Chapter 37 "I...I can stay and keep you company..."

The rain grew heavier, and the sky darkened as if it were night.

Xiao Zhen's face quickly regained its smile in the dim light. He grasped Xie Yushu's hand and said, "Does Madam Pei speak to Prime Minister Song like this?" He then lowered his voice and asked, "Did you slap Song Jie too?"

He smiled slyly, like a fox, trying to get information out of her and probe her relationship with Song Jie.

Xie Yushu didn't answer. Instead, she raised her other hand and brought it close to his cheek. He instinctively grabbed her hand, his feigned smile vanishing completely, as if he had been startled by her.

Xie Yushu laughed: "What are you doing, Fourth Prince? I just want to remove the dirt from your hair."

Xiao Zhen was stunned.

Xie Yushu simply grabbed his hand, used it to pluck a red fox hair from his black hair, and waved his hand to show him. "What are you thinking? I don't just hit people randomly."

Her hands were warm, and holding them on the back of his hand felt like holding warm jade.

Xiao Zhen looked down at her hand, and for no reason, he thought of the way she held the child. This hand had slapped him twice and had never been polite to him. He was very curious about what it felt like to be gently stroked by this hand. Was it fragrant? It must have been very warm... So she had also caressed Song Jie like that? Song Jie must have liked it very much, after all, what he had longed for most in his life was everything about his mother.

"You must be very gentle with Song Jie, right?" Xiao Zhen asked, still gazing at her hand.

Xie Yushu withdrew her hand. "You don't need to try to trick me." She said directly, "Haven't you already noticed that Song Jie treats me differently from others? Be direct, what do you want from me?"

Xiao Zhen looked down and smelled the floral fragrance on the back of his hand, but did not answer immediately.

Xie Yushu knew that he was afraid that she and Song Jie were colluding, so she simply said, "Your Highness, don't try to seduce me. Why don't you just make a deal with me? I have something I'd like to ask Your Highness for help with."

Xiao Zhen looked up at her, as if waiting for her to continue.

She didn't mince words and stated her conditions directly: "I would like to ask the Fourth Prince and the nun Yusu to discuss accepting my mother as a disciple."

Xiao Zhen thought for a moment before realizing that the mother she was referring to was the maidservant from outside the family: "The Yu Su nun never accepts disciples, and besides, your mother is a maidservant from outside the family who was born into slavery. I have no other intentions, but the maidservant's indenture is in the hands of her master, so she cannot become a nun."

“My mother has redeemed her indenture,” Xie Yushu told Xiao Zhen. “She is neither a slave of the Marquis of Yong’an nor Xie Zhi’an’s mistress.”

Xiao Zhen was surprised, and then heard her say, "The nun Yu Su dotes on the Fourth Prince so much, if the Fourth Prince asks her for help, she might make an exception."

Xiao Zhen did not refuse immediately, but asked, "Why do you want the Jade Maiden to take your mother as her disciple?"

"In order to get rid of the slave status." Xie Yushu said frankly, "If my mother becomes a disciple of the Yu Su female Taoist priest, she can change her household registration to a Taoist priest. After thinking about it, the only female Taoist priest who is not afraid of the Yong'an Marquis's mansion changing her household registration is the Yu Su female Taoist priest."

Xiao Zhen immediately understood that changing from slave status to Taoist status wasn't difficult. However, since her mother had been the concubine of the Marquis of Yong'an, the officials in charge of household registration would always consult the Marquis of Yong'an first. If the Marquis of Yong'an gave her a word, it would be very difficult for her mother to change her household registration.

Looking at the female Taoist priests of Yuqing Temple, the only one who could change her mother's household registration was probably his mother, who was capable and unafraid of offending the Marquis of Yong'an.

"Why don't you ask Prime Minister Song to free your mother from slavery? It's just a matter of a word from him." Xiao Zhen asked her again, expecting her to remain silent or to be angry.

Unexpectedly, she straightened the handkerchief in her hand and said with distress, "Isn't this because I'm afraid he'll use this opportunity to force me to divorce him?"

Xiao Zhen paused, unsure whether her words were true or false. Did Song Jie really like her so much that he wanted to force her to divorce him? Could it be that Song Jie even wanted to marry her as the Prime Minister's wife?

