Chapter 163 The will of the people is destiny
"Chen Yanqing?" Shen Churong frowned even more, and pushed the tip of his sword forward another half a step.
The voice is definitely the same, and the figure is the same, so why has the face changed?
"Why did you change your face?"
Chen Yanqing explained with a wry smile, "Her Highness said... she doesn't want to see my face, so she has me wear a mask while serving her."
As he spoke, he reached into the bathtub, scooped up the mask, and handed it to Shen Churong.
Shen Churong looked down at the half-wet mask. It was thin and light, and the eyebrows and eyes did indeed match Chen Yanqing's usual appearance. It seemed that what he said was true.
He slowly sheathed his longsword and looked up at Chen Yanqing.
But upon closer inspection, he suddenly seemed to realize something and blurted out, "So you are the male concubine the Second Prince mentioned who looks like me?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Yanqing was struck dumb, instantly freezing on the spot, all color draining from his face.
He looked at Shen Churong in disbelief, his lips trembling, his voice changing tone: "You... what did you say?"
“The Second Prince mentioned to me earlier that Your Highness has a male favorite who was kept by your side because he looks like me,” Shen Churong said. “So that’s why I’ve never seen you before. It turns out you’ve been wearing a mask all along.”
"Impossible..." Chen Yanqing's voice trembled. "How could His Highness keep me by his side because he likes you? This is impossible..."
Seeing his pale face, Shen Churong realized that his words might have hurt the young eunuch's feelings, so he quickly explained, "These were just the Second Prince's drunken words, they don't count, please don't take them to heart. Since His Highness is not here, I will take my leave."
After saying that, he turned and left the bedroom.
Chen Yanqing slowly slid down to the ground, her fingers tightly gripping the mask in her hand.
He suddenly remembered the expression on Li Yuanzhao's face when he first saw him on Zhuque Street.
That wasn't amazing at all, it was shocking.
She had grown up with Shen Churong, so she was already very familiar with what Shen Churong looked like.
So what shocked her at that time was that there were people in the world who looked so alike.
It turns out that the reason she tied herself up and brought herself back to the palace was really because of Shen Churong.
Why?
Was it because she liked Shen Churong, but Shen Churong was distant from her, so she found a substitute who looked like him to comfort herself?
Then why put on a mask?
Was she afraid that Shen Churong would be displeased if he saw her face, which resembled his?
No wonder, back then, when she was trying to save Shen Churong, she kicked him without hesitation, not caring whether he lived or died.
So... there were signs all along, but he just hadn't seen them.
He looked down at the wet mask in his hand, his heart breaking more and more. It felt like something was gripping his chest so tightly that he could barely breathe.
And what about him?
What exactly is he?
Didn't she keep saying that I was special to her?
So, does the "special" she mentioned actually just mean "stand-in"?
No wonder that these past few days, whenever Shen Churong appeared, she no longer had any interest in him.
turn out to be……
It has always been wishful thinking on my part.
What he perceived as tenderness was merely her looking at another person through his eyes.
What he perceived as special was merely an illusion stemming from his identity as a stand-in.
Chen Yanqing sat on the ground, the cold floor tiles sending a chill through his clothes.
He felt uncontrollably trembling and cold all over his body, and even his teeth started chattering uncontrollably.
Even the mask in his hand seemed to be mocking his overestimation of his abilities and his unrealistic expectations.
Although it hasn't rained in Hebei Province yet, caravans carrying water are arriving daily along the north-south trade routes.
No one expected that while everyone was busy hoarding rice and buying grain,
Xue Nanzhi took a different approach and started a water business.
At first, some people laughed at her for being foolish, saying that water was a cheap substance with pitifully low profits, which could not compare to the huge profits of grain.
But they soon discovered just how clever Xue Nanzhi's methods were.
Now, there is no shortage of food in the city, and food prices have long since returned to normal.
In contrast, water has become a necessity.
Although the profit margin was meager, everyone needed it, and with the large volume, a considerable sum was earned.
All the money earned from the water business flowed into the hands of Princess Li Yuanzhao, and was used as wages for canal construction and principal for loans to farmers.
This cycle of "using water to generate profits and using profits to provide disaster relief" stabilized the disaster situation without consuming much of the national treasury's silver.
Local officials were genuinely impressed this time, and they sent memorials praising him to the capital, where they reached the emperor's desk.
Even the people spontaneously wrote petitions praising the princess's virtues, and songs praising her were sung in the streets and alleys.
At this moment, Li Yuanzhao was standing on the city wall of Weizhou.
A strong wind blew, ruffling her robes.
She stood by the railing, her gaze sweeping over the bustling crowd below.
Children chased after the candy vendor, while adults went about their business, each with a genuine smile on their face.
The occasional strains of folk songs could be clearly heard, the lyrics of which were full of praise for her.
"Princess, you are a paragon of justice; opening the granaries to distribute grain shows your kindness as deep as a mountain."
Seizing land and killing powerful figures; their merits are immeasurable, their fame will last for generations.
Her face remained calm and expressionless, but her heart was filled with a sense of sudden enlightenment.
So... it's the way of Heaven that's wrong.
What is destiny?
The will of the people is the destiny of Heaven!
So how could Chen Yanqing be some kind of chosen one?
The true emperor will only be her.
At this moment, a dark figure quietly appeared behind Li Yuanzhao; it was Ru Mo, who had not shown his face for a long time.
"Your Highness."
Li Yuanzhao turned to look at her. "Have all the traces been cleaned up?"
Ru Mo nodded. "Everything has been arranged perfectly, and there's absolutely no chance of anything going wrong."
Li Yuanzhao then withdrew his gaze and smiled slowly.
Her father was incredibly intelligent, and the Cui faction wasn't stupid either. Li Yuanyou's disaster relief efforts had failed, leaving behind such a huge mess. It was inevitable that they would suspect that she had secretly sabotaged things.
But suspicion is just suspicion; without evidence, all the speculation can only remain unresolved.
No matter how much they jump around, they can't stir up any trouble.
Ru Mo continued to report: "Your Highness, the person you asked me to keep an eye on has indeed made some unusual moves. Consort Cui's people found her a few days ago and have already set off for the capital. They should be able to arrive in the capital in about ten days."
Li Yuanzhao sneered inwardly. She had driven the Cui family and Li Yuanyou to such a desperate situation, and the Imperial Concubine had indeed lost her temper.
She calmly instructed, "Just keep an eye on them. Don't interfere with what they do. Remember not to alert them. Report any new developments immediately."
Ru Mo respectfully replied, "Yes, I will make the arrangements."
Li Yuanzhao looked at the distant horizon and said, "You should also return to the capital immediately, lest someone discover anything amiss."
A hint of worry flashed in Ru Mo's eyes, "Then Your Highness?"
"With the affairs of Hebei settled, I will soon be setting off back to the capital." Li Yuanzhao's eyes were sharp. "The show in the capital is about to begin."
"Understood."
Ru Mo said no more, bowed again, and then, just as he had come, silently disappeared into the shadows of the city tower and vanished from sight.
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