Chapter 296 - Chapter 296: Chapter 216 Dongfang Longyue 1

Chapter 296: Chapter 216 Dongfang Longyue 1

In a certain courtyard of the Dongfang Family, a woman dressed in a purple cloud attire was standing in a pavilion, holding a brush and painting on a sheet of paper.

The woman’s hair was styled high into a cloud-like bun, with her black hair cascading down to her waist like a waterfall, making her stand as gracefully as jade, as beautiful as a fairy.

At this moment, Dongfang Yi, who stood to one side, spoke, “Yue’er, tell dad, what are you thinking?”

Dongfang Longyue didn’t stop her brush as she continued to paint and asked, “Dad, you should know that he won’t be Crown Prince for much longer, right?” Dongfang Yi replied, “Although he won’t be Crown Prince for much longer, he is still the Crown Prince now. I estimate there are at least six more months before the Sum Emperor takes action against the Wang Family.”

The Dongfang Family is quite special, having knowledge of some insider information, so they were not optimistic about Lu Shuyun, considering his glory to be fleeting.

Once the Wang Family was eradicated, Lu Shuyun’s position as the Crown Prince was certain to be revoked.

Dongfang Longyue said, “The Wang Family probably doesn’t want to see other aristocratic families marrying their daughters to the Crown Prince, but Wang Yong took the initiative to come as the Crown Prince’s lobbyist. This indicates that they have sensed something and want to firmly bind our family with the southern aristocratic families.”

“Our family has been involved in commerce for generations, controlling almost all of the Great Xia Dynasty’s economic lifelines. Once we are firmly bound to the southern families, the Sum Emperor will inevitably become even more wary of them.”

Dongfang Yi sighed and said, “I also think the Crown Prince’s declared interest in you is just a pretext, but even if it’s a pretext, it’s not easy for us to refuse.”

If we directly refuse, it could easily arouse their suspicion, which would not be conducive to our dealings with others and, moreover, our family has its own mission; we can’t afford any issues at this time.”

At this moment, Dongfang Longyue put down her brush, looked up at Dongfang Yi, and said, “Dad, how about this: you pretend to agree to the Crown Prince for now, but find an excuse to delay for a while. I will find a way to leave Sufeng City.”

Although the Dongfang Family is one of the southern aristocratic families, they have businesses operating in all the major dynasties. It wouldn’t be a big problem for Dongfang Longyue to leave Sufeng City and find refuge in another dynasty. Later, the Dongfang Clan could claim that Dongfang Longyue had acted on her own volition, not willing to marry, and then secretly fled to another dynasty.

Seeing Dongfang Longyue so decided, Dongfang Yi sighed again and then said, “It seems this is the only option we have for now.”

“Yue’er, sorry to put you through this,” he added.

Dongfang Longyue calmly replied, “It’s what I should do.”

Dongfang Yi then said, “I won’t disturb you any further.”

With that, Dongfang Yi turned and left the courtyard, ready to send a message to Wang Yong.

Night fell.

North Prince Mansion.

The moonlight tonight was cold and enchanting.

The moonbeams spilled onto the ground like water, causing the shadows to ripple and dance in the light breeze like the waves on the water’s surface.

At this moment, in Chu Yuqin’s room at the North Prince Mansion, Chu Yuqin was kneeling on a mat, with a jar of wine and some food laid out before her.

Chu Qingli and Chu Yuqin sat facing each other.

Chu Yuqin poured herself a cup of wine, then drank it in one gulp before saying to Chu Qingli, “Qingli, this is a new wine brewed by the Prince’s Mansion, and it has a very good flavor. The orders from the Prince’s Mansion are backed up for months. I managed to get a jar from Zixuan, have a taste.”

“They say this wine can help with detoxification and is very beneficial for cultivation. Recently you’ve been suffering from cultivation deviation, which left so many scars on your body. Those scars are most likely caused by toxins. Why not try a bit and see?”

Hearing this, Chu Qingli didn’t suspect Chu Yuqin of any ulterior motive, especially since Chu Yuqin had just had a drink herself.

Moreover, she had indeed heard that the white liquor recently produced by the North Prince Mansion was very popular, and now many guards within the Prince’s Mansion were eager to try it.

Chu Yuqin then poured a small cup for Chu Qingli.

Chu Qingli immediately picked up the cup and gently sipped.

After one sip, Chu Qingli found the liquor to be quite strong. Had it not been for her high martial arts skill and the abundance of inner strength that gave her some resistance to strong alcohol, she probably couldn’t have handled it.

At that moment, Chu Yuqin poured herself another cup. She slightly shifted her hips and switched her position from kneeling to sitting on the ground, her plump buttocks pressing against the mat below, squeezing the flesh of her hips together.

Chu Yuqin then asked, “Qingli, what do you think of this liquor?”

Qingli replied expressionlessly, “It’s a bit strong, but the aroma is quite rich.”

Hearing Chu Qingli’s response, Chu Yuqin poured her another cup and then said, “If you like it, drink more. Perhaps the alcohol will even help expel some impurities from your body later.”

Chu Yuqin’s plan was simple: to get Chu Qingli drunk. To avoid raising Chu Qingli’s suspicion that she was trying to intoxicate her, Chu Yuqin drank along with her.

She figured that Lu Chen would later come to her room anyway, and his Immortal Technique could sober her up. Once Lu Chen arrived and found her drunk, he’d surely help her sober up willingly.

By then, she would be awake, and her younger sister would be unconscious from the intoxication, allowing her to confidently serve Lu Chen tonight, fulfilling her promise.

Until the morning light, Chu Qingli wouldn’t necessarily notice.

By the time Chu Qingli woke up again, she and Lu Chen would have finished their business.

Seeing Chu Yuqin lift her cup again and take another sip, Chu Qingli suddenly thought of something.

During this time, her sister had grown suspicious of her, especially since Lu Chen was always in her room, and her daily fits of martial frenzy were insufficient explanations.

These past few days, she hadn’t traded with Lu Chen, mainly for fear of being discovered by Chu Yuqin.

Now that the North Prince Mansion suddenly had such strong liquor, her opportunity had arrived. If she could get her sister drunk, she could meet with Lu Chen while her sister was unconscious, without her sister ever finding out. She wouldn’t need to be as cautious and fearful of being caught by her sister as before.

However, to prevent her sister from realizing she wanted to get her drunk, it would be best to drink along with her.

With that thought, Chu Qingli picked up her cup and slowly took a sip.

At this moment, the two sisters, connected in underhanded intentions, each aimed to get the other intoxicated. The pair chatted about trivial things while drinking.

Meanwhile, the lights in Lu Chen’s study were still brightly shining.

After an indeterminate amount of time, a cloud drifted in front of the moon, blocking its light.

Lu Chen rose from his seat, stretching leisurely and rotating his neck.

Suddenly remembering that Chu Yuqin had invited him to her room tonight, the corners of Lu Chen’s mouth involuntarily curled into a subtle smile.

However, he quickly remembered a troublesome matter.

Chu Qingli was living right next to Chu Yuqin’s room, and she had recently taken a leave from her position as Deputy Commander of the Prince’s Mansion guards.

If he went to Chu Yuqin’s room now, there was a high probability that Chu Qingli would see him or become aware of his presence.