The matter of the Immortal Fruits and Immortal Water caused a huge sensation in the capital. There was only one Immortal Fruit, and besides the Emperor and the Empress, who else had the courage to consume it? However, Immortal Water was different. The four individuals who received the Emperor’s reward of Immortal Water unknowingly stirred the envy of many.

 

The “rumor” about the newly appointed Loyal and Brave Marquis having already drunk the Immortal Water had spread throughout the streets and alleys. But no matter how many people envied the idea of robbing the Loyal and Brave Marquis, the four recipients who received the reward had all undergone a profound transformation.

 

Apart from King Luo Rong, Old Cen, Elder Weng, and General Dai all chose to take Immortal Water with their partners. It wasn’t because they were unwilling to give it to their children. As General Dai ‘s eldest daughter-in-law, Shen Bing, said, the Immortal Water was originally a reward for the elderly given by the Emperor. If their children drank it, they would be criticized. Moreover, the Immortal Water was very scarce and if they were to share it with their children, what about their children’s children? It was better not to divide it at all.

 

King Luo Rong’s eldest son had a heart ailment, so it was understandable for King Luo Rong to give him the Immortal Water. When King Luo Rong gave Immortal Water to Guo Zimu, it was a sincere gesture. However, neither King Luo Rong nor his eldest son had ever thought that Guo Zimu would give his share to King Luo Rong. This act made Murong Yi, who always had some doubts deep down, completely believe that the new “Little Dad” he had never seen face-to-face, cared deeply for his father.

 

After the recovery, King Luo Rong lay half-reclined on the bed, tightly embracing Guo Zimu. His eye sockets were a bit red and Murong Yi was no longer in the room. There was still a mess on the floor outside. Guo Zimu took off his mask, smiling as he looked at King Luo Rong’s side profile, which had turned much paler, and his hair, which had become much blacker.

 

“Little Zimu…” King Luo Rong’s voice was hoarse. Guo Zimu covered his mouth, eyes smiling. “Now you can marry me with peace of mind.” King Luo Rong pulled down Guo Zimu’s hand and kissed him… enduring the hardships of his entire life just to meet this little fool who always made him feel both distressed and blissful was worth it.

 

In the room, Murong Yi, appearing relaxed all over, sat behind the desk. The steward of the mansion, respectful and attentive, stood in front of him. Murong Yi had been pondering and the steward dared not ask about the purpose of the eldest son calling him. He could only stand there patiently, waiting.

 

After a long time, Murong Yi raised his eyes. “I remember, the mansion’s accountancy is under your uncle.” Upon hearing this, the steward immediately knelt down and shouted, “The Eldest Son sees through everything. The old slave has always disciplined him strictly. He has always been diligent and dared not have any shortcomings. Moreover, he has never entertained any crooked thoughts!”

 

Murong Yi let the steward kneel there and calmly said, “Previously, my heart was willing, but my ability was lacking. Moreover, Dad is not good at managing the household. All major and minor matters in the mansion were handled by you. Now it’s different. Dad is about to marry an official wife soon and our mansion should have a proper master to manage it. We can’t just overlook this matter because the official wife is introverted. The mansion welcoming the official wife is a major event and the palace will send people to help in the mansion. You need to instruct the servants to be clever and I don’t want to hear of any mishaps in the mansion before the official wife enters. If things are not done well, you, as the steward, need not continue your duties.”

 

“This old slave dares not slack off and will ensure that there are no mistakes before the official Wife enters.”

 

“Let the accountant bring all the account books tomorrow; I want to audit them.”

 

“…Yes!”

 

“Alright, you may go.” The steward, trembling slightly, stood up, bowed, and then withdrew. After closing the door behind him, he dared to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. His back was already soaked.

 

Checking the time, Murong Yi got up from the study. If he didn’t go to the palace now, the thanksgiving ceremony at the Palace would soon be over. Because Guo Zimu didn’t like meeting outsiders, there were no servants inside and outside the Green Bamboo Courtyard where King Luo Rong resided. 

