◇ Chapter 102 (102) Former Lovers Become Enemies (Part 2)
Yes, even if he had stood out in the military examination, the palace guards were filled with talented men, all more capable than a young man who had just entered the imperial service. Lianzhi was very cautious and didn't trust anyone except Eunuch Wen. So how could she have allowed him to serve so closely and discuss court affairs with him after promoting him to the position of imperial guard?
At that time, he thought that Chen Fenglian had some trust in him.
"You might as well not tell me these things." Bai Kang smiled bitterly.
"Ever since that day when you brought Xiaozhu back, I've always felt uneasy." Madam Bai covered her heart, looking at him with tearful eyes. She clenched Bai Kang's wrist, her skinny hand showing distinct joints. "My dear child, you are still young. I will find you another marriage. I will find you a good boy who knows you well. If you like... boys, that's fine. Your father won't blame you. When the new emperor ascends the throne, do not get involved with the people of the North Sea anymore. I beg you!"
"Mother." Bai Kang wanted to pull her hand away, but after hesitating for a while, he just tore off his sleeve and promised, "Don't worry, I won't let our Bai family be implicated."
The light in Mrs. Bai's eyes dimmed instantly. Bai Kang didn't want to be alone with his adoptive mother for too long, so when he saw that she was no longer talking, he quickly opened the door and wanted to invite her back.
Suddenly, Mrs. Bai rushed over to him and slammed the door shut. Bai Kang, already furious, said with a sullen face, "Mother, if you really wanted to stop me, why did you bring the token to me?"
I could just pretend nothing happened that day. Mrs. Bai must know I'm not one to question my elders. As long as she keeps quiet, the matter will be over.
But now, I took out the keepsake and told him about the past. He knew how to be filial to his mother, but that didn't mean he was stupid.
Mrs. Bai was startled and began to tremble again.
"Mother, just say whatever you want to say. You are my mother and my elder. Even if you want your son to go through fire and water, it is just a matter of a word from you." Bai Kang extended his hand to Mrs. Bai.
After a while, Mrs. Bai placed the jade token in Bai Kang's palm.
"Bai Kang, Mother didn't want you to do anything... I just, I just feel like I'm going to die. If I go to hell with this, I don't know how I'm going to face Sister Yang. My conscience is uneasy."
Mrs. Bai muttered, and without further explanation, she fled in a panic. Bai Kang looked at the glistening white jade pendant, then buried his head deeply in his palm.
That night, the North Sea Army did not advance.
Since they hadn't attacked, Daning couldn't act rashly. The men King Mu had sent had conducted a rough survey and found that they were a Helan tribe contingent, consisting of men and women, approximately three hundred strong, at least half of whom were elite soldiers, and their combat effectiveness was not weak.
With chaos raging in the capital, the new emperor finally issued an edict, forcing some officials to flee south. Naturally, Bai Kang, still in the north, didn't make it. Several other clerks from the Ministry of Rites who had accompanied him secretly regretted their trip to Rongcheng, fearing they would have already fled. But after seeing Rongcheng's continued safety and impregnability for days, they were grateful to have followed Lord Bai north.
Bai Kang's injuries were minor, and after a few days of rest, he'd healed considerably, at least no longer needing a wheelchair. Since that day, Mrs. Bai hadn't come to see him again, and neither had Bai Kang gone home. He had privately asked Bai Fu about it, and since their return to Rongcheng last fall, Mrs. Bai had indeed been confined to the Buddhist temple daily, eating vegetarian food and chanting, and her health hadn't improved much. After hearing about it, his father had returned once.
It now appeared that they hadn't deliberately set up a trap to wait for him, having heard of his return. Most of Bo Kang's staff were in the capital, and with few available, he could only ask two doctors from the Ministry of Rites for assistance. The investigation soon began to make headway.
"We have found out who you asked our subordinates to look for. The group of palace maids who left the palace with your mother that year were almost all from the capital." Two doctors from the Ministry of Rites came back with a silver hairpin. Bai Kang held the hairpin and looked at it for a long time, then looked at his subordinate who was sitting next to him and gulping down water.
"Is this how you found it?" Bai Kang asked, touching his chin.
"That's how they found it." Yuan You, a doctor from the Ministry of Rites, wiped his mouth, looking confused. Another person, Fang Luming, heard this and sighed.
