Chapter 60

  Leaving the Xiangfu Palace, they found that it had started raining outside, and there was also wind. The temperature dropped sharply, and walking on the road felt cold through their clothes, making them shiver slightly. Sima Rui held up an umbrella and accompanied Murong Feng in slowly walking through the wind and rain.

  The autumn rain is quiet, cold and very calm, but it has a hint of elegance that makes people feel deeply moved.

  "It seems there won't be a moon to watch tonight." Murong Feng said softly.

  "It's actually quite boring." Sima Rui said lightly, "Normally the people in this palace don't often meet, but now that it's the Mid-Autumn Festival, they all gather at Grandmother's place to make a lively scene. But those unfamiliar faces are enough to make your head spin, and it's also an opportunity for the consorts to vie with each other, some of whom only get to see the Emperor once or twice a year during festivals like this. So they all use their utmost efforts to please the Emperor and catch his attention. I always sneak out halfway through."

  Murong Feng didn't speak, his expression a bit dazed. Suddenly he remembered Bai Min's August 15th. Before coming here, the previous August 15th was spent with his parents. His mother made a delicious meal, and during dinner, his parents kept nagging him to hurry up and find someone suitable to marry. If they saw him in this state now, how would they react?

  Worry about them, but it's all in vain, can only think that perhaps Bai Min is still asleep now, this is just a dream of Bai Min, and Murong Feng is just a character in Bai Min's dream. When Bai Min wakes up, everything will disappear.

  After lunch, Sima Rui was summoned away by someone sent by Sima Zhe.

  Murong Feng felt a bit tired, in such weather, it was most suitable for sleeping. Anyway, being idle was also idle, so why not sleep and avoid exhaustion at night. Holding the quilt, she felt extremely comfortable, never mind, just let it be, it had already come to this, what could she do, might as well enjoy the present moment.

  It's not bad now, being a crown princess, with attendants serving her every move, no worries about food and clothing, and her husband is handsome, still a crown prince, haha, thinking about it, can only comfort herself like this, but thinking and thinking, she couldn't help but shed tears, missing him was suppressed, but as soon as she let her guard down, it would come flooding back. She missed her past life, Bai Min's family and friends, but could only think of them, not see them, the distance between them wasn't just a city or a country, but an era, a thousand years apart.

  When Sima Rui returned, Murong Feng was sleeping soundly. He didn't wake her up and, having not slept all night, he too couldn't resist the drowsiness, so he leaned against the soft couch and closed his eyes to rest.

  The faint scent of osmanthus, seemingly there yet not quite, like reality and illusion. Only the sound of wind and rain outside the window can be heard, each note entering the ear. Yet in my heart, there is a sense of satisfaction, to have met Mu Rong Fan in this vast sea of people, it's already a blessing, Ah, Shi Ma Rui truly has no regrets!

  The rain continued until evening and had not stopped yet. Of course, there was no moon to be seen on this August 15th, and the temperature was very low.

  Murong Feng specially chose a slightly thicker pale golden cloak, no matter how simple it was on ordinary days, on this kind of festival, he still had to pay attention. Inside was also the same colored dress, with a phoenix hairpin slanted on his dark silk hair, hiding a few osmanthus flowers, with a faint fragrance but no visible flower marks, elegant and refreshing, looking good even to himself.

  "How is it?" asked Sima Rui, who had just come in from outside.

  When she woke up, Sima Rui had already woken up. When Chun Liu served her to wash and dress, he also went to change his clothes. In fact, Sima Rui was a quite handsome man. At this time, wearing a light-colored outer garment, with a black jade pendant on his waist, simple but noble, even if he had a notorious reputation, Sima Rui couldn't help but be an outstanding figure.

  "Very good." Sima Rui praised, and it was clear that he meant it sincerely.

  Murong Feng smiled slightly and mischievously said: "You're quite good too."

  It was raining heavily, so I took a sedan chair and arrived at the outer gate of Xiangfu Palace. Faintly audible were the sounds of people inside, making a racket. The normally quiet Xiangfu Palace was now bustling with activity.

