How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

"Ah! Well, this is not a private matter. Even if I don't say it, you will hear it when you enter the Peach Blossom Banquet." Gong Daoqi sighed, and then whispered, "Rumor has it that the Regent and Lord Shen have already secretly tied the knot!"

Xie Chengze: "Ahem... ahem..."

Xie Chengze started coughing violently, and the gauze curtain on his veil began to tremble violently.

No, who the hell made up this rumor?

"Ah?" Zhu Xiaobiao's face was full of disbelief, and he almost suspected that he had lost some memory.

He has been with His Highness for so long, how come he doesn't know about this?

"Where did you hear about it? Is it also a Peach Blossom Banquet?" Zhu Xiaobiao asked.

"Yes, this is what the host of the Peach Blossom Banquet said himself." Gong Daoqi nodded.

Hearing this, Xie Chengze and Shen Yuan looked at each other.

Could it be that the host of this Peach Blossom Banquet has impure motives for holding the Banquet?

Zhu Xiaobiao asked again, "Let's not talk about whether this is true or not. What does this have to do with whether the Regent will attend the Peach Blossom Banquet with Lord Shen?"

"Oh, no, no, no."

Gong Daoqi quickly waved his hands and refused to say anything more. He was not stupid. The woman in peach clothes had such a big reaction just now. She must know the identities of the Regent and Lord Shen. She must be Sheng Yiren, the daughter of the Minister of Revenue.

And this handsome man in white is most likely Minister Shen. The secret between the Prince Regent and Minister Shen is mixed with the political affairs of the court. Even if Gong Daoqi had a hundred courage, he would not dare to explain the reason directly in front of the main person, for fear of being remembered by the other party and ruining his official career.

"If you want to know, you can ask at the Peach Blossom Banquet. They are discussing this matter."

After Gong Daoqi finished speaking, he started chatting with Zhu Xiaobiao about other things.

Xie Chengze slowed down his pace, and when he was a little further away from Gong Daoqi, he tugged at Shen Yuan's sleeve, "What do you think?"

Shen Yuan shook his head. "It's hard to draw conclusions from just a few words."

"But how could such an outrageous rumor about our marriage come out?" Xie Chengze held his chin, very puzzled. "It's more reliable to say that we formed a clique and were plotting a rebellion!"

Shen Yuan couldn't help but glance at him, his deep eyes flashing, "Is it outrageous?"

If Su Qinghe can do it, why can't he?

"It's outrageous!" Without noticing the strange expression of the man beside him, Xie Chengze nodded with a serious look on his face, "I am so clean and self-disciplined, and I have never had any romantic affairs. Who on earth spread this rumor to destroy my reputation?"

"Heh." Shen Yuan chuckled, not taking it seriously. "I don't know who hung up pictures with the words 'roots long' all over his bedroom—hmm!"

His lips were covered by a cold little hand, and Xie Chengze said angrily, "Don't mention this!"

That was all done by Emperor Jian and Eunuch Zhao, what does it have to do with him!

God, he died unjustly, okay? This won’t become a dark history for his whole life, will it?

Shen Yuan raised his hand and grasped his wrist, his lips slightly curled, "So, Your Highness, how does it feel to have a love affair with me?"

"What else can I do? Just like that..." Facing Shen Yuan's playful yet serious expression, Xie Chengze paused and wanted to withdraw his arm, but he was greedy for the warm inner strength slowly coming from the man's palm. In the end, he just turned his head and muttered, "I can't get a wife in the first place, and now it's even worse. It seems that the Snow Jade Cream I gave you will never be used."

"No problem." Under the sleeves that were wide and long enough to cover everything, Shen Yuan gently grasped his thin wrist and said calmly, "At worst, I can give it to Your Highness in the future."

"Tsk, who cares." Xie Chengze said softly. He was the regent and he had no shortage of Snow Jade Cream!

