Chapter 12: The War Horn Sounds Section 1
Half an hour ago, in the palace kitchen.
Thick smoke was billowing out of the kitchen door and the chefs were running out one after another.
Uncle Zhou, the housekeeper, stood anxiously at the kitchen door: "Oh, my prince, you were not burned by the fire, were you? I am here to save you now--"
But at this moment, Zhuo Fei's excited roar suddenly came from the smoke-filled kitchen: "No need to come in! Uncle Zhou! I'm fine! I finally succeeded, hahaha!"
Uncle Zhou didn't quite believe it: "Your Highness, you said you... succeeded? Did you make the cake?"
"Yes! I knew that I still have a talent for cooking!" With this loud and confident voice, the dusty Zhuo Fei finally strode out of the smoky kitchen, proudly and carefully holding a small cake he made by himself.
"How about it, Uncle Zhou! Isn't it beautiful?" Zhuo Fei held the cake in front of the butler and asked for his opinion very confidently.
The butler stared at the small cake in the prince's hand, which looked like it had been gnawed by a dog, rolled around in the mud, and finally stepped on by someone. He gritted his teeth and praised against his conscience, "Well! Not bad!"
"Hahahaha, Xiaowei will definitely like it!" Zhuo Fei couldn't help but become more confident, and was about to find He Wei, "I'm going to propose to her right now!"
"No, no, no, please wait a moment!" Uncle Zhou quickly reached out his hand to hold him back, "Have you forgotten? The King of the Ice Dragon Nation is coming to meet Your Majesty tonight. I'm afraid it's not the right time for you to propose now..."
Although he was usually reckless, Zhuo Fei was able to distinguish the importance of things when faced with such a major event, so he nodded and said, "Yes, I forgot about it. Let's wait until Gu Lei's father leaves. Where are they? From a courtesy point of view, I have to go and see that Gu Yunzhi."
"I wonder what Xiaowei is dressed up tonight..." Standing in front of the large dressing mirror, Zhuo Fei was wearing a handsome uniform, and all he could think of was He Wei. In the past few days, he racked his brains to search for countless ways to propose: Kneeling on one knee with a rose in hand? Too cliché, it's been used so many times; singing a passionate song to her ? No, my voice is really not good enough...
He thought about it for a long time, but still couldn't make up his mind, so he was worried that Xiaowei would not like it. In the end, the queen gave him a good idea: "Proposing is not about how complicated the procedure is or how much money it costs, but about how much sincerity you put into Xiaowei. So, why don't you do something for her that you couldn't do before."
Zhuo Fei thought again and again, what was the only thing he could not do well? Then the only thing left was cooking.
Yang Xue also appreciated his idea of making a small cake for He Wei and then stuffing the engagement ring into the cake, so she finalized the preparations with Zhuo Fei and promised him that she would help him dress up He Wei beautifully tonight and leave a perfect memory of the proposal for both of them.
Thinking of this, Zhuo Fei tidied his appearance in front of the mirror again, then picked up the small cake in the glass box and walked out: "Let's go, Uncle Zhou, after Gu Yunzhi leaves tonight, I will go and propose to Xiaowei."
But before the two men reached the reception room, they heard .
What's going on? Aren't my parents taking Xiao Wei to meet the Ice Dragon King? Zhuo Fei was about to rush over to find out what was going on when he saw a maid running towards him in a panic, screaming, "Prince—Your Highness! Something terrible has happened! Miss He has been captured by the people of the Ice Dragon Empire!"
"What are you doing? Let go of my daughter-in-law!" Seeing that several followers behind Gu Yunzhi suddenly showed their weapons and forcibly grabbed He Wei, Yang Xue's expression immediately became fierce, and her face showed the momentum that only a queen would have, "Didn't you hear what I said? Let her go!"
The leading guard bowed to her but did not let her go. "Queen, we are sorry that we acted rashly, but we must take this lady away now. You just saw it with your own eyes. After His Majesty drank the wine she handed over, he suddenly turned pale and fell to the ground. I am afraid that this unknown lady poisoned the wine. We must take her back to the country for strict interrogation to see who is behind this."
"She is my daughter-in-law, and the wine was also taken from my palace." Zhuo Qing stood up from his chair with a grim expression. "Your Excellency, do you mean to say that... I, Zhuo Qing, instigated my daughter-in-law to poison and kill the king of your Ice Dragon Country?"
The guard couldn't help but be shocked by his cold tone: "That's not what I meant--"
"Let's not talk about whether this is what you mean. Right now, the king of your country has been poisoned by an unknown poison and is lying on the ground twitching. You are not in a hurry to send him to the doctor, but you are in a hurry to capture my son's wife first. The logic behind this seems a bit unreasonable, right? Right now, your king's life should be the most important, but you put the cart before the horse. Are you confused for a moment, or...if Gu Yunzhi accidentally dies of poisoning, will there be someone else to succeed him?"
By the time Zhuo Qing finished his sharp words, the guard's face had turned slightly pale: "Yes, I was just in a panic and neglected this point... Quick, take His Majesty to the detoxification!"
"Also, our Zhuo royal family has always disdained the use of poison, and we are not good at it. The whole world knows this. But on the contrary, your Ice Dragon Country has a history of using poison for many years, right? Even if I want to kill Gu Yunzhi here today, I won't be stupid enough to poison him. Gu Yunzhi has always been meticulous and has studied poisons. He can definitely identify ordinary poisons at a glance. If someone can poison him, he must first let him down. I think the only person who can make him let down his guard is probably his closest person..."
