“Since Your Majesty has no intention to go through with the marriage, our Phoenix King Valley has embarra.s.sed ourselves. The imperial clan of the Cloud Water Nation is n.o.ble and not a faction we can seek connection with, after all, we are just some villagers who cultivate and mix medicine in the mountains. Since that is the case, this old one and the disciples of the Phoenix King Valley will not pollute the imperial clan"s palace anymore.” The elder spoke and quickly left with the members of the Phoenix King Valley.
After being ridiculed, the Phoenix King Valley wasn"t going to remain friendly to the imperial clan. Everyone except Feng Wan"er was reluctant to part as she stared straight at Pei Wuchen. When she noticed that he wasn"t paying attention to her and was thinking about something with his head lowered, she became even more heartbroken.
Because of the Phoenix King Valley"s sudden outburst, the feast was destined to end badly. These officials were all tactful people. Seeing that the main character of the feast had already left, they quickly left as well in order to avoid displeasing His Majesty. Before long, only the old emperor and De Quan were left in the hall.
“De Quan, go and call Wuchen back. Wait for me in the imperial study.” The old emperor instructed.
De Quan immediately acknowledged the order and ran out of the hall. He wanted to call Pei Wuchen back as soon as he could.
The Emperor made his way to the imperial study in order to meet Pei Wuchen.
Pei Wuchen was puzzled as to why his Emperor Father would reject the marriage even though he was so happy when it was first brought up. The Phoenix King Valley was one of the Three Great Immortal Sects and Feng Wan"er was the daughter of the Phoenix King Valley Master. If she married into the imperial clan, the Phoenix King Valley would be the Cloud Water Nation"s backer. Why would his Emperor Father reject the marriage?
Pei Wuchen was distracted by his thoughts and didn"t notice that Eunuch De Quan was calling out to him from behind. De Quan had been chasing Pei Wuchen for quite some time and if he continued walking, he would be out of the palace. De Quan had no other choice but to give it his all to catch up to Pei Wuchen.
After he finally caught up with Pei Wuchen and wanted to pet him on the shoulder, he never expected for the Third Prince"s reaction to be so exaggerated. When he felt someone behind him,Pei Wuchen immediately pinned him to the ground.
“Aiyo, my old bones! Third Highness, please show some mercy! This old servant is De Quan!” De Quan instantly yelled out in pain.
Pei Wuchen observed the "culprit" under the illumination of the dim moonlight and he realized that the person he had pinned onto the ground was indeed De Quan. He was the eunuch who served by his Emperor Father"s side. He quickly apologized, “Eunuch De Quan, please pardon me. As a prince, I always have to be on guard against a.s.sa.s.sins. I didn"t think that my actions would cause harm to Eunuch De Quan. I have truly sinned.”
Pei Wuchen was very polite to De Quan as this person was his Emperor Father"s closet eunuch. If Pei Wuchen was to offend this eunuch, it was hard to say if he would complain about Pei Wuchen behind his back.
De Quan thoroughly enjoyed Pei Wuchen"s polite behavior. “Aiya, what is Your Highness saying? Your Highness is a prince and it never pays to be more careful. This old servant isn"t here to exchange conventional greetings with you. His Majesty is waiting for you in the imperial study. Let us hurry over and not keep His Majesty waiting!”
Pei Wuchen s.h.i.+vered in response. He was afraid that his Emperor Father might be using this marriage to test him. Right now, his Emperor Father had even asked De Quan to personally look for him. He understood the weight behind the old emperor"s actions and he quickened his steps as he made his way to the imperial study.
The moment he stepped into the study, before he could greet the old emperor, the old emperor started the conversation. “What"s the matter? Are you mad at me?”
Pei Wuchen was terrified when he heard the question and immediately kneeled on the ground. “Your official son doesn"t dare to!”
When the old emperor saw how obedient Pei Wuchen was, he felt much more at ease. He signalled to De Quan with his eyes and the eunuch quickly helped Pei Wuchen up. “Other than us, there is no one else in the room other than De Quan. Don"t kneel because of some minor matter. Don"t you know there is gold under a man"s knees?”
“This official son understands.”
“Sigh, even if you blame your Emperor Father, I have no choice. After all, I did break you up from your childhood sweetheart. It"s reasonable for you to feel wronged.” When the old emperor was alone with Pei Wuchen, he sounded more like a father.
Pei Wuchen never intended to blame his Emperor Father. He even understood the meaning behind his Emperor Father"s actions. Pei Wuchen already knew that Feng Wan"er had done some unspeakable things to Luo Chu in the dark. Back then, he felt that Luo Chu wasn"t a match for him and if someone were to help him eliminate her, it wouldn"t be inappropriate at all. However, her methods were too ruthless and her perfect image in his mind shattered. Even though he was a little confused about his Emperor Father"s objection to the marriage, it was within his expectations. After all, Luo Chu had already exposed all of Feng Wan"er"s wrongdoings. If the old emperor was kept in the dark, he wouldn"t deserve his t.i.tle as the Emperor.
“Emperor Father is thinking too much. This official son will never blame you. A child"s marriage has always been in the hands of his parents. This official son is a prince and the matter of marriage should be properly discussed. Since Emperor Father opposes it, there is definitely a reason behind your action. This official son understands.” Pei Wuchen was speaking the truth. As a prince, he was clear that his marriage was used to benefit the empire.
The old emperor laughed heartily as he thought that Pei Wuchen was indeed his favourite son. He was feeling angry at the Phoenix King Valley for being impudent but Pei Wuchen was able to soothe his rage. He hurriedly praised his third son.
“Wuchen... Emperor Father hopes that you can understand. I might be a ruler but I still have to weigh the pros and cons. I might even have to use your marriage as a bargaining chip. However, no father will wish for his son to suffer. The reason behind my rejection of the marriage is because I feel that Feng Wan"er isn"t a good match for you.”
The old emperor muttered for a moment before saying, “If you insist on marrying Feng Wan"er, Emperor Father can approve of your decision. However, you had better think it through.”