Princess and the General

She Is Slowly Changing

The next day was the first day of the new year.
Marquis Gu’s Manor sent out a request for a visit first thing in the morning, and a response quickly came from the prime minister’s manor.

Gu ShuBai and Yu Fu would go to the prime minister’s manor, while Gu HuaiJiang would go into the palace.
The two carriages set out together and then went their separate ways.

Gu HuaiJiang waited outside the imperial study, and Eunuch Chi slowly came out after he had waited for quite some time.

“Ah, Lord Marquis Gu, it truly is unfortunate.
Today is the day that the imperial family has come to see His Majesty.
His Majesty is currently speaking with the members of the imperial family inside.
Lord Marquis Gu is invited to wait outside.”

Gu HuaiJiang nodded, “Very well, this marquis will wait here.”

Eunuch Chi examined his expression and then said: “If this servant may ask Lord Marquis, what did you come to see His Majesty for? This servant might be able to help with your matter.
Without giving it my best effort, who knows if it’s impossible or not.”

Gu HuaiJiang glanced at him and revealed a smile, “If Eunuch Chi is willing to help this marquis, this marquis is naturally delighted.
To be completely honest, it is about what happened during the banquet last night.”

When Eunuch Chi heard that it was about the banquet that had happened last night, he immediately smiled fawningly, “Has Lord Marquis finally thought things through? Come on, you blind fools, Lord Marquis is waiting here, yet you didn’t even think of bringing him a chair?”

The latter half was directed at the palace servants below, and someone immediately rushed forward with an armchair.
Gu HuaiJiang just looked at it but did not sit down.

Eunuch Chi became more and more respectful, “Lord Marquis has finally thought it through.
This servant will finally be able to let out a sigh of relief! You have no idea how much His Majesty likes Princess ZhenJiang.
She was offered the position of empress, yet she refused it in front of him.
His Majesty was absolutely furious last night! If he knew that you came here to talk about this today, how could he be in the mood to talk to the other members of the imperial family!”

“Lord Marquis, please sit for now.
This servant will go in and inform His Majesty right now!”

Gu HuaiJiang said: “Eunuch Chi, please wait a moment.”

“Huh?”

Eunuch Chi was in the middle of rejoicing and was about to go inside to report to Ning ChengZhi.
Having been stopped, he was stunned.

Gu HuaiJiang looked at him but did not say a word.
The look in his eyes told him that his guess was incorrect.

Eunuch Chi was the head of the palace’s personnel, and he looked at him in disbelief.
Was Lord Marquis Gu, the one who controlled a large number of troops and had enjoyed a period of great popularity, daring to oppose His Majesty?

As long as he was willing to relent, he would be the one who stood above all but one.
He would be even more important than Prime Minister Yin, who was only a brother-in-law.
From that moment on, he would no longer need to fear being suppressed.

How could he be so unwilling to relent?

Eunuch Chi helplessly looked at him and angrily said: “Since Lord Marquis doesn’t want to sit, take the chair away; otherwise, it will cause the members of the imperial family to talk about it.”

After saying this, he flicked his sleeves and returned to the imperial study.

The eunuch below looked at each other, and one approached Gu HuaiJiang and quietly said: “Lord Marquis, we’re truly sorry.
As servants, we have no choice but to listen to orders.”

Gu HuaiJiang quietly said: “It can’t be helped.”

He knew that he was coming here to anger the emperor, not please him.
From the very beginning, he did not plan on being treated with kindness here.

Sure enough, after the eunuchs took the chair away, the members of the imperial family new year’s visit continued for a long time.

A new year’s greeting would usually last less than an hour, but Gu HuaiJiang was left waiting outside for two hours without any sign of movement from inside.

He did not move an inch and was completely alert, while his expression showed his indifference toward how he was being treated.

The eunuchs stood at the end of the hall and mentally gave him a thumbs up.
They thought to themselves that someone who had many military accomplishments was truly exceptional.

They had an aura of calm certainty to them.

After another quarter of an hour passed, the sound of footsteps could faintly be heard coming from inside, as the members of the imperial family started walking out with their own thoughts on their minds.

Seeing Gu HuaiJiang waiting outside, they came to a sudden realization.

It was no wonder His Majesty spoke so much today.
It was clear that he did not have much to say, yet he insisted on dragging things out and refusing to let them leave.
It turned out that he had done it deliberately to trouble Lord Marquis Gu…

A few of the members of the imperial family had awkward expressions, wanting to go and say a few comforting words to Gu HuaiJiang but also fearing that it would be heard or seen by the many people outside of the imperial study.
They could do nothing but greet him before leaving.

Only the old imperial uncle and Ning TangShu walked over to him.

“Lord Marquis Gu.”

“Imperial uncle.”

The two sides cupped their hands in a greeting, as the imperial uncle said: “Lord Marquis Gu came so early.
His Majesty is currently in a bad mood.
If you have something to say, why not wait until another time to bring it up?”

Gu HuaiJiang was a bit shocked then said with a smile: “Imperial uncle understands my thoughts and knows why I am here.
As a result, you know that this matter will need to be addressed sooner or later, and His Majesty’s anger will come sooner or later.”

