Chapter 60 Chapter 60 Leave him and return to Liangzhou

Jiang Hexue's heels seemed to be nailed to the spot, and she could hardly move even half a step.

She stared at the purple-toothed black collar without blinking, at the intricate gold threads with winding branches and carved white flowers on it, and at the dazzling purple-toothed black of Beixuan in the sunlight.

That was the coming-of-age gift that the Marquis's wife had left for her. She had begged to see it when she was young and would never admit her mistake.

However, the marquis' wife did not live to see her coming of age, and she was kicked out of the house by the Marquis of Zhenbei before she reached the age of 15.

After a long time, his gaze stiffly moved away from the collar and moved to the woman's face, but stopped again.

It was Su Miner.

She raised her chin slightly, proudly displaying the necklace around her neck. "This is a new amethyst necklace I recently got. It cost me a full six hundred taels of silver!"

"It's really worth it! This amethyst changes color under the light. It's novel and gorgeous. It really suits Madam Zhou!" A noble lady on the side flattered.

"Yes! This is the first time I've seen amethyst like this!" another noblewoman agreed, moving closer to examine it. "From a distance, it's purple-red, but up close, it actually appears bluish-purple in sunlight. It's truly rare!"

They praised the rarity of "Amethyst" one after another, and Su Min'er's expression became more and more proud and arrogant.

Jiang Hexue finally couldn't stand it anymore and interrupted, "This is not a rare amethyst."

As soon as she finished speaking, the noisy ladies fell silent and all looked at her: "Greetings, Princess Heng'an."

"Your Majesty, I would like to ask for your advice. If it is not amethyst, then what is it?" Su Min'er asked with a slightly stiff smile on her face.

"This is the Purple Tooth Crow." Jiang Hexue stared at her, not retreating at all. "The Purple Tooth Crow is unique to Beixuan."

Upon hearing this, the faces of the noble ladies around turned pale.

Beixuan and Longlin have long been at odds, and the imperial court has even banned trade. But now, Beixuan's unique purple-toothed black crow has appeared in Longlin, in Longlin's capital...

The meaning is self-evident.

The noble ladies looked at each other, wondering who took a step back first, and then everyone else followed suit. In a flash, there was an empty circle around Su Min'er, who had just been surrounded by people.

"Princess, please be careful with your words." Su Min'er finally couldn't hold back her smile and said coldly, "Amethyst or Ziyawu, you can send it to the Shangbao Bureau for verification. Before the final conclusion, please don't be impatient."

Jiang Hexue chuckled softly, but didn't argue with her. She simply said, "Madam Su actually spent six hundred taels of silver on a necklace, which is 30% of Duke Ling's annual salary. She's truly generous."

"Looking back, Master Zhou was quite generous. He once said that even the smallest scratch on a servant was worth two ounces of gold." She spoke casually, a faint smile on her lips. "You two are both from aristocratic families, with centuries of experience and wealth. Your generosity makes me seem less generous, and I feel ashamed."

Every word she typed gave Su Min'er a headache.

Emperor Hengshun was wary of aristocratic families. Although he had been boiling the frog in warm water since he ascended the throne, he had demoted countless people from official positions to lower ranks. Her statement of slander was a blatant irony.

Besides, she knew very well whether the money of Zhou and Su families was clean or not, so they could not stand her pointing it out like this.

Su Min'er's face turned pale, then blue, then red, and then red again. She finally squeezed out a few words from between her teeth: "Princess, you are joking. How dare we, your subjects, compare ourselves to you? My husband must be exaggerating and talking nonsense...Princess, please don't worry."

Jiang Hexue smiled and nodded slightly. "This princess was just casually mentioning it. The Su family's century-old reputation is well-known among the people, so there's no need to worry about it. Do you think it makes sense, Madam?"

Su Min'er looked at the noble ladies around her with different expressions, but she didn't dare to feel unreasonable.

Xue Lan had just passed on the message, and now she had brought palace maids from the Shangbao Bureau to pick up the necklace.

"This princess has just arrived in the capital. If I have offended you in any way, I hope Madam Su will be magnanimous and not take it to heart." Jiang Hexue looked at Su Min'er's empty neck with satisfaction and smiled.

Su Min'er was so angry that her body trembled slightly, and the smile on her face was uglier than crying. She watched her leave.

The intricate silver-red skirt is outlined with auspicious cloud patterns with silver threads, and it blooms like a flower with the girl's light steps.

The graceful girl lifted the silver-studded skirt with her bare hands, revealing half of her delicate white ankle. On it was a gold and diamond anklet adorned with white flowers, which was low-key but could not conceal its luxury and nobleness.

How dare you say she is generous when you are like this?

Su Min'er almost bit her silver teeth off in anger.

-

There are several peach trees planted in the backyard of Prime Minister Jiang's residence. It is not yet the flowering season, and the dense green leaves cast shadows.

Princess Jing, Hasiqiqige, dressed in Longlin clothing, stood quietly under the shade of flowers and greeted her in the Longlin language, which she was much more proficient in.

"Sorry, I was delayed." Jiang Hexue had a good impression of her and asked in a soft voice. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

Hasiqiqige smiled and spoke, his voice still awkward even when he spoke long sentences: "Prince Heng'an came to my house a few days ago, and I learned that the princess had done me a favor. I wanted to ask my maid to pass on the message, but I was worried that my sincerity was not enough, so I came here in person today to make an appointment. If the princess is free, would you like to have dinner with me someday?"

Jiang Hexue didn't hesitate and agreed happily.

She just turned her head and asked curiously: "Your Highness has been to Prince Jing's Mansion? Did you discuss matters with Prince Jing?"

Hasiqiqige blushed slightly and said, "Yes. I happened to go to the study to deliver cakes to His Highness that day and overheard a few words."

