one
Yu Zhaoyang.
Only my mother cried out before her death: "Where is my Zhaoyang?"
But who still remembers this name now
The next day after she arrived in the capital, she went to see the former Yu Mansion on Guanying Street, but everything had changed.
This past event was so secretive that she thought only her uncle and grandmother knew about it. However, it was pointed out to her by an outsider without any warning in front of her, which really shocked her.
After Shang Rui asked that question, he looked at her quietly for a long while.
Xia Yue straightened her back and looked back at him breathlessly without saying a word. It was not until he left that she realized her clothes were soaked with sweat.
She has always been a very opinionated person, but now she has completely lost her direction. She is extremely scared. She is afraid that her grandmother and uncle will be implicated, that Zi Jin will be implicated, and that she will cause something bad to He Xiang.
When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, she called He Xiang over and whispered to her, "Have you ever gone out since you and I entered the Li Mansion together?"
"No." He Xiang shook her head. These days, Xia Yue was in a coma, on the verge of life and death, how could she dare to leave her side.
"Go to your uncle's place early tomorrow morning. If anyone asks you, just say you went to buy something for me."
He Xiang nodded.
"Take a letter with you when you see Grandmother. She will give you a bundle with some silver in it. You should take it with you and leave the city immediately. It would be best if you can find the young master and tell him what I said before. If you can't find him, don't go back to Jinluo. The farther you go, the better."
After hearing this, He Xiang started crying again: "Miss, your illness is obviously cured, why are you chasing me away again?"
Xia Yue suddenly felt that he had been too protective of her in the past and had never been cruel enough, so she frowned and whispered angrily, "This is a matter of life and death. I want you to go first to inform them, and then to leave. It's useless for you to say more. If you don't help me, who else can I trust here?"
Seeing her expression, He Xiang dared not say anything more.
After a while, Xia Yue regretted it again and said, "Maybe my rash decision to let you go has played into their hands."
"What should we do then?"
Xia Yue thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about it later."
He Xiang couldn't help but ask, "Miss, what happened? You were fine before, but why are you acting weird after meeting Master Hong?"
"It's better if you don't know some things." Xia Yue sighed.
"Are you still going to Uncle's house?"
"Hold on."
This wait lasted for seven or eight days.
These days, Xia Yue sent He Xiang to the street to buy things with various excuses, but she did not go to Mingshan Hall. Instead, she deliberately went to other places to buy some small items.
"Is there anyone following you?" Xia Yue asked.
"Not found." He Xiang replied.
Xia Yue drank the medicine silently, leaned on the bed, and said nothing more in deep thought.
She was not sure whether it was really the case or the other party was too cautious, so He Xiang did not notice it at all.
But in Li's house, these few days were indeed no different from the past. No one came to deliberately test him, and no one came to show his courtesy. Everything around him was normal, as if what happened that day was an illusion, and even "Hongwu" had never appeared again.
And the blood magpie was still delivered every other day.
After resting for a few days, she was able to get out of bed and walk around.
At noon, He Xiang came back from the street, put the things she bought on the table, and drank a sip of water.
"Still no one stopped you?" Xia Yue asked.
"No, but I met Xiaoshun when I came back just now, and he asked me why I went out." Xiaoshun was the little medicine boy beside Li Ji.
"how do you say?"
"Just as the young lady told me. You said you felt stuffy in the room, so you asked me to buy some silk thread to make tassels."
Xia Yue nodded and stopped asking.
"By the way." He Xiang added, "The silk thread store we often go to has also increased in price."
Xia Yue didn't take it seriously and said "Oh", but unexpectedly He Xiang continued to report: "The boss said that there was a war recently and the goods from the south couldn't come over, so the price was raised."
Xia Yue asked hurriedly: "Where is the war going on?"
Seeing her expression, He Xiang knew that something was wrong, so she replied, "It was said to be in the south, but I didn't ask for the details. If the lady wants to know, I'll go out again."
An hour later, the lotus fragrance disappeared and returned.
She was not stupid. She went out to find out some information and concluded, "The Prince of Huai in the south rebelled and fought against the imperial army."
"When did this happen?"
