Chapter 78 Covering up my affair with my wife.
At noon, horns blew around the enclosure. This was an order for all attendants to armour their horses, water their horses, and patrol the enclosure, making final preparations. In about two hours, after lunch, the nobles would leave the enclosure to hunt.
After experiencing many ups and downs in her mood, Ying felt a little tired and decided to take a walk along the stream to relax.
Servants from various families kept coming and going hurriedly around her. Her eyes passed over the sparkling stream and she saw a girl rubbing her arms with salt in the grass by the stream.
The girl's right hand and entire forearm were covered with a dense layer of red rashes. While rubbing them with salt, she couldn't help scratching them with her nails painted with nail polish. The rashes broke and bled. It was itchy and painful, and very unbearable to watch. The girl bit her lip to endure it, refusing to make any sound for fear of attracting other people's attention.
Cong Ying stared at her for a long time, not because he felt sorry for her, but because he knew her.
In a dream about the noble master's distress, which she had before coming to Xunling for the hunt, Cong Ying accompanied Xie Xuanlan to the princess's tent when she encountered the princess's maid emerging from it. The maid brought a basin full of blood. Cong Ying, dazed, stared at the crimson water and saw the maid's face reflected in the water—the same girl who had been frantically washing her hands by the stream.
A chill ran down Ying's spine: What had she done? Who did she belong to?
Was the Dianma Powder that the Prince of Huai mentioned a pretext to lure her into a trap, or... was it really true?
He turned around and ran quickly, across the grass, and shuttled between the felt tents.
By this time, the nobles had risen and were heading for the luncheon at the Golden Terrace. The attendants and maids who remained behind were much more relaxed, holding hands and chatting and laughing. Cong Ying passed by. Although anxious, she did not dare to let her guard down. She suddenly turned back and caught a glimpse of a dark figure quickly retreating into the tent, leaving only the tip of its black shoe, which had not yet been fully retracted, behind it.
Someone is following her.
Sure enough, since Prince Huai wanted to test her, he would definitely send someone to follow her and prepare to find something to hold against her.
She couldn't go look for Prince Jin, and Sanlang and Prime Minister Xie were together, so she couldn't go look for them either. Thinking rapidly in her mind, Zong Ying raised her legs and walked towards the stables.
The stables for the nobles' horses were not far from the camp, and it took Cong Ying an incense stick of time to trot there. Meanwhile, the servants from various households were checking the condition of their horses and adjusting their saddles. Cong Ying nimbly blended in among them, making her way to the innermost part of the stables.
The deepest part of the stable is upstream of the water source, so the more noble the horse, the closer it is to the inside.
Cong Ying wanted to confirm whether Princess Chun'an's horse had been drugged, so she ran to the deepest part in one breath and found that Princess Chun'an's stable was adjacent to Xie's stable. She saw a familiar figure in Xie's stable. It was a fair-skinned man in linen clothes, who was carrying a bucket of water to wash the horse.
Cong Ying hesitated and whispered, "Master Wei?"
The man washing the horse turned to look at her, holding the brush in one hand, with an embarrassed expression. It turned out to be Wei Ji.
"Why are you here...washing horses?" Cong Ying was shocked by him for a moment. She took three or two steps to stand in front of him and said, "Yin'er said that you have been staying in the library to edit books recently. You haven't seen you for more than two months. She asked me to inquire about your recent situation. How...how..."
The famous Iron Caltrop in the Hanlin Academy rolled up his sleeves and bent over to wash Xie's horse. Cong Ying didn't know how to describe this horrifying scene.
Wei Ji gave a wry smile and threw down the horse brush in his hand: "It's a long story."
He cut to the chase, explaining how Xie Miaozhu had threatened him with Wei Yiner's forged certificate of ordination: "She wanted me to be her groom for six months, watering, feeding, and washing the horses. Sometimes I even had to be her horse stool, and she'd step on me to get into the carriage. To put it bluntly, it was to humiliate me..."
It must be said that Xie Miaozhu's move was quite heartbreaking. To avoid being recognized by his colleagues, Wei Ji kept his head down or covered his face with a triangular scarf. Xie Miaozhu had deliberately taken him with him on this hunt, and since the court dignitaries were everywhere, Wei Ji simply stayed in the stable to avoid embarrassment. Unexpectedly, he was still caught—and it was by someone he least wanted to lose face in front of.
When Cong Ying took a step closer with a frown, Wei Ji took a step back: "I smell, Madam Jiang, please stay away."
Cong Ying asked him, "You have been in the stable the whole time. Have you ever seen anyone tending to the princess's horse?"
Wei Ji thought back, "The groom came to feed the horse, and about half an hour ago, a girl who looked like a court lady came to wash the horse, fix the saddle, and check the horse's condition."
"But she's wearing a pink dress and a purple skirt, with her hair tied up in a bun and a green silk ribbon?"
"I vaguely remember it was a purple skirt, but I can't remember the rest."
