◇ Chapter 53 (53) Lianzhi is jealous
After these words were spoken, the two knew that Lianzhi had almost admitted her identity.
Lianzhi clearly guessed that Bai Kang would be eavesdropping outside, but she still said that, intending to confess everything. Bai Kang would test her repeatedly, so he must be very confident.
In fact, it was foolish of Bo Kang to discover his true identity only now. He had anticipated this day and had never considered concealing it. Counting the days, it was almost time for him to leave.
It's just that he had lived quite comfortably in the Shangshu Mansion for the past six months, and now that he was about to leave, he was a little reluctant.
"I'll try to keep it a secret from my adoptive father. You don't have to worry. They won't do anything to you." Lianzhi lowered her head, her tone sounding indifferent. "It won't cause you any trouble. If you feel you've been deceived by me, I can compensate you. I'll take Xiao Wenzi away now..."
After saying that, he turned around and was about to go back and take Eunuch Wen with him. It seemed that he was planning to leave without taking anything. Before he took a few steps, his wrist was grabbed. Lianzhi turned back in surprise, and suddenly his feet felt empty.
Bai Kang carried him on his shoulders. Lian Zhi was startled and kicked him with her legs: "Let me go, what are you doing? You are not allowed to kill me, I tell you I am not someone you can bully!"
Seeing that the two seemed to be arguing, the servants around them quickly retreated to avoid any bad luck. Lianzhi was not worried about him, but was afraid that Bai Kang would secretly have Eunuch Wen killed. She immediately shouted even louder, poking Bai Kang's back with the small hairpin in her hand: "Let me go!"
Bai Kang turned a deaf ear to him and walked back to the bedroom before throwing him onto the couch, rubbing his back and grimacing. If he weren't so tough, the lotus branch would have pierced his skin.
He stood beside the couch, looking down at Lianzhi. Lianzhi, not to be outdone, glared at him fiercely, like a furious kitten.
Neither of them spoke, but when their eyes met, they both seemed to see everything clearly. After a while, Bai Kang gave in and hugged him, "Do you want Xiao Liu to help you wash up, or should I help you?"
Lianzhi's clenched fists loosened: "...Hmm?"
Why didn’t Bo Kang take action to punish him?
While he was still dazed, Bai Kang had already asked Xiao Liu to bring in some water to wipe his face. Even after he was tucked into bed, Bai Kang had no intention of making a move on him, and even held him like usual.
"Won't you kill me? Won't you drive me away?" Lianzhi asked in confusion.
Bai Kang looked around and said, "Baby, I'm tired all day. Let's talk tomorrow."
Lianzhi always felt that Bai Kang was deliberately not answering his questions.
I don't want to kill him either.
With a roll of her eyes, Lianzhi pushed him: "Are you really not going to kill me? Don't you hate me? But I..."
Before he could utter the last three words, Bai Kang had already kissed him, blocking all the words he was about to say. Lian Zhi suddenly felt dizzy, and Bai Kang whispered in his ear, "Go to bed early."
But she avoided answering his question.
Lianzhi, however, was not going to let him go. After realizing that Bo Kang would not kill him, Lianzhi no longer hesitated: "Why didn't you answer me? And Xiao Wenzi, you should let him go!"
"As for Lao Wen, I plan to have him recuperate in my villa until next spring," Bai Kang replied with his eyes closed. "Don't worry, Lao Wen and I have a good relationship. How could I possibly kill him? I'm not kidding you about what happened today. Someone wants him dead. Have you figured it out? He's old, so he'd better rest."
Lianzhi quickly understood what he meant and hummed softly. But he was concerned about something else: "You actually have another courtyard? Aren't you very poor?"
Bai Kang was stunned, then burst out laughing. Lianzhi continued to mutter, "Besides, Xiao Wenzi isn't that old... He's only a dozen years older than you."
The difference between him and Bai Kang is about the same.
This time, Bai Kang didn't answer him and really fell asleep.
The next day, the steward actually sent someone to escort Eunuch Wen to Bai Kang's villa, located in the capital, not far from the Shangshu Mansion. Lianzhi understood that Bai Kang was using Eunuch Wen as a hostage to keep him in the Shangshu Mansion. But he couldn't understand why Bai Kang treated him so well. Hadn't he already discovered his true identity? Why didn't he expose it?
He looked for opportunities to bring up the matter again, but every time he mentioned those three words, Bo Kang would find an excuse to brush it off.
According to Lianzhi, Bai Kang quickly captured a foreign merchant caravan in the capital and interrogated them about the private sale of ironware. As a result, the private resale did happen, but the goods were not ironware, but a batch of fakes.
Knowing Lianzhi's concern for Eunuch Wen's innocence, Bai Kang, for the first time, took him to the Dali Temple, simply saying that Lianzhi was his subordinate. Lianzhi obeyed, telling everyone she met that she was Jiang Yong. Their similar appearance really fooled people.
The Dali Temple Minister had been waiting for a long time and handed the confession to Bo Kang. When he saw the clerk behind him, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
"What a fool! Selling fake beeswax and dzi beads, and fearing a violation of the law, he pretended to be dealing in iron?" Bai Kang snorted, noticing the Dali Temple Minister staring at Lianzhi, and he immediately became annoyed. "You're staring at my husband... What are we in the Ministry of Rites looking at?"
"I'm sorry for the offense." The Dali Temple Minister immediately saluted, feeling puzzled in his heart.
