Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved-Chapter 285: One More

Ju Nanyi was slightly taken aback, somewhat failing to grasp the meaning behind Prince Duan’s words, but even though he didn’t understand, subconsciously, he had an extremely pleasant realization.

On the surface, Ju Nanyi’s expression gave nothing away; he was overthinking it, shouldn’t be caught up in such unfounded biases.

"Exactly," Ju Nanyi spoke the plain truth.

Prince Duan became anxious, wanting to say something but not knowing how to express it, in any case, Ju Nanyi’s response was not as satisfying as he had hoped, yet Prince Duan couldn’t make it too obvious.

"Lord Ju, think it over again, was there anything amiss with the other party at that time?" Prince Duan wasn’t giving up; the scenes of that day often replayed in his mind.

"Prince Duan, the Commandery Princess was also present that day, she saw things more clearly than this official..." Ju Nanyi didn’t understand why Prince Duan was asking such questions. Was Prince Duan doubting Heir Zong?

"She doesn’t understand," Prince Duan interrupted Ju Nanyi. Zong Yunqian had been so attentive; if Prince Duan wasn’t suspecting Zong Yunqian, at this moment, he would feel quite comforted, after all, Zong Yunqian had held his daughter in such high regard. Since the engagement up to now, he could almost say there hasn’t been anything that dissatisfied him.

Therefore, he had to be very careful with this matter; until some reliable information was uncovered, he could not let Nian Ru hold the slightest doubt.

Ju Nanyi took a glance at Prince Duan, seeing his demeanor, he seemed to be having doubts about Zong Yunqian.

Doubts about what? Although Ju Nanyi didn’t know, mentioning Ghost Shadow must somehow be related to it.

"Prince Duan, this official hasn’t detected anything strange. Heir Zong is a disciple of Qiandao Temple, naturally, his understanding of Ghost Shadow is deeper than mine. When it was at the Wen Family’s private residence, this official’s eyes were opened wide, the mystical arts of Qiandao Temple are indeed formidable," Ju Nanyi said calmly, without showing any emotion.

Prince Duan nodded, indeed, how could such a matter be known to others? It wasn’t the first time Prince Duan had questioned Ju Nanyi, and although he hadn’t received the answer he wanted, in the end, he didn’t favor the answer he had contemplated.

"Prince Duan," Ju Nanyi raised his drinking cup, and Prince Duan came back to his senses, drinking with Ju Nanyi before Ju Nanyi turned to leave.

"Won’t you eat a bit more?" Zong Yunqian saw Zheng Nianru with a lackluster expression; the enthusiasm of these youths from the official families for the endless toasting left Zong Yunqian entirely uninterested. Sitting beside Zheng Nianru provided him with a perfect excuse.

The Duke of Qing had long been accustomed to his son’s disposition, but with the identity of someone from Qiandao Temple, the Duke didn’t mind those tedious formalities. Furthermore, the future of Nanzheng State was uncertain, and the Zong Sheng Aristocratic Family had long since ceased to participate in the court’s factional struggles.

Zheng Nianru glanced at Zong Yunqian; was he planning to sit here for the entire banquet? Her gaze swept across the hall; even Ju Nanyi was out socializing, shouldn’t he, as a son of an aristocratic family...

"Do you think it inappropriate for me to sit here?" Zong Yunqian immediately grasped Zheng Nianru’s thoughts, smiled faintly, and watched the harmonious scene unfolding before them.

"Appropriate?" Zheng Nianru’s peripheral vision caught a glimpse of Zheng Congyuan seated at a higher place, using only her peripheral vision for the familiar figure that was now seated at the pinnacle of power. Amidst the toasting and splendid sights, her figure had already faded into the backdrop.

Zheng Nianru’s heart sank slightly. Separating them, apart from each other, was this whole court full of officials.

"Do you think with my status, I still need to ingratiate myself with those people?" Zong Yunqian poured himself a cup of wine, "The Princely Heir hasn’t seen you making connections with those ladies from prominent families either."

Zheng Nianru turned around, thinking that at least for some time in the future she would be involved with this man, and since his face wasn’t too disagreeable, she decided to kindly remind him at this moment. It might be helpful to him to know who he was about to marry.

"An hour ago, the Commandery Princess almost didn’t make it to this grand hall and almost became a corpse in the Lingqu River. Do you think those ladies from prominent families would like me to attend their little gatherings?" Zheng Nianru’s tone was gentle, as if discussing a minor annoyance.

Zong Yunqian was slightly taken aback, reminded of the scene at Siyan Lake. Looking at Zheng Nianru again, he felt more curious. How many such dangers must she have experienced for this young girl to speak so lightly of matters of life and death?

Zong Yunqian suddenly began to laugh. He knew that Zheng Nianru was a good swimmer, but who exactly was trying to harm her and why hadn’t they acted on several occasions or thought to switch to a different method?

"Princely Heir, what’s so funny?" Xing Yu glared at Zong Yuanqian somewhat unhappily. Their Commandery Princess had nearly lost her life, yet there was Heir Zong laughing without any conscience.

"Commandery Princess, would you like the Princely Heir to help you find out who is trying to harm you?" Zong Yunqian suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Nianru became curious about what Zong Yunqian might be thinking at the moment. She couldn’t be certain who wanted to harm her, but she had her suspicions, which narrowed it down to a few usual suspects. She just didn’t want to guess whether someone was being used or if it was a trap set by others.

"Are you sure you can find out?" Zheng Nianru asked with a smile, somewhat skeptical.

"You underestimate the Princely Heir’s ability." Zong Yunqian abruptly stood up and, like other scions of prestigious families, first went to offer a cup of wine to the Empress Dowager on the high seat, then went off to toast with the sons of other prominent families.

Zheng Congyuan’s gaze fell on Zheng Nianru, who was in a corner. Her position was not far, but it wasn’t on the front row either, and a column partially obscured her. He could faintly see the figure sitting in the corner, exuding a forlorn loneliness.

Zheng Congyuan withdrew his gaze, wanting to leave the noisy grand hall and to just ask her if she was afraid. Although Ju Nanyi had arrived in time during the recent incident, he still remembered that in the following years, even when she went to the Crown Prince’s Mansion, she always avoided Siyan Lake and walked on the other side, avoiding boats whenever possible, showing a deep fear of water.

Yet, he couldn’t, he couldn’t even look at her without pretending it was accidental. What good was it to be the Crown Prince in such a situation?

Empress Dowager Yan Ping watched the last dance with delight, looked at the gifts presented by the officials, and as the night grew deeper, the royal banquet gradually came to an end. At a royal banquet, it didn’t matter whether the officials were enjoying themselves, and as soon as Empress Dowager Yan Ping showed signs of weariness, Empress Xiao and Noble Consort Wen promptly stood up. One moment, the officials were toasting merrily, and the next moment, they were orderly and respectfully seeing the Empress Dowager off.

Then, the officials started leaving one after another, some still reluctant, continuing their discussions on the way out.

Zheng Congyuan personally saw Empress Dowager Yan Ping back to her palace and then quickly headed towards the Southern Palace Gate. Qi Ling and Qi Zhu exchanged looks, knowing without a doubt where the Crown Prince was heading.

But, given today’s eventful occasion, was it really appropriate with so many people watching?

This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