"If it weren't for your prudence and courage, I don't know who I would be marrying now..." She was terrified at the memory and desperately grasped Jiang Hexue's hand, expressing her gratitude. "Princess, I don't know how to repay you for saving my life. Today is..."

She realized her impulsiveness and embarrassedly let go of her hand, then touched the maid: "Thank you."

The maid brought a peach wood box with both hands. Jiang Hexue opened it and saw two thin pieces of paper inside. The first one was already yellowed and was written in Qingyuan characters that she could hardly understand; the other one was brand new, with Long Lin's words written crookedly.

"What is this?" Jiang Hexue picked up two pieces of paper and saw a green jade porcelain bottle placed underneath. When he shook it, a dull sound came out.

"That day, when I heard His Royal Highness Prince Heng'an asking my Highness about his amnesia, I remembered that there was a secret recipe for treating amnesia in the ancient books of Qingyuan. I searched for a long time before I found it. The recipe was on the paper, and the pills were in the bottle."

"I've also prepared a few more prescriptions of medicinal powder. I've left them in the carriage at Prince Jing's mansion," she said enthusiastically. "Just send someone to get them after the banquet."

Jiang Hexue thanked her with great gratitude, and immediately sent someone to get it. He then said goodbye to Hasiqiqige and couldn't wait to look for Jiang Heye.

He will definitely agree.

After she finished talking to him, the men's banquet should be over, and she would go and pick up Shen Qingchen, who had a poor alcohol tolerance.

Jiang Hexue thought happily, but as she walked around Yingchun in the courtyard, she bumped into someone she didn't want to see at the moment -

Fu Wang.

-

Actually, if you count the days, it’s been less than a month since we last saw each other.

But this time, when Jiang Hexue looked at Fu Wang, whom she had known since childhood, she felt a strong sense of strangeness.

She couldn't help but take half a step back, but she didn't dare let him notice. Her right foot, which had taken half a step back, immediately followed up again. The golden bell on her ankle made a subtle and crisp sound.

"Did you buy new jewelry?" Fu Wang heard it and asked casually while playing with the ends of his hair.

"His Highness gave it to me." Jiang Hexue didn't like to lie, especially about such trivial matters.

Fu Wang chuckled lightly: "Are you getting along well with him now?"

Jiang Hexue pursed her lips warily, but he stared at her intently, his smile still on his face. "Why? We've known each other for years, and a casual mention of concern isn't enough?"

"Of course not. How could we be so distant?" The cheating incident hadn't been finalized yet, and Jiang Hexue, fearing he might become suspicious, smiled gently. "I'm fine."

"But it's ultimately a private matter between husband and wife. I might discuss it with Gan Le from time to time, but how can I possibly tell you?" Her smile was as bright as ever, and she chatted with him casually. "The palace examination is coming up soon. Are you ready?"

Fu Wang nonchalantly tutted, "Do you really expect me to pass the imperial examination?"

"If it were possible, the Fu family's ancestral tomb wouldn't even be emitting smoke, it would be on fire!"

He was as humorous and witty as he was when he was young. Jiang Hexue smiled in cooperation, but the smile did not reach his eyes.

"After the palace examination, are you going back to Liangzhou?" She just asked, hiding the uneasiness and irritability in her heart.

"Yes, I'll go back and help the old man with some work." Fu Wang answered as a matter of course, and then made an invitation. "When the time comes, you must come with the princess to see me off."

"After all, after this separation, I don't know when we'll meet again."

Jiang Hexue mumbled a vague "hmm," then asked him with a feigned smile, "You're not going to take me to a brothel this time, are you?"

There seemed to be a hint of viciousness in Fu Wang's eyes.

Jiang Hexue instinctively wanted to step back, but considering the golden bell on her ankle, she endured it and looked at him without retreating.

"Zui Le Ju?" Fu Wangman smiled nonchalantly. "Isn't that to take you to see the incense?"

The culprit even turned the tables.

Jiang Hexue was so angry that his breath got stuck in his throat.

"What? Your Highness is fussing with you over such a trivial matter?" Fu Wang intensified his anger. "We've known each other for a long time, and we have no personal feelings towards each other. Even at a celebratory meal with old friends, he's still restricting you?"

"Fu Wang!" Jiang Hexue could no longer bear it. "Stop trying to sow discord between me and him! What good will this do you?"

This was what she couldn't figure out.

She couldn't find any reason for Fu Wang to act like this.

She knew that she had no hatred or grudge against him, but Shen Qingchen should also have no hatred or grudge against him...why bother?

"Benefits?" Fu Wang curled his lips, a look of sadness on his face. "Hexue, I'm just thinking about you. Why do you think about me like this?"

"I am concerned. You came to the capital, you are unfamiliar with the place, and you married a man you knew but have no feelings for. Even if he is good for you, why would you sacrifice the rest of your life for him?"

"Hexue, he is the prince second only to one person. After this is done, will you be able to escape unscathed?"

"Your Highness and I... have no feelings for each other." Jiang Hexue repeated, with obvious sarcasm in the corners of his eyes and eyebrows.

On the interlaced winding path, Shen Qingchen paused.

Hidden among the branches, he saw Fu Wang anxiously grab her wrist, revealing the same red jade bracelet that was exactly the same as the one on her own wrist.

Jiang Hexue reached out and hooked the bracelet.

"Hexue, come back to Liangzhou with me. I can protect you." Fu Wang said earnestly. "You don't belong in Jingdu. Liangzhou is your hometown."

"If you delay any longer, it might be difficult to leave."

Jiang Hexue's voice was firm: "No."

"You know, I'm very good at lying."

Shen Qingchen's long fingers suddenly tightened.

The branch of the forsythia that I picked for her suddenly broke.