Chapter 83 Chapter 83 Breaking in (10,000 words plus more)...

A group of people left the capital at night and headed towards the northwest border.

After the Marquis left, everything in the mansion seemed to be normal, but it became inexplicably quiet.

The lady sat alone in the study room that had been converted from the west wing. She had not edited a single word in the ancient book in her hand. She could not concentrate her thoughts on the tip of the pen, and instead picked up the pen and wrote two words -

Suicide.

Under what circumstances would a person choose to end his or her life before it is complete and pass away early?

The ink spread on the paper, as if it had stained people's hearts, and was as heavy as the dark clouds covering the head.

Du Lingjing didn't think that Wei Shi had used some means to force Sanlang to this point. She believed that Wei Shi would not do such a bad thing.

However, it cannot be ruled out that it was Weishi's strong waiting that invisibly pressured Sanlang to choose suicide.

Sanlang is gentle and modest, he doesn't fight or compete, but the Marquis is just the opposite, he is firm and strong, he doesn't change his mind easily, if he wants something, he will ask for it openly, at the same time he can calm down and wait, and he can also endure the mind lying dormant.

Du Lingjing closed her eyes. Qiu Lin advised her to go to bed. The night watch drum sounded repeatedly and it was already very late.

But she couldn't sleep, she just looked at the two words on the tip of the pen.

What should the truth be?

*

The horses, which had been running all night, took a short rest before dawn.

Wei Cong sent a deputy general named He to accompany the marquis to the northwest. He had just come from the northwest army and was familiar with the situation inside and outside the pass.

Lu Shen Ruqian responded and called him over to question him.

They just asked about the Ninth King of Tatar. He was in his prime when he besieged the Yongding Army. But now, more than ten years later, he was seriously injured and must have become old.

"But we can't keep this person alive. It would be best if we can find out his whereabouts in advance and surprise him. That would be even better."

When Lu Shenru said this, the night melted into his eyes.

Deputy General He said yes repeatedly, "I'm afraid this person will be alert and run away when he sees the situation."

Lu Shenru snorted after hearing this, "Of course, but if he were asked to move forward, he might not be able to run so fast..."

Lure the enemy deep into your territory.

He then gave a few instructions to Lieutenant General He, and when Lieutenant General He heard them, his eyes lit up.

In the past, I had only heard that the Marquis was a master in using troops, but I had never had the honor of serving by his side. Upon hearing this, Lieutenant General He said yes and yes repeatedly, but he also had some concerns.

"This method is good, but if the Ninth Prince escapes, I'm afraid he won't appear again for a short time."

But the battlefield changes rapidly, and it is difficult to ensure that he can be caught.

It is indeed difficult to determine, but Lu Shenru said, "I will go into battle myself."

Upon hearing this, Deputy General He became even more excited. If the Marquis went in person, even if the Ninth Prince escaped for the time being, he would be defeated sooner or later.

"It's just that the Marquis is still injured."

"No problem."

After the man said this, he gave some instructions and asked people to prepare for the battle to lure the enemy into a surprise attack.

A dark cloud blocked the moonlight, and the forest was dark and unsettling. They couldn't stay during the day tomorrow, and had to hurry up, so they could only rest for a while.

Lu Shenru closed his eyes and couldn't help thinking about home.

I wonder if Jiang Fengchuan went back after he left to tell his wife about Jiang Zhuxiu's suicide. He had instructed Chong'an to guard Jiang Liu strictly, but he always had a feeling of uneasiness.

He might not be able to stop her, and she would find out sooner or later, during the days when he was away from Beijing.

A gust of wind blew in the forest, scattering stones on the ground and blurring the view.

He suddenly remembered the year Jiang Zhuxiu passed away. He was stunned for a long time when he heard the news. It happened earlier than he expected.

He waited for several days, and only went to Qingzhou after Jiang Zhuxiu's funeral.

Before all the mourners had left, the entire Qingzhou Jiang family was grieving over the untimely death of this most promising scholar.

Jiang Liu was the one who could not get over his brother's early death. He kept saying it was impossible, because the doctor had clearly said his brother could live until the next year. He also found it very strange and asked Chongping to investigate secretly.

And he went to look for the spring himself.

When he saw her, she was standing in the cold wind of the bamboo forest outside the yard, and the wind blew up the corners of her white clothes.

