The weather is getting warmer, and the dawn in Quecheng is earlier than before.
Just after the hour of Mao, the streets in the city were already bright and clear. The diligent vendors had already finished sweeping and were waiting for the first group of customers to arrive.
The servant who got up early yawned and slipped into the back street. He found a tree root away from people, unbuttoned his pants and started to urinate.
He was halfway through peeing when he suddenly felt some movement above his head. He looked up blankly and saw a dark shadow falling from the sky. With a loud bang, it landed two steps away from him.
A puff of smoke and dust dissipated, revealing a haggard figure with disheveled hair. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a woman in men's clothing, with an ugly expression on her face.
The woman didn't even look at him and walked towards the street with heavy steps. The servant looked at her with his mouth open and didn't even notice that his shoes were wet.
Xiao Nanhui's mood at this moment was completely out of tune with this sunny May day.
Last night, she coaxed Dujuan away with all her might, using both soft and hard tactics, and squatted on the tree at the back door of the Prime Minister's Mansion all night until the vegetable and melon vendors arrived, but she still didn't see the face that made her hate him so much.
As expected, all the guests visiting the Prime Minister’s Mansion were scams.
She must have been bewitched to believe such serious nonsense, and let someone cheat her out of her things without any effort.
The thought of returning to the Marquis' Mansion to see Xiao Zhun filled Xiao Nanhui's heart with anxiety. She had taken such a willful journey this time, not only abandoning military affairs without authorization, but also returning empty-handed. Whenever she thought about it, she felt ashamed.
Feeling conflicted, he was reluctant to move towards the Qinghuai Marquis Mansion, and just staggered to Yukun Street.
The largest courtyard on Yukun Street is the old residence of Prince Shuo, where Xiao Zhun grew up.
But after that incident, the place had been abandoned for many years. In Xiao Nanhui's memory, Xiao Zhun often wandered here alone. Xiao Zhun didn't like her to follow him in, so she always just stood outside the several-meter-high gate and waited for him. Her only impression of Prince Shuo's Mansion remained on the two verdigris lion heads on the gate.
Although she knew in her heart that there was nothing but weeds, rats and ants within the high courtyard walls, she was still curious. She felt that the walls contained Xiao Zhun's past, a past without her.
As time went by, she would occasionally wander into this street, just like today.
Xiao Nanhui sighed, found a nearby tea shop that was open and sat down, deciding to fill his stomach first.
The teahouse in the early morning was busier than expected. Most of the people who got up early were merchants from nearby, and there were also some passers-by who were rushing to leave the city, all of them seemed to be in a hurry.
Xiao Nan deliberately chose a place to sit among the crowd. She had not been back to the city for nearly a month and needed to hear the latest news in the market. The teahouse frequented by merchants was the best choice.
As soon as she sat down, the conversation of the people behind her came into her ears.
"Boss Li, I see you're ready to go. I shouldn't be saying this, but we've been doing business for years. How can I just stand by and watch you take risks?"
The head of the household, Li, seemed a little surprised: "Brother, what do you mean by that? I have been selling goods from the west for many years. If you are worried about the flood a few days ago..."
"This has nothing to do with the flood. Come closer..."
The man spoke in a low voice, but Xiao Nanhui had excellent hearing and could still hear it clearly.
At this time, the diligent shopkeeper had already brought the basket of hot buns to the table. She decided to eat, drink and eavesdrop at the same time, so she took a big gulp of cold tea and stretched out her chopsticks to pick up the soup dumplings.
"Have you heard? King Kang of Lingxi was assassinated over a month ago."
Xiao Nanhui shook the chopsticks in his hand, and the bun fell back into the plate with a "pop", and the skin and flesh were separated.
Headmaster Li and the other diners at the table were also visibly shocked. "This is nonsense! With the prince dead, there will be no barrier between Bijiang and Wancheng anymore."
The voice behind him continued, "How dare I speak nonsense about such an important matter? My brother-in-law is serving at the North Camp training ground outside the city. He says Tiancheng has begun to reorganize the army. He must be right. I think the battle is about to begin, and the road to the west will soon be impassable."
"No wonder the silk from Lingxi has been out of stock recently. I thought I was overthinking it, but I didn't expect something serious to happen..."
The noise behind him continued, but Xiao Nanhui only heard a buzzing sound and could not make out a single word.
The shopkeeper was about to take the vinegar jar to the table that had ordered dumplings, but when he turned around, he saw that there was no one at the table. All that was left on the table was the steamed dumplings in a basket and a half silver ingot that had been broken in half.
The shopkeeper picked up the silver and looked around for the young man who had just been sitting there: "Sir? Sir? I haven't given you your change yet..."
The deserted street seemed to have an end in sight, but there was no trace of that person. His leg speed was truly astonishing.
Although this had been foreshadowed, the moment she heard the news, her heart still raced. Prince Kang was mediocre, yet he was also a king with a hundred thousand soldiers. He was stabbed to death on his own territory. This only proved that Bijiang's power was even greater than she had imagined.
Xiao Nanhui rushed all the way back to the Marquis' Mansion. Without waiting for Chen Si to open the door, he rushed in and went straight to Xiao Zhun's study.
Chen Si was coming out of the room holding some old clothes and spare bedding. He was stunned to see Xiao Nanhui in a dishevel. It took him a while to react and he hurried forward to greet him.
"The girl is finally back. Why did you come here in such a hurry without telling me?"
Xiao Nanhui was still a little out of breath and didn't bother to explain. He looked in the direction of the study, but there seemed to be no one there.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
