The soldiers' eyelashes were coated with frost, and the Seventh Prince couldn't help but knock on the Second Prince's carriage.
Xie Jingxi pushed open the carriage window and saw Xie Jingqi with a dark face saying, "Second Brother, if we delay any longer, people will freeze to death."
Xie Jingxi coughed weakly a few times, "Seventh Brother, you can see that Princess Rong He is so considerate of my health. How can I not reciprocate her kindness? If this delays the march, I am willing to personally apologize to all the soldiers later, and I beg Seventh Brother not to blame Princess Rong He."
Xie Jingqi's brows furrowed tightly, "Second Brother, when did you become so effeminate?"
Xie Jingxi sighed helplessly, his eyes full of guilt, "Seventh Brother, you also know that in the past, I was momentarily bewitched and framed the entire male line of the Ji family. I never expected Princess Rong He to not only not hold a grudge against me but to repay kindness with kindness... I never expected her to be so kind. It's a pity that I am not worthy of her now, otherwise, even if I had to bear immense public opinion, I would still want to protect her completely."
Xie Jingqi, "..."
So, the real reason for Second Brother's illness is that he was bewitched by a vixen, right?
The Second Prince's crime of destroying the Ji family was indeed heinous. However, for Xie Jingqi, he was his half-brother after all. The Emperor had already punished him, and there was no need to hold onto his past mistakes.
But what Ji Zizhao was doing now was truly disgusting.
She clearly knew that the Second Prince was the murderer of her family, and now she was fawning over him?
What was this if not utter shamelessness!
Xie Jingxi looked at his simple-minded Seventh Brother, his heart turning to ice.
If he hadn't relied on his father's favor, how could this good-for-nothing compete with him?
Soon, the Seventh Prince pushed open Ji Zizhao's carriage window.
"Ji Zizhao, can you have some self-respect? After being abandoned by Fifth Brother, you are so eager to throw yourself into Second Brother's embrace. If the deceased members of the Ji family knew about your behavior, they would not be able to rest in peace in the netherworld!"
Such heart-wrenching words made Lian Ju and Qing Zhu's killing intent surge.
Their young lady had risked her own life for the Ji family, and now it was not their place, a prince who ate for free, to slander and lecture her!
Ji Zizhao remained surprisingly calm, "Is Your Highness the Seventh Prince lecturing me?"
Xie Jingqi nodded as if it were natural, "What else?"
Ji Zizhao curved her lips silently, "Even if everything Your Highness the Seventh Prince said is true, I am now divorced. I can do whatever I please. May I ask by what authority are you lecturing me?"
Xie Jingqi was dumbfounded, "Ji Zizhao, have you no shame?"
"Your Highness the Seventh Prince can rest assured. Even if I had no shame, I would never cling to Your Highness the Seventh Prince."
Xie Jingqi understood this.
She was essentially saying that he was not only inferior to the disgraced Second Prince but even worse than the pathetic Fifth Prince!
Xie Jingqi's nose was almost crooked with anger, "Ji Zizhao, how could you..."
"Bang!"
Before Xie Jingqi could finish speaking, Ji Zizhao slammed the window shut.
The Seventh Prince, with his nose almost crooked with anger, was left bewildered in the cold wind and snow.
The sounds of their argument were clearly heard by some of the surrounding soldiers.
Soon, it spread throughout the army.
The affair between the Second Prince and the Ji family had been widely known at the time.
Now, Princess Rong He was shamelessly fawning over her former enemy. How could this not make people feel sick?
Coupled with the army's constant deceleration due to the Second Prince's health, the soldiers, with their limbs frozen, were already filled with rage. However, since the Second Prince was still a prince, they naturally dared not harbor any resentment towards him.
Naturally, the soldiers, out of a sense of justice, directed all their anger towards Ji Zizhao.
"I thought the Ji family was so formidable, but it turns out she's just a slut who wags her tail at men." The speaker was Cao Yan, who had been reduced to a mere orderly by Ji Zixiu back then.
Although Cao Yan was now just an orderly, his family background made him popular with many.
Thus, within a few days of joining the army, many new recruits were willing to surround him.
Hearing this, the new recruits who flattered Cao Yan daily joined in with mocking laughter.
"What he said is right. Didn't you see Princess Rong He's slutty behavior fawning over the Second Prince just now?"
"How could we not see it? She's worse than the prostitutes in our pleasure district!"
"It's a waste of her talent to be a princess. She might as well work in the pleasure district; she might even become a courtesan queen."
Sitting in his carriage, Xie Jingxi closed his eyes and smiled faintly as he listened.
These soldiers were like dogs; if one barked, the others would follow.
He had merely put on a show, and he could effortlessly incite the army's morale, making Ji Zizhao the target of everyone's ire.
The waves of mockery were more piercing than the cold wind blowing against them.
Ji Zixiu clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, continuing to move forward without looking sideways.
No matter what others said, she did not believe her elder sister truly had any feelings for the Second Prince.
Seeing that Ji Zixiu didn't react, Cao Yan deliberately walked up to her and said teasingly, "To be honest, Princess Rong He would be perfect if she went to Luoyi. If she were to be fancied by the Turks and go to Turkestan to please men, it would be a contribution to our Yulin."
Ji Zixiu suddenly turned around, grabbed Cao Yan by his collar, and said, "What did you say!"
Cao Yan glared at Ji Zixiu with disgust, his mocking smile unchanged, "The first rule of the army is no private disturbances, or you will be permanently expelled from the camp. But, I say, it would be good for you to be expelled, and it would be best if you and your slutty sister went to Turkestan. With your looks and your sister's slutty appearance, you would surely make those Turkic dogs linger."
"You..." Ji Zixiu's beautiful eyes widened with rage, her clenched fists making cracking sounds.
She could tolerate anything said about herself.
But she would never allow anyone to slander her elder sister like this!
Cao Yan didn't expect Ji Zixiu to disregard military regulations. Seeing her raised fist, he trembled all over, "Ji Zixiu, you, you wouldn't dare, aren't you afraid of being expelled from the army!"
Ji Zixiu gritted her teeth and looked at Cao Yan, who was annoying in every way, "I only fear that I can't beat you to death!"
Since the incident with the Ji family, her elder sister had been the one carrying them through.
Without her elder sister, she wouldn't even know if she could survive, let alone join the army.
Therefore...
At this moment, nothing was more important to her than her elder sister.
Suddenly, a commotion arose in the distance.
The carriage carrying Princess Rong He stopped for no reason.
As the carriage door slowly opened, Ji Zizhao was seen stepping out of the carriage with steady steps.