Rebirth of the Phoenix Princess novel Chapter 168

Prince Jing turned to look at Yun Shang who was standing by his side, and found Yun Shang had fixed her eyes upon the withered flower in his hand. Yun Shang looked as if she had expected that. Prince Jing understood that Yun Shang must have known why the flower in his hand suddenly withered, so he did not panic at all. He lifted his eyes and found traces of complacency in the Grand Councilor's eyes.

Prince Jing frowned and threw the flower on the ground. He said with an astonishingly cold look, "Brother, it seems that I shouldn't have touched the flower. The flower was too delicate. How could it be rated as the best flower in the Flower Show Festival? I think the best flower in our state should be enduring and stoical." After saying this, Prince Jing took the flower from Yun Shang. As soon as he held the flower, it also withered. Prince Jing swiveled around to look at Wen Ruyu and inquired, "Lady Wen, could you tell me why the two flowers withered when I held them? But when Shang'er held it, it was fine."

The Grand Councilor frowned slightly. He didn't expect that Prince Jing would take the flower which was held by Yun Shang. The Grand Councilor looked at Wen Ruyu who seemed shocked at Prince Jing's cold face and said, "I think the flowers prefer beautiful ladies to men." While speaking, the Grand Councilor walked up to Prince Jing and picked up the flower on the ground. He said, "What a pity! Such a wonderful flower is rare to see."

At the same time, the Grand Councilor noticed an odd smell radiating from Yun Shang and Prince Jing. So he fixed his eyes upon them.

"Just now the flowers exhibited by Lady Wen were glamorous. Though the flowers withered, we can still give a fair judgement of their beauty. Later, a stage will be set here and all the flowers exhibited today will be put on the stage. All the citizens present will receive a leaf that they will place in front of the flower which they liked the most. Then the voting result will be calculated. Your Excellencies, to ensure the result is fair, you have to go to another Palace to rest before the result is shared," said the Grand Councilor.

After this, several eunuchs guided all the officials and ladies to the Palace. Yun Shang walked near Prince Jing and whispered, "This is just the start. That flower exhibited by Wen Ruyu will wither once it is held by a man who wears the robe you are wearing. Your robe is what matters. My robe is made of the same fabric as yours. But there is nothing wrong with my robe. The Grand Councilor deliberately prepared robes made of the same fabric lest we suspect that there is something wrong with your robe."

Prince Jing raised his eyebrows and looked bewildered.

As they reached the Palace, some singing and dancing performances were being held. All the men settled down and watched the performances. The ladies who were all daughters of important court officials were too shy to sit with the men. So Yun Shang led the ladies to the garden.

The maidservants filled cups with tea for the ladies. Yun Shang took a cup and scanned the ladies.

The ladies had been carefully selected from different places. Their family backgrounds and appearances were all excellent. But they all looked a bit nervous for this was the first time that they had seen the Princess of the royal family. Wen Ruyu who was normally cold and indifferent, was restless. She kept glancing toward the entrance of the garden.