Chapter 45: Voice from the Yandere (Two Chapters in One)
"Brother, will I come to Wanfu Temple to find you in the future? Besides Wanfu Temple and that grocery store, is there any other reliable place?" Zhao Shiqing asked.
Zhao Tinghan explained, "Wanfu Temple is supported by the Liang Wang Mansion. There are twenty-five monks in the temple, all of whom are orphans adopted by the abbot. However, human nature is hard to be pitied. Even outside the mortal world, there are bound to be people who commit verbal offenses. Therefore, my whereabouts here have never been made public.
If you want to deal with people in the future, just recognize these four people.
The first one is Master Fangzhang. Although he is an outsider, he also has a family background. His ancestral home is in Liangdi. In the past, his father was framed by his biological mother and brothers for murder and the family property was seized. His mother and sister committed suicide due to humiliation. His grandfather was out on inspection. He was only thirteen years old that year. He stopped the street to file a complaint. His grandfather accepted the complaint and ordered people to go to the local area to re-investigate the case, severely punish the real culprit, and restore his father's innocence.
After becoming a monk, he traveled to the capital and later became the abbot of Wanfu Temple, but he was always grateful to the Prince of Liang's Mansion.
Even without me, he would still help his father to be liberated.
The second is Master Tongjing, an orphan adopted by the abbot and the person the abbot trusts the most;
The third one is Master Tongda, the monk who is in charge of reception. When he was young, he was a member of the royal guard. The fourth one is Dengxin, now called Huideng. Although he has been ordained, he has not received any precepts and can only be regarded as a lay disciple.
Besides Wanfu Temple and that grocery store, there are five other shops in the capital that belong to the Prince of Liang's Mansion. I think you know about these five shops."
Zhao Shiqing nodded. These five shops had a clear path. They were bought by his grandfather when his father came to the capital as a hostage. All the profits were used to give his father pocket money. Later, when his eldest brother was taken as a hostage, these five shops were given to him.
These five shops should have been on the Jinyiwei's small notebook for a long time. If there was any movement, the Jinyiwei would know it before the Prince Liang's Mansion.
When Zhao Tinghan said this, he suddenly paused. Zhao Shiqing was so smart that she immediately saw a hint of embarrassment in her brother's eyes.
What happened, brother?
But before she could let her imagination run wild, Zhao Tinghan continued, "There's another person who's also trustworthy, but her identity is somewhat special. Don't involve her unless absolutely necessary."
"Who is it?" Zhao Shiqing was curious.
Zhao Tinghan took a deep breath and said slowly, "She is Yuan Xiaotang, the daughter of Yuan Jiangcheng, the former doctor of the Ministry of Rites. She is now the widow of Lin Lu, the late master of the Jiangping Marquis's mansion. She is temporarily living in Xiaohan Manor, thirty miles outside the city. Xiaohan Manor is my property."
Zhao Shiqing was completely petrified.
A widow is a woman who has died. This widow from the Marquis of Jiangping's mansion is now living in her brother's farm.
Please save the baby, the baby doesn’t understand.
"Brother, can you explain it in a simpler way? I don't understand."
Zhao Tinghan felt a little regretful. It was right that his younger sister couldn't understand. He should have discussed this matter with his eldest sister. After all, he and his eldest sister were twins, boy and girl, so it would be easier for them to communicate with each other.
Instead of with my younger sister, she is still a child.
But once words are spoken, they cannot be taken back, and my sister looks so eager to learn, so it is obvious that if I don’t explain it clearly today, it will not work.
Zhao Tinghan hardened his heart and still gave an explanation.
"Back then, the emperor sent the crown prince and Doctor Yuan to his hometown in Chu to pay homage to his ancestors. Lin Lu, the son of the Earl of Jiangping, accompanied them as a personal guard. Unexpectedly, they encountered an assassin along the way. Lin Lu blocked the attack for the crown prince. As he lay dying, the crown prince asked him what his wish was. He looked at Doctor Yuan and told him that he and Doctor Yuan's beloved daughter were in love and had secretly decided to marry each other. He asked the crown prince to grant his wish!"
Zhao Tinghan said the last two sentences with gritted teeth.
Zhao Shiqing was stunned. "Is he really in love with that Miss Yuan?"
Zhao Tinghan sneered: "He just has unrequited love. Jiang Pingbo's family is a noble family, while Doctor Yuan is only a fifth-rank civil official. The two families are not in the same circle and have no friendship.
At first I was puzzled, but later I checked and found out that Lin Lu had met Xiaotang twice and wanted to propose to her, but was rejected by the wife of Jiang Pingbo, who believed that Xiaotang was of too low a birth and was not worthy of being the prince's wife.
Later, when Lin Lu was drunk, he told others that his mother had agreed that as long as he married a wife, she would allow him to take Xiaotang as a concubine.