Although she did not marry Jiang Zhuxiu, she mourned for her Sanlang. She was dressed in mourning clothes and stood in the cold wind, her face and lips were pale.

He couldn't go forward and could only watch her silently from behind.

She seemed to have shed all her tears. She lowered her head and held onto the bamboo, as if she was about to collapse in the bamboo forest.

As he passed by, he saw her stagger. The dense bamboo forest supported her body to three-quarters, but it could not hold her completely, and she fell to the side.

Lu Shenru took a step forward, and she fell into his arms. Her tired eyes closed and she fainted.

"Quanquan..."

Uncle Qia Hui came to look for her, and seeing this he hurried over. When he was beside her again, she saw him holding her in his arms and was stunned.

"My Lord?"

The year her father passed away, Uncle Hui followed Jiang Zhuxiu and met him.

Uncle Hui greeted him hurriedly. It was obvious that he came here in secret and it was inconvenient for him to show up in public. The Jiang family had many guests and it was inconvenient to receive him.

Seeing that the person in his arms was unconscious, he simply carried her back to his own residence.

Uncle Hui didn't dare to say much. He could only follow quickly. He was very nervous because he was afraid of being seen by others.

After all, Jiang Zhuxiu had just passed away, and she was Jiang Zhuxiu's fiancée.

Fortunately, his residence was not far from the Jiang family, just nearby.

As soon as he picked her up, he found that she was lighter than he expected, as if sadness had hollowed her out. She was so thin that it even hurt his hands to hold her.

He asked Chongping to take off his cloak, put it on her, and held her in his arms.

When they got into the room, he was reluctant to let her go. He held her in his arms and let her lean on his arms. He quickly asked a doctor to feel her pulse through the tent.

The doctor said that she was just temporarily fainted due to exhaustion and prescribed a prescription. He asked Chongping to buy it, but when he was about to feed it to her, she refused to open her mouth.

He stroked her shoulders to coax her and repeatedly tried to feed her medicine, but she refused to drink it.

"Why is this?" he couldn't help but ask the doctor.

The doctor was not in a position to come in, and seeing their appearance, he could only examine their pulses outside the tent.

He said to her, "Maybe you are too sad and hurt, and you are a little..."

"How?!" he asked

The doctor said softly, "I'm afraid my wife has no intention of staying in this world..."

As soon as the words were spoken, the room fell silent.

She didn't want to live alone and wanted to follow the wind in this cold winter, so she followed Jiang Zhuxiu.

He looked at her in astonishment and saw that her lips were still tightly closed and her body in his arms was as cold as ice.

His eyes trembled.

Do you care so much about Jiang Qianjun?

Without him, is there nothing left to linger on in this world?

She couldn't answer him. The doctor said her health was not in that condition yet. If she was given acupuncture, she would wake up in a quarter of an hour and could be given medicine.

But Uncle Hui ran in from outside and said that Qiulin, Ruan Gong and others had discovered that the girl was missing and were looking for her anxiously, but they were afraid that they could not wait long.

Her eyes and lips were still closed, and her face was pale and bluish.

He looked at it again and again, and asked someone to bring the medicine. He put the medicine in his mouth and put his lips on her cold lips.

She didn't want to open her eyes, but he insisted on feeding the medicine into her mouth.

She didn't want to take the medicine, and tears welled up in the corners of her closed eyes.

He raised his hand to wipe it off for her, then held the medicine in his mouth and fed it into her mouth.

She gradually regained consciousness, but she kept sobbing, as if trying to escape from his arms.

But he put his arm around her shoulders and held her in his arms until he had finished feeding her the medicine.

The doctor felt her pulse again and said, "The girl should be fine."

Qiulin, Ruan Gong and the others were outside, and they were so anxious that they couldn't find her that they were running around everywhere. She was about to wake up.

Before he gave her the medicine, he kissed the corner of her eye.

The tears falling in the corners of her eyes were slightly salty.

She sobbed again and tried to turn her head away in resistance, but he would not allow her. He left a deep kiss between her eyes and brows, wiped away her salty tears, and then he looked at her one last time before getting up and leaving.

He vacated the yard, erased all traces of himself, and left it to her.

After that, they stayed in Qingzhou for three more days before leaving.

Jiang Zhuxiu left, but not completely. He almost took away her will to live.

He didn't dare force her and could only wait year after year.