"Oh, I remember now," He Xiang said, "When you were not feeling well that day, Lord Li mentioned the Prince of Huai and said something about a mutiny. I didn't understand it at the time. It was more than a month ago."
After listening to this, Xia Yue silently calculated the time in her mind.
"What's the situation now?"
"Looking at the peaceful and prosperous situation in the imperial capital, it seems that nothing serious has happened. Everyone says that the King of Huai is just trying to hit a rock with an egg. However, the guy in the tailor shop secretly told me that these are actually the court's way of appeasing people's hearts."
After He Xiang finished speaking, she helped Xia Yue get up from the table and slowly walked back to the bed.
"That's all?" Xia Yue asked.
She remembered that Zi Jin should have taken Chu Qin and Chu Zhong to find Prince Huai, but she didn't know whether he planned to surrender to him or not. Now she suddenly learned that Prince Huai had mutinied, and her mood was very complicated.
"They said the emperor sent Xu Jingye as the commander-in-chief."
Xia Yue didn't care about the court at all, so she asked again: "Have you heard any other news from Prince Huai?"
He Xiang thought about it and suddenly said, "Oh, yes, there is also a King of Yanping!"
Hearing these three words, Xia Yue was about to sit down beside the bed, but her body froze in mid-air: "What happened to King Yanping?"
Seeing Xia Yue's strange expression, He Xiang didn't dare to continue and asked, "Miss?"
"What happened to King Ping of Yan?" she asked again.
"Miss, who is this King Ping of Yan? Why have I never heard of him before? I heard that he rebelled together with King Huai."
"anything else?"
"He also said that the Prince of Huai wanted to marry his princess to him."
Xia Yue listened silently, then said to herself, "Princess Yanqing seems to be two years younger than him. The two are of similar age, so it's perfect for them."
"Miss, do you know them?"
Xia Yue didn't answer, lost in her own thoughts.
If what He Xiang had heard was true, then it was unclear whether it was a happy or sad thing for Zi Jin to be tied to Prince Huai. Prince Huai was the first to submit to the current emperor, and now he was the first to turn against him, which showed his character. So if Zi Jin really married his only daughter, it would be a guarantee.
Now, Zijin's identity has been made public, and he is also against the imperial court. So, will someone follow the clues to find the Yu family and get rid of them as soon as possible
The more she thought about it, the more frightened she became, and she suddenly felt that the look in "Hongwu"'s eyes that day was even more unusual.
So she said, "Tomorrow, you will go to see your uncle and do what I tell you to do."
"Go tomorrow?" He Xiang took two steps back in surprise. She thought that Xia Yue had given up the idea after these few days.
"Before you go out tomorrow, you must do as usual and remember what I taught you." Xia Yue warned.
"Miss..." He Xiang's tears welled up at the thought of separation.
Xia Yue knew that if she didn't explain to He Xiang again, she would not be able to convince her anyway, so she sighed softly and said, "Come here, I'll tell you."
He Xiang wiped her tears and walked to the bed with her head down.
"My father used to be a wanted criminal in the imperial court." Xia Yue said calmly.
He Xiang looked up in surprise when she heard the voice: "Master?"
"He is a good man," Xia Yue continued, "I guarantee that he is a good man. Although he was not wronged, he had his own reasons and did not do anything against the law. But he offended someone in the court, and then he took our family of four to escape to Jinluo, and then took you in. Now someone recognized me."
"Who is it?" He Xiang asked anxiously.
"Don't ask, just keep listening to me." Xia Yue said, "If you don't do as I say, my grandmother and uncle might all be implicated by me, including you."
"But if we leave, what will you do, young lady?"
"I have my own plans, you don't have to worry."
"When was the young lady discovered? Did I say something I shouldn't have said that made people see the flaw? Did Lord Li know something?" He Xiang began to blame herself.
"It's not what you think."
"That was Master Hong?" He Xiang suddenly remembered the details. "Master Hong came to visit Miss that day, and then it turned out like this. That's it. I tried to persuade Miss to be with him, but I didn't expect that he would actually hurt you in the end."
"Now that you understand why, you must listen to me tomorrow."
"Miss, what are you going to do?"
