Before Rong Tang set out south, he went back to Ningxuan Palace with Su Huaijing.
Rong Mingyu was very busy. Most of the time, he was either attending meetings in the Qinzheng Hall or walking around the six ministries and the cabinet. He was not in the mansion when Rong Tang returned home. The young master was very happy and took his son to have a meal with Wang Xiuyu.
Before deciding to set off, Su Huaijing sent someone back to the mansion to inform the princess. Therefore, although Wang Xiuyu was reluctant, she was not too surprised. On the contrary, because her son brought his daughter-in-law home to have dinner with her, she turned down many trivial matters in the mansion and spent the whole day with them peacefully.
Rong Tang had a lot of things he wanted to say, but after thinking carefully, he felt that there was no need.
Unless it is related to the male protagonist, the other characters and plots will probably not be much different even if there is a butterfly effect.
Wang Xiuyu died in the eleventh year of Qingzheng in her previous two lives. The imperial physicians from the palace diagnosed that she died of exhaustion due to overwork. It happened that the court of Dayu was in the most turbulent period at that time, and the Ningxuan Palace was in danger of extinction. Wang Xiuyu died in a bleak autumn. Although Rong Tang had given advance instructions twice, he also stayed with the princess on the eve of her death.
But he did have a mission to accomplish. Even if he escaped death in the original novel or in his previous life, Wang Xiuyu would still die during that time.
This kind of situation happens too many times, not just Wang Xiu Yu.
He thought about saving Mu Jingxu, but failed.
The system told him that every character in this world had a predetermined fate, which he could neither save nor change.
So Rong Tang began to copy scriptures.
He still didn't know what changes would happen in this life, and whether things could improve in the direction he hoped for.
But at least Su Huaijing has improved a lot.
After thinking it over again, Rong Tang once again told Wang Xiuyu not to work too hard. He originally wanted to leave Shuangfu in Beijing to look after him, but the princess was adamant and even wanted to assign a few servants and maids to accompany him to serve him. Rong Tang was at a loss whether to laugh or cry and was about to refuse, but Su Huaijing pressed his hand and agreed.
Rong Tang was puzzled. On the way back, he asked him why. Su Huaijing smiled and said, "When you are going on a long journey, your mother will always worry. Even if you bring more servants and money, she is afraid that you will be wronged on the road. If you don't agree to let her put a few people around you, she is afraid that the longer you are away, the longer your mother will worry about you. It will be bad for your health."
Su Huaijing said these words calmly and calmly. Rong Tang was stunned. He suddenly felt that he seemed not to be more considerate of Wang Xiuyu than he was, and felt a little embarrassed.
But before he could express his meaning, Su Huaijing pressed his hand again, and nonchalantly pressed the acupuncture points on his hand to help him loosen his tendons and veins, and said: "Tangtang, there is no need to reflect on it. You and your mother are the closest people in the world. You don't need to think twice about everything with close people. It's better to do whatever you want."
In other words, although family ties need to be maintained, after all, blood ties and mother-child relationships are natural gifts from this world. If one is overly rigid about such relationships, it can easily alienate people.
Su Huaijing clearly lost his relatives at a young age, but he sees things more clearly than Rong Tang, and even instinctively thinks and considers about him.
Rong Tang had an idea. Outside the carriage, the night market in Yujing City was the same as before, with evening lights in tall buildings, opera songs, and the full moon coming soon. The lanterns on the tall buildings reflected the moonlight and stars, and the shadows were blown into the carriage by the summer night breeze.
The candles and incense were burning on the table, and Rong Tang asked softly, "Are we close people?"
Su Huaijing paused for a moment, raised his phoenix eyes and stared at Rong Tang quietly, his lips opened and closed, and his tone was gentle: "What do you want to say, Tangtang?"
Rong Tang pursed his lips and said, "I want you to relax a little in front of me."
You can let down your guard a little, become arrogant due to your favor, be unreasonable, and demand a lot.
I will always follow you.
