45 Throne
◎ Such beautiful thoughts about Yuanle◎
In less than half an hour, the secret guards had thoroughly investigated the matter, and their comings and goings hadn't alarmed anyone. It turned out that Liang Mu's grandmother had been a wet nurse at the Marquis Xuanping's mansion, and indeed, Lord Gu's wet nurse.
At the post station that night, Xie Qian smiled and said, "What a coincidence! I didn't expect to meet you here."
He changed his mind and realized that Linyang was the former residence of Marquis Xuanping, and many members of the Gu family still lived there.
Xie Qian's attention was quickly diverted: "So, what Liang Mu said is actually true?"
Lu Jing didn't deny it. He was eleven or twelve at the time, a rebellious age. He'd heard the Mid-Autumn Festival Lantern Festival was lively, so he wanted to go and see it. He deliberately didn't want an adult to accompany him, as he felt constrained.
He stopped by the Marquis Xuanping's residence to kidnap Yuan Le, and only allowed the secret guards to follow him from a distance.
Yuan Le was younger and hit it off with him right away, leaving a proper note for his family.
The lights were just coming on, but Lu Jing had long forgotten the scene of the lanterns that day. He only remembered holding Yuan Le's hand as they navigated the crowds together.
Yuan Le knew the way very well, and they rarely went back.
They didn't see many lanterns, and when Yuan Le got tired of shopping, they ate two bowls of glutinous rice balls on the street.
He only found out later that as soon as he left the house on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, his father had already sent additional secret guards to follow them.
Otherwise, my wallet would have been stolen long ago.
Lu Jing's voice unconsciously carried a hint of nostalgia. Xie Qian listened carefully and discovered that the relationship between His Highness and Lord Gu in the past was much closer than Brother Wei Fan described.
When he first arrived in Beijing half a year ago, he heard rumors from both the court and the public, and he thought that His Highness and Lord Gu had long been at odds with each other.
However… Xie Qian couldn't help but ask about his doubts. The imperial edict that had originally issued the order for His Highness to leave the capital was written by Lord Gu himself. Lord Gu clearly sided with the Eastern Palace. Did His Highness really not mind at all?
If he hadn't mentioned it, Lu Jing would have almost forgotten about it.
He smiled and said, "The imperial edict was written better by Yuan Le than by anyone else."
Xie Qian was confused. Is His Highness... praising Lord Gu's literary talent?
After hesitating, he did not ask any further questions, for fear of bringing up the sad memory of His Highness's demotion.
"Your Highness, are we leaving tomorrow?"
The mission of this trip seems simple on the surface, but the tricky part is contacting the three governors along the way.
However, it is enough to leave this matter to the subordinates. There is no need for Your Highness to go there in person to divert the attention of the East Palace's spies.
"Yeah." Lu Jing answered hesitantly.
After figuring out the arrangements, Xie Qian went back to his room to rest.
Although it is not a full moon, the moonlight is beautiful tonight.
Lu Jing stood up, opened the window, and hurried back to Beijing. After traveling for more than ten days, he himself didn't even know what he was avoiding.
At first, he couldn't accept it. He couldn't accept that he had such a romantic fantasy about a man. What's more, the man was his long-time friend, a noble Hanlin.
He felt that he had to move to another place and no longer have contact with Yuan Le in the capital. But this was like covering one's ears and stealing the bell. During these days away from home, had he ever not thought of Gu Yuan Le for a single day?
He even met Yuan Le's wet nurse in Linyang. The coincidence happened thousands of miles away, as if it was God's will.
They had already reached the border of Jinzhou, so what difference would it make if they ended up in Longnan? He couldn't forget Yuan Le, and it would be useless even if he fled to the ends of the earth.
It was just a love that was destined to end in vain. If he had been more open-minded, perhaps it would have gotten over it faster.