The imperial uncle sighed, “Though this old one is a member of the imperial family, and though I am of an older generation, I have no influence.
His Majesty respectfully calls me lord imperial uncle, and if he did not respect me, he would at worst call this old one an old fool.
As for what happened last night… this old one truly wanted to do something but was powerless.”

Ning TangShu frowned and took a step forward to help support him.

Eunuch Chi suddenly stepped out from the study, “Lord Marquis Gu, His Majesty has summoned you inside.
This way.”

Gu HuaiJiang cupped his hands to the two and followed Eunuch Chi into the imperial study.
The elderly imperial uncle watched his parting figure and let out a long sigh.

“Father…”

Ning TangShu tried to console him, but the words that were on his lips failed to come out, thus he simply decided to give up on saying them.

He and his father were the same, disliking how Ning ChengZhi was trying to use the empress’ seat to steal Yu Fu.
They also resented how Gu HuaiJiang was being repressed despite his loyalty.

However, they were just ordinary members of the imperial family without much influence and could not do anything.

“Father, let’s go home first…”

Marquis Gu’s Manor’s carriage stopped outside of the prime minister’s manor.
Yin Shuo wore a set of dark red robes and personally waited outside for Yu Fu and Gu ShuBai.

He seemed to be in a great mood, “You two are guests.
This is your first time coming to the prime minister’s manor, but your presence makes my prime minister’s manor shine.”

Gu ShuBai faintly smiled, “For lord prime minister to have come out to receive us, prime minister has been too kind.”

Yin Shuo carefully picked his words and replied: “Not at all, not to mention eldest young sir’s position as the heir nor your position as the young general of the Gu family’s army, but just speaking of Her Highness the princess, as a subject, it’s natural that I come out to receive her.”

Yu Fu listened to the two go back and forth and impatiently waved her hand, “I did not come to the prime minister’s manor today to talk about etiquette between subject and ruler; moreover, I know that Prime Minister Yin has never thought of princesses as rulers.
Isn’t that right?”

Yin Shuo could hear the mocking tone in her words and knew that she was talking about Princess DanYang.
Without faltering, he responded: “Princess must be joking.
Even between princesses, there are differences.
How can the one in my manor be compared with you?”

Just as this was said, a tall figure quietly separated the two, as Gu ShuBai stepped between them.

To take such liberties with his fiancee in front of him, Yin Shuo sure was a bright one.

The two men stared at each other, as sparks seemingly flew between them.

Yu Fu tugged his sleeve from behind.

This was a habit that she had kept from when she was little.
At that time, she was too small and could not reach Gu ShuBai.
Now that she was 14 years old, she was tall enough to reach his shoulder; however, she could not change this habit.

Yin Shuo saw this intimate action, and his pupils immediately contracted.

This one little movement was enough to drive him mad with jealousy, and he was no longer able to maintain his facade of courtesy.

“Eldest brother, you chat with Prime Minister Yin.”

As Yu Fu said this, she poked her head out from behind him and looked at Yin Shuo, “The prime minister’s manor should have a female master who can receive female guests, right?”

A female master…

Did she want to see Princess DanYang, Yin JiYao, or both?

Yin Shuo smiled.
He was not worried about the two of them being able to cause any waves, “Naturally, I will immediately have someone bring princess to the Eastern Courtyard.
Eldest young sir, come with me.”

The two went in different directions.
One went east and one went west.
When they parted ways, they shared a tacit look and felt reassured.

Yin Shuo walked in front of Gu ShuBai and led the way.
His hands were balled up into fists inside his large sleeves.

…

This was the first time that Yu Fu had come to the prime minister’s manor.
Her impression of Yin Shuo and Yin Yan was that they both had profound schemes and ulterior motives.
The prime minister’s manor that she had imagined was frighteningly dark and gloomy.

She did not think that she would really come here.
Looking at it now, it was indeed refined with exquisite pavilions.

She had heard that the Yin family was a family that had been a scholarly family for generations.
Compared to Marquis Gu’s Manor which had a military background, the prime minister’s manor was a bit less grand but had a bit more elegance.

Before arriving at the Eastern Courtyard, a familiar figure came over to receive her.

“Yu Fu!”

Yin JiYao was standing on the path and had been waiting for some time.
Pei’er was the only one standing behind her.
Seeing Yu Fu, she happily came forward.

“JiYao.”

Yu Fu had many questions to ask her but found it hard to speak in front of the servants of the prime minister’s manor.
Yin JiYao understood and said to the servant: “You can go.
Allow me to take care of princess.”

The servant hesitantly said: “That… But eldest young sir told this servant to bring Princess ZhenJiang to see Princess DanYang.”

Yin JiYao fiercely said: “Wasn’t eldest sister-in-law unfit to see guests? As the only young miss in the manor, could it be that I am unable to take care of guests for her?”

The servant was frightened and hastily retreated.

After he left, Yin JiYao was like a cat that had escaped danger, slowly putting away her claws.

Yu Fu could not help but laugh, “You gave me a fright.
When did you become so mighty?”

