Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved
Chapter 315 - 312: Second Update

Chapter 315: Chapter 312: Second Update

Chapter 312 Part 2

On the third day early in the morning, Zheng Nianru was urged by Nian Xia and others to get up early. She selected a set of clothes that were not too complicated. Early in the morning, Zheng Haoyuan eagerly arrived at the gates of Prince Duan’s Mansion, and he knew that this time Prince Duan had personally agreed to it.

On that day, Prince Duan, being concerned, had people find Cang Er and gave him repeated and explicit instructions, only then did he let Cang Er go.

Prince Duan had intentionally postponed his morning affairs to inspect the men and horses brought by Zheng Haoyuan. Although he couldn’t explicitly say anything, seeing the considerable number of people, all from the Imperial Forest Guard, he let out a cold snort.

Zheng Haoyuan may have been somewhat reckless, but, towards Zheng Nianru, he was exceptionally kind.

Prince Duan pretended to exit his residence coincidentally and lingered at the gate on purpose. Though Zheng Haoyuan was somewhat afraid of Zheng Boding, he could not overcome the joy in his heart; besides, the man was the father of his cousin, and naturally deserved respect.

Zheng Haoyuan dutifully offered his salutations,

"Imperial Uncle, rest assured, I will ensure my cousin is safely returned," said Zheng Haoyuan obediently. Today he had specially changed into a very neat outfit, appearing both well-behaved and adorable.

"Now that autumn is upon us, the nights are cool, come back earlier, rather than later. And how have you arranged the midday meal?" Prince Duan asked casually, mingling two matters together.

"Imperial Uncle, don’t worry, I have made arrangements with the chef," Zheng Haoyuan said and Cang Er already had the men following the carriage come out, each of them paying their respects to Zheng Boding.

Zheng Boding took a look and recognized them as chefs from the palace, snorted coldly, and then said no more.

Zheng Haoyuan was waiting for Zheng Boding to leave, still bowing deeply.

Seeing this, Zheng Boding wanted to stay and say more, but fearing being overly concerned, he decided to leave first.

Zheng Haoyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Zheng Nianru also came out swiftly; Zheng Haoyuan immediately spotted her figure dressed in honeydew color and couldn’t help but smile brightly. It had been a very long time since he had last seen his cousin.

During the Empress Dowager’s birthday, he had wanted to meet her, but was kept from seeing her due to other matters, and besides, he was afraid his cousin still held a grudge over the incident at the other residence and blamed him for it.

"Cousin—" Zheng Haoyuan was even more attentive as he approached, his gaze fixed on Zheng Nianru. His cousin was the most beautiful presence he could see, the loveliest blossom among all flowers.

"Fu Gong, it’s been several days since I’ve seen you, and you’ve grown taller again," said Zheng Nianru with a touch on Zheng Haoyuan’s head and a smile.

"Responding to the Commandery Princess, our Highness hasn’t actually grown taller these days. It must be because he was standing on his tiptoes and stretching his neck while waiting for the Commandery Princess," Cang Er immediately said.

Zheng Haoyuan turned to look at Cang Er but didn’t get angry; Cang Er was tactful, and his comment made several maids beside Zheng Nianru laugh, lightening the atmosphere considerably.

"Cousin, today I have specially selected the flattest plot of grassland, and the best thing about this grassland is that it has a natural high platform. We can sit on that platform and see everything from a distance," said Zheng Haoyuan as he walked toward the carriage with Zheng Nianru.

Today’s activities had been described in great detail by Zheng Haoyuan, who was completely exhilarated.

But Zheng Haoyuan’s excitement diminished when suddenly three more people appeared in front of the carriage.

Zheng Nianru also frowned upon seeing this and looked at Zheng Haoyuan, but she felt that Zong Yunqian probably wasn’t someone Zheng Haoyuan had invited.

Zheng Haoyuan, holding back his temper, looked at Zong Yunqian obstructing the front of the carriage. To the man who took his cousin away and caused her to leave the Imperial Palace, preventing him from seeing her whenever he wished, how could he feel any fondness?

"Commandery Princess—" Zong Yunqian smiled, seemingly oblivious to the inappropriate timing of his appearance.

Moreover, it was Prince Duan who had personally invited him.

"Heir Zong, you also happened to be going out?" Zheng Haoyuan was not keen on him speaking with his cousin and glanced at Zong Yunqian coldly. If you’re going to leave, then hurry up. Why block their way?

"Fourth Prince, as it happens, this Princely Heir is also headed to Golden Spirit Mountain. I just ran into Prince Duan when going out, and upon hearing that the Fourth Prince and the Commandery Princess were also going to Golden Spirit Mountain, Prince Duan asked this Princely Heir to accompany the Fourth Prince for the sake of having someone to look after them on the way," Zong Yunqian explained.

Prince Duan’s original reason was that the Fourth Prince was young, and Nian Ru had been secluded in the deep palace without ever going out. He was somewhat worried about the two of them going out to play but didn’t want to dampen their spirits, so he arranged this.

"I see," said Zheng Nianru nonchalantly. She didn’t care much, but why was Zong Yunqian coincidentally heading to Golden Spirit Mountain?

"Commandery Princess, our Princely Heir loves mountaineering. These past few days, he has climbed nearly every hill in the city, and today, he finally thought of the Golden Spirit Mountain on the outskirts of the city," Gu Dao immediately stated.

"Then let’s go—" Zheng Nianru nodded. Zheng Haoyuan was displeased; he didn’t want Zong Yunqian to follow them, but thinking that the other party was going there to climb mountains, which might not be on the same path, he reluctantly boarded the carriage without inviting Zong Yunqian.

