Chapter 41 Qin Yanheng is avoiding her
Early this morning, her aunt, Zhao Luoshi, sent word that her pregnancy was experiencing frequent movements and that she might not be able to attend the theater as planned. Just as Luo Qingling was about to visit her father's old friends in Beijing, she saw the Duan Mansion's carriage parked outside. Duan Qingyi stood in front of the carriage, looking at her with a beaming smile.
"Come on, let's go to the theater!" Duan Qingyi stepped forward, took Luo Qingling's hand, and pushed her into the carriage. "There's a new play opening recently. I heard the actor on the stage is very charming. I've never seen such a charming man before."
Luo Qingling wasn't interested in handsome men; her mind was solely focused on her father's affairs. She was contemplating how to refuse him, when she saw Duan Qingyi holding her shoulders with both hands, a serious expression on his face.
"Qingqing, I understand your difficulties."
"My father was once a colleague of Lord Luo, and now he understands his plight. The borderlands are desolate, so it would be best if he were transferred to the capital as soon as possible," Duan Qingyi sat down beside Luo Qingling, holding her hands with both of his own, his eyes determined. "Don't worry. Although the Saint hasn't spoken yet, my father has some friendship with Prince Rong An, so he will definitely help."
Will Qin Yanheng help?
Luo Qingling didn't dare to think about it too much. The Luo family had lived in the frontier for many years and had no connection with the imperial court. Even if Qin Yanheng agreed to persuade the emperor to transfer Aye back to the capital, what was the reason for the transfer? If it was a demotion or dismissal, Aye would definitely not agree.
But apart from Qin Yanheng, Luo Qingling couldn't think of anyone else who could ask to transfer Aye back.
During this period of time, she has traveled all over the capital and visited several nobles who had a deep relationship with Aye. Although she was not turned away, everyone shook their heads helplessly when she mentioned Aye.
If Ayeruo continues to stay in the borderland, I'm afraid...
Luo Qingling sniffed, suppressing the heat welling in his eyes, and forced a smile, saying, "Lord Duan, I appreciate your kindness. But I'm afraid my grandfather's matter will be difficult to resolve, and it will also implicate Lord Duan."
"Don't say such things. Last night I heard that Prince Rong An was playing polo at the horse farm next to the theater. My father got up early and said he wanted to play with Prince Rong An. He also put a lot of thought into this matter for Lord Luo."
"Then we are going to the theater..." Luo Qingling was puzzled.
"As a female relative, you can't just go to Prince Rong'an so blatantly!" Duan Qingyi's eyes widened, not understanding why Luo Qingling would ask such a question. "The horse ranch and the theater are separated by a wall. If there's any movement in the horse ranch, the theater will know immediately."
Luo Qingling nodded imperceptibly.
Because of the Golden Dragon Sword, the two of them had recently been either hunting monsters or trying to untie their bonds. Looking back, she and Qin Yanheng seemed to have gotten quite close, so close that she didn't even think it was strange to rush to the horse ranch to find him. Now, after hearing what Duan Qingyi said, she actually felt that she and Qin Yanheng had become somewhat inseparable recently...
However, she hadn't seen Qin Yanheng for several days since they returned from Xiangshan Temple. It was strange that he was not in a hurry to break the ties and even had the mind to play polo.
Speaking of Xiangshan Temple, she couldn't remember how she came back that day, the coffin in the center of the pagoda... and the inexplicable evil spirit.
Luo Qingling was feeling uneasy and couldn't help wanting to find Qin Yanheng to find out what happened that day.
*
Qin Yanheng is hiding from Luo Qingling.
He didn't know why, but he felt that Luo Qingling was the jade. Otherwise, why were he and Luo Qingling the only ones in the world able to wield the Golden Dragon Sword? But how could he be sure that the story of the Golden Jade Marriage Stone was true?
A polo ball flew towards him, and Qin Yanheng hit it back absentmindedly, and suddenly a few compliments rang in his ears.
boring.
Those who came here all had a purpose.
Qin Yanheng clapped his hands, took the handkerchief handed to him by his attendant, wiped his hands, turned around and walked towards the corridor, casually refusing a minister's request. He walked straight into the room and poured himself a cup of tea.
If the Golden Jade Marriage Stone was fake, then what the Taoist Master said couldn't be false. Could it be that Luo Qingling was really the jade that could "subdue" him? Qin Yanheng didn't believe anyone could subdue him, at least not before he met Luo Qingling.
But if Luo Qingling could really subdue him, wouldn't Qin Yanheng be controlled by others for the rest of his life?
Thinking of this, Qin Yanheng felt a wave of worry well up in his heart. How could he, His Royal Highness, submit to others? Why not set off on his southern tour right now and avoid her for a year or two? By then, Luo Qingling would have been married and wouldn't have the time to care about him?
"But the restraint of the Golden Dragon Sword has not been untied yet..." Qin Yanheng was discouraged.
There was a sudden knock on the door.
"Your Highness," the attendant outside the door announced, "Master Duan, the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor, requests an audience."
He was the teacher of the Crown Prince. Qin Yanheng sat up straight in a sudden movement. He had respected this Prince Taibao since he was young. Lord Duan had personally taught his brother, him, and his cousin Song Yutai, and he was considered the mentor of the three brothers.
"Let him in." Since the teacher was here in person, Qin Yanheng had to give this face to Mr. Duan.
