38 A Chat in Washe
"Something happened in Yunzhou. We need to go back immediately."
In the dark and damp inner prison, black rats would occasionally scurry by, making "squeak--" sounds that scared everyone into running away with their heads in their hands. Even though they were so sleepy that their eyelids were about to droop to the ground, they dared not close their eyes.
They leaned against the wall, their hands resting on their knees, looking up at the corridor. This square cell contained not only darkness and rats, but also long waits, loneliness, and fear...
Song Jinyi had been gone for a day and a night, and the cooks in the cell were inevitably panicked. Some of them cried and some banged their heads against the cell door like crazy. The longer it lasted, the stronger the uneasy feeling became, almost suffocating them.
A few words of complaint floated out from the crowd, "It's all that woman's fault. Why is she trying to be a hero when she has no ability? She hasn't gone back for so long, she must have failed. Not only can she not please the Queen Mother, but we also lost the chance to save ourselves in vain." Then there was a long string of sighs.
Someone, growing tired of what he was saying, retorted sarcastically, "Wang Qian, you're just complaining about not being allowed to go. Why didn't you say so in the first place? Now you're complaining about everything?"
"Oh—" she stretched out her tone in a sarcastic tone, "Maybe the main reason is not that I didn't let you rescue everyone, but that you didn't take the opportunity to show your face in front of the Queen Mother. It's already this time, and you still want to think about these trivial things?!" The speaker's tone suddenly rose in the second half of the sentence, blaming the other party.
The man immediately retorted: "I didn't say that, you said that, and everyone, judge for yourself--" The man clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention, "Tell me, isn't this a rare opportunity? If it weren't for that woman, how could we be trapped here?
She's been gone for two days, and there's still no sign of anything. Hasn't she messed things up? It doesn't matter if she wants to die, but I don't want to drag everyone else down with her. I'm also standing up for everyone. Look at how Boss Cheng is blaming me."
"Even if there is an opportunity, it was Madam Song who fought for it, and Madam Song hasn't come back yet. We are still uncertain about the situation. Stop disturbing people's minds!"
"Do we still need to wait? It's been two days. She must..." As soon as he said the word "must", the dragging footsteps of the jailer were heard from the other side. The man was so scared that he quickly swallowed the rest of the sentence.
Everyone held their breath and watched these jailers who were like the King of Hell demanding lives. At that moment, the air seemed to freeze.
The jailer glanced at him casually and said nothing. He untied the iron chain wrapped around the cell door, and the chain slid directly to the ground like a silky ribbon.
The people in the cell looked at each other, not daring to say anything. They could only ask each other with their eyes. A few quick-witted people were overwhelmed by joy and didn't care about anything else. They blurted out, "Sir, does this mean that we are fine now?"
The jailer pushed the cell door hard, spat, and said impatiently, "Why don't you get out now? If you don't want to go out, stay here!"
When the people inside heard this, they rushed out of the narrow prison door as if they were fleeing from famine. During the pushing and shoving, someone accidentally bumped into the jailer. The jailer did not tolerate it and kicked him against the wall next to him, cursing him viciously. It was Wang Qian who had just gone against everyone else.
When Li He heard the sound, he quietly turned his head and saw Wang Qian with a bruised face and nose. He was so scared that he immediately turned his gaze away, lowered his head, and followed the people in front of him out of the inner prison in a daze.
She felt as if she hadn't seen such bright sunshine for a long time. The warm air passed through the gaps and enveloped her. She blinked and looked directly at the sun in the sky.
Her eyes were irritated to the point of tears flowing out, and she slowly began to feel the emptiness and confusion in her heart. She looked at others going their own ways, and wondered where she should go.
She stood there for a long time, until her legs were sore. Suddenly she heard someone calling her "Li He——"
She turned around slowly. The person who called her was a palace maid. Chun Sanniang had warned her before that this was the imperial palace and these people could kill her with just one word, so she told her not to talk nonsense, otherwise she would be executed.
Li He kept twisting the corners of her clothes with her hands and looked at the palace maid nervously.
The palace maid said, "Madam Song is looking for you. Please follow me."
Madam Song? Which Madam Song? She didn't dare ask. In the past, when she didn't understand something, she would ask Chun Sanniang not only to get an answer, but also to be scolded, "How can you be so stupid!"
Li He pursed her lips and walked forward with the palace maid without saying a word.
When they arrived at a secluded residence, the palace maid raised her hand to signal. She looked in the direction indicated in confusion. It turned out to be this Madam Song. She had seen her before and had an impression of her. Madam Song had helped her and was a good person.
But Li He was not familiar with this Miss Song, so she moved slowly.
Seeing her hesitation, Song Jinyi thought that she was timid by nature and might be frightened after being in that terrible prison. She took the initiative to stand up, grabbed Li He, and took her to sit on the bench.
The two of them sat side by side, speechless for a moment. Although it was Song Jinyi who took the initiative to find Li Helai, she didn't know what to say for a moment.
She asked Li He to come because she knew that Li He had nowhere to go now, and if Li He was willing... she could be with her.
As for Chun Sanniang, it was what she deserved, but towards Li He, she felt a little guilty. She didn't know how to start the conversation because of this guilt. Li He would not take the initiative to speak, so was it going to remain like this?
