After taking Yan Huisheng back to the Eastern Palace, Su Rong and Fen Ling took a carriage back to East Fourth Hutong.
On the way, Fen Ling groaned, "If only I had known earlier that the other half of the treasure map had been destroyed, I wouldn’t have been so excited. Ah, what a waste of energy."
Su Rong said, "Even if the other half is destroyed, it’s not a total waste."
Fen Ling looked at Su Rong, "Sister, are you still holding out hope? Emperor Jingyuan destroyed it, the Crown Prince wouldn’t lie about that, would he?"
"The Crown Prince certainly wouldn’t lie," Su Rong glanced at him, "But what if we trace back the origin of the treasure map? There might be hope."
Fen Ling looked puzzled, "Wasn’t Emperor Jingyuan the one who created the treasure map?"
Su Rong shook her head, "During Emperor Jingyuan’s reign, the world was in chaos, warlords divided territories, continuous warfare led to opposition between Dawei and Daliang. Daliang was weaker, and Dawei was stronger, but because Nanchu, the small nation, pledged loyalty to Daliang, the two countries finally reached a stalemate. As for how Nanchu became affiliated with Daliang, according to Master Xie, it was because of a treasure map that Nanchu managed to gain Daliang’s favor. And that treasure map, came from Nanchu itself."
Fen Ling suddenly perked up, "Sister, could you clarify? What exactly did Master Xie say? Did he say the treasure map came from Nanchu?"
Su Rong nodded, "Master Xie said that during the period of world chaos, the most sagacious person was the King of Nanchu. Dawei was already powerful, and if Nanchu had pledged loyalty to Dawei, they would have been swallowed up and lost their national status. However, pledging loyalty to a weaker country like Daliang was different. Because Daliang was relatively weak, with Nanchu joining its ranks, it could compete with Dawei. Furthermore, unlike Dawei, Daliang would not completely absorb Nanchu, allowing Nanchu to maintain its footing amidst the two larger nations."
Fen Ling admired, "It seems really far-sighted." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎
"The King of Nanchu obtained a treasure map during these times of chaos, but before he could fully understand it, it came to the attention of the monarchs of Dawei and Daliang. Eventually, the King of Nanchu gritted his teeth and gave the treasure map to the King of Daliang. Using this treasure map, everlasting peace was ensured between the two nations." Su Rong said, "If my guess is correct, the treasure map we just saw is none other than that very treasure map."
Fen Ling’s eyes twinkled in anticipation.
Su Rong continued: "Perhaps initially, the King of Nanchu only gave half of the treasure map to Daliang? And he spread the news throughout the world that he had given the treasure map to Daliang, while Emperor Jingyuan of Daliang received the map and realized it was only half a map. But given the tense situation with Dawei, he had no choice but to accept it."
Fen Ling’s eyes suddenly lit up with excitement, "Sister, are you implying that the other half of the treasure map might still be in the Nanchu royal palace?"
"Possibly." Su Rong said, "Anyway, it’s best if it’s there, and if it isn’t, then so be it."
Fen Ling: "..."
What is that even supposed to mean?
But even if it was just a bold guess from Su Rong, it was enough to revive Fen Ling’s spirits which were previously dampened. He was even somewhat eager to head to Nanchu immediately.
After returning to East Fourth Hutong, Su Rong got off the carriage and headed towards the inner courtyard.
She returned to her own residence and smelled a mixture of medicinal herbs. She pushed the door open to see Zhou Gu and Su Xingze engrossed in preparing medicine. The two of them seemed focused and serious.
Su Rong deliberately made a sound by lightly coughing, which startled the two. They turned to look at her in unison. A look of joy crossed Zhou Gu’s face, "You’re back?"
Su Rong nodded and asked them, "How is it going?"
Zhou Gu curled his lips into a smile, "Successfully accomplished."
Su Xingze rubbed his temples, "It was harder than the imperial examinations."
Su Rong laughed, asking two imperial examination toppers to prepare medicine was indeed tough on them. She waved her hand, "You both can rest now, I can handle it myself."
Su Xingze let go and stood up.
