Chapter 79: Late at night, a man and a woman alone (two chapters in one)
Zhao Shiqing said without hesitation: "May 2nd."
The reason why she remembered it so clearly was that from then on, this day became her birthday. Every year in May, she would come back from Baihe Mountain, one to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, and the other to celebrate her birthday.
Although she was a child and her birthday celebration was just a banquet in Duanxiu Palace, she was very happy.
As soon as she said this, Zhao Shiqing realized that Xiao Zhen was actually pressing her shoulders!
"Take your claws away!"
Xiao Zhen was stunned for a moment, and hurriedly withdrew his hand and hid it behind his back.
Zhao Shiqing snorted coldly: "In the dead of night, a man and a woman alone, in the fields, touching each other, what ulterior motives!"
As expected of Xiao Xiaosu’s brother, he is the chosen one to be beaten.
Xiao Zhen hurriedly said: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you, I didn't mean it, I really didn't."
Oh my God, in his two lifetimes, this is the first time that Xiao Zhen has been treated as a lecher.
Zhao Shiqing sneered: "I hold a grudge. This matter is not over yet. I will remember it."
Xiao Zhen...holds a grudge? What does that mean?
Zhao Shiqing snorted again and returned to the topic: "Tell me, what makes you so excited?"
It's rare. Ever since she met Xiao Zhen, Xiao Zhen has been like a living dead. But just now, she clearly felt Xiao Zhen's excitement.
Xiao Zhen looked at her. The moonlight was like water, diluting the immaturity on Zhao Shiqing's face and adding a bit of gentleness. Another face emerged in Xiao Zhen's mind. It was a little girl with a blurred face, like a dirty rag doll, surrounded by a group of dogs.
dog?
Just as Xiao Zhen was thinking of the dog, he heard a cat's meow. Then, a cat came out from nowhere and jumped onto Zhao Shiqing's shoulder. It looked at Xiao Zhen provocatively, as if saying: Can you press this shoulder?
In an instant, Xiao Zhen thought of the crows flying all over the sky of the capital, and the little eagle just now. Zhao Shiqing seemed to have an unusual affinity with animals by nature.
Just like the little girl ten years ago, besides being blind, she also had many scars on her body, but the only thing she had no scars from being bitten by a dog.
The dogs weren't trying to hurt her, but to protect?
He paused and said to Zhao Shiqing, "Ten years ago, on the fifth day of April, I was on my way to Baifeng City, passing through Qinglu County. In the bamboo forest beside the road, I saw a blind girl covered in wounds. She was about four or five years old. She was surrounded by a group of wild dogs. My guards drove away the dogs and rescued the little girl.
The little girl was injured, so we sent her to a doctor's home and left a fee, asking the doctor to help her find her family."
At this point, Xiao Zhen let out a long sigh and slowly said, "If that little girl is you, then I was wrong in judging you and sent you into this hell. That doctor is definitely not a good person."
Zhao Shiqing was completely petrified. She stared at Xiao Zhen in a daze with her mouth open. After a while, she finally found her voice: "You mean, ten years ago, you saved a little girl, and that little girl was me?"
Xiao Zhen nodded: "Combined with your speculation about your origins, I suspect that the little girl is you."
Zhao Shiqing looked straight at Xiao Zhen. If her gaze had penetrating power, Xiao Zhen's fake face would have been riddled with holes.
"Is it Qinglu County?" Zhao Shiqing asked.
Xiao Zhen nodded again: "Strictly speaking, it was a small road from Qinglu County to Baifeng City, not an official road. Because I took advantage of my parents' absence at the time to sneak out, and time was limited, so that day I spent five taels of silver to find out there was a shortcut to Baifeng City."
"Do you still remember that road?" Zhao Shiqing asked impatiently.
"I remember. Moreover, among my four guards now, two were among the followers who went to Baifeng City with me back then. Even if there are things I can't remember, they will remember them."
After all, he was only an eight-year-old child at the time. Although children have good memories, childhood memories will gradually fade away as they grow up.
The next moment, Xiao Zhen's sleeve was pulled. He looked down and saw a small white hand tightly grasping his sleeve.
"Take your claws away!"
Zhao Shiqing was startled and quickly withdrew his hand.
Xiao Zhen: "I hold a grudge. This matter is not over yet. I will remember it."
Zhao Shiqing: So embarrassing.
But, as long as you are not embarrassed, then others will be embarrassed.
Zhao Shiqing had a big smile on her face and looked at Xiao Zhen as if he was looking at a living Buddha.
"Master Xiao, no, Master Zhen, it's fate that brings us together. We actually met in this small farmyard. This is destiny!"
Xiao Zhen: "In the dead of night, a man and a woman alone, in the fields, were touching each other, with ulterior motives."
