The Cloud Feather of the Red Chamber: A Marriage Arranged with Gong Yuanzheng at the Start

Gong Yuanzheng looked at Lin Qingyue's expression, then carefully put the letter away and set it aside.

"Yue'er, are you worried that your cousin will get the old emperor to force Yu'er and your cousin into marriage?"

Lin Qingyue shook her head. With the Lin family rejecting the marriage twice, Jia Yuanchun still dared to whisper such words in her ear; it wasn't about forming a marriage alliance, but rather about making an enemy.

Her expression was somewhat solemn. "In my dream, Jia Yuanchun entered the harem of the next emperor, not the old emperor."

"Moreover, she was already in her twenties at that time and was directly granted the title of Virtuous Consort, unlike now, where she is just a concubine without even a title."

Gong Yuanzheng keenly noticed Lin Qingyue's choice of words; she referred to the next emperor, not the crown prince.

Could it be that in Yue'er's dream, the Crown Prince did not become emperor?

Gong Yuanzheng felt a chill run down his spine. Now, the Gong family and the Lin family were tightly bound to the Crown Prince. If something happened to the Crown Prince, their two families would definitely suffer a terrible fate.

He stared intently at Lin Qingyue, his face solemn. "Yue'er, in your dream, who is the next emperor?"

Lin Qingyue shook her head and smiled bitterly, "I don't know either."

Originally, she thought that by seeing which prince Jia Yuanchun was given as a palace maid, she could know who the next emperor would be.

Now that Jia Yuanchun has entered the old emperor's harem, she has no way of guessing who the crown prince's biggest rival is.

She was too arrogant, relying too much on her memories from her past life.

Gong Yuanzheng knew that Lin Qingyue was telling the truth and could also see the unease in her heart.

He reached out and took Lin Qingyue's hand, gently comforting her, "It's alright, Yue'er."

"Your precognitive dream has already helped us a lot. Now that Consort Zhen's faction has been destroyed, the Crown Prince's position in the court is secure."

"Leave the rest to us. If the Crown Prince still loses under these circumstances, it only proves that he is utterly useless."

“At that time, our palace will move the Lin family together. This old dusty valley is no longer a place to stay. We will find another place with beautiful mountains and clear waters to live in.”

Lin Qingyue's initially anxious heart calmed down under Gong Yuanzheng's reassurance.

Seeing her smile return, Gong Yuanzheng felt relieved and took her hand to stand up.

"Yue'er, let's go find your brother first."

Gong Shangjiao also received a secret letter from Lin Ruhai and the capital. Looking at the contents of the letter, his expression became solemn.

Hearing the footsteps outside the door, one light and the other slightly heavy, he immediately guessed who it was.

Gong Shangjiao calmly put away the secret letter.

Soon, Gong Yuanzheng and Lin Qingyue appeared at the door of the study.

"elder brother!"

Gong Shangjiao smiled and asked, "Is there something you need from me at this hour?"

Gong Yuanzheng held Lin Qingyue's hand and talked about Lin Qingyue's precognitive dream as they walked around the ink pond toward Gong Shangjiao.

Seeing Gong Yuanzheng's actions, Gong Shangjiao's smile deepened.

His younger brother rarely came to the study and quietly walked around the inkwell.

And he always brought his younger brother and sister-in-law with him.

After hearing Gong Yuanzheng's words, Gong Shangjiao's smile remained unchanged. "You can rest assured about that. The Crown Prince and I have already prepared a solution."

He casually held up the secret letter in his hand, "The Crown Prince and I have already discussed a plan."

Gong Yuanzheng smiled with relief, "Then Yue'er and I can rest assured."

Gong Shangjiao suddenly said, "Yuanzheng, I just remembered that I still have some insights about the Three Styles of Mirror Flower that I haven't told you yet. Why don't I take advantage of my free time now and explain them to you directly?"

Gong Yuanzheng was somewhat surprised. His brother had given him a booklet that was written in great detail. Why was he saying this?

Lin Qingyue released her hand from Gong Yuanzheng's. "Brother, Yuanzheng, I don't understand martial arts either. I'll go back to the side hall first."

Gong Shangjiao nodded, "Take care, sister-in-law."

Once outside the study, Lin Qingyue's faint smile vanished, replaced by worry. Why had Gong Shangjiao deliberately sent her away? What else was in the secret letter? Was it about court secrets, or had something happened to the Lin family?

As soon as Lin Qingyue's figure disappeared, the smile on Gong Shangjiao's face slowly faded.

Gong Yuanzheng frowned. "Brother, what happened?"

