Chapter 167 The Withered Flower (Part Two)

Lord Hua Guo smiled as if he knew what Prince Jing was thinking. He said, "I come here today for no other purpose than to find someone to drink with. You know, the seventh Prince is not well, and I dare not invite him to drink, so I come to you."

Prince Jing smiled at his words and said, "Obedience is better than politeness. My mansion is desolate, but very quiet. Let's drink here." Then Prince Jing turned to a servant and said, "Prepare the wine, and take it to the pavilion by the lake."

When Prince Jing took Lord Hua Guo to the pavilion, the wine was ready and there were a few food dishes as well. Lord Hua Guo smiled and poured a bowl of wine without saying a word. Then he toasted to Prince Jing. Prince Jing took his bowl of wine and they drained their bowls.

Lord Hua Guo did not speak anymore about the war, not even about the State of Xia and the State of Ning. Instead, he asked Prince Jing some questions as if they were in a casual conversation. He asked, "I heard that you are the sworn son of the former Emperor. Then where is your hometown, Your Highness?" He also inquired, "Your Highness, you are now in a high status. Have you ever looked for your parents?"

Prince Jing answered his questions one by one. "I don't know where my real hometown is. I grew up in the southern city of Jingning, but it wasn't necessarily my hometown, because it wasn't my biological parents who brought me up. Later, Jingning was flooded, and my sworn parents died. I was adopted by the former Emperor who came to aid the disaster relief in Jingning." As for the investigation into the identity of his biological parents... Prince Jing shook his head. He never thought of looking for his biological parents because he never cared about them.

Lord Hua Guo sighed, "Heroes don't care about their family background." After that, Lord Hua Guo did not ask more. He only spoke with Prince Jing about the conditions and customs of the State of Xia. They were congenial.

The next morning, Yun Shang took the official dress to Prince Jing's Mansion. Prince Jing felt the dress and found that the fabric was still the same, but it seemed a little different. Though he knew Yun Shang must have done something to it, he trusted her and put on the dress without any questions.

Official dresses were always grand. Their official dress was scarlet in color and looked very festive. Added to that the hair ornament of their respective grades, and their radiance caught everyone's attention.

When they ar

mouth, and blew on her hands. When she opened her hands again, each stone seemed to open a crack, and green leaves grew. The audiences were startled, and before they could react, they saw the leaves grow quickly and sprout new shoots. As the plant grew to about a foot high, a flower bud suddenly appeared at the top of the green shoot. It grew slowly, revealing a touch of red as it slowly blossomed.

Looking at the audience who seemed amazed, Yun Shang sneered in her heart. 'It turns out that Grand Councilor Li is the one who has colluded with Ruyu.

Why didn't he ask his daughters to do that instead of Ruyu? Now, even the daughter of the Wen Clan has stepped in.'

The red flowers were finally in full bloom. The flowers seemed to be good ones, however, they were not the best ones. The process of their blooming was so amazing that everyone was curious about them. "For the first time, I have seen such wonderful flowers. Your country is indeed vast in territory and rich in natural resources."

Xia Houjing praised, "Your Majesty, may I see the flowers? I wonder what's going on with them?"

As if satisfied with his admiration, Emperor Ning laughed, nodded in agreement, and ordered, "Bring them down."

The Flower Show Banquet stipulated that the person who presented the flowers could not leave the platform, so the task of bringing the flowers naturally fell to Yun Shang and Prince Jing. The two looked at each other and walked to Ruyu with a smile. They each took a flower and walked down the platform. But, after a few steps, the flower in Prince Jing's hand suddenly drooped. Gradually, a yellow color spread, and an instant later, it withered...