong Feng, were seated next to Rong Jiu . However, there were a few empty seats .
Further back were the four great family clans—Si, Gu, Chu, and Lu—on both sides .
The Chu family was seated behind the Gu family . The Lu family was seated opposite them, behind the Si family .
Among the four families, the Si family was the most powerful while the Chu family was the weakest .
Originally, the Chu family had enjoyed a higher status than the Lu family . But over the years, they had fallen out of favor while the Lu family surpassed them with their wealth and sat in the third position .
Shortly after Rong Jin sat down, a burst of laughter suddenly came from outside the palace . At the same time, a loud and majestic summon could be heard .
“His Majesty has arrived . The Empress has arrived . ”
Here they come!
Everyone rose quickly and bowed in unison towards the direction of the Emperor and his Empress .
“Long live His Majesty!”
Chu Liuyue did the same as everyone else .
“Hahaha . Everyone, rise . Today is the Prince’s birthday banquet . There’s no need to be so formal . ” A middle-aged man’s powerful laughter rang throughout the palace . “Alright . Zhen Zhen, go look for your brother too . ”
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Only then did everyone see the Fourth Princess, Rong Zhen, who was behind the Empress . She was also born to the current Empress—a true First Princess . She looked about 16 to 17 years old . Her gorgeous palace attire set off her face with increasing beauty .
“Then Father Emperor has promised Zhen Zhen?”
Emperor Jiawen smiled in favor . “Of course! You’re the most mischievous of all . Look at the rest of them . None can rival your trouble-making ability . If I don’t agree, I’m afraid you’re going to create a mess today . ”
Rong Zhen wrinkled her nose, but there was a coquettish smile on her face as she happily made her way to sit beside Rong Jin .
Any fool could see how much Emperor Jiawen doted on her .
Everyone sat only after the Empress had settled down .
Chu Liuyue quickly looked up and stole a glance at the Emperor .
Emperor Jiawen, Rong Xiao .
The last time she saw him was during the Grand Court Meeting .
All of Tianling Dynasty’s affiliated countries would come to seek an audience during the Grand Court Meeting, which was held once every three years .
Those of Rong Xiao’s status, however, could only stand at the very end . They basically didn’t even have the right to speak to her . But she had an excellent memory . She was already preparing to take over her father’s position at that time, so she was very careful to remember everyone’s appearance and their relationship with each other .
Compared to that time, Rong Xiao seemed to have aged . His face and aura were very different . Yes, at that time, he was humble and could only stand among the crowd, looking up to her from afar .
Now, however, his and her position had been completely flipped!
She quickly withdrew her gaze after only one glance .
Emperor Jiawen was aware of the strange gaze falling on him . But when he tried to look, he didn’t find anything unusual .
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As soon as Rong Zhen sat down, she saw the gloomy look on Rong Jin’s face . She suddenly recalled something and looked toward the Chu family .
She only managed to see a slender frame because Chu Liuyue was seated in the second row .
She leaned close to Rong Jin and asked softly, “Is that her?”
Rong Jin muttered a ‘hmm . ’
“Hmph! Who does she think she is? Don’t worry, Brother . I’ll help you out . ”
1
Rong Jin moved his eyebrows but made no attempt to stop her . This was a tacit acceptance .
Rong Zhen was rude and arrogant, and she always did things out of the ordinary . However, because her parents doted on her, nothing would happen to her even if she made a mess of things .
As the Crown Prince, he would be at a disadvantage if he got himself into trouble with a woman because of a hunting ground . It would be perfect for Rong Zhen to step in .
In the middle of the conversation, Rong Zhen opened her mouth and asked loudly, “I’m sure this is the ‘famous’ Miss Chu, right?”
Everyone quiet down . Then, they immediately realized that Rong Zhen was going to find fault with Chu Liuyue .
Chu Liuyue raised her eyes .
Rong Zhen smiled unkindly and said, “I haven’t seen you much throughout all these years . Today, I feel like I’ve seen you for the first time . I plan to give you a gift for our first meeting . ” With that, she clapped her hands .
“Someone, come and present the treasure that I won the day before yesterday . ”