Gong Shangjiao didn't say anything, but simply threw the secret letter in his hand to Gong Yuanzheng.

The moment Gong Yuanzheng saw the contents of the secret letter, his expression changed instantly, and his breathing became somewhat rapid.

"The Lin family was attacked? My mother-in-law was poisoned again? My father-in-law was injured too? Elder Yue is dead! Brother! Wasn't Wufeng supposed to be breaking into the prison? Why is he in Yangzhou?"

Gong Shangjiao's expression turned cold. "We were all wrong. We thought Beixu went north to break him out of prison, but we didn't expect him to go directly to Yangzhou."

Wanqi'ai was at least one of the Four Demons, yet Wufeng simply gave up on him.

Dianzhu seemed completely unafraid, even though the imperial court knew that Wufeng was colluding with the Zhen family.

They originally thought that Wu Feng had known about the relationship between the palace and the Lin family, which was why he went to assassinate Lin Ruhai.

"The palace gates have indeed sided with the Crown Prince."

Bei Xu's words revealed that Wu Feng was unaware of this relationship; he came to assassinate Lin Ruhai simply because Lin Ruhai was the Crown Prince's man.

"The Cold-Clad Guest is on his way to the palace gate. Bei Xu is seriously injured and his whereabouts are unknown. Lord Lin's injuries are not serious, and Young Master Yue has controlled Madam Lin's poison."

"The Crown Prince's intention is for us to kill Han Yi Ke on the spot, and then split into two groups, one going to Wu Feng's headquarters and the other to the capital."

Gong Yuanzheng sneered, reaching for the small conch shell at his waist. "Brother, rest assured, if the Cold-Clad Guest dares to come, he will surely not return!"

A cold glint flashed in Gong Shangjiao's eyes. The man in cold clothes—this person had been etched in his heart for ten years.

For ten years, he had longed to take revenge on his enemies, and now the opportunity he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

When Xue Gongzi and Qingyu arrived at the Shang Palace, they saw Qi Yan'an standing at the door with a cold expression.

Young Master Xue paused, his grip on Qingyu tightening slightly.

The thirteenth prince's expression suggested that something terrible had happened.

Qingyu, oblivious to everything, happily greeted Qi Yan'an, "Brother Yan'an, I've brought Brother Xiaoxue to find Second Sister!"

Qi Yan'an's expression softened slightly, and he smiled at the two of them, "Let's go in together."

Young Master Xue naturally wouldn't refuse, and carrying Qingyu, he followed Qi Yan'an into the Shang Palace.

Inside the weapon-forging room, Gong Zishang frowned as she looked at the blueprints in her hand, while Young Master Hua was hammering away at the blacksmith.

Upon seeing Young Master Xue, Gong Zishang was somewhat surprised, "Gong Ziyu passed the trial?"

Young Master Xue shook his head. "No, Young Master Yu is ill and needs to rest for a few days."

Gong Zishang, with an "I knew it" expression, joked with Young Master Xue.

"That's good. I'll give you a few days off so you can spend some time with Qingyu."

Young Master Xue couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

It has to be said that Gong Zishang spoke his mind. Hearing that Gong Ziyu would need to rest for several days, he felt a great sense of relief.

Qi Yan'an, however, poured cold water on their hopes, saying, "I'm afraid Young Master Xue won't be able to accompany Qingyu."

He waved the letter in his hand. "The Cold-Clad Guest is coming to the palace gate."

Gong Zishang and Xue Gongzi's expressions changed instantly.

Gong Zishang walked a few steps to Qi Yan'an's side, took the letter from his hand, and examined it carefully.

Xue Gongzi stood right behind Gong Zishang, and with his eyesight, he could see the contents of the letter clearly.

Seeing Qingyu looking curiously toward Gong Zishang, Xue Gongzi picked him up and walked toward Daiyu.

Qingyu has already begun her studies and might be able to understand some of the words.

Daiyu looked at Xue Gongzi with curiosity, "Little Xue brother, who is Han Yi Ke?"

After thinking for a moment, Xue Gongzi said to Daiyu, "He is a bad person, but don't worry, Yu'er, we won't let bad people hurt you."

Daiyu nodded thoughtfully, feeling that things weren't so simple, but she was just a child and couldn't do anything right now. Maybe she should ask her master again tonight?

Gong Zishang's expression turned grim after reading the letter. She turned to Qi Yan'an and asked, "What are you planning to do next?"

Qi Yan'an didn't hide anything from Gong Zishang, "My plan is to go out of the valley to meet the enemy, but I still need to discuss this with Shang Jiao."

