◇ Chapter 90 (90) The past three years ago
The hot water bottle gradually cooled, and Lianzhi was woken by the cold. The hand warmer was so cold that holding it in her hand only made the situation worse. The fire in the car also burned out, leaving only charcoal ash.
Chang Yuzhu, who was sitting at the other end of the carriage, slowly woke up and looked around in confusion. Realizing that he and Lianzhi were the only ones in the carriage, he hurried to apologize. Lianzhi stopped him and called the guards over: "What time is it? Where is your master?"
It gets dark early in the capital in winter, and with the thick fog, it's impossible to tell what time it is. The guard replied, "It's almost 3 p.m., and your Excellency hasn't returned yet. Is the charcoal fire in the carriage out? We'll replace it with a new one right away."
After saying this, the guard opened the carriage door and took out the tongs and tinderbox. Lianzhi sat beside the carriage, her feet on the footrest. "When will he come back?"
The guard continued to move and said respectfully, "There's been some unusual activity nearby. Your Excellency has taken people to investigate. It's freezing cold, why don't you and Master Chang return to the city first?"
Although this area is close to the city gate, few people live here. Apart from the subordinates of the King of Longxi, who else would be here, let alone any unusual activities? Lianzhi clutched the fluff on her cloak and said, "No need. Wait a moment."
"Master Chang is here too. Madam and Master are deeply in love, but they still have to be considerate of others." The guard brought a new charcoal basin. White smoke filtered through the copper hood and gradually merged with the thick fog. Lianzhi narrowed her eyes: "How dare you disobey me?"
"I dare not," the guard said hurriedly, "but Master has specifically instructed that Young Master Chang is not in good spirits and should be sent back to the Chang Mansion as soon as possible. If anything happens, it would be bad for Master and you to be implicated."
If that's the case, why didn't they tell him clearly in advance, and only let him question the guards before they were willing to tell him? Lianzhi was beginning to suspect that Bai Kang had seen someone from the King of Longxi and heard something that made him suspicious of him.
"Let's go." Lianzhi said.
The road back to the city was deserted, with no one in sight. The wind was as cold as a knife, and all that could be heard was the sound of wheels rutting and the rustling of leaves rolling across the ground.
Occasionally, pedestrians passed by, their necks hunched, their clothes tightly wrapped around them, and they hurried along. Smoke rose from the entrance of a street clinic, where a few scattered people lined up, waiting to receive a decoction to dispel the cold. Lianzhi took a look and lowered the carriage curtain to prevent the cold wind from blowing in.
Even if Chang Yuzhu was healthy, he would still be afraid of the cold. I don't know what kind of charcoal Bo Kang brought out, it smells like smoke and is too choking.
Just as he lowered his hand, Chang Yuzhu came over and opened the window. A cold wind blew in, carrying dust with it, and hit Lianzhi, who was sitting by the window, in the face. With a mouth full of dust, Lianzhi angrily said, "Chang Yuzhu, what are you doing!"
Chang Yuzhu, however, stared out without blinking. His gaze fixed on one spot, his eyes suddenly gleaming with light, and he slammed the car door like crazy: "Stop, stop the car! Hurry!"
Lianzhi held the hand warmer and looked at him with a puzzled look on her face. He didn't say anything, so the driver didn't stop. Chang Yuzhu finally came to her senses and said to Lianzhi, "Sister-in-law, please ask the driver to stop! I, I saw Xi Niang!"
Upon hearing this, Lianzhi's pupils trembled violently.
"That's her, I won't make a mistake!" Chang Yuzhu didn't notice Lianzhi's abnormality and begged, "Please help me, sister-in-law!"
The carriage had already passed the clinic and was some distance away from the stall. Lianzhi turned around and could still see the figure. He took a deep breath and said, "Stop."
"Master Bai, please take a seat."
There were a few scattered households along the river. A few elderly people, returning from collecting firewood, returned to their own courtyards. They were clearly familiar with the area and had lived there for generations. Yan Xi Niang pushed open the door. The tidy little house contained only a table, a chair, and a bed, with no signs of human habitation.
"This used to be the residence of an old lady. She had no children, and I often helped her. After she died, I took over this place." Yan Xi Niang's voice was soft and thin, with a hint of timidity. "I was the one who collected her body."
Unlike his voice, his expression was calm, without a trace of fear.
Bai Kang raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his chair casually: "If you have something to say, just tell me. Then come back with me, don't forget."
Yan Xi Niang was about to sit down when Bai Kang got there first, feeling a bit embarrassed. But she laughed instead, "I'm no match for Master Bai. Don't worry, Master. I'll keep my promise."
Just now, at the riverbank, after seeing her face clearly and hearing her say "Madam," Bai Kang didn't follow her instructions and go with her. Instead, he called the guards around him and tried to take her back by force, completely unconventional. If she hadn't repeatedly emphasized that she would go with Bai Kang, and that he had to listen to her story, he would have probably knocked her out and carried her back.
After saying that, she sat down beside the bed. Bo Kang didn't believe her now - what kind of weak woman would appear alone in the suburbs, and her personality was completely different from what she had shown before. She could change her face so quickly, which made Bo Kang have to doubt -
"Tell me the truth about how much you know about my wife." Bo Kang stroked the jade pendant at his waist and asked tentatively, "Do you also have a special fate?"
