However, before he could finish his words, a tall and strong yamen runner covered his mouth from behind, and with his other hand, he grabbed the old beggar's neck and twisted it gently.
The old beggar's cloudy eyes instantly lost their luster and his body lost its strength. The moment the bailiff let go of him, the old beggar collapsed to the ground, his life or death unknown.
The bailiff tore up the petition casually, and the fragments scattered into the morning breeze. The bailiff also retreated back to the team.
Everyone else acted as if nothing had happened, including the common people.
The whole process took only a moment. If Zhao Ying had moved slower, he might not have been able to see it.
They killed people in public, treating the imperial power as nothing and human life as worthless...
The people who came with him from the capital were shocked and angry, and they all glared at Wen Ruhai, but Wen Ruhai remained calm.
Since Zhao Ying and Zhao Xi did not give the order, the accompanying officials and guards could only pretend to be dead.
Inside the carriage, Zhao Ying's face was grim and filled with anger. Wen Ruhai's delicate and elegant voice could be heard from outside, "Don't worry, Your Highnesses! A beggar tried to attack you, but it seems he passed out from hunger."
"I have already had him dragged away and fed."
Is he unconscious or dead?
Logically, they should have someone bring the beggar back and take a look.
But neither Zhao Ying nor Zhao Xi spoke.
They both knew that it was useless to look, as the person was already dead. Moreover, looking would mean that they cared about Dali's affairs, and they could not show any concern. They just came to ask for medicine.
Zhao Xi looked at Zhao Ying. Zhao Ying understood what he meant and took a deep breath. Zhao Ying glanced at Nanny Li outside. Nanny Li scolded, "Master Wen, how dare you let a stinking beggar offend the princess and His Royal Highness Prince Ding?"
"Your Highnesses, please forgive me. I will never do this again!"
Nanny Li's voice was as loud as a bell. "If you do it again, the princess will not let you off easily!"
"Thank you Princess Kuanze, thank you Prince Ding Kuanze!"
Zhao Xi coughed twice so that his voice could be heard outside, "Ying'er, don't let them delay any longer. I, cough cough... I can't hold on any longer..."
"Brother..." Zhao Ying called worriedly.
…
When the group arrived at the inn, Wen Ruhai introduced this elegant and noble inn as belonging to the local wealthy Mr. Liu. "Mr. Liu, upon hearing that Your Highnesses were visiting Dali, offered us his finest house. Due to time constraints, only simple renovations can be done. If Your Highnesses have any other needs, please feel free to ask."
These words not only revealed the integrity of Dali's officialdom, but also demonstrated the loyalty of the local gentry and wealthy families to the court. More importantly... Zhao Ying looked at the furnishings inside, which were low-key but valuable. She thought they were meant to shut her and Prince Ding up.
Zhao Ying couldn't help but admire in his heart that Dali was so flawless from top to bottom, and such thoughtful and considerate hospitality left a very good impression on people. At least it had nothing to do with the rampant and barbaric behavior described in the memorial.
Immediately afterwards, Zhao Ying had a deeper understanding of this.
After bathing and having a meal, Wen Ruhai had a variety of local delicacies and fruits and vegetables served. The south is rich in fruits and vegetables, some of which are not durable and cannot be sent to the capital at all, so what Wen Ruhai sent was really thoughtful.
The fresh fruits are round and plump, with bright skin and dew on them, and they look very sweet.
After traveling through mountains and rivers, my mouth is really dry.
Dali has a hot and humid climate, so Wen Ruhai even used ice to freeze the fruit.
Shangguan Qingyue's eyes lit up when he saw it. He jumped off his chair and said in surprise, "Lychee! It's lychee!"
The little guy had tasted a few of them at the banquet at first. A batch was sent from Lingnan at that time, but when they arrived in the capital, there were only dozens of them that were edible. The empress dowager gave two, and she and the children each got two. Only when it came to Shangguan Shu did he get one. They were really rare.
As the emperor, Emperor Jianxi got more, a full ten. But because there was a greedy little cat around him, most of the food was fed to the greedy little cat.
In this way, Shangguan Qingyue kept thinking about this feeling and could not forget it.
But these are nothing special to the locals.
For example, right now, in front of Shangguan Qingyue, there was a plate of lychees piled high. The little fellow leaned on the edge of the table, looking up from the bottom, and couldn't help but exclaimed, "Wow..."
Wen Ruhai leaned forward and introduced Shangguan Qingyue with a faint smile, "Miss, this is lychee."
"This is longan..."
As Wen Ruhai introduced them one by one, the little guy's eyes became brighter and brighter.
Finally, she couldn't help it anymore, and she jumped up and down, eagerly saying, "I want to eat this, and this too!"
Wen Ruhai comforted her, "Don't worry, young lady. I will have my maid peel your skin off..."
So, Shangguan Qingyue was carried to a chair and watched the maids peel the fruit for her. A maid peeled a lychee and then gently placed it in Shangguan Qingyue's palm. The round and white lychees looked tempting, and they were big, filling her entire palm!
The little girl stared at the big lychee in her palm without blinking, smacking her lips and swallowing her saliva. Everyone looked at her, waiting to see her get drunk on the lychees.
However, to everyone's surprise, Shangguan Qingyue jumped off the chair, ran to Zhao Ying, held the lychees in both hands, and handed them to Zhao Ying, saying happily, "Mother, these are for you!"
Hmm...
Zhao Ying's heart was melted by Shangguan Qingyue's cuteness.
Zhao Ying pursed her lips, pretending nothing had happened as she took the lychee and put it in her mouth. Her heart was being kneaded and squeezed by a pair of big hands, and her eyes were slightly hot. "So sweet..."
The little fellow chuckled, turned around and ran back without stopping. He climbed onto a chair, stood on it, pointed at the fresh fruits on the table, and said domineeringly, "Eat this first! Then eat this!"
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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