How could Xiaotang fall in love with such a scoundrel and secretly get engaged to him?"
Zhao Shiqing understood. Not to mention that the two of them had no such relationship at all, even if they did, she would ask the prince to fulfill her wish before she died. This was either treacherous or evil.
"Then what? Did the Yuan family agree?" Zhao Shiqing asked.
Zhao Tinghan sneered: "The Yuan family naturally disagreed, but the prince believed it, and so did the others present. They say that when a man is about to die, his words are good. Moreover, when Lin Lu said this when he was about to die, the prince didn't think much about it and agreed without hesitation.
The prince is the king, and the king does not joke.
After returning to the capital, Lin Lu's remarks became a hot topic, and it was obvious that they were the work of the Jiang Ping Marquis's family.
Doctor Yuan did not agree with this marriage, but the Jiang Pingbo Mansion asked the emperor to grant the marriage. Lin Lu was seriously injured while saving the prince, so the emperor had no reason not to approve the marriage.
So Xiaotang had no choice but to marry according to the order. Lin Lu's younger brother Lin Feng married her in his place. Lin Lu was supported by others to marry Xiaotang, but he died just after being sent to the bridal chamber, and the wedding banquet turned into a funeral banquet.
Xiaotang wanted to return home and asked her father and brother to help her, but Mr. Yuan was a pedantic person. He believed that since she was married, she would be a member of the Lin family in life and a ghost of the Lin family in death. Even if she died, she would die in the Lin family. He even asked Xiaotang to commit suicide for her.
Xiaotang had a falling out with her parents' home and never went back.
A year later, Lord Yuan was exiled and his family left the capital, and he ignored his daughter Xiaotang.
Last year, Jiang Pingbo wanted to get his hands on Xiaotang, but was stabbed by Xiaotang. Although he did not die, he was disabled.
Xiaotang took advantage of the chaos to escape, and with nowhere to go, she hid in Wanfu Temple. When I learned of this, I secretly sent Xiaotang to the village, where she has lived for a whole year.
Zhao Tinghan finished speaking in one breath, and then he saw his little sister opened her mouth wide, stunned.
He stretched out his hand and waved it in front of Zhao Shiqing's eyes: "What's wrong?"
Zhao Shiqing: "Are you done? You seem to have missed one thing."
"What's the matter?" Zhao Tinghan was puzzled.
Zhao Shiqing smiled evilly. When she smiled, her eyes narrowed into a line, her little nose wrinkled slightly, and her smile was so obscene that Zhao Tinghan couldn't look at her directly. How could his delicate little sister smile like this?
"You didn't tell me that you like Miss Xiaotang. Don't think I don't know if you don't tell me."
The secret that had been hidden in his heart for many years was forcibly revealed and exposed to the sun without any cover. Zhao Tinghan was embarrassed for a moment, but soon felt relieved.
"Yes, I was attracted to her. When I first met her, I was seven and she was ten. I had just run away from the palace and was targeted by a group of beggars. It was she who rushed over and helped me fight them off. She was very strong and powerful. She protected me behind her and prevented the beggars from getting close to me.
The second time I saw her was in Wanpukuji Temple. She was thirteen years old and I was ten. She was framed by her stepmother and sister. After she testified against herself, she was still scolded by her father. She sat on the stone steps in front, alone in a daze. She heard me coughing and asked me to wait a moment, then she ran away. After a while, she came back with two pears and asked me to eat one. The pear was very big, and she broke it open with a little force.
The third time I saw her was at Wanfu Temple. At that time, the news of her and Lin Lu's secret engagement had spread like wildfire. She was fifteen years old that year, and I was twelve. She asked my name for the first time..."
Zhao Tinghan didn't continue talking. He had already said too much today, and it was the first time he met the little sister.
But he didn't know why, he just wanted to talk. It might be because he hadn't seen his relatives for a long time, or maybe it was because Zhao Shiqing had this kind of approachable quality.
......
After leaving Wanfu Temple, Zhao Shiqing began to think about how to let his elder brother return to Liangdi openly.
In fact, her original idea was very simple. Wouldn't it be enough to hide her elder brother, avoid investigation and leave the capital?
But then she thought again, she couldn't do that, and things were not that simple.
It is indeed easy to sneak out of Beijing, but what should I do next?
The eldest brother is not an ordinary person. He is a hostage and he is also the lord of Liang.
If you return to Liang without the emperor's permission, it would be tantamount to treason.
At least for now, the Prince of Liang's Mansion has neither the intention nor the ability to rebel.
She wanted her eldest brother to return to Liang with dignity, take over the Liang Palace, and become the next King of Liang.
On the way to the capital, Zhao Shiqing thought of several methods, but when she saw the real Zhao Tinghan, she knew that none of these methods would work and she had to start over again.
