Chapter 234 Pei Xingju is here!
In a village outside the Shuzhou Pass, Pei Xingju sat in a small mud house. On the table lay a candle, a pile of official newspapers, and a bowl of dark, long-cooled medicinal concoction.
Xue Gang heard him coughing, pushed the door open, glanced at the bowl of medicine on the table, and shook his head helplessly.
"I'm not saying anything bad about you, but at this rate, you might not be able to hold on until Miss Zhuang is rescued."
Pei Xingju ignored him and continued coughing. His cough was hoarse, as if he had exhausted all his strength, and it made a hissing sound.
After coughing, he picked up the pen, dipped it in ink and prepared to write a letter.
Xue Gang couldn't bear it any longer: "When will you change this bad habit of yours? You're half dead. If Miss Zhuang knew you were fighting while sick, I guess..."
Before he could finish his words, he saw Pei Xingju put down his pen, picked up the medicine bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
“.......?”
Xue Gang was speechless. It seemed he had found a way to force Pei Xingju to drink the medicine. Everyone tried to persuade him to take the medicine, but nothing was as effective as the simple "Miss Zhuang knows."
Well, I feel complicated.
"By the way," he added, "we've found a suspicious woman with strange movements."
"Woman?" Pei Xingju raised his eyes: "What woman?"
"A disfigured woman, almost forty, perhaps even older. She speaks with a Changguo accent, yet claims to be from Dazhao. And..." He whispered, "There's more to this woman than meets the eye. She's been in contact with former Changguo troops, and Liang Jinxian seems to be looking for her as well."
Pei Xingju asked, "Identity unknown?"
"Because of her disfigurement and her solitary nature, it's difficult to investigate. But what is certain is that this woman is definitely not simple, and perhaps she has some connection with Liang Jinxian."
"And..." Xue Gang thought of something and said, "In the past two years, Liang Jinxian has sent people to look for her one after another. He even came to Shuzhou in person last year. Do you think he is looking for her?"
Pei Xingju pondered for a moment and said, "Bring him here, I will interrogate him personally."
.
The night was quiet, and the cicadas in the courtyard were rustling, making people irritated for no reason.
In the bedroom, Liang Jinxian struggled and frowned in his sleep.
"Who are you? Who are you?" he asked.
The person in the dream was a disfigured woman, with a gentle yet resolute expression: "I am your wet nurse."
"Wet nurse? What about my mother?"
"Your mother is dead. She has been dead since you were born."
"Why did you die?"
"Killed by Duke Xin. Child, you must remember that your mother was killed by Duke Xin. You are not Duke Xin's child. You have another identity."
"Another identity? What identity?"
"You'll understand when you grow up. All you need to remember is that Duke Xin is your enemy! He is your enemy! The entire Daluo is your enemy!"
"They are all enemies. Where is my father?"
"You don't have a father. Your father was killed by the Pei family's army. The Pei family is also your enemy!"
"But where are my family? Why am I here?"
"You have no relatives! All your relatives are dead! You must always remember that Da Zhao is your enemy. When you grow up, you must avenge your father, mother, and your countrymen!"
The woman laughed slyly, "You want revenge! You want revenge for your countrymen!"
Revenge... Revenge... Revenge...
"ah--"
Liang Jinxian woke from his dream with a splitting headache, his forehead covered in sweat. The hall was dark and silent, filled with the sounds from his dream, like a ghostly hell.
"Who are you?" He asked absentmindedly, looking at the candlelight halo outside the screen.
"master."
At this time, Xichang came in quietly and knelt on the ground.
"What's the matter?" Liang Jinxian raised his eyes.
"The person the master has been looking for has appeared..."
Liang Jinxian was excited: "Where is he? Where is he?"
"Master, please forgive me..." Xichang continued, "I was a step too late. The man was taken away by a group of mysterious people."
"A mysterious person?" Liang Jinxian's face darkened. "There's a mysterious person hiding in Shuzhou, and you guys don't even know about it?"
"This...I don't know."
Liang Jinxian was silent for a moment, then asked, "What's going on in Mingluan Palace?"
...
In Mingluan Palace, Zhuang Wan couldn't sleep.
Tomorrow is the wedding date set by Liang Jinxian. The ceremonial officials are ready, and envoys from various countries have entered the palace, all waiting for tomorrow's wedding ceremony.
But she can't marry Liang Jinxian.
The previous escape plan had been discovered by Liang Jinxian, and now his men were everywhere outside the palace. What should she do?
Most importantly, she didn't know how Pei Xingju was doing now. She was worried that Pei Xingju would risk his life to save her tomorrow. Pei Xingju didn't know that Liang Jinxian had already laid a tight net for him tomorrow.
no!
