Chapter 46 Chapter 46 Xie Tingyu, are you a dog?
Inside the Penglai Palace, smoke curled up from the incense burner.
Ji Lian sat upright at the table, hands pressed tightly against her knees, back straight. Her ears twitched slightly, taking in the fragmented conversation in the side hall.
"You...don't..."
"Really? But yesterday..."
Upon hearing the word "yesterday," Ji Lian subconsciously tightened his fingers, instantly pulling the fabric above his knees out of its messy folds. He whispered urgently, "Give me the small bronze mirror."
Taking the bronze mirror handed to her by Jiangzhu, Ji Lian carefully looked at the face in the mirror.
You don’t know until you see it, and you’ll be shocked when you see it.
There is a clear red mark in the center of the Adam's apple, which is obviously caused by a bite. If you look closely, you can see the teeth marks clearly.
I'd clearly checked repeatedly this morning, how could I have missed this crucial spot? He must have left in a hurry.
At a glance, Jiangzhu hurriedly took out the enamel box from her sleeve.
Ji Lian dipped a little scented powder in it and gently dabbed it across his Adam's apple. Within a few strokes, the hint of ambiguity vanished without a trace. He raised his head to confirm again and again before putting the bronze mirror away.
The beaded curtains tap against each other, making a gurgling sound like a spring.
Xie Helan slowly emerged from the side hall and returned to his seat. He took a sip of tea from his teacup and resumed his chess pieces. A crisp sound echoed through the hall.
"Yesterday..." Your Majesty said suddenly.
Ji Lian's Adam's apple rolled, and the tea stuck in her throat. "What went wrong yesterday?"
"Yesterday's cakes..." Guijun made another move.
"Yesterday's pastries... were delicious... very delicious... really delicious." Ji Lian replied stutteringly.
"Hmm?" Guijun looked at the chess move and raised his head in confusion. "Are you not concentrating on the chessboard today? Why are you making all the wrong moves? Are you deliberately trying to trick me? You..."
Ji Lian was listening when he suddenly heard Guijun say, "Your neck." The chess piece in his hand clattered onto the board. He nervously covered his neck and said in a stiff voice, "What's wrong with me?"
Is it the Adam's apple? But he clearly covered the red mark there! Is it the side of the neck? Xie Tingyu, are you a dog? Why are you biting so many times here?
"There's a red mark on the right side." Guijun glanced at it, not caring at all, and picked up the teacup. "But yesterday..."
"It must have been a mosquito bite while resting yesterday!" Ji Lian interrupted hurriedly, feeling annoyed. He had clearly checked repeatedly before leaving, so how could he have missed this?
It’s all Xie Tingyu’s fault, it’s all Xie Tingyu’s fault, it’s all Xie Tingyu’s fault. She’s so annoying, she’s so annoying, she’s so annoying. I told her to stop biting here. Ji Lian felt wronged.
Seeing his intense reaction, Xie Helan was puzzled and a little surprised. "In that case, I'll order people to prepare more mosquito repellent sachets." He took a closer look and said, "This red mark is really conspicuous. Does it feel itchy? Oh, why are there tooth-like marks on it? Let me take a look." He was about to lean forward before he finished speaking.
Ji Lian jumped up in shock, bumping into a palace servant carrying a mountain of pastry. With a thud, two cups of ice cream poured down onto his snow-blue robe, the milky white slurry flowing down from his waist, leaving a large wet mark on the hem.
The palace servant fell to his knees, his forehead pressed against the bricks, trembling. "Your Highness, spare my life! I, I deserve death!"
Xie Helan heard a chaotic clanging sound and looked at Ji Lian, who looked distracted. His brows furrowed even more tightly. "What happened to you today?" Seeing that his clothes were dirty, he said gently, "Why don't you change here with me before leaving? You and I are similar in size, so you can wear my clothes."
Changing clothes in the palace? Ji Lian broke out in a cold sweat. But the pink marks on his body hadn't faded yet. If he changed here, he would definitely be discovered!
"No, no need!" Ji Lian had already moved towards the palace door, "Nothing, nothing. Ah... I suddenly remembered that there is something important in the palace." He glanced at the palace servant who was still kneeling on the ground, and said hurriedly, "You stand up, I'm fine." Before he finished speaking, he fled like a mouse seeing a cat.
