Chapter 32
The captivating title and the seemingly predictable plot gave Xie Qinghong a sense of déjà vu. She slowly turned to the first page, only to find it blank, and the next few pages were also blank. Her expression went blank for a moment; she had been prepared, and this was what she was presented with?
The young man noticed her expression and explained, "I've forgotten where I picked up this book, but it only has words on the cover and no content. I thought the title was interesting, so I kept it."
Xie Qinghong asked, "Can I buy this book?"
The young man was somewhat surprised. He glanced at Pei Du and smiled, "I'll give it to you. This book is meant for you."
Xie Qinghong thanked him, but was somewhat absent-minded as she held the book. She only remembered a dream from long ago in which she followed the light and opened a book. In that book, Qin Heng and Zheng Yingluo were the main characters. They were blessed by heaven and were reborn to make up for the regrets of their past love.
They fought against villains and eliminated scoundrels, skillfully used opportunities to befriend capable officials, foresaw future events to turn danger into safety, and rose step by step while lovers finally got married. Xie Qinghong was just an insignificant little person among them, appearing in Qin Heng's memories in no more than a hundred words, only used to highlight their smooth sailing in Wangjing by mentioning her tragic marriage to a distant land.
The dream was absurd and bizarre, but Xie Qinghong didn't entirely believe it. Yet now, in this unknown bookstore, she had found the book from her dream—she clearly remembered throwing it away in the dream!
With a hint of disbelief, she put the book away and turned to see Pei Du looking down at a thick book. His profile was sharp and sculpted, and when he looked serious, he had a touch of the legendary coldness and ruthlessness.
Xie Qinghong stared at it for a while, then looked at the sundial in the courtyard and realized that it was getting late. She said, "I should go back."
Pei Du put down the book in his hand, picked up the snack box and said, "Let's go, I'll take you home."
The two left one after the other, the young man still smiling: "If you can't find any books next time, just come to me, I have a lot of books here."
There was a long alleyway outside the house, with walls on both sides. Inside the walls, tall trees cast deep shade, so even though it was mid-May, it was still quite cool to walk there. Neither of them spoke.
"Did Qiu Ran bully you today?" Pei Du suddenly asked, breaking the silence.
Xie Qinghong deliberately asked, "If that's the case, what will you do?"
Pei Du glanced down at his hand and replied softly, "If that's the case, I want him dead."
Xie Qinghong was caught off guard and shocked. Pei Du's personality was quite frightening. How could someone who looked so gentle and refined be so ruthless? She never doubted whether he was telling the truth or not. Just by looking at his fighting skills, she knew that his words could only be taken seriously.
She coughed lightly: "Death is too good for him. I think making him wish he were dead is enough."
Pei Du asked with great interest, "For example?"
"For example, destroying what he wants most." Xie Qinghong felt a sense of satisfaction when she talked about this. She couldn't tell her mother or cousin about her plans these days, but she could speak to Pei Du without any reservations. Perhaps she had vaguely glimpsed his true nature and had already revealed her intentions to him.
"The year-end is approaching and the initial selection of officials is about to begin. The governor of Huai Prefecture has made several arrangements for this matter, but Qiu Ran's evil deeds in Pingcheng are about to be exposed. Pingcheng belongs to Bo Prefecture, and the governor of Bo Prefecture has a past grudge against the governor of Huai Prefecture. At this time, the case statement should already be on the governor of Bo Prefecture's desk."
Pei Du was somewhat surprised. Few people knew about the old grudge between the governors of Bozhou and Huaizhou. Both of them were old foxes, and there was absolutely no way to find fault with them when they returned to the capital to report on their duties at the end of the year.
Xie Qinghong smiled and said, "I still have to thank you for your travelogue. In it, you wrote about a mine on the border of two places in the south. A dispute over ownership led to a fight, which resulted in more than ten casualties. I checked the records, and the officials in charge of the two places at that time were the current governors of Bozhou and Huaizhou. The governor of Huaizhou seized the mine and was immediately promoted to governor of a prefecture. The governor of Bozhou, whose official position was originally higher, was transferred to another prefecture because of this incident. In reality, he was demoted to governor of Bozhou."
“If it were a normal matter, we might be able to get along amicably,” Xie Qinghong sighed. “But the governor of Bozhou’s only son died in a fall from his horse at the beginning of the year. How can we tolerate seeing the son of our nemesis, who has committed so many evils, rise to prominence?”
The travelogue only briefly mentioned the struggle for mineral resources. Pei Du suddenly realized that even though he thought Xie Qinghong was exceptionally intelligent, she was actually more intelligent than he had imagined. She was good at seeing the big picture from small details, and her insightful intuition about people's hearts was astonishingly accurate.
"What if Governor Bo doesn't act as you predict?"
Xie Qinghong seemed troubled: "There's nothing I can do, but I've already told my father and brother everything about his character. If Governor Bo doesn't take action, then I can only trouble my father and brother to seek justice for me."
Pei Du remained silent for a while before saying, "Actually, you can tell me, and I can help you get justice."
Xie Qinghong tilted her head to look at him. The long alley was almost at its end, and the dense shade fell only at her feet. She stopped in the shadows and told him, "Actually, there is a third option. I guess he has already complained about me to the Prince of Nan, so I am waiting for you to come back from Wangjing and stand in front of the Prince of Nan to slap him in the face: 'I was the one who gave her the flower crown.'"
As she spoke, she made an angry expression, her cheeks puffing out slightly. Pei Du glanced at her and was about to turn away, but couldn't resist looking back. Then he earnestly promised, "Okay, I will."
Seeing his serious expression, Xie Qinghong was a little surprised; she hadn't finished speaking yet.
She continued, "Then the Prince of Nan will say that you are not proper, why send a flower crown when you haven't even offered betrothal gifts?"
Pei Du asked in surprise, "Can't you send a flower crown before the betrothal? I've never heard of such a custom."
What's wrong with this person? Xie Qinghong coughed twice: "So why did you give me a flower crown? What custom says it's permissible to give a flower crown?"
Following her words, Pei Du recalled that day on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Even when the girl under the willow tree frowned, she was adorable. The breeze ruffled her hair, and she was unbelievably beautiful. So he harbored a secret desire to express his lingering affection through the willow branches, though his unspoken feelings could not be expressed aloud.
However, none of this is worth mentioning. All he knows is that he is in love with her from the very first glance, which is why they say it's like a fleeting glimpse of beauty.
But the words were on the tip of his tongue, and for some reason he couldn't say them. The usually eloquent prince was speechless for a long time before finally speaking: "I'll give them if I want to. I don't care about any customs."
Xie Qinghong bit her lower lip lightly, looking at the young man's calm yet feigned composure, and her keen intuition for understanding people's hearts began to stir.
No, that shouldn't be happening.
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