Besides, instead of dwelling on this, it would be better to turn his thoughts to other things. The situation in the court is becoming more and more delicate. The emperor's brother and the Prince of Huai are getting closer and closer, and even planted people around him.
Lu Jing tapped his knuckles on the wooden window pane and looked at the rolling hills in the distance.
The emperor's vague worries were not wrong. From the beginning to the end, he never thought of being inferior to others.
He was willing to submit only to his father.
As for others——
Let's see if they have that ability.
…
He arrived at the Ministry of Works early in the morning. When he passed by the duty room of the Central Minister, Gu Ningxi saw that his door was closed, as if he was discussing something with someone.
Gu Ningxi returned to his duty room and sat down, continuing to do the errands that he had not finished the day before.
Doctor Zhou was in a hurry for this matter, so Gu Ningxi rushed to get it done, estimating that he would be able to return it to him the day after tomorrow.
He was busy until 9:00 PM. Gu Ningxi went to stand in front of the window and found that the door of the Shangshu's room was not open yet.
She couldn't help but whisper to He Zhubu, who was also on duty: "What happened?"
He Zhubu was about the same age as her, and they often worked together in the Ministry of Works.
"It started yesterday," said He Zhubu, who was more informed. "Oh, yes, Brother Yuan Le was at Huiwen Hall yesterday. I heard it was related to Doctor Zhou."
Doctor Zhou was their superior, diligent and experienced, but unfortunately his career had been somewhat lacking in luck, and at around forty years old he was still only a fifth-rank doctor. However, he had a good reputation within the Ministry of Works, and the Minister of Works held him in high esteem.
Gu Ningxi smiled, remembering how Doctor Zhou had praised her for her diligence. But in reality, Doctor Zhou was the most diligent person in the Ministry of Works. Many times, when she was off duty, the candle in Doctor Zhou's room was still lit. He was always so diligent, and everyone in the Ministry of Works was used to it.
Now that the conversation had begun, He Zhubu allowed himself to put down his official duties and take a short break.
He talked about some recent events in Kyoto, some of which Gu Ningxi knew, so he chatted with him for a while.
He Zhubu continued, "Have you heard? It seems that His Royal Highness Prince Zhao returned to the capital yesterday."
"Yeah?"
Gu Ningxi counted the days and found that it had been less than a month since he went to Longnan.
He Zhubu said, "I have a good friend who works at Nanzhimen. He saw His Royal Highness Prince Zhao and his personal guards riding into the capital." He sighed, "After all, he's His Royal Highness Prince Zhao. Even handling local government affairs can be done twice as fast as others."
Gu Ningxi joked, "If you talk less nonsense, you'll be much faster."
"Isn't this what I'm telling you because Brother Gu wants to hear it?"
He Zhubu was quite self-sufficient. During the lunch break, he was still diligently inquiring about the news of the Ministry of Works. After returning, he enthusiastically told Gu Ningxi about it.
"It seems that Doctor Zhou has invented a new plow. The Minister of State and the Vice Minister have both praised it highly. They have both drafted a memorial and submitted it to Your Majesty for your inspection."
The Ministry of Works has produced talented people, and the two superiors have a keen eye for talent, and they are honored to have done so.
Doctor Zhou had accomplished a great feat, and people outside were already gathered around to congratulate him in advance.
The person in the topic is still calm and humble.
Someone else said he wanted to see the new plow invented by Doctor Zhou, and he was quite generous and immediately asked his attendant to take it out.
People passed it around, admired it, and were impressed by Zhou Langzhong's ingenuity.
The Shangshu and the Shilang were in a good mood and did not impose any restrictions on this, allowing their subordinates to study enthusiastically.
When the unique drawing was passed around and reached Gu Ningxi, she suddenly stopped all movements, having been buried in her work.
The people of the Jin Dynasty usually used straight-beam plows for farming, but the plow on this drawing boldly changed the straight and long shafts into curved and short ones, which was about 70% similar to the Jiangdong plow she had been studying for months.
