Chapter 27 [VIP]
Chapter Summary: Angry.
After Xie Xuan left, Yu Jing quickly crouched down and slipped into a corner, calling out in a flustered voice, "Night Wanderer!"
The Night Wanderer suddenly appeared in front of Yu Jing. Yu Jing patted his chest. Although he was somewhat used to the Night Wanderer's unpredictable appearances, he still got scared when the Night Wanderer showed up.
"Night Wanderer, there's no one here now. Please escort me back to my bedchamber." Before Yu Jing could finish speaking, she felt a lightness in her body, and her nose was filled with the scent of moon unicorn fragrance.
Yu Jing opened her eyes and found herself already in the Cining Palace's sleeping quarters: "Finally back! Tonight was such a whirlwind!"
Looking at the familiar scene, Yu Jing relaxed completely, casually placed the token on the table, and sighed.
"Night Wanderer, thank you so much for tonight. After I return to Heaven, I will bring you some elixirs from Goddess Zelan."
The Night Wanderer smiled and replied, "Then thank you very much, Fairy Yu Jing. Now that the matter is settled, I have other duties to attend to, so I will take my leave now."
"Okay, thank you." Yu Jing was truly grateful. After the Night Wanderer left, Yu Jing found a clean set of clothes in the wardrobe and changed into them. Looking at the clothes she had worn from the Zheng residence, Yu Jing felt a little worried.
If I call Ayu in now to deal with it, she might become suspicious, since the clothes are still wet. I'll find somewhere to leave them until they dry tomorrow.
Although she had changed into clean clothes, she still felt sticky and uncomfortable, so she called out, "Ayu."
"Yes, ma'am," Ayu replied, then pushed open the door and entered.
"Have someone prepare the hot spring; I wish to take a bath."
"Yes." Ayu responded and withdrew, instructing someone to make preparations.
After seeing Yu Jing off, Xie Xuan returned to the carriage and sat in the spot where Yu Jing had just been. In the dim light, Xie Xuan lowered his gaze and inadvertently caught sight of a pure white object on the ground. He bent down slightly to pick it up; it was a handkerchief made of silk, with a lifelike magpie embroidered in the lower left corner.
Xie Xuan looked at the magpie and suddenly thought of Yu Jing's maiden name.
Magpie.
He put away the handkerchief, then sat up straight, and heard Xie Yi outside ask, "Young Master, shall we go back to the Zheng residence or back to our own residence?"
"Let's go back to the manor."
"yes."
Returning to the Zheng residence now with such a commotion would likely attract even more attention. Besides, his clothes were mostly wet, and returning in such disheveled attire would be impolite.
The servants in front of the general's mansion, seeing from afar that it wasn't their own carriage, assumed it was just passing by and didn't think much of it. Only when the carriage drew closer and they recognized Xie Yi as the driver did a group of people rush forward to serve it.
Xie Xuan was soaked to the bone, and the servant dared not say anything, only sending someone inside to inform them to prepare hot water for a bath. Xie Xuan got off the carriage and casually asked, "Has Father returned?"
"No," the servant replied, handing over the umbrella he was holding a little more. Xie Xuan looked at his soaked back and said, "Go hide under the eaves, I'll hold it myself."
"No need, it's what I should do," the servant replied, his eyes filled with gratitude.
Xie Xuan said no more, but took the umbrella from the servant's hand, and together they went under the eaves and walked straight into the mansion.
Xie Jin did not return. Li Wei and Xie Ying were embroidering patterns in the main hall. Xie Xuan knew he was in the wrong and that it was not appropriate to tell them the reason, so he went around to the back, thinking he would take a bath and change his clothes first.
Before he could take more than a few steps, he heard the maid who had just approached call out, "Young master is back!"
Xie Xuan's hand, which he had just raised to his lips, now seemed somewhat superfluous.
Her voice was loud. The door to the main hall was not closed. Li Wei and Xie Ying heard the noise and came out of the main hall. When they saw Xie Xuan, Li Wei asked with some surprise, "Didn't you go to the banquet with Father? Why are you back now?"
"And you've made it look like this?" Li Wei said, pointing at him up and down.
"Ah... Mother," Xie Xuan called out, slightly embarrassed.
“You must have sneaked out while Father was drinking with his colleagues, right?” Li Wei continued.
Xie Xuan wanted to deny it, but then he thought about how he would explain it to Li Wei, so he nodded and admitted his mistake, saying, "Mother, I was wrong. I won't do it again next time."
Xie Ying then stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "Mother, Xuan'er said he won't do it again next time, so please don't blame him."
Li Wei turned her head and glanced at Xie Ying, who immediately lowered her head and remained silent.
"You!" Li Wei heard Xie Xuan admit his mistake and Xie Ying persuaded her. Although she still maintained her composure, her tone softened and she said with a hint of helplessness, "Tell me what your mother told you before."
"Now that I am working in the court, there are some things I should not indulge in and be willful about..." Xie Xuan said this with a guilty conscience.
"You remember what I said clearly, but doing it is another matter entirely." Li Wei reached out and tapped his head with a look of exasperation. "Look at you, your clothes are almost completely wet! Go change right now!"
"Yes." Hearing Li Wei say this, Xie Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Li Wei would not pursue the matter, and quickly turned around and walked into the room.
