Feng Zhi Wei took out a paper roll with Changning’s seal and handed it over. 

Lu Zhi Yan was both a little unwilling and a little relieved, and reached out to take it through the sword door. 

The moment his fingertips were about to touch the paper roll, Feng Zhi Wei’s hand suddenly shot out and grabbed Lu Zhi Yan’s fingers and jerked them in! 

Lu Zhi Yan’s attention was all on the paper scroll. Besides, he didn’t expect this person would suddenly attack him after their negotiaions, thus, when he was pulled, his arm was immediately pulled into the sword gate!

The sword gate was triggered and immediately began to move downward!

Just when it seemed Lu Zhi Yan’s arm was about to be separated at the elbow!

*Click*

There was a dull sound of a spring, and the two crossed swords abruptly stopped only millimeters away from Lu Zhi Yan’s elbow!

*Pah*

Suddenly a drop of water fell on the ground– it was beads of cold sweat that had rolled down Lu Zhi Yan’s forehead. 

“Ha ha.”

The short laugh came from Feng Zhi Wei. She seemingly had none of the guilt that she should have for tricking others into harm’s way. She stared at the side of the sword door and grinned, “Sure enough, someone is controlling this.” With a flick of her finger, a piece of gravel shot out and got stuck at the place where the previous *click* sound came from. The sword door shook and then stopped moving. 

The slight movement of the sword door caused Lu Zhi Yan to break out in cold sweat again, but Feng Zhi Wei was already pulling the paper scroll out from his stiff fingers, and said with a gentle voice, “Such a precious thing, I can’t bear to waste it on such a small matter.” While she matter-of-factly stuffed the scroll back with one hand, she calmly pushed Lu Zhi Yan’s hand away with the other. Pulling Gu Nan Yi with her, they leisurely stepped over the sword door. Before leaving, she even remembered to pat Lu Zhi Yan who was still standing frozen stunned and whispered in his ear with a smile, “Oh, little prince, the terrace is actually quiet and cool. It was indeed nice.” 

She walked away leisurely, leaving Lu Zhi Yan standing there in a daze. 

A few moments later, a roar suddenly broke out in the silence. 

“Wei Zhi!” 

——————————————

In the manor of the Grand Marshal, the unlucky young prince of Changning was once again defeated by Feng Zhi Wei. Feng Zhi Wei leisurely swaggered out but Lu Rui didn’t make any move, seemingly had given up or perhaps was very confident in himself. Three days later, during the formal audience with the emperor, the two met again outside the court. They just bowed and smiled, then walked away as if nothing had happened. 

The disputes among the powerful are not like those between the commoners, where everything was calculated clearly and paid back right away with a punch and a stab. Among the powerful, whether to pay it back, how to pay it back, or simply not to pay it back, all have their own process and rules. Feng Zhi Wei looked at Lu Rui’s rather frail figure and smiled. 

For this one audience with the emperor, Feng Zhi Wei and the Xiliang’s Ministry of Rites along with the Internal Bureau of Affairs argued for three days about whether the enovys would kneel and bow when they met the emperor. The other side demanded kneel and bow, but Feng Zhi Wei only agreed to bow. The other side said our emperor is supreme, Feng Zhi Wei said I am not a minister of your country. The other side then said does that mean our ministers would not need to kneel and bow when they have an audience with the Tiansheng emperor? Feng Zhi Wei replied your first emperor once held the whip and pedal beside my emperor’s horse, and kneeled when entering and leaving my emperor’s presence. Your first emperor bowed, and now you dare to not bow? (This would be suggesting they are higher or more important than their own first emperor.) 

After three days of verbal battles, the Ministry of Rites and the Bureau of Internal Affairs were all defeated. In the end, the Regent made concessions and said that the envoys did not have to kneel. What seemed like a pointless and boring verbal dispute was in reality the top priority of the diplomatic etiquette between the two countries, relating to the face of each empire. When the news got back to Tiansheng, the emperor was immediately delighted. In the name of maintaining the dignity of the emperor, he immediately promoted Feng Zhi Wei up another rank. 

On the day of the audience with the emperor, the little emperor was much better-behaved. Instead of the little emperor, who was just a decoration on the throne, it was the Empress Dowager Dong who drew Feng Zhi Wei’s attention– This woman who held great power in Xiliang’s harem and was said to be very formidable, wasn’t as majestic, noble, arrogant and fierce as she had imagined. On the contrary, the voice coming from behind the pearl curtain was gentle and kind, the neighboring sort that caused one to want to draw closer. The little emperor seemed to be very attached to her as well. What was even more rare was that there seemed to be a tacit understanding between Empress Dowager Dong and the Regent. Amazed at the faint mutual respect between the two, Feng Zhi Wei felt that everything about the most powerful rulers of Xiliang was all a little out of her understanding of the world, and could be considered an anomaly. 

What’s even more amazing was that when the young emperor came to court, he actually brought Gu Zhi Xiao with him and had her symbolically hold a box next to the palace maid who was holding a fan. The beautiful little girl attracted the attention of all the Xiliang officials. As one who doesn’t know the meaning of stage fright, Gu Zhi Xiao’s looked around her, and when she saw Feng Zhi Wei looking at her, she wrinkled her nose and made a fist-waving gesture in the box. 

Feng Zhi Wei was taken aback, thinking inwardly, could it be that she really beat the little emperor until he capitulated? These men of Xiliang, from the young to the old, are really of a strange, miraculous quality. 

After the audience with the emperor, a routine big banquet feast was held. Feng Zhi Wei had long been tired of the life where she had to drink nonstop making the rounds. After the emperor came out and toasted three times, she went to drag Master Gu to go walk around, but then saw Master Gu gave Gu Zhi Xiao a gesture. Gu Zhi Xiao, who had been dawdling behind the little emperor immediately turned to leave joyfully. The little emperor went to pull her but retracted his hand the next instant when Gu Zhi Xiao raised her fingers and made a gesture of “stabbing your eyes”. The palace maids and nannies on all sides covered their mouths and giggled, no one took the child’s joking actions seriously. Only Feng Zhi Wei, after seeing Gu Zhi Xiao’s gesture, secretly felt a cold sweat forming– could it be that Gu Zhi Xiao really climbed into that child’s bed, held him down, and threatened to stab his eyes and scared him into being so obedient? 

Her curiosity was aroused by the father and daughter’s actions. Master Gu seldom took the initiative to give anyone instructions, and he seemed to want to hide it from her. What did he want to do? 

She excused herself and made herself look casual as she followed the crowd out and saw the one big and one small figure turned into the flower garden, and sat in front of a fake rocky mountain. Gu Zhi Xiao was sitting on Gu Nan Yi’s knees, the two seemed to be looking at the fish in the water. 

Using the sound of firework exploding above in the sky as a cover, Feng Zhi Wei took a few steps closer, hiding behind the group of fake rock mountains. 

The father and daughter did not speak. In the silence, the one big and one small figure overlapped in the night breeze, giving off a sense of calm and peace as they each listened quietly to the sound of carp leaping in the pond and the occasional gentle sound of water ripples.    

When these two are together, even Gu Zhi Xiao seemed to be quieter. She sat on Gu Nan Yi’s lap, her little face very somber and serious as she looked at the fish. After a while, she said gravely, “This fish is freer than me.” 

Gu Nan Yi also looked at the fish with a serious expression. Although his eyes were on the fish but he was actually thinking about the idea he had been pondering for about three days. He just didn’t know how to bring it up to his daughter, but he seemed to have finally found an opportunity and immediately said, “You can be freer than fish.” 


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