An old man with black hair and a white beard slowly walked in and was about to bow to Qin Yanheng, but Qin Yanheng immediately stood up to stop the old man. Qin Yanheng personally poured tea for this Lord Duan, his face full of respect.
"Teacher, why did you come here in person today? Is there something important?" Qin Yanheng could see that Lord Duan did not come here just for polo. He must have encountered some difficulties and wanted to talk to him about it.
Qin Yanheng has been a troublemaker since he was young, ignoring laws and regulations. In this world, apart from the late prince, only the Duan Taibao in front of him can control him.
"Your Highness still loves to trick me as always," Lord Duan took a sip of tea and said to Qin Yanheng out of the blue, "Never mind, Your Highness was raised by me personally, so I won't beat around the bush when it comes to some things."
Upon hearing this, Qin Yanheng's heart sank. He really couldn't guess what Lord Duan wanted to say.
"Your Highness, do you still remember General Luo?"
General Luo? Could he be Luo Qingling's father? Qin Yanheng thought to himself.
"Back then, General Luo accidentally killed an important person before the war, which almost caused a war. The saint blamed him for this and demoted him to the border. It has been sixteen years since then. Madam Luo was pregnant at that time, and she had to suffer with General Luo." Lord Duan chattered on and on.
It seemed that Luo Qingling had lived in the frontier since birth. Qin Yanheng hid his hands under the table and quietly counted on his fingers.
"General Luo's health has been deteriorating over the years. He was seriously ill in bed after the spring this year. If he doesn't return to Beijing, I'm afraid he won't be able to hold on." Lord Duan made up his mind and simply stated his purpose, but he only mentioned it briefly.
Hearing this, Qin Yanheng couldn't help but wonder if Luo Qingling approached him in order to get him to ask for General Luo to be transferred back to the capital. It turned out that he had misunderstood before. He thought Luo Qingling was just like those brainless noble ladies in the capital, thinking that after marrying him, she would become a phoenix.
After knowing that Luo Qingling had no other thoughts about him, Qin Yanheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time, he felt a little uncomfortable. He was the most beautiful young man in the world, so why didn't Luo Qingling want to marry him?
Qin Yanheng completely forgot at this moment that he had previously rejected Luo Qingling's portrait. All he could think about was why Luo Qingling didn't like him. How could she not like him!
"Ahem." Lord Duan coughed lightly.
Perhaps because Qin Yanheng had been in a trance for too long, Lord Duan looked up at the young man in brocade clothes in front of him while drinking tea. He had taught His Highness for more than ten years, but he had never seen him show such a strange expression - in front of him, Qin Yanheng's thin lips curled up slightly, but he forced himself to suppress the corners of his mouth in the next moment. He didn't know what he was thinking of, and he even curled his lips and squinted his eyes with an unhappy look.
Lord Duan couldn't bear to see this look of distress mixed with a hint of laughter, and couldn't help but remind him, "Your Highness?"
"I understand." Qin Yanheng suddenly snapped back to his senses, his hand barely covering the corner of his mouth, trying to contain his sinking heart. He paused, then said, "There's no rush. After all, Lord Luo... the Saint actually spared him before sending him to the frontier. Lord Duan, please return for now. I'll get the Saint's opinion before making a decision."
Qin Yanheng had heard a little about the Luo family's affairs, and he knew in his heart that the facts were not as simple as they seemed on the surface, because Qin Yanheng firmly believed that a saint would never do anything to wrongly accuse someone.
"Then I'll trouble Your Highness to take care of it. I'll take my leave." Lord Duan stood up and left without looking back.
*
At the same time, in the theater next door.
Luo Qingling watched the play on the stage absentmindedly, and the hoarse and mocking sounds in his ears made him feel a little uncomfortable, but Duan Qingyi next to him was watching the play with great interest, and his body could not help but sway with the actors, as if he had entered the play, and the audience around him were the same.
There seemed to be no movement at the horse farm next door, and it was unknown whether Lord Duan had spoken to Qin Yanheng about Aye. Luo Qingling's heart was heavy, and naturally she could not concentrate on the play before her. She only looked around, quietly got up and left, without disturbing Duan Qingyi who was immersed in the opera.
The corridors in the theater stretched long and narrow, extending deep into the courtyard, with no end in sight. Luo Qingling's mind was in turmoil, and she didn't care where the corridors led to. She walked straight ahead, just to relax.
"I heard that the Saint recently brought up that old score again, and this time he even secretly sent a number of officers and soldiers south. I wonder if the Saint has found out anything."
Through the stained glass window, someone's voice could be heard. The voice was not loud, but Luo Qingling happened to hear it.
She didn't want to pay attention to it. After all, the official affairs of the capital were not something a woman from the frontier could touch casually. It was best to leave.
"I heard from my family last night that there was something fishy about General Luo's incident. The Saint intends to let Prince Rong An investigate the matter thoroughly, and he will set off south soon." Another voice sounded, followed by the sound of fabric rubbing against each other. The two seemed to be talking close to each other, deliberately lowering their voices.
"It's called a southern tour, but in fact it's to investigate that matter!"
General Luo?
It was Aye! The old story they were talking about… Aye had mentioned it to her before the war. Before the war, Aye had accidentally killed an important person, and the saint, in a fit of rage, had banished him to the frontier for over ten years.
Could it be that the truth is not as simple as Aye said?
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