Sheng Lingxin did sneak into Jiang Ying Yue"s house. But all she found was him spending the evening laughing and chatting with him at the entrance of the main hall, near the flower gardens. They never talked about the sensitive rumors in the capital. They never mentioned the war of princes or any of the gossip about the other high-ranking officials and clans.All they chatted about was their lives in the border, how they spent their days on edge against the enemies from the other regions. But it all made the eavesdropping female lead felt like her eyes were getting burned, her heart being crushed and torn into pieces.
In front of her were someone she wanted to marry and the girl she envied. Sometimes, she wanted for another miracle to happen to her, for fate to help her transmigrate into Jiang Ying Yue"s body. But do miracles happen twice? Would the heavens be that merciful?
"Sheng Lingxin, for visiting.
As for Jiang Li, since he merely went there to escort the group of doctors, his reward, though many times greater than Jiang Ying Yue"s, was a lot lesser than the other princes. It was probably only because the Emperor"s conscience acted up that he wrote the same amount as General Tao. After all, the request Jiang Li made in exchange for the merits acc.u.mulated from the latest victories was not proportionate.
A third rank t.i.tle for a lady and some money and property were just too little. If Jiang Li had only seriously thought about it, it would not be impossible actually to request a whole city or two.
Given this reason, even though the Emperor was glad this general was so foolish, it also made him feel like this would make him not sincere enough in the eyes of the ma.s.ses. That was the reason why he ignored the disapproving glances from some ministers and stuck to the mentioned reward.
The old dude didn"t know that his subject never cared for stuff like money. And that in this subject"s mind, he was already established as a foolish emperor doting on an inept son while ignoring the true son of fate.
"For Rui w.a.n.g..." The eunuch paused first to look at the third prince. There was an awkward expression on his face because the person was the favorite son, yet in this expedition, he was called first before the other princes.
The list was called from bottom to top. Those with greater contributions were the latter. Since, among the princes, Rui w.a.n.g"s name appeared first, it only meant that even the Emperor had no choice but to admit that Duan w.a.n.g and Hai w.a.n.g"s contribution were more than his.
It was at this moment that the favored third prince stepped forward, cupped his fists under his sleeves and respectfully said to the emperor. "Your Majesty. Forgive this prince"s boldness, but please hear out this prince"s request before reading this prince"s contribution."
The Emperor had always been indulgent of this son of his so he readily nodded. "Go ahead. Speak."
Hai w.a.n.g"s face darkened when he saw this, aware of that item bought from the eastern region. Sure enough, even though this guy was not as competent as him or Duan w.a.n.g, he still had some cards up his sleeves. And the worst thing was that even a casual move from this person could brighten up the Emperor"s mood for days.
"Your Majesty," Rui w.a.n.g started, signaling a maid from his own estate to carry an ornate box in front. "This is a small gift from this prince. Hoping Your Majesty won"t scorn its humbleness."
Those who went with the princes to the east showed various reactions. People from Hai w.a.n.g and Duan w.a.n.g"s faction appeared anxious, some even as if they swallowed a fly. Rui w.a.n.g"s donning a delightful expression of course. The neutral ministers were not showing anything but boundless curiosity. Even Jiang Li was, but for a reason totally different from the others.
The old dude flicked his dragon embroidered sleeve and received the wooden box handed to him. "What is this?" he asked when he saw the content was a small gla.s.s vial containing medicine. "Such a curious thing."
Rui w.a.n.g"s famous proud smile surfaced. He said, "Imperial Father, this son won"t keep you in suspense any further. It"s something from the Soul Temple. And according to the middleman contacted by the honored member of that place, it"s a longevity potion."
The Emperor fiddled with the vial and looked at the silvery red content with a calm expression. However, his eyes didn"t manage to hide his excitement. He only asked a few more questions to his son to confirm some details. Afterward, he didn"t tarry more.
It was too precious. It could easily incite some greedy hearts! It must be consumed right away!
With this in mind, the old guy removed the cork of the vial. He was being watched enviously by all the old ministers in the grand hall. His son Rui w.a.n.g was giving him a confident and expectant look. Urged by all the stares, he drank all its content in one go.
"I wonder what will happen..." All those in the place thought of this. Jiang Li was probably the most eager one to find out since the girl said this would be her surprise to him.
A couple of seconds later, the result finally showed.Female Lead"s name before she transmigrated, in case you folks forgot haha.