Instead of hiding away and brooding, she wandered around like a street urchin.
As she was walking, she was suddenly bumped into by someone. The person was carrying a large book box, and when he turned around, the book box hit her.
The man was dressed like a scholar. When he saw that he had bumped into someone, he quickly apologized. Zhao Shiqing didn't care and just waved and let him go.
However, Zhao Shiqing also discovered that there were suddenly many more such scholars around, and they were all heading in the same direction.
The first time she came to the capital, she just wandered around aimlessly. This was the advantage of the capital: there were many people and it was lively, so kidnappers didn't dare to kidnap people openly. Besides, if she got lost, she could just ask a sedan chair to take her back to Youxiyingmen.
She didn't know where she was, but when she saw so many scholars walking in the same direction, she became interested and followed the big book box in front.
She soon knew where this place was.
Kuixing Tower!
In August, candidates from all counties and prefectures under Zhili Prefecture will come to the capital to take part in the provincial examination. There are still three months before the provincial examination, but some candidates from other places have already come to the capital in advance to prepare for the examination.
The first thing these scholars did when they arrived in the capital was to go to Kuixing Tower to worship Kuixing and pray to Kuixing to bless them with success in the imperial examinations.
Zhao Shiqing was staring at the Kuixing Tower not far away in a daze, when she was suddenly bumped again. She turned her head and saw that it was a scholar in blue clothes. He bumped into her and ran away without even saying "sorry".
Zhao Shiqing frowned, as if something was wrong.
She lowered her head and saw that the purse hanging on her waist had been taken away.
Damn scholar, he is just a thief.
Zhao Shiqing didn't want to indulge him, so she chased after him and grabbed the man's shoulders, but the next moment, the man slipped away from her hands like a loach.
Zhao Shiqing chased and dunked again, but the man slipped and slid away again.
Zhao Shiqing raised his leg and kicked the man to the ground. The man screamed, "Someone's hitting me, someone's hitting me, help!"
There are scholars everywhere around. Although scholars look down on each other, it depends on the situation. For example, now, when they see someone bullying their kind in the street, these scholars become angry.
"She's a girl, hitting someone in the street. She has no shame."
Zhao Shiqing was too lazy to pay attention to these people. He bent down and took out a purse from the man's arms. The man shouted, "Someone is robbing me! Someone is robbing me!"
The scholars said: "In broad daylight, under the feet of the emperor, they are robbing people. Report it to the police! Report it quickly!"
Zhao Shiqing curled her lips, what a bunch of guys who can only chatter.
She raised one foot and stepped on the man, then took the purse in her hand. The purse was bulging, and it was obvious that there was a lot of money in it.
She said to the crowd, "This purse is mine. Inside it are dried fish and a stone ball the size of a pigeon egg. I say this man stole them from me. Do you believe me?"
Everyone saw with their own eyes that this purse was found from that person, so it should have belonged to that person. Besides, what normal person would put dried fish and stone balls in a purse? Isn't this nonsense?
In fact, it was just that their noses were not sensitive enough. If it were Zhao Shiqing herself, she could smell the scent of dried fish even from a distance of five or six steps.
Seeing that these people didn't believe him, Zhao Shiqing opened his purse, grabbed a handful of dried fish, and then took out a stone ball.
Everyone... let's go worship Kuixing and stop meddling in other people's business.
Everyone dispersed, and the thief was still stepped on by Zhao Shiqing. This time, his scapula was stepped on, and the loach function was useless. He could only lie on the ground and say nice things.
He cursed in his heart, what kind of good person would carry dried fish and stone balls in his purse? Isn't this cheating?
I thought this in my heart, but what I said out loud was: "Girl, sister, elder sister, please forgive me this time. I have an eighty-year-old mother at home. If I don't take the money back, she will starve to death."
The man was lying on the ground with his face touching the ground, with only half of his profile exposed.
"You are only in your teens, right? Your mother is quite capable. She was in her sixties or seventies and still gave birth to a big boy like you."
That guy... screwed, it won’t work this time.
"Big sister, look, I didn't steal your money, and you didn't suffer any loss. Let me go today, and we can be considered friends after a fight. Is that okay with you?"
Before Zhao Shiqing could say anything, a childish voice rang out from behind him: "Hey, isn't that Loach? You're not singing opera anymore, are you acting as a scholar instead?"
Zhao Shiqing looked in the direction of the voice and saw a boy who looked more like a street urchin than her. His face was pitch black, and she didn't know if it was because he was dirty or if he was just that dark. It made the whites of his eyes look whiter and the blacks of his eyes look darker. When he grinned, his teeth were so white that they shone.
(This is a 4000-word chapter with two chapters combined, and there will be an additional chapter later)
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