After all, in her heart, that person is the only one who is rooted in her heart.

... ...

The flying sand and rocks in the mountains and forests stopped.

Lu Shenru looked back at the sky of the capital city behind her, and it seemed that her tears from those years were still lingering on her lips.

He pursed his lips slightly.

I wonder if she can sleep well in the Marquis’s mansion tonight?

But he had to go, so he immediately ordered Chongping to pass a message to the Xi'an Dusi and Xing Dusi departments, asking them to go to Xi'an and wait.

"Finish the meal as soon as possible and return to Beijing as soon as possible."

He gave the order and Chongping obeyed.

He suppressed the uneasy thoughts in his heart, got on his horse again and galloped towards the northwest border.

*

Capital city.

Du Lingjing met Zhu Feng in a teahouse in the city.

Zhu Feng didn't expect that she would come to see him specially. Now he heard her asking about some things before Qian Yun's death. Zhu Feng didn't quite understand and said that he hadn't heard anything special. "I received the news that Qian Yun passed away, but I didn't expect it to be so early. It was quite unexpected."

The implication is that he was completely unaware of Saburo's suicide.

Du Ling thought calmly that even Liu Lang and Uncle Hui didn't know, so it was not surprising that Zhu Feng didn't know either.

Even so, it was as if the fire of hope was extinguished, and she was unable to get an answer from Zhu Feng.

But Zhu Feng thought about it and said a few words to her, about Qian Yun's great concern for the affairs of the court. Du Lingjing knew this, but she was focused on collecting books, and she didn't discuss the court affairs with Sanlang very often, and Sanlang didn't seem to want to tell her much.

Zhu Feng didn't know any more about Sanlang. She even visited several of Sanlang's old friends over the past few days, but didn't get any answers.

She could only go to Uncle Hui again and ask him if Sanlang had any notes or anything like that left behind.

Uncle Hui said, "Madam also knows that the Third Master did not want to leave too many things to linger in the world. Those letters were burned, and I don't even remember that I have any more..."

Du Lingjing's eyes were filled with tears.

Uncle Hui's eyes turned red as he said quickly, "Besides books, Sanlang also left behind many imperial newspapers and some comments on the current situation in the court. However, since they were related to the current situation, many of them were burned, and the remaining ones were put into the warehouse. As for the other scattered notes, they are all in Sanye's study in my hometown in Qingzhou."

In Saburo's study...

After he left, neither his parents nor Liu Lang touched anything in his study. Everything remained the same as before. Whenever Du Lingjing missed him over the years, she would go and see him. She would sit in the chair where he read every day, silently, or lie on his desk, as if she could smell the scent of ink and bamboo on his body.

Du Lingjing returned to the Marquis' Mansion and called Chong'an over.

"Guard An, I want to go back to Qingzhou."

Go quickly and come back quickly, before the Marquis returns to the capital from the northwest.

She wanted to go to Saburo's study and read it again in person.

She wondered why on earth he would make such a choice.

She wants to go back to Qingzhou to find the answer herself.

But when she said it, Chong'an was shocked.

She explained to Chong'an that she was not leaving and would be back before the Marquis. She didn't even need to tell the Marquis, after all, he had to go to the northwest to fight on the battlefield and he didn't need to know.

But Chong'an disagreed no matter what.

"The Marquis has ordered that Madam must not leave the capital!"

Chong'an was frightened. Even if Du Lingjing said that she would not take anyone else but Chong'an and the guards from the Marquis' Mansion, it would not work.

She felt depressed, and seeing that she couldn't convince Chong'an no matter what, she could only say.

"Then you must not tell the Marquis, and don't delay his work at the front line!"

This was her instruction, but Chong'an remembered that the Marquis had instructed him before he left a few days ago, asking him to keep an eye on the Madam at home and report any movements of the Madam to the Marquis immediately.

Previously, when the lady left the capital to go to Baoding to disobey the party, she put it aside for a day before telling the marquis, which made the marquis extremely unhappy. This time Chong'an learned his lesson and no longer listened to the lady, and quickly passed the news to the marquis.

However, Lu Shenru continued to ride westward, and finally arrived at Ningxia Guancheng under the scorching summer sun.

He only met with a few trusted generals and told them about his plan to capture the Ninth Prince alive.

When the generals first saw the Marquis coming secretly, they were excited, and then they heard that they were going to capture the Ninth Prince of Tatar, they became even more excited.