Cong Ying walked over to the princess's stable and saw that the copper lock was intact. She waved at the horse through the wooden fence, gently touching its face to its long neck. With some effort, she leaned in and just touched the fur under the saddle. The horse suddenly kicked up a hoof and snorted, nearly pulling Cong Ying down. Fortunately, Wei Ji's quick eyes and hands caught her.
He let go immediately, stepped back two steps, and advised, "These nobles have a large group of attendants who carefully serve them. Why bother with these trivial matters, Madam Jiang?"
Cong Ying smiled and said, "If something happened to such a noble person, thousands of people would be buried with her. Moreover, the princess is Yin'er's mistress. Master Wei, are you willing to save her life and help yourself out of this predicament?"
Wei Ji's eyes widened slightly: "Are you asking me to go and tell the princess?"
Cong Ying showed him the hand that had just touched the horse. Her fingertips were burning red. "Please tell the princess that someone has smeared her horse with horse powder."
…
One needs to register when entering and leaving the stables. The person who was monitoring Cong Ying did not dare to leave any traces, so he just waited outside the stables.
After a while, they saw Cong Ying come out, look around for a while, and then stealthily walk towards the Jin prince's tent. The observer was secretly delighted and hurriedly followed. After the two of them left, Wei Ji walked out of the stable, covered his face with a triangular scarf, and walked towards the princess's tent.
Although she had lured the observer away, Cong Ying was still worried. She was not completely sure that Wei Ji would go to inform the princess. What if he wanted to use this to exchange for a fake certificate of ordination from Xie Miaozhu?
To be on the safe side, she should find a way to remind King Jin as well.
As he walked by the fireflies, he was thinking. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of something flashing under the grass leaves by the roadside. So he stopped and stepped back, pretending to squat down to adjust the embroidered top of his shoes. He caught the firefly under the grass leaves that had not yet hidden and was flickering with a faint light. He ruthlessly broke its wings, held it in his palm, and walked towards the tent of Prince Jin.
It was lunchtime, and Prince Jin might not be in the tent. If she couldn't find him, she had to leave something for him.
Unexpectedly, before she reached the Jin prince's tent, just as she turned the corner, someone suddenly grabbed her arm, covered her mouth with one hand, and dragged her into the guest tent. Startled, her hair stood on end, and she was about to scream when she caught a glimpse of the man's face in the bronze mirror in the tent. After a moment of shock, she gradually relaxed.
The man behind her let her go.
"...Sanlang." Xie Xuanlan stared at her with a dark gaze. "Don't you know someone is following you? Why do you still dare to come looking for him?"
He opened her palm and saw the dying firefly, and his brows furrowed even more.
Cong Ying was eager to explain: "I couldn't find you, so—"
Before he finished speaking, he heard footsteps and noise outside the tent, as well as the sound of swords and armor clashing. It seemed that there were quite a number of people, gradually moving towards the tent.
"Look carefully, it must have been lost nearby."
It turned out to be the voice of Princess Wen Shuang.
"This jade pendant is extremely valuable. It was given to me by my great-grandmother. Thank you, Lord Prime Minister, for personally searching for it for me."
A refined and deep voice calmly replied, "No problem, Princess, please go find him. I'm sure His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin will understand."
Cong Ying was shocked. How could she have deserved the request of Prime Minister Xie to personally find fault with her?
She looked worried and looked at Xie Xuanlan for help, but Xie Xuanlan ignored her and looked at her quietly. His eyes were so deep that she couldn't guess his emotions.
Cong Ying whispered, "If you don't help me, then I'll have no choice but to confess my guilt for having an affair with King Jin—well…"
There was a sudden pain on my lip.
Xie Xuanlan held her with one hand and snatched the firefly from her hand, which was used to convey the message for King Jin. He lowered his head to kiss and bite her, and took her to the inner room of the guest tent.
The guest tents served as the private tents of each family's distinguished guests, alongside the public tents where guests could rest and drink tea. The tea room was spacious, stocked with delicious fruits, wine, and food, and maintained morning and evening by waiters. Inside the guest tents, a small couch, covered with a green curtain, was symbolically placed for distinguished guests to rest. However, no distinguished guests would usually stay here, so the bedding was clean and unused.
Xie Xuanlan carried Ying on one hand as he walked towards the small couch, and with the other hand he took a jar of wine and bit off the red silk cork.
Cong Ying fell face-down on the couch, propping herself up with her hands. She saw Xie Xuanlan take a few sips of wine from the jar, then deliberately spill a lot, soaking her collar. He then set the jar aside, lowered the green curtain, and leaned over her.
The strong smell of alcohol filled the tent, making Zong Ying dizzy. She stared blankly at the tent wall and heard the rustling sound of clothes being undone. The hairpins in her hair were removed one by one and fell to the ground with a jingle. Her black hair cascaded all over the bed, and Xie Xuanlan's long hair hung on her face, gently brushing her jaw.
If it weren't for his clear and calm eyes, his licentious and wanton demeanor would have really looked like he was drunk.