"I don't understand," Xiao Zhen asked her, puzzled. "If you can become the Prime Minister's wife, why not get a divorce?"

Every sentence was a ploy to extract her words.

Xie Yushu smiled and looked at him: "That makes sense, but what if I can become the Fourth Imperial Consort or the Crown Princess in the future? Now that I'm the Prime Minister's wife, it would be difficult for me to get a divorce. Wouldn't that ruin my promising future?"

Xiao Zhen was completely stunned. He never expected her to answer like that, or to dare to answer like that.

Xiao Zhen was surprised by her boldness and ambition. He stared at her face carefully and suddenly realized that she was not like Xie Jianing. She had a pair of unfathomable eyes. There was playfulness, ambition, and coquettishness in her eyes, but no innocence.

He couldn't help but laugh, but it wasn't a mocking laugh; rather, it came from the bottom of his heart. "Xie Yushu, you truly impress me." If he were to become the Crown Prince, he might very well take her into his household as a concubine.

Xie Yushu heard the system voice: "Congratulations, host, you have gained 1 point of Popularity Points, from Xiao Zhen."

baffling.

She really couldn't understand what made Xiao Zhen's heart flutter.

She only heard Xiao Zhen ask her softly with a smile, "I can help you, but how will you help me?"

Xie Yushu beckoned to him, signaling him to come closer.

Xiao Zhen leaned closer to her, and she placed her warm hand on his shoulder. She turned her head and whispered in his ear, "Do you want to know what illness Song Jie has?"

Even her breath smelled of floral dew.

Xiao Zhen's ears felt hot without him realizing it. He wanted to get closer, but she had already pulled away and said, "If you help me, I'll tell you."

He gazed at her in the dim light, and half of his face began to itch again. Did even his breath on her cause a rash?

※

The torrential rain didn't stop even into the night.

Song Jie deliberately returned to his residence from the palace a little earlier and ordered a banquet from Fanlou to be delivered. Xie Yushu had no objection to eating at his residence.

But the rain never stopped, and Xie Yushu never came.

He looked at the torrential rain, feeling extremely agitated.

The person sent to the Pei residence returned and reported that Xie Yushu had not yet returned from Yuqing Temple to the Pei residence.

"Prime Minister, perhaps the rain is too heavy and Miss Yushu is trapped in Yuqing Temple." Cangshu draped a cloak over him, but still couldn't help saying, "Please eat something first. The mountain roads are slippery and the rain is so heavy, perhaps Miss Yushu won't be able to get down the mountain tonight."

Song Jie knew very well that if they hadn't returned to the Pei residence so late, they were most likely trapped on the mountain by the torrential rain.

The mountain path of Yuqing Mountain is narrow and steep, and the horse-drawn carriage cannot reach the top of the mountain. You need to transfer to a sedan chair to get to Yuqing Temple. With such heavy rain, you will most likely have to stay overnight at the temple.

But he still couldn't help being annoyed, "Xiao Zhen must have stayed overnight at Yuqing Temple too."

Cangshu knew what he was concerned about, so he comforted him, "Prime Minister, don't worry. The rules in Yuqing Temple are very strict. Even the Fourth Prince cannot stay overnight in the nun's residence. He should stay overnight in the hermitage. Miss Yushu went with the Lady of the Marquis, so she probably stayed overnight with the Lady of the Marquis in Suxinzhai."

He meant that the two of them were staying in different places and couldn't meet.

Unexpectedly, Song Jie sneered and said, "Suxinzhai is Wan Susu's place. She dotes on her son so much that if Xiao Zhen asks, she might just arrange for him to stay in Xie Yushu's room."

Cangshu fell silent for a moment, because the Prime Minister was right. In order to protect Xiao Zhen, Wan Susu was willing to give her newborn son to another concubine to raise, and she cut her hair and became a nun in the name of the Dowager Consort, vowing never to step out of Yuqing Temple in her life.

All these years, she has been imprisoned at Yuqing Temple, just to protect Xiao Zhen...

"Why aren't you arguing anymore?" Song Jie looked at him, his brows furrowing. "You also think I'm right, don't you?"

