Feng Yuran stood up, his purple robe with gold collars s.h.i.+mmered. He spoke with the two eunuchs beside him with a smile and turned to walk away. The two eunuchs walked away in a different direction. If one looked carefully, the would notice that he was heading in the direction where Mo Xuemin went earlier.

This was the first time Mo Xuemin was seeing the elegant and gentle King Chu up close.

His warm dark eyes looked as if they were smiling, making one feel as if they were bathed in the spring wind. He looked very friendly. Mo Xuemin keenly sensed that King Chu treated her differently from the others. His eyes would sweep past the flower racks and the pots of flowers. Even though it did not look as if he was doing it intentionally, his gaze would stop on her for a few more moments.

This discovery had pleased Mo Xuemin greatly. She was excited and her heart beat quickly. She sat there and tried her best to show off how gentle and delicate she was. King Chu was indeed interested in her. That person had not lied to her. This knowledge excited her so much that she could not sit still after Mo Xuetong left. She felt that King Chu, Feng Yuxuan's eyes seemed as if he had many things that he wanted to say to her.

You Yuecheng had already been long abandoned by her. Could the Ming Duke family be n.o.bler than King Chu?

The good fortunes had come to her too quickly, and was such a huge piece of luck. Mo Xuemin could not even be bothered to fight with Mo Xuetong. She hurriedly brought Mo Jin with her to the pavilion. King Chu had only brought with him a eunuch and no one else. How could Mo Xuemin give up such a rare opportunity!

She had always been very pleased with her appearance. She had been in the capital for more than a year, and she was the most beautiful among the other ladies.

It was a pity that her status was lowly. She was not only a concubine's daughter. Even if she was the main daughter, she would just be the main daughter of a fifth-grade officer. The difference between their status was like heaven and earth. How would she get an opportunity to meet the princes? There was no way for her to get to know them even if she wanted to. Among the other n.o.blemen, only You Yuecheng, who was handsome and n.o.ble, seemed to be interested in her. As such, Mo Xuemin had always followed him around.

Feng Yuxuan could not be compared to the Ming Duke. Sima Lingyun was not even worthy of helping King Chu carry his shoes.

"Miss, it's over there. Are we really going over there?" Mo Jin grew nervous when they reached a door opening. She turned around and tugged on Mo Xuemin uneasily.

"What are you afraid of? Let's go!" Mo Xuemin frowned unhappily.

Mo Jin shuddered in fear when she saw Mo Xuemin looking at her coldly. She did not dare to say anything else. She lowered her head and took a few hurried steps forward, avoiding her mistress' cold glare.

They pa.s.sed through the door. Not far away, under an osmanthus tree, was a youth wearing blue dragon-print robes. It was evident that he had drunk too much. He covered his face with his sleeve, looking as if he was about to fall asleep. It looked like it was King Chu, Feng Yuxuan. The little eunuch had disappeared, leaving behind the sleepy King Chu!

Mo Xuetong's heart beat sped up. The opportunity was right before her.

"Isn't that your eldest sister? Third Miss Mo, does First Miss Mo have someone she likes? That's great. We can ask the Empress to bestow marriage upon First Miss Mo." The ladies brought Mo Xuetong through the door to see Mo Xuemin and a man wearing luxurious robes. The impolite jibing began immediately.

What right did a concubine's daughter have to ask the Empress to bestow marriage?

Mo Xuemin had always been proud. She always thought that she would definitely marry well since she was beautiful and talented. She only sucked up to the ladies from powerful families and could not be bothered with ladies with family backgrounds like hers. The ladies present today all had fathers who were mid-ranking officers like Mo Huawen. They did not like Mo Xuemin usually and would not let go of an opportunity to get her into trouble.

"The Mo Family has such good teachings. Their eldest daughter is having a private dalliance with someone. It is fortunate that this is a Flower Appreciation Banquet organized by the Empress. If they were out there, they would have to..."

"A concubine's daughter is a concubine's daughter. She's a country b.u.mpkin. Does she really think the Empress will bestow marriage upon a concubine's daughter?" This statement made by a lady on the left gained the approval of everyone present. Even though the Empress said that she would bestow marriage on those who liked each other, this was on the premise that they were both children from the main branch of their families. The Flower Appreciation Banquet was for children of main branches and Mo Xuemin's appearance was already against the rules. Was she going to bring it up in the open and have the Empress break the rules as well?

This was a slap to the Empress' face!

With this thought, the ladies started to engage in schadenfreude. They mocked her, looked at her in disdain, spoke sharply and meanly...

If this matter blew up, it would embarra.s.s the Mo Family. No matter First Miss Mo or Third Miss Mo, the reputations of the Mo daughters would be ruined in the future. The ladies looked at Third Miss Mo's young but beautiful face and thought about First Miss Mo's attractive features and burned with jealousy. They would not give up an opportunity to cast stones at them.

"That's not for sure. I heard that First Miss Mo's Auntie will become the family matriarch soon. Then, she would become a main daughter."

"When will that be? I heard that First Miss Mo can only come out of grieving in more than a year. She would be about 17 by then and would be an old spinister then. She can't get married only then, could she?"

"That doesn't matter as long as the other person is willing to wait. If that person drags it out, then it would fit First Miss Mo's plan. The two of them are both willing, so it wouldn't matter for them to wait a year or two. Look at her..."

