The Phoenix is Back - Chapter 186

Chapter 186 Confession in Front of the Hall
On the nineteenth of November in the thirty-seventh year of the Yuan Dynasty, the Martial Emperor made Chu Yanzhi the Crown Prince and ordered an amnesty for the world.

That night, the Emperor specially hosted a banquet for the Crown Prince in the Zi Chen Palace. Officials above the fifth stage of the court could bring their families along. For a moment, the people in Zi Chen Hall were in a commotion, and the sounds of flattery were endless.

Chu Yanzhi was dressed in a dark purple vertical collar and narrow sleeves brocade robe, which set off his handsome and upright side face, making him look even more handsome. In addition, today could be considered his happy day, so no matter who came to toast, he would still give him a sip of noodles.

After three rounds of drinking, everyone was a little drunk. The Emperor raised his hand and called for singing and dancing.

The soft sound of silk and bamboo slowly rang out. The dancer in light silk slowly stepped forward. Her sleeves danced lightly in the air, matching with her soft waist, making her look more and more graceful. At this moment, a person suddenly wore a pink wide-sleeved Flowing Immortal skirt. The corner of her sleeve covered her face and she walked into the hall. When she walked into the hall, she suddenly waved her wide-sleeved skirt and drew a perfect arc in the air. Immediately after, she revealed a beautiful face. She only looked at her willow-browed apricot eyes and a little Vermillion Blossom between her eyebrows, making her look even more beautiful and refined like a fairy.

Everyone, who had been slightly drunk, did not feel their eyes brighten and put down their wine glasses at the same time.

But before he could see her appearance, a group of dancers suddenly surrounded her and hid her in the middle. The dance continued, After two turns, Suddenly, the zither was raised abruptly, The dancers swung their sleeves one after another, slowly blooming like layers of petals. Finally, they revealed a beautiful face. It rotated, rotated, and then rotated. The skirts beneath them rippled like ripples of water. Along with that beautiful face, it was like a pavilion of lotus flowers in the water. It was truly flawless. She sighed at the beauty as if she was separated from the clouds.

After the song was over, the beauty brought the dancers forward and bowed.

“What a good dance. I think the Song and Dance Department has spent a lot of effort on choreography this time. The Emperor will have to reward the Song and Dance Department for their talent in a while.” Uncle Ping An raised his glass and toasted to the Emperor while smiling.

The Emperor smiled and said loudly, “Indeed. Someone, enjoy the Dance and Song Division for a hundred taels of silver.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty, for your reward. However, this song and dance is not choreographed by this servant, but by Miss Gu.”

“Oh?” The Emperor imitated his eyes and sat up with great interest.

At this moment, a slender figure slowly walked out. She leaned sideways and blessed Chu Yanzhi. Her voice was as melodious as an oriole’s. “This servant, Gu Qingyou, greets the Emperor. Long live our Emperor.”

Gu Qingyou …

Chu Yan’s eyes narrowed. He raised his hand and picked up the wine glass in front of him. He lowered his head and took a sip of the wine. The corner of his eyes, however, swept towards Gu An, who was sitting on the seat of His Highness.

At this time, the emperor on the throne suddenly laughed and said in a straightforward voice, “Gu Qing, what does this girl surnamed Gu have to do with you?”

“Your Majesty’s words, this little girl is so naughty that the emperor and all the ministers have laughed at her.” Gu An stood up and smiled while saluting.

Hearing Gu An’s words, the Emperor smiled. “So she is Gu Qing’s beloved daughter. She is indeed unparalleled in talent and beauty. I wonder if she has ever been allowed to do so.”

“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. The little girl is naughty and hasn’t betrothed yet.” Gu An lowered his head and replied.

Gu An had seven daughters and a son. The first six daughters had already been married. Only this young girl, Gu Qingyou, was seventeen years old but she had always been raised in her boudoir. She was still dancing at the banquet, and she said in court that she was not married yet. The intentions behind this were clear at a glance.

