The Night Before the Divorce, She Was Reborn to Before Her Marriage - Chapter 9

This area was flat and open, with no place to hide. Ning Fu could only watch helplessly as Zong Si’s gaze fell upon her. Resigned to her fate, she closed her eyes.

Being too diligent and hardworking wasn’t always a good thing, she thought. It could lead to bad luck. All she wanted was to practice her horsemanship. The rustling cold wind did not compare to the chill in her heart.

She had seen his body, and now it was up to Zong Si whether he would pursue the matter. If he did, it would be simple for the Prince Xuan’s estate: bring her in through a side door to become a concubine, and settle her in a remote courtyard to keep her out of sight. It wouldn’t affect Zong Si’s future marriage or his career. However, Ning Fu’s life would be even worse than in her previous one. As a daughter of a duke’s estate, becoming a concubine would bring shame to her mother and father. Furthermore, she would likely be powerless to help her brother with his affairs.

Clarifying the stakes in her mind, Ning Fu remembered that Zong Si had already put on his clothes when she heard the horse’s hooves. There was no other way but to insist she had just arrived.

“I didn’t expect to run into the Crown Prince right after I arrived. Is the Crown Prince here for his morning exercise?” Ning Fu opened her eyes and, seeing Zong Si walking towards her, steadied her mind and spoke first with a smile.

Zong Si, of course, knew that the fourth Miss Ning had not just arrived. But he had no intention of marrying her or ruining her, so he did not expose what had happened. He merely gave a distant nod and mounted his horse.

Ning Fu was relieved that he had no intention of pursuing the matter. She put on a pleasant expression and said with a smile, “There was frost this morning, and the road is a bit slippery. Please be careful on your ride, Crown Prince.”

When a beautiful woman wants to be gentle, she can make people feel as if they are in a spring breeze. But not everyone responds that way. Zong Si glanced at her tightly clenched hands at her side, then looked away and said coolly, “Many men come here in the morning. If the fourth Miss doesn’t want to cause trouble for the Duke’s estate, she should take another path.”

Just as Ning Fu was about to thank him, she heard him say in a cold tone, “In the future, if you need to pass on an important message, the fourth Miss had better ask Miss Wei to use a more discreet maidservant.”

This was an implicit reference to her impersonating a dancer. He had likely already extracted the truth. Ning Fu’s expression changed slightly.

When she returned to her tent, Wei Ziyi saw she was silent and asked, “You were so happy when you left. Why have you come back looking so glum?”

“Sister Wei, you’ve gotten me into big trouble,” Ning Fu said with a wry smile.

Wei Ziyi’s expression also changed after she heard the full story. Guiltily, she said, “I must have been anxious and accidentally let it slip in front of my maidservant. I’ll go to the Crown Prince and explain.”

Ning Fu stopped her and sighed helplessly, “Do you want to give him another piece of leverage against the Wei family for being incompetent?” The Wei and Prince Xuan’s families were not of the same political faction.

Wei Ziyi was startled and said with lingering fear, “Look at my foolish mind.”

“Sister Wei, I’m telling you this not so you can make up for it, but so you’ll be more careful in the future,” Ning Fu said, taking her hand. In the future, when Wei Ziyi married Ning Yu, there would be no shortage of domestic disputes with concubines. Ning Fu didn’t want her to be at a disadvantage like in her previous life, and the Duke’s estate needed a capable matriarch.

“But what are you going to do?” Wei Ziyi asked, worried.

“For now, the Crown Prince won’t make things difficult for me. I can only take things one step at a time,” Ning Fu said, calming herself. The way he looked, he didn’t seem to have any intention of using this incident against her. When Zong Si goes on his military expedition next year, if she helps with Zong Duo’s matter, it would be a favor to the Prince Xuan’s estate. By then, she would certainly be able to get him to completely drop the subject.

Archery Practice and A Familiar Face

Ning Fu also didn’t go on the final hunt of the autumn expedition, choosing instead to learn archery from Lu Xingzhi. With the foundation she had from her previous life, it only took her a few days to progress from just practicing on a target to being able to hunt rabbits and even bring down birds.

Only she knew the hard work it took. Ning Fu had to massage her wrists for an hour every night to ease the soreness.

“Why didn’t you go on the hunt with them, Young Master Lu?” Ning Fu asked Lu Xingzhi during a break. This was a good opportunity to make a good impression on Emperor Jingwen.

Lu Xingzhi calmly replied, “Didn’t the fourth Miss not go either?”

Ning Fu actually wanted to go, but she was trying to avoid Zong Si. “Your archery skills are top-notch. You would have certainly shined if you went.”

Lu Xingzhi was silent for a moment, then asked in a low, quiet voice, “You’ve been avoiding me most of the time when you practice riding these past few days. Does the fourth Miss not want to be with me?”

Ning Fu’s ears felt hot. This kind of complaining question made him sound like a long-neglected husband. “I have no issue being with you.” She truly couldn’t bear to hurt his feelings.

In the past few days, she had indeed intentionally limited their meetings. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him, but she was worried that meeting too often would invite gossip.

When Ning Fu looked up again, she saw a hint of a smile in his eyes. Lu Xingzhi’s smile was very handsome, like cold yet warm jade. Since he rarely smiled, it was all the more captivating. Ning Fu was a little lost in his expression and almost felt dizzy from his charm. She thought to herself, Lu Xingzhi was acting as if he were deliberately seducing her.

But Lu Xingzhi shouldn’t be the type to be so flirtatious or use his looks to gain favor. He seemed like a true gentleman.

“The fourth Miss’s archery has improved a lot. You’ll do well in the archery assessment in a month,” Lu Xingzhi said.