"This..." Xie Helan leaned against the window and looked into the distance, watching Ji Lian's hurriedly retreating figure, "It's as if there's some man-eating monster hiding in my palace." He raised his chin slightly, "Get up and clean up here."
His gaze fell back on the untouched pastries on the table, and he thought of the dish of honey-floating pear blossoms he hadn't taken a single drop from yesterday, and Ji Lian's unusual departure alone. This behavior was truly a stark contrast to his usual self.
Xie Helan smoothed his clothes and said, "Have you guys checked the tonic food prepared in the kitchen? If it's ready, send someone to my sister..."
Suddenly, it was like an epiphany.
Yesterday afternoon, wasn't it Xie Tingyu and Ji Lian who were alone for a long time? When he returned to the palace, only his sister was left sitting alone.
Xie Helan stroked the edge of the teacup, suddenly thinking of the red mark on Ji Lian's neck. Although it looked like a mosquito bite at first glance, it was more like a kiss mark. He had been a husband for a long time, so how could he not see it clearly? He pondered for a moment, then ordered, "Call in the person who was left in the palace to serve yesterday."
After some questioning, the words "Whatever Your Highness eats, I will eat" lingered in Xie Helan's mind for a long time.
His sister Tingyu was beautiful, with a certain air of elegance in her every move, attracting the hearts of the young men in Jiankang City. And Ji Lian, with her graceful appearance and slender figure, did not conceal his fear of avoiding women, yet many secretly admired her.
Knowing that lustful people admire young girls, could it be that these two people fell in love because of their mutual appearance?
When recalling the night of the riot, Xie Tingyu led his troops straight to Ci'en Temple. Could this be a drama of a heroine saving a beautiful woman and the beautiful woman being moved?
Or maybe they already had contact with each other?
The more Xie Helan pondered, the more suspicious he felt. He then ordered, "Go to each palace gate and ask when Tingyu left the palace yesterday."
After waiting for a long time, when Xie Helan heard the servant report that Xie Tingyu left at the beginning of the evening, he slammed the teacup in his hand heavily on the table.
He clearly saw Xie Tingyu leaving Penglai Palace very early yesterday. So where did she go during the time she stayed in the palace, what did she do, and who was she with?
Thinking of the red mark on Ji Lian's neck that looked like a kiss mark, Xie Helan felt his temples throbbing.
His sister's career was now on the rise. Although he and Ji Lian were good friends, if this delayed his sister's future... what... what should he do? Perhaps this was just his speculation and there was no such thing?
With his finger bones pressed against his lips, Guijun fell into deep thought: "Are these two people real or not? If so, what should we do?"
The person being talked about was now standing still, surrounded by enthusiastic people.
Xie Tingyu had gone to the city's outskirts to train in the morning. Just as he was ordered to return to the city to attend a meeting at the Imperial Court, he was recognized by a sharp-eyed vendor just as he passed through the city gate. "It's the Lady Guanyin Bodhisattva from that night! It's Lord Xie Tingyu! It's Xie Tingyu Bodhisattva!"
The people who had received the favor gathered together upon hearing the news.
The guards following Xie Tingyu looked at each other in bewilderment. They couldn't disperse the grateful crowd, nor did they want to delay their official duties, so they had no choice but to rein in their horses and watch their master being surrounded by three layers of people.
"Ah! It's Madam Xie who saved us that night!"
Suddenly, several heads of gentlemen in finery appeared from the second-floor windows of the teahouse. They were the young men of the aristocratic families who had been rescued that night, enjoying a small gathering of tea. Seeing this, the young men untied their sachets, pulled out their scented handkerchiefs, and threw them all at Xie Tingyu's head.
Xie Tingyu: “…………” What on earth are you doing?
Until a little boy tried to climb onto the horse's back, clamoring for her to hold him for a moment to show him how noble he was, Xie Tingyu finally lost his patience and ordered his guards to clear the way. With much difficulty, the group finally broke through the encirclement and hurried to the Imperial Court.
"Thank you, Sizhi." A clerk in a green robe came out quickly.
Xie Tingyu dismounted and asked, "Why did you summon me here?"
"We've got new leads on the riot case." The clerk led her through the corridor. "After investigation, we've found that there's some external influence involved."
"Bandit trouble?" Xie Tingyu stopped suddenly.
The clerk beside him immediately presented the file.
