Chapter 21 He was as smug as a chattering little...
As darkness finally fell completely, the guards began their shift change. Chang Sheng called to Heng Bo, "At the end of last year, the Ministry of Revenue reformed the regulations for travel permits. Your travel permit is still under the old system, so I'll keep it with me for now. I'll return it to you once I've verified your identity. However, this is ultimately due to the incompetence of your local officials. For now, you'll stay at the post station near the city gate while I come to find you." Chang Sheng was telling a lie with a straight face. The idea that the Ministry of Revenue had reformed travel permits was all made up on the spot. He was already grateful that those incompetent bastards in the Ministry of Revenue would even do their jobs properly.
But Hengbo had no idea how treacherous these seasoned officials were. Besides, her identity was already questionable. For a moment, she thought she had really been found out about something, and she followed Chang Sheng timidly like a quail.
Chang Sheng gave instructions to the people at the inn, and Heng Bo was then arranged to have a room by himself. Before leaving, Chang Sheng reluctantly told him, "Stay here for now, and I will come back to pick you up after I have finished dealing with this."
"Pick me up?" Hengbo muttered to himself, "Pick me up to take me to the guillotine?"
But she naturally didn't show it. She nodded obediently and then slammed the door shut, shutting out Chang Sheng's complicated expression.
Chang Sheng quickly jumped back, touched his nose that had almost been pinched, and thought to himself, "Although the princess looks like His Highness, her temper is exactly the same as the Crown Princess's."
Chang Sheng felt he had completed the task assigned to him by Wen Tinglan, and because he had seen the princess, he felt light as a feather.
To make it easier to hide his tracks, Chang Sheng had lived in the chaotic West Market for many years. Among the four wards of Yujing, the West Market had the largest floating population and the most lax management.
After returning to the house, he first checked the mechanisms inside. Finding that no outsiders had broken in, he skillfully took off his official robes and changed into a set of coarse cloth clothes. Then, he pulled the bucket cart in the courtyard, and he completely transformed into Liu Da, the night soil collector who went from street to street in Yujing City.
"Liu Da, why are you so late today?" The gatekeeper of the Wen residence opened the small gate to the backyard for him.
"Oh, it's because I ran into an old friend today and we ended up chatting a bit more."
"Same as always, shall we go to the kitchenette and grab something to eat first?"
"That's a must-have!"
Without needing directions from the gatekeeper, Liu Da got off the car and arrived at the Wen family's "small kitchen" as if he knew the way well.
At this moment, the lights in the "small kitchen" were already on, and a graceful figure was reflected on the silk screen with ink and brush landscape paintings.
Chang Sheng subconsciously straightened his appearance before slowly stepping into the room.
The young man holding a book turned around at the sound. His ethereal face remained indifferent. He gently placed the book on the table, carefully smoothing it, before inviting Chang Sheng to sit down: "Did you make any progress in giving the signal today?"
Although Chang Sheng was nearly ten years older than Wen Tinglan, he dared not be presumptuous in front of him. He sat upright opposite Wen Tinglan, trying hard to suppress the excitement in his voice: "Today, I met the princess."
He stared at Wen Tinglan's face with almost offensive intent, trying to see the same surprise on his face as his own, but there was nothing there, not even a tremor in his eyelashes.
After a long pause, Wen Tinglan finally said softly, "Mm."
Chang Sheng was somewhat puzzled: "Young Master, why don't you have any reaction at all?"
Wen Tinglan got up and put the book, which had developed a deep crease at some point, back on the bookshelf.
"The closer the princess is to us, the closer she is to danger. In your opinion, how should I react?"
Chang Sheng slapped his forehead, suddenly realizing, "Young Master, you understand! However, I see that the Princess is just as stubborn as the Crown Princess. I really have no confidence that I can stop her!"
Wen Tinglan's eyes flickered slightly. "Is that so?"
"Yes! Although the princess looks like His Highness the Crown Prince, she seems incredibly shrewd. If I hadn't confiscated her travel permit, I really wouldn't know how to stop her from entering the city..."
Chang Sheng kept his head down, rambling on and on, wishing he could tell Wen Tinglan everything he had seen that day. He was so engrossed in his own world that he didn't notice the ripples on the calm face of the person opposite him.