After a while, Zhuang Wan stood up. She couldn't just sit there and wait for death. She had to find a way to escape.
She lingered in the hall for a while with her hands clasped tightly, and soon the door was opened.
The person who came in was a little palace maid. She was thin and had some difficulty holding the copper basin.
"Young lady," she walked up to Zhuang Wan, carrying a copper basin, "it's time to wash up."
Zhuang Wan was puzzled and felt that this palace maid was really rude. Why did she bring the basin to her? Did she want her to wash while standing?
The palace maid carefully moved the copper basin aside, but she didn't expect that there was another copper basin underneath, and the copper basin contained the palace maid's clothes.
Zhuang Wan was startled: "What do you... mean?"
"Young lady," the little maid knelt down, "I am here to help you leave."
"How did you know I was leaving?"
The young palace maid said, "The young lady has been locked up here by His Majesty these past few days, and she has been very unhappy. I suspect that perhaps she does not want to marry His Majesty Changguo."
"I really don't want to marry your Changguo Emperor," Zhuang Wan said, "but why are you helping me?"
"Perhaps the young lady has forgotten me," the little maid said, "I broke a copper basin outside the palace last time, disturbing your rest, but you didn't punish me."
"Just because of this?"
"No, I just think that the girl is a good person. If she can escape, maybe she can help me."
She continued, "I am not from Changguo. I was sold here from Dazhao. I used to be a maid in the prefect's mansion. Later, the prefect was killed by His Majesty, and I entered the palace."
"I know it's difficult for me to escape from Changguo in this lifetime, but maybe you can. If you can, I have a request."
"you say."
She slowly pulled out a worn sachet from her bosom, the shape of a child's. She said, "I was kidnapped when I was little, but I remember my parents were from Anzhou. If you are fortunate enough to return to Dazhao, please send this token to the Yang family in Anzhou. If my parents are still alive, please tell them that I am still alive, so they can rest assured."
Zhuang Wan was slightly moved by what she said. "But you helped me leave. What about you? If you're discovered, your life will be in danger."
"Young lady, don't worry," the little palace maid said. "When you go out with the basin in this dress, people outside will think I'm leaving. At 2:15 PM, the guards outside will change shifts, and I'll go out after that. They won't recognize me and will just think I'm a maid coming in to serve. Then I can leave."
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Wan thought this was feasible.
"Okay." Her heart was pounding, and without thinking too much, she immediately picked up the clothes in the basin and went into the inner room to change.
Soon, Zhuang Wan changed her clothes and emerged from the main hall, carrying the copper basin. The guard at the door simply glanced at her and didn't ask any questions.
She walked along the corridor with her head lowered and breath held, but when she was about to leave Mingluan Palace, she heard a voice of greeting behind her.
Zhuang Wan turned her head sharply and saw Liang Jinxian standing there in his moon-white nightgown. Perhaps sensing someone, Liang Jinxian glanced indifferently over.
It was too late to hide, so Zhuang Wan quickly knelt down holding the basin.
Because she was wearing the clothes of a palace maid and had her head lowered, she couldn't see clearly at night.
Over there, Liang Jinxian withdrew his gaze and asked, "Where are the people? Have they rested?"
The guard at the door replied, "The palace servant just helped Miss Zhuang wash up, maybe she hasn't rested yet."
Liang Jinxian nodded and walked into the hall.
Zhuang Wan knelt on the ground, her blood cold.
Why? Why did it have to be such a coincidence?
She stood up and wanted to leave, but her moral conscience held her back. The young maid was still in the palace, and she hadn't escaped yet. If Liang Jinxian found out it wasn't her, he would definitely kill her given his temperament.
After hesitating for a moment, she dropped the basin and ran back.
She was filled with despair. When she ran into the palace, she saw Liang Jinxian pinching the little palace maid with a murderous look in his eyes.
The little palace maid's face turned pale, her pupils were dilated, and her feet were high off the ground.
"Stop!" Zhuang Wan rushed over and pried Liang Jinxian's hands apart. "Don't blame her. I was blackmailing her into doing this."
Liang Jinxian stared at her playfully: "That person just now was indeed you."
"If you knew that, why did you come in and kill her?"
"I guessed you would come back." Liang Jinxian pushed the little maid away with disgust and took out a handkerchief to wipe his hands: "You are very smart. You know that if I find you, you will not be able to escape tonight."
A layer of cold sweat broke out on Zhuang Wan's back.