Mo Xuetong had been brought there by the other ladies. While she listened to their mocking jibes, she had been focused on Mo Xuemin. She looked at the two people in the pavilion with deep dark eyes.

It was no wonder others were suspicious. The way they were seating was really weird. Mo Xuemin was seated near the railings. Her body was slightly tilted and she was leaning on a pillar. Her entire body was leaning against the railing. The person was standing above her, bowing slightly as if he wanted to see her clearly. One of his hands was placed behind his back while another was in front of him.

The angle looks extremely intimate.

As the footsteps grew closer, the intimate poses seemed to grow different.

The sarcastic and insulting ladies who were chattering sensed that something was wrong. A few of them covered their mouths in shock. The man was wearing a dragon-embroidered robe. It was not a robe anyone had the right to wear. The princes at the banquet today were the main focuses of the ladies present. Everyone who had powerful families all knew that the Flower Appreciation Banquet this time was different from the ones in the past.

They heard that there would be a dinner banquet later. However, not all ladies would attend. The Empress would give out invites later and only the ladies whom the princes liked would be asked to stay. It was said that the Flower Appreciation Banquet was to find wives and concubines for the princes. The ladies had all focused their attention on the three princes because of this matter.

This clothing, this straight and broad back. It was King Chu, Feng Yuxuan!

Mo Xuemin had hooked up with King Chu?

The jealousy in their eyes became even more vicious. They all wanted to hurt Mo Xuemin. She was only a concubine's daughter, and she had hooked up with King Chu. This was a slap to the faces of all the main daughters.

"Ladies, come and look at which lady this family is from. How did she faint over here?" Feng Yuxuan turned and stood up straight when he heard the voices. He walked towards the ladies with a warm smile. When they saw that it was King Chu, Mo Xuetong was pushed to the back by them.

"Greetings, King Chu."

"Greetings, King Chu."

"Greetings, King Chu!"...

Everyone curtsied to King Chu. Some of the nimble ladies had already taken a few steps forward. They saw that Mo Xuemin had fainted there and looked shocked as if they had just discovered her. "Isn't this First Miss Mo, the concubine's daughter? What is she doing here?" The emphasis of their sentence was on Mo Xuemin being the concubine's daughter.

The girl seemed to realize she had said something wrong after that and held her handkerchief to her lips, looking shy.

This was Mo Xuemin's weak spot. Mo Xuemin, who was pretending to be unconscious almost gritted her teeth in anger. However, she could not move and even Mo Jin was occupied. This was to create an opportunity for her and Feng Yuxuan to be alone. If this were to be known, even if she could not be able to be a main concubine, she could still be a side concubine. With her smarts, so what if there main concubines in the King's manor as long as she could get in there! As such, she had to restrain herself now. The person who had spoken was the Second Miss of the Yan Family. She heard that clearly...

"Did you see wrongly, how could the concubine's daughter of a fifth-grade officer be here?"

"It can't be wrong. Why don't you come and take a look?" The few of them were trying their best to put Mo Xuemin down.

Mo Xuemin was interested in King Chu!

Mo Xuetong was aware of the situation, and she could not help but laugh coldly to herself.

They were all good actresses, and so was she.

She pushed the crowd aside and hurried forward. She did not say anything to Feng Yuxuan who was standing by the side and hurried past him. She squatted down and tugged on Mo Xuemin's hand worriedly, saying, "Eldest sister, Eldest sister, what's wrong with you?" She sounded concerned and her voice trembled.

"It is really your family's First Miss. How could a concubine's daughter come here..."

"The Mo Family's moral teaching is too...This is too much. This is the Flower Appreciation Banquet and all those who have come are children from the main branch..."

"And she had even bothered King Chu. That's too much..."

The ladies were here to add insult to injury. Even though the situation was different, they would not let go of any opportunity. This was especially when two of them saw King Chu watched Mo Xuetong pa.s.s in a stunned manner. He even moved to let her pa.s.s and looked at her with a gentle smile. They lost all their rational when they saw that.

"That's right. What kind of breeding does the Mo Family have? How despicable. They indeed cannot show their faces in proper places."

"What kind of morals can they have. First Miss Mo hangs out with young n.o.blemen all the time. She doesn't even know how to avoid wagging tongues. I heard that Third Miss Mo's reputation isn't that good either. She has been rude and boorish when she just arrived in the capital. No matter how you look at it, the breeding of the Mo ladies is really a failure."

"They are from the sticks and have never seen anything outside. They're already pretty decent all considering."

The things they are saying are more and more ridiculous. They are totally making it out as if the Mo daughters were completely useless.

"Ladies, please mind your words. The Mo Family has not offended you ladies. Eldest Sister fainted here, and I still don't know how she is right now. I am not in the mood to argue with you all. Ladies, please give way and don't crowd around her so she can breathe." Mo Xuetong looked up. She appeared fragile, and her eyes sparkled. She looked ethereal and as if she was suffering but did not wish to fight because she was being considerate of the big picture.

She glanced at Feng Yuxuan, who was standing by the side and staring at her. Even though she did not know why he seemed shocked and delighted, she knew that he was the only one who could help her right now. Mo Xuemin had only pretended to faint here because of King Chu...

Mo Xuemin was a person who liked power and would disregard her family for it.

She only wanted to become linked to Feng Yuxuan but had never considered that if the rumors were to say that she had been alone with Feng Yuxuan, then the reputation of the Mo daughters would be ruined by her actions today! Even her father might be implicated!

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