Marrying the Crown Prince

Back in Fengyi Palace, Zhou Zhou quickly read through the letter Cheng Tingxue had sent.

The letter was short; it expressed gratitude and mentioned that she had found a new life.

Of course, Cheng Tingxue didn't bring the letter in herself; it was sent along with Qingrong's account book.

Li Ziyan noticed the change in Zhou Zhou's expression and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

If he wasn't mistaken, it must have been a letter from her shop, so... had something happened?

Zhou Zhou folded the letter. "It was something I did when I had nothing else to do, just to have some fun."

Seeing that she didn't want to talk about it, Li Ziyan didn't press further.

After all, even the closest relationships require appropriate space and boundaries.

Sometimes, excessive dependence can easily lead to stress and conflict.

Therefore, Li Ziyan respected Zhou Zhou's wishes; since she didn't want to talk about it, he didn't press her further.

After Zhou Zhou cleaned up the letter, his expression returned to normal.

At the same time, she also remembered that when Li Ziyan came to find her before, it seemed that he wanted to discuss something with her.

Therefore, Zhou Zhou brought up the topic, "Does His Majesty have something to discuss with me?"

"I am prepared to lead the army in person." Li Ziyan's voice was as usual, but his innate nobility naturally exuded an aura of incoherent majesty.

His eyes were deep as he quietly looked at Zhou Zhou.

Zhou Zhou's brow twitched slightly. "A personal expedition by the emperor is no trivial matter. Has His Majesty thought this through?"

"Yes, I mentioned it in court today, and most of the ministers were against it." Li Ziyan sighed softly.

“Your Majesty, please don’t say that,” Zhou Zhou was amused by his appearance. “I didn’t say whether it was good or bad.”

Li Ziyan snorted, "Although you didn't say it explicitly, I know you don't want me to personally lead the army."

"But Zhouzhou, there are some things I have to do myself."

In the end, he still brought up this point.

Zhou Zhou sighed softly, "Yes, I know."

She knew why Li Ziyan wanted to go in person—Li Zixi was there.

That was his younger sister, the most esteemed princess of the Chen Kingdom.

Before his death, the late emperor instructed Li Ziyan to treat Li Zixi well.

In fact, after this incident, Zhou Zhou felt that Emperor Chenze wanted Li Ziyan to spare Su and Cao's lives out of consideration for Li Zixi.

However, thinking of the soldiers and civilians who died on the frontier, Emperor Chenze simply couldn't bring himself to say these words.

Therefore, in the end, Emperor Chenze could only ask Li Ziyan to treat Li Zixi well.

In short, both morally and logically, Li Ziyan had no choice but to make this trip.

However, on the battlefield, swords have no eyes, and Li Ziyan was just an ordinary, weak scholar, making him extremely dangerous.

Therefore, Zhou Zhou simply couldn't bring himself to say those words supporting his personal command of the expedition.

A gentle breeze rustled the green leaves outside the window, causing the pages of the notebook on the table to turn.

Seeing this, Zhou Zhou reached out and closed the notebook, turning it to cover it upside down.

Li Ziyan watched the person in front of him quietly.

Zhou Zhou's movements were very light, and he didn't show much change in expression while doing these things.

But he still knew about the other person's melancholy and frustration.

Thinking of this, Li Ziyan sighed softly, and then slowly stood up.

A shadow fell over him, and Zhou Zhou looked up at him.

Li Ziyan reached out and rubbed her head, sat down beside her, and put his arms around her.

Zhou Zhou twitched his nose, sensing a faint scent of pine needles lingering on his clothes.

Spikegrass has a rich pine aroma, and if you taste it carefully, you can also smell a sweet flavor.

His embrace was warm and soft.

As Zhou Zhou thought this, he turned his head, and the two people's eyes met in the air, as if time had stood still.

A gentle breeze blew, swirling Li Ziyan's hair and landing on Zhou Zhou's face.

Zhou Zhou felt a little itchy, so she moved her body.

So Li Ziyan released her, but not completely; instead, he sat beside her, leaning against her.

The two of them leaned against each other silently, without exchanging any words, but they both knew what the other felt.

At this moment, the tranquility of life is so captivating that it is mesmerizing.

The court officials' opposition to what Li Ziyan wanted to do was useless, so the matter of the emperor personally leading the expedition was still decided.

Of course, the most basic reason why the court officials could accept the emperor's personal command of the expedition was that he and the empress had a son.

Although this child is young and his temperament is hard to discern, he has such a wise father and a capable mother, so he can't be too bad, right?

In short, with an heir, even if Li Ziyan makes a mistake, the Chen Kingdom won't experience internal strife.

The only pity is that the emperor is already this old and only has one son. It would be even better if he had more children.

Of course, the court officials had their own ideas about having an heir, but Li Ziyan had just finished his three-year mourning period and they hadn't even had a chance to discuss the selection of a consort before he was about to personally lead an expedition.

Speaking of this imperial expedition, Li Ziyan had already made preparations beforehand, so on the third day after the imperial decree for the expedition was issued, the army and supplies were ready to set off.

On the day of her departure, Zhou Zhou wore a long black robe embroidered with a phoenix dancing in the sky pattern in gold and silver thread, which shimmered in the sunlight.

She personally tidied Li Ziyan's clothes.

Li Ziyan looked down at Zhou Zhou, who was resolute and had a determined expression, and her heart softened instantly.

Zhou Zhou looked up at him, her eyes sparkling.

She began by saying, "May Your Majesty achieve great success on this journey and return in triumph."

Li Ziyan laughed heartily, stretched out his hand, and pulled the person into his arms.

"Wait for me!" he said.

Li Ziyan's eyes were filled with confidence and determination, burning like fire, making Zhou Zhou's heart skip a beat.

She finally smiled and said, "Okay."

It was almost time, so Li Ziyan mounted his horse and pulled on the reins.

The horse shook its head impatiently.

He sat atop his powerful horse, looking down at Zhou Zhou and the ministers who had come to see him off.

A gust of wind blew by, rolling up his sleeves.

Li Ziyan took a deep breath and solemnly said, "I entrust my rear to the Empress."

His voice was powerful and resonant, striking everyone's hearts like a war drum.

Zhou Zhou understood what he meant.

She immediately knelt on the ground and bowed deeply, saying, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do my utmost to fulfill my mission."

As she knelt, all the court officials present followed suit, saying, "Your Majesty, we will do our utmost to assist you."

Li Ziyan nodded slightly, then brandished his riding whip, "Giddy up—"

The army followed closely behind, the sound of horses' hooves rising and dust billowing around them.

Zhou Zhou stood there, watching the figure gradually disappear into the distance, her eyes filled with longing and prayer.

Soon, the army disappeared from sight. Zhou Zhou turned his gaze back to the ministers around him and said, "Let's go."

I haven't finished dealing with today's official business yet.

Zhou Zhou's expression was resolute; there was no trace of the dejection he had just shown.