Therefore, as soon as he spoke, although everyone had smiles on their faces and pretended to be drinking and chatting, the corner of their eyes had been paying close attention to how the Crown Prince, Chu Yanzhi, who was sitting under the Emperor, would react. Unexpectedly, the Crown Prince’s infatuation with Princess Yan had already spread widely in the capital. Gu An was the commander of the Imperial Guards and also took over the Emperor’s personal guard, Yan Yunwei. With such an identity, everyone was curious about the Crown Prince’s choice.

Chu Yanzhi raised his wine cup and smiled at Gu An from afar. Then, he raised his hand to salute the Emperor sitting on the throne and said, “It seems that Lord Gu wants Father Emperor to choose a good job for Miss Gu. It just so happens that all the noble young masters in the capital are here today. Father Emperor must pick a good one for Miss Gu in order to complete a good story.”

As soon as he said those words, the faces of everyone in Zi Chen Hall intertwined, and they all looked at Gu An at the same time.

This kind of attention made Gu An’s face flash with a trace of extreme unnaturalness. He frowned, but before he could speak, his daughter took a step forward and blessed Chu Yanzhi. Her voice sounded crisp.

“Your Highness, thank you for your kindness. It’s just that I already have a sweetheart.”

The Great Yue Dynasty had always been extremely demanding of women’s virtues. Ordinary women would not even be able to go out easily, let alone speak their thoughts openly like Gu Qingyou. If someone accidentally sent out a private gift, not to mention destroying their reputation, they might even implicate their clan. Therefore, as soon as Gu Qingyou said those words, the shock, sarcasm, ridicule, and various complicated gazes in Zi Chen Palace all gathered on her.

If it was any woman, Under such a gaze, Even if he didn’t commit suicide in shame, “Your Majesty, I heard that Princess Rong An and Princess Rong Ning fell in love with Princess Rong An at the flower appreciation banquet back then. At that time, Princess Rong An was like a spotter on the spot. Later, Princess Rong An really chose Princess Rong An. Later, after Princess Rong’an married Princess Tan Hua Lang, someone teased Princess Rong’an that Princess Rong should have been more tactful, but Princess Rong’an said that if you like someone, you have to say it out loud. Otherwise, how would that person know? “She would rather have some face than miss the person she likes, because she is afraid that she will regret it for the rest of her life.” At this point, Gu Qingyou lowered her eyes and smiled shyly. “Your Majesty, I don’t want to regret it for the rest of her life.”

Princess Rong’an was the Emperor’s cousin, and she had been very kind to the Emperor in her lifetime. Therefore, when Gu Qingyou mentioned her, the Emperor’s eyes revealed a smile. “Gu Qing, your daughter has a sharp tongue. Speaking of which, she really does look a bit like Princess Rong’an.”

“Your Majesty praises me absurdly. This little girl is so naughty. How dare she compare to Princess Rong An?” Gu An said with a smile.

“I wonder who Miss Cui’s sweetheart is?” Chu Muzhi shook the wine cup in his hand and looked at Chu Yanzhi with a smile.

Just as Gu Qingyou opened her mouth, a panicked voice suddenly rang out, interrupting her words.

“Forgive me, Crown Prince.”

Everyone hurriedly turned around.

A palace maid was kneeling on the ground with a pale complexion. At the side of Crown Prince Chu Yanzhi’s feet lay a wine jug. A faint yellow liquid flowed all over the ground, and his dark purple clothes were more than half wet.

Chu Yanzhi supported his clothes and stood up calmly. “Royal Father, let me go down and change my clothes first.”

Chu Yanzhi smiled.

At that time, everyone was looking at Gu Qingyou, so no one paid attention to his Fourth Emperor Brother. Only he saw him. When Gu Qingyou spoke, he waved his hand to the palace maid to pour wine. As soon as the palace maid came over, he accidentally brushed his sleeve and threw the wine jug in the palace maid’s hand to the ground.

The Emperor stared into Chu Yanzhi’s eyes as he looked at him with a deep gaze.

He knew that Chu Yanzhi should have understood the purpose of arranging this banquet, but he still avoided it. Could it be that he really had feelings for Xiao Xiwei?

