Chapter 59: Breaking the Cocoon 2 "It doesn't matter anymore."
Zhu Song stumbled back to the Zhu Mansion and said, "Bring me some wine."
The servant reminded him, "Master, you can't drink alcohol while you are recovering from your injuries."
"Bring some wine." Zhu Song was in a bad mood and did not explain. He just repeated it in a bad tone. Seeing that he could not persuade him, the servant responded first and then immediately went to report to Meng Xiaohe.
Zhu Song returned to his study, spread out the memorial, and was about to write, but there was no ink. He held the clean pen in the air for a long time before throwing it away and leaning back in his chair.
Zhu Song closed his eyes, the dim light shone on his eyes, and everything in front of him was blurry.
There was a gentle sound of a door being pushed open, followed by Meng Xiaohe's worried voice, "What happened?"
Hearing her voice, Zhu Song could no longer suppress the grievance in his heart. He didn't open his eyes but tears were already flowing down.
Meng Xiaohe walked over to sit beside him, took a handkerchief and wiped his tears, "Whoever bullied you, go find him."
Her movements were very light, but her tone was very serious, as if as soon as Zhu Song mentioned the person's name, she would rush out and fight with him.
Zhu Song felt warm inside. He opened his eyes and looked at Meng Xiaohe, his voice choking with emotion. "It's okay, I'm just not in a good mood."
Meng Xiaohe took his hand and said, "What happened? Tell mom."
Zhu Song's head rolled half a circle on the back of the chair. He stared at the ceiling and said in a low voice, "I was cheated."
Meng Xiaohe asked, "Who would dare to lie to you?"
Zhu Song tilted his head to look at her, and said in a lighter tone, "It doesn't matter anymore."
Meng Xiaohe patted his hand and whispered, "You've always been strong-willed since childhood, striving to be number one in everything you do. You never complain when you're wronged. But you can trust me. Although I may not be able to help you, speaking out is better than keeping it to yourself."
Zhu Song smiled warmly, "Thank you, Mom."
Meng Xiaohe said, "You little bastard, why bother saying thank you? I'm your mother."
Zhu Song sighed and added, "I've had a falling out with the Crown Prince."
Meng Xiaohe was slightly surprised when she heard this, but not surprised. "The prince is a thoughtful person. Although you are smart, you are not thoughtful. You can be a minister to the king, but not a friend."
Zhu Song was somewhat surprised that Meng Xiaohe was so accurate, "You saw it a long time ago?"
Meng Xiaohe said, "Isn't this obvious? If the Crown Prince is really as innocent as the rumors say, could he have survived the brutal harem until the age of sixteen and successfully become the ruler of the Eastern Palace?"
Zhu Song felt that these words were familiar. He thought about it carefully and it seemed that his father had told him this at the very beginning. However, at that time, his heart and eyes were full of Wen Fengxuan's grievances, and he didn't believe it at all.
Zhu Song was puzzled. "But he doesn't have any family on his mother's side. How did he do it all by himself?"
Meng Xiaohe said: "There are so many officials in the imperial court, and many of them want to rise to the top overnight."
Zhu Song suddenly understood. Yes, no matter how Wen Fengxuan became the crown prince, at least he was obviously the crown prince of the Eastern Palace and the future heir to the throne.
Zhu Song sighed, "He has a powerful backer. If I offend him now, then our Zhu family will definitely have a hard time in the future."
Meng Xiaohe smiled and said, "Don't worry about that. Your father has wanted to resign and return to his old job for a long time. If he hadn't been reluctant to separate the whole family, he would have quit long ago. If this incident really makes your father's wish come true, he would be so happy."
Zhu Song had never heard Zhu Jingchen mention this before. "Really? Dad really wants to resign?"
Meng Xiaohe said, "That's not true. He said being an official doesn't make much money, and he has to keep his head tied to his belt all day long. He has no time to rest all year round, and he is also oppressed and bullied by the royal family."
Zhu Song said: "You make me want to resign too."
Meng Xiaohe said, "If you really want to resign, then resign. We can go traveling and enjoy the scenery."
Zhu Song leaned on Meng Xiaohe's shoulder and said, "Thank you, Mom. I will definitely take you to travel around in the future."
Meng Xiaohe patted the back of his head and said, "Okay, Mom will wait for that day."
Zhu Song said, "Mom, please sing me the song you used to put me to sleep when I was a child."
"Everywhere I look, I see people in their finery, the streets ablaze with lights and children's noise. What am I, in my long gown, doing? Yet I am also among the tourists' laughter and chatter."
The cheerful tune, the familiar voice, Zhu Song fell asleep while listening to it.
Meng Xiaohe felt her heart aching as she touched his increasingly hot body. She called the servants to move Zhu Song to the bed, and then hurriedly called the palace doctor to treat him.