But Zhou Gu shook his head, "Let me help you! I’m not tired, Elder Brother Su can go rest!"
"Have you had lunch?" Su Rong asked.
"No." Su Xingze answered.
Su Rong shooed Zhou Gu, "You go have lunch with Elder Brother, I will handle this with Fen Ling."
Fen Ling had planned to slip away, but before he could, he heard Su Rong’s words and reluctantly entered the house with a bitter expression on his face, "Alright, two gentlemen, please leave. I’ll assist my sister."
Zhou Gu could only stand up and said to Su Rong, "I’m not tired, I’ll come back to help you after lunch."
He just didn’t want to waste any time he could spend with Su Rong. After all, he was leaving the capital soon, and she wouldn’t come to Nanchu for the time being. He didn’t know when they would meet again.
Su Rong bent over to check the herbal medicine. Hearing Zhou Gu’s words, she turned to look at him and replied with a nod, "Alright."
Hearing her agreement, Zhou Gu urged Su Xingze, "Let’s go, Elder Brother Su, I’m hungry."
Su Xingze nodded.
The two of them went to the drawing room together.
After they left, Fen Ling leaned closer to Su Rong, "Sister, Lord Thursday is quite smart. He managed to prepare the medicine perfectly in this first attempt. He must be naturally talented in the field of medicine. I remember you failed three times when you first learned to concoct medicine."
Su Rong neither agreed nor denied it, reminding him, "I was seven years old then."
Fen Ling chuckled, "Indeed."
He didn’t have the heart to say that when he was seven years old, he was also learning how to prepare medicine for the first time. He messed up seven or eight times and wasted a bunch of good medicine before finally getting it right.
While Zhou Gu and Su Xingze sat and ate in the drawing room, they heard Fen Ling muttering to Su Rong in the inner room. Their voices were faint and they couldn’t make out the words.
Zhou Gu quietly asked Su Xingze, "Elder Brother Su, have Fen Ling and Su Rong always been close?"
From his perspective, Fen Ling and Su Rong’s interactions were more like that of a brother and sister, even more so than Su Xingze and Su Rong’s. Fen Ling seemed fond and close to Su Rong.
Su Xingze nodded.
Zhou Gu quietly murmured, "I’m a bit envious of Fen Ling."
Su Xingze glanced at him but didn’t say anything, thinking to himself that Zhou Gu didn’t need to be envious. Once the news of Su Rong’s broken engagement was out, once everyone knew that she had broken her engagement with Ye Guixue for his sake, refusing to be bound by benefits to the Ye Xiang Residence anymore, they would probably all be envious of him.
Of course, Zhou Gu didn’t know about this and sighed softly, "Elder Brother Su, I’m leaving tomorrow."
Su Xingze nodded.
Zhou Gu lowered his voice, "Do you know when the Second Young Master Ye is leaving the capital?"
Su Xingze also didn’t know, "He should be leaving soon."
Zhou Gu wanted to say something but felt it was hard to do so, so he gave up and put down his chopsticks, "Elder Brother Su, I’ve finished eating, you take your time."
Su Xingze nodded.
Zhou Gu got up and returned to Su Rong’s room.
When Fen Ling saw Zhou Gu return so quickly after eating, he exclaimed in surprise, "Lord Thursday, have you already finished lunch? Are you here to help my sister?"
Zhou Gu nodded and crouched down, "You can go, I’ll handle this."
"Alright then, your turn." Fen Ling happily agreed and scampered away.
Su Rong turned to look at Zhou Gu, "What’s the rush?"
The words Zhou Gu wanted to say were "I want to spend more time with you, as I’m leaving for the capital soon." But he didn’t say it out loud and instead asked her, "Did you go into the Imperial Palace’s Book Pavilion?"
Su Rong nodded, "I did."
"So..."
"I have memorized the hand-written notes of Zhang Wu and the essays of Wang Cheng. If you’re leaving two days later, I can dictate them to you for your leisure time on the road. As for the treasure map, it’s incomplete with only half left."
Zhou Gu: "..."
So does he have another reason to spend more time with her?
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