Cang Shu saw that his face was pale and bloodless, and knew that he must be sad. "It is my fault. I should have reported Miss Yushu's matter at Yuqing Temple to the Prime Minister earlier."

Song Jie coughed muffledly from the cold wind, but he didn't want to close the window tightly. He laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "What did you do wrong? What difference would it make if you reported it earlier? Did you expect me to go up the mountain to pick her up? That would only be humiliating."

Xie Yushu wouldn't obediently go down the mountain with him, and Wan Susu would only angrily order her men to drive him down the mountain when she saw him.

Why should he humiliate himself on a day like this?

He started shivering from the cold again. Cangshu reached out and closed the window tightly, saying softly, "Prime Minister, please have some porridge and take your medicine first. Perhaps the rain will stop soon."

Song Jie gave a rare, calm "hmm".

Cangshu was heartbroken. Today was the Dowager Consort's birthday, but it was also the anniversary of the death of Granny Yuping. The only nanny who had ever been kind to the Prime Minister died on this day many, many years ago.

He helped Song Jie sit down and watched as Song Jie struggled to swallow a bowl of plain porridge. He prayed repeatedly in his heart that God would be fair and show the Prime Minister a little kindness, and that the rain would stop.

He then sent people to Yuqing Mountain to keep an eye out, so that they could go up the mountain to invite Miss Yushu as soon as the rain stopped or lessened.

※

Unfortunately, the rain was too heavy, filling the mountain rivers and causing waterfalls to rush down the mountain paths, making them impossible to walk on.

Xie Yushu and Meng Min had no choice but to stay overnight at Suxinzhai.

After the lights in Meng Min and Wan Susu's rooms were turned off, Xiao Dao climbed through the window and entered Xie Yushu's room.

His clothes were soaked through by the rain, bringing rainwater all over the ground.

Jin Ye and Yin Ya were both startled and hurriedly helped Xie Yushu, who had taken off her outer robe, put it back on. They scolded her, "Why aren't you sleeping peacefully in your room? Why did you break into Miss's room at night?"

Xiao Dao closed the window, walked over, and whispered to Xie Yushu, "That person followed us to Yuqing Temple."

That person?

Xie Yushu realized what was happening and frowned, asking, "You mean the general who wanted to arrest you? The one who was watching you outside the Pei residence before?"

Xiao Dao nodded. "I saw him flash by outside Suxinzhai. I can't mistake his skills."

Jin Ye and Yin Ya turned pale with fright, feeling that the person was like a ghost, haunting them and appearing and disappearing unpredictably.

Xie Yushu remained silent for a long time, wondering why, if that person was indeed General Pei Heng, he was keeping such a close eye on Xiao Dao.

She roughly guessed that Xiao Dao was the one Pei Heng was carrying out a secret mission, but what exactly was this secret mission? It couldn't possibly be to kill Xiao Dao, otherwise Pei Heng would have killed Xiao Dao long ago.

Under the dim light, she looked at Xiaodao's face, which was so beautiful it was almost unreal, and somehow felt that it resembled Wan Susu.

An absurd thought crossed her mind: Could Xiao Dao also be Wan Susu's son? Could Xiao Dao be the son of Wan Susu and the former emperor? Is that why the current emperor sent Pei Heng to secretly investigate his whereabouts?

However, in the original drama, Wan Susu only gave birth to two sons. One was Xiao Zhen, who was born to the current emperor and is now the fourth prince.

Another one is Song Jie, who was born to Song Xingzhi, a founding hero. However, the relationship between Wan Susu and Song Xingzhi was an affair. The current emperor had no idea that Wan Susu and his great protector Song Xingzhi had a relationship, let alone that Wan Susu was pregnant with Song Xingzhi's child.

Wan Susu secretly gave birth to Song Jie and entrusted him to her closest nanny, Yu Ping, asking her to drown the child in a well. However, Yu Ping couldn't bear it and secretly ran away with the child, raising him in the village.

This is also why Wan Susu later sought out Song Jie and insisted on poisoning his son, because if she didn't, the emperor would find out and everyone around her would die.

However, because this part of the parents' generation's storyline was not described in detail, she only heard Song Jie mention it in the original drama, so she was not clear about the details and there were many things she did not understand.