Song Jinyi glanced at her sea of consciousness, but there was no figure. She bent her knuckles slightly and let out a long breath. Ever since she had a conflict with the boss in Zhaoren Palace, the boss had never come out again until today. Was he forcing her to bow her head?
She would not bow her head, since the mink could not help her anyway.
Returning to the main business, Song Jinyi pondered for a moment and said, "Do you have a place to go? Do you have any other family members?"
Li He shook his head.
Song Jinyi was silent for a moment, then said, "Then are you willing to live with me?"
Li He looked up at Song Jinyi. She tilted her head and looked at Song Jinyi. Her eyes revealed her confusion, as if she was thinking about a difficult arithmetic problem.
She finally sighed softly, thinking the arithmetic was too difficult, nodded, and said softly, "Yes."
******
It was the afternoon of that day.
Song Jinyi opened the window lattice, and a ray of slanting sunlight shone in from outside. Li He was sitting in the outer room, raising her hand to block the sunlight out of boredom. She lowered her head slightly, and through the gap, saw Song Jinyi bending over to wipe the face of the man on the bed.
Li He looked at him curiously for a few seconds and asked, "Is this your husband?"
Song Jinyi's heart sank, and she smiled helplessly. Her hands kept moving. After wiping Xie Wuyang's face, she threw the handkerchief back into the washbasin and explained, "Ahe, not all men and women are husband and wife. He is my friend."
Li He nodded, not quite understanding, and asked, "Madam Song, shall we go back to Yunzhou?"
Song Jinyi told Li He to go back after Xie Wuyang woke up.
On this day, Song Jinyi received an invitation from Huo Changqing, inviting her to the theater for a chat. Since Huo Changqing contributed to her being able to be forgiven by the Empress Dowager this time, Song Jinyi accepted the invitation and took the opportunity to take Li He out for a walk to dispel the shadow of prison.
Washi House.
Li He and Chun Sanniang came to Shengjing and had never been out before, let alone to a lively and fun place like the Theater. She tilted her head back, opened her mouth wide, and looked at this. Her feet seemed to be stuck in cotton, and she couldn't move a step, dragging Song Jinyi to the scene late.
Song Jinyi, holding up her skirt, ran and crawled to Linyue Tower. Seeing that half of the water in the teacup was gone, she apologized repeatedly. Li He knew she had done something wrong and whispered, "It's my fault. I was the one who pulled Madam Song. I'm sorry."
Huo Changqing asked a few questions, and after understanding Li He's situation, he no longer cared about being late. He joked, "It's a pity that Madam Song can't drink, otherwise she would have been fined three cups of wine."
Song Jinyi poured herself three cups of tea and said, "Thank you, Boss Huo, for not pursuing this matter. I will offer tea instead of wine as a thank you."
Huo Changqing asked Xie Wuyang, "Why didn't the young man who used to be with Madam Song come today?"
Song Jinyi said he was sick and passed it over.
Huo Changqing asked about the things in the palace again. After a few words, Song Jinyi understood what Huo Changqing meant. Song Jinyi was quite famous, and Huo Changqing ran a theater business. He wanted to cooperate with Song Jinyi and asked her if she had any plans to open a store in Shengjing.
Song Jinyi held the teacup, thought for a moment, and then directly declined: "Thank you for your appreciation, Boss Huo, but I'm from Shengjing, a small place, and I'm afraid I can't bear Boss Huo's favor."
Shengjing is certainly a good place, under the feet of the emperor, and every inch of land is worth a lot of money, but for her, a person without any background, it is just a fantasy.
In Yunzhou, she still had a bet with Song Zhangye, and she wondered what was happening with Xu Ruolan. If she could resolve the bet now, it would be great if her small shop in Yunzhou could expand.
"Madam Song is too modest. With your ability, you will have a place in Shengjing."
Song Jinyi smiled but said nothing.
Li He asked quietly, "Is this Miss Song's husband?"
Song Jinyi was slightly relieved by this because Li He knew to tell her secretly. If she asked on the spot, she would probably dig her teeth in the floor in embarrassment. She explained: "He and I are not in that kind of relationship."
Song Jinyi felt Huo Changqing's gaze and responded with an awkward smile.
Huo Changqing asked about the palace again.
Song Jinyi picked out the questions that could be answered and answered them one by one.
On the way back, Song Jinyi clearly didn't drink any alcohol, but her heart was intoxicated by the prosperity of the capital. Her eyes always fell unintentionally on the shops on both sides, and Huo Changqing's words stirred her heartstrings.
What if one day she could open a store in Shengjing?
*****
The next day.
Speak of the devil and he will appear. Song Jinyi had just mentioned Xu Ruolan yesterday when she received a letter from Yunzhou via the post station and handed it to her today.
"Would you like to come with me and read what Sister Ruolan wrote?" There was no response in her sea of consciousness. She muttered to herself, "Why are you so stingy? I'm going to make some casserole noodles later. Do you want some?"
"Forget it, I'll read it and eat it by myself." Song Jinyi said as she opened the envelope.
She calmly scanned the question marks on the first few lines, then saw something that made her pupils shrink. She opened her eyes wide in disbelief and read again, muttering "Not good!"
Seeing her distraught look, Li He asked carefully, "What happened to Madam Song?"
"Something happened in Yunzhou. We need to go back immediately."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com