CH 122.1

Chapter 122.1 – Happiness and Harmony

The confidential report was delivered to the princess’s mansion, and both Qi Yang and Lu Qipei were overjoyed after reading it. But when she thought about what the Crown Prince’s intent for sending this confidential report was, Qi Yang couldn’t help feeling a bit worried, and even blamed Lu Qipei for being too reckless in her actions.

Lu Qipei threw away the confidential report and hugged Qi Yang’s slender waist, rubbing her neck against it. “Why is Ah Ning worrying so much? I will resign as soon as Xie Yuan dies. No matter how suspicious the Crown Prince is, he would give his little sister face and not do anything to me.” She closed her eyes as she said that, her voice turning soft, “When the time comes, I’ll take you to see the mountains and rivers. Wouldn’t it be great to go to all kinds of places in Liang?”

Of course it would be great. Qi Yang had never been someone who valued power, and when she heard what Lu Qipei said, her heart was moved and she agreed, “When you resign from your official position, we will go and play. There’s no need to go back to the capital in the future – after we’ve played enough, we can go back to my fief.”

Lu Qipei said that she would resign after Xie Yuan died, and according to the information in the confidential report, he was probably not far away from it. In fact, when the Rong Emperor surrounded him in the palace that day, normally he shouldn’t have been able to escape. Right now, Lu Qipei even suspected that the Emperor’s spies in Rong had done something to save Xie Yuan’s life, causing him to turn against the Rong Emperor and even face each other in battle.

But it didn’t matter, it wasn’t detrimental to the overall situation, and it was also good that it could be used to deplete Rong State’s strength. Who knows, maybe when the news reached Liang, Xie Yuan’s head was already no longer connected to his neck.

Lu Qipei did not feel sad at all that her father was going to die. On the contrary, if she received news of Xie Yuan’s death right now, she might even want to set off firecrackers in celebration. After all, this big mountain had been pressing down on her heart for too long. It was such a rare thing that they had a second chance in life, but she and Qi Yang had to waste a lot of time and energy on him.

Only by getting rid of him early could they truly have a new life!

Qi Yang didn’t notice Lu Qipei’s momentary distraction. She leaned back into her arms with peace of mind and continued with the previous topic, “Speaking of living for two lives, I haven’t left the capital yet. The furthest I’ve gone is the Tangquan Palace and the hunting ground. When we go out to play in the future, can you take me to Jiangnan? I want to see what kind of place could raise a talented and outstanding person like Ah Pei.

Lu Qipei blushed from her praise, but she was actually happy that Qi Yang wanted to visit her hometown. She put aside her other thoughts and replied with a smile, “Okay. Jiangnan has beautiful mountains and clear water, Ah Ning will definitely like it.”

The two then had some small talk. Lu Qipei told Qi Yang about her childhood life in Jiangnan, and Qi Yang also shared her childhood stories with her. They grew up in completely different environments, but they also listened to the other’s stories with great interest.

In the end, Qi Yang sighed and said, “Ah Pei, what you said made me want to go and see Jiangnan right away.”

Unfortunately, she could not. Actually, Qi Yang understood in her heart that even if Xie Yuan died now, she would not be able to pull Lu Qipei away to resign immediately. After all, the Emperor was currently in poor health, and it was uncertain when he would die. As a child, it was impossible for her to travel far away right now.

Qi Yang made some calculations in her heart and thought that it would be best to wait for the new Emperor to ascend the throne before leaving. When all the dust had settled and the Crown Prince’s guard against Lu Qipei had not devolved into suspicion yet, it would be the best time for them to boldly retreat.

Lu Qipei was also well aware about it, but after this conversation, she felt that it would be fine to write down her resignation letter first.

That night, while Qi Yang was playing with Lu Sheng, Lu Qipei stayed in the room and wrote furiously.

Time always passed by exceptionally fast when it neared the end of the year. In just a blink of an eye, the Emperor had already announced the end of year holiday.

According to Liang’s tradition, the Emperor usually sets the holiday from the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month to the ninth day of the first lunar month. There are occasional deviations, but the holidays are basically the same. For the officials, this half-month long holiday was very precious, as it was only once a year. On other festivals such as the winter solstice or Longevity Day, the holiday was usually only one day long, and they might not really get to take a rest.

There was more snowfall in the capital compared to last year, covering the world in pure white, but it didn’t hinder the people’s enthusiasm in celebrating the New Year. The streets that had been silent for a long time from the beginning of winter turned lively as the New Year approached.

Of course, it wasn’t just the streets that were bustling. The Mansions also started decorating for New Years.

The princess’s mansion had also become lively in the past few days. Zhi Ting could often be seen standing in the courtyard, instructing the servants to arrange the place, busy as a bee. Sometimes, you could see a little dumpling following behind her, running around to take a look, enjoying all the excitement.

Children always liked to join the fun, and Lu Sheng was no exception. Especially after being raised well by Qi Yang in the past year, her temperament had become livelier, and she no longer had that initial restrained attitude. Everyone was busy as the end of the year approached. Zhi Ting was busy managing people to tidy up the mansion, while Qi Yang and Lu Qipei gathered together to discuss the New Year’s gifting list. The latter was a lot less interesting, so the child naturally followed Zhi Ting.