Xie Tingyu unfolded the scroll and examined it carefully, her brows furrowed. "It's true there are refugees from the north, but they've also mixed in with bandits." She pointed at a red-lettered mark, "And they've even mixed in with the Black Mountain Army."
The clerk nodded, his expression serious. "Xie Sizhi, if this case involves bandits, it will no longer be heard by the Supreme Court alone. The Ministry of Military Affairs will also need to intervene."
Xie Tingyu understood the elegant meaning of the music. She put the file away and said, "I will go to the Sirong Mansion to discuss this with General Wang Lanzhi and General Huan Zhanyue."
According to the "Laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty," any case involving armed banditry required three copies of the dossier: one for the Supreme Court, one for the Ministry of War, and one for the Imperial Court. After the three courts deliberated, the Imperial Court and the Ministry of War jointly drafted regulations and submitted them to the Supreme Court for a ruling.
Let’s talk about the Montenegrin Army again.
Ever since the Ji clan of Luoyi replaced the Sima clan in power, this banditry had been a constant threat. When Emperor Gaozu first ascended the throne, peasants in the Taihang Mountains, burdened by heavy taxes, rose up in rebellion, gradually gaining momentum. Now entrenched in the mountains, their bandits number around 60,000 to 70,000.
Emperor Gaozu launched several unsuccessful campaigns, ultimately putting them on hold due to border incursions by foreign invaders. When Ji Zhao ascended the throne at the age of twelve, Fengge further postponed the suppression of the bandits, citing the new emperor's youth. Now, the Black Mountain Army has dared to incite the refugees of Jiankang to revolt. Their evil ambitions are clear as day and must not be tolerated.
Xie Tingyu mounted his horse and left the Tingwei Terrace with a group of people, heading straight to the Sirong Mansion to find Huan Zhanyue.
As they reached the open official road, they heard the rapid sound of horses' hooves, like thunder rolling over bluestone slabs. A carriage with a carved horse and a chariot belonging to the Yuan family passed by, and the curtains were lifted.
Yuan Fuxue looked up and saw a horseman leading the way. The man on horseback was dressed in a dark, tight-fitting outfit, his figure as slender as a bamboo. His black hair flew as he galloped, and the corners of his robe billowed like dark clouds chasing the moon.
As the saying goes, the silver saddle shines on the white horse, swift as a shooting star. What a heroic girl!
"How long are you going to stare at her?"
Yuan Fuxue's heart tightened. He lowered the curtain, picked up the teacup, and said calmly, "It's just that I saw an old friend once in a while, so I took a second look."
"There are so many girls riding horses in Jiankang City, why do you have to stare at Xie Tingyu?"
Yuan Wangshu sat opposite Yuan Fuxue and saw that he had been staring at him since he lifted the carriage curtain. Thinking of how his third brother and Xie Tingyu had been busy resettling refugees in the past few days, he felt a mixture of emotions and was extremely uncomfortable.
"Xie Tingyu isn't anything special." Yuan Wangshu stuffed a piece of crispy candy into his mouth. "You can also take a look at other girls in Jiankang City. Isn't Xie Tingyu just prettier, more skilled in martial arts, from a more prominent family, more upright in character, and doesn't keep any messy men in her garden?"
As he was talking, Yuan Wangshu couldn't go on any longer.
If you think about it carefully, in this huge city of Jiankang, those with prominent family backgrounds may not necessarily have outstanding looks, and those with strong martial arts skills may not necessarily have good character. Even those with good family backgrounds and good looks often have their backyards surrounded by beautiful women, and many of them have seven or eight male concubines to keep them warm in their beds.
There are only a few people like Xie Tingyu who are outstanding in every aspect and have a quiet backyard, and who can allow my third brother to marry into the family without being wronged.
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The author has something to say: Silver saddle shines on white horses, swift as shooting stars - Knight Li Bai
Now, I have absolutely no drafts left. Every day when I open my eyes, I owe 3,000 words (look at it, look at it, how can I live without drafts?
I want to fix the update time to either 10:00 pm or 9:00 am, otherwise it will always be distributed at 0:00:15, which will make me stay up late.
The inspiration for the Black Mountain Army comes from the historical story of Cao Cao recruiting the Black Mountain Army. = = I will think about how to write this part.
By the way, is it acceptable to update for 6 days and take 1 day off? Is it acceptable to update for 5 days and take 2 days off? Is it acceptable to update for 4 days and take 3 days off (testing the readers' bottom line step by step [spreading hands])
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