Liang Jinxian's guess was correct. Firstly, she couldn't bear to kill the young palace maid. Secondly, she knew that Liang Jinxian would immediately send someone to capture her if he discovered her escaping. Tonight, she couldn't escape the Changguo Palace.
"Liang Jinxian," Zhuang Wan asked, puzzled. "Why did you insist on marrying me? Even though you knew I didn't like you, you still wanted to marry me? Was it to get revenge on Pei Xingju?"
"If that's all..." She smiled contemptuously, "You've already lost without even fighting. You're no match for him."
The corners of Liang Jinxian's lips curled up slightly, but his eyes were sinister and crazy.
"Lose?" He chuckled, "After tomorrow, he'll know what losing is."
"I'm waiting for him here with tens of thousands of soldiers. Do you think... does he dare to come?"
"Liang Jinxian, don't you think this is despicable?"
"The victor is king, the loser is a bandit. How can it be despicable? Besides, I, Liang Jinxian, am not a noble person. You knew that from the beginning, didn't you?"
His pale eyes glanced at the little palace maid on the ground, and he raised his hand to gently smooth down Zhuang Wan's messy hair: "If you don't want her to die, you'd better behave yourself tonight."
"Tomorrow..." He became even more arrogant. "It's a good day for us. I'm really looking forward to Pei Xingju coming."
After saying that, he left with a big laugh.
...
Zhuang Wan was imprisoned in Mingluan Palace by Liang Jinxian.
The night dragged on silently like ink. She sat quietly in her chair, never having felt a moment so long as this one. Despair surged into her heart like a tide, and everything around her became blurry. She simply closed her eyes and waited for dawn in solitude.
The next day, when the palace door was opened, Zhuang Wan jumped up suddenly and squinted at the gray sky.
The palace maids and ceremonial officials came in one after another, holding phoenix coronas and bridal robes as well as dazzling jewelry, and untied Zhuang Wan's clothes without saying a word.
Zhuang Wan was manipulated by them like a puppet, bathing her, changing her clothes, and putting on her makeup.
Finally, she was covered with a red scarf and was supported by palace maids and walked out like a zombie.
Music drifted from the empty hall, mingling with the clamor of the crowd. Ceremonial officials and palace maids escorted her through the ancient imperial palace. Chang State had long been destroyed, its walls fading from their former glory and appearing somewhat dilapidated. Though the palace remained majestic, it exuded a dead air.
By this time, the sun had broken through the clouds, illuminating the mottled eaves. Zhuang Wan squinted her eyes, feeling a little dizzy, perhaps because she hadn't eaten breakfast.
Soon, the ceremonial officials stopped outside the main hall, and then someone was heard singing "The auspicious time has arrived!"
Zhuang Wan looked up nervously and suddenly met the eyes of Liang Jinxian who was walking down from the dragon throne.
He was dressed in a bright yellow robe, a jade crown with tassels covering his face, and the five-clawed dragon pattern on his body gave him an added sense of majesty. When he looked at her, his face showed a rare and normal gentle smile.
It was clearly a handsome face, but at this moment, Zhuang Wan only felt ridiculous and disgusted when she saw it.
Inside the hall were officials from Changguo and envoys from various countries. They lined up in order, standing quietly on both sides of the hall. Perhaps they had never seen her before, but when they heard she was coming, they all looked in curiously.
While they were looking at Zhuang Wan, Zhuang Wan was also looking at these people.
Through her gauze scarf, she anxiously searched the crowd for that figure, feeling both hopeful and anxious, eager for him to come and yet dreading his presence.
Soon, Liang Jinxian came to her, extended his hand and said, "Let's go, it's time to offer sacrifices to the heaven, my queen."
Zhuang Wan didn't move.
He bent down, found her hand from her complicated sleeves, and held it.
"Are you waiting for Pei Xingju?" he asked in a low voice as he leaned over.
Zhuang Wan's heart skipped a beat as she heard him say, "I'm waiting too."
"Do you think...will he come?" Liang Jinxian smiled coquettishly: "The auspicious time has come. If he doesn't come, you really will be my wife."
Zhuang Wan opened her mouth to speak, but she felt that the thin air around her made it difficult for her to breathe. Her throat felt like something was blocking it, and her heartbeat suddenly quickened.
Inexplicably, she had a premonition so strong that it took her breath away.
Finally, as Liang Jinxian led her down the stairs, an official came forward in panic and reported, "Your Majesty, Dazhao... Dazhao's envoys have arrived!"
Zhuang Wan was startled and suddenly lifted her handkerchief and turned to look.
Pei Xingju, dressed in a black brocade robe, walked calmly on the long white marble imperial road.
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