"Don't worry, after you leave, I will have nothing to worry about and will be able to deal with others. Besides, if Hongwu wanted to harm me, he wouldn't have bothered to save me before."
After she finished saying this, He Xiang seemed to believe it.
"Where is the hairpin that Mr. Hong gave me?" she asked.
He Xiang responded, took it out of the box on the dressing table and gave it to Xia Yue. Last time at Tianjiazhuang, Shang Rui had someone send it to Xia Yue again, and she couldn't throw it away, so she just asked He Xiang to keep it.
Xia Yue casually placed the hairpin under the pillow.
At night, she reached out and touched the thing under her pillow. The hairpin was made of pure gold, and the pattern was a little soft, but the hairpin head was made of something, hard and sharp, much sharper than other jewelry. What she told He Xiang just now was half true and half false.
"Hongwu" saved her, if he just wanted her life, he would take it.
The next morning, He Xiang went out as usual. She first bought some snacks that Xia Yue liked, and then went to a tailor shop.
The proprietress of this tailor shop has a young son who is frail and often sick. She is a widow who supports the shop alone with her old mother. Mu Yuanzhi would ask his assistant to deliver medicine every other day.
He Xiang waited for a while on the street, and sure enough, she saw the clerk of her uncle's family carrying something into the tailor shop. She took the opportunity to walk in through the main door. The clerk was about to speak when he saw He Xiang, but was stopped by He Xiang, who quietly slipped the note from her sleeve to him: "Give it to the old lady for me when you go back."
After finishing her business, she turned into an alley and waited quietly for an hour. Not seeing any suspicious people, she then went to the east corner of the city.
The old lady has arrived.
"Is Yue'er okay?" asked the old lady.
"Everything is fine, Miss." He Xiang replied.
The old lady also found the jade in the place Xia Yue said, and carefully took it out from her bosom and handed it to He Xiang.
Because the letter was very clear, the old lady did not ask any more questions. She just said with tears in her eyes: "We will leave when it gets dark. Tell her not to worry."
Xia Yue said in the letter that if they disappeared together, it would be too conspicuous, so she told the old lady to leave first, and she and He Xiang would escape later. The old lady did not suspect anything, and she gave the bag and left.
He Xiang opened the bag, and inside it, besides some valuables that Xia Yue brought to the capital, there were also new shoes and socks made by the old man for Xia Yue. He Xiang was so sad at the sight that tears immediately filled her eyes.
After crying for a while, she stood up, made a decision, wiped the tears from her face, put the jade close to her body, picked up her bag and went straight back to Li Ji's house.
When He Xiang came back, Li Ji was giving acupuncture to Xia Yue.
When Xia Yue saw her swaggering into the house with her bag, she couldn't help but feel angry and furious, but she couldn't say anything because there were others around.
Xiao Shun asked her, "Sister He Xiang, did you go out and buy so many things again?"
"Yeah." He Xiang responded.
"You often buy either silk thread or clothes, or rouge and snacks..."
"Is it your business to meddle in a girl's affairs?" He Xiang glared at him.
After removing the needle, Li Ji was about to leave when Xia Yue stopped him.
"Master Li," Xia Yue said, "I asked you to treat my brother's illness..."
Li Ji lowered his head and replied, "Your brother's illness is not a terminal one, so why do you have to be so obsessed with it, young lady?"
Xia Yue wanted to say more, but seeing that Li Ji had already opened the door and left, she had to retract her gaze and focus on He Xiang. He Xiang knew that she was in the wrong, so she walked over quietly and closed the door, while reporting: "The old lady and the uncle will probably leave tonight."
Xia Yue said angrily, "You don't want to listen to what I say, do you?"
"Miss, I won't leave."
"Then what about the things I asked you to bring to Zijin after you leave the city?" Xia Yue asked her.
He Xiang took out the jade cicada that the old lady gave her from her collar, stuffed it into Xia Yue's pocket and said, "Miss, you can give it to the young master yourself when you have the chance. I won't go."
“He needs this thing now.”
"What does that have to do with me? The young master has the elder brother Chu and the second brother Chu, but the young lady only has me." He Xiang defended herself with her neck stiff.
