He knew that Yuan Gang had a certain sentimentality, which was the imprint left by the once fiery collective life on Yuan Gang, and it was the life experience that Yuan Gang was proud of. Although this sentimentality sometimes seemed outdated, he did not think it was a bad thing and believed it was precious and the most valuable thing about Yuan Gang. He was willing to help Yuan Gang maintain that sentimentality and did not want it to change slowly because of following him.
Having done too many wrong things, one gradually becomes indifferent to them. He did not want to see Yuan Gang turn into another him, so he protected him.
In short, he had no intention of surrendering to the Shang siblings, and it was not so easy for the Shang siblings to win his heart.
Shang Shuqing hesitated to say that what he was doing was wrong, but she was an extremely sensitive and keen person and realized that there was a deeper meaning in Niu You Dao's words.
She hesitated, but Niu You Dao had a somewhat coercive tone and asked again, "Does the princess think I did something wrong?"
In the face of him, Shang Shuqing finally compromised, "Master Dao did nothing wrong, he did it for the good of us siblings."
Niu You Dao was a little speechless. He had hoped that Shang Shuqing would be more decisive, and that everyone would be even, and that he and Yuan Gang could leave immediately.
He had a feeling that they had been trapped by this woman. They were left behind by this woman when they were at the Nanshan Temple. It was as if they were steel that had been honed hundreds of times, but had become soft in her hands, unable to be hard and unable to be soft.
Women are more troublesome than men. Niu You Dao muttered in his heart, and shrugged, "Since that's the case, is there any need to ask again?"
Shang Shuqing sighed inwardly and changed her tone and wording, "Feng Ruonan already knows that she has been drugged. How will my brother get along with her in the future?"
Niu You Dao laughed when he heard this and picked a flower off his ear and sniffed it, "The princess is worrying too much. As long as the main direction is not wrong, as for how to get along with his wife, it is the prince's own business, whether it is a blessing or a curse, the prince will enjoy it or suffer it himself. There are no perfect things in the world, and there are always some setbacks. Don't you agree?" He did not really think there was anything wrong with Shang Chaozong being beaten by his wife. It wasn't him who was getting beaten.
Shang Shuqing was speechless. He had caused the problem in the first place and was shameless enough to not care. She realized that he was only responsible for getting things done, not taking responsibility for them. She couldn't help but cry and laugh, "Master Dao, if this matter were to be made public, how could my brother face others?"
Niu You Dao asked back, "Will we publicize this matter outside?"
Shang Shuqing shook her head, "Of course not!"
Niu You Dao spread his hands, "If the Phoenix family knows about it, will they publicize it? Feng Ruonan is very strong-willed. You can rest assured that she will only think of revenge, and will not publicize it. Even if it is leaked out, it is just a private matter between husband and wife. They can do whatever they want. It's none of our business. Even if the prince drugs her a few more times, what can anyone do? The Emperor himself can't even interfere. Do you really need to worry about the prince's reputation?"
Shang Shuqing sighed lightly. She found herself quite boring. What she thought was a serious matter was not a big deal in the eyes of others. There was no need to talk about it. He had done it, and that was that. It didn't matter to him.
Speaking of food, having breakfast together was inevitable. Shang Chaozong and Shang Shuqing, Blue Ruoting, Niu You Dao, and Yuan Gang basically ate together.
When they sat down together, Niu You Dao couldn't help teasing Shang Chaozong, who was sitting at the head of the table, "Why is your face green and blue and swollen?"
Shang Chaozong was supposed to go to the Phoenix Mansion with Feng Ruonan, but he was beaten and was embarrassed to go out and see people, so he made an excuse that he was feeling unwell. The Phoenix family was very understanding and sent word back, telling him to rest well.
Shang Chaozong rolled his eyes, "Master Dao, why ask when you know the answer?"
Niu You Dao laughed, "Why does it feel like someone is missing? Isn't the queen eating with us?"
Except for Yuan Gang, who had no expression on his face, and Shang Chaozong, who had a worried look, the others couldn't help but laugh.
They were eating when a guard came in and asked Blue Ruoting to go out. After Blue Ruoting came back and sat down, he said to Niu You Dao, "Master Dao, that Yuan Fang borrowed a set of clothes from the guard."
"Clothes?" Niu You Dao, who was biting into a pastry, looked up. "What clothes did he borrow?"
Blue Ruoting said, "He said his clothes were torn when he was beaten by Brother Yuan. He doesn't have any suitable replacements, so he asked to borrow a set to wear."
Niu You Dao nodded and said, "Let him borrow a set of clothes."
