Just as he finished speaking, Li Yu's voice suddenly came from outside the door.
"Deng Ying, are you still in there?"
Deng Ying looked up, "I'm here."
Li Yu said "Hi" and stood on tiptoe on the door, urging, "It's been a while since school ended, and you're still guarding. Zheng Bingbi wants you to go to the Silijian, I came here to tell you, change your clothes and go over quickly, I'll go to the door to take charge."
Yang Wan looked at the retreating shadow on the window, stood up with her arms folded, raised her eyebrows and whispered: "The one who is close to the water gets the moon first."
Then he looked down at Deng Ying and said, "They are here."
Deng Ying nodded but did not stand up immediately.
He sat silently behind his desk for a while. As the sun gradually moved westward, the warmth that had been warming him all day faded away in the evening breeze. Deng Ying waited until the sun was halfway down before he stood up. A sudden chilly pain pierced his bones from the old injury on his ankle, forcing him to close his eyes to endure it.
“Does it hurt
Yang Wan said from the side.
"It doesn't hurt..."
"It's okay, just stand there for a moment."
She ignored his excuses, squatted down, rolled up Deng Ying's trouser legs, and took out a silk handkerchief embroidered with hibiscus flowers from her arms.
"Let me tell you first, I won't mess around, and you don't move either."
After saying this, he freed one hand, gathered the hanging sleeves on his knees, then carefully folded the silk and reached out to gently wrap the wound on Deng Ying's ankle.
"You see, you didn't want to listen to me in the sea, and now you are like this."
After she said this, she immediately turned her head to comfort him, "But don't think too much, this injury is actually nothing, it's just that it's cold and gloomy, so you have to keep it warm. Just protect it with something thick like this, and it will be healed in a while."
Deng Ying remained silent.
Yang Wan tucked in the corners of the silk quilt, and seeing that he didn't move or say anything, she couldn't help but hug her knees and look up at him.
A large clump of leaf shadows fell on Deng Ying's face, and she could hardly see his expression clearly.
Although he is willing to talk to Yang Wan now, he is still a silent person in essence, just like a text written very lightly, which has already stored a layer of quiet benevolence when it was put to paper.
"What's wrong."
"I don't want to ruin your things."
"It would be a waste if you don't want it."
She propped up her knees, stood up and brushed off the dust on her legs, "Go quickly, I have to go back to the South Office too."
After that, he smiled and pointed at the nuts on the table, "Eat them all, don't waste them."
Deng Ying looked at the nuts on the table and found that there were still a few left.
He grabbed his sleeves and picked them all up.
When Yang Wan was writing, she would chew without stopping. He did not think these things were very delicious at first, but after eating them for a long time, it seemed to become a habit.
He thought about it and couldn't help laughing at himself.
He raised his hand to put it into his mouth, but she turned back from outside the door, leaned on the door frame, leaned half of her body out and called him.
"Deng Ying."
Deng Ying hurriedly clenched her hands in embarrassment and hid them in her sleeves.
It is not right to eat it now, and it is not right to put it back.
Yang Wan looked at his embarrassment and laughed, "I forgot to tell you just now, don't worry too much, people like you can't make a wrong choice."
Having said this, she swung a pair of hibiscus jade pendants on her waist and walked into the thick shadow of the evening.
Deng Ying looked at her back, then glanced at the nuts hidden in her hand, and inexplicably wanted to believe her last words.
**
The nuts were eaten and the tea was completely cold.
Deng Ying cleaned his hands and walked out of the inner school.
The bloody smell had been completely blown away by the evening breeze, and even brought with it a hint of nameless floral fragrance.
His leg injury flared up today, so he walked a little slowly.
The Silijian was behind the Shouhuang Palace. To get there, one had to go around Wansui Mountain, exit the Zhongbei Gate to the north, and then pass the Shangyijian and Zhenerju. It was a long journey.
When Deng Ying arrived at the meeting room of the Imperial Household Department, it was already dark. Zheng Yuejia was standing at the foot of the stone steps holding a lantern and waiting for him.
Deng Ying raised her head and glanced at the door of the meeting room. The door was closed, the light coming through the window pane was dim, and the voices of the people inside seemed to be deliberately suppressed.
Zheng Yuejia walked up to him with a lamp in hand, and the light suddenly illuminated their faces.
"The Imperial Household Department has its own rules. You are late today."
Deng Ying avoided the fire by moving to the side.
"Yes, I will plead guilty to the Chief Seal."
Zheng Yuejia patted his shoulder and looked behind him. "You were late for half an hour, which is enough to change the old ancestor's view of you. I don't know if you did it on purpose, but I still want to advise you that your life was given by the Imperial Household Department. Since you are given this life, you are the same as us. In the inner court, no servant can survive alone. Your Majesty is our master, and the old ancestor is the sky that protects us. If you are wrong, you will die."
Deng Ying nodded, "I understand."
People talk about bone structure.
Zheng Yuejia had been in the Imperial Household Department for so many years, and had seen too many eunuchs. Some of them had struggled out of the dungeons, and with their tenacity and courage to sacrifice their dignity, they had finally made a name for themselves. But none of them looked like human beings. Each of them had either fangs and green faces, or had the appearance of an official with a slave-like body.
But the man in front of him, with his facial structure wrapped in a green robe, seemed to be naturally incompatible with this damp and cold place.
Even if he was obedient, it was only out of self-cultivation.
"That's good to know."
Zheng Yuejia turned around and said, "Follow me in."
Although the Silijian was the most important office in the inner court, it was not very large. It was three rooms wide, and the main hall was the meeting room.
Zheng Yuejia pushed open the door, and the already dim lights in the room were instantly blown out by the draft.