*

Outside the pass.

Among the rolling hills, there are tribes stationed here.

The people below brought greasy roasted mutton and strong wine into the tent one after another.

The leader of the tribe immediately had someone cut off the best piece and handed it to an elderly man nearby.

"Old Master Jiu, we are still a little immature in front of you. It is thanks to you that we have been fighting for the past few months."

The chief handed over the dagger for cutting meat and filled the man's bowl with wine.

"In the past, the Ninth Elder almost wiped out the Yongding Army. His prestige was known throughout the desert. Why don't you mention the glorious past?"

As he spoke, the other generals in the tent came forward and shouted for Jiu Lao to speak.

The Ninth Elder, the Ninth King of Tatar, was not in a mood to talk. A faint smile appeared on his old, scarred face.

"The Han Chinese have a saying: A good man never talks about his past achievements," he said. "It's all God's will."

After saying that, he finished his drink and walked out of the tent alone.

Seeing that he was unwilling to say more, everyone did not pursue him. They only talked about the recent events in Ningxia Guancheng. Last time, they seriously injured the prince of Zhongqing Earl who had just arrived in Ningxia, but the prince of Wei was not someone to be trifled with. He beat the coalition forces of several tribes into pieces.

They finally gathered some strength and were only thinking about when to return to Ningxia for revenge.

The Ninth Prince did not discuss the matter with them, but walked out of the tent alone.

The bright moon hangs high on the mountain top.

He recalled the battle in the 14th year of the Han Dynasty's Hongqi reign, in which half of the Yongding Army was almost wiped out. He indeed played a crucial role in it.

In terms of glory, it is glorious, but in fact, that is not his own ability.

Instead, someone got hold of the news that the Yongding Army had left the border and secretly passed it to him.

He pulled out a round bone plaque from his collar, on which was engraved an extremely complex pattern.

If Lu Shenru or Wei Cong looked at it at this moment, they would be able to see at a glance that the pattern was exactly the same as the pattern leaked by the spies.

The Ninth Prince looked at the round bone plaque, which was the last thing left of his tribe that was destroyed more than forty years ago.

Back then, someone found him with this map, and only then did he believe the news. The news was indeed accurate and almost caused the Yongding Army to be devastated.

Anyone who has this pattern must be a descendant of the tribe, and anyone who can accurately draw this pattern can only be a noble of the tribe at that time.

But the tribe was destroyed and the nobles disappeared. How could they have penetrated into the Han people and obtained the secret movements of the Yongding Army?

For so many years, he has actually been secretly investigating who sent him the message at that time.

Gradually, he began to have some guesses.

The nobleman holding this pattern must be a person of very high rank in the Han court.

The Han people, including the Yongding Army, seemed to have not discovered him yet...

The Ninth Prince laughed and looked at the round bone plaque around his neck again and again. Then he returned to the tent, drank a pot of wine and fell asleep.

Unexpectedly, when he woke up the next afternoon, he saw the tribal leaders and generals eager to try.

He asked what made them so excited, and the leader said.

"I heard that Yongding Marquis Lu Shenru is coming to the northwest to reorganize military affairs. The deputy general guarding the city of Ningxia is afraid that Marquis Lu will use him as a scapegoat after the previous failures and the injury of the Crown Prince of Wei. He is preparing to lead his men to raid us and gain some military merits to report to Marquis Lu."

The leader laughed loudly, "He wants to take our heads and attack us. Fine, let them go without return!"

He asked the Ninth Prince if this was feasible, and the Ninth Prince asked him if the news was credible.

"It's believable! It's believable! I heard that Lord Lu is really coming to the northwest and has sent people to Xi'an. Let's slap him in the face and then run away. I want to see if Lord Lu will look embarrassed!"

He laughed loudly, but the Ninth Prince was still a little hesitant.

But the hatred between him and the Lu family is incalculable. Back then, Lord Lu, the grandfather of Lord Lu, almost sent him to death.

He has just recovered, so it is not appropriate for him to have a head-on confrontation with Lu Shenru. However, if he can embarrass Lu, it will help him to take control of the troops as soon as possible and make a comeback.

Everyone confirmed the news again and again, and two days later, before dawn, they ambushed outside Ningxia Pass City.

After an hour, soldiers were seen moving out.