Zong Ying couldn't help but feel her heart beating wildly, staring at him blankly: "Is this really okay..."
The group, under the pretense of searching for something but actually looking for someone, approached the guest tent following the sound. Hearing their movements, Cong Ying tensed up nervously while accepting Xie Xuanlan's kiss, her mind fumbling with how to explain herself later.
Xie Xuanlan suddenly pressed on her waist, and Zong Ying almost cried out. Her teeth chattered, and the smell of blood filled the air between her lips and teeth.
She bit Xie Xuanlan's lip.
"Sanlang!" Cong Ying exclaimed softly and wanted to check on his condition, but Xie Xuanlan didn't care. He lowered his head and rubbed the blood on her inner clothes, leaving only a fresh wound on the corner of his lip. Combined with his loose long hair and messy half-faded robe, it was really very tempting.
"There's movement inside. He must be hiding inside." It was the voice of Princess Wen Shuang.
The felt curtain in the inner room was lifted, and a chaotic sound of footsteps rushed in. Xie Xuanlan covered the firefly in his arms and shouted angrily through the green tent: "Do you want to die? Get out!"
The men paused for a moment. After a brief silence, Xie Xiang's voice rang out: "Zi Wang?"
Xie Xuanlan's voice slowed down: "So it's my father."
He held Congying down to prevent her from getting up, pulled a thin quilt over her, then opened the green tent and got off the bed, appearing in front of everyone in disheveled clothes.
His collar was open, revealing fresh finger marks on his neck. His long, untied hair concealed his lazy, drunken appearance. His lips were pale red, his lust still lingering, and the bite marks showed how reckless and intense he had been just now. He had flaunted himself in front of everyone in such an immoral and disgraceful manner.
Princess Wen Shuang felt a buzzing in her head and stared at him intently.
Xie Xuanlan's voice was lazy but cold: "Is it beautiful? I'll come closer and let you see it."
Princess Wenshuang's face flushed with shame and anger, and she turned to Prime Minister Xie for help. Prime Minister Xie frowned and scolded her, "You are not serving His Majesty, preparing for the hunt, but are here drinking and fooling around. How outrageous!"
Xie Xuanlan turned his back and slowly straightened his clothes, saying, "I have been busy for three days and two nights. Your Majesty has graciously allowed me to rest. I am simply obeying your order."
Xie Xiang asked coldly, "Who is that woman in the tent?"
Xie Xuanlan: "Of course she is my wife."
In the green tent, Zong Ying, who had sat up with her quilt wrapped around her, spoke timidly at the right moment: "Excuse me, I am honored to meet you, Prime Minister..."
Prime Minister Xie was speechless. He said to Xie Xuanlan, "Someone saw her go to the stables and then report to the Prince of Jin. Are you so shameless as to cover up even such a treachery?"
Xie Xuanlan scoffed, "That's nonsense! Ah Ying and I have been drinking and talking here for nearly half an hour. Could she have split herself up? And you, like bandits, barged in without asking questions and even dared to treat my wife as a thief. Do you think I have a good temper, or do you think my sword isn't sharp enough?"
By the end of the conversation, all the passion had vanished, and he was filled with impatience.
He kicked the wine jar in front of everyone, and it fell to the ground and turned into mud and broken pottery. Everyone stepped back. Princess Wen Shuang was slower and was splashed all over her head and body. She was so angry that her whole body was shaking.
"Hurry up and get out of here! Are you waiting for the food?"
Outside the guest tent, some people, attracted by the commotion inside, peeked in to see what was happening, whispering among themselves. Prime Minister Xie pressed his forehead with a headache and ordered his attendants, "Go get the Madam and have her handle this. Have everyone outside leave."
After saying this, he turned and walked out. Princess Wenshuang followed him, unable to contain her anger, complaining to Prime Minister Xie, "The Third Young Master is determined to protect Jiang Si Niang. It seems that the Prime Minister has no say in the Jiang and Xie marriage, and it's already a done deal. So why should my Prince Ying's Mansion get involved? Are we being played around by the Xie family?"
Seeing her shame and anger, Xie Xiang understood and calmly prodded her, "Good things are always sought after. Jiang Si Niang just knew Zi Wang earlier. In terms of family background, talent and beauty, does the princess think she can't match him?"
Princess Wenshuang: "Of course not!"
Xie Xiang smiled and said: "If the princess is interested, then it depends on her own ability. If she can get it, she will be considered a hero."
In the guest tent, Cong Ying stood up, straightened her clothes, and quickly tied her messy long hair into a bun. She was holding it up with one hand and looking around for a hairpin with the other hand.
Xie Xuanlan pressed her shoulders and made her sit on the edge of the couch. He took the hairpin he had removed from her hair earlier and pinned it back on her. Sensing her absent-mindedness, he became impatient and held her still, lowering his eyes and curling his lips, but there was no smile in his eyes.
He said, "A Ying, just because I cover up for you in front of others doesn't mean I'm really forgiving. I've recorded every detail for you."
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