"What a coincidence, sir! You don't know!" Yuan You said excitedly, "We are both lucky. This old nanny and her family just happened to come to Rongcheng to escape the disaster, and we ran into them. When the old nanny heard about Concubine Li, she gave us this silver hairpin, saying that it was a gift from Concubine Li, and we have to return it."
Bai Kang remained silent. Fang Luming sighed, "Princess Jinyang's army is stationed in Fancheng and Yanmen. At this time of year, they're all fleeing south. Didn't you find it strange just now? An old woman with several children, fleeing from the capital to Rongcheng?"
"Ah!" Yuan You clapped his hands, "Why didn't you say anything just now?"
"It's not important." Bo Kang raised his hand. This was an unbelievable coincidence. It was obvious that someone had sent the old woman to him. It was self-evident who had come all the way from the capital to here.
It didn't matter. He knew nothing about Lianzhi's schemes anyway, so it didn't matter if it was one more or one less. As long as he could get to the truth, no matter what Lianzhi wanted to do, he would accept it.
That day, Bai Kang invited the old maid to the inn. The maid was now over fifty, her husband's surname was Zhao, and it was said that her relatives were merchants in Rongcheng, who had fled north after the chaos in the capital. When the maid was ushered in, she took one look at Bai Kang, and tears welled up in her eyes.
"I greet you, sir." The old nanny saluted like a palace maid and said tremblingly, "I never thought that I would have the chance to meet Sister Yang's child in this lifetime. This life of mine has been worth it!"
"Are you close to my mother?" Bai Kang helped her sit beside him. The old nanny nodded vigorously, her eyes blurry, lost in memories. "Sister Yang was a rare good person in the palace. We young maids and eunuchs all relied on her. She was kind and capable. Later, Concubine Li distrusted even her own maids and only cared about Sister Yang. She was such a good person, why did God let her go so early..."
The old nanny wiped away her tears. Bo Kang remained silent, unsure how to respond. His mother had never told him these things. He only knew that his mother was a palace maid; otherwise, with her family background, she wouldn't have been able to marry his father.
But his father did not hold a high official position, so he thought that his mother was just a little palace maid.
"Sister Yang didn't want to implicate you. Serving Concubine Li is not a glorious thing; her status is too special. If the Empress hadn't pleaded with His Majesty Emperor Ren, citing her own life and the fact that she had a son with her, we would all have died quietly in the palace. It is precisely because of this that we will never forget the Empress's kindness. Lord Bai, don't blame Sister Yang, and don't blame your mother. They were all doing this for your own good."
Bai Kang wanted to hear more about his mother, but he also knew that business was more important now, so he continued to ask, "Why is Concubine Li's token in my mother's hands?"
"If it weren't for that jade token, His Majesty the Ren Emperor wouldn't have discovered the Empress's identity," the old maid complained. "Before her death, the Empress split her token in two, leaving half to her son and the other half to Sister Yang, whom she trusted most. She hoped the young prince wouldn't forget his origins. Furthermore, if the young prince gained the Emperor's trust in the future, with the token, he would surely treat Sister Yang with special favor and regard her as his own mother. If the young prince were to be isolated and helpless in the palace and return to the North Sea Territory, Sister Yang would have a way out there. But both the Empress and Sister Yang are too kind-hearted."
The old nanny changed the subject, "Sister Yang knew the Empress's death was unjust. Since she had the token, she has always wanted to avenge her. After marrying in Rongcheng, she tried every means to contact people in the North Sea. We don't know if she succeeded. In the last time we corresponded, Sister Yang said she had no other way, and perhaps she would never be able to repay the Empress in this lifetime. In that letter, Sister Yang also mentioned you. At that time, my lord, you were only ten years old. Sister Yang really doesn't want you to be involved in the grudges between us old people!"
"And then?" Bai Kang raised his eyebrows slightly.
The old woman wept bitterly, her handkerchief soaked through. Unexpectedly, Bo Kang showed no emotion at all, not even a tear in his eye. He was stunned. He grabbed the wine bag on the table and took a long swig.
The doctor told him he couldn't drink alcohol until his injury healed, but he was still feeling very upset.
