Nangong Xian and his attendants stood on the city wall and looked at the convoy heading east.
"City Lord, if we let her go to East City like this, what if..."
Nangong Xian waved his hand, "Although Dongcheng Yuwen Jin is young, he is able to hold this position and is not as harmless as he appears. She will definitely not be able to achieve her wish this time. It is good to let her know that without the help of her uncle, she can't do anything with her current condition."
Nangong Xian had a smile on his face, but his tone was full of indifference. "Although this child looks like her mother, her personality is the same as my eldest brother. She is indeed his offspring, and it is impossible to tame her. I have been a loving uncle to her for so many years, but she still refuses to tell me where that place is, and she hid the key tightly. I thought that after learning a lesson, she should be more obedient after waking up, but I didn't expect... Humph."
The trusted attendant looked at his expression and said, "The city lord cares too much about the young lady, but in order to obtain the treasure, some sacrifices are inevitable. The city lord needs to make a decision early."
Nangong Xian looked uncertain, "You're right. If this way doesn't work, then I can only use other methods."
…
Tang Li sat in the carriage, feeling a little drowsy as the carriage shook along the way. She was blind now, so many things were inconvenient. She didn't know what was going on around her, so she didn't dare to show anything unusual. She knew that the more she spoke, the more mistakes she made, so she kept silent most of the time. After leaving South City and out of her uncle's sight, Tang Li felt much more relaxed.
Although I don't remember the specific plot, in that novel, this uncle seemed to be a bad guy. It was this vague impression that made people feel even more uneasy.
The carriage was moving very fast, because Tang Li didn't want to meet Xiahou Xuanyu at all, and didn't want to be easily caught up. If Xiahou Xuanyu really came to South City, he would chat with Nangong Xian first. When she arrived in East City, she would be out of the environment controlled by Nangong Xian and these seemingly loyal maids around her, and she could ask other people about Xun Nu's news without arousing Nangong Xian's suspicion.
At Tang Li's urging, the team finally entered the East City soon after, and then smoothly arrived at the main city of East City. After entering the main city, Tang Li's first feeling was the hustle and bustle. Even though she couldn't see it, she could hear the various shouts and hawking outside the carriage, the chatter of the crowd, and she could imagine the bustling scene.
After entering the city, the speed of the carriage slowed down significantly. Tang Li was weak from the fast journey during these days and could not bear it. She felt very dizzy.
"Let's find a place to rest for a while, and send someone to deliver the visiting card to the City Lord's Mansion." Tang Li called the maid and gave brief instructions.
"Yes, ma'am."
Soon, the convoy stopped in front of an inn. This inn was magnificent, and the furnishings inside were no worse than those of ordinary wealthy people. It was also very famous in East City. The inn waiter came forward and saw Tang Li and the group of guards and maids being helped off the carriage. He led them in and settled them down with great enthusiasm.
Not long after Tang Li and his group entered the inn, Yuwen Jin and his good friends Duan Ming and Xun rode past the entrance of the inn on horseback and came to the tallest restaurant in East City, diagonally opposite the inn.
"Today they have received a new precious ingredient in the building. It is said that it tastes extremely delicious. You will never forget it once you have tasted it. Brother Duan and Brother Xun, you are in for a treat!" Yuwen Jintong was shining with gold all over his body, looking very wealthy. Duan Ming was waving a fan, looking a romantic and elegant young man. The two of them standing together looked like two idle dandies. As for Xun, his temperament was completely different from the other two. With him around, fewer people dared to approach him.
Yuwen Jin got some peace and quiet, sat down by the window, and sighed, "It's much more convenient to go out with Brother Xun. I feel at ease without even taking a guard with me." Thinking back to the past, when he had not yet secured the position of city lord, he was often assassinated by killers hired by several of his brothers. At that time, he did not dare to go out without dozens of guards.
Duan Ming was used to his cowardice. He leaned against the window and looked at the street below. While waiting for the food to be served, he still did not forget to admire the beautiful girls on the street.
"Hey, Ajiu, look at the door of the inn. Although you can't see her face clearly, you can tell from her figure and posture that she must be a beauty." Duan Ming pointed at the door of the inn with his fan.
Yuwen Jin also looked over when he heard this and saw a woman in a white dress and yellow skirt. She was so slender that she looked like she could be broken by a gust of wind. He nodded in agreement and said, "She must be a beauty. She seems to be a little sick and needs the support of a maid. But a sick beauty also has a kind of fragility that makes people pity her."
