Chapter 49: The Direction in which the River Flows
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Another half a month passed slowly. Spring came to an end gradually with thin garments replacing layers of heavy garments. Soon, the start of the summer arrived soundlessly without anyone noticing it.

Time flew by.

Chu Yu lay on the bench. The shed frame above her head was covered with vines and climbing plants. The green shade blocked out the sunlight. The hot summer had yet to arrive, but she had already begun to make preparations to relieve the heat in advance.

A low tea table was placed within reach next to the bench. All sorts of delicate desserts were placed on the tea table along with some sweet dessert soup that was freshly cooked. The soup was ever so slightly warm, so it would not be too hot to drink right away or too cool for the body either.

Chu Yu rubbed the area between her brows and heaved a sigh softly. Even though she was in a leisurely and carefree environment, she found that she was incapable of feeling relaxed all the while.

For the past half a month, she would visit the palace almost every other day. The purpose of her visit was to figure out the relationship between the young emperor and Princess Shanyun. On the other hand, she discovered that there was another function to the backcourt used by Princess Shanyin for her collection of male consorts. After the incident with Chen Shenzhi, another minister was cleaned before he was bound and delivered to her carriage.

Chu Yu had no choice but to admit that albeit the sinful and idle Emperor Liu Ziye not being a competent leader, he was rather quick and precise in taking action to send the male consorts over. He was quick, accurate and ruthless in his service when he delivered the goods in a perfect package.

Chen Shenzhi had already become much more obedient now. There was already no need to tie him up these days. He hung out obediently in a spot in the courtyard. In fact, he had even taken the initiative to console the minister Chu Yu brought over later so that the latter could settle down as well.

On the other hand, Chu Yu also discovered the extent of Liu Ziye’s affection for Princess Shanyin over the days. He did not mind showing Chu Yu the remonstrance at all, agreeing and abiding by Chu Yu’s casual suggestions.

Later on, to her astonishment, Chu Yu discovered that Princess Shanyin’s beautiful handwriting was not that different from Liu Ziye’s on an incidental occasion!

If Chu Yu felt like she was holding the key to a precious treasure chest originally, then, the situation now made her feel like she was aware of the contents of this treasure chest. The volume of the treasure chest far surpassed her imagination. As a result, she felt even more at a loss of what to do.

Chu Yu heaved a sigh softly. She felt like she had rarely found any leisure time ever since she was brought into this world. The scheming she had been doing for the past few months was even more complicated than all the examinations she had ever gone through in her past life.

A cheerful, dreamy voice was heard echoing from her side, “Princess, why are you sighing? It’s a beautiful morning with exquisite scenery. Why aren’t you relaxing your state of mind and enjoying the bliss of a leisurely moment?” Another bench was placed about one minute away from the side of Chu Yu’s body. A young man with delicate features and gentle mannerisms was lying on the other bench. His brows and eyes seemed to be exuding a soft glow. His suit that was as white as snow spread out on the bench akin to a cloud. Yet, one would notice that his gaze was as deep as the abyss if one were to look closely.

The young man was Rong Zhi.

His injuries were already healing in time. However, he had yet to reclaim his power from Huan Yuan. On the contrary, he was passing over more and more tasks for Huan Yuan’s responsibility. He did not bother to pay attention to the matters that were passed over as if he was eager to abandon the heavy burden on his shoulders. On the other hand, Huan Yuan was suffocating from the heavy duties dropped upon himself at once. In the midst of the chaos that threw him into confusion, he realized that Rong Zhi had to handle so many trivial matters in the past. On the other hand, Rong Zhi still managed to appear lax despite being burdened under such circumstances. He was simply in awe by Rong Zhi’s capability.

Rong Zhi’s actions puzzled Chu Yu very much. She felt like he was doing this to declare something to her, yet she could not figure out why. Anyhow, being tasked with managing affairs, Huan Yuan would not pose a threat to her temporarily. As a result, she did not comment on anything, but she hoped that the event would develop to benefit her.

Chu Yu tilted her head to the side and darted Rong Zhi a glance after hearing his voice from her side. She touched her sleeve subconsciously. Underneath the sleeve and on her arm, a spring-loaded sleeve arrow that could be easily assembled and dismantled was tied to her hand. She had ordered You Lan to engage a craftsman in secret. This was the personal defense weapon of her choice after communicating with the craftsman. Even though it was forged with ancient techniques, it was also equipped with the design of a modern weapon. Chu Yu had also given suggestions about designing the structure of the valve herself so that the precision of the weapon could be improved. It was finally forged to perfection yesterday before being transferred into her hands.

This was also the reason why she was bold enough to lie side by side with Rong Zhi in such a relaxed manner now.

Naturally, the sleeve arrow was forged not only for her to deal with Rong Zhi, but it would also allow her to exercise self-defense abilities when she encountered danger from now on. She would only need to have that extra element of surprise in her defense to startle the enemy.

No one would have expected that a royal princess like her would conceal an unorthodox hidden arrow in her sleeve.

Rong Zhi was not offended by Chu Yu’s refusal to reply to him and being lost in thought. He sat upright in a relaxed manner and picked up the bowl filled with sweet dessert soup from the low tea table by his side. After taking a small sip gracefully before swallowing slowly, he placed the bowl down before he leaned back in the chair lazily once again.

The green shade of vines concealed the sunlight of the afternoon. This was truly a suitable place for a nap.

Chu Yu took a glance at him with slight envy. The person that was most carefree and at ease over the days was none other than Rong Zhi. His daily official task was none other than consuming his medicine and recuperating. He would speak occasionally to guide Huan Yuan. He even revealed the intention of passing over all his responsibilities completely to Huan Yuan recently. On the other hand, Huan Yuan’s hard work and effort also reflected Rong Zhi’s leisure that made one’s blood boil.

In fact, Rong Zhi was already half-shutting his eyes comfortably now. She hesitated for a while and could not refrain herself from speaking at last, “I’ve been thinking about a question constantly over the past few days. It troubles me very much.” The reason why she had yet to make a decision about her direction from this point onward was largely due to this question being unsolved all this time.

Rong Zhi’s brows arched in an exceedingly exquisite manner for a moment. “What question is that? If there is something troubling you, Princess, please tell me. I’ll certainly dedicate my best to serve you and share your worries.”

Chu Yu looked at him in an unconvinced manner. She remembered Huan Yuan’s words and felt extremely helpless. While she had also consulted Huan Yuan on this question some time ago, his answer to her after pondering for a while was that he did not know, so he suggested her to ask Rong Zhi.

Even though Huan Yuan had genius-like talents, he had just begun to develop himself after all, hence he was far from being as insightful and experienced as Rong Zhi.

Chu Yu hesitated for a moment again. Then, she said eventually, “My question is related to the river. It’s related to the direction in which the river flows.”

Rong Zhi frowned ever so slightly. ‘The direction in which the river flows? Since when is the Princess so concerned about this sort of question?’ He shifted his gaze as the distribution of mountains and rivers under the sky emerged in his mind. Still, he could not figure out how this was related to Chu Yu at all. Moreover, it seemed like there had not been an issue with any of those rivers recently.