Chapter 102 Rebellion 1◇
Zhou Jin and Mu Qingni were both shocked!
Is there a small path from Gratitude Temple that leads directly to the outside of the city?
There are plenty of incense offerings, but some young monks are always hungry...?
The monks in the temple are not good with sticks, but good with swords...?
Taking all these suspicions into account, it is very likely that there are private soldiers living in Gratitude Temple all year round, who can consume all the supplies of Gratitude Temple!
"Zhu Xi, take Ayu back to the palace immediately and tell His Majesty about the situation at Gratitude Temple. Zhou Jin and I will go explore Gratitude Temple tonight!"
Mu Qingni pulled a few people aside and spoke seriously.
"No, Sister Qingni, you should take Ayu back. I know the path from Gratitude Temple to the outside of the city. Brother Jin and I will go!"
Zhu Xi also understood the seriousness of the matter at this time, and immediately spoke after hearing it.
"Can you... do it?" Mu Qingni asked hesitantly.
"No! Zhu Xi, you must return to the palace, and when you go back, you must pretend to know nothing and be at ease..."
Zhou Jin also rejected Zhu Xi's offer and whispered to him:
"If something really happened at Gratitude Temple, they'd definitely be secretly monitoring you, so you have to go back. Don't rush on the way back, lest you alert the enemy! Just tell me the approximate location of the path outside the city, and leave everything else to me and your sister Qingni. You don't have to worry about anything else!"
Zhu Xi wanted to say something after hearing this, but Zhou Jin interrupted him with a serious face:
"Alright, just do as I say! Let's not stop here, let's get down the mountain quickly and don't let anyone see our flaws..."
After saying that, he took Mu Qingni and walked down the mountain first...
Zhu Xi…starry eyes: Ayu, Brother Jin is still so decisive!
Zhou Yu...thought to himself: Just listen to his bullshit, he just wants to go with Sister Qingni and doesn’t want you!
…
Zhu Xi and his group pretended nothing happened and went down the mountain. Ye Qing, who was waiting at the foot of the mountain, saw them and hurried over to them. He walked past Zhu Xi and whispered to Zhou Jin,
"Mr. Zhou, something seems amiss. Four or five people passed by our carriage in just a short while..."
Zhou Jin narrowed his eyes after hearing this, and felt that something was wrong with Gratitude Temple, so he whispered to Ye Qing: "Ye Qing, take Zhu Xi and my sister back first... Be careful on the way..."
Then he deliberately said loudly to Zhou Yu: "Ayu, General Mu and I have arranged to have a drink with some former colleagues. Go back and tell our mother that we don't have to wait for me for dinner..."
"Okay, big brother, then you drink less... and persuade my sister Qingni to drink less. Her body has just recovered, so it's not advisable for her to drink too much!" Zhou Yu said naggingly, looking like a sister worried about her brother.
"Okay, I understand. Go back quickly, we're leaving too..."
Zhou Jin looked impatient, then said hello to Mu Qingni, and the two of them rushed towards the West City Hot Spring Villa...
Zhou Yu and Zhu Xi boarded the carriage and slowly headed towards the inner city...
On the way back, the two of them even stopped by a candy store and bought Zhou Ying some of her favorite candied fruits...
"How is it? Are the people behind us still following us?" After coming out of the candy shop, Zhu Xi asked Ye Qing secretly.
"I'm following." Ye Qing replied softly as he took the bags from Zhu Xi's hands.
"Well, let's send Ayu back first..." Zhu Xi responded, and then he and Zhou Yu got on the carriage again and headed towards Zhou Yu's courtyard...
After arriving, he politely escorted Zhou Yu inside, and then he and Ye Qing took the carriage back to the palace...
Everything was just as usual. The few men dressed as ordinary people who had accompanied Zhu Xi and his companions finally felt relieved. After watching Zhu Xi's carriage enter the palace gate, they returned to report...
As soon as Zhou Yu returned home, he played with Zhou Ying for a while as if nothing had happened. When it was time for dinner, he took the initiative to pick up the food prepared by her mother and sent it to her uncle Zelin who lived not far from their home. Zhou Zelin's private school was now opened there.