Su Huaijing heard the unfinished meaning in his words, his eyes suddenly curved, the light in his eyes was brighter than the bright moon in the sky, he curled his lips and said: "Tangtang is like the bright moon on earth to me."
It's not just simple "intimacy", it's cherishing, being grateful, looking up to, and at the same time wanting to hold him in my arms and keep the bright moonlight to myself.
-
On the morning of May 15th, the carriage set out from Yong'an Lane, passed through the city gate, and headed south.
There are still many things left in the capital, for example, they have not met Qin Pengxuan yet, and every time the Prince of Wukangbo sees Sheng Chengming, the Second Prince will ask him in a light tone, "Have your cousin and cousin-in-law forgiven you?"
But Rong Zheng was in Ningxuan Palace, and Rong Tang didn't want to worry about that. He and Su Huaijing just walked and stopped along the way, slowly wandering from the capital to the south of the Yangtze River, and finally set foot in Huizhou on the last day of May.
Rong Tang was drowsy the whole way, but woke up when passing by a mountain. He asked the driver to stop, bent down and got out of the carriage.
Su Huaijing went with him. Huizhou has many mountains and rivers with beautiful scenery, but it is not the destination of their trip. Rong Tang stood in the shade of an old elm tree, looking out at the tea houses and houses among the mountains.
It was just the right time, approaching noon. White smoke was coming out of the low earthen houses in the mountain village in twos and threes. Occasionally, the sounds of chickens crowing and dogs barking could be heard. Young children were playing at the entrance of the village. A cicada that had spent the summer was enough for them to entertain themselves for the whole day. Young children were unaware of the sufferings of the world.
The mountains are covered with emerald green tea trees, and each one is the foundation of these families' livelihood.
Rong Tang stood there and watched quietly. Su Huaijing came over, held his hand, and asked softly, "Tangtang wants to live here?"
Rong Tang shook his head and looked away: "I just think the scenery here is beautiful."
The scenery is beautiful and the weather is good. After entering the mountain, the weather suddenly became cooler. Unlike the scorching hot summer days, it is very suitable for summer vacation.
Rong Tang turned around and was about to get on the carriage and continue on their way. They were going to Suzhou and would not have passed by here originally. It was when Rong Tang passed the border between the two provinces that he suddenly had an idea and mentioned casually that he wanted to see the mountain. Su Huaijing then ordered the carriage to change the route.
Su Huaijing never refused to meet his needs.
So as soon as Rong Tang turned around, Su Huaijing grabbed his hand and prevented him from moving.
Rong Tang was stunned and looked back at him, but Su Huaijing led his men straight through the tea forest path and headed straight towards their home.
"I'm hungry," he said. "Let's go find a family and have a meal before we go."
Rong Tang watched him lead her along the way in a hurry, carefully selected a courtyard, knocked on the wooden door, and politely and measuredly stood outside the door to talk to the owner: "My husband and I are passing by here for fun. It's almost dinner time and we are hungry. May I ask if we can have a meal at your house?"
Coincidentally, there was a same-sex couple at home. The husband was out farming, and the husband was cooking at home. Hearing this, he was stunned for a moment, then agreed with a blushing face, welcomed them into the yard, and turned back to the wood stove to add a handful of rice.
A small green vegetable garden has sprung up in the yard. Cowpeas have climbed up the bamboo poles and Chinese cabbage is being eaten. A young man in coarse linen clothes picked a basket of fresh vegetables in the yard, and then his eyes fell on the free-range chicken in the corner, which was lowering its head to catch insects to eat. He looked very hesitant.
Rong Tang noticed his expression and immediately wanted to stop him, but the other party seemed to have made up his mind and was about to go over there.
Su Huaijing said, "Thank you, little brother. Unfortunately, my husband is in poor health and the doctor has told him to eat less greasy and meaty food. So, I won't be able to enjoy this delicious meal."
He spoke with great regret, glancing at the three or five scattered chickens and then turning his eyes to the young man's face.
The latter was obviously startled and stopped walking. His look of regret and pity fell on Rong Tang. Su Huaijing secretly pinched Rong Tang's hand. He immediately turned his head and coughed for a long time. When he raised his head again, his eyes were misty and his cheeks were red. He looked extremely weak at a glance.