The Emperor did not say anything, but Chu Yanzhi only agreed. He stood up and bowed to the Emperor, wanting to leave the table.

“Your Majesty, the one I like is His Highness Prince Qin.” At this moment, Gu Qingyou’s crisp voice sounded again.

With a’pa ‘sound, the wine cup in Chu Muzhi’s hand fell to the ground.

In an instant, the hall was completely silent, and countless pairs of eyeballs fell to the ground.

What, what kind of play was this?

Chu Yanzhi turned around and looked at Gu Qingyou. His profound gaze changed again and again. For a moment, he was somewhat puzzled as to which play the Emperor and Gu An were singing.

Not only was Chu Yanzhi puzzled, even Gu Qingyou’s father, Gu An, was shocked.

Finally, when he touched the Emperor’s cold gaze, Gu An came back to his senses and said, “Qing You, what nonsense are you talking about?”

Gu Qingyou turned around and smiled at Gu Anyan, “Father, I’m not spouting nonsense. The person I like is His Highness Prince Qin.”

“Nonsense.” Gu Anli shouted. He stood up and wanted to pull Gu Qingyou back. He didn’t want Gu Qingyou to go to Chu Muzhi before him.

“Your Highness Prince Qin, are you going to reject me?”

Chu Muzhi’s lips twitched. Looking at the beautiful woman in front of him, the smile on her lips was as clear as the spring water by the lake. For a moment, her mind was unable to turn around.

Seeing that Chu Muzhi hadn’t spoken for a long time, Gu Qingyou’s expression gradually dimmed. A layer of mist covered her eyes. Her faint pupils stared at Chu Muzhi with tears in their eyes. “Your Highness, I’m so shameless to confess to you. Do you really want to reject me?”

Just now, it was as dazzling as the sun, and it seemed as if it was about to turn into tears. Chu Muzhi had never seen such a changeable woman in his life, and he couldn’t even stutter for a moment. “No, no …”

“So, Your Highness has agreed.” Gu Qingyou tilted her head and smiled sweetly. The tears that had just gathered in her eyes dissipated completely.

Chu Mu was stunned.

What did he just agree to? Also, didn’t she just have a face full of sadness and tears? Why did it change all of a sudden?

“Your Majesty, may I ask you to grant me and His Highness Prince Qin a marriage?” Gu Qingyou turned around and knelt down before the Emperor.

“Qingyou, stop messing around!” Gu An left the table and stepped in front of Gu Qingyou. He pulled her up, his dark eyes filled with anger that could not be suppressed.

He never imagined that his obedient daughter would slap his father in the face. He completely ignored her warnings and expectations, but didn’t she know that she might lose the entire Gu Clan if she did so?

At this moment, Gu An no longer dared to think about how furious the emperor on the throne was when he heard Gu Qingyou’s words.

Everything was clearly arranged, but she actually sang this song.

The emperor probably didn’t think that they were colluding with each other, did he?

This thought only occurred to Gu An, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

“Father, daughter is not messing around. Daughter is serious, and His Highness Prince Qin just agreed.” Gu Qingyou didn’t seem to see the fury in Gu An’s eyes, and her voice was clear and resolute.

Pa.

A crisp sound suddenly rang out in the lonely Zi Chen Palace.

Gu An looked at Gu Qingyou, who was slapped on the ground by him with a livid face. His raised right hand was numb at this moment.

“Lord Gu, what are you doing? Do you still have the Emperor in your eyes?” Prime Minister Zhang, who was at the banquet, suddenly stood up and said sternly.

Although he didn’t know what had happened, he was certain that Gu An’s original arrangement was to give his daughter, Gu Qingyou, to the Crown Prince. However, he didn’t expect such a mistake to occur in the middle. However, for them, this was a rare opportunity. As long as Gu An’s daughter did not marry the Crown Prince, they could use this opportunity to break off the relationship between the Crown Prince and Gu An.

Gu An took a deep breath and hurriedly knelt on the ground. “This lowly subject is a goddess. Please apologize, Your Majesty.”