Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved
Chapter 172 Two more

Chapter 172: Chapter 172 Two more

Siyan Mountain was located in the northeast direction of Zheng Capital and formed by a range of five continuous peaks; these peaks undulated like a wild goose spreading its wings in flight, from which the name of Siyan Mountain was derived.

The mountain’s charm was enhanced by the lush trees covering its slopes and the surrounding Siyan Lake, creating a scenic environment. Even in the harsh heat of summer, the scene retained a timeless and elegant beauty.

Rows of pleasure boats lined up from the royal gardens’ dock, filling the entire pier. The impressive parade, led by the Crown Prince’s Nine Dragons Embracing the Top painted boat, followed by the Zong Sheng Aristocratic Family, the Shiping Aristocratic Clan, the Hejian Aristocratic Family, and several other prominent clans, was for an informal event, therefore, the order was not too strict.

The Fourth Prince, Zheng Haoyuan’s painted boat was moored separately at the side, not following the orderly procession at the pier. He boarded from the other side of the pier. Many aristocratic families also followed this precedent, leading to an eclectic mix of scattered boats filling the widest expanse of Siyan Lake in addition to the neat lineup at the dock.

Zong Yunqian, who brought only his two servants, had called on the Crown Prince aboard his boat earlier, then made his way to his own boat, which was only a few steps away, due to the proximity.

"Princely Heir, look, that’s Miss Nanmen," said Gu Dao, the servant behind him, prompting his master to have a look at the crowd approaching from afar.

Zong Yunqian obligingly glanced over and saw a large crowd, with Nanmen Yuyan standing tall and slender in the middle. Dressed in a simple dusk-colored gown without complicated patterns, she wore a cape made of Sea Pearls on her shoulders. The fresh and striking piece was complemented by the slightly larger Sea Pearls in her hair, silently emphasizing the status and intent of the day.

"Princely Heir, look, those are people from the Zhang Family of Hejian, and over there, from the Fu Feng, Ma Family..." Zong Yunqian turned around and boarded the boat without listening any further, despite Gu Dao’s eagerness to point them out.

Xi Feng, who had adeptly made tea for his master, looked at Gu Dao and noticed his dejected posture. He knew that the Eldest Madam had given Gu Dao another scolding.

Xi Feng handed over the ice scoop he was holding. There were so many ladies from prominent families that the Princely Heir was discouraged from taking notice of, yet they expected him to pay attention to Miss Nanmen, a candidate for Crown Princess Consort. Did they really intend for their Princely Heir to compete with the Crown Prince for her?

Gu Dao got anxious; he merely wanted to subtly remind the Princely Heir that Miss Nanmen, a year younger than him, was about to be betrothed. How could he not be anxious, for he was acting in the Princely Heir’s best interest.

Xi Feng rolled his eyes at Gu Dao, thinking how grand his ideas were.

Zong Yunqian, who usually spent more time at Qiandao Temple, was not very familiar with the other scions of aristocratic families, and his status as a disciple of Mage Huo Yi further discouraged those scions from casually approaching him.

Bored to death, Zong Yunqian gazed at the dense collection of painted boats on the lake—so much for enjoying the lake, he might as well just look at the boats. He tossed aside his fan, lay down on the edge of his boat, and closed his eyes to sleep.

...

Wen Zan, accompanied by Shen Houmu and Mu Qingfeng, as well as two others, took a small painted boat and followed behind Zheng Haoyuan’s extravagantly adorned boat, which was more flamboyant-looking than Zheng Congyuan’s.

Mu Qingfeng glanced at the Imperial Forest Guards stationed every thirty meters along both shores. On the surface, everything looked peaceful and harmonious, but Mu Qingfeng could also see the tight security, indicative of the meticulous organization behind this unofficial boat parade, orchestrated by the Crown Prince.

Thus, if he wanted to shine at the imperial court, he had much to learn.

Wen Zan, for a change from his usual carefree demeanor, couldn’t wait to explain the rules of today’s poetry competition as soon as he boarded the ship. The Fourth Prince had repeatedly urged them to give it their all.

"My esteemed brothers, the focus today is on the poetry competition. I have inquired, and the poetry competition is divided into three stages, which means writing three poems. The first one is to be written on the pleasure boat, the second one inside the Listening Maple Pavilion on Lake Heart Island, and the third one on the Wanshi Bridge. The Fourth Prince’s intention is that each of you should write at least one poem, and naturally, the more the better," said Wen Zan. As he wasn’t informed about these matters, that’s about all the advice he could give.

"Don’t worry, Brother Wen, we will certainly do our best," said Lin Haosi with quiet confidence, since after all, he had participated in numerous examinations of varying sizes.

However, Mu Qingfeng was not so optimistic. To his knowledge, the Aristocratic Gentry Clans placed great emphasis on the cultivation of their offspring and had developed their own systematic teaching methods. Over the years, although they kept a low profile externally, anyone with insight could see that despite the appearance of staying away from politics and enjoying themselves on their own turf, there are countless connections between the many factions within the court and these families outside the capital; many of these factions’ financial backers are, after all, the Aristocratic Families themselves.

...

"Miss, look at the ice and pastries the Crown Prince especially sent over," said Xin Qu, quietly shaking the pastries in front of her mistress and whispering with a teasing tone.

"Put it down, this is getting out of hand," said Nanmen Yuyan with her cheeks still flushed. She made a move to hit Xin Qu playfully, but feared making too much noise and being laughed at by her sisters.

Compared to the Zong Sheng Aristocratic Family, which only had Zong Yunqian with two servants, the procession from the Shiping Aristocratic Clan’s pleasure boat was much grander. Although the Eldest Scion of the Shiping Aristocratic Clan only had one legitimate daughter, Ximen Yuyan, in the primary branch, several of her uncles had given birth to five or six daughters. Though they varied in appearance and character, they were, after all, ladies of the Shiping Aristocratic Clan, educated to be nobility; they couldn’t simply be married off to any random young man in their northwest territories.

Therefore, seizing this opportunity, Eldest Madam Ximen bit the bullet and brought all the eligible Ximen ladies to the capital, determined to find suitable matches among the sons of other prominent families.

So inside the Ximen family’s painted boat, it was lively with a flock of young ladies, and with a candidate for the Crown Princess Consort almost confirmed, this particular painted boat had already attracted a lot of attention.

As the leading painted boat started to move, the rest of the boats on the lake began to drift slowly. Ximen Yuyan gazed into the distance. Past the Zong Sheng family’s boat, she could vaguely see the leading Nine Dragons boat. Just thinking about the meeting with the Crown Prince, she lowered her head and felt her face warm up again.

On her way here, Ximen Yuyan had done her homework thoroughly. The more she learned about the current situation of Nanzheng State and the Crown Prince’s achievements in governing, the more curious she was about Zheng Congyuan. She knew almost by heart every detail of his accomplishments, no matter how big or small.

Under his hands, Nanzheng State, like a tree on the verge of withering, had regained vitality, sprouting new branches, with a power that turned the tide and saved Nanzheng State from its withered state.

Ximen Yuyan could hardly imagine that the Crown Prince, who was not much older than herself, could hold up the entire realm of Nanzheng State.

And she was soon to stand beside this man.