Peach Blossom.

Tao Ye stood there awkwardly. She felt that it was difficult for her to lie to Chen Ji, but she also didn't dare to tell him what she had overheard.

"If you don't want to say it, forget it." Chen Ji smiled again, his attitude was a bit conceited: "You don't say it, maybe to protect me? After all... some things, once known, will bring trouble to you!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the tone of the conversation suddenly changed. Tao Ye's nervous mood disappeared without a trace. She couldn't help laughing and stuck out her tongue at Chen Ji again.

After a moment, Tao Ye put down the scissors, tied Chen Ji's hair back with the crown again, and smiled slightly.

Chen Ji knew that his hair had been cut, so he hurriedly stood in front of Tao Ye's dressing table and looked at himself in the mirror. Not only were the two small centipede scars covered up, but his face also looked younger and more handsome with the new hairstyle.

He couldn't help but exclaimed: "You have such a skillful hand!"

"Of course. I worked part-time as an apprentice in a barber shop when I was in college. This is called side bangs..." Tao Ye saw that the hairstyle was better than expected, and she was a little too proud of herself and accidentally said a few words that people couldn't understand.

After realizing that he had said something wrong, Tao Ye quickly shut up and lowered his head in silence.

Chen Ji smiled and moved closer to Tao Ye, sniffing the faint fragrance on her cheek, half joking and half serious: "It seems that I have to investigate carefully, what is your origin?"

Tao Ye was very resistant to such a close face-to-face distance, so she quickly took two steps back, turned around and walked to the window, staring out the window in a daze.

Chen Ji followed and stood beside Tao Ye, becoming serious: "The reason why King Yongchang made you the music director is probably because he was afraid of your magic power, so he used this method to tie you down. And I have the Chen family army behind me, so he must be on guard against me. In this way, we are also the same kind of people, why don't we stay away from right and wrong and live an ordinary life together?"

Tao Ye looked at the river not far away and the small boats passing by, and smiled bitterly: "You know very well that I already have someone in my heart."

"If you know, can't you fight for it? If you open your heart and get along with me well, who knows if you won't change your mind?"

Tao Ye glanced at Chen Ji sideways, his face was filled with confidence.

She was still staring at the river outside the window and the several small boats on the river. The men and women on the boats seemed to be salvaging something from the river. Suddenly, a woman accidentally fell into the river. A man quickly followed and jumped down to rescue the woman.

Tao Ye suddenly remembered what Wang Jing had said when she was pretending to be Man Tang Jiao: "Remember when we were not married and you fell into the Qinhuai River, I asked you to change your clothes, and you were like this, covering yourself so that only your eyes were exposed..."

That day, it seemed that Tao Ye had special feelings for Wang Jing for the first time, even though Wang Jing only saw Mantang Jiao at that time.

Unconsciously, she talked about that moment: "He said that before they got married, Mantangjiao also fell into the water... just like the girl just now, they were on the boat together..."

When saying these two sentences, Tao Ye pointed at the ships going farther and farther away outside the window, and it was unclear whether it was envy or jealousy that was revealed in her eyes.

Chen Ji looked disdainful after hearing this: "Did he tell you who rescued Mantang Jiao from the Qinhuai River?"

Tao Ye was stunned for a moment. She didn't ask because she took it for granted that the person who saved Mantangjiao must be Wang Jing.

But Chen Ji's question seemed to have another meaning.

"It can't be you, right?" Tao Ye asked in disbelief.

Chen Ji smiled calmly, "You guessed it right, it was me. Wang Jing didn't even know how to swim, yet he dared to take Mantangjiao on a boat trip. If I hadn't been there, she would have drowned in the water. How could she have had the chance to marry, have a daughter, and live happily together?"

According to normal thinking logic, perhaps at this time we should ask Chen Ji: Does Mantangjiao feel grateful? Does Wang Jing want to thank her?

But for some reason, Tao Ye asked, "Why are you there? Are you going there specifically to follow her on a date?"

Chen Ji slowly turned his head and stared at Tao Ye, his eyes wide open, his teeth bared, and a look of great contempt on his face.