Xie Xuan walked quickly and vaguely heard Li Wei's voice coming from behind him: "Copy the Buddhist scriptures ten times and give them to me in front of Wanjiang Mountain."
"Understood." Xie Xuan turned around, waving to Li Wei as he walked backwards, "Mother, hurry back."
Li Wei looked at Xie Xuan, shook her head and said, "I thought Xuan'er would become more composed after taking up a post in the court, but who would have thought he would still be the same."
Seeing Li Wei's anxiety, Xie Ying comforted her, "Mother, we've only been back in the capital for a short time. Xuan'er has been at the border for a long time, so he'll need some time to adjust."
“That makes sense, but Sui Sui, you don’t understand. The officialdom is even more dangerous than the battlefield. It’s like walking on thin ice. If you make a mistake, you’ll be doomed!” Li Wei said, her voice filled with worry, and she sighed deeply.
"Mother, don't worry. I'll find a time to have a good talk with Xuan'er. He's not the type to ignore advice," Xie Ying said softly.
Li Wei felt a little relieved and reached out to pat Xie Ying's hand, saying, "You should talk to him properly."
"Don't worry, Mother."
Zheng Mansion.
The banquet was still ongoing when Su Siyang sat at the table, looking at the noisy, flattering crowd with a listless expression. He twirled his wine glass, occasionally exchanging a few words with the person next to him.
Qinghong came in, glanced at the people on the table, hesitated for a moment, and then walked to Su Siyang's side. She whispered in Su Siyang's ear, "Someone just came to report that someone took the Empress Dowager's Phoenix Decree into the palace, and it seems to have gone in the direction of Cining Palace."
Su Siyang lowered his eyes and asked in a low voice, "Do you know who it is?"
Qinghong paused for a long while before speaking, "It sounds like Lord Xie."
After Qinghong finished speaking, she glanced at Su Siyang's expression. Su Siyang never kept his composure when it came to anything involving Shenghua. For a moment, it felt like the air had frozen, and he didn't know what to do.
Su Siyang raised his wine glass, stood up, and said to the officials at the table, "I am a little drunk and I am afraid of disturbing your enjoyment, so I will take my leave now."
Everyone in the officialdom knew a thing or two about Su Siyang's temperament. When he was about to leave, no one tried to stop him. They all stood up and accepted his cup of wine, politely saying, "Please take care, Lord Su."
Su Siyang left the banquet hall without looking back, walking faster than usual. Qinghong followed, sensing something was amiss. Su Siyang got into the carriage, growing angrier the more he thought about it.
The Phoenix Token, something that Sheng Hua rarely took out in the past, and which he had only seen a few times, was given to Xie Xuan so easily!
Thinking of this, Su Siyang gave a mocking smile, then recalled what Sheng Hua had said to him before. A wave of bitterness, jealousy, and resentment washed over him.
"My lord, we've arrived," Qinghong whispered from outside the carriage.
Su Siyang dismounted, and the servant beside him was about to place a low stool. Before it was even properly placed, Su Siyang had already stepped onto it. His steps were hurried and he tripped. Qinghong reacted quickly and reached out to help him. Seeing this, the servant hurriedly tried to kneel down to apologize to Su Siyang. Before he could kneel, a sharp pain shot through his shoulder, and he was kicked into a puddle nearby.
Those serving him around him knew that Su Siyang was probably in a very bad mood today. He wasn't one to show his emotions easily, and even if the servants in the manor did something wrong, he wouldn't interfere much, at most leaving it to the steward to deal with. His anger today suggested that he had truly lost control.
"I deserve to die, sir, please forgive me! I deserve to die, sir, please forgive me!" The servant ignored the pain in his shoulder and hurriedly got up and knelt in the muddy puddle to beg Su Siyang for forgiveness.
Su Siyang glanced at him, realizing he had lost his composure, and said calmly, "Get up."
"Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir." The servant kowtowed gratefully, his head hitting the puddle and getting quite dirty. When he looked up again, dirty water was flowing down his forehead, which looked quite gruesome.
Su Siyang walked inside. He had just vented his anger, and the other servants dared not neglect him, serving him carefully. After his outburst, Su Siyang gradually calmed down and slowly walked into the mansion.
A row of lanterns was lit under the corridor of the mansion. Su Siyang preferred quiet, especially after nightfall. Apart from a few patrolling guards, there was generally no one else around.
Su Siyang walked ahead alone, followed by Qing Hong with his men. Having followed Su Siyang for a long time, Qing Hong knew about Su Siyang's relationship with Sheng Hua and understood why Su Siyang had acted this way. For a moment, Qing Hong felt indignant on Su Siyang's behalf. In terms of looks and ability, Su Siyang was in no way inferior to Xie Xuan. Not only that, he was wholeheartedly devoted to Sheng Hua; aside from being slightly older and lacking martial arts skills, he was no less than Xie Xuan. They were truly blind to his worth. Moreover, Su Siyang had shown her such deep affection, yet he ended things so easily—he was utterly heartless and fickle!
Back in the room, Su Siyang said, "You may all leave. There's no need to serve us."
"Yes." Qinghong led the others to retreat.
Qinghong stood guard at the door, feeling increasingly indignant for Su Siyang. With a determined heart, she called over her trusted confidant and whispered a few words in his ear.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
