The princess regretted it.

Mu Zixuan waited for no reply from Zhong Chuzhou at home, growing increasingly frustrated and losing interest in anything. Bored, he sat in the martial arts training grounds, his ebony bow in hand, loading it, aiming, stringing it, releasing it, firing arrow after arrow at the bull's eye, as if to vent all the frustration in his heart.

Ah Song watched the young master's dull expression from the side, full of doubts, but he didn't know what he was worried about. Since the young master didn't say anything, he didn't dare to ask rashly. The only thing he could do was to follow the young master quietly. There was no other way. The lady had ordered that the young master be kept a close eye on for the next few days to prevent him from causing trouble.

"Alas!" A sigh escaped Mu Zixuan, who had just shot an arrow. Asong wondered in his mind, was this the forty-third or forty-fourth time the young master had sighed today? He lowered his head and pondered. Sigh, there had been so many times, he simply couldn't remember. Could it be that his memory was failing him? He was still young!

He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even notice Mu Zixuan approaching him. Mu Zixuan walked over listlessly, habitually raising the ebony bow in his hand and handing it to Asong. For a long moment, Asong didn't take it. He bent down and tilted his head to look at Asong. "What are you thinking about?" he asked softly.

Ah Song was debating whether to see a doctor to check his memory when he was startled awake by the question. As soon as he regained consciousness, he was nearly terrified by the magnified face before him. He took a few steps back, his eyes wide open, and it took all his sanity to control himself from throwing a punch. He thought to himself: What a close call! A disaster was avoided! This is the young master. If I hit the young master, it would be disastrous; it would be more than just a family punishment.

Mu Zixuan hadn't expected Asong to be so frightened. He immediately stood up straight and looked at Asong with disdain. "What kind of courage do you have? What are you daydreaming about? Come, put this bow away for me." After saying that, he threw the bow to Asong. Asong quickly reached out to take it and followed closely behind Mu Zixuan who had already turned and walked away.

Mu Zixuan hadn't walked far from the training grounds when he sighed heavily again. Ah Song sighed behind him, too. Mu Zixuan turned to Ah Song and asked, "Why are you sighing?" "Master, I feel like my brain is failing me. I can't even count how many times you've sighed today," Ah Song said with a bitter face. But just as he finished speaking, he was hit on the head with a chestnut. He cried out in pain and quickly raised his hand to protect his forehead.

"Damn Song, are you making fun of me, the young master? Are you too thick-skinned?" Mu Zixuan bit his back teeth and said angrily.

Ah Song quickly smiled and said, "I wouldn't dare! But Master, you haven't gone out these past few days and have stayed at home. I don't know what's wrong with you, Master?"

Mu Zixuan rolled his eyes at him and said, "What do you know? I haven't figured it out myself yet, Master."

"Yes, yes, but since you can't figure it out, why don't you go and ask the Prime Minister for help?" Asong asked tentatively.

"Grandfather has been extremely busy lately. It would be inappropriate for me to bother him at this time. Wouldn't that be too ignorant of me?" Mu Zixuan sighed again.

Ah Song sensibly shut up after hearing this. If he were to continue persuading him to go to the Prime Minister, wouldn't that make him naive as well? The young master could be naive, but he couldn't be naive.

The master and servant continued walking in silence. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting patches of light onto the ground. Mu Zixuan's heart was torn. He knew exactly what his feelings were for Jin'an, and he knew his father's primary reason for wanting him to marry her was to protect her life. But he didn't think this was what Jin'an's sister wanted, and certainly not what he wanted. He had always treated Jin'an like a younger sister. There was no sexual desire between men and women. He didn't want to compromise and marry Jin'an, only to be unable to bring her happiness. That would only harm Jin'an.

Along the way, Mu Zixuan was lost in thought, unconsciously destroying the flowers, plants, and trees along the road. Asong followed cautiously behind him, no longer speaking easily.

As they walked, Mu Zixuan suddenly stopped, looked up at the sky, and sighed deeply, his eyes revealing a trace of confusion. Asong also stopped, quietly waiting for the young master's next move. After a long time, Mu Zixuan seemed to have made up his mind, turned to Asong and said, "Let's go to the study." Asong quickly responded, "Yes, young master."

The master and servant hurried to their grandfather's study, but they were not allowed to go in. As soon as they arrived outside the study, they were stopped by the steward from the grandfather's courtyard who suddenly appeared and said that the prime minister was busy at the moment and asked them to come back later.

The two men had no choice but to turn and leave. In the study, Prime Minister Mu was discussing with several ministers how to properly preserve the prepared grain and fodder, and who to recommend to escort it to the northern border. Minister Lin spoke up, "In my humble opinion, the person to escort the grain and fodder should be someone with military talent. Judging by the several near-accidents we've had these past few days, this journey is destined to be unsettled."

Mu Xiang's face was grave. After receiving Jin An's warning, he discussed this possibility with Minister Lin. Several accidents had nearly occurred during the process of collecting and storing grain. Whether these accidents were man-made or natural, everyone knew. However, the other party had handled them cleanly, leaving no loopholes. This also made them more cautious and more thorough in their arrangements. Perhaps because the other party found it difficult to strike, there had been no further trouble in the past two days. However, they did not dare to let their guard down, so they paid even greater attention to the transportation of grain and fodder.

"Minister Lin is absolutely right. The escorts must be carefully selected." Mu Xiang nodded slightly. "While there are many talented generals, it's not easy to ensure they are both loyal and reliable, resourceful, and able to respond to various emergencies." Another minister pondered for a moment and said, "Prime Minister, I think there's someone I can consider."

Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Mu asked softly, "Oh? Who is it?"

"General Du, the General of the Cavalry, may be able to take on this position." As soon as the minister finished speaking, others began to think about the feasibility of this proposal.

Mu Xiang narrowed his eyes slightly, stroked his beard, and said, "General Du is indeed brave and resourceful, and loyal to the court. But he is now in charge of the Military Affairs Camp. If he is transferred to escort grain and fodder, what will become of his original responsibilities?"

Everyone fell into deep thought again, and then continued to discuss various possible candidates, but they still couldn't reach a consensus.