  The Empress Dowager sat in the center, accompanied by the Emperor and the Empress. Consort Liu and Consort Wu also sat beside them. The other consorts were arranged by the eunuch Gao Gonggong from the Emperor's side, each sitting down according to their order. Consort Xue and Consort Li were not far from the Emperor's position, while some of the other consorts were not so lucky and were mostly arranged in more remote positions.

  The four princes also brought their families and sat down one after another. If any of the princes had concubines, they were not allowed to appear today, only the princesses could show up.

  Simarui led Murong Feng to sit down in their own position, with some melons and pastries on the table in front of them, and a soft cushion on the chair, which was comfortable to sit on.

  Murong Feng gazed at Murong Xue, who was exceptionally eye-catching today. She wore a bright red silk skirt, and despite the cold temperature, she had it draped over her shoulders. The vibrant color set off her skin like snow, smooth as condensed milk. Her black hair was loosely tied up, with a beautiful peony flower tucked in, exuding a lazy yet alluring charm. Looking at her, Murong Feng couldn't help but think of Yang Guifei. Murong Xue's outfit today must have had an ulterior motive - the only possibility being to attract the Emperor's attention.

  Murong Xue's expression looked very confident. That evening, before Chun Liu went to Laiyuan, Murong Xuan had her maid deliver a letter to Murong Xue. The letter only had one line of words, written calmly and clearly - "Serve the lord with beauty". It was her elder sister's handwriting, she recognized it.

  It took him a whole night to figure it out after serving his lord.

  At first, the emperor liked her because of her beautiful appearance and fresh body. If she wanted to stay in the palace and not be neglected by the emperor, it could only be so. This was the only feasible way.

  So tonight she made a special effort with her appearance and prepared to show herself off.

  Murong Xuan only glanced at Murong Xue once, and then didn't look again. The letter was written with great difficulty, she no longer wanted to think about it now, persuading her own sister to seduce the emperor with her charm, the hardest part was her own emotions, but her father's affair had stimulated her.

  Murong Xue, as Murong Feng said, no matter what, is still her own sister, how could she not help when something happened? Murong Feng helped her deal with Li Fei, so she herself had to help her deal with Liu Fei. Li Fei was just a tender role, the formidable one was Liu Fei. Seeing Zhao Gang who was sent over, Murong Xue already had a plan in mind.

  Zhao Gang is absolutely not just being sent over by Liu Fei to take care of Murong Xue, he must have a darker reason for his existence.

  Especially after she heard about Zhao Gang's family suddenly disappearing.

  Murong Xue understood that Liu Fei's arrangement of Zhao Gang was to make the empty hole with wind appear. This imperial palace is so dark, it chills people's hearts, so Murong Xue can only tightly grasp the emperor in order to safely live on in the imperial palace.

  Everyone sat, but inexplicably felt a kind of stifling and hypocritical atmosphere. Each person was sitting upright with a serene smile on their face, showing joy and sincerity to everyone around them, yet making people feel so uncomfortable.

  "It's actually quite boring, and I don't know why Grandmother insists on celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival every year. It would be more fun to just have a few family members gather together, eat and chat. This is all so pointless." Sima Rui said lazily, with a somewhat listless expression. "Now it's even better, everyone sitting together, pretending to be friendly, but actually guessing what others are thinking. The food isn't good, the seating is uncomfortable, and later we'll have to think of ways to please the Emperor. When the concubines start performing their arts, let's quietly slip away and go back to our own estate, how about it?"

  "For the time being, no way!" Murong Feng said without allowing any discussion. "You may find it boring, but I think it's interesting. I'd like to see how Murong Xue competes with Li Fei and Liu Fei for favor today? Going back to the manor is just sitting around, reading books, chatting, which can't compare to the excitement here."

  Simarui shrugged and smiled, saying: "I forgot that you are celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival in the palace for the first time, maybe you will still find it interesting. Then I'll accompany you to your death, and we can watch together."