The Ugly Empress by Yun Guo Shi Fei / 丑娘娘 by 云过是非

Chapter 40 - A Life Coming to an End

{T/N : Heey! Sorry for the long gap between updates. I was busy making lemonades, LOL. I know I'm slow, as readers have been kindly pointing that out, but I'm very thankful to you who keep sticking with me despite that. So, this chapter is dedicated especially to you!]

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Zhao Lu and Feng Ming hadn't been with each other in for about half a year; being together with Feng Ming like this, Zhao Lu's reservation was out the window and he had to do it with Feng Ming again and again.

When they were done, Feng Ming couldn't even lift a finger and had to lie down with his head on Zhao Lu's lap.

It was still raining outside, but the rain seemed to be getting lighter and about to stop soon; the pitter-patter sound of the rain wasn't as loud as before.

Listening to the sound of the rain, Feng Ming suddenly smiled and said, "In a situation like this, I still feel very content."

Zhao Lu felt the irony. If the other person wasn't Feng Wang, maybe their relationship would not have to be this complicated.

Lu Shichen heard about Ming River's dam collapsing and immediately sent people to reconstruct the dam and control the river water, while also sending people to search around Ming River for Feng Wang.

Feng Ming was trapped in Ming River for two days before finally Lu Shichen's people found him and escorted him back to the Palace.

Zhao Lu hid from Lu Shichen's people, he couldn't be seen and couldn't go back with them. After making sure Feng Ming was alright, he rushed back to the capital city ahead of Feng Ming. Waiting for his return in Marquis Zhulu's residence was Rui Xue. She was still a very young woman; having to maintain Zhao Lu's pretended illness by herself was quite a hard work. When she saw her master finally returned, she almost burst into tears.

A few days after Zhao Lu's return, Feng Ming's entourage arrived and was welcomed back into the Palace. Although Rui Xue didn't say anything, she could see that the two men had actually reconciled.

When Feng Ming came back, he had a slight fever. Zhao Lu sent Rui Xue to the Palace to visit and take care of Feng Wang. Feng Wang said he himself didn't remember most of what had happened, but Rui Xue could see that, though Feng Wang was having a fever, overall he looked more energized. Seemed like his spirit was restored.

The flood incident, and that Feng Wang almost drowned, scared Lu Shichen to his very core. How come a river's dam be so easily broken like a block of tofu?

Feng Ming thanked Lu Shichen for his loyalty even in this kind of situation and let Lu Shichen take charge investigating the flood and the reasons the dam was broken.

Rui Xue kept silent. She felt anxious but she also knew she wasn't allowed to say anything. She was almost sure Xue Wang had dug the river somehow and divert the river water to the Ming River city. Right now, people hadn't know yet, but if investigated carefully, people would soon find out. A dug river left traces that would not disappear in a matter of one day or two. People would definitely connect it to Xue Country.

Sure enough, not a few days later, Lu Shichen had already found out and reported his findings to Feng Wang in the morning court.

All the other court officials were all stumped. Some people suggested sending troops to Xue Country as retaliation. Xue Wang's action was really too deceitful, if it wasn't pursued, then how would the other country view Feng Country's dignity?

However, some people also thought that, since Xue Wang dared using this method, it was clear he wasn't afraid of being discovered and was prepared in advance. If they recklessly sending troops to Xue Country, who knew what evil trap Xue Wang had prepared? They would only suffer a great loss.