The Prime Minister's Darling novel Chapter 993

Chapter 993: 468 Spirited Xiaoqi (First Release)

After Marquis Xuanping got into another carriage, the coachman asked where he wanted to go, but he did not speak.

His mood was terrible as well, which was why he had no wish to reveal his emotions in front of Princess Xinyang when getting off the carriage.

He was a man, and no matter how angry he was, he could only endure it himself and could not vent it on a woman.

The coachman didn’t have the nerve like Chang Jing to make his own decision to take him to the Princess Residence or Marquis Residence, so he just wandered aimlessly around the Avenue, circling the Imperial City over and over again until both horses almost saw stars, before at last, a calm voice finally came from inside the carriage.

"Go to Bishui Alley."

The coachman breathed a sigh of relief.

It was almost dark, and at last, he wouldn’t have to keep driving until dawn.

Marquis Xuanping’s mood indeed gradually calmed down.

When the emperor arranged his marriage with Qin Fengwan at first, he was actually quite astonished, his sister had already entered the palace as the empress, and the Xiao family was firmly bound to the emperor’s ship, so there was really no need for the emperor to add kinship on top of kinship.

Moreover, his reputation was not great, and for a princess to marry down to him, it was an affront to her.

The emperor didn’t tell him at the time everything was the late emperor’s will, and after thinking it over, he speculated whether the princess had actually taken a liking to him?

It was not impossible, after all, he was handsome.

He had grown up in a military camp, mixing every day with a bunch of rough men, and his father had never taught him how to be kind to his wife, but he vaguely knew that his mother had not been happy.

So many concubines in the family set rules around his mother, who looked imposing but was actually suffering inside.

He had seen Princess Xinyang, and as a man looking at a woman, to say that he didn’t look at the face would be false, especially at first glance.

Princess Xinyang was very beautiful, indescribably so, and no man would be unmoved by such a woman.

He had genuinely intended to marry her and bring her home. When they were bowing at the altar during their wedding, he was even happily thinking that from now on, he, Xiao Ji, would also be a family man.

He wore a bright red wedding robe, joyfully lifting her veil with full anticipation, yet she pointed a cold dagger at his heart...

"Damn it!"

The emotions that Marquis Xuanping had finally quelled surged up again, and he pulled at his collar in frustration, a trace of irritability crossing his brow, "Haven’t we arrived yet?"

The coachman was startled by the seemingly calm tone laced with hidden anger and quickly replied, "Soon, very soon, we’re almost there!"

"Don’t go to Bishui Alley anymore," Marquis Xuanping said.

"Ah? Then where to?" You’re changing your mind too quickly, aren’t you?

It was not that Marquis Xuanping didn’t want to see Xiao Hen, but his mood was somewhat irritable at the moment, and he feared he might frighten his son.

After some thought, he decided to look for the old monkey Gu Chao, maybe have a fight or something.

Only when he arrived did he learn that the old monkey had gone on a long journey, and he hadn’t told his family where he went; it seemed like he was off enjoying the scenic hills and waters.

Enjoying the scenic hills and waters was impossible, not in this lifetime; the old monkey must have been sent by the emperor on some errand again.

Marquis Xuanping thought about it and went back to his residence obediently. He called Liu, the steward, and had Liu recount all the major recent happenings in Capital City.

The matter of King Ning had already been mentioned by Princess Xinyang.

He heard about Consort Jing’s issue from the steward Liu.

Consort Jing had publicly declared that she had died suddenly, but the steward had connections with Kunning Palace and naturally knew the inside story.

Consort Jing was a remnant of the previous dynasty, and the poison that afflicted Xiao Hen as a child was orchestrated by her, she concocted the discord between the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, and the marital arrangement of Princess Ning An was also her doing.

"Poor Princess Ning An, to fall into the hands of such a viperous mother," the steward Liu sighed deeply.

Consort Jing’s death had caused a stir in the Capital City for a while, but now the fervor had cooled down a long time ago, and this was the first time Marquis Xuanping heard about it, and he should have felt immensely shocked, but because he had noticed before leaving the city that the old Libationer was targeting Consort Jing, he could almost guess that she was not as simple as she seemed on the surface.

But he did not expect her to be implicated with the remnants of the previous dynasty.

Based on the information revealed by Empress Xiao, Consort Jing had been in close correspondence with the border regions over the years, and everyone thought she was communicating with Princess Ning An, but in reality, she was likely in contact with the remnants of the previous dynasty.

The emperor decreed Tang Yueshan as the imperial envoy to the border, ostensibly to visit Princess Ning An, but in actuality, he led troops to eradicate the remnants of the previous dynasty.

"This achievement should have been my brother’s, but unfortunately, my brother was not in the Capital City, so His Majesty appointed Tang Yueshan," said Empress Xiao directly.

Marquis Xuanping had no interest in the achievement; his expertise in warfare did not mean he enjoyed it. Some things were duties, missions that had to be shouldered.

If he could not defend the lands, the country behind him would be ruined, and the family behind him would perish.

Empress Xiao might not know about the old marquis’s affair, but Marquis Xuanping could guess that himself, most likely he had gone north with Tang Yueshan.

Tang Yueshan was fond of great achievements, and he would only tolerate the old monkey accompanying him for one reason—the old monkey wasn’t going to fight.

"Is it to rescue Princess Ning An?" Marquis Xuanping mused as he touched his chin.

If the prince consort was also a chess piece of Consort Jing’s, then the situation for Princess Ning An was indeed not optimistic.