Chapter 32 To be of my own use: Will you come with me to Jian'an?
“Friend…” he repeated the two words, his eyes slightly curved at the corners, yet he did not appear perfunctory.
Yu Nie's face was sincere, completely oblivious to his mockery: "We've known each other for quite some time now, and we get along well. Your husband is a good person, so it's not presumptuous of us to be friends."
He gazed into her eyes, and the sunlight filtering through the carved pillars and green railings cast a soft shadow on his brow, a truly gentle sight.
He said casually, "What you say is true, young lady. It is truly my good fortune to be friends with you."
"You flatter me so much, my lord. I am humbled." Her eyes were like autumn water as she looked at him, and she smiled gently. "However, you were right about the word 'fortunate event' in the end."
“This is not only your good fortune, but also mine…” She paused, carefully considering her words, before continuing, “Well… it should be said that this is a good fortune for both of us.”
The person before me was charming and lovely with every smile and frown, even more vibrant than the peonies in the courtyard.
Zi Jing lowered his eyes. By this time, the flames that had been ignited by the water on the ground had all been extinguished, leaving only damp water stains and blackened fire marks.
Before he could reply, Yu Nie became worried again: "If Zhao Shuhuai really makes trouble for you, how will you deal with it, sir?"
The imperial court ordered him to set off within three days, leaving him little time to waste.
He plans to resolve the Zhao Shuhuai matter completely before 3 AM tomorrow.
“If he tries to persuade me with gentle persuasion or force, then I will resort to force. If he is willing to submit, then I will follow the rules and act in accordance with the law.” After saying this, he turned and walked into the study, and sat back down on the soft couch.
Yu Nie followed him inside, looking even more worried than him: "But Prefect Zhao has a large force, and you only have a thousand men. Can you defeat them?"
Zi Jing picked up the cylindrical celadon lotus-patterned teapot on the table, poured a cup of tea, and pushed it in front of her: "Just based on the little Taoist's concern, I'm sure I can beat her." He said these ambiguous words, his eyes clear.
On the surface, anyone could sense something amiss in these words.
Yu Nie, however, remained lost in thought, stroking her chin, showing neither shyness nor any sign of being moved. Then, she looked up and replied, "It's alright. If Xuan Ce's army is truly outnumbered, and one person cannot defeat a hundred, my senior sister and I will find a way to secretly send you out of the city to fetch reinforcements."
As soon as she said it, she realized it wasn't appropriate, so she added, "There's still some saltpeter stored in the wooden hut in the temple. Although its purity can't compare to the natural saltpeter from Longdao, it's not hard to mix it with sulfur and charcoal, stir up some noise, and attract some attention." She spoke with genuine feeling, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed.
Saltpeter, sulfur, charcoal—he was quite familiar with these things; they were found in firecrackers and fireworks during festivals. But he didn't think it was feasible to attract the attention of the garrison just by using these.
But then, considering that she had so many surprising qualities and might not necessarily pull off any other tricks, Zijing didn't ask any further questions.
His gaze lowered, and he inadvertently noticed the bloodstains on her pale cuff. He casually asked, "Young lady, is the blood on your clothes from an injury?"
She was too anxious before and didn't notice that the blood from the rabbit's leg had smeared onto her.
She lifted her wide sleeve, looked at it, and said, "It was caused by an injury."
To avoid being misunderstood, she explained, "But it's not me, it's that rabbit's blood."
"A rabbit?" Zi Jing narrowed his eyes, his voice filled with doubt.
She nodded vigorously and recounted to him the whole story of how she encountered the rabbit on the road.
After listening, he tapped the table lightly with his fingers: "Young Taoist priest, you traveled through the night to come to the city just to bring me these protective items. I am extremely grateful."
He looked at her, resting his chin on his hand, and smiled as he tilted his head: "I will be setting off back to the capital the day after tomorrow. I wonder if you would be interested in visiting Jian'an?"
Upon hearing this, Lu, the attendant outside the door, couldn't help but lean in and peer through the door. However, because the soft couch was inside, he could only see the table and chairs at the entrance and couldn't tell whether his master was sincere or had other intentions when he said this.
Upon hearing that the person before him was returning to Jian'an, Yu Nie's eyes widened slightly, his pupils filled with surprise, and he even paused for a moment: "Why does my lord want to go to Jian'an? Is it related to He Renzhi's matter?"
"His Majesty has summoned me back to Jian'an to take up my post. From now on, I can no longer stay in the Xuan Ce Army," he replied.
These words struck Yu Nie like a thunderclap from a clear sky, leaving him stunned and unable to recover for a long time.
Jian'an is nearly a thousand miles from Huaiyuan. She originally thought that their separation would last for some time, but she never expected it to come so quickly.
She was instantly dejected, and the radiance on her face dimmed.
Perhaps not wanting to be noticed, she changed her expression in the blink of an eye, her almond-shaped eyes curving upwards, the sadness from before never existing: "Then congratulations, my lord, returning to the central region is much better than staying in this bitterly cold northwest."
Zijing raised his eyes and stared at her intently: "So, do you want to come to Jian'an with me?"
Growing up, she had never even left the territory of Dingzhou.
