A Farm Girl: Three Acres of Fertile Land Can Be Exchanged for a Country

Long time no see. Shan has grown up a bit more, and her appearance has matured. She's blossomed into a striking young woman with big eyes and a large mouth. While not particularly tall, she's undeniably beautiful with a slender figure. However, her expression is somewhat cold, and there's a hint of resentment hidden in her eyes, as if she's unhappy every day.

Even so, Wutong was still very happy. If there weren't so many people watching, she would have rushed over and hugged her.

She genuinely treated Shan like a younger sister, and Shan genuinely treated her like an older sister. The past cannot be changed, but the future holds promise.

Looking at the mountain, she felt a joy akin to that of a mother seeing her daughter grow up. Then, remembering the poisonous arts the mountain possessed, she quickly checked the girl's hands.

Beneath the honey-colored sleeves, gloved fingertips were faintly visible.

Wutong's heart sank. Her lips, hidden beneath her veil, pursed. Seeing that Duan Fufeng, Li Deming, and the others had already walked into the city gate, she quickly followed.

The two walked at the front, less than half a meter away, and she could clearly hear them talking.

"Your Highness, has your journey been safe and sound?"

"Safety."

"I heard that Phoenix City captured an assassin from the Southern Frontier, and they've already hung his head on the city wall. Are you injured?"

“The people who were arrested were indeed our people, but I wasn’t in the city at the time and I wasn’t injured.”

Li Deming didn't believe him, fearing he was just putting on a brave face and claiming he wasn't injured when he was clearly hurt. He insisted on stepping back two steps to observe whether his walking posture was normal.

Duan Fufeng was used to it and calmly continued on his own path.

By this time, everyone had entered Lingyun Mansion through the special passage. As soon as Wutong saw the scene inside the city, she felt as if she had come home.

The streets were bustling with people, selling everything from candied hawthorns and cosmetics to sesame cakes.

The city's facilities have hardly changed. The place where the rice shop used to be still selling rice, girls happily carrying cloth in and out of the clothing store, vegetable stalls still set up at the street entrance, and a yellow mongrel chasing away geese being sold by others.

What a familiar scene! Wutong recalled the time when she lived here, and suddenly thought of her Zhenwu General's Mansion, wondering if it had been given to someone else or demolished.

Looking up and around, she saw a familiar rooftop, which made her feel a little more at ease. But when she looked down, she met the gaze of someone heading up the mountain.

She forced a smile, just like she had done countless times before. Shan Fei didn't return the smile; instead, she rolled her eyes at her, as if she disliked her, and strode past her, brushing past her shoulder.

Wutong was a little confused and didn't know why.

Didn't Shan recognize her? But even if he didn't, there was no reason to treat her like this.

After thinking for a moment, he felt the problem might lie with this "Amon," so he quickened his pace to catch up with her and whispered in her ear, "Shan, I am..."

"I advise you to stay away from me, otherwise even if the prince comes to plead for you, it won't be of any use."

Shan suddenly raised his hand and said threateningly.

Knowing the power of her hands, Wutong took two steps back, her brows furrowed.

Shan scoffed dismissively.

"Look at you, what do you have besides your face? How dare you stay in the Prince's mansion like this? Tch."

Wutong was very puzzled and wanted to grab her and ask her for an explanation. But by this time, Li Deming and Duan Fufeng had already walked far away, leaving only the two of them behind.

Shan ignored her and quickly followed.

She had no choice but to suppress her doubts for the time being and decide to wait and see.

When the group arrived at the Southern Border King's Palace, Li Deming had already ordered a welcoming banquet to be held in the palace's garden.

Wutong still remembered her first visit to the Prince's Mansion. It was a banquet in the garden, with Abuduo. At that time, she had no status and was not qualified to sit at the table. She stood to the side waiting for Abuduo to reward her with a chicken leg or something.

So many years have passed in the blink of an eye. The garden still has the same flowers, tended to its lush foliage. But the women there have all grown old in the blink of an eye.

This kind of aging is not physical, but spiritual.

Some people say that when you start constantly reminiscing about the past, it means you've prematurely entered old age.

Wutong, a lively person who's never idle, used to scoff at this statement. Now, understanding that mindset, she realizes how true it was.

She's getting old, and she wants to do everything as quickly as possible, otherwise it will be too late.

But precisely because he has experienced so much, he is hesitant and timid in his actions, making him a complex and contradictory individual.

The Southern Border Royal Palace holds too many memories for her; she even remembers the shape of the moon she saw on her first day there.

Wutong was staring blankly at the night sky when she was suddenly nudged. Looking down, she saw Li Deming.

"What are you doing standing here? Go sit next to the prince and persuade him to drink less," Li Deming said in a low voice.

Wutong nodded and walked towards Duan Fufeng's location. Halfway there, however, she felt something was amiss.

Isn't my identity that of a butler? How come I've done everything along the way but never the duties of a butler?

Moreover, if Li Deming didn't want Duan Fufeng to drink, he could simply not have any wine on the table. He handled all the trivial matters in the Prince's mansion, so Duan Fufeng wouldn't do anything to him if he said there was no wine. Why go to all this trouble?

Wutong was a little confused, but Li Deming had already gone off to do other things. She had no choice but to follow his instructions and walk to Duan Fufeng's side. There was no chair there, so she knelt on the cushion and took the jade wine pot in front of Duan Fufeng, saying softly, "Your Highness, drinking is bad for your health, so please drink less."

Duan Fufeng didn't look at her, his expression indifferent as he stared ahead.

Before the soldiers had even taken their seats, they would occasionally pass by him and salute him.

He simply nodded, as if he hadn't listened to a word they said.

Many lanterns hung in the garden, illuminating the area as bright as day. Duan Fufeng's shadow fell right in front of the sycamore tree. She held the wine pot in both hands, looking down at the faint black outline on the ground, feeling that he had reverted to the lonely and aloof King of Southern Xinjiang, with no one able to get close to his heart.

As the night deepened, all the soldiers who had come to the banquet had arrived and taken their seats according to Li Deming's arrangement.

Duan Fufeng's table was the main table, where Li Deming and others sat. Wutong finally got a chair and sat to Duan Fufeng's left, still holding the wine pot in her hand.

"Your Majesty..."

As the banquet began, Li Deming toasted him with a cup of wine. After drinking it, he asked in a low voice, "Did you find what you were looking for on your trip to the Central Plains?"

Duan Fufeng shook his head, a hint of sadness flashing in his beautiful phoenix eyes.

Li Deming said, "I heard that the Imperial Palace once spent a lot of money to entrust the Longxing Escort Agency to transport something to Phoenix City. Do you think that thing might be what we are looking for?"

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