The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 252 Not the Cold War
Getting closer.

Jiang Jinshuang saw the faint outline of palace lanterns.

—They are imperial guards on patrol.

Jiang Jinshuang lowered her eyes and glanced at her lower body.

Hmm, not very clean.

—I'm not very presentable in public.

His gaze shifted from himself to Pei Du.

In the end, all she got was a little dirty.

But Pei Du is a different story.

Jiang Jinshuang slightly curled her lips, her gaze towards him filled with undisguised malice and mockery.

She tiptoed slightly and whispered in his ear, "Lord Pei, do you enjoy having affairs in the corner?"

The footsteps grew closer, and the lights grew brighter.

Until a group of imperial guards carrying palace lanterns came along this road.

Upon recognizing the people on the palace road, the leading imperial guard clasped his hands in a salute: "Greetings, Your Excellency the Grand Secretary!"

The man had his back to the Imperial Guards and glanced sideways at them.

The imperial guards stared wide-eyed, seemingly sensing something amiss, and cautiously looked up to see the woman in the Grand Secretary's arms.

"Commander, do not look at what is improper." The man's voice was low, hoarse, and cold.

"Oh, yes, yes, yes! It was my rudeness!"

With that, the commander of the Imperial Guards led a group of soldiers and turned to leave.

The footsteps faded away.

Jiang Jinshuang took a step back from Pei Du's embrace and looked at the man in front of her with a half-smile.

She wore a fox fur coat, which completely concealed the dirt on her body.

But Pei Du wasn't so lucky.

Jiang Jinshuang's eyes held a wicked smile as she glanced over.

"I'll be leaving now. Please make yourself at home, Lord Pei."

"The engagement," Pei Du said coldly before Jiang Jinshuang could even lift her foot, "I will explain it to His Majesty tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang frowned slightly, then turned to look at Pei Du, her tone slightly cold: "Pei Du, I don't believe you don't understand that given my current situation, Lin Qingyan is the most correct choice for me."

"Even if you tell His Majesty, what then? Do you think His Majesty will grant your marriage proposal? Or do you think that the two of us can be as harmonious and respectful as before?"

She looked at Pei Du, her patience wearing thin: "Pei Du, you clearly know that you are forcing me."

The rift between them didn't happen overnight.

He seems to have misunderstood.

He seemed to have always assumed that she was angry.

I'm angry with him.

For the three years from when I left Beijing until I returned, I was constantly angry.

For him, these three years felt less like a "breakup" and more like a long cold war.

Jiang Jinshuang didn't quite understand what Pei Du was thinking.

Three years ago, she took advantage of him and then left without saying goodbye, humiliating him in that same way.

He always believed that the love potion he received was given to him by her because she couldn't have him.

After returning to Beijing, Jiang Jinshuang displayed obvious indifference and aloofness, indicating that she did not want to have any further relationship with him.

She wanted to cut ties with him completely.

Whether it's for him or for myself.

But to Pei Du, all of this seemed to be nothing more than a long cold war.

Once it's broken, it's broken.

Jiang Jinshuang was not an indecisive person. When she knelt outside the palace hall after Prince Ruiyang was imprisoned, she had already made up her mind to sever all ties with Pei Du.

She knew she was likely to incur the wrath of the Holy One.

Therefore, Pei Du was removed from the list to avoid being implicated.

He should have passed the imperial examination and risen to the highest position in the government.

As long as he completely severs ties with her, this "sinner," his future career will be smooth sailing.

“Lord Pei, it was just a fleeting affair, nothing to take seriously.” With that, Jiang Jinshuang turned and left.

"Pei Du, take care of yourselves."

She said, "Take care."

What does it mean to cherish?

How precious.

The moonlight was like water, and the water was so beautiful it was almost overwhelming.
-
After returning to the princess's residence, Jiang Jinshuang collapsed onto the bed.

I was originally planning to go for a stroll on Chang'an Street with Chun Tao after I got back, but Pei Du kept me up until so late.

Chuntao has already gone to sleep.

Because it was Qixi Festival, several lanterns were hung in the princess's residence, adding a touch of brightness to the place.

It's getting late.

However, Chang'an was still very lively because there was no curfew.

Jiang Jinshuang wasn't sleepy either. She lay on the bed for a while, then looked down at her red dress again.

Tsk.

Jiang Jinshuang got up, changed into men's clothing, and walked towards the door.

She was a little curious: how handsome could the man who received the most flowers tonight be?

With that thought in mind, Jiang Jinshuang walked onto Chang'an Street.

Many men and women wore flowers in their hair and around their waists.

Jiang Jinshuang's face was so striking that she wore a mask and walked through the crowd.

The masks sold on Qixi Festival are also quite particular.

The most common masks were those of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, but there were also quite a few masks of foxes, pigs, and monsters.

However, some masks were carved and made in imitation of the God of Slaughter mask worn by Prince Ruiyang back then.

Jiang Jinshuang chose a mask shaped like a god of death.

Even though the emperor claimed that Prince Ruiyang intended to rebel and harbored disloyal intentions, his actions in protecting Wan Jin were undeniably genuine.

So, as if it were an unspoken agreement, whenever there was a festival, the mask vendors would put out a few masks of the god of death.

If others ask, say that the mask is ugly, but it can protect children and the elderly from evil spirits.

Wearing the mask, Jiang Jinshuang felt much more at ease.

She didn't have to endure the wary or angry stares of others as she walked through the crowd. There were even a few blushing girls who stuck a few flower branches into her waist.

—She looks quite handsome in men's clothing!

Feeling smug, Jiang Jinshuang continued walking forward.

The flow of people on Chang'an Avenue also moved towards the center.

—The man who received the most flowers this year will be revealed soon.

Without much effort, Jiang Jinshuang followed the flow of people and arrived at the center of Chang'an Street.

In the center, a huge platform was erected, surrounded by lanterns, and behind the platform was a magpie lantern as tall as three people.

Many men wearing flowers in their hair have come up on stage one after another, and the coordinator on the side records the number of flowers on each man's clothes.

Actually, this kind of thing is very easy to fake.

Come to think of it, if you really want to go on stage and receive the attention of the crowd, all you need to do is buy some flowers and put them on your belt.

Anyway, it's just a grassroots event, so it's not really a very formal one.

But no matter what, Jiang Jinshuang glanced over and saw that the men who went to register with the coordinator were all decent-looking, and there couldn't possibly be any oddballs among them.

Jiang Jinshuang was squeezed in and looked around curiously.

Suddenly, I noticed that in the corner to the side, He Weijing was looking at himself covered in flowers, his face looking rather unpleasant.

Jiang Jinshuang's eyes widened, and she even thought she was seeing things.

—What's He Weijing doing here!?

Jiang Jinshuang walked over with some skepticism and cautiously called out to him, "Mr. He?"

He Weijing is picking flowers.

Yes, she is picking the flower branches from her waist and head down.

Upon hearing the sound, He Weijing looked up sharply and met Jiang Jinshuang's face, which was covered by a mask of a killing god.

For a moment, He Weijing froze on the spot, his pupils contracting.