Priceless: A widow with a baby asks the prince to marry again

Chapter 145 Mid-Autumn Festival Chapter

Since Chu Shiyu was talking so much, Liu Rusi no longer had any reservations and asked, "I still don't understand. Can I get power if I win the first place in the imperial examination?"

"As a prince, I naturally cannot serve as a compiler in the Imperial Academy like other top scholars, and my father cannot remain silent. However, apart from being canonized as Prince Duan, the other things are just flashy and superficial..."

Chu Shiyu suddenly complained: "Those three beauties were also stuffed into my hands at that time."

Liu Rusi was speechless for a moment. Chu Shiyu was fussy about many things, and she often didn't dare to compliment the things he was fussy about... Let's get to the point...

"You have been crowned king, so your goal should have been achieved, right? Why... did you still issue a declaration of war to General Wei Yu?"

Chu Shiyu smiled faintly and said, "Being crowned a king is just a title. It just means a higher salary and changing the prince's mansion to a king's mansion. In fact, if I take a step forward and get the title of the top scholar, my goal will be achieved. The fact that the young prince got the top scholar is enough to make me famous. You can no longer treat me as nothing!"

"But to move up, fame alone is not enough. What is needed is prestige, or in other words, the power to intimidate others!"

Liu Rusi suddenly asked, "Do you want to command the troops?"

Chu Shiyu nodded and said, "Yes, but commanding the army has always been a matter of contention among all parties. It is not just a fight between the princes. Even if the eldest brother is dormant and the other princes are young, there are still many other generals vying for the top."

"Even if my father has the power to make decisions, he still needs to convince the public. I must demonstrate my ability to command the army so that I have a better chance of commanding the army. At least I won't be rejected because of my ability."

"Disaster relief and fame have proven that I have strategy, but for military commanders, the most convincing thing in the army is often direct force. Confronting Wei Yu is the most immediate way."

Liu Rusi asked doubtfully, "Do you know you will win? What if you lose?"

"I don't know. In fact, I also think that the chances of winning are slim. Wei Yu's invincibility is not in vain. No one has ever defeated him before."

Chu Shiyu said absentmindedly: "Originally I wanted to participate in the martial arts examination, but this road is blocked. It is even more difficult to win against Wei Yu. If I want to succeed, I must take a risky approach."

Liu Rusi suddenly realized: "I knew it was impossible but I still did it. I have proved my courage by issuing a challenge. Even if I lose, I will still be honored."

Chu Shiyu smiled and said, "Besides, it's not like we're going to burn our boats. Even if we lose, we'll just have to find another way out."

Liu Rusi said admiringly: "If you don't try, you won't achieve unexpected success. Regardless of whether Wei Yu hesitates to hold back, you won anyway. It will be hard for others to deny that you are qualified to lead the army."

"Well, with all that, and then I volunteered to lead troops to the southwest to fight the enemy, everything fell into place."

Chu Shiyu wanted to tell her everything about his past, but there were too many stories in the ups and downs of life to tell them all in one day.

Fortunately, there is a long way to go, and they will have a long time to get to know each other.

Liu Rusi hesitated and asked, "What about the future? You have successfully commanded the army, defeated the enemy in the southwest, and counterattacked and entered Myanmar. You have made outstanding contributions. You should have a follow-up plan, right?"

Chu Shiyu paused, the future...

The him in that dream was just one step away from success, and sitting on the throne would be what everyone wanted... He couldn't interfere with himself in the dream, but he could feel that himself's mood, which was bored.

"You're not going to... just give up halfway?"

Liu Rusi felt an indescribable melancholy in her heart. Human energy is limited. Now that Chu Shiyu is revolving around her like this, how can she realize her grand ambitions?

"I won't let go completely. If I want to share the years of peace and stability with you, I naturally need something to rely on."

Chu Shiyu held her in his arms and smiled with satisfaction. He had already understood that the throne was dispensable, but she was indispensable.