Bai Kang asked, "My mother must have met Emperor Ling. Otherwise, how would she know what I look like?"
"You..." The old nanny hesitated. Bo Kang waved his hand. "You don't have to hide it from me. You brought your grandchildren all the way north to Rongcheng, and Yuan You happened to see you. What a coincidence! Prince Zhulan must have sent you here. Do you know the relationship between Prince Zhulan and Emperor Ling? I think you do."
The old nanny didn't hide anything, or rather, she had no intention of hiding it. "Yes. It was indeed the little prince who sent guards to escort me. But everything I said is true... I also know the relationship between you and the little prince! Please don't misunderstand the little prince!"
How could he misunderstand Lianzhi, Bai Kang thought.
He would believe whatever Lianzhi said.
"Sister Yang has never met Emperor Ling, nor has she met the little prince. I once wanted to invite Sister Yang to a small gathering in the capital, but she refused. Among Concubine Li's old belongings, there are portraits of her and Sister Yang. Emperor Ling probably recognized you from the portraits." The old nanny explained.
"Emperor Ling may have had some misunderstandings about you. As for the little prince... he thought you were Sister Yang's son, and that you would inherit Sister Yang's legacy and help him seek revenge." The old nanny lowered her brows, as if she was too guilty to look up. "The little prince asked me to tell you this: if you feel tired and don't want to help him, he won't force you. From now on, just forget him."
"You're lying to me again." Bai Kang murmured.
Lying to him again.
Mother is a good person, mother is a good person, and Concubine Li is also a good person.
What about him?
He even suspected now that his mother had strongly supported his courageous decision to venture to the capital, which was part of her plan. So, did he deserve to be used from the beginning to the end, foolishly fall in love with Lianzhi, and then have him betray her true feelings?
It was ridiculous that he, a man ten years older than Lianzhi, was being played around with like that. Lianzhi was right, he was indeed stupid as hell.
The matter has come to this, the die is cast.
He would no longer believe anything Lianzhi said, nor would he believe the words that Lianzhi conveyed to him through other people's mouths.
He has to trust his own judgment.
"You respect my mother, and I'm grateful for that." Bo Kang stood up and bowed to the old lady. The old lady was terrified and quickly stood up to bow as well. Bo Kang then said, "As for what you said later... I don't believe it. I'll ask him myself. Please go back. I'll have someone take you back."
The old woman opened her mouth and let out a wheezing sound like a bellows. She hadn't expected that, just as the little prince had said, Pacon really didn't believe her. Pacon had someone escort her out. The old woman hesitated to speak, and finally just sighed and walked away with her cane.
Those words were meant to tell him that Chen Fenglian had mistakenly believed that he knew the truth but didn't want to intervene, so she took her anger out on him. That's why, after being reborn as Helian Zhulan, she took advantage of him thoroughly.
He wouldn't believe a word of it. Lianzhi had feelings for him, and the dependence she felt when they were together couldn't be faked. Furthermore, if Lianzhi assumed he was aware of Concubine Li's injustice and therefore harbored prejudice against him, why did she arrange for him to join the Ministry of Rites? At that time, Lianzhi herself was struggling under the Empress Dowager's control. It was impossible for him to have guessed his own death and rebirth, right?
After sending the old nanny away, Bo Kang poured all the wine from the wine bag into the cup. Fang Luming quickly returned: "Sir, the old nanny has already boarded the carriage. As you instructed, I gave her fifty taels of silver. She accepted it."
"Please sit down." Bai Kang pointed to the seat opposite him.
Fang Luming sat down, confused. Bai Kang stroked the jade ring on his finger. It was made for him by the craftsman from leftover material when he was making Lianzhi's headpiece. After a while, Bai Kang said, "You smoke water pipe, right? Give me some."
"Your injury hasn't healed yet, please think twice." Fang Luming advised.
Bai Kang didn't know how to dispel the depression in his heart. It felt like his heart was being torn by two hands, the pain was so severe that he couldn't understand why. Even breathing was accompanied by a dull pain. Bai Kang spoke, his voice hoarse and seemed to be filled with moisture: "Lu Ming. You are calmer and more meticulous than Yuan You, and I trust you more. I also know that among all the people in the Ministry of Rites, only the two of you have always been loyal to me. So I can only leave this matter to you. Go find Chang Yuzhu and ask him to help you. Tell him that I owe him a favor."