Appearing here, so good at changing his face and disguising himself, plus the figure seen near the Imperial Hospital...it must be related to Lianzhi and the King of Longxi. But between an outsider and Lianzhi, he naturally trusted Lianzhi unconditionally.
What strange fate? Yan Xi Niang didn't understand, but she could tell that Bai Kang trusted Lian Zhi. "The people around here have all benefited from my brother's kindness to some extent. When I was very young, he often took me out of the city to play. At that time, I thought the guards guarding the city were very impressive and powerful. I asked my brother if he could be a guard guarding the city. That way, it would be more convenient for us to go out and play."
As she spoke, she lost herself in memories. "My brother said he would become a general, like our father. But he was young and had no military achievements. Relying on his family's merits, he passed through layers of selection and became a palace guard. At that time, his family background was the best among all the palace guards, but he never put on airs and treated the palace servants like brothers. But even so, he died."
Bai Kang's Adam's apple rolled and his pupils shrank suddenly.
"Thanks to my father and brother, I still have some connections and have learned some things from the past." Yan Xi Niang smiled. "Lord Bai is from the north, so he probably doesn't know. Why did our late emperor grow up in the cold palace, unfavored by Emperor Ren? Many years ago, the North Sea Territory presented a dancer, and Emperor Ren, impressed by her beauty, took her into his harem. Unfortunately, the relationship between Daning and the North Sea Territory was bad at the time. A few years later, the two countries clashed again, and the ministers demanded that Emperor Ren sacrifice the dancer to appease the people. However, the dancer was already pregnant, so Emperor Ren did not take any action. He waited until she gave birth to the prince and then expelled her from the palace. Everyone in the court praised Your Majesty for his kindness."
"However, the dancer was secretly executed shortly after leaving the palace. The little prince has been kept in the cold palace. Your Excellency, don't you wonder why your wife looks so much like the late emperor?" Yan Xi Niang said, taking out a letter.
The envelope was old and yellowed, and attached to it was a white jade plaque. Yan Xi Niang said, "This is a handwritten letter from a palace maid who once served the dancer. It details the dancer's life story, hoping that whoever reads it will avenge her. She wasn't a dancer, but a woman from the Northern Sea, Prince Zhulan, a brother of our late emperor!"
Bai Kang held the letter in his hand, silent for a long time, so long that Yan Xi Niang began to suspect that he hadn't heard her, or perhaps simply chose not to believe him. After a while, Bai Kang spoke again, his voice hoarse and distorted: "You said this was a handwritten letter from the dancer's maid?"
Yan Xiniang nodded. The face opposite was lost in darkness and mist, the candlelight barely illuminating it. Bo Kang's expression darkened as he tucked the letter into his arms.
He believed it.
"Now that you've finished speaking, come with me." After taking a deep breath, Bai Kang slowly stood up: "Chang Yuzhu is very worried about you."
He walked to the door and turned sideways. Yan Xi Niang didn't move, still sitting on the bed.
"You didn't believe it?" she asked.
"It's not a big deal, just a guess," Bo Kang said. The two looked too similar, either they were related or disguised. While he didn't know the secrets of the royal family, he could guess a little.
Unexpectedly, after saying this, Yan Xi Niang suddenly became excited and rushed over, saying, "Do you still like him now that you know this? He is the culprit who took my brother's life. Lord Bai, aren't you my brother's good brother? Why can you feel at ease marrying the brother of his enemy?"
She thought that if there was anyone else in the world who would avenge her brother, it would be Bai Kang. So she returned to the capital, and she deliberately approached Chang Yuzhu, and she took every opportunity to get close to Bai Kang.
Why don’t you trust her and help her!
"If it weren't for my brother's life, how could you have become a royal guard!" Yan Xi Niang shouted at the top of her lungs, coughing furiously. She was about to ask more, but Bo Kang knocked her unconscious with a single blow, then lifted her up and left the hut.
Their argument didn't alarm the surrounding farmers. Bo Kang threw the woman to the guards beside him and said in a deep voice, "Go back first and take her back... No, don't take her back to Chang Mansion. Find her a secluded inn, not the post station, and don't let anyone see her."
The guard nodded, put the man on the horse, and asked with concern: "Sir, are you injured? Your hands are shaking."
His hands were shaking.
Bai Kang pretended to be calm and coughed: "I'm fine, you take her back first."
It was already late at night when we returned to the villa.
It was already dark, and Bai Kang stayed outside the city for a long time. Qing He said that they had already sent Chang Yuzhu back to the Chang Mansion. On the way, Master Chang saw a woman who looked like Miss Yan and chased after her regardless, but he didn't catch up. He said he would look for her tomorrow.
"What time?" asked Bo Kang.
Qing He was startled by his overly hoarse voice. Even the secret guard who hadn't been very talkative a few days ago had a more normal voice than their adults. He replied with the time, and Bo Kang nodded.
It should be Yan Xi Niang who woke up and deliberately lured Chang Yuzhu.
She suddenly exposed herself now because she wanted me to avenge her.
"Where is Lianzhi?" Bai Kang asked again.
"I was just about to tell you." Qing He said, "Madam hasn't been feeling well since she came back. Please go back and see her."
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