Zhao Shiqing smiled like a morning glory. "Master Zhen, I've heard Qinglu County is beautiful, rich, and has simple folk customs. Master Zhen, I'm sure you'd like to visit it. I'm not very talented, but I'd like to be your guide. What do you think?"
Xiao Zhen: No wonder Zhao Tinghan agreed to let her go out. With such a little sister at home, she will definitely laugh from morning to night, and even if she is not sick, she will laugh herself sick.
He suddenly thought of the princess and the prince consort. No wonder they always wanted a daughter. A daughter could make them laugh. A son...
Zhao Shiqing didn't know that Xiao Zhen was daydreaming. Without waiting for Xiao Zhen's answer, she said happily, "Master Zhen has agreed. Great, we'll go to Qinglu County tomorrow. It's a happy decision. We'll set off tomorrow morning!"
Xiao Zhen...I clearly didn't say anything.
But the little girl was so happy that he suddenly felt that it would be a very depressing thing to spoil her fun.
Forget it. Qinglu County was originally included in his and Zhen Wuduo's itinerary, so they might as well go there a few days in advance. Xiao Yue is in Luzhou City, and they can see him when they return from Qinglu County.
......
After returning from the vegetable garden, Zhao Shiqing was so excited that she couldn't sleep. She simply sat up and held Xiao Yao in her arms.
Was the little girl that Xiao Zhen picked up really her? He was so excited at the time that he didn't think about it carefully. Now that he thinks about it carefully, the more he thinks, the more she looks like her.
Qinglu County is one of the two counties with the most looms in Wu.
It matched her guess.
A blind girl with injuries on her body, four or five years old.
It matches her appearance when she was rescued by her father.
The most important thing is time. Xiao Zhen picked up the girl on April 5th, and his father rescued her on May 2nd. From Qinglu County to Liangdu, if you travel by day and sleep at night without stopping, you can reach the destination in more than 20 days. The evil beggar admitted that he bought her outside the city three days ago.
Therefore, the timing is also consistent.
Now it seems that she is the little girl that Xiao Zhen picked up.
The next morning, Xiao Zhen saw Zhao Shiqing with dark circles under his eyes.
"Didn't you sleep all night?" Xiao Zhen asked.
"I can't sleep." Zhao Shiqing smiled brightly. Xiao Zhen was in a trance for a moment. So happy?
Xiao Zhen accompanied Zhen Wuduo to have breakfast and said, "I'm going to Qinglu. If you don't want to go, just wait for me here. I'll be back in about three or four days."
Zhen Wuduo was puzzled. "Didn't we agree to first gather information in Luzhou City? Why are we suddenly going to Qinglu?"
Xiao Zhen: "Something happened."
"What's the matter? Is it more important than your father and me?" Zhen Wuduo asked.
Xiao Zhen: "It has nothing to do with you, stop asking."
Zhen Wuduo suddenly remembered the little girl with a smile that he had just seen in the yard: "Are you going with that Miss Zhao Er?"
Xiao Zhen: "I told you to stop asking."
Zhen Wuduo: "That's it, it turns out you value women over your father."
Xiao Zhen: "Don't talk nonsense, Miss Zhao Er is still young."
Zhen Wuduo: "She's not young anymore. She should get married in two or three years. Tell Dad the truth. Do you have any feelings for her..."
Before he could finish his words, Xiao Zhen had already stood up and left.
Zhen Wuduo cursed, "You little bastard!"
But he was extremely curious and shouted, "Ada, Aer, go and prepare the horses. I, an old man, want to go with them too."
He wanted to see how that brat got along with the little girl.
In the West Wing, Zhao Shiqing said to Zhao Xingzhou, "I'm going to Qinglu first, so don't come with me. I've rented a house in the city. If you don't have a place to stay, you can stay there first. I'll write a letter, and you can give it to my friends. They will take you in."
When Zhao Xingzhou heard this, he immediately said, "I have never been to Qinglu, so I will go with you."
Zhao Shiqing shook her head. "Who knows if they'll check for a pass over there? You don't have one, so it's best not to come with us. It would be terrible if you end up getting in trouble and preventing us from entering the city. In short, you're not allowed to follow us!"
Zhao Shiqing had lived in Luzhou before, and Luzhou did not check the travel permits strictly. If the state capital was like this, the county towns below would not be much stricter. Zhao Shiqing did not want to bring Zhao Xingzhou with her, not because of the travel permit, but because she wanted to get to Qinglu quickly. Zhao Xingzhou's riding skills were too poor, and bringing him with her would only slow down her search for her relatives.
No matter what Zhao Xingzhou said, Zhao Shiqing refused to agree. In the end, Zhao Xingzhou could only watch the three people and the cat walk out of the village.
After leaving the village, Zhao Shiqing reunited with Xiao Zhen and unexpectedly discovered that Xiao Zhen's adoptive father was also following them.
