She refused to marry.

Su Wanwan was not happy to receive Feng Chenjun's waist token.

He looked at it over and over again, then stuffed it into his sleeve and sighed.

Chunhua leaned closer and asked, "Miss, are you unhappy?"

Su Wanwan smiled bitterly: "What's there to be happy about? This is Feng Chenjun testing me. If he does anything to my detriment again, I'm doomed."

Chunhua was startled. "Then why are you still answering?"

Su Wanwan did not answer.

How can we not answer?

She's thinking about something else right now.

There has been no progress between Ying Zheng and Shen Yan, but the day for selecting concubines is fast approaching.

In the original novel, Ying Zheng obtained the Tiger Tally on the day the Crown Prince was choosing a consort and entrusted Shen Yan to take it out of the palace.

But now Shen Yan can't even see Ying Zheng, so how can she produce the Tiger Tally?

The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became. She turned around, sat down, picked up her teacup, and took a sip.

What kind of tea is Feng Chenjun drinking? It's so bitter it makes her tongue twitch.

The next day, Su Wanwan was packing her bags to prepare for her return journey when the Sixth Princess suddenly came to visit.

Su Wanwan quickly stood up and bowed: "Your Highness, is there something important?"

The sixth princess, with a hint of shyness on her face, quietly pulled her aside.

She took a sachet from her sleeve, offered it with both hands, and said in a low voice, "Miss Su, could you... please give this to Lord Fengchen for me?"

Su Wanwan took the sachet and looked down; it was clear that it had been carefully made.

The embroidery depicts intertwined branches and lovebirds, with fine, dense stitches.

He smiled and said, "Okay, is there anything else you want to convey?"

The Sixth Princess shook her head, her face flushed, twisting her handkerchief between her fingers. "Last night, when I performed my dance, His Majesty's gaze never left the stage. Ask him what he's thinking, and be careful not to let outsiders know. His Majesty is a man of deep thoughts and dislikes women getting close..."

Su Wanwan stuffed the sachet into her bosom and patted her chest, assuring her, "Sixth Princess, rest assured, I guarantee I'll complete the mission!"

The sixth princess breathed a sigh of relief, then took out another small sachet from her sleeve and handed it to her: "This is for you."

Su Wanwan was taken aback: "Me?"

"Hmm." The Sixth Princess smiled and lowered her head. "The fabric is made using a traditional technique passed down through generations by the palace matrons. It can keep the fragrance from dissipating for up to six months."

There were still some left over, and it seemed a waste, so I made another one. The shimmering brocade came in handy last night; during the dance, the Emperor's eyes never left the stage—consider it a token of my gratitude.

Su Wanwan accepted the sachet and said with a smile, "I accept it, thank you, Your Highness."

"Mmm." The sixth princess turned and left shyly.

Su Wanwan carefully placed the two sachets separately, keeping the one given to her by the Sixth Princess, and headed towards Feng Chenjun's tent.

Xiao Xuanjing's curtain was lifted, and there was no one inside. There was hot tea on the table, with steam rising from the spout.

They should have just left.

Su Wanwan peeked over, placed the sachet on the table, picked up a piece of paper, wrote a few words: "Gift from the Sixth Princess," covered it with the sachet, and turned to leave.

She was in a hurry to go back and pack her bags, so she didn't wait any longer.

Not long after Su Wanwan left, the guards came in to tidy up the tents.

A gust of wind blew by, lifting a corner of the curtain, and the note on the table was rolled up and fell to the ground, drifting gently to the bottom of the box.

The guard carried the box over and placed it right on top of the paper; no one noticed.

Xiao Xuanjing entered the tent shortly after and immediately noticed the sachet on the table.

He picked it up, his fingertips slowly tracing the embroidered pattern of intertwined branches, his brows furrowing slightly.

"Who was here just now?"

The guard hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Miss Su has been here."

Xiao Xuanjing looked down at the pair of lovebirds on the sachet, remained silent for a long time, and then put the sachet into his sleeve.

After the guards finished getting ready, Xiao Xuanjing boarded the carriage.

As the carriage passed the open space beside the hunting grounds, he lifted the curtain and saw Su Wanwan standing next to the Su family carriage, hands on her hips, directing the servants to move things.