 

Murong Yi pushed open the courtyard door, walked into the courtyard, cleared his throat, and shouted, “Dad, are you feeling better? We need to hurry to the palace for the thanksgiving ceremony.” The two people in close proximity inside the room quickly separated. King Luo Rong hurriedly got up and dressed while calling back, “You go to the front hall first and I’ll be there in a moment.”

 

“Alright.” Murong Yi left, but called two maids he encountered on the way to stand outside the Green Bamboo Courtyard and await further instructions.

 

Guo Zimu knelt on the bed to help King Luo Rong get dressed, his long hair flowing down. With affectionate eyes, he stood there almost naked, his fair body still bearing the marks of last night’s passion and those just added. Unable to resist, King Luo Rong embraced him and initiated a deep kiss. Then, reluctantly pulling away, his voice filled with desire, he said, “The Emperor mentioned that he and the Empress Dowager will be in seclusion for several days and may not see anyone. You don’t need to go. You’ve been tired all day; eat first and don’t wait for me. I’ll be back soon.”

 

“I’ll wait for your return.” Guo Zimu covered King Luo Rong’s beautiful body with a blanket, his happy laughter escaping from under the covers.

 

Hurrying to the front hall to meet with his son, King Luo Rong, who was now filled with springtime emotions, had his son shaking his head internally. But thinking about Guo Zimu’s actions,Murong Yi could also understand why his father had become deeply entangled. Pretending not to notice the kiss marks on his father’s neck, Murong Yi said, “Dad, the carriage is ready. Shall we go straight to the palace?”

 

“Yes, directly to the palace.” King Luo Rong walked without stopping, heading outside and said, “We may not necessarily meet the Emperor. There will probably be many people coming to the mansion in the coming days. I entrust this to you. The capital is a sad place for your Little Dad. Dad wants to accompany him well.”

 

“Dad, rest assured I won’t let unrelated people disturb you and Little Dad. Regarding the Loyal and Brave Marquis…”

 

“After they finish their business, they’ll come over for sure. No need to specifically invite them.”

 

“Understood.”

 

Father and son got into the carriage. After the carriage started moving, Murong Yi said, “Dad, in a few days, I’ll go to the Rainforest Temple. You don’t need to go.” King Luo Rong immediately said, “How can that be? Dad wants to marry an official Wife, so I have to inform your mom. Since your health has improved, I need to tell her too.”

 

Murong Yi, with a blank expression said, “She might be in seclusion, chanting scriptures. If you go and can’t see her, it would be a wasted trip. Let me go. I’ll bring Little Hui with me. You stay in the mansion and accompany Little Dad.” King Luo Rong sighed and said, “Don’t blame your mom. She is devoted to Buddhism. If it weren’t for the Emperor’s decree, she would have become a nun long ago. Her daily chanting is also a prayer for your well-being.”

 

Murong Yi evaded the issue coldly, only saying, “If she learns that you’re marrying an official Wife, she might decide to become a nun. Whether we can see her again in the future is uncertain.”

 

King Luo Rong patted his son and didn’t say anything more. Murong Yi’s resentment towards his mother was something he knew about, but he couldn’t change the Queen’s wholehearted dedication to Buddhism, nor could he unravel Murong Yi’s emotional entanglement with his mother. After Murong Yi was born, the Queen went to the Rainforest Temple after her postpartum recovery and for more than twenty years, even when she returned to the mansion, she just continued chanting scriptures and practicing Buddhism in the temple. So he couldn’t blame Murong Yi for resenting his own mother.

“Tell her that when I have some free time, I’ll go to see her. I will even let little Hui stay there for a few more days until things settle down in the mansion before bringing him back.”

“Alright.” The carriage continued its journey into the palace and stopped in front of the main hall. King Luo Rong, being a prince, didn’t need to dismount from the carriage. Muring Yi helped his father, King Luo Rong, to alight from the carriage. Just as King Luo Rong stood still, two more carriages approached from behind. Seeing the embroidered family names on those two carriages, King Luo Rong chuckled.