But Tao Ye continued to ask without knowing what was good for her: "Or... you planned for Mantangjiao to fall into the water? Do you want to be a hero and save the beauty, and then ask her to repay you with her life?"

"Hey, hey, hey? In your mind, am I so dirty?" Chen Ji asked unhappily with squinting eyebrows.

Tao Ye couldn't help laughing, and had to force herself to use normal logic to understand the matter: "Okay, okay. Then you saved Mantangjiao's life, she should be grateful to you, right?"

"I am grateful, of course..." Chen Ji turned his head back to the window and said listlessly, "But she said that in the world of love, there is always a first come, first served, and she has already met Wang Jing first. I can only repay my kindness in my next life."

Tao Ye glanced at Chen Ji secretly. It turned out that when he recalled the past related to Mantangjiao, he also felt a similar sense of loss as Wang Jing.

"Next life? What a high-sounding word! Even if there is an afterlife, even if she meets me first, I'm afraid she will still fall in love with Wang Jing." Chen Ji's smile was a little bitter, as if he was mocking himself.

Tao Ye looked at Chen Ji and suddenly had a guess: "You often say that Wang Jing just regarded me as a substitute for his first wife. Today I want to ask you, do you also regard me as a substitute for Man Tang Jiao?"

"Absolutely not." Chen Ji's tone was very certain, as if he was swearing to the sky: "When I met you, I hadn't seen her for several years, and my impression of her was already vague. Besides, you are much more beautiful than her, how can you be her substitute?"

Tao Ye couldn't help laughing again: "I didn't know you judge people by their appearance?"

"It's bullshit to say that men in this world don't care about women's looks. However, although appearance is pleasing to the eye, to enter a person's heart, it's naturally not just appearance that matters." Chen Ji said, feeling emotional, and couldn't help but hold Tao Ye's hand: "I really like you, the one in front of me..."

Tao Ye retracted her hand out of habit, but her heart was pounding.

"It's too difficult for you to choose me on your own. I even thought... if there was an imperial decree forcing you to marry me, you would have no choice. Over time, you would eventually fall in love with me." Chen Ji stared at Tao Ye with such a firm look.

Tao Ye didn't know what to say, she just felt confused.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and then a little maid shouted: "General Chen, the king wants you to come downstairs, he wants to go back to the inn."

Chen Ji had no choice but to bid farewell to Tao Ye.

That night, Tao Ye had a dream. In the dream, she was boating and fishing on the Qinhuai River with Wang Jing. While they were chatting and playing, Tao Ye was grabbed by the fishing rod by a big fish on the other end of the hook, and both Tao Ye and the fishing rod fell into the water.

She shouted "Help" and soon saw Chen Ji appear nearby. He gently hugged her with one hand and swam to the shore with the other hand.

Wang Jing also quickly rowed over, took off his outer clothes and put them on Tao Ye.

On the shore, Chen Ji stared at Tao Ye and asked with a smile: "I saved your life, how are you going to thank me?"

"Young master will definitely not look down upon the gratitude of gold and silk. But I...I..." Tao Ye lowered her head, stammering for a long time without being able to say anything.

Chen Ji smiled mischievously and asked, "I want you to repay me with your body, how about that?"

Before Tao Ye could reply, Wang Jingxian stepped in front of her and said, "Mr. Chen, I am willing to sacrifice my life to repay you. But if you want Ah Jiao, I absolutely cannot do that."

Chen Ji snorted and said with disdain: "Who wants to kill you? You don't even know how to swim, and you dare to take Jiaojiao on a boat. Now you have the nerve to tell me "Absolutely not"? "

Tao Ye was a little confused, and she spoke again without knowing why: "Mr. Chen, in the world of love, there is always a first come, first served. I have already met the second brother first, and I can't commit myself to a second person in this life. I am afraid that I can only repay your kindness in my next life."

"Next life?" Chen Ji sneered and sighed helplessly: "If there is an afterlife, if you can meet me first, what if you still like him?"

"If in the next life, I can meet Mr. Chen first, no matter who my heart belongs to, I will repay him with my life." Tao Ye still lowered her head, but her tone was as solemn as a vow.