After Emperor Chengqian granted the Zhou family their residence in Kyoto, Zhou Zelin did not move back. Instead, he continued to stay in the small courtyard west of the city, opening a private school and teaching Zhou Li and the others. He only allowed the Zhou Po brothers, Zhou Ruiquan and his family, and the Bai family to move back...
However, Zhou Ruiquan and the Bai family did not move...
Zhou Li was now the head accountant at Zhou Yu's hot spring villa. Not wanting to be too far away from him, Bai and her mother-in-law bought a yard next to the Zheng family's. Just then, Zhou Yu opened a hot pot restaurant, so Bai was invited over to work alongside her aunt as the restaurant's manager...
The Great Yan Dynasty didn't have a rule prohibiting women from opening shops or managing them. Commoners' daughters and wives were expected to work outside the home. Ever since Bai's experience of exile and her experience running a workshop with Zheng and the others, she had long since moved beyond the strictures of the wealthy and powerful, who couldn't leave their homes. Zhou Yu's aunt didn't care either, and their mothers-in-law were supportive, so both of them readily accepted Zhou Yu's invitation...
Zhou Ruiquan didn't move back with Zhou Zelin because his two grandsons were going to school. He rented a yard with Zhou Ruifeng and the other two old men. They would play chess and bicker with each other, and then take care of his grandsons after school.
Zhou Po and Zhou Luo did move back, but one lived in the Hanlin Academy dormitory all year round, and the other lived in the hot spring villa all year round, so it was almost the same as not moving at all...
Plus Zhou Zelin didn't go back either...
Therefore, the only people living in the Zhou family's huge mansion in Kyoto now are Zhou Zesheng and his wife, and Zhou Zemao's wife, Wang, and her daughter... Zhou Zemao, Zhou Dai, and Zhou Gong are also unable to return often because they are either living in the military camp or living with Zhou Luo in the villa...
Because everyone else had moved away, the only ones left in the west of the city were the Zheng family, including Zhou Zelin, Zhou Ruiquan, and Zhou Ruifeng. Therefore, Zheng not only had to cook for herself every day, but also for the others...
Several widowers, some old and some middle-aged, felt a little embarrassed at first and thought about cooking for themselves, but the food they made was too bad, so they shamelessly gave Zheng some money for meals every month and happily ate for free...
Because the courtyard where Zhou Ruiquan and the other old man lived was right next to the Zheng family's, they would come over to get their meals at mealtime...
Zhou Zelin's school was several houses away from Zheng's courtyard, and he often forgot to get his lunch because he was grading homework, so Zheng had to bring it to him during this period...
Therefore, today Zhou Yu came to find Zhou Zelin under the pretext of delivering food...
…
When Zhou Yu entered Zhou Zelin's yard, she saw her uncle Zelin already waiting at the door, dressed in a clean, half-worn long gown and with his hair neatly combed. He was visibly startled when he saw her and asked in confusion:
"Ayu, why did you come here today? Where's your mother? Is she okay?"
Usually it was Zheng who brought her meals. Could it be that she was exhausted these days as she not only had to take care of her own children, but also had to worry about them?
Zhou Yu secretly complained, wondering if her Uncle Zelin's concern for her mother was too obvious. However, since she and her brother were both happy to see it happen, she didn't say anything and instead smiled and said,
"Uncle Zelin, my mother is fine. I was bored and happened to see her about to bring you food, so I came here for her... Look, the food is still hot, please eat it while it's hot!"
Zhou Yu said as he walked into the dining room, took out the food from the lunch box, and placed it on the dining table...
After hearing this, Zhou Zelin could only respond to Zhou Yu with regret, and then looked towards the Zheng family's courtyard before reluctantly entering the house!
As a result, as soon as he entered the room, Zhou Yu pulled him into a corner and told him about the situation in Gratitude Temple...
Zhou Zelin...
…
At the same time, Zhu Xi changed his clothes as soon as he returned to the palace and went to the Qianqing Palace where his grandfather usually worked. When he entered, he saw that Wang Xiang and others were there, so he said nothing and stood obediently behind Emperor Chengqian.
When Mu Feng saw him, he joked:
"Haha! The Fifth Prince has become much calmer since he got engaged! What's going on? Did he come back from burning incense at Gratitude Temple with your wife?!"
