Chapter 56 Chapter 56 The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, ...
The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, and the magpies fly south. 【1】
Wen Shen and Jiang Wan walked one after the other across the vast desert. The temperature in the desert plummeted at night, and the wind blowing from the distant dunes was bone-chillingly cold, mixing with grains of sand and hitting Jiang Wan's face, causing her cheeks to sting.
Wen Shen asked the Imperial Guard for a veil and put it on her, then draped his own cloak over her. The cloak wasn't thick, but it carried the residual warmth of his body, quickly warming the woman's body.
The site of the previous explosion was a circular sand pit, twenty meters in diameter. Quicksand was slowly pouring into the pit from all sides. As Jiang Wan approached, he could smell the strong stench of blood. The bottom of the pit was stained with blood, and scattered with tiny pieces of shattered flesh, mixed with wood chips from the blasted carriage, the bloody, brutal smell was nauseating.
This was after the Jinyiwei had cleaned up the large pieces of body parts and clothing fragments.
Wen Shen frowned and subconsciously blocked the view of the woman behind him, but found that the person behind him lowered her head and remained silent, without showing any signs of being frightened or vomiting.
"New Jinyiwei are always terrified when they see a corpse for the first time." Wen Shen raised an eyebrow and studied Jiang Wan's expression with great interest. "Miss Jiang, you are truly determined."
Jiang Wan was still staring at the blood-soaked sand pit: "It's not like I haven't seen dead people before."
The clear and pleasant girl's voice, at this moment, also revealed a bit of desolation. Wen Shen seemed to realize something and hurriedly said:
"I'm sorry, I forgot that many people in the Duke's Mansion died during exile, including your father."
He slapped his face in frustration: "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned your sad story."
Jiang Wan shook his head and said it was okay.
The dead people she had seen were from her previous life. The original owner's father had died before she came here, and because the original owner fainted upon hearing the news, she had no idea how his father died.
"Where are the Zhang brothers buried?" Jiang Wan asked.
Wen Shen pointed to two wooden plaques stuck in the sand not far away. Because the explosives had damaged the body parts, it was impossible to identify who they belonged to. So this was actually a cenotaph, containing fragments of the Zhang brothers' clothing and some relics that hadn't been destroyed by the explosion.
Jiang Wan gazed at the tombstone before him, observing the words "Ancestral tablets of the Zhang brothers" in silence. These two men were merchants with families, having traversed the desert for over a decade. Unexpectedly, they died in such a tragic manner, without family to bury them, and without even their remains left behind.
The two of them were exploring the route to protect the caravan. When they returned to Xiaofangpan City, she would give their families some silver as compensation. If they needed a job, she could also offer them a job.
Wen Shen poured the Xifenglie in his hand onto the ground, then took out another pot of strong liquor from his sleeve and took a big gulp.
Then he took out a silk cloth and wiped the tombstone carefully.
He and Shen Jianqing's trapping plan ultimately implicated two innocent people.
The wind and sand were raging, and the places that had been wiped were quickly covered with a layer of sand again. Jiang Wan had no silk cloth with him, so he simply wiped with his sleeve. Wiping and wiping, wiping and wiping, the two of them were immersed in the strange busyness, trying to dispel the mixed feelings in their hearts.
When the day breaks, separation is approaching.
Jiang Wan shook his sore arms, looked at the dusty face of the person next to him, and stepped forward to brush off the dust on his shoulders.
But was hugged by a pair of warm big hands.
The embrace was warm and solid, and she could hear his strong heartbeat. The cold scent of pine scent wafted through her nose, reminding her of the time she faced the scarred man and the "white guard" that evening.
At that time, Wen Shen descended like a god, holding her in one hand and holding a sword in the other, fighting one against nine, and the sword energy was like a white rainbow piercing the sun.
Jiang Wan suppressed her increasingly rapid breathing. Something in her heart had sprouted. She didn't like this feeling, but she longed to feel it more carefully.
The hug only lasted for a moment. Wen Shen quickly loosened his arms, whispered "take care", and flew away with his lightness skills.
On February 17th, the whole team took a day off.
On February 27th, the caravan arrived outside the city of Wusun, one day later than expected.
The Wusun royal city, known as Chigu, stood in an oasis. Its walls and buildings were mostly built of marble. The imperial palace and the castle where the nobles lived were even more magnificent, their walls covered in a variety of murals.
For example, the castle in front of Jiang Wan is the residence of Yi Li's father, General Tuke, the right general.
The square corners on the top of the castle are decorated with huge purple gems, and sun patterns are painted on all four sides. The architectural style is somewhat similar to that of medieval castles in Europe, and the patterns are close to ancient India.
"Boss Jiang, have you never seen such a magnificent castle?" General Tuke uttered a string of Wusun language, and Yili translated it into Chinese and explained it to Jiang Wan.
Jiang Wan smiled and nodded: "Yes, the general's residence is indeed magnificent and unforgettable."
General Tuke puffed out his chest proudly. "You, our distinguished guests, have come from afar and taken care of my daughter. You must have worked hard. I have already arranged accommodations for you. Why don't you go and rest first? Once we have inspected the cargo, we will present the silver and arrange a dinner to welcome you, our distinguished guests."
After listening to Yili's translation, Jiang Wan nodded in agreement. Following the Wusun custom, he placed his left hand on his right chest, bowed, and followed the servant to rest.
As soon as I sat down, I heard Yi Li calling outside the door: "Boss Jiang, Boss Jiang, can I come in?"
