CHAPTER 240: CHAPTER 240 RIVERS AND MOUNTAINS

"Sell it!" Xie Xun chuckled lightly. "The new policy is spearheaded by Second Brother. If we cling to our privileges and refuse to distribute the land, its implementation will face even greater challenges. In fact, apart from ancestral fields, we’ve been selling off bits and pieces of land over the past few years."

"Second Young Master truly has foresight. Did you get a good price for it?"

Recently, land prices had plummeted significantly. If they sold it a couple of years ago, they would have fetched a better price.

"We’re poor!" Xie Xun’s smile lingered in his eyes. "Whatever the Marquis Mansion could sell has long been sold. What’s left are ancestral properties, which we generally don’t touch."

"I heard you’ve sold almost all your holdings in the Capital City?" The ancestral estates of the Marquis Mansion were concentrated more in the Capital City, weren’t they?

Xie Xun nodded. "Since our future foundation lies in Ningzhou, Father plans to consolidate all our properties in the Capital City, focusing instead on the Twelve Provinces and Ningzhou."

"For profit, though, the Capital City and Jiangnan are still more lucrative. The Twelve Provinces and Ningzhou..." Fengyu hesitated and chose not to finish her sentence. Even if the Marquis Mansion’s ancestral properties were gone, so what?

Her sister and she had money!

In the future, their dowries were also part of the Marquis Mansion’s assets—why worry unnecessarily?

"It’s not a bad plan!" Fengyu mulled it over several times and then concluded lightly.

Xie Xun seemed to know what she was thinking. He hooked his hand around Third Miss’s finger and said teasingly, "I’ll have to rely on my little lady’s dowry to support her husband in the future."

"Behave yourself, and Third Miss might consider it."

The two of them chatted and laughed as they climbed to the mountaintop. Although Fengyu had visited the manor many times, she had never climbed all the way to the top before, always stopping midway. It was exhausting, but the view was indeed breathtaking. At the summit stood a mulberry tree, though its fruits were not yet ripe, still tasting somewhat sour.

"Any news about the Crown Prince lately?" Fengyu asked uneasily. Ever since the palace banquet, she had been worried. The Jinyi Guard’s eyes and ears reached everywhere. If she wanted to know the Crown Prince’s movements, she could only rely on Xie Xun.

"Lately, he’s been preoccupied with the new policy," Xie Xun replied. "The Emperor is unwell, so the Crown Prince manages state affairs. He’s as busy as a spinning top, with no time to spare for anything else. Besides, his infatuation is one-sided. He’s in the palace, while your sister is at home. As long as they don’t cross paths, nothing will happen." The most the Crown Prince could do was forcibly take a minister’s wife, but, "He wouldn’t dare. Unless he’s ready to give up his position as Crown Prince. Marrying your cousin was already a strategic move to balance the noble families—he’s far from a man free from desires, and his ambitions are immense."

Fengyu stood in the breeze, the warmth in her chest diminishing slightly. "The Crown Prince’s reputation is growing, coupled with his aspirations. When the new policy fully takes effect in ten years or so, if the royal family centralizes its power, what if he seeks revenge then?"

"Why think like that?" Xie Xun asked, puzzled.

"I’m used to assuming the worst about people," Fengyu replied. "The human heart is unfathomable."

"Who knows how many years it will take for him to truly come to power? The winds of change are unpredictable," Xie Xun remarked. "Even though he shows signs of despotic tendencies, his governance has been fairly clear-headed. Ningzhou’s troops will be reduced, but its cavalry remains a deterrent. He wouldn’t dare to take reckless action. Ten years from now, we brothers will be in Ningzhou. Once the relationship between the royal family and the Marquis Mansion softens, Father, Mother, and our aunts will also relocate to Ningzhou. We’ll live our own lives without concerning ourselves with them. Even if he ascends the throne, he can’t simply do whatever he pleases."

"The way he looks at my sister makes me very uncomfortable," Fengyu admitted. "Like a dog eyeing a bone."

Xie Xun had noticed it too. "Between power and beauty, he’ll choose power."

"Do all men choose power?" Fengyu asked curiously. "Ambition, desire, control over everything—such power is the greatest temptation in the world, isn’t it irresistible for anyone?"

"Perhaps it is!"

"That’s good, then!" Fengyu also believed the Crown Prince wouldn’t be foolish enough to commit acts that went against morality. "In half a month, my sister and Brother Xie Zhang will marry. Time flies."

Xie Xun laughed. "Eldest Brother seems to have brought Feng Shu here to the manor. They’re just next door."

"Is that so?" Fengyu looked puzzled. "Isn’t Brother Xie Zhang in the Capital City preparing for the wedding?"

Xie Xun shrugged. He, too, was baffled. But considering their eldest brother’s wedding preparations were nearly complete, with their mother and two aunts dedicated to every detail, everything was set for the big day.

"Alright then!" Fengyu replied. "Truly carefree."

Preparations for the wedding had already been meticulously arranged. Both the Marquis Mansion and the Feng Family had poured their hearts into it. This time, the Feng Family had gone to even greater lengths than when Feng Wan married Prince Duan. Lady Feng had even made a few bitter remarks about it. Su Yuejiao, unwilling to bicker with her sister-in-law, was solely focused on organizing her daughter’s grand wedding. The entire collection of hair ornaments Feng Shu was to wear on her wedding day had been designed by Fengyu herself. They were delivered to the Feng Mansion a month ago—this was the one thing Fengyu could contribute.

Fengyu loved spending carefree, quiet moments with Xie Xun. Even just sitting and feeling the wind, she found it enjoyable. And as fate would have it, just as the two were discussing Xie Zhang and Feng Shu, they ran into them at the summit.

Xie Zhang had also brought Feng Shu along for a hike up the mountain, and the two pairs accidentally encountered each other at the top.

Most awkwardly of all, when Xie Zhang and Feng Shu arrived at the peak, they found Xie Xun fiercely kissing Third Miss. Hearing a deliberate cough, the two turned around simultaneously, falling into an eerie silence.

Feng Shu wore a frosty expression.

Xie Zhang, "..."