Gong Zishang nodded, then turned and called out to Young Master Hua, "Little Hua, stop forging! Go to the Snow Palace immediately and call Xue Chongzi down. We'll be waiting for you at the Horn Palace!"

After saying that, she looked at Young Master Xue and softened her tone, "Little Xue, I'm entrusting Yu'er and Qingyu to you."

When he looked at Qingyu and Daiyu, his tone became even gentler, "Yu'er, Qingyu, you two can play with Brother Xiaoxue!"

After giving instructions to everyone, Gong Zishang grabbed Qi Yan'an and rushed towards the Corner Palace.

Young Master Hua looked even more bewildered, but he still obediently put down the iron rod and hammer in his hand and hurried along the secret passage toward the Snow Palace.

For a moment, only Daiyu and the other two remained in the weapon-refining room.

The stove was still burning, and Qingyu was feeling uncomfortably hot. "Brother Xiaoxue, Second Sister, let's go outside."

Young Master Xue immediately picked up the two children and strode out of the weapon-refining room.

Once outside, Daiyu gently tugged at Xue Gongzi's hair.

Young Master Xue immediately looked at her, "Yu'er, what's wrong?"

Daiyu smiled kindly, "Brother Xiaoxue, what did the letter say?"

The hand holding Daiyu trembled slightly, and Xue Gongzi tried his best to maintain the smile on his face. "Yu'er, I didn't read that letter."

Daiyu's smile remained unchanged, but Xue Gongzi's forehead broke out in sweat. He wanted to avoid Daiyu's gaze, but felt that would make him seem guilty, so he forced himself to meet Daiyu's eyes.

Daiyu stopped smiling and turned away from Xue Gongzi.

"I thought that after spending so much time together, we were like family, but I was just being paranoid."

Young Master Xue: "!!!"

Not long after Gong Zishang and Qi Yan'an arrived at the Corner Palace, they saw Xue Chongzi arrive with Young Master Hua.

Xue Zhongzi remained calm, while Hua Gongzi's face had turned pale.

Good heavens! He only had so much internal energy, and he used up a lot of it on the way to the Snow Palace. He then rushed from the Snow Palace to the Horn Palace without stopping. In his twenty-odd years of life, this was the first time he had traveled in such a hurry!

Gong Zishang didn't waste any words and directly handed the letter in his hand to Xue Zhongzi.

Yukishigeko read through the text quickly, her expression remaining calm as she looked at the crowd.

"What are you going to do?"

Gong Zishang's expression was solemn. "Shang Jiao and His Highness both intend to ambush the Cold-Clothed Guests outside the valley."

Xue Zhongzi nodded, agreeing with him. The Old Dust Valley was inhabited by ordinary people; choosing it as a battlefield would only add more innocent souls to the list.

He casually slipped the letter to the young master, who had almost finished resting, and asked, "When do we set off?"

"The sooner the better, let's set off tonight!"

Xue Zhongzi nodded after receiving the reply and looked at Gong Yuanzheng, "Where is Xiao Xue? I need to talk to him about some things."

Before Gong Yuanzheng could answer, Gong Zishang said directly, "They should still be in the Shang Palace."

Xue Chongzi nodded and turned to head towards the Shang Palace.

Young Master Hua, who was standing to the side, had just finished reading the letter. His face was full of shock. He quickly took a few steps closer to Qi Yan'an and asked, "My father, is my father alright?"

Qi Yan'an glanced at him indifferently, "It wasn't written in the letter, so it means nothing's wrong."

Young Master Hua breathed a long sigh of relief; it was good that his father was alright.

Thinking of Elder Yue's passing, she couldn't help but feel sad and worried for Young Master Yue. How heartbroken Young Master Yue must have been to watch his adoptive father die right before his eyes.

Gong Zishang didn't give him much time to be sentimental and gave him a direct order.

"Young Master Hua, bring all the new weapons and hidden weapons that have been forged in the Shang Palace warehouse during this period."

"Yuanzheng, you lead the doctors from the clinic to immediately coat these weapons with poison."

"You shall depart precisely at 7:00 PM tonight!"

Young Master Hua frowned. "If we take all the weapons and hidden weapons, what will you do? And is it really necessary to bring so many to besiege a mere Cold-Clad Swordsman?"

Gong Zishang looked at him and said, "The weapons in the palace gates, secret passages, and sentry posts have all been replaced with new ones. We can continue to refine them tonight to defend against foreign enemies."

"Killing a Cold-Clad Swordsman is easy enough for us, but what about attacking Wufeng's headquarters?"