Fang Luming solemnly took the half of the token he handed over.
"But at your command, sir."
The Beihai troops outside the city finally took action. They bypassed Rongcheng at night, following the mountain stream southward toward Yanmen. Circumventing Rongcheng was extremely difficult, given the difficult mountain roads, but the Helan army surprisingly maintained a distance of hundreds of miles from Rongcheng, with no one approaching.
The soldiers stationed in Rongcheng had no idea what was going on, and thought that their reputation was so great that even the Helan tribe was afraid of them. When the surrounding people heard about this, more refugees poured into Rongcheng.
Only King Mu, who had seen Lianzhi, guessed a little bit of the truth and wanted to tell it to Bo Kang, but when he thought of the other party's illness, he could only sigh silently.
Two days later, Chang Yuzhu and Fang Luming, who had disappeared inexplicably, came back.
Yuan You was careless and didn't know why Bai Kang was the only one around him. Others guessed something, but in the current situation, they didn't dare to ask too much. At night, Chang Yuzhu secretly brought people back, entered the post station, and took off his cloak: "I'm exhausted. Bai Kang, you have to pay me back this time. I hired so many people to find people for you! Now, except for Rongcheng, other places don't accept foreigners at all. I spent hundreds of taels of silver to bribe them. Because of you, I gave away hundreds of taels. Let my grandfather know that I'm really finished!"
"Thank you, Yuzhu. I will repay you double for all the money and this favor." Bai Kang patted Chang Yuzhu on the shoulder and looked at the people he brought.
The man, dressed as Fang Luming and with his hood removed, revealed an aged, pale, beardless face – an old eunuch. For days, fearing Lianzhi would find out about this, Chang Yuzhu and Fang Luming had traveled extensively under the pretext of searching for a relative, risking their lives to help Bai Kang find him. They finally tracked down the old eunuch, who was said to have served Concubine Li.
"Eunuch." Bai Kang stood up and bowed, then lifted the cloth on the table to reveal the silver ingots underneath. "I have a question for you. Please answer truthfully."
The man didn't leave until early morning.
It was the same words again, exactly the same as what the old nanny said.
"Don't be sad, Bai Kang." Chang Yuzhu patted his shoulder, not knowing how to comfort him. "Even if he plotted against you, he still has feelings for you, doesn't he? I heard when I came back that the Helan army deliberately bypassed Rongcheng. Without Lianzhi's instructions, why would they have done that? He knew you were in Rongcheng, and he couldn't bear to hurt you."
Bai Kang stared out the window, motionless, like a statue.
"Will you wait for Miss Yan?" he asked after a while.
"I don't know." Chang Yuzhu sighed, "I'm afraid I won't be able to wait. My grandfather sent me a letter saying that she fled south with His Majesty. By His Majesty's side... Maybe I will die soon, maybe she will die too, who knows."
"I'll wait." Bo Kang said firmly.
"That's good. I support you." Chang Yuzhu also patted his shoulder and deliberately talked about the past to make Bai Kang feel more relaxed. "When things get dark in the east, they get bright in the west. At least we survived several palace coups. Come to think of it, when you first joined the Ministry of Rites four years ago, you were lucky enough to escape. You are really lucky. It was only half a year after the palace coup, but Emperor Lingdi stuffed you into the Ministry of Rites. If you were still an imperial guard, wouldn't you stay by Emperor Lingdi's side to save him?"
Bai Kang hummed softly, then suddenly looked up and looked at Chang Yuzhu.
"Why are you looking at me?" Chang Yuzhu was confused. "Have you really thought about saving Emperor Ling? You don't owe him anything, brother."
I don't know what touched Bo Kang, he suddenly stood up and shouted: "I know!"
Chang Yuzhu:?
"I understand! Yuzhu, thank you so much!" Bai Kang patted Chang Yuzhu on the back with such force that Chang Yuzhu grimaced. Anxiously, Bai Kang paced around the table and said, "Now... no, it's too late. Tomorrow! Tomorrow I have to go to Fancheng!"
【Author’s words】
See you in the next chapter! These two chapters will explain some of the previous questions and end, which will be a bit boring. There will be another chapter in the evening ()
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