It is said that the deputy general did not go out in person, fearing something might go wrong, and only ordered a few of his less capable subordinates to launch a surprise attack.

Everyone was holding back their laughter.

Wait until we see the Han troops coming out of the pass and heading towards this place.

The tribal leader gave a horn, and the people who had been lying in ambush in the middle of the night rushed forward.

The Ninth Prince did not charge forward, but only watched from a distance. He saw that the Han people were ambushed by them and all of them threw away their armor and weapons, while the Tatar generals chased the enemy everywhere and were scattered in an instant.

It seemed like they were taking advantage of the winning momentum, but his heart skipped a beat.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, a large army surrounded them from all directions.

The yellow sand was raised, and the scene was as if the commander-in-chief himself was leading the troops.

Although Ningxia has a large number of troops, they can be deployed out of the border in a moment. Unless it is an emergency, a small deputy general cannot make the decision.

So who is it?

The Ninth Prince's heart beat faster, and a person suddenly appeared in his mind.

I heard that Marquis Yongding, Lu Shenru, is about to come to the northwest!

He no longer cared about others, asked someone to protect him, turned his horse around and galloped away.

But Lu Shenru came here just for him, and annihilating a tribe was just a matter of convenience.

He ordered Lieutenant General He to lead his troops in four directions to pursue them.

But the Ninth Tatar Prince was indeed a man who had managed to escape from the old marquis's hands. Deputy General He led his men in pursuit but was ineffective, so he had to order his men to shoot arrows at his horses.

As arrows were shot down, several of the people who were protecting him fell off their horses, but this man ran faster and faster.

"My Lord, we can't catch up!"

Ahead is the deep hinterland of the mountains outside the Great Wall.

Lu Shenru had not expected that this person would react so quickly.

But if he didn't allow this man to escape, he could have his men shoot him with arrows, but he couldn't capture him alive.

He suddenly called Chongping, "Bring me my bow and arrow!"

Deputy General He was shocked as the Marquis still had a wound on his shoulder. Chongping was also shocked but he still handed over the bow and arrow.

Between the two, the Marquis drew his bow and drew his arrow, showing no sign of being injured.

The next moment, there was a trembling sound, and the arrow broke through the wind and flew away, chasing the wind.

With a bang, it was nailed firmly into the thigh of the ninth Tatar king.

The man screamed and nearly fell off his horse, but his will to survive was so strong that he managed to keep his balance.

Lu Shenru sneered and wanted to shoot another arrow, but Deputy General He and Chongping both shouted, "My Lord, you can't do that!"

However, in a moment, the new flesh and blood on the wound on his arm was completely shattered by the powerful arrow, and the blood stained his shoulder.

Shooting again might not hit the target, it would only cause more serious injury.

Lu Shenru also knew that the injury on his shoulder still gave the Ninth Prince a chance to continue escaping.

His hands clenched.

However, this person had been hit by his arrow and could no longer escape.

Deputy General He asked for permission to go and give chase, but he ordered, "No rush, make sure to capture him alive! Don't let him die."

After he finished speaking, Chongping saw blood dripping from his shoulder, and he hurriedly escorted him back to the city.

In less than an hour, the ambushing Tatar tribe was completely wiped out, and the Guan army was greatly victorious, but Deputy General He had not returned from chasing the Ninth Tatar Prince.

Lu Shenru guessed that he couldn't escape, but it would take some effort to capture him alive.

However, three military doctors came to treat his shoulder injury and all of them looked grim.

"The Marquis's arrow was too powerful."

When Lu Shenru drew the bow and drew the arrow, he didn't think much at all.

But at this moment, all three military doctors said, "The flesh that the Marquis had just grown has been torn apart, and even the tear has become deeper. It is quite difficult to stop the bleeding. The Marquis will probably need to rest for at least a month."

Lu Shenru turned around and glanced at his shoulder.

No wonder it hurts a bit.

But how could he have the time to rest for more than a month?

There are still many things going on in the capital, and he always feels uneasy knowing that his wife is alone in the capital.

He just said, "Stop the bleeding for me first, and we can take care of the rest later."

The military doctor at the border didn't dare to say much in front of him and could only stop the bleeding quickly. He then called Chongping.

"Don't tell my wife about my torn wound when you go back."

Chongping agreed, and he asked another question.

"Has there been any news from the wife at home?"

“Not yet.”