"How is your godfather's riding skills?" This is the question that Zhao Shiqing is most concerned about at the moment.
Xiao Zhen: "Average."
Zhao Shiqing was a little disappointed, but that was Xiao Zhen's adoptive father, not hers, and she couldn't refuse him as harshly as she did to Zhao Xingzhou.
But soon, Zhao Shiqing became happy again, and they set off on the road to Qinglu.
Xiao Zhen no longer remembered how to get there, but Jiang Ping and Cai An still remembered.
In the afternoon, they had already set foot on the shortcut from Qinglu to Baifeng City.
Zhao Shiqing pulled the reins and looked around. The roadside was lined with bamboo forests. The shadows of the bamboos were like the sea. Even though it was late autumn, they were still green.
The autumn wind blows, ripples appear on the green waves, the green mist floats, and the bamboo leaves rustle, like whispers echoing among the mountains and forests.
"Second Miss, have you remembered anything?" Ling Bo asked with concern.
Zhao Shiqing closed her eyes, letting herself fall into darkness, but soon she opened them again and shook her head at Ling Bo: "No."
Xiao Zhen glanced over here, then looked away and said to Jiang Ping and Cai An, "Do you remember which bamboo forest this is?"
They both shook their heads: "Not yet, let's wait and see."
Zhen Wuduo had been watching them silently until this moment when he asked, "Why did the little girl want to find the bamboo forest?"
Xiao Zhen had no choice but to lower his voice and say, "She is looking for her biological parents."
Zhen Wuduo: "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Oh, so this is my daughter. I should have thought of it earlier. Only Yuzhu and I could give birth to such a naturally beautiful daughter."
As he spoke, Zhen Wuduo urged his horse forward and charged towards Zhao Shiqing. Xiao Zhen was quick to turn his horse around and block him: "Clear your mind. Look at how old you are and how old she is."
Zhen Wuduo: "How old is she?"
Xiao Zhen sighed: "Ten years ago, she was only four or five years old. How old do you think she is now?"
Zhen Wuduo suddenly felt as if his bones had been pulled out, and he collapsed on the horse's back: "Oh, my daughter, where are you? Where are you?..."
Suddenly, he sighed and said to Xiao Zhen, "Have you noticed that this little girl looks a lot like me?"
Xiao Zhen: “I didn’t notice.”
Zhen Wuduo: "Look at my eyes, then look at her eyes, aren't they the same?"
Xiao Zhen was annoyed: "You have triangular eyes, she doesn't."
"What triangle eyes? I have almond eyes. Almond eyes. Sigh, you won't understand even if I tell you. I had almond eyes when I was young, but then I got older and my eyelids got loose, so they became like this now. Don't disbelieve me. Even though that little girl looks pretty now, she'll have eyes like mine when she gets older."
Xiao Zhen didn't bother to pay attention to him. Seeing Jiang Ping and Cai An walking towards a bamboo forest, he rode his horse to follow them.
Zhen Wuduo was helpless and muttered softly, "When I was young, I was very handsome. People nicknamed me Little White Dragon. My eyes were black and bright, just like this little girl. I was so beautiful."
Xiao Zhen muttered as he walked, "Don't let Zhao Shiqing hear what Zhen Wuduo said, otherwise they will have to fight."
Zhao Shiqing was a little far away and didn't pay attention to what they were saying. She saw Xiao Zhen and the two guards coming out of a bamboo forest and walking into another bamboo forest.
After walking about four or five miles, Xiao Zhen and the other two rode their horses into a bamboo forest on the side of the road again. But soon, Xiao Zhen came out of the bamboo forest without riding a horse. He waved at Zhao Shiqing from a distance.
Zhao Shiqing's eyes lit up and he urged his horse to gallop away.
When she got closer, she asked, "Is this the place?"
Xiao Zhen nodded: "This is the most similar."
Zhao Shiqing dismounted and walked in with Xiao Zhen.
Not far away, they saw Jiang Ping and Cai An standing next to a rock. Seeing them coming, Jiang Ping said, "Miss Zhao Er, I was the first one to rush into the bamboo forest. At that time, the little girl was next to this rock. There was a black dog lying on the rock, and there were several more around the little girl. The little girl was crying."
Zhao Shiqing walked to the front of the stone and asked, "Are you sure it's here?"
Jiang Ping pointed to a crack in the stone and said, "When we rushed over with our knives, the dogs ran away. I wanted to scare them, so I chopped the stone with my knife. I almost hit the little girl, and Old Cai scolded me a little."
Cai An smiled and said, "We were all sixteen or seventeen years old then, full of vigor and energy, reckless and impulsive."
Jiang Ping also laughed: "Yes, when we returned to the capital that time, we were all deducted three months' salary."
That time, they did not stop Xiao Zhen, and ran to Wu with the young master. Princess Jiayi returned to the mansion and found that her son was missing, and she was furious.
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