This young man from the Ministry of Rites seems to bear a striking resemblance to the person depicted on the caravan captain's pendant...
"Forget it, go do your thing. I'll go take a look." Bo Kang waved his hand, signaling the Dali Temple Minister to leave quickly. The Dali Temple Minister smiled flatteringly: "Why bother you, sir? Why don't you take me there?"
Bai Kang rubbed his eyebrows and sighed.
"I mean, I sneaked in." Bo Kang gritted his teeth and reminded the person in front of him, "Didn't you notice that I'm on vacation today? Don't let anyone know that I'm back at work on my day off, okay?"
The Dali Temple Minister quickly lowered his head again and let Bo Kang lead the others in. After they walked a little further away, Lianzhi took off her hood and sighed, "It's so boring. I should have known not to come."
"Who said yesterday that you had to come with me?" Bo Kang said helplessly, "Why don't you wait for me outside? I'll definitely help you find out about Lao Wen. How about that?"
This was exactly what Lianzhi wanted. Lianzhi nodded and said, "I'll wait for you outside."
After confirming that Lianzhi hadn't caught up, Bo Kang entered the cell and spotted the Yishang captain sitting in the corner. His long, curly hair, unique to the Qiang people, was tangled on his head, obscuring his dark face, stained with dust and blood. Like every Liangzhou native, his eyes were narrow and sharp, with the fierceness and piercing power of an eagle.
His bright gaze fell on the person behind Bo Kang.
Bai Kang frowned. Why were they all staring at his wife? Could it be that they had recognized Lianzhi's identity?
Forget about being the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple, what does this person do?
"Sir," the other man said, gripping the prison bars, speaking in awkward, broken official language, "If I confess something to you, will you spare the lives of my group?"
Bai Kang tilted his head slightly, glanced at Lian Zhi, and said readily: "If it has something to do with him, then yes."
Captain Yishang was surprised for a moment.
What Bo Kang didn't tell him was that his crime wasn't punishable by death, so there was no need to make an exchange. But these foreigners didn't quite understand the laws of the Central Plains, so getting a word or two out of him was a plus.
The confession clearly stated that the group had not forged the letter and placed the blame on Eunuch Wen. Bai Kang didn't want to dwell on who had done it.
What he wanted to know more now was what this person was talking about regarding the lotus branch.
Lianzhi was getting impatient waiting when Bai Kang finally came over, twirling the chain in his hand. The Dali Temple official kept staring at him like he had seen a ghost, and Lianzhi couldn't help but want to curse.
"Baby, let's go." Bai Kang walked forward and hugged him.
Lianzhi said "oh". Looking at Baikang's expression, he knew that there must be no problem with Xiaowenzi. Baikang kept turning the long chain and almost hit Lianzhi's face. He couldn't help but grab it: "What is this? Let me see."
He missed, and the chain with the pendant dangled past him before being spun to the other side. Unconvinced, Lianzhi continued to try, but it took several tries before she realized what was happening. She paused and looked up at Bo Kang, only to see a playful expression on his face.
His face flushed red: "You did it on purpose!"
"Don't be angry, baby. I'll show you." Bo Kang couldn't stop laughing. Lianzhi's movements when she grabbed the chain were just too cute, like a kitten waving its claws. When she handed him the chain, the square pendant had a dent in the middle, nothing in it. Lianzhi immediately lost interest: "Where did this rubbish come from?"
"The prisoner just now gave it to me," said Bo Kang. "If you like, I can put a gem in the middle and make it into a necklace for you?"
Lianzhi nodded. After leaving the Dali Temple, he asked Baikang to go with him to the other courtyard to see Eunuch Wen. Unexpectedly, Baikang said, "Baby, I have something to do at the posthouse. I'll let Qinghe accompany you there, and I'll pick you up when I come back."
"Have your brothers and sisters arrived?" Lianzhi asked. He also missed those children. "I'll go with you..."
"It's not them, you don't recognize them." Bo Kang said, "I'll tell you when we get home."
Lianzhi had no intention of prying into Bo Kang's private affairs, so she magnanimously let him go. Sitting in the carriage, she felt more and more that something was wrong.
Is Bai Kang hiding a little secret from him?
Now, Bo Kang was completely obedient to him, never hiding anything from him. Lian Zhi was a little unhappy, and his mood was written on his face. Qing He looked at his expression and teased, "Our adults are going to pick up his childhood friend!"
Lianzhi: "Childhood sweetheart?"
Qing He teased him deliberately, "Yes, he's a good friend of our master's from home. We've known each other for many years! He's very important to our master. When we heard he was coming, we rushed to pick him up right away."
It's just Bai Kang's friend, no big deal. Bai Kang has a cheerful personality, so it's normal for him to have many friends. Lianzhi thought about this, and she always felt an indescribable discomfort in her heart.
She had clearly agreed to accompany him to meet Xiao Wenzi, but she actually left him and ran away.
Seeing that he had a sour face and didn't say anything, and didn't lose his temper like usual, Qing He was a little panicked: "Master, are you angry?"
He just wanted to tease Lianzhi, but he didn't dare to make her angry.
Lianzhi still didn't say anything. Qinghe suggested again: "Master, why don't we go back to the mansion, or go find the master?"
"No need." Lianzhi said, "Let's go to the other courtyard first and see Xiao Wenzi."
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