Dance Of The Dragons
Chapter 226 : The Dispute Between Two Families (1)

Chapter 226: Chapter 226 : The Dispute Between Two Families (1)

The Crown Prince’s marriage was a lot more sophisticated than other marriages. Some people would describe it as flavorful, while others called it stormy, leaving the observers little room to breathe.

On the fourth day of their marriage, Xie Jianyu left Longjing Palace and moved to Fuxi Palace for unforeseeable period of time. When his husband went to chase the wife, he found himself being banned from Fuxi Palace for unforeseeable period of time, as punishment for his indecent nature.

As such, life went on. The inhabitants of Fuxi Palace remained busy as always.

"Your Majesty, the Longjing Palace sent over a carriage full of red orchids..."

"En."

"Your Majesty, the Longjing Palace sent over a lot of grilled fish..."

"... En."

"Your Majesty, the Longjing Palace sent a basket full of your favorite tea leaves, the..."

Xie Jianyu’s brush veered off its intended path and ruined the official document that he worked on since morning.

Mingyu sucked in a deep breath.

"It’s fine," Xie Jianyu said after he regained his composure.

If Zhang Fengxi had time to purchase items to appease him, maybe he should work on himself!

"Your Majesty, the Longjing Palace sent rolls of the best silk from..."

Xie Jianyu facepalmed.

"You can go," he told Qingyun, who did not complete her sentence after Mingyu frantically gestured for her to stop. "Both of you. Leave me alone."

Mingyu and Qingyun exchanged confused looks.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

They thus retreated from Xie Jianyu’s study, allowing him some solitude to focus on his work.

Once he finished his assignments for the day, the Crown Prince received a guest in the guest chamber.

It was Ye Penglai, who came to report about the progress of his mission.

The elder man was usually very polite and well-mannered. He carried himself with the elegance and dignity that all noble alphas of the dragon clan were so proud of.

This time, he did not appear to be his usual self.

His cheek muscles twitched from time to time as he stared into space, waiting for his liege lord to arrive.

"Elder Ye, glad to see you again."

Ye Penglai dropped to his knees in front of Xie Jianyu.

"Palace Master, I am also glad to return."

"How did the talk between the Sun and the Duan family go?"

Ye Penglai swallowed hard.

"That is... I am unfortunately unable to complete the task in the allocated time. Palace Master, I require some more time."

Astonished, Xie Jianyu raised his head and stared at the elder man in front of him.

"What exactly happened?" Xie Jianyu’s curiosity was tickled.

As someone from the Ye family who had no ties outside of the dragon clan, Ye Penglai usually had no problems completing such tasks by using his excellent diplomatic approach.

This was also one of the reasons why Xie Jianyu thought that the Ye family’s ascension to power would generate the least friction with the other clans.

As the proverb went, fewer interactions led to fewer arguments.

The elder man wiped some sweat off his balding head and started explaining.

This was the story of two families who fought over a beautiful omega maiden by the name of Wen Xiangxiang.

Wen Xiangxiang from Ling’an Palace was the omega who won the title of Ethereal Beauty three years after Liu Wenyuan.

Among the alphas who voted for her were Sun Mingqi and Duan Ruiyang.

Sun Mingqi from the Sun family hailed from Wuyang Palace while Duan Ruiyang from the Duan family hailed from Xiyu Palace.

As luck had it, the relationship between these two families was generally not too good.

If it had been any other family, the Sun and the Duan family would give in with a friendly shoulder-pat and a hearty handshake.

After knowing who the opponent was, both families refused to back down.

Wen Xiangxiang became the indispensable prize in the petty rivalry of two noble houses.

The Wen family, on the other side, was willing to offend neither family.

"The three families -- Wen, Sun, and Duan -- agreed to gather at Waning Moon Tea House to sit down and discuss this matter with cold heads and clear conscience. But then something unexpected occurred."

Ye Penglai let out a heavy sigh.

"Wen Xiangxiang, ah... she ran away from home."

"..."

Xie Jianyu stared at his distant cousin.

"Ran away from home? Has this information been verified?"

Ye Penglai continued wiping his balding head.

"Wen Xiangxiang left a letter behind, asking her family to not look for her because she has left to be with her true love."

"..."

"The Sun and the Duan family blamed each other, saying that the other alpha had secretly seduced Wen Xiangxiang and then took the naive omega away with the promise of love and happily ever after."

This was a headache-inducing problem, indeed.

"And what does Wen Zhuliu say about this matter?"

Wen Zhuliu was Wen Xiangxiang’s father.

"Wen Zhuliu regrets the foolishness of his daughter, but the rice has turned into congee. He only hopes to recover his daughter safely as soon as possible."

A generic, politically correct answer that revealed no hidden meaning.

Xie Jianyu hummed.

"Do you need me to take over?"

Ye Penglai rose to his feet and kowtowed in front of Xie Jianyu.

"Palace Master, please give me another chance!" he cried out. "I will surely find Wen Xiangxiang and bring her back safe and sound! And then, I will also solve the dispute between the two families without fail!"

Ye Penglai’s desire to prove himself did not escape Xie Jianyu’s observation.

"Alright," he agreed. "Keep me updated about the current situation."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Not meddling did not mean that he was not allowed to investigate on his own.

Xie Jianyu thus went to visit Ling’an Palace to speak with his good friend, Shi Qingyue.

Despite multiple attempts to match them, Shi Qingyue and Jiang Muchen were found to be incompatible. They treated each other more like siblings than lovers.

After being released from Jiang Muchen, Shi Qingyue had only three full days to enjoy her freedom before she started receiving multiple marriage proposals again. The fox omega was more than glad to peel herself off the cushioned chair to have a friendly chat with Xie Jianyu.

"Your Majesty," she beamed at Xie Jianyu mischievously as she dragged him to sit in Ling’an Palace’s lavish outdoor seating area.

"Have you come to procure special pills to promote your sexual appetite?"