No, not only similar, but even better than her Jiangdong Li.
Gu Ningxi had copied the blueprints of the Jiangdong plow she had seen outside Beijing and had made significant improvements to it. She had always wanted to add a mechanism to the plow so that she could control how deeply the plowshare penetrated the soil, adapting to different conditions of deep or shallow plowing. However, she had tried several methods but still hadn't found the right one. She had also searched through the Ministry of Industry's atlas, but hadn't found many ideas.
The plow before her successfully solved the problem that had troubled her for months. As for the other parts, they were exactly the same as her Jiangdong plow, with only minor adjustments in details.
There was still noisy laughter and chatter outside, but Gu Ningxi's duty room was completely silent.
She simply pushed the window wider and looked at Doctor Zhou who was surrounded by the crowd.
The other person accidentally met her gaze and quickly turned away.
Gu Ningxi grabbed the blueprint and left the duty room.
She walked more than ten steps into the crowd, and when she looked up again, she had regained her calm expression.
She opened her mouth and asked with a smile, "Master Zhou's plow is unique. Did you get this idea from ancient books?"
Changing the straight shaft to a curved shaft is both bold and innovative, and it does require some thinking, so her question is not surprising.
Doctor Zhou said calmly, "Indeed, it is a coincidence."
"Which ancient book is it?" Gu Ningxi asked. "Does the Ministry of Works have it? I'd love to borrow a few."
She looked like she was humbly seeking advice, but Doctor Zhou was vague and polite, saying, "I've been looking through so many books that I can't remember what I'm looking for right now. Master Gu, please forgive me and let me go back and look for it."
Some people praised him, saying, "Dr. Zhou is well-read. We should emulate him."
…
"You've already been dismissed, why are you still here daydreaming?"
He Zhubu had already packed up his things and was preparing to go home for dinner.
Gu Ningxi said, "I'm still missing one piece of the blueprint. I'll be back later."
He Zhubu nodded. Although they were both from aristocratic families, Lord Gu was much more hardworking than him.
She was born as a third place scholar, has good looks, and works harder than him, so she deserves a higher position than him.
He said goodbye first and considerately closed the door of the duty room.
Gu Ningxi looked at her usual messy desk. Her mother had told her many times that her things were never tidy. But she argued, "It won't interfere with my work. I think a little messiness makes my drawings more interesting."
As long as nothing is lost, she usually won't search for it on purpose.
But at the same time, if someone else moved something, it would be difficult for her to notice.
…
The next day, in Prince Zhao's palace, Sun Jing had led people to distribute the three batches of local rituals.
Your Highness brought back so many local specialties on this trip. In addition to sending them to the palace, you can also give some to other mansions.
The items are not expensive, what matters is that they are new and rare.
Sun Jing checked the list of residences drawn up by His Highness one by one. He was surprised to see that even the Huai Palace was included. He was impressed by His Highness's increasingly thorough approach. This apparent brotherhood still needed to be maintained, and His Majesty would be pleased to see it.
Many noble residences were on the list of gifts. Sun Jing looked at the gift that was set aside from the earthenware and said with a smile, "Your Highness, is this for Lord Gu?"
Lu Jing nodded casually. Every family had one, and he couldn't just skip Yuan Le alone.
Sun Jing ordered his men to pack the food one by one and start delivering it to each residence.
The servants in Prince Zhao's mansion bustled about in an orderly manner. Lu Jing casually said, "Keep that one for now."
Sun Jing didn't even need to look closely, he just picked out the gift for Lord Gu.
Lu Jing said, "I will go to the Ministry of Chancellery in a while, so I'll bring it to him on the way."
"Yes, Your Highness is right."
Everything has been prepared. Lu Jing has been away from Beijing for a month. The left and right ministers are in charge of the Ministry of the Chancellery, and everything is functioning as usual.
