Chapter 118 Spicy Duck Head

Unexpected good fortune always comes at the right time. Zhao Xiheng felt that her luck had improved ever since she left Jinyang.

For example, right now, she instructed people to keep an eye on Luo Haoran, but they discovered something else.

Several guards caught three suspicious-looking people near the wall late at night and brought them to Zhao Xiheng. They were familiar faces; they were the same people who had been with Luo Haoran back then.

Luo Haoran was getting old, and if he didn't fight hard now, he would have no chance at all. That's why he dared to sneak in, intending to sow discord between the two and then take the opportunity to assassinate Wei Li.

However, he was not entirely unprepared; for example, he had arranged for these three people to be stationed outside the mansion as backup.

If things succeed, he can replace Wei Li; if things fail, he must either save his own life or die a violent death outside his home.

After waiting for some time, the maids who often passed by Luo Haoran said that the master was not in good health recently, and the lady was probably getting tired of him. She was not as affectionate as before and her temper was becoming strange and cold.

Whether Zhao Xiheng had truly changed or was merely spreading rumors to lure out the enemy, Luo Haoran felt that Zhao Xiheng was eager to know the truth.

He was thrilled at the thought of the couple turning against each other, but he suppressed his excitement and waited quietly for two more days.

Zhao Xiheng's patience was almost exhausted. She was already giving him a lot of face by being willing to play along with this charade. Please, don't keep testing her temper. She's really busy.

Who's like him, planting flowers every day and then doing nothing else, and then figuring out how to slip little notes to her?

Luo Haoran lowered his head and placed the flowerpot on the ground.

Zhao Xiheng recognized him the moment he walked in; he was such a big guy, he would stand out anywhere.

Her gaze followed Luo Haoran's every move.

Luo Haoran put down the flowerpot and prepared to leave. He was secretly anxious. Why hadn't Zhao Xiheng called him back yet? Could it be that she hadn't recognized him?

He turned around, raised his head slightly, and subtly exposed his face to Zhao Xiheng's gaze.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Xiheng only glanced at him briefly before looking away and continuing to eat the fruit on the table.

Yes, I couldn't wait any longer and came to her myself.

She knew it! They deliberately left so many clues, they'd already laid out the bait and were waiting for her to take the bait, how could they not show their true colors?

Since he can't hold back any longer, then she can wait a little longer. She's been keeping him hanging for so long, it's not unreasonable for her to keep him hanging for a while.

Luo Haoran was unwilling to give up. He finally felt that the time was ripe, so how could he continue to delay just because Zhao Xiheng didn't recognize his face?

He took two steps toward Zhao Xiheng, revealing his face more openly to her, and asked, "Is there anything else you need, Madam?"

"That's all, you can leave now." Zhao Xiheng didn't even look up.

"..." She answered very decisively. Luo Haoran choked for a moment and said, "This humble one finds Madam's face familiar, as if I have seen her somewhere before."

"Oh." Zhao Xiheng slowly raised her gaze. "What a coincidence, you look very familiar to me too."

The two exchanged a smile, and Zhao Xiheng tugged at the corner of her mouth, "After going through such a long and winding road, aren't you tired?"

It would be so much better to just speak frankly and openly, instead of beating around the bush and making her guess.

Luo Haoran smiled mysteriously, "I believe that in a little while, you will realize that this roundabout way was really worthwhile, and you will definitely thank me."

Zhao Xiheng kicked him in the knee, knocking him to the ground. "Stop fucking laughing, how disgusting."

Several guards rushed in, pinned Luo Haoran down, and tied him up.

Luo Haoran shouted, "I guarantee that what I'm about to tell you is exactly what you want to hear. Don't you want to know what Wei Li is hiding from you? What is his past like?"

Wei Li looked at himself in the mirror.

His face was pale and thin, his eyes were bloodshot from lack of rest, and there was a stubble of green on his chin. He looked terrible.

How can someone like him be worthy of anyone's liking?

She has absolutely no looks.

In a few days, it will be Zhizhi's 100-day celebration. Xie Qingyu will definitely be there, and he will inevitably run into Xie Qingyu. Everyone knows that Xie Qingyu was originally Zhao Xiheng's fiancé.

Even in her prime, she wasn't as good as him, and now she looks so haggard. When the two of them stand together, what will others say about Zhao Xiheng?

She thought to herself that Xie Qingyu had bad taste and bad luck.

Wei Li felt ashamed at the thought of that scene; he had embarrassed Zhao Xiheng.

He looked at himself in the mirror again, perked up, and found his razor.

Remembering that Zhao Xiheng didn't want him to shave on her dressing table, he got up and went to find another mirror.

As he moved, the hem of his robe knocked over a small box under the dressing table, spilling all its contents.

He wondered why Zhao Xiheng would put the things in such a remote place.

Wei Li squatted down, carefully arranged the notes one by one, and prepared to put them back for her.

I glanced at the words above without noticing.

Do you want to know Wei Li's true past?

My hand holding the note trembled uncontrollably.

Who wrote all of these to her?