Yin JiYao helplessly said: “It’s all just an act.
I am doing my best to make myself stronger.
It would be great if I could be half as strong as you, then I wouldn’t need to worry about being bullied.”

Yu Fu looked her over and felt that the current Yin JiYao was very different.

She was no longer dressed plainly and in thin clothes.
Instead, she wore clothes that showed off her status as the young miss of the prime minister’s manor.
Her face was a little rounder, and she no longer shrank away when others looked at the scar on her forehead.

The gauze that covered the scar was still there, but her face was radiant and no longer looked sickly like it did in the past.

Yu Fu praised her from the bottom of her heart, “You truly have the demeanor of a female general.”

“Really?”

Yin JiYao rejoiced but quickly covered her mouth and looked around, “It’s inconvenient to speak here.
Come and speak in my courtyard.
I will take you to see DanYang in a bit.
You might have some way of treating her illness.”

Yu Fu did not refuse, following her to her courtyard.

Entering the room, they closed the door, and Yin JiYao quickly grabbed her hand, “I wasn’t able to go into the palace last night, but I heard that His Majesty wanted to appoint you as empress in front of all of the officials and that you refused?”

“Un, because of this, none of the members of Marquis Gu’s Manor was able to sleep well last night.
First thing this morning, head general went into the palace, and I accompanied eldest brother here to see your eldest brother.”

“My eldest brother?”

Yin JiYao heard those words and subconsciously felt uneasy, “He hates Marquis Gu’s Manor even more than His Majesty.
He won’t help you.
But… if it’s concerning you, he might be willing to help.”

Yu Fu looked around the room, “After the previous prime minister returned, your eldest brother surely does not dare to trouble you.
Princess DanYang is also able to have a happier existence.
This is a good thing.”

Yin JiYao hastily said: “At a time like this, how can you still be worried about us? Right now, your matters are most important.
If you don’t want to become the empress, I have an idea.”

Yu Fu said: “What is it?”

Yin JiYao said: “After word of what happened in the palace last night reached the manor, I was worshipping our ancestors in the ancestral hall with father.
At that time, father let out a sigh and said… said…”

Yu Fu said: “Go ahead and say it.
I won’t get mad no matter what the previous prime minister said.”

Only then did Yin JiYao resolve herself, “Father is an extremely old-fashioned person.
Back when he wanted me to get close to the second young sir, it was for the sake of learning about your identity.
After hearing about what happened in the palace, father was very angry and said that His Majesty actually wants to appoint a… a girl with an unclear background as empress.
This absolutely cannot happen.”

Yu Fu’s eyes lit up, as she laughed instead of getting angry.

“He really said that?”

Yin JiYao nodded and looked at Yu Fu in confusion.
She was laughing?

If others heard this, they might be furious, so how could Yu Fu laugh?

Yu Fu cheerfully said: “Your father is right.
I am a girl with an unclear background.
Even if the empress of Eastern Ling does not come from an aristocratic family, she should be innocent and come from a prominent family.
As for me, I am just an adopted daughter of Marquis Gu’s Manor.
Though I have been accorded the title of princess, I do not have the imperial family’s blood.
Did the previous prime minister say how to stop His Majesty?”

It turned out that she was rejoicing over this.

Yin JiYao quickly said: “Though father does not want you to be empress, he has already retired from court.
That he was able to return to the capital is already thanks to His Majesty’s grace, so how could he dare to speak up on this matter? Father returned from the old home looking much older.
I fear that even if he had the will, he would not have the power to do anything.”

“Though the previous prime minister has retired from court, his prestige is still there.
With how much His Majesty favors Prime Minister Yin, he will surely give the previous prime minister some face.
How about this, JiYao, why don’t you bring me to see him?”

Yin JiYao was extremely shocked and said: “You want to see father? This…”

She thought to herself that aside from the members of Marquis Gu’s Manor, Yin Yan might be the only one who does not want Yu Fu to become empress.

Marquis Gu’s Manor was currently in a difficult position.
If not for this, Gu ShuBai would not have come to see Yin Shuo.
If Yin Yan could be persuaded by Yu Fu, he would be very helpful.

She gritted her teeth, “When I was in trouble, Marquis Gu’s Manor took me in, and you treated the scar on my forehead.
I have remembered that benevolence and will repay it.
Very well, I will bring you to see my father.”

Yu Fu smiled and said: “That’s great, but don’t mention repaying the favor in the future.
When third brother broke into the prime minister’s manor, you were the one who helped him when he was nearly caught.
The favors owed between you, Marquis Gu’s Manor, and I are too hard to keep track of, so you don’t owe us anything.”

Yin JiYao looked at her.
She knew that she could never repay the benevolence that Marquis Gu’s Manor had shown her.
Yu Fu said this to allow her to feel a little better.

The greatest gift that they had given her was telling her the truth about her identity.
They allowed her to know that she was not born of a prostitute but was born of a female general from Western Kun.

Her birth mother had been a powerful female general, so why did she have to be submissive and meek? Why could she not be daring and brave like her birth mother?

She was slowly changing and becoming a brave and righteous person.