Song Yun Chu was naturally curious about these two important supporting characters who were about to appear, so she accepted the assignment.
“This humble official obeys the command.”
By evening, Song Yun Chu and Shen Yue had stationed themselves with a group of guards at a tavern near the imperial city, awaiting the diplomatic mission from Bei Chen Country.
Shen Yue was the Dog Emperor’s true confidant. Although their relationship wasn’t particularly good, they maintained superficial courtesy with each other. They made idle conversation until a guard alerted them—
“Your Excellencies, the diplomatic mission from Bei Chen Country has arrived!”
Hearing this, Song Yun Chu quickly turned to look at the distant street.
A large procession slowly approached, led by several burly soldiers. Behind them, two luxurious carriages occupied the center of the procession, with jade ornaments hanging from the corners of the carriage roofs swaying in the wind, presenting quite an impressive sight.
The occupants of these two carriages were none other than the Second Prince and Fifth Princess of Bei Chen Country.
Song Yun Chu and Shen Yue, along with their guards, all rose to their feet. Without waiting for the procession to draw near, they had already positioned themselves outside the city gate to receive the honored guests.
The diplomatic mission came to a halt outside the city gate.
“Your Highnesses, the Second Prince and Fifth Princess, having traveled such a long distance, must be weary from the journey. We have been commanded by His Majesty to welcome Your Highnesses into the palace.”
Song Yun Chu took the lead in offering greetings.
She remembered from the original work that this male lead’s “Bewitching Smile” appeared in many scenes, with his words and actions fully embodying his unrestrained and romantic character.
The bewitching handsome male was a rather fashionable character archetype in historical romance novels. Before seeing him in person, she found it difficult to imagine what this supporting male character might look like, fearing he might be overly bewitching to the point of appearing greasy.
And in the next moment, she saw the carriage curtain being drawn aside.
Inside sat a man dressed in light blue brocade robes, with handsome features. Beneath his full forehead were dark, ink-black crescent-shaped eyes, and his maple-leaf-thin lips curved into a roguish smile that made him appear somewhat cynical.
After letting his gaze linger on Song Yun Chu and Shen Yue’s faces for a moment, Shangguan Qi replied very politely, “We trouble you two officials to lead the way.”
Snapping out of her thoughts, Song Yun Chu smiled courteously. “Your Highness is too kind.”
She had to admit that Shangguan Qi’s roguish and unrestrained demeanor was just right. Although the original author’s plot was full of clichés and messy, they had put effort into character descriptions. With so many handsome men and beautiful women, it was quite pleasing to her eyes.
In terms of appearance alone, Shangguan Qi was not inferior to Jun Tianyi. It was only because he was designated as the second male lead that he was destined to fail in matters of the heart.
After escorting the diplomatic mission into the palace, Song Yun Chu finally returned to the Prime Minister’s Residence.
No sooner had he sat down than the maid Hong Lian served him hot tea. “You must be tired today, my lord? Have some tea to moisten your throat.”
Song Yun Chu took the teacup and asked casually, “Any movements from Jiang Da Xiaojie?”
“Reporting to my lord, Jiang Da Xiaojie hasn’t visited Prince Yi these past two days, but she did send medicine to Yi Wang Manor.”
Song Yun Chu nodded. “As long as she didn’t go in person, that’s fine. Otherwise, it would have been too embarrassing for me.”
It was absolutely impossible to expect Jiang Rumin not to care about Jun Tianyi. It was already quite an achievement that the girl could stay quietly at home.
“Sir, this Jiang Da Xiaojie is completely preoccupied with Prince Yi. Because you injured Wang Ye, she’s been giving you the cold shoulder. Her partiality is far too obvious. Now that Prince Yi holds a grudge against you, if Jiang Da Xiaojie truly becomes your wife, I fear she might side with outsiders in the future.”
Seeing Hong Lian’s indignant expression, Song Yun Chu raised an eyebrow slightly. “So what are you suggesting?”
“Either win her over completely, make her genuinely loyal to you. Or…”
“Create an accident to make her disappear, so she won’t hinder me in the future?” Song Yun Chu finished Hong Lian’s sentence.
Hong Lian lowered her gaze. “Yes.”
Song Yun Chu’s smile faded, his expression turning unusually stern. “Hong Lian, I know you have my best interests at heart, but you must never entertain such thoughts.”
“Not just you, but everyone in this residence must remember this: Jiang Ru Min is of great use to me. She must remain alive. Even if she shows me disrespect, none of you are to harm her, or you’ll ruin my important plans. Understood?”
Hong Lian quickly responded in agreement.
Song Yun Chu said no more, lowering his head to drink tea.
In the original story, although Minister Song was ruthless, he treated his subordinates well, which earned him their loyalty. This was especially true for Hong Lian and Bai Zhu, who had been orphaned since childhood with no family. After being taken in by Minister Song, they regarded him as their benefactor and faith, pledging to follow him unto death.
Therefore, as long as she emphasized seriously that they must not harm Jiang Ru Min, they would never disobey her orders.
“Sir, tomorrow is another rest day. You haven’t had proper rest for over ten consecutive days. Surely you don’t need to go to the palace tomorrow?”
Mention of the rest day brought a slight smile to Song Yun Chu’s lips. “Mm.”
The Dog Emperor was being uncharacteristically kind by not summoning her to the Imperial Study tomorrow to help him review memorials.
She finally had a day of freedom.
The next day, Song Yun Chu slept in for the first time since transmigrating into the book. It was nearly noon when she finally opened her drowsy eyes, stretched, got out of bed to wash up and have breakfast.
But she had only finished half her breakfast when she received some unpleasant news.
“Sir, Prince Yi has been resting at home for several days. Now that his injuries have improved somewhat, he went out onto the streets accompanied by his guards. Jiang Da Xiaojie likely received news of his outing and has also left her residence. What would you…?”
Song Yun Chu suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and said indifferently, “I’ve finished eating. I’ll go out for a walk too.”