She had previously met merchants and travelers in teahouses who had visited Jian'an. They spoke with great enthusiasm about the magnificent, ornate capital, its embroidered gates and carved eaves. They described it as a place of exquisite beauty, where every building and pavilion was resplendent in gold and jade, like the jade palaces inhabited by immortals in tales of immortals. The streets were dazzlingly bustling, the blue bricks gleaming as if polished. A sweep of the roadside revealed more people in brocade robes, fine horses and luxurious carriages, adorned with jewels and jade, than she had seen in a year in Huaiyuan. Even the air was filled with the fragrance of fine rouge.
Compared to that place, Huaiyuan is not even as good as the mud on the soles of Jian'an shoes.
Such a description made her really want to go and see that magnificent capital.
Although there is an opportunity now, she cannot give up halfway through her mission, even though the great cause is yet to be accomplished. Even if she wants to broaden her horizons, going to Longdao is more important.
She could only think that if she had some free time later, it wouldn't be too late to visit the capital.
She raised her hand and scratched her hair, revealing a hint of reluctance: "I do intend to... but my martial aunt has not yet returned from Lingnan. Without her personal permission, I dare not leave the temple on my own."
"Talk to your senior sisters and the others, is this... not acceptable?" His tone remained unchanged, as if he were discussing it with her.
Yu Nie shook her head: "Although my senior sister is the acting abbot, she is also extremely afraid of my uncle. She will not allow me to leave the abbot alone."
Before he could reply, she smiled faintly and said, "I will remember your invitation, young master. When you have time, we will meet again in the capital."
Seeing this, Zi Jing said nothing more.
As the sun rose higher and it was almost noon, Gu Langxi and the others were worried.
She tilted her head back and finished the rest of her tea, then stood up and said goodbye to him: "It's getting late, I still need to go to the shop in the west of the city to see how the rabbit's wound is being stitched up."
"Young lady, you're leaving without even having lunch?" He stood up and politely asked her to stay.
Yu Nie hesitated to speak, "Well... when I left this morning, I only left a note for my senior sisters. Like me, they heard some rumors and thought that the Xuan Ce Army had already clashed with Zhao Shuhuai. They must be worried about me right now, so I'd better hurry back."
He nodded slightly upon hearing this, and parted his thin lips: "In that case... I won't keep the young Taoist priest any longer."
After saying that, he escorted her to the door.
As they parted, she took a few steps, then suddenly stopped. Standing at the bottom of the steps, she turned back and saw him standing tall and elegant outside the vermilion gate. She wondered if this parting would be a long one.
She smiled sweetly and said, "When you set off the day after tomorrow, my junior sister and I will come to see you off. We'll meet outside the south gate of the city at midday."
Zi Jing smiled calmly: "Then I will follow the Taoist's advice and await your arrival."
A guard had already brought her chestnut pony. She mounted it and waved to him with her outstretched arm.
As he watched her figure recede into the distance, his tone turned cold, and he casually uttered two words: "Trouble."
Lu, the attendant, was unsure who he was referring to, and asked in a low voice, "Who is the troublemaker, sir?"
Zi Jing didn't speak. Following his gaze, Lu Jinshi looked at Yu Nie, who was about to turn into a small dot, and tentatively asked, "Is it Rong Yu Nie from Lingbao Temple who keeps chattering?"
He recalled the conversation between the two in the study earlier, and, unsure of its veracity, voiced his doubts: "Is it true that the master invited that Daoist nun to go to Jian'an together?"
Zijing glanced at the person next to him: "If it's not true, how could it be false?"
His answer greatly puzzled Lu Jinshi: "Why? This girl is arrogant and doesn't show any respect to you, sir. Why do you want to take her to the capital?"
Occasionally, pedestrians would come and go at the entrance of the government office. Zijing said in a deep voice, "You saw the water dissipate just now. She has such a thing and can make peacock blue in such a short time. In terms of ability, she should be much stronger than you."
Upon hearing this, Attendant Lu remained silent, looking rather sullen.
He narrowed his eyes and revealed the ultimate reason for taking her to Jian'an: "Keeping this person by my side will definitely be of great use in the future. I originally wanted to take her to the capital without any effort, but now it seems I have to find another way."
"If she knew your true identity, would she still stand by your side?" It was almost common knowledge that she hated the original him. Moreover, Attendant Lu had personally heard that she loathed him to an extreme degree, and her words were full of rejection.
Zijing was naturally aware of this matter, and Lu Jinshi's words were not unfounded.
Faced with such a question, the young man laughed disdainfully, his voice cold and menacing: "If this person cannot be used by me, keeping him outside may lead to him becoming a stumbling block for me in the future. Only by eliminating him as soon as possible can I sleep peacefully."
Lu Jinshi lowered his head, listening quietly to his master's words. Even when he heard the words "except for Yu Nie," he remained unmoved.
His life was given to him by Huan Xun. He always obeyed Huan Xun's orders without question. He would do anything, even kill the current emperor, let alone eliminate a little Taoist nun.
The sound of carriages came from afar, and Zijing looked in the direction of the sound.
Eight white horses galloped in, followed by a magnificent carriage with a golden roof and red wheels, adorned with flowers and tassels, resembling a celestial palace descending to earth.
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