Xun seemed not to hear their conversation and sat aside without any intention of turning around to look at them.
Yuwen Jin turned around and saw him like this, shrugged at his friend, and placed the food brought by the waiter in front of Xun, "Brother Xun, if you don't like to look at beauties, then try the food. I dare say that no one can make a better dish than this."
He was just bragging out of habit, but after saying this, Xun actually paused his chopsticks and looked at him.
Yuwen Jin: "…" Hey, what happened? Why did Brother Xun suddenly glare at me? Is there something wrong with what I said
Tang Li sat in the inn for a while. After she recovered from the dizziness, she felt a little hungry. The maid asked her what she wanted to eat. Tang Li had no appetite. Suddenly, she remembered that she had smelled a peculiar spicy fragrance when the carriage drove over. This reminded her of the food she had brought to eat when she went to visit a friend in Shu before.
On a whim, she followed the smell out of the inn, went to the small shop, and ate a bowl of nostalgic spicy noodles. Touching the edge of the bowl gently, Tang Li thought, if she could meet Xun Nu again, when her eyes were healed, she would definitely cook a lot of delicious food for him. She hadn't had time to let him taste many of the dishes she could cook. In fact, she was also good at this kind of spicy noodles, but she couldn't buy peppers in Bailu City at that time, so she couldn't make it for him.
At that time, she had already thought about it. She wanted to do many things with Xunnu for the rest of her life, and there were many dishes she wanted to cook for him. If she couldn't accomplish it, she would regret it very much and would not be willing to die.
"Miss?"
Tang Li came back to her senses, held the maid's hand, and slowly walked out of the shop.
The streets were crowded with people, the crowds coming and going were noisy, and all kinds of sounds seemed particularly noisy in the ears. Tang Li felt a little uncomfortable and quickened her pace to get on the carriage.
"City Lord, I just received a visiting card. Nangong Qin from the south city has already arrived in the city. She will come to visit in the afternoon." The person from the City Lord's Mansion delivered the visiting card. Yuwen Jin took a look at it and sighed, saying in annoyance, "Why did she come so soon? I really don't want to see this beautiful Nangong. If she is really like what Ah Ming said, I might as well go to Tianyin Tower to watch dancing."
The three of them had just finished their meal and walked downstairs to the restaurant when they received the visiting card. Yuwen Jin complained while holding the visiting card, but when he raised his eyes, he suddenly noticed a flash in front of his eyes, and Xun, who was originally standing beside him, was submerged in the crowd in the blink of an eye.
Yuwen Jin was dumbfounded, "Eh? Brother Xun?" He turned to look at Duan Ming next to him, "A Ming, where is Brother Xun going?"
Duan Ming shrugged to indicate that he didn't know. "I don't know either, but he seemed to be in a hurry just now. This is the first time I've seen him like this. Did something big happen?"
Yuwen Jin suddenly approached him, looked around vigilantly, and said with a weak dry laugh: "Could it be that someone deliberately lured the tiger away from the mountain, lured Brother Xun away, and wanted to assassinate me?" Someone has come from Nancheng!
Duan Ming: "... Calm down and don't cling to me."
Xun stood in the crowd, turned his head and looked around, all he saw were unfamiliar faces, each with its own joys, sorrows, anger and happiness, but the only missing face was the familiar face that he had just glimpsed.
He slowly stopped and the sudden surge of emotions in his heart calmed down.
Maybe he had seen it wrong again. Yes, she was dead. He had held her cold body for a long time and even watched it rot. In the end, he buried her with his own hands. The fact that she was dead was clear to him. But even so, just now, when he vaguely saw a similar face, he still subconsciously followed it.
The world was vast, and the mayflies were floating around, with nowhere to go. Xun stood quietly in the bustling crowd, but none of the bustle belonged to him. He turned around and walked back, passing a carriage.
The wind blew up the green gauze curtain of the sedan chair, revealing a pale and delicate face, which then fell down gently.
"Brother Xun! You are finally back! Why did you leave without saying a word just now? Did something happen?" When Yuwen Jin saw Xun coming back, he immediately changed from a compressed state to an expanded state and greeted him with full energy.
Xun shook his head and said nothing. Duan Ming noticed that his aura was even colder than before, so he bumped Yuwen Jin's arm and told him to shut up. Yuwen Jin was very curious about Xun's strange behavior just now, but he didn't dare to ask, so he could only laugh dryly, "Hahaha, I'm glad you're okay, I'm glad you're okay, then why don't we go back first."
