Chapter 582 - 282: The "Zheng" Military Banner

Chapter 582: Chapter 282: The "Zheng" Military Banner

Security at the Red King Mansion had always been handled by the Brotherhood on a rotating basis.

So when a young woman calling herself Yue Linglong knelt in the heavy snow before the Red King Mansion, it didn’t take long for her to be discovered.

Soon, a number of assassins had gathered to watch the drama unfold.

The assassins muttered amongst themselves in the shadows.

"The Moon Race... Yue Linglong?"

"Could she be the ’Barbarian Princess’ everyone in the city’s been buzzing about? The one who’s supposed to become Madam Zheng?"

"Don’t be ridiculous. You really think just any plain Jane can become Madam Zheng?"

"Uh, now that you mention it, she doesn’t look plain at all."

"Hmph. Men." The speaker was a married woman who served under the Red King. She scoffed, her voice laced with displeasure. "It’s just a cold political marriage between two nations. There are no feelings involved."

"So why is she kneeling at our gate in the middle of the night?"

"Must be about that business at the Fragrant Pavilion, right? You think you can offend our Lord and get away with it? A clever move—retreating in order to advance."

Despite their scornful words, the assassins found the situation incredibly tricky.

If it were anyone else, they’d just shoo them away.

But this woman’s identity was rather sensitive.

Everyone in the mansion knew their lord was an amorous man. Who knew if the Red King might take a fancy to this beauty? What if something actually came of it?

"So who’s going to inform the Lord?"

The hidden assassins looked at each other in dismay.

The Lord was definitely... busy at this hour.

And when he got busy, he wouldn’t be free for two or three hours at least.

No one was stupid enough to risk his wrath over a Barbarian Princess.

"I’m not going."

After a moment, they all shook their heads in unison, deciding to pretend they hadn’t seen a thing.

Yue Linglong knelt in the heavy snow for a full hour.

The snow fell heavier and heavier, piling on her slender shoulders.

The young woman’s body trembled slightly in the cold. Amidst the vast expanse of snow and the desolate street, she knelt all alone before the magnificent Red King Mansion, adding a touch of misery and helplessness to this small corner of the world.

「Meanwhile.」

「In the Red King’s chambers.」

The lamps were dim, but the heat was rising.

Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei had already spent ten years as husband and wife within the Cannibal Painting. They were intimately familiar with each other, knowing every little detail. It was no exaggeration to say that even when Feng Bei had still been a virgin, their experience as a married couple in the painting—so real it was hard to tell from truth—meant that all Zheng Xiu had to do was pat her bottom, and she’d know what to do.

After they had recently consummated their relationship in reality, their amorous affairs flowed in perfect, natural harmony. Everything simply fell into place, and it was too wonderful for words.

With the blanket pulled over their heads, Zheng Xiu was like a little tiger possessed, tearing the new stockings to shreds.

"Don’t! You... they were perfectly good stockings! Why did you have to go and rip them?"

’And you tore them to pieces! Do you... have some kind of grudge against Xi’er?’

Feng Bei didn’t yet understand the wonders of new stockings.

"Here, let me show you..."

Zheng Xiu was just about to explore the ’eighteen uses for new stockings’ with Feng Bei.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Two heads popped out from under the covers. They each held a corner of the blanket, their expressions equally dazed and bewildered. They truly looked like a married couple.

"It’s Second Lady." Feng Bei listened to the hurried breathing outside the door. Using the Sound of All Things, she cocked her head and instantly knew who it was. She squeezed Zheng Xiu’s arm in a panic. "This is bad! How am I supposed to explain being in your room in the middle of the night?"

"What’s there to explain? It’s not like we’re breaking any laws, are we?"

Zheng Xiu didn’t understand why Feng Bei was so anxious. He muttered to himself, then called out, "Coming, coming!" Throwing on a robe, he got up to open the door.

Feng Bei dove back under the covers and pulled the bed curtains shut, pretending she had never been there.

No one else in the mansion would be so tactless as to disturb him this late at night. For Second Lady to come, it had to be for something important. No matter how impatient Zheng Xiu felt, he couldn’t neglect her.

The moment Second Lady saw Zheng Xiu, her willow-like brows shot up and her eyes widened. Her ’marvelous claws’ shot out, precisely pinching Zheng Xiu’s ear and twisting it upward. "Explain yourself!" she snapped. "Which young lady have you gone and entangled now!"

Zheng Xiu froze. "Me?" He glanced guiltily back toward the bed, but a moment later, he couldn’t help but laugh at himself. ’What the hell do I have to be guilty about! Feng Bei is my betrothed wife! Even if we’re not officially married, she’s my wife! It’s perfectly right and proper!’

"How did you find out?"

Zheng Xiu assumed Second Lady was talking about Feng Bei hiding under the covers. He cleared his throat a couple of times; even though their relationship was proper, he still felt a little embarrassed at being caught.

"The poor girl has come all the way to our front door!"

"Ow, ow, ow, ow..."

Second Lady dragged Zheng Xiu out by the ear, nagging him like a mother hen all the while.

"I mean, how old are you now? Your engagement with Miss Feng Bei has barely begun, nothing’s even finalized yet. Zizi and the others will naturally join the Zheng Family as her dowry maids, and you can’t even take care of the flower in your own garden? Why must you go chasing wildflowers outside?"

The more Zheng Xiu heard, the more confused he became. His ear was being twisted for no reason he could fathom, and he felt utterly wronged. He couldn’t help but ask, "Wait, Second Lady, who exactly are you talking about right now?"

"The girl’s name is Yue Linglong! If Brother Qing’s people hadn’t told me, I’d still be completely in the dark!"

Second Lady’s position meant she was inevitably out of the loop on matters of the Court, so she had no idea that Zheng Xiu had been saddled with a princess for no good reason. And although rumors were flying outside, the Red King Mansion was a world unto itself. No one would whisper such gossip in Second Lady’s ear, so it was understandable that she didn’t know.

Zheng Xiu’s expression suddenly turned cold. He said nothing more, simply following Second Lady all the way to the main gate.

Pushing the doors open, Zheng Xiu’s gaze immediately fell upon the young woman kneeling in the snow. Her head was bowed, and she looked as if she might collapse at any moment.

The young woman lifted her head. Her dark, clear eyes were devoid of any light as she quietly looked at the man who was to be her future husband.