Chapter 146 Entrusting Longing

"Then I should go and choose a good horse first!" Daiyu's voice was soft and sweet.

Yuan Hongqu breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Daiyu was willing to accept it, finding a good horse was much easier than letting her learn light-body skills on her own.

"Of course. I heard that many horses will be transported from the grasslands when spring comes. We'll have our grooms pick out a few good ones."

The following day, the Lin family split into two groups. One group carried gifts to the Rongguo Mansion to deliver New Year's presents. There were six carriages in a grand procession. One carriage carried several maids, another carried old women, and the last four carriages carried New Year's gifts for the Jia family.

The other group traveled lightly, with only two carriages, and Lan Su rode her own yellow horse. The group headed out of the city.

Just as they left the city, Yuan Hongqu heard a sound coming from behind the carriage.

"Is that the Lin family's carriage ahead?"

"Granny Yuan, there's a group of soldiers behind us. They look like guards from some prince's mansion," Lan Su whispered beside the carriage.

As they were talking, the group of men caught up with them. The leader was a young military officer. They did not dismount when they arrived.

The leading officer spoke loudly into the carriage.

“Mr. Yuan, I am Han Mu, the head guard of Prince Xian’s mansion. Yesterday, I heard that the young lady of your mansion was going to Kongyun Temple today, and the prince ordered us to accompany and protect her. We have been waiting at the city gate since early this morning.” As he spoke, he handed his waist token, which represented his identity, to the coachman, who took the token and put it into the carriage.

He had expected the Lin family girl's trip to be a grand affair, but to his surprise, there were only two carriages and not even a single guard. Fortunately, their prince had arranged for them.

The waist tag was handed out from the car again. Han Mu took the tag and heard a clear, cool voice coming from inside the car.

"Thank you for your concern, Prince Xian. It just so happens that my coachman is not very familiar with this road. Please ask Chief Han to lead the way."

Yuan Hongqu showed no politeness whatsoever.

Thinking back to the time when I was almost taken hostage to Kongyun Temple, it was the work of Lin Ruhai and Prince Xian.

Lin Ruhai, for Daiyu's sake, let it go.

As for Prince Xian, Yuan Hongqu had no intention of letting it go so easily.

Although he sent a message to the Prince Xian's Mansion during the disaster relief efforts in Xicheng, which can be considered as asking for help.

However, because Prince Xian took the lead and was not afraid of difficulties in the disaster relief in Xicheng, the Emperor not only praised him highly, but also issued an imperial edict to his family, so that when Prince Xian's son inherited the title, he would not be demoted.

Prince Xian felt he owed Yuan Hongqu a huge favor. The Lin family was already secretly guarded by Prince Xian's guards, and now there were even more.

From this perspective, it seems that King Xian did not actually help Yuan Hongqu; he helped the people of Xicheng and was the one who received the reward.

Yuan Hongqu acted as a middleman, providing information. Her benefit was that Daiyu no longer needed to worry about the disaster victims in the western part of the city...

So, we still haven't gotten over the incident where we were taken hostage to Kongyun Temple!

"Granny, what is the relationship between the Prince Xian's Mansion and our family? I always feel that they have a rather close relationship with our family." Daiyu asked, puzzled.

"He was probably entrusted by Lord Lin to help take care of you." Yuan Hongqu did not reveal the inside story; there was no need for Daiyu to know those things.

"Hmm, I think so too."

Today, Daiyu is going to perform a religious ceremony for her mother and younger brother, which makes her think of the old days and makes her feel somewhat depressed.

Although her younger brother was not her biological brother, he looked very similar to her.

She remembered that she was in poor health and was always afraid of passing on her illness to her younger brother.

However, her younger brother wasn't afraid at all. He even went up to her to make her laugh and keep her company.

My mother said back then that the house was much more lively after my younger brother was born.

later......

Daiyu didn't want to think about it anymore.

"Granny, how much longer until we arrive?"

"It's about ten miles outside the city, so we should be there soon. I sent someone to the temple yesterday afternoon to let them know, so there will definitely be no delay."

“Mr. Yuan, my lord has already cleared out Kongyun Temple. Today, there is only Miss Lin as our guest. There will be no one else.” Han Mu, riding alongside the carriage, overheard their conversation and added.

There was silence from inside the carriage for a while. Just when Han Mu thought Yuan Hongqu wouldn't pay any attention to him, he heard Yuan Hongqu's voice coming from inside again.

"Is it clean inside and out?"

"Don't worry, Mr. Yuan, everything has been taken care of." Han Mu knew what Yuan Hongqu meant by asking this. Kongyun Temple had a dungeon, and the people imprisoned there had long been transferred to the Heavenly Prison.

“Very good, then you won’t have to worry about disturbing others,” Yuan Hongqu said calmly.

The religious ceremony began when Daiyu entered the temple and lasted until sunset, and Daiyu was still reluctant to leave.

She had seen rituals before, but this was the first time she had ever seen an entire Taoist temple with all the Taoist priests coming out together to perform a ritual.

Daiyu had no more regrets.

As evening fell, she boarded the carriage, a hint of excitement still on her face. She had no regrets about the future.

The abbot of Kongyun Temple, who was also the presiding officer of this ceremony, told her that her mother and younger brother had already drunk the Meng Po soup and were queuing up on the Naihe Bridge to be reincarnated!

If they sense that there are still people in the world who can't let them go, they can't be reincarnated and will only be able to queue up on the Bridge of Helplessness forever...

Upon hearing this, Daiyu's tears flowed uncontrollably, as if she wanted to shed all the tears she had in her life.

From now on, I can no longer worry about them all the time.

The journey was uneventful, and they were about to enter the city when they suddenly overheard Han Mu whispering...

"Mr. Yuan, where did you get the spiked club you took out when you passed by here last time? Why hasn't it appeared since?"

"Why are you asking this?" Yuan Hongqu asked warily.

"We found two while we were cleaning up, but we still haven't figured out how they were made. Plus, they smelled awful..."

Durian shells, no wonder they smell bad!

Fortunately, it's winter now, so the durian shell rots slowly. If it were summer, this thing would stink for miles around.

"Mr. Yuan, the prince said that thing is especially suitable for close-quarters combat..."

"Don't attack it, and don't touch it. It's not a weapon. Wrap it up and throw it away quickly. If the weather gets warmer in a few days, it will rot," Yuan Hongqu reminded her.

"Mr. Yuan, what exactly is that thing?" Han Mu was still unwilling to give up.

"That's a plant from a foreign land."

"Plant?" Han Mu was taken aback. Such a sturdy thing was just a plant?

While he was still in shock, the Lin family's carriage had already entered the city.

"Miss, Granny Yuan, you're finally back. The Jia family came three times today, all saying they wanted to invite you over."

"They said Miss Shi also went today, and she was very disappointed that she didn't get to see you!"