"Your Majesty Zhuo Qing! Now, now our king is poisoned. I really don't have time to discuss these issues with you here!" The guard said, with cold sweat dripping from his forehead, but he still continued to speak, "But everyone present just now saw with their own eyes that our king was indeed poisoned after drinking the wine handed over by Miss He. She is not free from responsibility, so, sorry, tonight, no matter what, we have to take her away!"
As soon as these words were spoken, it seemed as if he was determined to fight to the death with Zhuo Qing.
Zhuo Qing couldn't help but narrow his eyes. He usually had a bad temper, but his heart was always clear. He thought for a while before speaking: "Okay."
"...What? Zhuo Qing!" Yang Xue's eyes widened in shock. She grabbed his arm and shook it back and forth, whispering in his ear, "Are you crazy? You clearly know that their purpose is to take Xiao Wei away..."
Zhuo Qing held her hand tightly, leaned over and whispered, "Even if I don't let them succeed now, they will definitely come to attack tonight or tomorrow. By then, Xiaowei's life will be even more unsafe. Now, I asked him to take the person away in front of me, and he must return the person to me intact."
Yang Xue could also understand the difference, but how could she feel at ease seeing her daughter-in-law being taken away by a group of vicious people?
Zhuo Qing shook her hand again, and then said to the leading guard: "Since you now suspect that He Wei is related to your king's poisoning, then I allow you to take her for investigation. However, she is a legal citizen of our country. If you want to investigate, you cannot leave our country, and during the interrogation, relevant personnel from our country must accompany her to ensure her safety."
The guards could not help but grit their teeth secretly. This Zhuo Qing was much more difficult to deal with than Gu Lei had said at the beginning! But they could only temporarily agree: "Okay, what you said makes sense, so let's take her away for interrogation first."
After saying that, he waved to his men behind him, and several men immediately grabbed He Wei and walked out. From Zhuo Qing's words just now, He Wei heard the conspiracy hidden in today's series of sudden changes. Knowing that it would be futile for her to defend herself now, she turned her head and glanced at Yang Xue behind her. She saw that her eyes were full of guilt and tears of powerlessness. She couldn't help but persuaded sadly: "Auntie, I'm fine, please tell Zhuo Fei that I will be back soon-"
"How could you just let those bastards take her away like this?" Zhuo Fei's angry roars continued to burst out from the reception room.
Zhuo Qing frowned, "Calm down! Don't you know how cunning and difficult the people of Ice Dragon Country are? They will not give up until they achieve their goal. Even if I disagree now, they will try their best to take He Wei away."
"But she is my woman! This is our territory! How can you just let her be -"
"Are you saying this to blame me for not fulfilling my responsibilities as a king?" Zhuo Qing interrupted him harshly, but still tried to calm Zhuo Fei's temper. "Son, I am the king of this country and I have to consider the overall interests of the country, but I am also your father, so please believe me, I will definitely -"
"No." Zhuo Fei was in no mood to listen to him finish his words. He just looked at his father quietly and said, "If you have your own position and it is inconvenient for you to come forward, then I will go and find He Wei myself. All the consequences will be borne by me alone."
Zhuo Qing slammed the table angrily: "Consequences? What consequences can you bear? Do you really want the two countries to fight? Do you know how many innocent people will die in that way?!"
"Father, you are the one who doesn't see the situation clearly. Whether to fight or not is not something we can decide. Don't you see who is the mastermind behind today's conspiracy? Gu Lei is here for the throne and the Central Continent. It's impossible for him to let it go just because you hand over He Wei!" After saying this, Zhuo Fei turned around and walked out quickly, leaving Zhuo Qing sitting in the chair with his brows knitted anxiously.
After a while, Zhuo Qing, who was sitting on the chair, slowly raised his head, with a hint of weakness and fatigue in his voice: "Wife..."
The queen beside him hurried over and gently took his hand: "Hmm?"
"Do you feel...that I have become weaker than before over the years?" In a place where no one was around, Zhuo Qing finally took off his king's shell and exposed his most vulnerable side to his beloved wife.
Yang Xue just held his hand tightly: "No...it's just that things are different now. You are the king and you need to consider your people..."
Zhuo Qing shook his head and reached out to touch Yang Xue's face: "No, I have become a coward. The pampered life over the years has made me forget the hardships I experienced in the past and made me lazy... I know that the younger generation named Gu Lei has bad intentions, but I still want to avoid war through my own efforts. But the current situation is not something I can control alone."
The Ice Dragon Nation has suffered from a freezing disaster and the people are living in misery. Everyone hopes to come to this warm central continent to survive. I am afraid that this time, even if Gu Lei does not kill his father to seize the throne and bring his army to attack, someone else will do so.
"Then... Zhuo Fei..." Having lived with him for so many years, Yang Xue naturally understood what Zhuo Qing was thinking, "Are you..."
Zhuo Qing nodded slightly: "Let him go... That kid is just like me back then. If you were kidnapped by them now, I would rush out to save you regardless of everything, even if I no longer want to be the king. It doesn't matter."
Yang Xue's eyes were filled with tears, and she leaned her head on his chest: "I know..."
Zhuo Qing sighed deeply, and sent a few capable men to follow Zhuo Fei. Then he lowered his head and thought for a moment: Maybe he is really old, maybe, after this matter is over, he should give up this position and let the next generation do it.
But, should he give the position to Zhuo Fei or Zhuo Yue? Zhuo Qing couldn't help but hesitate. Seeing that the war was about to begin, why not call Zhuo Yue back from the northern wasteland first?
"Let go! Don't touch me, I can walk by myself!" He Wei was twisted by the wrist by several Ice Dragon guards as she was led out of the palace. She couldn't help but kick them a few times in hatred.
