Chapter 63 What bad luck!
Lin Gui arranged for Zhuang Wan to ride in the carriage at the end of the caravan, along with a mother and daughter.
The woman said that she and her husband followed the caravan all year round and were responsible for the caravan's daily meals.
"Where is your husband?" Zhuang Wan asked.
The woman smiled and pointed outside the car: "Outside."
Zhuang Wan looked at the little girl beside her. The little girl was wearing a pigtail skirt and had a pair of buns on her hair. She looked about eight or nine years old.
Seeing her looking at her, she shyly called out "Sister."
Zhuang Wan smiled and pinched her cheek: "What's your name?"
"Arya."
"Hello, Erya, my name is..." Zhuang Wan thought for a moment and gave herself a new name: "My name is Zhuang Ruyi. You can call me Sister Ruyi from now on."
She took out a handkerchief from her bag, which contained a few exquisite and delicious snacks, which she had packed from the teahouse earlier.
"Here you go," she handed it over. "Consider this my gift to you."
The little girl was embarrassed at first and looked timidly at her mother.
Zhuang Wan said, "I'll need you to cook for me in the future, so please accept this."
The woman nodded, and the little girl happily accepted it.
The carriages and horses swayed, and the voices of people outside the city were bustling. Amid this clamor, Zhuang Wan felt the freedom of life.
A newfound freedom.
However, what she didn't expect was that the convoy stopped at the city gate not long after.
"What's going on?" Zhuang Wan lifted the curtain and looked out worriedly.
The woman also took a few glances and said uncertainly, "Maybe it's the soldiers guarding the city checking?"
Zhuang Wan's heart was in turmoil again.
The woman continued, "Every caravan leaving the city is inspected. Since there are so many people here today, it's probably going to be a little slower."
"Um."
Zhuang Wan's eyelids were twitching violently, faster and faster, making her feel uneasy.
I waited anxiously like this for a long time, just like the fuse of a firecracker burning slowly and anxiously. With a shout of "Close the city gate quickly!", the fuse burned to the end and suddenly exploded.
Zhuang Wan's mind went blank.
She was confused: "What's going on?"
Some people said: "The city is closed, the government has closed the city."
Zhuang Wan asked, "Why is the city closed?"
The man said, "There's a fire in the palace. They say it was robbed. The imperial guards have sealed the city gates and are investigating."
When Zhuang Wan heard this, she felt as if she had fallen into a cold pond and her whole body was cold.
.
Lin Gui apologized for what happened tonight: "Boss Zhuang, we can't leave today. I heard the city will be closed for three days. How about we leave in three days?"
Zhuang Wan smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Lin. I don't think I'll be able to leave in three days."
"Why?"
Zhuang Wan shook her head, said goodbye to Lin Gui without any explanation.
Lin Gui caught up with her, blushing and saying, "Miss Zhuang, can I...take you home?"
"No need, my house is just ahead, I can just walk back."
"oh."
Lin felt her loss, and he watched her disappear in the crowd with guilt.
Zhuang Wan walked back slowly carrying the bag.
The city will be closed for three days. Pei Xingju will wake up in three days, and then she will not be able to leave even if she wants to.
"Alas!" Zhuang Wan sighed, "I'm so unlucky!"
However, you should not say unlucky words when you are discouraged, because you will become even more unlucky.
Before she had taken a few steps, Shen Yi came riding on horseback in official uniform.
Zhuang Wan was so frightened that she quickly threw away the bag.
She adjusted her mood and walked over: "Master Shen."
Chen Yi breathed a sigh of relief: "Why is Miss Zhuang here? We have been looking for you for a long time."
Zhuang Wan's heart skipped a beat: "Looking for me?"
"Yes." Chen Yi nodded. "Lord Pei returned home and asked you where you had been when he saw you were not there. Jingzhe went to Tianxiang Teahouse to look for you, but the waiter told us you had gone to Mingyue Tower to watch the lanterns. We sent people to Mingyue Tower to look for you, but after searching for a long time, we couldn't find any trace of you and thought something had happened to you."
Zhuang Wan's attention was focused on the words "Master Pei has returned home." She asked in fear, "Is Pei Xingju awake? Didn't they say he was injured and unconscious in the palace?"
"Yes." Chen Yi said, "Thanks to you for letting Lixia into the palace, the imperial physician couldn't do anything about it. Lixia just used a small bottle to let Master Pei sniff it, and he woke up."
“…”
Zhuang Wan's smile was uglier than her crying.
Shen Yi asked, "Why is Miss Zhuang here?"
"...I got lost and kept trying to get back home."
Shen Yi nodded: "That's perfect."
He dismounted and let Zhuang Wan sit on it. "Let's go. I'll take you home."
.
When I returned home, it was already past midnight.
"Where have you gone, young lady? You scared me to death." Qiu Tan came forward to greet her. "I followed them to Mingyue Tower and searched for you for a long time but couldn't find you. Young lady, you don't know, the fire in Mingyue Tower was so big that even the sky was burning, a sea of red..."
Zhuang Wan listened to her mumbling and walked towards the osmanthus courtyard in a depressed mood.
When they reached a fork in the road, Qiu Tan pulled her to stop.
"What's wrong?" She turned her head.
"Miss," Qiu Tan whispered, "Master Pei is back. Aren't you going to go see him?"
"Oh." Zhuang Wan nodded, changed direction and walked towards the main house in the front yard.
The courtyard of Pei Xingju was brightly lit, and numerous guards stood guard in the corridors. Zhuang Wan was startled; she had not expected so many people to be hiding in the mansion.
She walked to the door and hesitated for a moment, then saw Shen Yi smiling and waving at her from inside: "Miss Zhuang, come in."
“…”
As Zhuang Wan walked in, a faint medicinal aroma filled the room. Behind the screen, Pei Xingju was wearing a coat, leaving one shoulder bare.
The imperial physician was bandaging him.
"Master Pei, please don't touch water these days, and avoid spicy food. Oh, and don't practice sword for the next two days."
"Thank you, Doctor Li." Pei Xingju nodded.
After bandaging the wound, the imperial physician packed up his things and walked out of the inner room. Seeing Zhuang Wan, he said to her familiarly, "Miss Zhuang, you've arrived just in time. Lord Pei's injuries are not light at all. In short, we must not be careless. I have a few words for you..."
It was the same imperial physician from last time. Perhaps because he thought she was obedient, he entrusted her with the task of taking care of Pei Xingju.
Zhuang Wan nodded in response, not understanding what he was saying. After he finished speaking, she bowed and said, "Goodbye, Doctor Li."
When I came to my senses, the room was quiet and Shen Yi had left without knowing when.
Pei Xingju's figure was reflected on the screen. He was busy getting dressed. Perhaps because of his inconvenient hands and feet, his movements seemed slow.
After a while, he suddenly asked in a deep voice:
"Where have you been?"
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