Her small hands tried to support his chest, making a little distance. Liu Rusi looked at him and asked seriously, "So, what will you do if there is no future with me? Are you still working towards your previous goals?"

"I don't need a future without you!"

Chu Shiyu suddenly turned cold towards her, which was unusual for him, and said in a deep voice: "Even if you leave, I can never go back to my original state! And I will definitely try my best to get you back! And this will lead to meaningless torture and harm!"

"Don't ever think of leaving me!" Chu Shiyu warned solemnly. He absolutely didn't want the pain in his dream to happen again in this world.

However, when he saw Liu Rusi hunching her shoulders and burying her head in his chest timidly, he could no longer maintain his cold face.

Chu Shiyu turned to soothe him softly: "Being with you does not conflict with my original goal. Now that I have just established my position, it is a time when I am prone to suspicion. It may not be a bad thing to slow down a little."

"I'm just asking... It's your own business, you know the pros and cons..." Perhaps because her face was buried in him, Liu Rusi spoke in a muffled voice.

"Angry?"

Chu Shiyu quickly moved a little distance away to look at her expression, and her charming little face was full of annoyance.

"Don't be angry... I just want you to feel at ease, so I spoke in a serious tone..."

……

The Mid-Autumn Festival is here in a blink of an eye.

"Qin Hao, why don't you go?" Liu Rusi said worriedly. This might be the Hongmen Banquet, and she didn't want her son to take any risks...

"The invitation letter specifically mentioned that I should bring him along. Although it didn't specify that it was my father's intention, how could the palace officials convey someone else's intention?"

Chu Shiyu handed her the invitation letter. It was indeed written there. Liu Rusi also understood clearly that it was not an oral order or an imperial decree. She could not go, but it would show that she had no respect for the emperor, so it was better for her to go...

Chu Shiyu comforted him, "Don't worry, I will take good care of Qin Hao."

"Qin Hao follows you?" Liu Rusi didn't understand for a moment.

"I will try my best to sit at the same table with you, but I cannot guarantee it this time. We should be prepared... It will be safer for Qin Hao to follow me." Chu Shiyu felt a little unhappy and hugged her impatiently.

Liu Rusi immediately understood that he had listened to her previous instructions and not to lose the big picture for the small.

Raising her hand and patting his back, she comforted him in return: "It's okay, I will protect myself."

Chu Shiyu repeatedly reminded: "Even if men and women are seated separately, they won't be too far apart. If you can't handle it, don't be stubborn. Just let the maid come to me."

"Okay, okay, I got it..."

……

The luxurious carriage set off for the palace.

Liu Rusi fell into an extremely awkward situation! Chu Shiyu was now unscrupulous to a certain extent!

When getting in the car, she asked little Qin Hao to sit in the middle, intending to let Chu Shiyu sit across from her like before, but Chu Shiyu actually picked her up and sat down! He didn't care that little Qin Hao was there at all!

"Let me go!" Liu Rusi gritted her teeth and twisted his waist.

Chu Shiyu was still hesitating despite the physical pain, and little Qin Hao started to act up again!

"Mom, I want a hug~" Little Qin Hao said stickyly, and before she even agreed, he had already climbed on her!

"Get down...how can I hold him like this?!" Liu Rusi freed one hand and wanted to let her son get down first.

"Mom, don't you want Haohao anymore? You don't even want to hug Haohao..." Qin Hao suddenly stared with his big eyes, which clearly showed black and white, and looked like he was about to cry.

"It's okay, I can hold him." Chu Shiyu persuaded.

A few breaths of silence...

"Qin Hao, if you don't get down now, I will never hug you again! Chu Shiyu, if you don't let go, don't even think about me treating you well again!"

Liu Rusi yelled angrily: "Everyone, sit down on the side!"

There was a moment of chaos in the carriage, but soon everything became orderly.

Liu Rusi still sat in the middle, but at least she was not in the middle of the pyramid anymore...

...

The carriage stopped outside the palace gate, where many luxurious cars and sedan chairs were already parked.