Young Master Hua's expression changed, and he was about to speak when Gong Yuanzheng grabbed his collar. "Stop talking nonsense and get back to work!"

He needed to set aside time to say goodbye to Yue'er; he couldn't waste it here!

Looking at the dinner that had been delivered, Lin Qingyue seemed lost in thought.

Having been at the palace for so long, this was the first time Gong Yuanzheng hadn't dined with her.

What happened at the palace gate? Or rather, what did Wu Feng do?

Before she could finish thinking, Young Master Xue brought Daiyu and Qingyu back.

Young Master Xue's expression was strange. He didn't even greet Lin Qingyue before putting down the two children and running away as fast as he could.

Daiyu looked sullen, and to be honest, it was the first time Lin Qingyue had ever seen Daiyu so angry.

What exactly did Young Master Xue do to make Daiyu so angry?

"Yu'er, tell your sister what happened between you and Brother Xiaoxue?"

Daiyu remained silent, sulking. Qingyu raised his hand, about to speak, but upon meeting Daiyu's angry gaze, he silently withdrew his hand.

Lin Qingyue raised an eyebrow, deciding that if she didn't want to talk about it, she would ask Young Master Xue tomorrow.

As dusk approached, Lin Qingyue had already changed Daiyu and Qingyu into their undergarments and was about to coax them to sleep when she saw Gong Yuanzheng stride into the side hall.

He was holding a flowerpot in his hands, and he handed the vase to Lin Qingyue.

"Yue'er, this is a night-blooming cereus I cultivated for you. I originally planned to give it to you after it bloomed, but now I'm afraid there won't be enough time..."

Lin Qingyue's expression changed, and she stepped forward to grab Gong Yuanzheng's hand, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

"What do you mean by that? What do you mean there's not enough time? What's wrong with you?"

Gong Yuanzheng also realized the ambiguity in his words and immediately grasped Lin Qingyue's hand in return, saying, "I didn't explain it clearly."

"This epiphyllum will bloom in a day or two. My brother and I are going out tonight. We'll be back after we defeat Wufeng."

Lin Qingyue's expression softened somewhat, but her worries did not lessen.

Gong Yuanzheng has just passed the trial, but he has not yet fully mastered the martial arts in the back mountain.

But Lin Qingyue also knew that Gong Shangjiao and the others must have their own plans for such a big event, and what she had to do was not to hold them back.

When are you departing?

"We set off at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM)."

"So fast!" Lin Qingyue exclaimed in surprise.

Gong Yuanzheng nodded. The reason for setting off early was to lay an ambush first.

The two had only exchanged a few words when Jin Fu urged them, "Young Master Zheng, it's time to set off."

Gong Yuanzheng was reluctant, but he knew he couldn't delay any longer.

Reaching out, Gong Yuanzheng pulled Lin Qingyue into a tight embrace, burying his face in her neck.

"Yue'er, wait for me to come back!"

After saying this, Gong Yuanzheng left the side hall without looking back.

Without hesitation, Lin Qingyue picked up the cloak and wrapped it around herself. As she went out, she instructed Qiulan, "You stay here and watch over the Second Miss and the Young Master!"

When Lin Qingyue arrived at the palace gate, the guards were loading weapons onto the carriage. Most of them had already been loaded, with only a few remaining.

Gong Zishang, Qi Yan'an, and Xue Gongzi stood at the palace gate, while Gong Yuanzheng, Gong Shangjiao, Xue Zhongzi, and Hua Gongzi rode their horses to a stop in front of the carriage.

Once the weapons are moved, they should set off.

Looking at Gong Yuanzheng, Lin Qingyue couldn't help but run a few steps forward.

Gong Yuanzheng was also shocked to see Lin Qingyue.

The cloak was thick, but through the gaps, Gong Yuanzheng still noticed that Lin Qingyue was only wearing an undergarment underneath.

Black underwear, the same style as his.

He immediately rode his horse to Lin Qingyue's side, saying, "It's windy at night, and you're dressed too lightly. Don't catch a cold. Go back quickly."

Lin Qingyue's gaze swept over Gong Shangjiao, Xue Zhongzi, and Hua Gongzi not far away. At this distance, their hearing must be sharp enough to hear everything clearly.

Lin Qingyue mustered her courage and said, "Be careful and come back safely."

"I...I'll wait for you to come back..."

The last two words were barely audible, but Gong Yuanzheng could clearly see the shape of her lips.

Unable to contain his joy, Gong Yuanzheng bent down and lifted Lin Qingyue up in his arms, kissing her lips deeply amidst her gasp.