Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved-Chapter 647 - 626: Second Update

Nanmen Yu coughed, and Ju Nanyi remained composed.

"Monarch of Nanmen State, please have some tea," Ju Nanyi offered respectfully and flawlessly, yet somehow Nanmen Yu’s presence was particularly irritating now.

Fine, you won’t ask, then I’ll just say it.

"Has Lord Ju forgotten to ask me what conditions I have?" Nanmen Yu felt it wouldn’t be good to appear too eager, even though he was confident about Prince Duan, who had known about this since early on, but these people were unaware.

"Whatever conditions the Monarch of Nanmen State wishes to propose, it would naturally be best to wait until our Emperor wakes up and asks you himself," Ju Nanyi thought with a sneer, as long as he had the audacity to broach the subject.

Nanmen Yu sighed, alright then.

"Lord Ju, this matter is unlike any other, and a mediator is needed in between. To be honest, I wish to form a marital alliance with Nanzheng State, and my personal visit is to demonstrate sincerity," Nanmen Yu said.

"Your Majesty, that is wonderful news! Surely, our Emperor will agree to your proposal. I understand what you mean; you would like me to select a suitable candidate for you, is that correct?" Ju Nanyi asked with an unchanged expression, pondering momentarily. "Rest assured, Your Majesty, I will compile a list of eligible daughters from the ministers within a couple of days..."

"There’s no need for such trouble, Lord Ju, I already have a candidate in mind," Nanmen Yu interrupted before Ju Nanyi could finish, as he was, after all, the king of a state.

"Oh? May I know which noble’s daughter has caught Your Majesty’s attention?" Ju Nanyi purposefully inquired.

"It’s not the daughter of any noble... but the daughter of Prince Duan—Princess Chao Ren," Nanmen Yu said, relieved to get to the heart of the matter.

However, the next moment, when Ju Nanyi heard the name Princess Chao Ren, his gaze towards Nanmen Yu suddenly turned strange, making Nanmen Yu feel uneasy, as if something was amiss.

"May I know if Your Majesty and Princess Chao Ren are... old acquaintances?" Ju Nanyi asked.

"Ah? No, I’ve just heard that Princess Chao Ren is exceptionally beautiful and intelligent, very much so..." Before Nanmen Yu could finish, he noticed something off in Ju Nanyi’s expression, as if Ju Nanyi wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

"What’s the matter, Lord Ju?" Nanmen Yu had a bad feeling.

"So you’re not old acquaintances. No wonder, Your Majesty must not be aware that Princess Chao Ren has already... passed away," Ju Nanyi said with a look of regret.

Nanmen Yu’s hand froze in mid-air. He stared at Ju Nanyi’s moving lips, but the words that came out were incomprehensible to him, no, he didn’t want to comprehend. What did he mean by... passed away?

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty—" Ju Nanyi’s voice grew from distant to near, slowly returning to Nanmen Yu’s ears. Nanmen Yu couldn’t conceal the look on his face.

"This princess, how, how could she have..." Nanmen Yu’s voice trembled as he spoke. He clearly...

No, his informants had told him...

Ju Nanyi shook his head and sighed. He had set this trap for so long, just for this moment, and Ju Nanyi was not in a hurry.

"Your Majesty may not know, but initially, there was internal chaos in Nanzheng, and everything was in turmoil..."

"Impossible, the Fourth Prince was friendly with the princess, naturally, he wouldn’t harm her," Nanmen Yu blurted out, then immediately realized his slip of the tongue. He was so assured because of that—Zheng Haoyuan wouldn’t kill Zheng Nianru. So why would Zheng Nianru have...

"I didn’t say that the Fourth Prince killed the princess. It was the Young Master from Ghoul Ravine," Ju Nanyi clarified. Nanmen Yu immediately looked at Ju Nanyi, puzzled as to how it could be him?

Nanmen Yu’s face turned pale, and his lips began to tremble.

"The Monarch may not know, but that young master of Ghoul Ravine is of a cruel nature, and simply because of the prophecy from Qiandao Temple, Princess Chao Ren, who also has imperial blood, was..."

Before Ju Nanyi could finish, he heard a thud; Nanmen Yu had already collapsed headfirst.

...

When Nanmen Yu awoke, he found himself still in the same place.

"Monarch, how are you feeling?" The gaze from Ju Nanyi in front of him was full of concern, but Nanmen Yu had no desire to look at him.

"Lord Ju, I have other matters to attend to, I must take my leave now—" Nanmen Yu did not wish to stay a moment longer, only wanting to find Prince Duan. No wonder, for so many days, he hadn’t been able to find out anything. A person who had already disappeared, where could he possibly get any news of them.

Moreover, the news he had received was within that farmhouse.

Yes, already hiding within the farmhouse, naturally, it would not be a good thing. Only blaming his blind confidence, thinking of how Nian Ru had avoided the massacre at the Imperial Palace that day by hiding in the farmhouse.

As it turned out, Nian Ru had not escaped; if only he had known sooner, if only...

"Lord Ju, I have an unreasonable request." Nanmen Yu naturally didn’t think that Ju Nanyi would deceive him with a lie, especially not about the death of a Commandery Princess.

"The Monarch may speak freely, but as for Nanmen State, apart from Princess Chao Ren, there are many other beautiful and talented women. If the Monarch truly wishes to form an alliance with the Nanzheng Imperial Clan, this servant might have other ideas."

Nanmen Yu was not listening at all; his mind was filled only with the thought of Nian Ru’s death, the Nanzheng Imperial Clan... where could there be any left in Nanzheng State?

Nanmen Yu looked towards Ju Nanyi.

But Ju Nanyi had no intention of stopping.

"This servant presumes to suggest that though the Monarch may not know, the Prince Consort of the Eldest Princess also perished in that melee. The Eldest Princess is now widowed, and like Princess Chao Ren, she is beautiful and equally talented, and she is also the Emperor’s own elder sister..."

A twitch ran through Nanmen Yu’s eyelid; he might as well faint again, anything for the Eldest Princess. If it were for some Eldest Princess, he wouldn’t set foot in Nanzheng State at all.

"Lord Ju, I only have one request, to see the grave of Princess Chao Ren." Nanmen Yu spoke, wondering if this counted as fulfilling the promise he had made that day. At least she hadn’t failed him, and he had come as he had promised. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

...

"You think this can fool anyone?" Prince Duan said, somewhat incredulously as he looked toward Ju Nanyi.

"Prince, it is a method this servant thought of, and only in this way can we completely extinguish Nanmen Yu’s hope." Ju Nanyi knew that they were running out of time, but he still needed to discuss it with Prince Duan.

Upon the mention of Nanmen Yu, Prince Duan finally showed some response.

"True, Nian Ru would never agree to be married so far away. Nanmen Yu is nothing but an annoyance." Prince Duan seemed to recall something. "Right, I just sent him away yesterday; why has