"Your Highness Prince Duan, Madam Liu!"

Fang Qiu seemed to have been waiting at the door for a long time. He ran up and said impatiently, "Although the banquet starts at You time, the table has been set at Shen time. Why do you always come at a different time?"

Liu Rusi glared at the culprit. There was plenty of time, but Chu Shiyu insisted on helping her comb her hair. The problem was that he didn't know how to do it! Chunlan could only teach him once and he would do it once, and his learning ability in this area was quite average!

After a long struggle, he finally combed a simple bun! By the way, he wanted to pick out clothes for her, and first chose a soft pink color that matched her age! She rejected it, so he changed her into a bright red one! In the end, she seriously deprived him of the right to choose clothes!

Combined with Chu Shiyu's constant hugging and cuddling, she inexplicably felt that Chu Shiyu was treating her as a doll! He always wanted to play with her!

The group walked into the palace.

Different from the last welcoming banquet for Prince Duan which was a family banquet, this Mid-Autumn banquet was a small state banquet held in the former court. All officials above the sixth rank in Daxia who were in Beijing had to attend the court, but not every official above the sixth rank would receive an invitation.

Although the invitation did not require attendance, almost everyone would come except in special circumstances such as illness or death. After all, the host was the emperor, and not coming would be considered contemptuous, not to mention that being qualified to attend was an honor.

"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Duan. The female guests are in the Baohe Hall this time. I will lead Madam Liu and the young marquis there."

Many palace maids were waiting on the roadside in the main palace square, and they came forward to greet the guests one by one. The invited guests were guided by palace maids, male and female, to their seats separately.

Of course, it doesn’t mean that there are no women at male guest banquets. Maids can follow them, just like King Kang always brings at least two beauties with him wherever he goes. However, the identities of King Kang’s beauties are uncertain. Sometimes they are concubines and sometimes they are slaves.

But Chu Shiyu absolutely did not want Liu Rusi to be treated as a slave. If he insisted on taking Liu Rusi to sit at the table together, it would seem like making trouble out of nothing. They had already discussed this before.

"Don't worry! I will take good care of Madam Liu!"

Fang Qiu patted his chest and pulled Liu Rusi towards the Baohe Hall at the back.

"Young Marquis?" the palace maid in charge of leading the group asked timidly. Children usually sit at the same table with the female guests, and the same applies to princes who have not left the palace to set up their own residences.

"He follows me." Chu Shiyu suppressed his unhappiness and pulled little Qin Hao towards the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

Say both sides.

Liu Rusi followed Fang Qiu to the Baohe Hall in the back. It was not far from the Taihe Hall, but no one would hear her if she shouted.

Perhaps she was used to being protected by Chu Shiyu, and now without him, she couldn't help but feel a little nervous in such a high-end occasion...

Entering the palace, Liu Rusi was filled with the sounds of women chirping and the scent of women's makeup. She was filled with incense from all four corners of the palace, and she was in a trance...

If you have a keen sense of smell, a strong fragrance can also be a shock...

"What's wrong with you?" Fang Qiu felt that the person he was holding suddenly became limp.

“…Where is my seat? Can I take a seat first?”

Before coming to the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet this time, she learned a lot of etiquette and rules, and she should first greet the host and several distinguished guests.

But Liu Rusi felt dizzy for a moment, and she was afraid that she would faint after just one salute, so she needed to slow down...

Fang Qiu was completely confused, and half-carried Liu Rusi towards the seats in the middle. There were not many first-rank imperial edicts, but there were so many princesses, county ladies, princes' wives, and the emperor's concubines in the capital, all of whom had to line up at the front.

The female guests were naturally hosted by the most prestigious Consort Xian. Seeing Liu looking dizzy as soon as she came in, she couldn't help but frown. She hadn't even made a move yet! Why did she seem to be about to fall?

"Liu, don't you show courtesy when you see me?" Concubine Xian said coldly.