Ning Fu thought for a moment and said, “Young Master Lu, your archery style is somewhat similar to the Crown Prince’s.”

Lu Xingzhi was silent for a moment before saying, “We are from the same school. Our archery was taught by Master Guanyang.”

She had naturally heard of Master Guanyang’s name. Ning Fu said, “I’ve long admired Master Guanyang’s reputation. If there’s a chance, I would like to pay my respects to him.”

“If there’s an opportunity in the future, I will take you,” Lu Xingzhi said, looking at her.

This statement was a bit too intimate. Ning Fu couldn’t respond directly at the moment. She was willing to interact with him but didn’t want to give him any ambiguous ideas. For now, Lu Xingzhi’s character seemed good, and she was satisfied with him in all aspects. However, truly understanding a man could not be done in just a few days of interaction. Ning Fu didn’t mind if he was interested in her because of the Duke’s estate, but she had to be cautious of him using the Duke’s estate for his own gain.

“It’s getting late. I should head back,” Ning Fu said, rubbing her aching arm and changing the subject.

“Alright,” Lu Xingzhi said, turning to pack up her quiver.

His down-to-earth and proactive actions earned him another point in her mind.

An Unexpected Summons

The two did not return together. Ning Fu had just walked back to the camp when a large hunting party was returning. She happened to be in front of Emperor Jingwen, so she knelt down and saluted, “May Your Majesty live a long life.”

Emperor Jingwen looked at the unfamiliar noble lady before him and felt that she was as beautiful as a flower, a sight that brightened his eyes. It wasn’t just Emperor Jingwen who was impressed; the Sixth Prince, Meng Ze, also took notice of her.

“This subject’s daughter is Ning Fu, the daughter of Duke Ning Yuanzhen,” Ning Fu said respectfully, with her head bowed.

“Oh, so you’re the daughter of my honored subject Ning,” Emperor Jingwen laughed heartily. “I also have to call your maternal grandmother, Princess Kanyang, my aunt. So, I guess you can call me your maternal uncle.”

“Maternal Uncle,” Ning Fu said obediently.

In truth, her calling Emperor Jingwen her maternal uncle was a bit of a stretch. Ning Fu’s maternal grandmother, Princess Kanyang, was the late emperor’s stepsister and had no blood relation to Emperor Jingwen. Furthermore, she had not sided with him during his struggle for the throne. If given the chance, Emperor Jingwen would have loved to have killed her maternal grandmother.

The maternal grandmother, who had always been ambitious and headstrong, had requested to be sent away from the capital, most likely because she feared the emperor’s reckoning and had foreseen that her time was running out. Ning Fu also remembered the bizarre death of Li Fang, which happened not long after. Her maternal grandmother had made a great mistake in that incident, which was the beginning of the Princess’s estate’s decline, after which it was only a matter of lingering on.

Ning Fu began to ponder how she could go to her maternal grandmother then to resolve this crisis, as the Duke’s estate, in a bid to protect themselves, did not want her to be close to the Princess’s estate.

“Why didn’t you go on the hunt?” Emperor Jingwen asked kindly.

Ning Fu came back to her senses and obediently replied, “To answer you, Maternal Uncle, the archery assessment is in a little over a month, so I stayed behind to strengthen my skills. That’s why I didn’t go on the hunt.”

Emperor Jingwen asked, “Who taught you archery?”

“My brother found out that Young Master Lu was a student of Master Guanyang, so he asked Young Master Lu to teach me,” she said, choosing her words carefully.

“Since Xingzhi is a student of Master Guanyang, your riding and archery must be good. The Princess has been asking for someone to compete with her. A Ning injured her foot, and Ru Yi went back to the capital with her first. The other noble ladies all declined, so why don’t you keep the Princess company?” Emperor Jingwen said with a stroke of his beard and a smile.

Ning Yu’s expression changed slightly, and even the Sixth Prince frowned. Zong Si merely gave Ning Fu an emotionless glance.

Ning Fu’s wrist was throbbing with pain. Just as she was about to decline, she met Ning Yu’s solemn gaze, and a chill went down her spine. Looking back at Emperor Jingwen, his smiling expression was clearly laced with impatience.

Ning Fu carefully recalled what happened after the autumn hunt. The emperor had a major fit of rage a few days later, and soon after, the Ministry of Rites issued a new decree for women’s examinations, placing more emphasis on archery and equestrian arts. Ning Fu’s scores in these two areas were her weaknesses at the time, and because of this new decree, her scores in archery and equestrianism only got worse.

Why was there a sudden emphasis on these skills? Ning Fu guessed it was probably related to the current situation. The Northern Qi Princess’s competition was just for fun, but with no one daring to step up, it would inevitably make the people of Great Yan seem cowardly, and it was no wonder Emperor Jingwen would be furious.

Ning Fu also understood why the noble ladies were unwilling to compete. The Northern Qi Princess’s equestrian and archery skills were too fierce, and the women of Great Yan had always valued elegance and propriety. The noble ladies were afraid of embarrassing themselves in front of the young masters. Emperor Jingwen seemed benevolent, which was why the noble ladies dared to decline, perhaps not realizing the seriousness of the situation.

But how could an emperor have a compassionate heart? The palace had been filled with corpses and blood had flowed for thousands of miles during the succession struggle just over two decades ago. Emperor Jingwen was on the verge of an outburst, and she absolutely could not refuse again, or the Duke’s estate might be implicated.

“Maternal Uncle, I heard that the Princess is a skilled rider and archer. I was also hoping to have a competition with her,” Ning Fu said with a smiling face.