For example, how exactly was Wan Susu forcibly taken by two emperors? How did she have an affair with Song Zhixing, a founding hero of the dynasty? And how did she manage to become pregnant and give birth without the emperor finding out?

She now suspects there might be some inside story she hasn't figured out, such as: Xiao Dao is also Wan Susu's son.

"Xiao Dao, why did you avoid the Jade Maiden today?" Xie Yushu asked, looking at Xiao Dao.

Xiao Dao seemed guilty, and his eyes immediately shifted away.

Xie Yushu reached out and turned his face back, making him look into her eyes: "Don't lie to me."

Her hands and gaze were warm, locked on him, not allowing him to look away.

Xiao Dao whispered, unable to resist, "I once... killed her."

Xie Yushu was surprised and glanced at Jin Ye.

Jin Ye quickly pulled Yin Ya out of the room, closed the door tightly, and stood guard at the doorway.

"What exactly happened?" Xie Yushu asked him.

Xiao Dao didn't want to hide it from her, but was also afraid she would reject him, so he reached out and took her hand, saying, "Someone once offered me a thousand taels of silver to kill a woman named Wan Susu. At that time, she wasn't at Yuqing Temple; she was on a carriage leaving the palace. I went to kill her according to plan, but I didn't expect the female Taoist priest beside her to be so skilled in martial arts. My assassination attempt failed, and I was injured..."

"Did you see your face during the assassination attempt on Wan Susu?" Xie Yushu asked first.

Xiao Dao said uncertainly, "The female Taoist priest tore off my mask, so she should have seen my face, but I'm not sure if Wan Susu saw me. I'm afraid she might recognize me."

He watched her expression closely, afraid she would drive him away: "Don't be angry, I won't let Wan Susu see me, I won't cause you any trouble... I was punished by my master for failing this mission, and I didn't want to stay by his side and kill for him anymore, so I escaped. I didn't expect to run into that general who wanted to capture me... I really had nowhere else to go, so I pretended to be a beggar and deliberately got sold onto a black ship and transported to Bianjing..."

Xie Yushu finally understood why Xiao Dao had been tied up and sold by a skinny old man.

Because he was injured, fled his sect, and was chased by Pei Heng, he had no choice but to deliberately be sold by kidnappers onto a cargo ship transporting slaves. He was transported to Bianjing and sold by an old man who pretended to sell his son but was actually selling unregistered slaves.

"Do you know who hired you to kill Wan Susu?" Xie Yushu asked. Who would kill Wan Susu?

The only person she could think of who had a grudge against Wan Susu was Song Jie. Was it Song Jie?

Xiao Dao shook his head: "We never meet with our customers; we have intermediaries to relay messages for us."

Xie Yushu was full of questions. She looked at T Xiaodao without saying a word. If he really was the son of the former emperor, would it be a blessing or a curse for her?

"Don't send me away." Seeing that she didn't speak, Xiao Dao gripped her hand tightly, his mind in turmoil.

Xie Yushu also grasped Xiao Dao's hand. His hands were covered in scars, including knife wounds, whip marks, and raised scars from burns. He must have suffered a great deal to be so afraid that she would drive him away.

She just fed him better and didn't hit him, and he thought she was the best person in the world.

A pang of reluctance arose in her heart. "I said I would never send you away, and I will not go back on my word."

She used a handkerchief to wipe his wet face and hair, and said with concern, "But I'm afraid that the person who's eyeing you will take you away sooner or later."

Xiao Dao grasped her hand holding the handkerchief; his palm was warm, and his gaze was intense. "I won't let him take me away. I've tried a few times, and while I'm no match for him, he can't catch me so easily either."

A rumble of thunder sounded outside the window.

Xie Yushu shuddered, and Xiao Dao quickly raised his hand to cover her ears, "Don't be afraid, it's just thunder."

His palms were unusually hot.

Xie Yushu looked up at him, as if he were looking at a stock.

Under the dim light, Xiao Dao's cheeks flushed as she looked at him, his heart fluttering. He took another half step closer to her and murmured softly, "I...can I stay and keep you company?"

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Author's note: I'm trying my best to update 4,000 words today!

Little Knife is a well-behaved little dog. [Patting head]