Blue Ruoting smiled and didn't say anything more. He just mentioned it to let Niu You Dao know what was going on, so that the scheming Xiong Yao wouldn't get any ideas.
"Prince, why did you leave me alone while eating?"
Feng Ruonan's voice suddenly appeared outside the door, and she appeared in the doorway with a murderous look in her eyes!
Several people in the hall stood up one after another, and Shang Shuqing came over to give a salute, "Sister-in-law!"
Blue Ruoting and others also gave salutes, "Princess!"
Feng Ruonan walked up to Shang Chaozong and stood face to face with him. She was noticeably taller than him, and her hands gradually clenched into fists, giving people the feeling that she might hit Shang Chaozong in the face at any moment.
Shang Chaozong was on high alert and tried to maintain his composure. "Let's eat together!"
"We were just talking. I'm done now," Feng Ruonan looked around and said, "Can I take a walk around, my prince?"
"Whatever you want!" Shang Chaozong replied.
Feng Ruonan didn't hesitate and led Wenli to inspect all the rooms in the house. Afterwards, they left.
Not long after, another guard came to report that the princess was causing trouble everywhere and seemed to be looking for something...
That night, Feng Ruonan sent people to urge Shang Chaozong to go rest in the new room, but he made excuses and refused to spend the night there...
At the border of Guangyi County, a few miles away from the city, Peng Yulan wept, waving her hand to bid farewell to her daughter.
Feng Lingbo stood silently, watching the departing horses and people, his face showing some desolation in this turbulent world.
Feng Ruonan looked back at her parents and the familiar city from time to time, feeling sad in her heart.
No matter whether she wanted to marry Shang Chaozong or not, this time leaving made her feel different. She finally realized that she was married!
The marriage was just a means to an end, and both the man and woman knew that there were more important things to do. The love between children and parents had to give way to more important matters. After the big wedding, there were not many rituals. They only rested in the county for a day, and then Shang Chaozong took his men and his newly-wed wife and said goodbye.
They traveled all the way from the capital, and the entourage became even larger, with five hundred iron riders, Feng Ruonan's personal guard.
Under Feng Lingbo's command, there were 100,000 elite soldiers in Guangyi County, including 5,000 iron riders. They assigned 500 to Feng Ruonan, and another 4,000 infantrymen were also loaned to Feng Ruonan. Although not many soldiers were lent to Shang Chaozong, it was significant. Among the troops were Feng Lingbo's daughter and son-in-law, as well as Feng Lingbo's soldiers. Who would dare to attack them recklessly?
Including Shang Chaozong's personal guard, there were nearly a thousand iron riders, but the four thousand infantrymen were not transferred from here. If they traveled with the infantry, the speed would be too slow. Feng Ruonan's second son, Feng Ruojie, who was in charge of the western territory of Guangyi County, had received the military order. When Shang Chaozong and his party passed by, Feng Ruojie would directly transfer 4,000 troops to Feng Ruonan to take to Qingshan County. Later, they would send another 4,000 troops to Feng Ruojie.
Feng Lingbo had already communicated with Qingshan County and asked them to let them pass, saying that they had no ill intentions and were escorting their daughter and son-in-law. Whether they would withdraw after the troops arrived in Canglu County was another matter. Faced with this excuse, Qingshan County had no choice. Feng Lingbo dared to challenge the court, and their strength was not something Qingshan County could resist.
The court sent someone to issue an edict, changing their decision and not allowing Shang Chaozong to go to Canglu County, and ordered him to return to the capital, saying that there was another appointment for him.
The tiger had already left its cage, and the dragon was already in the sea. It was not easy to put them back in the cage.
If the messenger took a detour, it would take a lot of time, and the edict disappeared mysteriously after entering Guangyi County. The message would not reach Shang Chaozong's hands in a short time, and even if it did, he would not admit it. This was naturally done by Feng Lingbo. The more anxious the court was, the more convinced Feng Lingbo was that Crow Will of 100,000 was reliable!
Feng Lingbo took it more seriously and, after hearing the news, Sky Jade Gang sent more mages to support them again.
Feng Ruonan had only 500 guards with her, but there were as many as thirty mages, and Bai Yao had also been transferred from the prefectural government to lead a group of fellow disciples to escort them.
The newlyweds did not bring any of the gifts and baggage accumulated from the wedding. They left first, and Feng Lingbo would send someone to escort the gifts and other things later.
After leaving the city, Feng Ruonan adjusted her mood and said to Wenli and Wenfang who were with her, "Go and find that big beard for me. When you find him, don't make a sound!"