The young man was obviously shocked and hurriedly poured him tea. Only then did he give up the idea of touching the chickens. However, he was still unwilling to leave and took out a few eggs from the chicken coop before leaving.
Rong Tang looked at the balance of his palms and couldn't help but shook his head and sighed.
Su Huaijing placed the tea in front of him and asked gently, "Tangtang wants to eat chicken?"
Rong Tang was slightly stunned and shook his head: "I think he took too many eggs. It looks like he has saved them for many days. If he took them to the market, he could get a few coins. It's a waste to give them to us."
They came from wealthy families in the capital and had eaten all kinds of delicacies. How could they be greedy for these eggs
Rong Tang still had a hint of unhappiness as he spoke, and he wanted to go to the kitchen to stop the other person.
Su Huaijing suddenly laughed, and he knew what kind of character his little Bodhisattva had.
He squeezed Rong Tang's hand, handed the teacup to him, and said, "He saw our clothes and knew we didn't need anything, but he just wanted to put all the ingredients that could be used to entertain guests on the table for us. Tang Tang doesn't need to feel guilty."
The cup for the tea was also a large coarse porcelain bowl, far inferior to the priceless Jianzhan that Rong Tang used in Ningxuan Palace or even in Yong'an Lane, but Su Huaijing handed it to him, and he took it without hesitation. Before drinking, he muttered softly: "I know, I just feel that—"
He didn't say the rest. He lowered his head and took a sip of tea to cover the expression in his eyes. The moment the tea took his mouth, his eyes lit up.
Su Huaijing smiled and said, "It's very sweet, isn't it?"
Rong Tang nodded: "Yeah!"
Su Huaijing coaxed him: "Then let's buy some from them before we leave?"
Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, then he understood what he meant, and the slight sense of guilt he felt disappeared.
He didn't feel guilty about a few eggs, he felt guilty for his fate which he knew but couldn't express.
After the flood season, large areas of Jiangnan were affected. Tens of thousands of acres of tea plantations in Huizhou were submerged by floods. Tea farmers had to migrate with their families. Those who did not have time to escape died together with the tea trees that had been planted for generations.
Although Rong Tang felt sad when he saw it in the novel, he didn't have any concrete feelings - no one would really empathize too much for a novel.
At this time in his previous two lives, he had no time to make trouble in the harem of the previous dynasty. To him, Sheng Chengli, and even the way of heaven, the floods and plague in the south of the Yangtze River were actually bargaining chips used by the protagonist to suppress his political enemies.
When Rong Tang saw the news, he was also in a trance and sat in front of the lamp all night. He even wanted to enter the system space and let the system teleport him to see what the flood in Jiangnan looked like under Yu Jing's huge amount of gold, silver and jewelry.
Just a few words and a few huge numbers would make him sad, but it wouldn't feel real.
But the system told him that the anchor point had not been unlocked and he could not be teleported; the male protagonist was facing a crisis and he could not leave the capital; the ultimate goal of the mission was to ensure the stable operation of this small world and not to ruin the plan because of a momentary weakness.
Rong Tang is the chess player of heaven. Before the final outcome, all sacrifices are meaningful and necessary.
Compared with the destruction of the entire world and the suffering of millions of people, this is a typical railway track problem. Even if Rong Tang is unwilling to choose, he will still be pushed by the system and the way of heaven to make the choice.
Rong Tang still doesn't know whether his choice is right or not, but the fragrance of vegetables and fruits wafts from the yard, the white smoke from the kitchen is faint, and the swishing sound of rapeseed oil being poured into the hot pot is harsh and vivid. The man who went out to work came home and was stunned when he saw the strangers in the yard, but after hearing their purpose, he laughed and invited them to sit down. He carried a hoe on his burly shoulders and held a handful of wild flowers in his muddy hands.
He scooped some water from the yard, washed his fingers and the flower stems, then with a simple smile on his face, he took the flowers to the kitchen and gave them to his husband.
This is a reality that has never been written in novels.