No news, or maybe it was good news, Lu Shenru breathed a sigh of relief.

The three military doctors worked for a while and finally stopped his bleeding and bandaged him up. The guards brought him clean clothes to change into.

He glanced at her and said, "When did I ever wear new clothes when I was leading troops in battle?"

He always wore old clothes that fit him well when leading his troops into battle and never wore new clothes.

The guard only realized that he was holding a new dress when he heard this. Chongping immediately stepped forward and asked, "Who put the new dress in the Marquis' box?"

Before leaving, he had instructed that only old clothes be taken, but suddenly a new piece of clothing appeared, which was surprising.

Lu Shenru also frowned, but the guard suddenly remembered.

"My Lord, this was put in there by my Lady. It must be the peace clothes that my Lady prayed for my Lord from the temple."

Lu Shenru was surprised, "Madam..."

But he immediately realized something and looked at the guard.

"When did Madam put this dress in my box?"

The guard remembered clearly, "It was the afternoon of the day you left the capital. You were entertaining guests in the small hall of Yuanxiu Pavilion. Madam went into the bedroom to put her clothes away, and then stayed in the bedroom for a while before leaving. She also instructed her subordinates not to tell the Marquis first because the clothes she put away were safe clothes."

Chongping didn't know what was going on, but Lu Shenru was stunned.

When he met Jiang Fengchuan in the small living room, she was in the bedroom?

The small hall is closely connected to the bedroom of Yuanxiu Pavilion, and one can hear conversations from inside.

But she had been in Yuanxiu Pavilion for a long time and didn't say anything at that time, so he thought she had just come back from the temple.

The torn wound on his shoulder became more and more painful, and the pain spread to his heart.

So she heard everything, but said nothing. Why didn't she say anything?

His mind was a little confused.

Just then, guards came outside, and then someone delivered a message.

"My Lord, there is news from the mansion in the capital."

News from Chong'an.

Lu Shenru's heart skipped a beat, and the pain in his shoulder made him feel a little panicked.

She heard everything. The reason she kept silent was that she wanted to wait until he was no longer in the capital and then leave?

He didn't want to hear this news.

But when the man came forward, he reported it to him.

The lady was said to be in a very bad mood.

It is said that the lady has been meeting Jiang Jieyuan’s old friends almost every day recently.

Madam, I want to go back to Qingzhou.

After he finished speaking, Lu Shenru closed his eyes.

If there is any sticky feeling or blockage in the larynx, it will get stuck in his larynx.

The pain on his shoulder finally penetrated into his heart.

He finally understood why she kept silent.

Just for a moment, he thought she was afraid that he would be distracted and injured on the battlefield.

Turns out not.

She just wanted to wait for him to leave, then go back to her Qingzhou to find her Sanlang!

Lu Shenru's hands were clenched so tightly that they made crackling sounds.

He suddenly stood up, no longer caring about the severity of the wound, and put on his clothes.

He ordered the deputy general of Ningxia, "Capture the ninth Tatar king and send him to the capital!"

After saying that, he strode out.

All the generals in Ningxia were shocked, and the deputy general asked hurriedly.

"My Lord, are you going back to Beijing? When?"

The man didn't reply, but whipped his horse and rode out of Ningxia city.

He spent three days to settle all matters in Xi'an, and then without resting for a single day, he turned his horse and headed east, heading straight back to Beijing.

The torn shoulder that needed more than a month to heal no longer had time to grow new flesh and blood, so he could only use a thick cloth to wrap up the blood that was constantly seeping out.

He was on horseback, looking only in the direction of the capital.

She wanted to go back to Qingzhou so much just because Jiang Zhuxiu was buried in Qingzhou.

"You just want to go back to him, have you ever thought about me?!"

*

Capital city.

Du Lingjing couldn't sleep every night in the Marquis' Mansion, so she had to stay in Chengqingfang temporarily.

Chong'an couldn't stop this, so he could only send people to surround Chengqingfang.

The summer heat in the capital was already very severe. Not only did Du Lingjing have trouble sleeping, but she couldn't even eat. Especially in recent days, she couldn't help feeling like vomiting after taking a few bites.

She calculated that it would take at least half a month for the Marquis to return to Beijing, so she decided to stay in Chengqingfang for a while.

She moved into the central wing where she used to live with her father.