"Someone is coming from South City this afternoon, and I have to cheer him up."
At this point, Yuwen Jin sighed, "What a hassle."
No matter how troublesome it was, the guest had to be welcomed. Yuwen Jin was thinking about how to deal with the woman who was said to have a vicious heart. He also thought it was strange that such a blind woman dared to come alone, and wondered if she actually had an assassin with her to threaten him.
"Brother Xun, you have to protect me!"
"It'll be fine." Xun said, then stood up and walked out.
"Ah? Ah? What? Why is everything fine? Brother Xun, are you leaving? Wait!" Yuwen Jin was shocked. He wanted to say something else, but Duan Ming held him down. "Okay, why are you shouting? Can't you see that Brother Xun is in a bad mood? I guess he wants to be alone now. You're too noisy."
Yuwen Jin: "What? How did I quarrel? And how can you tell that Brother Xun is in a bad mood? Doesn't he always have this expression?"
He was worried, so he went out, stood in the porch and looked up at the roof. He saw a black piece of clothing and then he sat back down with peace of mind.
Not long after, the guests arrived. When the "Nangong Beauty" was brought to the front by the maid, Yuwen Jin was a little surprised, because the woman in front of him was not the same as the Nangong Qin he imagined.
She was thin and slender, with a white gauze dress covering her goose yellow skirt, revealing a faint freshness in the haziness. Her long hair was half tied up with a ribbon, and the other half was scattered behind her, swaying slightly as she walked. Although her face was not stunningly beautiful, her expression was gentle and graceful, her lips were pale and her skin was white, and the weakness from long illness made her temperament even more ethereal. The first time Yuwen Jin saw her, he felt for no reason that this beauty was like a pear blossom on a branch, with a temperament and appearance that was very attractive.
Damn, she's so pretty, I can't say bad things to her! Yuwen Jin glanced at his good friend Duan Ming next to him and gave him a look that said "did you lie to me before?"
Duan Ming looked at Nangong Qin in front of him, with some doubt in his eyes, but when he received Yuwen Jin's gaze, he still responded with a look that said "Don't be deceived by appearances."
Tang Li couldn't see and didn't know their eye contact. She was very polite and bowed slightly in Yuwen Jin's direction. Her voice was as gentle as water, "I'm sorry for the intrusion."
Yuwen Jin coughed and said, "Ahem, no, no, I'm sorry for the poor hospitality. I hope Miss Nangong doesn't mind. Please take a seat."
Tang Li was helped by the maid to sit down, and the servant served tea. Yuwen Jin stretched out his hand as usual and said, "Please have some tea." After saying that, he realized that she couldn't see and felt a little embarrassed. Tang Li looked normal, reached out her hand and groped forward, touched the teacup, picked it up and took a sip. The tea was not hot, but warm.
Both parties drank tea, and neither of them intended to speak first. Yuwen Jin, as the host, was calm and composed, but Tang Li, who came to visit under the pretext of asking for medicine, also sat steadily, not in the least bit anxious.
Instead, Duan Ming, who was sitting next to him and playing with a fan, spoke first. He said, "Miss Nangong, I am Duan Ming from the Duan family of Donghai. I once visited Nancheng and met Miss Nangong. I wonder if you still remember her?"
Tang Li did not have Nangong Qin's memory. After hearing this, she pretended to think about it. After a while, she smiled apologetically and said, "I'm really sorry. I was in a coma for several years due to poisoning. After I woke up, I forgot a lot of things."
Her expression was natural and frank, without the slightest flaw. The more Duan Ming looked at her, the more he felt that she was different from the Nangong Qin he had met before. Before he could say anything else, he suddenly saw someone standing next to the screen.
Xun stood there without knowing when. He looked at the beautiful woman who was sitting there with a gentle smile with a stiff expression. He was like a bow stretched to the limit. Even Duan Ming could see how wrong he was. Yuwen Jin soon noticed Xun and noticed his abnormality. He could not help but exchange a glance with Duan Ming.
Brother Xun, why do you have this expression? Why is he looking at that Nangong beauty like that? Do they have a grudge against each other
Tang Li didn't hear any other sounds, she just felt the room suddenly become quiet and the atmosphere became a little subtle.
"What's wrong?" Tang Li asked hesitantly.
The author has something to say: We passed each other by chance, but now we have reached the end of the world, hehe.