This is the truth that Rong Tangyuan had never seen when he was stirring up trouble in Yujing.
This is also the truth that he unconsciously avoided when passing through Huizhou.
Su Huaijing dragged him from the hiding place under the elm tree to this world full of dazzling fireworks.
Farmers’ food is light, and although they came in a hurry, the other party actually prepared a table of dishes.
Golden eggs scalded by hot oil, ham pickled at the end of last year that is only eaten occasionally, side dishes and cowpeas just picked from the fields, and a bowl of hot gourd and egg soup.
Although there was only a little meat, Rong Tang ate it happily. If he hadn't been worried that people would think he ate too much, he would even want to have a third bowl.
But he put down the bowl and glanced at the table unconsciously. The man laughed loudly and said, "If you want to eat more, just have another bowl. Your appetite is not as much as I ate in the morning. How can you be healthy? If you want to recover, you must be able to eat first!"
His advice was simple and sincere, Rong Tang was somewhat moved, and immediately turned his head and glanced at Su Huaijing, who couldn't stop laughing when he saw him, and took his bowl and went to the kitchen to serve him half a bowl of rice: "Eat slowly, no one will snatch it from you."
Rong Tang started to eat happily again.
After lunch, the man washed the dishes, and Su Huaijing asked the young man to buy tea.
The other party was a little panicked, but also inexplicably flattered. He took out a small can of tea and said he would give it to them.
Su Huaijing took it, opened it, smelled it, and handed it back, saying with a smile: "Thank you for your kindness, but there are too many people in my family, and I can't eat it all by myself. Your tea is so sweet. If I don't share some with each courtyard after I take it back-"
He paused, his expression a little distressed, and said, "Sometimes the gossip in a big family can be more than in an entire village. I am an outsider, and if I do something inappropriate, it is too easy to be criticized."
Rong Tang was almost immune to the nonsense and acting that came out of his mouth. He was taking a walk while digesting his food. As expected, he saw the young man frowned and brought out two large jars of tea from the house for Su Huaijing.
He seemed to want to lower the price further, but the man came over after washing the dishes and heard the reason. He said generously: "Just sell it at the normal price. Our tea is the best brewed in Shili Baxiang. If you sell it at a lower price, others will have nothing to eat."
The young man frowned, walked over and whispered, "But they are very nice people."
"It doesn't matter if he's a nice person." The man took the tea and handed it to Su Huaijing. "It's precisely because he's a nice person that he doesn't want you to suffer any loss. Don't worry."
Su Huaijing took the two jars, nodded with a smile to reassure the other party, and took out the silver to give them.
Before leaving, Su Huaijing asked casually, "Brother, have you ever thought about moving to the city?"
The man was startled and asked in confusion: "Why do we have to move to the city? We are in the village, we have tea fields and relatives, and we live very comfortably."
Su Huaijing smiled, raised his hand and pointed at the farmland and forests in the distance, then turned around and pointed in one direction, asking: "The river over there is connected to the Yangtze River. Huizhou has had a flood, right?"
The man's face froze. Su Huaijing said, "In the second year of Qingzheng, it rained heavily and Huizhou was flooded. I know a little about astronomy. The stars and tides have been turbulent since last year. If you are not in a hurry to harvest this season, why not take your husband to a higher place to spend the summer."
The other party was skeptical and looked uncertain. Su Huaijing said, "If I am wrong, then it is a great thing. If I really have the ability to understand the stars, I can save as many as I can. Even if I am lying, Big Brother will only need to rest for a while, so there won't be much loss."
He left with Rong Tang after he finished speaking. Rong Tang had been stunned for a long time since he heard what he was talking about. At this time, his Adam's apple rolled slightly, and he still didn't know where to start, so he asked: "How can they afford to settle down in the city?"
Su Huaijing smiled and said, "When the gentleman handed me the small can of tea just now, I took the opportunity to stuff two silver bills into it."
Rong Tang was shocked. He didn't expect that he had this ability.