Everyone sitting in the light raised their heads and looked at Deng Ying.
He Yixian, who was sitting in the middle, was still drinking medicine. She didn't look at Deng Ying. She just said, "Is it here?" She slowly drank the medicine from the bowl and pointed to her side with the hand holding the bowl. "Yuejia, come and sit. You don't have to stand with the people below."
"yes."
Zheng Yuejia bowed, lifted his robe and walked to sit beside He Yixian, then took his medicine bowl, held it in his hands and wiped it carefully with his sleeve.
"Okay."
He Yixian reached out to grab it, "You drink it every day, do you still want your skin?"
Zheng Yuejia turned his back and said, "Hey, your son will serve you, even if you don't want to be punished."
As he spoke, his eyes swept across Deng Ying's face.
He Yixian shook his head and laughed, "You used to deal with people from the Ministry of Industry a lot, see."
He pointed at Zheng Yuejia's shoulder and said to the others sitting there, "He still protects his old friend."
Deng Ying followed He Yixian's words and quickly glanced around the meeting room.
In addition to Zheng Yuejia, the eunuchs Liu Dingcheng, Hu Xiang, and Zhou Xinling were also seated. In addition, there was a man kneeling in front of him wearing prison clothes and heavy shackles.
Although the lights were dim, Deng Ying still recognized the man as Wang Changshun from Liulichang. This revealed the first layer of the plot tonight.
He glanced at Zheng Yuejia, then knelt down behind the man and kowtowed to He Yixian.
Liu Dingcheng sat next to Deng Ying and saw him like this. He suddenly asked, "Are you not going to change your words?"
He Yixian smiled and took over the words, "You can't say that. Deng Shaojian is Mr. Zhang's student. Our shelter depends on Mr. Zhang and Deng Shaojian. There is no need to change this. Just behave yourself in front of the masters."
After saying that, he gave Deng Ying a helping hand and said, "Get up."
Deng Ying stood up with his back straight and his hands hanging down.
He Yixian looked him up and down, then suddenly asked with a smile, "Do you hate me very much?"
"Deng Ying doesn't dare."
"You said so, but little did you know that Lord Bai and the others were poking me in the back and scolding me for coming up with such a sinister idea."
As soon as he finished speaking, Hu Xiang continued, "They said it was vicious, but I don't think it's right. They didn't protect Mr. Zhang's only disciple because they were afraid of being implicated and making themselves the same as Zhou Congshan of Tongjia Academy. In the final analysis, they don't have the ability to do that. If we protect him, then he is naturally ours. I think what Eunuch Liu said is right and we should change our words. We are all protected by our ancestors to have where we are today. Why, after saving a whole person, do we have to give half of him to Yang Lun and others? That doesn't make sense."
"alright."
He Yixian interrupted him, "I haven't said that yet, don't be impatient, Yuejia, go move a stool and let him sit on it. One of them can kneel here, and it will be messy if one more person stands."
Zheng Yuejia went there as requested.
Deng Ying sat down behind Wang Changshun. After hearing what General Hu Xiang said, he almost understood the intention of the Imperial Household Department. The only thing that was a little unexpected was the appearance of Wang Shunshun.
This man was arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guards, and now he was kneeling openly in the meeting room of the Imperial Household Department. This meant that the Imperial Household Department was in contact with the Northern Pacification Office.
"Wang Changshun."
"Grandfather, my son is here."
Wang Changshun's voice was filled with tears, and it was obvious that he had been crying before Deng Ying came in.
"Take a look back. Do you recognize him?"
Wang Changshun dragged his shackles and crawled on his knees, turned around, glanced at Deng Ying, and quickly turned around and cried, "I know him, this is Mr. Deng, everyone in our factory knows him."
"Oh."
He Yixian laughed, "You're still trying to make trouble. You're about to die."
Wang Changshun knelt a few steps towards He Yixian, "Grandfather, you must save your son. He doesn't want to die..."
"If you don't want to die, begging me is useless. You have to beg Deng Shaojian. You have to ask him to save your life. Only then can I give you a way to heaven."
Wang Shunchang understood what He Yixian meant, and rushed to Deng Ying without hesitation, hugging Deng Ying's legs. "Mr. Deng, please save me. If you are willing to save my life, I will give the boy outside to you as your son. I also have some beautiful women outside, I will give them to you... I only ask you to give me a way to live..."
Deng Ying felt that he was about to touch the silk wrapped around his ankle by Yang Wan, so he pulled his legs back half a foot: "Let me go first."
"Mr. Deng..."
"Release first."
He raised his voice and looked up at He Yixian, "I have something to say to the Palm Seal."
Only then did Wang Shunchang let him go.
Deng Ying bent down, ignoring the gazes of the people present, took off Yang Wan's silk, gently flicked off the dust on it, and folded it in his arms. Then he said to He Yixian: "Deng Ying has spent more than ten years on the construction of the imperial city. If Deng Ying wanted to say many things, she would have said them long ago. Now, I am already a cripple, not tolerated by teachers and friends, so naturally I will not be arrogant and talk about big things."
He Yixian tilted her head to look at the half piece of silk exposed in his arms, and suddenly said, "The texture of this silk is good. I saw it when you walked in."
Deng Ying did not answer.
He Yixian waved at him.
"Don't worry, she is the sister of Yang Lun and Concubine Ning. No matter what she does, there will be someone to protect her. As for us..."
He smiled and said, "She is not even worthy of being mentioned."
To others, this sentence may not sound like anything, but Deng Ying felt a sudden pain in her arms where she had placed the silk handkerchief.
"Are you hurt?" He Yixian stood up. "It would be better if you were hurt. Then you would talk to me seriously."