His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and he felt dizzy, almost unable to stand. He quickly opened all the remaining slips of paper.

As expected... as expected...

The person who wrote the note to Zhao Xiheng used a coaxing tone to subtly imply that he had a shameful past that he was hiding from her.

Everyone would be curious, right...?

So...so...

So how much does Zhao Xiheng actually know now?

He was so flustered and dizzy that he could barely squat down, so he braced himself on the ground with his hands.

The maid brought in the dried clothes and tidied them up. Seeing Wei Li's appearance, she squatted on the ground.

She was startled and quickly took two steps back, asking cautiously, "My lord, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? I'll go and fetch the madam."

Wei Li heard someone buzzing in his ear. After a long while, he gradually found his voice and asked with difficulty, "Where is Madam now?"

The maid thought for a moment and told him, "Just now, Madam caught a petty thief and took him away for interrogation. When I passed by, I happened to see them leading the man towards the dungeon. Madam must be in the dungeon now."

Wei Li's fingers curled up. "Did you see what that person looked like?"

If it weren't for Luo Haoran, perhaps things could still be salvaged.

The maid thought for a moment, "He's very tall, with a square face, probably in his forties or fifties. Oh! And he has a scar on his face!"

Wei Li shuddered, as if he had been pulled out of ice water, his clothes soaked with cold sweat.

It was him, Luo Haoran. The scar on his forehead was the one Wei Li had injured last time.

He's back. In this world, only Luo Haoran knows the complete past of Wei Li!

I hate it! I should have killed him last time, otherwise this would have been a problem.

Wei Li's face darkened further, and the maid said uneasily, "My lord, I should call the physician from the palace."

Wei Li didn't respond, but just remained squatting there.

Luo Haoran was originally a highly valued and fierce general under the Prince of Zhenbei. He had followed the Prince of Zhenbei for more than 20 years. When Wei Li first arrived in Pingzhou, it was Luo Haoran who picked out Wei Li, cleaned him up, and sent him to the Prince's mansion.

Later, when the Prince of Zhenbei grew old and frail, Luo Haoran had the idea of ​​replacing him, but Wei Li took Pingzhou first.

After Luo Haoran's rebellion failed, he escaped by crawling out through a dog hole in the Prince's mansion, which saved his life.

Last time, on the way back to Buxian from Ji'an, when passing through a tributary of the Yalu River, Luo Haoran ambushed Wei Li with his dogs, causing Wei Li to be seriously injured.

The scar on Luo Haoran's face was also left from that time.

Before the maid could say anything more, Wei Li suddenly sprang up from the ground, pushed open the door, and ran out.

Hey! My lord hasn't been feeling well lately, and my wife specifically instructed us to take good care of him! He was just pale and covered in cold sweat a moment ago, how did he run off again!

The maidservant hurriedly chased after him, calling out, "Quickly, send a message to the madam: send a few men with me to catch up with the lord!"

"Speak up. I've given you the chance and the place. This place is spacious enough for you to perform, isn't it?" In the dungeon, Zhao Xiheng sat on a grand chair, slightly raising her chin as she looked at Luo Haoran opposite her.

Luo Haoran chuckled sarcastically, "Do you really want to know? I guarantee you'll definitely..."

Zhao Xiheng threw the cup lid at his head, "What do you think you are, some kind of villain from a storybook? Don't try this on me. I didn't want to know in the first place. You were the one who kept telling me. Spit it out, stop with the preamble!"

Luo Haoran's smile froze; he had only...

I just wanted to set the mood and bring things up. How come this young lady has such a bad temper at such a young age?

It's okay. He can understand and accept a little bit of things getting out of control, as long as the outcome is as he expected.

But he always felt that things weren't going quite right, though he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong; it seemed like nothing was quite right.

Luo Haoran cleared his throat and lowered his voice, "Ten years ago, Emperor Huiwu issued a decree prohibiting the killing of slaves, including burial sacrifices, human offerings, animal fights, and torture. However, the habits of the nobility are hard to change. They have become accustomed to using slaves for amusement, so a large number of them secretly kept slaves for burial sacrifices and torture..."

Zhao Xiheng tilted her head slightly, looking at him lifelessly, "Can you tell me something I don't know?"

No one knew this better than her. Aye originally wanted to abolish the slave system gradually, but he only did half of it. He improved the status of slaves, making them like cattle and sheep that could be slaughtered at will, and then the rest were gone.

His words were interrupted, and Luo Haoran's expression almost contorted with rage. He shouted in a fit of desperation, "If you're so capable, come up here, and I'll make room for you to speak!"

Zhao Xiheng ignored his roar, stood up, dusted off her clothes, and prepared to leave. "If you don't say something useful, you can just stay here by yourself."

Luo Haoran quickly stopped her, "Before Wei Li came to Pingzhou, he was a beast-fighting slave kept by Marquis Chen!"

Zhao Xiheng froze, her head buzzing.

"When he came, he had pierced ears with a small bronze plaque hanging from them. The front of the plaque bore the Chen family crest, while the back showed the mark of his past as a beast-fighting slave!"

"And that's not all..."