“Sigh,” Chang Sheng sighed, “He’s just not very talkative. He hasn’t said a word to me all day. Maybe he’s cursing me in his heart. Young Master Wen, you’ll have to explain for me when you see the princess.”
Wen Tinglan's heart suddenly clenched. Princess Shenxiao had been lively and pampered since childhood, and was as proud and talkative as a little phoenix. If anyone displeased her, she would scold them for three days and three nights until she calmed down.
But now...
Seeing Wen Tinglan's suddenly cold gaze, Chang Sheng scratched his head, somewhat at a loss.
"Who is guarding the princess now?"
"Huh?" Chang Sheng asked, puzzled. "Does she need someone to guard her? I still have the princess's travel permit. Where can she go without it?"
Wen Tinglan's expression changed, and her sharp eyes shot straight at Chang Sheng: "Go back and find the princess right now. If she is still alive, you must keep her here. If necessary, don't hesitate to expose your identity."
Chang Sheng didn't know why Wen Tinglan was suddenly so serious, but he figured it must be because he had messed things up. He didn't dare to delay and stood up to rush out.
Watching Chang Sheng's hurried departure, Wen Tinglan couldn't help but pinch her brow. Chang Sheng still didn't understand the princess enough. Recalling Shen Xiao's feat of daring to climb over windows and walls to skip school when she was only four or five years old, he smiled bitterly. It seemed that he was going to fall into her trap again this time.
When Chang Sheng arrived at the post station at breakneck speed, the station manager was taking a nap on the first floor. When he saw Chang Sheng rush in in a panic, before he could even be surprised by his appearance, he hurriedly asked, "Is the little girl I brought today still here?"
The manager frowned slightly and reviewed the situation: "I've been keeping watch here all night, and I haven't seen that girl leave the house since dinner."
Hearing this, Chang Sheng felt a little relieved and slowed down his steps upstairs. However, when he knocked on the door three times without any response from inside, he finally realized that something was wrong and couldn't help but break down the door.
Unfortunately, all that awaited him were a pair of open windows and the howling cold wind blowing in from them.
Chang Sheng clutched his heart, which was chilled to the bone by the wind, regretting his stupidity. He had known the princess was cunning, but he hadn't taken precautions. It was like letting a tiger return to the mountains.
Meanwhile, Hengbo, whom he was talking about, was leisurely strolling around Yujing City. In recent years, there had been no war on the border and the weather had been favorable in various places, so the people's lives could be described as prosperous and harmonious. Therefore, Yujing City was now brightly lit and dazzling with lights.
Hengbo touched the several travel permits he had stuffed into his clothes and breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that Qingxuzi, who had lived to such an old age, still had some truth to what he said.
When you're in the world of martial arts, you're bound to make enemies. But having many enemies isn't so bad, as long as you have enough identities, you'll always find a way to survive.
Hengbo sneaked in by scaling the city wall. Although he was eager to see what Yujing, which he had been away from for more than ten years, was like now, he knew that it would be troublesome if the captain found out that he had sneaked away. So he had to hold back for the time being and focus on finding an inn.
However, because Ruan Wangshu had told her about his experience of going down the mountain when they were in Biyun Town, and because the young master was with her when she was in Changzhou, Hengbo's two stays at inns went very smoothly.
However, amidst the bustling buildings of Yujing, Hengbo couldn't distinguish which one was the inn. After trying for a long time, he ended up entering a teahouse and a restaurant, and even his back view was filled with helplessness.
Whether it was fate or not, just as Hengbo was worrying about whether he would have to sleep under the bridge like Bai Sanniang that night, a slightly familiar voice called out to him from behind.
"Hengbo!"
Hengbo turned her head and saw that it was Aunt Shen with a surprised expression. "We were worried about you. We didn't expect you to have come to the city too."
Without asking how Hengbo got into the city, he grabbed her arm and said, "It's hard to find an inn at this hour. Luckily, the one we're staying at has a spare room. Why don't you come with us? It'll be good to have someone to look after you."
This was exactly what Hengbo wanted, and from then on, Hengbo finally took her first step in Yujing.