The convoy was still waiting by the elm tree where they came from. The afternoon sun was a little dazzling. Su Huaijing passed by a wild pond and picked up a broad lotus leaf from it and handed it to Rong Tang to block the sun.
Rong Tang's heart trembled, and he did not speak for a long time. In the end, it was Su Huaijing who could not help himself. When he was about to go uphill along the path, he stopped him, bent his waist and got under the lotus leaf above Rong Tang's head, and said frankly: "What do you want to say, Tang Tang?"
Rong Tang: “…”
I think your character seems to have collapsed.
He pursed his lips, but asked: "Will there really be a flood this year?"
Su Huaijing smiled and asked, "Tangtang knew that, too, right? Otherwise, why would you change the route midway, and why would you be staring at that teahouse in a daze?"
Rong Tang felt that he could see through his thoughts.
"How do you know?" he asked, pointing to the sky again: "Heavy rain and floods."
Rong Tang knew this because he had read the original novel and had actually lived in this world for two lifetimes, repeatedly witnessing every bit of history during these four years.
But why did Su Huaijing know
He is not the male protagonist of Tiandao, who would give him preference and let him know these things
Su Huaijing paused when he heard this, and stared at Rong Tang with his bright eyes. After a moment, he came out from the lotus leaf again and walked back the way Rong Tang came.
"Tangtang told me a secret, and I'll tell you one too." Su Huaijing said, "You said you've never been stupid, but it's not entirely true that I've never been to school."
He said, "My uncle's family has a private school teacher. When my cousins were in school, I couldn't sit at the desk with them, but my cousin..." Su Huaijing paused and chuckled, "Li Panyan, brother Tangtang met her in Songjing Lane."
Rong Tang frowned. He remembered the scene when he went to Li Mansion to find Su Huaijing, this man was kneeling beside Li Panyan and grinding ink for her.
He was afraid that Su Huaijing would feel humiliated.
Su Huaijing smiled and said, "I don't feel embarrassed. On the contrary, I am very grateful to her for allowing me to finish reading the Four Books and Five Classics and read a lot of books after losing my parents."
Teacher Li Changfu was an average teacher, and most of his children had not made much progress. However, he was a very proud person. The books in his library were the envy of countless common students.
Su Huaijing had stayed in Shu for nine years, and he knew almost all the books in the library in Li's mansion by heart.
He smiled and said, "If you read more Shui Jing Zhu and the Chronicle of Major Events, you will find that droughts, floods, even insect plagues, plagues, and even wars—"
"Everything follows a pattern." Su Huaijing's voice floated lightly between heaven and earth.
Rong Tang was stunned for a long while, then suddenly reacted, feeling distressed unconsciously, and turned to look at him.
But Su Huaijing's expression was as calm and composed as ever, without any flaws or even unnecessary emotions.
He just slowly and patiently explained to Rong Tang why he thought there would be a flood this year and how he came to this conclusion.
Rong Tang couldn't help but wonder why he wanted to read these books.
But it seemed that Su Huaijing himself gave him the answer: even war.
He was too young at the time and had always lived in an ivory tower. He had no idea why his world collapsed overnight.
All of his relatives died, and Li Changfu didn't know his true identity. No one could give him an accurate answer, so he could only try his best to search and explore, to find a reason that could convince himself to accept the facts.
Then he discovered that these things actually had their own patterns.
He is much smarter than his father.
Rong Tang's lips were a little dry, and he couldn't help but lick them lightly with the tip of his tongue, then he took Su Huaijing's hand with his backhand.
Su Huaijing was slightly surprised, with joy in his eyes. He threw the previous topic aside and naturally moved closer to Rong Tang.
Rong Tang asked him, "Why do you want to remind them?"
The carriage was right in front of them. Shuangfu saw them from afar and quickly stood up and told the accompanying convoy to get ready. The coachman patted the horses, and the tamed animals were lowering their heads to eat grass.
Su Huaijing smiled, as if it was natural and he felt at ease, even a little inexplicably excited: "Because I told you, Tangtang forgot again, but it doesn't matter, I don't blame you."
He said, “I just remember it.”
(End of this chapter)