The east road was the brand new house that the Marquis had just expanded for her, while the west road was where Sanlang had lived for a long time when he was temporarily staying in her house.

Although Chengqingfang was nice and it was her own home, she was sandwiched between the East Road and the West Road. She could neither easily step into the West Road nor dare to enter the West Road casually.

She tried some other ways to find out about Sanlang's past, but still could not find the answer.

Qiu Lin came to persuade her, "Since it was suicide, Madam, you can just assume that Third Master did it voluntarily, isn't that okay?"

Suicide is of course voluntary.

But dying peacefully and committing suicide in agony are two completely different things.

"If Saburo chose to commit suicide out of desperation and misery, then am I not deceiving myself?"

Despite Sanlang's helplessness and misery, she continued to pretend to be ignorant and stay with the Marquis. So what did Sanlang's death matter?

She was feeling depressed and crying for Sanlang, but what did this mean to Weishi?

Neither is fair.

Only if she finds out the reason why Sanlang committed suicide will it be fair to both of them!

She couldn't leave the capital, so she could only send Ruan Gong back to Qingzhou for her.

Du Lingjing sat alone in the corridor of her father's main room. Ai Ye brought her some cold cake. She took a look at it and her stomach churned.

"Madam, how can you not eat? Do you want to see a doctor?"

But Du Lingjing shook her head.

Qiu Lin knew what she was thinking and suddenly thought of something.

"Madam, why don't you ask the dead about things that the living can't understand? Maybe you can find the answer in your dreams!"

Du Lingjing was stunned.

When Sanlang just passed away, she missed him so much that she became sick. She saw a method of entering dreams in Mianlou's book, so she wore plain white clothes and placed things closely related to him in the room. Qianyun really entered his dreams several times at night.

It’s been so long, so long that it seems like it happened in the last lifetime.

Du Lingjing almost couldn't remember.

She has never believed in supernatural things, but when she is at her wits' end, it seems that faith is the only thing she has left.

She walked out from the middle road. The gate to the east courtyard was open, and the newly planted summer flowers inside were in full bloom. She looked at them silently for a few seconds, and finally turned and went to the west courtyard.

The west road is like spring, and even in this midsummer season, there is still some spring coolness. When Qianyun was in Beijing, he lived in the west wing, which connected to the bamboo forest in the backyard from the side.

Qiu Lin searched through her boxes and unearthed the colorful clothes that were made for her by the marquis's family. At the bottom, she found a set of plain white clothes.

The moment Du Lingjing put it on, she was standing in the west wing of the west wing, and she felt a familiar feeling in the palm of her hand.

When Sanlang just passed away, she did this almost every day, wearing plain clothes and smelling the scent of bamboo. She felt as if someone was slowly extending his not-so-strong arms, but his arms were long and slender, and he could hold her completely in his arms, giving her peace and security.

At this moment, the fragrance of bamboo was also spreading. She stood in the west wing and couldn't help but call out.

"Sanlang...Sanlang! Can you hear me?"

No one in the room responded, but her tears were already flowing.

"Sanlang, can you tell me why you chose this path?"

She cried and asked in a trembling voice.

But it was not dark yet, he was destined not to be able to dream, and he was destined not to be able to find the answer.

But the tears never stopped, and she hugged her shoulders.

However, at this moment, there was a sudden chaos outside, and the noisy sound spread into the room, disrupting the quiet bamboo fragrance inside.

Du Lingjing hadn't heard clearly what was happening, but she only heard a familiar sound of footsteps, each step weighing heavily on her heart, heading straight for the door.

She was stunned and subconsciously walked quickly to greet him.

It’s the Marquis... He’s back!

Are you injured?! Did you win?!

But when he walked to the door, he suddenly saw himself in white clothes and instantly realized something.

She stopped suddenly, but the person outside had already reached the door.

"lady?"

Du Lingjing's mouth and tongue were dry and her heart was beating fast.

The man who was rushing back to Beijing stood in front of the door and looked at the west wing on the west road.

Chong'an stopped her from leaving, so she moved into the west wing on the west road of Chengqingfang, right?

If he was not mistaken, this was the place where Jiang Zhuxiu used to stay at the Du family.

The man's eyes turned cold. He walked to the door and called his wife inside, but she did not respond at all.

His men controlled it so that it didn't hit the door.

He only had a hoarse voice.

"Open the door."

This time she responded, but said, "No..."

