Farewell Flower Festival

The next day, Chao Yan and Mu Tianling came to Xiaoyao Palace.

During the meal, Chao Yan asked, "Dad, are you going back to the border in a few days?" Before Shen He could answer, Shen Cheng was startled and asked, "Dad, are we going to fight again?" There was a hint of excitement in his voice, as if he was looking forward to going into the battlefield to kill the enemy and make achievements.

Shen He glanced over, and Shen Cheng lowered his head to eat silently. Shen He asked the waiters to leave first, and Feicui and Amber also left.

"The emperor intends to let me stay in the capital." Shen He said.

Mu Tianling asked him this question when Governor Yuan invited him to dinner yesterday, and Shen He had an idea in his mind.

"Brother hasn't come back yet?" Chao Yan asked when she saw Shen Ming was not there.

Shen Cheng said that he went out early in the morning, so he must have gone to the military camp.

After dinner, Shen He and Mu Tianling went to the study to discuss something, while Chao Yan and Shen Cheng walked in the garden. Chao Yan mentioned that she saw a girl on the street by chance two days ago. She was outstanding in appearance and not delicate at all. Shen Cheng didn't understand Chao Yan's intention at first, but when he saw her looking at him with a kind smile, he felt a little uneasy and changed the subject to ask if Mu Tianling had been nice to her recently and whether he had bullied her.

Chaoyan asked him where he met the unknown girl. Shen Cheng didn't understand and asked who the unknown girl was. Chaoyan smiled slyly, raised her hand to her mouth and whispered, "Your sweetheart." Shen Cheng blushed when he heard that and spoke incoherently, "You...how did you know?" After he said that, he realized that he was exposed. He immediately raised his hand and hushed, asking Chaoyan to keep it a secret.

Chao Yan also raised her hand and whispered, "Brother, don't worry, I won't tell anyone else, not even His Highness."

Shen Cheng felt relieved, and under Chao Yan's encouraging eyes, he told her about the encounter that had been buried in his heart.

Three years ago, Shen Cheng led people to Jiangzhou to purchase supplies. On the way, they encountered bandits who were robbing them. A female hero came to their aid. Although they had only met once, he fell in love with her at first sight. Every time he thought of that heroic figure, he regretted not having been brave enough to ask her name and where she lived.

Recalling their encounter again, Shen Cheng was so immersed in memories that he didn't come back to his senses for a long time.

After Chao Yan coughed, Shen Cheng came back to his senses and scratched the back of his head embarrassedly.

"Meeting is fate. I have been looking for her among the crowd for hundreds of times. Suddenly I turned around and found her standing in the dimming lights." Chao Yan comforted him, "Maybe one day you will see that heroine on the street when you turn around."

Shen Cheng was a little frustrated and said, "What if she's already married?"

Chao Yan comforted him, "Brother, if you can wait, just wait until her husband is gone and she wants to remarry, then your chance will come."

Shen Cheng: “…” How long will it take to wait…

After a while, Mu Tianling came back and told Chaoyan that her father was looking for her and was in the study. Chaoyan handed Mu Tianling to Shen Cheng and went to the study.

Shen Cheng said that the last time there was no winner, and proposed an arm wrestling contest again. Mu Tianling said that his arm was numb from being used as a pillow when he slept last night, and now it is still a little sore and he can't use force. Shen Cheng looked dull, and didn't react at all to whose arm was numb, and thought it was Mu Tianling himself who was using the pillow, and even teased him to be careful when sleeping next time and not to roll off the bed.

On this side, after Chaoyan arrived at the study, Shen He asked about her health. Chaoyan said she was fine, ate well, slept well, and there was nothing wrong.

Shen He was still a little worried.

Chaoyan knew what her father was worried about. Before, Lin Rou said that she had poisoned her. After she used the soul-calling incense to interrogate Lin Rou, she told her father that the poisoning was all false. It was a lie made up by Lin Rou, just to make her father live in regret for the rest of his life and never forget the name Lin Rou. She told her father that her mother died of illness, not poisoning.

Guilt and regret are like sharp blades that will only penetrate deeper into your heart over time.

……

On the way back in the carriage, Chao Yan leaned in Mu Tianling's arms and asked him how the investigation into the weapons was going. He said that Zhao Zhong would be convicted in no time. She leaned in his arms, hummed, and told him to be careful.

When the carriage stopped at the gate of Prince Ling's Mansion, Chao Yan fell asleep in Mu Tianling's arms. He did not wake her up. He carried her out of the carriage and then carried her back to his residence.

In the evening, Chaoyan was admiring the flowers in the yard when Eunuch Wu came over.

The two chatted about flowers and plants for a while. Chaoyan realized that Eunuch Wu had something else to discuss with her, so she asked Feicui and Amber to leave first. Eunuch Wu tactfully asked her if she was feeling sleepy recently. Chaoyan said that it might be because the weather was warmer and people were prone to feeling sleepy.

Eunuch Wu hesitated for a moment, then smiled at Yan to reassure him, saying that he was fine. Eunuch Wu did not ask any more questions, but paused and said slowly, "Your Highness has never smiled since the death of the Queen. Now Your Highness is happy every day. If the Queen is still alive and sees this, she would be happy too."

Chao Yan smiled and said, "Uncle, I am happy every day now. Don't worry, as long as His Highness doesn't mess around, I will definitely not divorce him."

Eunuch Wu smiled and took his leave.

After Eunuch Wu left, Chao Yan looked at the gradually darkening sunset glow in the sky, his expression gradually shrouded by the dusk, and murmured, "It will be fine."

Two days later, Mu Tianling met Mu Tianchen at the same teahouse.

Mu Tianchen brought two knives and asked Mu Tianling to see the difference. When Mu Tianling picked up the two knives, he felt the difference in weight. One was slightly heavier, and the other was slightly lighter. Most people could not tell the difference when holding them in their hands.

"This one looks sharper." Mu Tianling handed the heavier knife to Mu Tianchen and put the lighter one back on the table.

Mu Tianchen picked up the light knife on the table, and with a clang, he chopped off the light knife with his heavy knife.

"At least 20% of the new batch of weapons delivered to the military camp are defective." Mu Tianchen said.

Mu Tianling asked: "What is the Third Brother's plan?"

Mu Tianchen said: "Report to my father."

Mu Tianling picked up the teacup and scraped it, saying, "If we alert the enemy, the culprit will easily escape. If Third Brother trusts me, why don't we join forces and report to Father after we find solid evidence?"

Mu Tianchen pondered for a moment and asked Mu Tianling what clues he had found. Mu Tianling had found out that the stolen iron ore was used to privately cast weapons, and the privately cast weapons might have been transported to the capital by merchant ships. Their specific whereabouts are still under investigation.

In addition, he suspected that Zhao Zhong was very likely raising private soldiers, so he took out the map with a small red circle and showed it to Mu Tianchen. Mu Tianchen often went to the military camp on the outskirts of the city to train soldiers and often led soldiers on patrol. He was very familiar with the terrain outside the city. He also pointed out two suspicious locations on the map and he would send people to investigate.