The excerpts of the six official documents were placed on his desk in chronological order. Lu Jing thought that he would be busy this afternoon, so he just sent the things to Yuan Le and had no time to reminisce with him.
As His Royal Highness Prince Zhao was thinking this, when the carriage turned a street and headed for the Secretariat in the palace, he suddenly remembered that Yuan Le should be on duty in Huiwen Hall today.
Not on the way.
…
A quarter of an hour later, the carriage turned around and stopped in front of Huiwen Hall.
Having been here before, Lu Jing knew the approximate location of the studio without anyone leading the way.
Today's painting class had ended. The academician, who had hurried over after hearing the news, smiled and said, "Your Highness, Master Gu is resting in the west wing."
It was not far ahead. Lu Jing thought that since he had gone around in circles, it would be better to hand the thing to Yuan Le personally.
He walked through the corridor and met several female students along the way. Seeing them bowing to him, he knew that they had just come out of the painting studio.
The attendant held the earthenware and followed behind His Royal Highness Prince Zhao.
Before reaching the wing room, Lu Jing saw a green figure in the distance by the pond in the backyard of Huiwen Hall.
There were a few koi fish in the pond. Gu Ningxi sat by the pond, looking down at them as they came and went freely.
"What happened?"
Gu Ningxi heard the voice of His Royal Highness Prince Zhao first, and turned around to look at the person approaching him.
"Why is Your Highness here?" There was a smile in her eyes.
Seeing what the attendant was holding, she asked, "Is this... for me?"
After receiving a positive response from His Royal Highness Prince Zhao, Gu Ningxi was about to express his gratitude and was about to call a servant to pick him up.
Lu Jing said, "Just have someone take it to your carriage."
His Royal Highness Prince Zhao dismissed his servants and asked again, "What happened?"
Yuan Le has not changed his habits since he was a child. Looking at his expression just now, he must have been wronged.
"Nothing," Gu Ningxi smiled at him, "The Ministry of Works has been busy lately, I'm just a little tired."
She could handle this matter herself and didn't want to owe others any favors.
His prevarication was too obvious, so Lu Jing said, "If you have nothing else to do, go home and rest early."
Gu Ningxi nodded: "Thank you, Your Highness."
Lu Jing had to go back to the Secretariat, so he turned around and left first.
After leaving the studio, Lu Jing knew that the other party was hiding something.
But since Yuan Le was unwilling to say anything, he didn't bother to care about him.
The carriage from Prince Zhao's mansion set off again towards the palace. When it was almost at the palace gate, the secret guards outside the carriage received an order from His Royal Highness Prince Zhao: "Go and check if there has been any disturbance at the Xuanping Marquis's mansion recently."
"I obey your orders."
…
It was a long time after His Royal Highness Prince Zhao left that Gu Ningxi took out a copied piece of paper from his sleeve.
If she had three points of doubt when she saw the blueprint that day, it became five points after she interviewed Doctor Zhou in person.
Yesterday she went to the warehouse and copied the list of all the ancient books that Doctor Zhou had recently borrowed.
Of all the ancient books she had taken from the warehouse in the past few months, Doctor Zhou had read sixty to seventy percent of them.
She recalled the day when Lin Yang hit her carriage, and she happened to meet Doctor Zhou outside the warehouse.
He said that in the past month, Mr. Gu's name appeared the most frequently in the library's loan books.
Is it a coincidence?
Gu Ningxi stood up. After sitting by the lake for half an hour, she had sorted out all her thoughts.
If her guess is true, she will certainly not let this go.
As the time for the appointment was approaching, she calmly ordered the carriage to go to Xinghe Teahouse.
She invited Doctor Zhou to have a chat in the evening.
The carriage was filled with the gifts that His Royal Highness Prince Zhao had brought back for her. Gu Ningxi blew one of the jade whistles, and the sound was clear and pleasant.
【Author’s words】
The girl is solo, no need for Xiao Lu's help~
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