"No?"

The man felt a pain in his shoulder again.

He heard her say.

"You go back first. It's inconvenient for me to..."

Du Lingjing was still wearing white clothes, and the room was filled with the scent of bamboo. How could this be possible? He would definitely think too much!

But she didn't open the door. The man outside closed his eyes and laughed hoarsely.

"inconvenient?"

He asked her, "You and I are husband and wife. We have prayed to heaven and earth and have been married by imperial decree. What inconvenience is there?"

His voice was completely hoarse. "Or is it that this room is only for Jiang Zhuxiu to live in, and only worthy of him, and I am not worthy of stepping into it? I disturbed him?!"

"no... ..."

Through the door, Du Lingjing's chest was churning. She couldn't help but cover her mouth and nose, but she couldn't stop the panicked tears from flowing.

"No, Weishi..."

But he just asked fiercely, "Isn't it true?!"

The next moment after he finished speaking, he suddenly pushed the door open and walked in.

There was a bolt inside the door that Du Lingjing had placed before she came in.

As soon as he felt the bolt blocking the door, he sneered even louder.

The next moment, he gathered strength in his arms and slammed the door of the compartment open!

The door bolt broke and fell, and Du Lingjing saw his cold and uncertain expression.

Lu Shenru also saw his wife.

She was wearing the same white dress she wore when she was in mourning for Jiang Zhuxiu.

The plain white dress fit her body tightly, and the whole room was filled with the scent of bamboo.

She stood in the rich atmosphere, and even every strand of her hair was filled with the bamboo fragrance belonging to Jiang Zhuxiu.

The man stared at his wife with trembling eyes, breath after breath.

He suddenly asked softly.

"You miss him that much?"

Du Lingjing became completely panicked.

She never thought that he would come back early, and today.

But she didn't want him to see all this and wanted to persuade him to leave, but he insisted on coming in.

She couldn't stop crying, "Only the stone..."

His eyes were red. Weren't the tears he shed for Jiang Zhuxiu over the years enough?

She almost died because of that man.

He thought that after she married him, she would gradually forget that man.

But no, not at all!

he asked her suddenly.

"What am I?"

"What does that mean?" Du Lingjing didn't know what he meant.

He looked at her and asked again.

"How much do I mean to you?"

She had once thrown herself into his arms, hugged his neck and cried, called him husband tenderly, and told him that there was no man in the world more handsome than him...

He just asked.

"How much does Quanquan really care about me? Compared to him, Jiang Zhuxiu, am I, Lu Shenru, not worth mentioning?!"

"Don't say that, it's definitely not worth mentioning!"

But he couldn't hear anything she said. His eyes were trembling and there was a slight gleam of water in them. He kept asking her the questions that had been buried in her heart for a long time.

"If Jiang Zhuxiu is not dead, if he can come back, then you don't need to hesitate any more, abandon me immediately, and follow him without looking back?!"

"No, I won't..."

Du Lingjing repeatedly denied it, but he just shook his head.

"No? No?"

Tears had already blurred Du Lingjing's vision.

The man also pursed his lips and stared at her in pain.

He asked suddenly.

"Can you still remember who I am?"

Du Lingjing's eyes were so sore that she could not bear it any more. The wind from outside blew in and blew away the bamboo fragrance in the room.

She already remembered who he was.

She said his name at that time.

"Mr. Shi."

Seeing that she remembered everything, Lu Shenru smiled even more.

I didn't know whether the pain started from behind my shoulder or from my heart, but spread to every part of my body.

He didn't care about the past that he never wanted to mention again at this moment, so he said it directly.

"Yes, Mr. Shi."

He paused for a moment, "It's that Mr. Shi whom you despise so much."

He was the Mr. Shi from nine years ago, the young man who was quietly recuperating in the mezzanine of Mian Building, the one she hated so much that she didn't even want to look at him, the one she drove away!

His eyes were trembling under the water light, and he looked into her eyes completely.

Du Lingjing covered her trembling lips. She wanted to reach out and pull his sleeve, but she failed.

And he spoke.

"Do you still remember that Jiang Zhuxiu was not your fiancé at that time?"

He suddenly raised his voice.

"And the husband your father-in-law originally chose for you was me, Lu Shenru!"

He closed his eyes deeply, then opened them again.

"But you only had eyes for him and never saw me. And you drove me away for him!"