Upon seeing Feng Chenjun's carriage in the distance, Su Wanwan quickly ran over and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty. Did you receive the gift?"

Xiao Xuanjing responded in a muffled voice, took out the sachet from his sleeve, and slowly rubbed it with his fingertips, his gaze falling on her waist.

Miss Su also had a sachet hanging from her waist, with the exact same pattern.

His hand paused slightly, he lowered the curtain, and said in a calm voice, "Return to the manor."

Jian Qingshan cracked his whip, and the carriage rumbled out of the camp.

Xiao Xuanjing leaned against the carriage wall, closed his eyes, and fiddled with the sachet with his fingers.

He thought for a long time, but had no answer.

When the carriage arrived at the Princess's residence, Xiao Xuanjing got out and went straight into the East Garden.

Jian Qingshan followed behind and couldn't help but whisper to Xie Yunzhou, "Our lord hasn't said a word the whole way. Is he in a bad mood?"

Xie Yunzhou glanced at him: "When has the Lord ever been in a good mood?"

Jian Qingshan scratched his head, not daring to ask any more questions.

Xiao Xuanjing walked to the Forget-Worry Pavilion, sat down, placed the sachet on the stone table, and closed his eyes to rest.

Xie Yunzhou walked in from outside, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, news has come from the palace that the envoy from Gaochang is requesting a marriage alliance."

Xiao Xuanjing opened his eyes, picked up the sachet, smelled it, and then put it down: "A marriage alliance?"

"The envoy said that without a marriage alliance, it would be impossible to stabilize the border between the two countries and open up trade. His Highness the Crown Prince has already agreed, but has not yet given a formal reply."

Xiao Xuanjing sneered, "A tiny Gaochang dares to dream of marrying my princess. They've really gone too far with their schemes, even daring to challenge the Crown Prince. And yet, the Crown Prince is so cowardly as to want to negotiate peace."

"His Majesty has been dismissed from his post, and the cabinet is now under the Crown Prince's control. I'm afraid there's nothing we can do about this matter," Xie Yunzhou sighed.

Xiao Xuanjing stood up, walked to the steps, and stood with his hands behind his back: "I conquered the Northern Frontier to bring them to court and pay tribute, not to marry my princess!"

"Should we contact the old ministers? His Majesty has fought for five years and finally built up his prestige. I'm afraid it will be ruined by the Crown Prince," Jian Qingshan said.

"No need." Xiao Xuanjing withdrew his hand, turned around, and said in a colder tone, "Notify the Northern Frontier General to intercept the envoys and leave no one alive."

Xie Yunzhou frowned: "My lord, if the Northern Frontier finds out about this, they might launch another attack."

Xiao Xuanjing glanced at him, a slight smile curving his lips. "At worst, we can go to the Northern Frontier and slaughter the Twelve Kingdoms again."

Xie Yunzhou smiled wryly: "Your Majesty, you must be joking. With Prince Changxin eyeing us so closely, how could Her Majesty the Empress let you go?"

Xiao Xuanjing paced back and forth. "Yes, once the Crown Prince obtains the Tiger Tally, the Empress will definitely send me to confront Prince Changxin. I really can't think of a way to avoid this."

Xie Yunzhou thought for a moment and tentatively said, "My lord, there is still a way."

"What method?"

"We can pretend to be sick and not go out."

Jian Qingshan jumped down from the artificial hill, clapping his hands and cheering: "This is a great idea! This is exactly what we should do now. What do you mean by teaching the princes and princesses? That's just an excuse to imprison the emperor and prevent us from returning to our fiefdoms."

Xiao Xuanjing paced around twice, then stood with his hands behind his back: "Hmm, we can give it a try. Go and call that girl over."

Jian Qingshan was taken aback: "Who?"

Xiao Xuanjing glanced at him, his tone indifferent: "Who else could it be?"

He was genuinely curious about what she was up to by giving him this sachet.

Jian Qingshan dashed out in a flash.

"Go and take a stroll around the deceased prince's place to see if he has this item," Xiao Xuanjing said to Xie Yunzhou, holding up the sachet.

"Yes!" Xie Yunzhou disappeared in a flash.