On the other side, facing the disheveled Chang Sheng, Wen Tinglan sighed almost imperceptibly: "Fine, you can go back now."
Chang Sheng said with distress, "It's all because I'm too stupid. If something really happened to the princess, oh dear, the princess won't be in any danger. Do you think I should organize a few brothers to search the city?"
Wen Tinglan pondered for a moment but still shook her head. "No, we don't know what the princess's purpose is yet, and there are many spies in the city. We must not act rashly. We should just be more careful."
"yes."
...
The next day, everyone in the caravan looked on in astonishment as the mysterious woman emerged from Hengbo's room.
The woman before him wore a long, wide-sleeved, water-red dress, with a pomegranate-red silk sash around her waist that accentuated her beautiful figure. She wore a gold-embroidered shawl over it, and on her fair wrists that peeked out from the sleeves hung a pair of deep-colored, almost translucent red jade bracelets.
However, the woman's face was covered by a thin veil, making it hard to imagine what kind of beautiful face such a woman could possess.
The woman was immediately surrounded by onlookers upon opening the door, but she showed no discomfort whatsoever. She naturally closed the door and went downstairs, leaving the onlookers looking at each other in bewilderment. Aunt Chen then went up and knocked on Hengbo's door. After confirming that there was no response from inside, she said incredulously, "My goodness, could that person just now have been Hengbo?"
two
The dog nodded in deep agreement: "She brought a sword, it should be, probably, maybe, or even just Yokohama."
After speaking, everyone rushed downstairs; after all, you can't eat while wearing a veil.
As expected, after the woman removed the veil and placed it aside, what was revealed to everyone was Hengbo's clean and pretty face. However, having shed the dust and grime of the past few days' journey, or perhaps due to the added effect of her clothing, this familiar face now displayed an almost unbearable radiance, like a lotus emerging from the water under the blazing sun, pure and elegant yet also exuding a noble and imposing aura.
Taking advantage of his small stature, Er Gou plopped down on the other end of the bench where Heng Bo was sitting and said obsequiously, "Sister Heng Bo, what would you like to eat? It's on me today."
This was the first time Hengbo had ever seen this little girl, who was either rolling her eyes or about to roll her eyes, display such a fawning expression. Overwhelmed with gratitude, he ordered one of the most expensive dishes in the restaurant.
However, Er Gou, who should have rolled his eyes at her, just stared at her intently this time. "Is this enough? If you're not full, don't be shy. I've been saving my New Year's money."
Hengbo: ...Oh no, this kid's probably gone mad.
The only person she could communicate with without difficulty, Granny Green, had apparently gone to the residence of Aunt Shen's cousin who had graduated from high school. Hengbo gestured for a long time before finally expressing her concerns to Aunt Shen.
Aunt Chen chuckled and said, "It's alright, this child is just like that. He can't resist good-looking people."
Er Gou then approached again with a look of amazement, muttering to himself, "Sister Hengbo, you're so beautiful, just as beautiful as someone else I've seen before. Now I don't even know who's prettier between you two. But, you're a girl, and he's a boy..."
She hesitated for a long time, then leaned closer to look at Hengbo's face: "Never mind, the person in front of me is still the most beautiful."
Hengbo:……
In order to get Er Gou's attention away from her face, Heng Bo solemnly slapped something in front of Er Gou.
Er Gou looked closely and saw that what was placed on the table was a travel permit, and the name on the travel permit...
"Zhang Cuihua?" Er Gou stared at Heng Bo in disbelief.
Hengbo pointed to herself and nodded, indicating that she should no longer call her Hengbo, but Zhang Cuihua, or Sister Cuihua.
To Hengbo, it was just a simple name, but it plunged Ergou into self-doubt: "Why do all the good-looking people have to have names like that? Zhang Cuihua, Shen Wangcai..."
Hengbo was puzzled by her reaction. He pointed at her and made a "two" gesture. Didn't she call herself "Ergou" (Second Dog)?
Unexpectedly, Er Gou became extremely indignant, as if he had suffered a great injustice: "He lied to me! I don't want to be called Er Gou!"
A note from the author:
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Quiz with prize: Who is Shen Wangcai?
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