C81

Naturally, it was impossible for Mo Qingfeng to be the only personal guard of Nangong Kai Ran. In fact, the job of being the personal bodyguard of the Emperor was very relaxing, as it took 4 shifts every day. This meant that Mo Qingfeng could only stay in the palace for 6 hours to rest. In addition, Nangong Kai Ran had prepared a mansion for him. Although Mo Qingfeng wanted to reject it, so what if the Emperor insisted? The manor was about to open, and with the progress, Mo Qingfeng could move in in a month. After knowing that his little brother was about to move away, he was unhappy for a long time. Even the money that he had brought with him had started to dislike Mo Qingfeng. If possible, he did not want to leave his side, but each of them had their own path to take. He had escaped under the protection of his elder brother for so many years, but he could not continue to run away like this.

Not long after Mo Qingfeng took office, it was the birthday of Nangong Kai Ran and as usual, it was going to be held for three days. Of course, the palace's matters did not concern Mo Qingfeng, he only needed to accompany Nangong Kai Ran, and for small matters like birthday feasts, there would naturally be people who would take care of them, and no one had the guts to trouble the Emperor.

On the day of the birthday banquet, the palace was bustling with noise and excitement. Nangong Kai Ran did not have many children, only a daughter and two sons. This matter had indeed caused Nangong Kai Ran to lose face. Normally, his harem was full of beauties, but he was only given a son and a daughter by his eldest son and his concubine. Now that the crippled crown prince had suddenly died, the only ones left were the current immature crown prince and the daily troublesome princess, Miao'er.

As well as the princes and sons of princes returning to the capital to celebrate their birthday, as well as the envoys from the small kingdoms at the borders of the Great Yan Dynasty, the entire palace was abuzz with activity. Everyone presented their carefully prepared gifts, such as antique jade artifacts, paintings, sculptures, jewelry, etc. They were presented in front of Nangong Kairen.

However, this was the case for all his years of celebration, so there was nothing new to it. Fortunately, he didn't really care about these gifts, he just wanted to find a reason to play around with them for the rest of the day. When he was young, it was difficult for him to become the emperor to get rid of others. However, once he did, he felt that it wasn't that big of a deal. It was more like being an idle court. The great treasure could not display its extraordinary talent. It could only show off its fat body. Its daily subjects' mouth was filled with national affairs that annoyed it to the core. However, today's birthday was different from the previous days. His own carefully planned program was about to be put on.

During the birthday banquet, Nangong Kai Ran called for Mo Qingfeng to accompany them. As a guard, there were no seats for Mo Qingfeng. However, there was a small table at the back of Nangong Kai Ran's seat.

By the time the sun had set and the sky darkened, Nangong Kai Ran had ordered a birthday feast to be held. At the banquet, Nangong Kairan sat in the middle, and Hui Fei sat by his side. Nangong Hong and Nangong Miao sat on the left and right side of the table respectively. The old emperor, who did not have many children, watched as Nangong Miao, who was sitting on the prince's seat, ignoring etiquette, suddenly felt a sense of desolation. Forget it, so what if she was the one to be presumptuous? To be fair, the current crown prince was respectful and filial, neither like himself nor like his domineering mufei. On the contrary, his only daughter had the demeanor that he had when he was young, and she had pleased him quite a lot. Unfortunately, she was a princess, so he couldn't help but think of the crown prince. Of course, this emotion only lasted for a split-second. It was quickly replaced by the excitement of the upcoming show.

Naturally, the banquet started with the Emperor speaking first, and the official's timely words of flattery followed by a large amount of nonsense. Only after that did everyone start to move their chopsticks, causing Mo Qingfeng to fall asleep while holding a cup.

Nangong Miao only took two mouthfuls before sitting by her father's side. As the only daughter of Nangong Kai Ran, she was doted on even more than the two princes. The first two sons of Nangong Kai Ran died when he was not even one year old, and the two princes who successfully grew up had studied under the Crown Prince. The one they were most familiar with was not their father, but wine and doctors. Only Nangong Miao, as his daughter, did not need much nurturing. Being able to stay by his side at all times, he was in fact the first child he grew up with. He was truly a beloved daughter.

Nangong Miao was a little absent-minded today, he did not even pay much attention to the performance on stage, but from time to time he would secretly turn his head to look at Mo Qingfeng. He was dressed in a white official's uniform, casually sitting behind a table with a silver ancient saber hanging on his left hip. Because of his young age, he did not have a jade crown like the other officials. Instead, he only used a white ribbon to tie his hair, appearing very natural and unrestrained.

Today, many of the important officials of the imperial court had brought their wives to the banquet. Among them, there were quite a number of unmarried men and women who were in their prime. They were either the eldest son, or they were talented. The common point was that they all knew about the etiquette of going in and out of the city. It was just like a blind date ceremony.

But in Nangong Miao's eyes, these people had a trace of fear as they walked and retreated. They were far from the casual Mo Qingfeng.

Nangong Kai Ran glanced at the officials and smiled at Hui Fei: "Looks like my beloved concubine isn't here to celebrate my birthday. She is obviously here to choose your own son-in-law, can't you be satisfied with that Mo Qingfeng? Looking at this room of handsome youths, I can't help but to recall those years ago. "

Huaifei did not refute the Emperor's words, but continued: "That Mo Qingfeng is naturally a beauty in Your Majesty's eyes, but the consort has to be chosen for the princess, so it is only natural that we, Mao'er, would personally take a fancy to him. Otherwise, if we were to form a couple, won't our future parents have to suffer grievances? "

"My beloved concubine's words are reasonable, but I think that Miao'er is like this, completely not putting this room full of Scholars in my eyes!" Nangong Kai Ran laughed as he glanced at Nangong Miao, but Nangong Miao did not notice her father's gaze, and only turned to look at Mo Qingfeng.

"This Mo Qingfeng actually has a good appearance. He looks eighty to ninety percent similar to elder sister Rou Er. He doesn't look as mighty as his father." "That year, Sister Rou Er rejected your proposal to marry General Mo, but you still treated Sister Rou's child with such care. You truly deserve to be called a sentimental man, the decision Sister Rou Er made that year was completely wrong."

"Is my beloved concubine jealous? "My care for Qingfeng naturally has something to do with his mother, and most importantly, it is due to his own talent. Could it be that my beloved concubine thinks that I am someone who favors others?"

"Your majesty, let's see where you're going. This concubine is about to die from grievance!" Huifei smiled coquettishly as she poured a cup of wine for Nangong KaiRan as a form of apology.

Not long after the banquet was held, a young eunuch came to report that General Mo Jinglei, who was guarding the southwest, had returned to the capital to offer his birthday.

Hearing this, the old official looked at Nangong Kai Ran in shock. On the other hand, Nangong Kai Ran was relaxed, he did not pay attention to the crowd of surprised officials and only gave the order, "Announce him."

"Understood."

After a while, a middle-aged man walked in from outside the hall. He wore the uniform of a military general. He was tall and thin, with a dark complexion.

"This humble official, Mo Jinglei, kowtows to Your Majesty and wishes him a thousand years of longevity."

"Exempt from formalities and look at the seats."