Because Mu Qingni also went with them, Mu Feng also knew that Zhu Xi and others were going to Gratitude Temple today!
"Well, I'm back!" Zhu Xi accepted Mu Feng's words "your wife" with great joy, and smiled at Mu Feng, "Uncle Feng, Sister Qingni has been thinking about our villa's good wine and roasted whole lamb for a long time, so she invited a few colleagues to go drinking in the evening. She probably won't be back home for dinner..."
"This child! She can't help herself again after just recovering from her injuries!" Mu Feng shook his head helplessly. He really had no idea what to do with this opinionated daughter...
"Then why didn't you go? Isn't this what you have always been most passionate about?" Zhu Chi asked upon hearing this.
Zhu Xi...
His second brother is really always thinking about stabbing him in the back!
But at the moment he had no mood to argue with him, so he just said casually:
"Ayu said she was a little tired, so I sent her back first!"
Zhu Chi's purpose in saying this was to stab him in the back, so who cares why he came back? So after asking, it was over. Everyone listened without paying any attention and returned to their official duties...
Only when Wang Xiang heard Mu Feng mention Gratitude Temple, his eyes twinkled...
Half an hour later, everyone finished their official business, said goodbye to Emperor Cheng Qian, and then went their separate ways...
Zhu Xi finally had the opportunity to tell Emperor Chengqian about Gratitude Temple...
Emperor Chengqian...
…
Gratitude Temple outside the city...
Zhou Jin and the other two searched for a long time but couldn't find the path Zhu Xi mentioned, so they had no choice but to return to the city and head towards the back mountain of Gratitude Temple under the cover of night...
According to the two people's analysis, if there are really a large number of people hiding in Gratitude Temple, they are most likely hidden in the back mountain. The temple in front is bustling with people coming and going, so it is impossible to hide so many people.
However, the two men avoided the monks patrolling the temple and spent half the night searching the back mountains, but they couldn't find the people they imagined were hiding. Apart from some traces of human activity in a valley, they found nothing else...
The two found nothing, so they retreated from the mountain at dawn...
…
That night, at Prime Minister Hu's residence, outside his study, the elder and second brothers, Ruan Da and Ruan Er, were personally guarding the study's inner and outer doors...
When Tian was sent to the Dali Temple by Zhu Xi, Ruan Da was also sent there. However, since he was not involved in Tian's murder of Lu, and with the help of people sent by Prime Minister Hu, he was soon released. At that time, everyone's attention was on Tian, so naturally no one paid attention to him...
The two brothers were now guarding outside Hu Xiang's study with high vigilance, while inside the study, Hu Xiang and others were arguing fiercely...
"Minister Hu, isn't it too hasty to act tomorrow night? Didn't someone from the temple say that they had successfully fooled Zhu Xi? As for the assassination attempt on him three years ago, so many years have passed, and he didn't even notice it. How could he possibly notice anything now?!
Are you worrying too much?
Even if your concerns are true, we've already cleared out Gratitude Temple, so what are we afraid of?! I still feel like it's too dangerous to act tomorrow night! Why don't we make some more preparations?
Minister Wang said to Minister Hu worriedly.
What they are trying to do is a rebellion, and if they are not careful, their entire family will be executed!
"It's better to be safe than sorry. Old Wang, Mu Qingni and that Zhou Jin are all shrewd people. Zhu Xi can't see the flaw, but they may be able to see it!
If we really make them suspicious and put Zhu Hongwu on guard, and replace the people we have planted, then all our efforts will be wasted!
I feel like the longer this matter is delayed, the more dangerous it will become! If the news gets out, all our preparations over the years will be ruined!
Everyone! Don't you understand? The situation between us and Zhu Hongwu has already reached a point of life and death. Even if we don't take action first, Zhu Hongwu will take action against us soon! If we fight now, maybe we can become founding heroes! "
Hu Xiang said with a gloomy face.
We're all going to die anyway! Why not give it a try?! Besides, we've been preparing for all these years, and with the Second Prince standing behind us, we don't necessarily have to lose!
The author has something to say:
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2022-07-27 17:32:58 and 2022-07-28 09:59:29~
Thanks to the little angel who irrigated the nutrient solution: ... Ruoxi ... 10 bottles;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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