As they walked to the front of the seat, Liu Rusi heard a voice in a daze, and then she thought that she couldn't break the rules, so she gently pushed away Fang Qiu's hand, turned around, and bowed on her knees...

So, all the women watched as Liu fell to the ground like a boneless fish...

"Mrs. Liu?!" Fang Qiu quickly picked her up again.

"Royal Concubine, should someone call a royal physician? If it's really a sudden serious illness, it will be difficult to explain." Princess Taihua at the upper left spoke.

Liu Rusi was not unconscious, but she felt light and unable to control her limbs. She quickly tried to get up with the help of Fang Qiu and said, "It's okay... It's just that the fragrance is too strong. It will be fine after a while..."

Although she felt like she was using all her strength to speak, her words came out in a soft and gentle voice, and only Fang Qiu could hear it clearly.

But Fang Qiu was puzzled and could only signal to Concubine Xian: "Can this servant help Madam Liu sit down first?"

Concubine Xian's expression turned cold, but Liu Rusi didn't have the energy to pay attention.

The situation was like this, and Concubine Xian was planning to show her power, but now she couldn't...

*** and Fang Qiu were both people who wanted to give face. After thinking about it, Concubine Xian could only snort coldly and ordered: "Call the imperial physician."

Fang Qiu just assumed that Concubine Xian had tacitly agreed, and helped Liu Rusi to sit down at the seat. Fang Qiu was assigned a seat on the other side, but she was responsible for taking care of Liu Rusi, so seeing Liu Rusi like this, she naturally felt uneasy to leave, so she simply sat with Liu Rusi.

Chunlan, Qiuju and Xuefei all followed Liu Rusi. Seeing this, Chunlan whispered, "I'll go find the prince."

But Xue Fei held her hand and said, "You know, Madam has a keen sense of smell. The fragrance was so strong that it made her dizzy... Madam also told us before we came here not to make a fuss, as it would cause trouble for the prince."

"But..." Chunlan was hesitant. The prince had instructed that if Madam Liu saw anything wrong, she must report it immediately.

Liu Rusi rested her elbows on the table and leaned her head against the edge of the table. Although she was dizzy, she could still hear. When she heard the girls' conversation, she stretched out her hand and said weakly, "I'll be fine after a while... Don't go..."

Chunlan and Qiuju hesitated for a while, and then an old man came hurriedly. During the banquet, the imperial doctors would be on duty in each hall.

Liu Rusi cooperated and stretched out her hand. A veil was placed on her wrist. The imperial physician looked at the face of the Concubine Xian, and seeing that she did not express anything, he made a diagnosis: "This lady is drunk."

Full of questions, although it was difficult to feel her own pulse, Liu Rusi still lay on the table and felt her pulse with both hands... Well, she couldn't feel it... She didn't know what a drunk pulse looked like...

"Are you drunk before coming to the palace banquet?" Concubine Xian sneered.

"I didn't drink... I never drink! Alcohol and I are incompatible!"

If it was a normal state, Liu Rusi would probably say it more tactfully, but in a dizzy state, her mind was suddenly confused, but she did not forget to draw a clear line between herself and alcohol...

Although she was serious, her cheeks were flushed and she leaned on the table. Her words were vague and sounded like drunken nonsense...

At this time, Chang Ning ran over, got close to Liu Rusi's face and sniffed it, and said clearly: "There is no smell of alcohol, so she probably didn't drink."

With this accident, many of the methods that were originally prepared were useless. Because Fang Qiu was also sitting at that table, the wine and food that were originally drugged had to be secretly replaced to prevent Fang Qiu from accidentally eating them...

Seeing the gloomy look on Consort Xian's face, Fang Qiu had just heard the conversation between the maids, and quickly came to the rescue: "Consort, Madam Liu was fine before she came in. It's probably because the incense in this palace is too strong, and she can't stand it..."

"Could it be Zuixiang?" A boy about thirteen years old wearing gold and red clothes asked curiously.