 

The two carriages came to a stop, one after the other. Two elderly couples descended from the carriage with the character “Dai” and an old general, an old lady, and an old prime minister descended from the other carriage. As they observed the noticeable changes in each other’s appearances, excitement was evident in everyone’s eyes. Old General Dai no longer used a cane. He loudly exclaimed, “Visit my residence tomorrow.”

 

The elderly gentleman continued, “Then, the day after tomorrow, come to my residence. We old folks haven’t gathered for a drink in a long time.” King Luo Rong immediately teased, “Don’t call me old again. I will be marrying a main wife soon.”

 

Laughter erupted, and the old general pointed at King Luo Rong, saying, “Look at how conceited you are. Planning to marry a main wife and we still haven’t seen him yet. That deserves a punishment!”

 

The elderly gentleman agreed. “Yes, a punishment.” He said to the old general, ” “Tomorrow, let’s ‘properly’ drink with him.”

 

“Yes!”

 

“Hahaha…”

 

After the three “elders” in high spirits joked around, they went to express their gratitude. As expected, they didn’t meet the Emperor and Empress, but received a message through Guo Xun. The Emperor was busy these days and if there was no urgent matter, they were advised not to disturb the palace. After expressing their thanks by kowtowing at the entrance of the imperial sleeping palace, the group left together.

 

Inside the imperial palace, faint moans emanated from the dragon bed where the curtains fell. Finally free from any constraints, Emperor Yongming thought it was time for the Empress to give birth to a crown prince. The two hadn’t been intimate for a very long time and the last time they had unrestricted intimacy was so long ago that it couldn’t even be remembered. Guo Xun and Zhuo Jin picked up the clothes strewn by the bedside since the couple entered and arranged them properly, guarding outside the sleeping palace to prevent any interruptions.

 

The residence of Loyal and Brave Marquis had not been renovated yet, so Shao Yunan and Wang Shijing, along with their three children and three divine beasts, chose to live in the residence of the Grand General without any psychological burden. 

 

It could be said that their decision was very wise. Setting aside the people who knew the inside story and hoped they would stay here, just the reputation of the Grand General’s residence could shield them from a lot of trouble. Shortly after leaving the palace, invitations from various factions flooded into the Grand General’s residence like snowflakes. 

 

Wang Shijing and Shao Yunan, familiar with the complicated relationships among the nobles in the capital, turned a blind eye to them, letting the staff of the Grand General’s residence handle everything. As one of the people who knew Shao Yunan’s real identity, almost all the invitations sent to the Grand General’s residence were politely declined by Shen Bing, citing the busy schedule of the Loyal and Brave Marquis and the First Lady in their early days in the capital. 

 

Wang Shijing, recently enfeoffed as Loyal and Brave Marquis and having obtained the Immortal Fruit, would not gain any advantage by rushing to visit various mansions. If he were busy with greetings, it would not benefit his future stability in the capital and his position in the Emperor’s heart.

 

Shen Bing did not hide this matter from Shao Yunan and Shao Yunan appreciated Shen Bing (Aunt) for considering them. He was not interested in socializing with unknown people and left everything to Shen Bing to handle.

 

In contrast, Jiang Kangning, who was now a favorite in front of the Emperor, was not so fortunate. He couldn’t hide in his foster father’s residence. Although he had a bright future and the Emperor explicitly stated that the position of Minister of Revenue was reserved for him, Jiang Kangning could not take it lightly. 

 

Jiang Kangning accepted the invitations from various parties, but he immediately had the steward of the Jiang residence prepare suitable gifts to be sent to certain prominent families, expressing his apologies for not being able to visit in person. On the third day, Jiang Kangning left the capital with the eunuch sent by Emperor Yongming to announce the edict for Yongxiu County. However, before leaving, Jiang Kangning made a trip to the Grand Marshal’s residence.

 

Edited by: Jaisland

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