……

The Peach Blossom Banquet was held in the peach forest behind Hanshan Temple. When you first entered, you could see many stone tables and small pavilions for cooling off. Young men and women were temporarily separated. The women were picking flowers and laughing, discussing love affairs and music, chess, calligraphy and painting, while the men were discussing scriptures and strategies, toasting each other, and occasionally some of them would go to the women to recommend themselves. It was a very joyful occasion.

However, the host of the Peach Blossom Banquet did not show up. Zhu Xiaobiao stopped a scholar-looking man and asked, "Brother, do you know where the host of the banquet is? We would like to go and meet him."

"Oh? You came at an untimely time. The host has just gone to the temple to look for the abbot. I'm afraid you'll have to wait a while before he comes." said the man.

"Then let's wait. There's no need to rush." ​​Shen Yuan looked around and found a crowded place. "Let's go over there and take a look at the situation."

Xie Chengze nodded.

Gong Daoqi said goodbye to the five people and went to look for his friends. After Xie Chengze sat down, he heard people at the next table discussing their own affairs.

"You said, is the relationship between the Prince Regent and Minister Shen really like what the host said, that they are already no different from husband and wife?"

Xie Chengze moved his ears and tilted his head to the side to eavesdrop.

What does it mean to be no different from a married couple? What does no different mean? To what extent is no different?

"I think it's very possible." A student spoke up, his mouth full of corn. "You don't know, but when Minister Shen was in danger in Liaozhou, the Regent rushed to rescue him without stopping! Although he had no martial arts skills, he went straight into the bandit's lair with a spear and risked his life to save Minister Shen from danger!"

He sighed with emotion, "Although I despise the love between men and women, if this is not true love, then what is true love!"

Xie Chengze:? Can't it just be pure and passionate brotherly love? You are from Liaozhou?

"Since they have such a good relationship, they will not come to the Peach Blossom Banquet today, right?" another person asked. "The Peach Blossom Banquet is a customary banquet during the Spring Examination. Many important people will be invited to attend the banquet. Maybe we can even have a few words with them!"

If I could be chosen by the Regent, I would be soaring to the sky!

"Hey, don't even think about it! If the Prince Regent really got married to Minister Shen, then I'm afraid the Prince Regent won't be able to come." One of the students shook his head.

"Oh? How do you say this?"

"Haven't you heard? Now that the emperor is seriously ill, the crown prince has been poisoned, and the regent is in power, the first thing he did was to reform the imperial examination system, which is related to official positions. Everyone thinks that the regent is taking the opportunity to place and promote his own people to support him. The next step is probably to ascend the throne!"

"So what does this have to do with whether or not you come to the Peach Blossom Banquet?"

Yes, Xie Chengze also nodded secretly. What does this have to do with whether he comes to the Peach Blossom Banquet or not?

"Oh!" The person who answered, with a face full of regret, "How can you be so stupid! If the regent wants to ascend the throne, he must have three palaces and six courtyards in the future to continue his bloodline to inherit the future throne. And if he wants to get the support of the ministers in the court and the students all over the world, he must avoid suspicion and cannot be with Lord Shen!"

The man made a very clear argument, "After all, how can an emperor and his subjects hang out together? If this is recorded in history books, wouldn't it make people in later generations gossip and criticize at will? It will also bring a bad atmosphere to the people of the world! Besides, the influence of the emperor is much greater than that of the subjects. Anyone with a discerning eye would not want to see their king do such a ridiculous thing!"

Xie Chengze nodded, then shook his head.

Although he agreed that the emperor should be strict with himself, he found it funny when he thought about being misunderstood and abandoned.

"Alas! It's just hard for Lord Shen." The man sighed with mixed feelings, "True love can't resist the temptation of power! Watching the former sweetheart open up a harem, I can only silently serve behind the scenes... It's no longer the same as before, riding a horse alone to go to a dangerous place."

In just a few words, the current regent was portrayed as a heartless man who abandoned his wife as soon as he gained power.

Shen Yuan, who was standing by, listened with great interest and sighed, "Power is so fascinating—"

Xie Chengze: ...

It's enough!