"Come in," Jiang Wan said. Yi Li looked willful and domineering, but after spending time with her, she found her quite endearing. Especially after the horse bandit crisis, the way Yi Li looked at her was enough to make her eyes sparkle.
Jiang Wan raised his head and met Yi Li's starry eyes.
The latter held a plate of grapes and sat directly beside her: "Always have these, these are the new grapes produced this year, they have been exposed to enough sun. After we offer them to the palace, they will become our home."
Jiang Wan peeled one and popped it into his mouth. It was cool and soft, the sour and sweet grape juice flowing between his lips and teeth, and soon his entire mouth was filled with the fruity aroma.
"How is it? Is it delicious?" Yi Li looked expectant.
Jiang Wan stuffed another grape into his mouth and hummed vaguely twice.
After satisfying her craving, she swallowed the grapes and said, "How was the cargo inspection? Are you satisfied?"
"I've checked most of it, and I'm very satisfied." Yili said proudly, "My sister personally selected the merchant, and I personally inspected the goods. How could there be any mistakes?"
She looked around to confirm that there were no servants around, then lowered her voice and said, "The key is, how are you going to get the red aconite into the palace? I just went to inquire, and in two days, Kunmi will hold a meeting with the Xiongnu Khan. The entire royal city has been under strict inspection these days, and the palace is even more airtight."
"Don't worry, I've made preparations." Jiang Wan changed the subject, "By the way, do you know the silver bush? It's the sacred medicine of your Wusun people, the silver bush that is said to grow on the snowy plateau."
Yi Li: "Yes, I have seen it. It's in the Queen Mother's palace. Do you want to see it? I'll go to pay my respects to the Queen Mother tomorrow and lend it to you."
"I don't want to look at it, I want to buy it. I have a friend whose mother is sick and needs the silver bush to save her life." Jiang Wan said, "Yili, do you think I can buy the silver bush with the remaining payment of 6,000 taels of silver?"
Yi Li was so shocked that she almost jumped up. She quickly said, "You can't buy it. The Wusun silver bushes only produce twenty taels a year, all of which is used for the royal family and not sold to the outside. Of that, two taels are paid as tribute to the Xiongnu, and two taels are given as gifts to other small countries in the Western Regions. The Queen Mother gets one tael, Kunmi gets one tael, the left and right wives each get half a tael, the four princes and princesses each get half a tael, and six important court officials each get half a tael as rewards. The remaining eight taels are stored for future use."
"For example, a few years ago, the late Madam Right suffered a difficult labor and hemorrhage. We used five taels of silver conglu in one go, but couldn't save her. The little prince was frail, and he needed silver conglu every month for the first year he was a year old to keep him alive. That year, we used a full forty taels of silver conglu, almost emptying the stockpile. The Empress Dowager's health hasn't been good in recent years, so the palace's silver conglu supply has been reduced, and it's impossible to buy it outside."
Yi Li asked tentatively: "Your friend, isn't it you?"
Jiang Wan listened with a heavy heart: "No, he's really a friend."
"How about I get him a famous doctor? Maybe there's another way?"
Jiang Wan shook his head: "It's useless. I've consulted many famous doctors, but only Yin Cong can save my life."
Yi Li was a little embarrassed. "My father was the Right General for twenty years and saved four or five taels of silver. My sister was the Right Madam for six years and also saved two taels. But if we want to get it, it's definitely not something that can be solved with silver."
Jiang Wan listened while thinking about how to get the silver bush, his fingertips tapping the table subconsciously.
"Boss Jiang, Boss Jiang?" It was unknown how long it had passed before Yi Li brought her back to her senses.
"Have you thought of a solution? If you keep knocking on my table, it's going to make a hole in it." Yi Li said dissatisfiedly.
"Oh, sorry, sorry." Jiang Wan withdrew his hand and looked out the window.
The sky was beginning to darken, and a red sun was slowly moving down along the horizon, turning the desert outside the city orange.
What a beautiful scene: the desert has no smoke and the sunset has no river.
Jiang Wan temporarily put his complicated thoughts behind him, stood up, stretched, and walked to the corridor at the door.
A butler came towards her from the direction of General Tuke's room, followed by two servants carrying a large box. Judging from the servants' gait, the box must be very heavy, probably filled with silver.
The housekeeper greeted her warmly, "Boss Jiang, are you used to taking a break? We've inspected the goods, and the general is very satisfied, saying the quality is much better than before. Boss Jiang, you are truly a genius in the porcelain industry."
Jiang Wan said politely, "No, no, as long as the General likes it."
The butler directed the servants to carry the silver into the house, his face full of smiles: "The general specifically ordered that you be given an extra 1,000 taels of silver as a reward. This box is worth 7,000 taels in total. Boss Jiang, the dinner is about to begin. Please follow me."
He then took a step closer and whispered, "Tomorrow, Miss Yili will take you to see Madam You. Do what she tells you to do, and you will be handsomely rewarded."
This refers to the red aconite. Jiang Wan nodded in understanding and asked as they walked, "By the way, where are my companions? Have they arrived at the banquet yet?"
The housekeeper was puzzled: "They went to the city to sell porcelain this afternoon and will not be attending the dinner. Especially Miss Fang Hong, she has already sold dozens of porcelain pieces. Why, didn't she tell you?"
Jiang Wan: ...Tsk, a porcelain fan.
【1】From Cao Cao's "Dan Ge Xing"
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