"Heir Zong, unfortunately, we didn’t prepare a carriage for you," said Zheng Haoyuan after getting on the carriage.

"No trouble, our Zong Sheng Residence has one," Zong Yunqian was not annoyed, as his mansion was close by. Xi Feng quickly brought a carriage, and the procession soon set off.

Golden Spirit Mountain was located in the eastern suburbs of the city. Although it was on the outskirts, the opening of an official road had made it very accessible. In less than a shichen, the carriages slowly reached the foot of Golden Spirit Mountain.

The Golden Spirit Mountain was not as famous as Weixing Mountain, and even one of its slopes was so gentle it barely resembled a peak, but it boasted a spectacle absent from other mountains: at sunrise, the entire body of Golden Spirit Mountain seemed to be daubed with a layer of golden light, tremendously magnificent.

Hence the mountain was named Golden Spirit Mountain.

Several days ago, Zheng Haoyuan had already prepared everything here; the area in front of the sloping ground he had mentioned before was now enclosed with a hedge, and a wooden platform had been readied, with twenty of the Imperial Forest Guards stationed around the gentle slopes.

Zheng Nianru alighted from the carriage at the foot of the mountain, and Zong Yunqian didn’t walk away either, but instead observed the thick mass of Golden Spirit Mountain.

"Commandery Princess, the Golden Spirit Mountain originally had steep sides on both ends, similar to Weixing Mountain, but it was due to the torrential rain seven or eight years ago that caused a landslide; part of this slope buried hundreds of acres of farmland below the mountain, and the rest slid into the Earth Spirit River, creating such a vast gentle slope," explained Zong Yunqian.

Zheng Haoyuan immediately looked at Cang Er—this was something he didn’t know.

Cang Er: ...

"Heir Zong, now that we have reached the foot of the mountain, the best route to climb is from the south. Since we are heading to the gentle slope, our paths should differ. Princely Heir, please be careful on your way," Cang Er promptly said.

Zheng Haoyuan then withdrew his gaze.

"Heir Zong, take care," Nian Xia and Xing Yu’s thoughts were also solely on the hunt at this moment, but they knew that these things should not be revealed to Heir Zong, so they cleverly played the role of "sending him off" on Zheng Nianru’s behalf.

"Your Highness, what an eye for beauty you have. I suddenly find the scenery atop this gentle slope rather nice. How about we head up there first? Moreover, the scenery on the southern path is all too similar—if we wish to behold unique vistas, we must take a different route. Why don’t I accompany Your Highness and the Princely Heir on this journey following wherever our hearts lead, that is the greatest joy of sightseeing," Zong Yunqian said with a smile.

Zheng Haoyuan really wanted to roll his eyes at him: What a load of nonsense.

"If that’s the case, let’s go—" Zheng Nianru seemed to have noticed something, it was normal for Prince Duan to be concerned about Fu Gong.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Haoyuan glanced at Zong Yunqian, but since his cousin had spoken, he couldn’t say anything else.

Although it was autumn, the forest was still verdant. Along the way, Nian Xia and the others made conversation, and Cang Er occasionally cracked jokes, making the journey quite relaxing.

"Cousin, we’ve arrived—" Zheng Haoyuan completely disregarded Zong Yunqian. Upon reaching the destination, he saw that there were only two chairs placed on the wooden platform, while guards were passing by carrying cooking equipment.

"Are we eating grilled meat today?" Xing Yu was the first to get excited.

Zong Yunqian looked at the wooden platform. Although unaware of their program, he could tell from the circular hedge enclosure that there was definitely some event planned.

Fu Dong was somewhat worried; it wouldn’t be good for Heir Zong to see this program, but she saw that her princess and Fourth Prince did not seem intent on keeping it a secret.

Seeing this, Cang Er discreetly approached.

"Your Highness, everything is ready, and the first batch of prey is being prepared for release," Cang Er whispered, while Lu Hu glanced at him.

Zheng Haoyuan also cast a glance at Cang Er; who would want to play with that idiot.

Cang Er took a step forward and whispered to Zheng Haoyuan.

"Your Highness, do you think Heir Zong would enjoy watching this scene?"

Zheng Haoyuan looked over, what did he mean by that? Suddenly, he seemed to understand, and thoughtfully glanced at Zong Yuanqian.

"Heir Zong, shall we play together?" As Zheng Haoyuan spoke, he looked at Zheng Nianru and saw that she showed no reaction; he then breathed a sigh of relief, hiding his own scheming thoughts.

"Since Your Highness has invited me, I shall respectfully accept," replied Zong Yuanqian, puzzled, but he had no intention of leaving anyway.

"Cousin, everything is ready; shall we start now?"

Zheng Nianru nodded and, with Fu Dong’s support, ascended to the viewing platform, while Zheng Haoyuan asked Cang Er to prepare an extra chair and then sat down next to Zheng Nianru.

From a distance on a vast plain, suddenly dozens of animals appeared, with hares, foxes, and wild boars taking the lead in running. Then, the large doors of the surrounding hedges were opened, and a large iron cage was pushed in. A towering Savage, over two meters tall with dark skin, slowly exited the cage.

Zong Yunqian’s pupils constricted—this...

"Stone—" Xing Yu exclaimed excitedly, evidently not her first time witnessing such a performance.

"Look at Stone—" Xing Yu pulled Nian Xia, who nodded along, and even Xue Liu, though scared, sneaked peeks; only Fu Dong disapproved, finding nothing worth watching in it.

The Savage, seemingly aware he was called Stone, glanced toward the direction of the viewing platform. With a commanding shout from behind, The Savage turned toward the animals on the field, obviously not his first time and knowing exactly how to stir the audience’s excitement.

The Savage rapidly chased after one of the hares.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.