"Does that sound like I'm forcing you to do something?" Chen Ji's smile gradually turned cold. He lifted Tao Ye's chin with one finger, looking at her unfriendlyly: "The next life is too uncertain, what should I do in this life?"

"Take your dirty hands away!" Wang Jing could no longer hold his temper and reached out to push away Chen Ji's finger.

The two of them were tearing at each other and somehow fell into the water together.

"Second brother!" Tao Ye screamed and woke up from her dream.

Looking around, she was still in Meixiangxie, her own room. She glanced at the window, where she and Chen Ji had stood and talked that day.

Two days later, the enthronement ceremony was held as scheduled in Jiankang Palace.

The ministers who were invited to the palace met in twos and threes at the palace gate. They congratulated each other and everyone's face was filled with joy, but some people's joy was not natural.

Chen Ji came on horseback, and had just dismounted at the palace gate and taken a few steps forward when he was suddenly grabbed by a big hand.

Chen Ji turned his head and saw that it was Chen Chong, the Minister of Five Armies.

Chen Chong's face was not very good. As he walked, he whispered, "The general Shang Yun who escorted Prince Yongchang to the capital yesterday suddenly came to me and said that he was following Madam Han's order to transfer half of my soldiers to his team. I asked why. He said it was because I was too murderous and it was not appropriate for me to lead too many soldiers. What do you think of this as a reason?"

Chen Ji sneered, with some sarcasm, and responded: "I told you not to kill so many soldiers, but you insisted on listening to Shen Hui. What can I do?"

"Prince Yongchang ascended the throne according to the will of Emperor Xiaozong. After all, Boss Shen is the Empress of Emperor Xiaozong, so I can't just ignore her."

"Mrs. Han is the mistress now, and you have to listen. Just accept the punishment!" Chen Ji said it easily, as if it had nothing to do with him.

Chen Chong was a little angry and couldn't help but scold: "What's your attitude? First you executed your brother's soldiers, and then you took my soldiers away. This is clearly weakening the military power of our Chen family. Now you are the head of the Chen family, and the biggest victim is actually you! Don't you know?"

After witnessing the close friendship between Prince Yongchang and Shen Hui, and hearing what Chen Chong said, Chen Ji was already aware of the conspiracy.

However, he still smiled faintly: "I know, of course I know. But, I have something on my mind that is more important than this."

"What could be more important than losing military power?" Chen Chong asked.

Chen Ji ignored Chen Chong and just walked forward.

On an auspicious occasion, the emperor and his ministers gathered in the Taiji Hall, and Si Yuan officially ascended the throne as emperor. Needless to say, there was a lot of formalities involved.

After the ceremony, all the ministers shouted "Long live the emperor".

Then the chief official of the palace announced the decree: honoring Meng as the empress dowager, posthumously conferring the title of Queen Shen of Yongchang as empress, conferring the title of Bai and Han as ladies, posthumously conferring the title of King of Anding on the eldest son, conferring the title of Princess Si Rong on the eldest daughter, and establishing Si Xiu as crown prince.

Chen Ji stood among the ministers and had noticed that Tao Ye, as the music director of the Imperial Music Bureau, had also been summoned to the palace to play music. He was sitting in the band on one side outside the hall, playing the pipa.

He had been listening to the music silently, waiting for every step of the ceremony, waiting for the new emperor to reward his meritorious officials.

Unexpectedly, when Si Yuan was judging the merits and giving out rewards, he called Chen Ji first: "General Chen is the descendant of a meritorious official. He has repeatedly made outstanding contributions from Yongchang to Jiankang. Now he is appointed General of Cavalry and inherits his father's title as Duke of Qiao County."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Chen Ji kowtowed hurriedly, then looked up at Si Yuan and said, "Your Majesty is so happy today. I dare to borrow your joy and beg you to grant me the marriage..."

Before Chen Ji could finish, Si Yuan interrupted him and said, "General Chen is in his prime, and it would be perfect if he had a family. I want to marry my eldest daughter Si Rong to you, what do you think?"