Regent, please maintain your aloof image.

Zhenguogongfu

Su Qianrou brought Qiulan to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, where she saw Liu Xinyue waiting at the entrance.

"Sister Rou".

"Why did you come out to greet me personally?"

"Since I had nothing better to do anyway, I decided to come out and wait."

"Have you been waiting long?"

"No, just a moment, let's go in."

"it is good".

Then, they arrived at the courtyard of the Duke of Zhenguo.

The Duke of Zhenguo and Liu Chengyun had been waiting there for a long time.

"I have met the Duke of Zhenguo."

"Your Highness, this is unacceptable! This is unacceptable!" The Duke of Zhenguo stood up excitedly.

"The Duke of Zhenguo has devoted half his life to Yunyue, fought for many years, and protected the country. He has made great contributions and deserves this respect."

"To my shame, if my son had not been so incompetent as to fail to defend Lanzhou and Liangzhou, the Western Regions would not be using this to humiliate my Yunyue."

"The Duke of Zhenguo need not blame himself; victory and defeat are common occurrences in war."

"It's a pity that I am now old, otherwise I would definitely lead the troops to take back Lanzhou and Liangzhou."

"It's because the grandson is useless and failed to share the grandfather's burdens."

The Duke of Zhenguo looked at Liu Chengjun, his heart filled with mixed feelings.

Liu Xinyue was also feeling bad.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit somber, Su Qianrou spoke up, saying, "Everything is moving in a positive direction now, and everyone should be happy."

“The Princess is right,” the Duke of Zhenguo replied, then looked at Qiulan and said, “Lan’er, I’m entrusting Yun’er’s leg to you.”

"You're too kind, Duke Zhenguo. It's all what I should do."

Then, Qin Yu pushed Liu Chengjun into the inner room.

Qiulan followed her inside.

The others waited outside.

"Please sit down, Your Highness."

"The Duke of Zhenguo requests this."

The Duke of Zhenguo did not stand on ceremony and sat down.

Su Qianrou and Liu Xinyue also sat down.

Seeing that an hour had passed and Liu Chengyun still hadn't come out, the Duke of Zhenguo couldn't help but get anxious and restless. So he stood up and paced back and forth in the room.

Liu Xinyue walked to his side and said, "Grandfather, don't worry, things will be alright," both to comfort the Duke of Zhenguo and to comfort herself.

"An hour has passed and they still haven't come out. Could it be that..."

"No, Grandfather, you must believe in Qiulan. She will definitely be able to cure my elder brother's leg ailment."

"Ok".

"Duke Zhenguo, please sit down and wait a little longer. He should be out soon."

"Please excuse my poor appearance, Your Highness."

"No, I understand the Duke of Zhenguo's feelings."

Then, Liu Xinyue helped the Duke of Zhenguo sit down.

At the same time, Madam Liu was asking her maid, "Has the Regent's Consort not left yet?"

"No, it's still in the Duke's courtyard."

"It's been an hour, what is she doing there?"

"They're probably chatting, since the young master and the second young lady are also there."

"Her wedding to the Regent is in three days, and she still has time to chat here."

"This...this servant does not know."

"Let's go take a look."

"Yes".

Then, the master and servant went outside.

Meanwhile, as the Duke of Zhenguo was extremely anxious, Liu Chengyun came out. Although it was very slow, at least he could walk.

Upon seeing this, the Duke of Zhenguo stood up abruptly, looked at him in disbelief, "Yun'er, you..."

Liu Xinyue exclaimed with delight, "Brother, you can walk now!"

Liu Chengyun walked up to the Duke of Zhenguo and called out, "Grandfather."

"Good, good, it's good that you can walk," the Duke of Zhenguo said, his eyes already brimming with tears.

Liu Xinyue walked to Liu Chengjun's side and called out, "Brother," her voice choked with emotion.

Liu Chengjun patted her head and said, "It's alright."

A simple sentence made Liu Xinyue want to cry.

"Congratulations, Your Highness, the clouds have parted and the moon is shining brightly."

"Thank you, Princess."

Just then, a servant outside the door said, "Duke, the Second Madam requests an audience."

Upon hearing this, the Duke of Zhenguo's expression instantly turned sour. "What is she doing here?"

"They said they wanted to say hello to the Regent's wife."

So, the Duke of Zhenguo looked at Su Qianrou and asked for her opinion.

"Let her in," Su Qianrou said.

"Yes".

A moment later, Madam Liu the Second entered and greeted the Regent's Consort.

"Madam Liu, there's no need for such formalities."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Madam Liu said, glancing furtively at the others.

At this time, Liu Chengjun had already sat back on the plain sedan chair, so he did not notice anything unusual.

"It has been a long time since I last saw Your Highness. How have you been lately?"

"fine".

"That makes sense. Oh, by the way, I haven't congratulated the Princess yet. With the wedding date approaching, I wish the Princess and the Regent a long and happy marriage."

"The Second Madam Xie and the Second Madam Liu".

"Alright, now that you've given your greetings, you can go back now," the Duke of Zhenguo said impatiently.

Although Madam Liu was unwilling, she dared not disobey the Duke of Zhenguo's words, so she replied, "Yes," and then said, "Your Highness, I shall take my leave now."

"Please take care, Madam Liu."

Then, Madam Liu went out.

Then, Su Qianrou said, "Now that the young master's leg has been healed, I have fulfilled my promise. I will go back first..." Before she could finish speaking, she saw the Duke of Zhenguo kneel down in front of her, which really startled her. "What is the Duke of Zhenguo doing? Please get up," she said, reaching out to help him up.

"I am deeply grateful for the Princess's great kindness. Our Zhenguo Duke's Mansion will repay this kindness with the utmost gratitude."

“Duke Zhenguo, there’s no need for this. I’m just fulfilling the promise you made to me about the century-old ginseng. Please rise, I can’t accept such a grand gesture.”

With the help of the crowd, the Duke of Zhenguo finally got up.

"If the Princess ever needs our help in the future, please let us know, and we will do our best to assist her."

Su Qianrou did not refuse and replied, "Okay," then added, "I should go back now, so I won't bother you any longer. Goodbye."

"Xiaoyue, see the princess off."

“I’ll take her. It’s perfect timing. I have something to say to the princess,” Liu Chengyun said.

Without much thought, the Duke of Zhenguo replied, "Alright, then Jun'er, you escort the Princess out."

"Yes".

On the way, Liu Chengjun sat in a plain sedan chair, pushed by Qin Yu, while Su Qianrou walked alongside him.

"I wonder what the Crown Prince wants to say to me."

Do you like the Regent?

I can't say whether I like it or not.

"Are you willing to marry someone you don't like?"

"I have no regrets. If I have to get married, then I'll marry him. At least I'll do it willingly."

"You...are willing."

"Ok".

Liu Chengjun didn't speak, seemingly lost in thought. After a while, he spoke again: "If you don't have a good life in the future, don't wrong yourself. Whatever you want to do, I will help you."

"Don't worry about that, I will never wrong myself."

"That's good," she said, then added, "I won't be there to see you off on your wedding day. I wish you happiness, joy, and a carefree life every day from now on."

"Thank you very much".

Then, neither of them spoke again, and they walked forward in silence.