The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan
Chapter 133 Men’s mouths, deceiving spirits (second update)

Chapter 133: 133 Men’s mouths, deceiving spirits (second update)

Yelu Yan’s reprimand paused as he caught sight of a somewhat familiar palace servant standing in the corner.

His tiger-like eyes moved slightly, and after a few more admonishments, he commanded coldly, "Someone, take these two men down and hand them over to the Supervisory Office for disposal."

The Supervisory Office was notoriously harsh, and few who entered came out alive, and even those who did lost a layer of skin.

It seemed that Yelu Yan was indeed enraged about the corruption.

No sooner had Yelu Yan’s words fallen than four armor-clad attendants respectfully entered from outside the hall, bowed to Yelu Yan, and without mercy, dragged the two men away.

Those two men were terrified and struggled as they shouted, "Khan, spare our lives, Khan, spare our lives!"

Their voices were quickly silenced as cloth gags were stuffed into their mouths, silencing their pleas.

Yelu Yan gave the Chief of the palace servants in the Hall of Diligent Governance an indifferent look.

The Chief of the palace servants then raised his thin voice and said, "My lords, please move to Erfang to rest for a moment. We will discuss affairs shortly."

The ministers knelt and bent their arms in salute, saying, "We respectfully see off the Khan."

Yelu Yan stood up and walked towards the side hall.

Jinwu and a group of palace servants followed, including the servant from the Khan Palace who had come to report.

Seeing Yelu Yan leave, the ministers dared not stand up for quite a while.

Many ministers wiped the sweat from their foreheads, while others stretched their arms and legs.

They had stood respectfully and motionless just now, their feet now numb from standing so long.

Ji Xueyuan was at the front of the military commanders, while Xiao Dilu stood at the forefront of the civil officials.

Xiao Dilu gazed in the direction Yelu Yan had left, his eyes somber.

That servant had once followed Bater to his palace, so he remembered him, a man from the Khan Palace.

Yelu Yan’s hasty departure must have been because of that Han ethnic woman.

The Khan truly had deep-rooted feelings for that woman.

At this thought, Xiao Dilu couldn’t help frowning.

Seeing this, Ji Xueyuan walked over and said to Xiao Dilu with a smile,

"Minister Xiao, if I’m not mistaken, there’s a servant whose face is very unfamiliar; he must be from the Khan Palace. The Khan really does favor Princess Hehui greatly. Even with such busy official duties, the moment someone from the Khan Palace arrives, he leaves everything behind to go see that woman."

Xiao Dilu looked up at Ji Xueyuan, and with a cold laugh, said, "It takes but a tongue to spread rumors, and yet, Ji, you aren’t afraid of twisting your own tongue. How do you know that was a palace servant from the Khan Palace? I have lived in the palace for two years and still don’t recognize all the servants. You rarely enter the palace, yet you recognize him, which is truly astonishing."

Ji Xueyuan replied calmly, "Why are you so angry, Minister Xiao? I know you’re upset because the Khan favors Princess Hehui, but I haven’t provoked you. There’s no need for such biting remarks."

Xiao Dilu found it amusing and said, "It’s you who’s making the barbed comments and being sarcastic, isn’t it? Don’t think I don’t know that you harbor animosity towards the Royal Consort because of your beloved’s situation. But I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you, as the Khan and the Royal Consort are quite affectionate toward each other and he has no intention of marrying an Imperial Concubine."

Ji Xueyuan’s face turned green with anger as he retorted flatly, "So you’re saying, you’re quite fond of Princess Hehui yourself?"

"Of course," Xiao Dilu replied, "The Royal Consort is highly skilled in medicine, gentle and virtuous, generous and kind. Who doesn’t like the Royal Consort?"

Xiao Dilu was pleased as long as he could irritate Ji Xueyuan.

Moreover, on the matter of Princess Hehui, although Xiao Dilu had some differences with Yelu Yan, in front of others, they had to present a united front and not let anyone see even a hint of discord between them.

They couldn’t give those with ulterior motives any opportunity to exploit.

Ji Xueyuan said sarcastically, "Was it just because the Royal Consort made you a broken chair that you were bought over?"

"It’s not just about a broken chair. The Royal Consort saved my life," Xiao Dilu said, "so put away your means of sowing discord. I’m not falling for it."

"You... You... One day you will regret this."

Ji Xueyuan threw down these words viciously and stormed off with his sleeves flapping.

Shulu Xi, standing behind Xiao Dilu, couldn’t help but curve his mouth upwards, finding the bickering between the two amusing indeed.

Ji Xueyuan and Xiao Dilu had always argued, and Ji had never won; he would always leave, fuming and puffing, defeated and dejected.

The key issue was that Ji Xueyuan never seemed to learn his lesson, always being the one to provoke Xiao Dilu first and, inevitably, the one to suffer for it in the end.

The Chief of the Palace Servants said, "Distinguished lords, please follow this servant to the side hall to rest."

Shulu Xi, nudging Xiao Dilu, headed towards Erfang.

The other officials followed behind them.

...

As soon as Yelu Yan stepped into the inner chamber, his gaze fell entirely upon Li Xianyun.

Youlan and Zhuo Ma hurriedly knelt down and saluted with bent arms, saying, "We greet the Khan."

Li Xianyun also attempted to stand up but was stopped by Yelu Yan, who said, "You don’t need to get up, just stay seated."

Upon hearing this, Li Xianyun sat back down and, looking at Yelu Yan, her red lips parted slightly as she asked, "Khan, shouldn’t you be at the morning court?"

Yelu Yan smiled and said, "The Khan forgot to take something and has come back to retrieve it."

"Hm."

Li Xianyun felt it strange:

There was no need for him to come back personally for something forgotten; couldn’t he have sent Jinwu or someone else to fetch it?

Zhuo Ma, hearing this, glanced at Youlan and thought to herself: They say a man’s mouth deceives like a ghost, and it seems even the brilliant and valiant Khan cannot escape this. Clearly, the Khan was anxious about the consort and had deliberately instructed someone to inform her once the consort was awake, yet now he wouldn’t admit it.

Youlan gave Zhuo Ma a knowing look with a smile, and Zhuo Ma instantly understood.

Both ladies bowed and quietly left the room.

Now, in the vast inner chamber, only Yelu Yan and Li Xianyun remained.

Li Xianyun, puzzled by the two girls’ exit, saw Zhuo Ma close the door of the inner chamber from the outside.

What was this about?

There were two round stools in front of the dressing table; Li Xianyun sat on one, and the other unused one sat adjacent to the dressing table.

Yelu Yan approached the dressing table, pulled out the stool, and sat down next to Li Xianyun, their clothes nearly touching.

He looked closely at Li Xianyun’s palm-sized, petite face. It looked much rosier and she seemed far more spirited.

"How are you feeling?"

"Much better," Li Xianyun smiled at him and said, "Thank you for taking care of me last night, Khan."

Yelu Yan seemed to say casually, "We are husband and wife; there’s no need for constant thanks."

He looked at Li Xianyun through the mirror and asked, "Are you planning to leave the palace?"

Li Xianyun nodded slightly and replied, "I wish to visit Shitoutun to see how the Drying Room is coming along, and I also need to arrange for the purchase of grapes."

"You’ve been feeling unwell, so don’t go today," Yelu Yan said softly.

Li Xianyun responded, "I am already feeling better, and I plan to go by carriage. With extra cushions in the carriage, there will be no problems."

Yelu Yan spoke with extreme patience, "The city roads are smooth, that’s true, but the way to Shitoutun is rough and uneven, which will surely be bumpy. Can you withstand that?"