Xia Yue didn't continue to argue with He Xiang. She had said everything she needed to say. If she didn't want to listen, there was nothing she could do. She sighed and said, "I don't know who you learned this stubbornness from."
"Who else could it be?" He Xiang grinned foolishly.
Xia Yue did not smile. She just placed the piece of Gao Xin jade in her palm and rubbed it gently back and forth for a while. Then she turned around, took out a pink purse from under the pillow and put the jade in it.
"Miss," He Xiang advised, "maybe Master Hong has no ill intentions, he just happens to know your old name, otherwise why hasn't he come to trouble you for so many days?"
Xia Yue finally looked up at her and glared at her, "You're the only one who's smart!"
two
The careless and misguided battle in Yunzhong had caused Xu's army to lose its fighting spirit, and then the court sent Sima Lin to supervise the battle. The two had always been sworn enemies, and Xu Jingye felt even more humiliated. Now, Sima Lin came to report that Xu Jingye was impatient and reckless, stubborn and self-willed, abandoning Yunzhong and marching straight into Canghuang. The main army's battle line was too long and they were afraid that supplies would be insufficient.
After reading the memorial, Shang Rui neither supported Sima Lin nor warned Xu Jingye. He only wrote a line to Xu Jingye: General Xu is old and weak, so he should act within his ability.
Shang Rui had been in a bad mood for several days, and everyone thought it was because of the tense war, but Ming Lian was the only one who saw something. Ming Lian knew him well, and he would never show his feelings about the court, so there must be other reasons, so he was very careful in every move, fearing that he would offend Ming Lian.
At dusk, Yao Chuang brought Xia Yue's latest developments.
Shang Rui took a sip of tea and said nothing.
Yao Chuang said: "It looks like the people from the clinic are leaving tonight."
Shang Rui placed the teacup on the table.
Yao Chuang added: "If Miss Min wants to leave too, should I stop her?"
Shang Rui stood up, took two steps with his hands behind his back, and then said calmly: "Let her be."
At night, Shang Rui felt bored, so he took Ming Lian out of the palace to drink and listen to music. Ming Lian went to inform Hong Wu to go with him without authorization.
As soon as they arrived at the restaurant, Hongwu arrived right after.
Hongwu came forward and pretended to meet him by chance, saying with a smile: "Hey, you are here too, what a coincidence."
Shang Rui glanced at Ming Lian, then squinted at Hong Wu and said, "Stop pretending. Everyone knows what you two are thinking."
Hongwu continued to play dumb: "What kind of play is this?"
"Then you go in by yourself, I'll go to another one." Shang Rui raised his leg and was about to leave.
Minglian and Hongwu quickly stopped him and confessed the truth.
The three of them entered the restaurant and went up to the private room on the second floor. After the food and drinks were served, the singing girl came with her zither. After playing two songs, the girl tuned the strings and rested for a while.
Hongwu rewarded her with some silver and chatted with her for a while.
"From your accent, the girl seems to be not a local?" Hongwu asked.
"My name is Yuyin, and I am from Jinluo."
Shang Rui was peeling the pine nuts in front of him by himself. He didn't say a word from beginning to end. When he heard the word "Jinluo", he raised his head and glanced at the other person, then snorted coldly.
The woman thought she had said something wrong and lowered her head in embarrassment.
Ming Lian knew what was bothering him, so he eased the atmosphere and said, "Miss, do you have any songs that are good at and sound festive? Play one for our young master."
Unexpectedly, Hongwu was so ignorant of the current situation that he interrupted and said, "I heard that Jinluo is the music town of our David Dynasty. Everyone has a voice like a lark. Sing a few local songs for me to hear."
Ming Lian really wanted to cover his mouth when he heard this.
The other person was young and didn't know how to read people's expressions when speaking. He smiled shyly and said, "I heard from the elders that it's the good water from Jinluo. I've been drinking it since I was a child and my throat has become stronger and stronger."
Shang Rui sneered: "Then give me a couple of sips sometime, and I can go out and perform on the street."
Seeing that Hongwu was still trying to reply, Ming quickly said, "Miss, you should continue to sing for us."
When the first song reached the end, it was interrupted by noisy sounds outside the door.