Zhu Song slept until noon the next day. Before he got up, the servant came to announce, "Master, Eunuch Qin from the palace is here."
Zhu Song sat up with a start. He had been running a fever all night and it had just subsided, so his whole body was still weak. He hurried to the front yard. Qin Shidong was still waiting at the door. When he saw him coming over, he said to him, "Master Zhu, please accept the order."
When he heard Zhu Song receive the imperial edict, his heart skipped a beat. As everyone knew, the Crown Prince was now the regent. He had just fallen out with Wen Fengxuan yesterday, and today the imperial edict came.
Zhu Song knelt down to receive the order, "Your Highness Zhu Song accepts the order."
Qin Shidong unfolded the imperial edict and read aloud, "The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, decrees: Zhusong, Junior Official of the Dali Temple, has been entrusted with this task by the court and should be diligent and loyal. However, you have been found negligent in your duties. According to Article 135 of the Daliang Code, you must be severely punished. You are hereby dismissed from your position as Junior Official of the Dali Temple and demoted to Magistrate of Lingyang County in the Northern Desert. You must leave the capital and take up your new post within three days. You must repent and mend your ways to atone for your past sins. This is my decree."
Zhu Song sneered in his heart, he was indeed cold-hearted and heartless.
"Your Majesty, I congratulate you and accept your order."
Qin Shidong handed the imperial edict to Zhu Song and said, "I wish you good health."
Zhu Song glanced at Qin Shidong, who nodded at him and turned away.
After Qin Shidong walked away, Zhu Song sneered. Beimo was the border of Liang State, with yellow sand everywhere. Lingyang County was the county with the most severe conditions. In the hundreds of years since the founding of Daliang, there had never been a precedent of Beijing officials being demoted to Lingyang County. Zhu Song had set a precedent.
Zhu Song didn't want to stay in Beijing anymore, so he went back to his room, packed his luggage and prepared to leave.
This news spread quickly, and soon it spread throughout the Zhu Mansion. As soon as Xu Songlan heard about it, he came to find Zhu Song and said, "Sir, I will go with you."
Zhu Song disagreed. "The Northern Desert is a harsh place, and ordinary people would avoid it. What are you going there for? Don't cause trouble. Go back to Qingzhou as soon as possible."
Xu Songlan was very stubborn. "It's precisely because of the hardship that I have to go. You have been in the capital for many years, so you will definitely not be able to adapt to the climate there. I must go."
The two talked for a long time, and Zhu Song couldn't persuade him anymore, so he agreed. However, they also agreed that if Xu Songlan wanted to leave, he could leave at any time.
After Xu Songlan agreed, he hurried to pack his luggage.
Zhu Song packed his luggage and went to find Meng Xiaohe. Seeing Meng Xiaohe also packing her luggage, he asked, "Mom, where are you going?"
Meng Xiaohe said, "I'll go to Beimo with you."
Zhu Song's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me? How could you go to Beimo?"
Meng Xiaohe said, "I'm not kidding you. I've left all the letters for your father. Let's leave quickly before he comes back."
Zhu Song rejected her without hesitation, "No, the Northern Desert is extremely difficult. You absolutely cannot go."
Meng Xiaohe said, "If you can go, why can't I? Besides, didn't you say yesterday that you would take me on a scenic trip? Now is the best opportunity."
Zhu Song said: "Is this for sightseeing? This is for eating sand."
Meng Xiaohe said, "I've never been out of the capital, and I'm willing to eat sand. Are you going or not? If not, I'll leave first."
Seeing that she was serious, Zhu Song was helpless. "Mom, this is not a joke. What kind of place is the Northern Desert? There is no grass growing there, and the ground is covered with yellow sand. How can a spoiled lady like you go to a place like that?"
Zhu Song said, "I've made up my mind. I'll go there and work for a while to show my skills, and then I'll submit a letter of resignation and return to Beijing."
While he was still talking, Meng Xiaohe had already instructed the servants to put the luggage on the carriage, and warned: "Slow down, this is the finest white porcelain tea set, don't break it."
Zhu Song held his forehead with his hand, "Mom, did you listen to me?"
Meng Xiaohe looked back at him. Her face showed no worry about her son's demotion, only a desire to go on a long journey. "You talk about yours, and I'll do mine. We won't delay each other."
Zhu Song looked at her face full of anticipation, opened his mouth but couldn't say anything, and finally asked, "Do you really want to go?"
At this time, Meng Xiaohe had already moved all her luggage and called out to Zhu Song, "Where's your luggage? Hurry up and don't dawdle."
Zhu Song asked the servants to put his luggage on board as well. With Meng Xiaohe's efficient movements, it took less than two hours from the time the imperial edict was issued to the time they left, and the five of them got on the carriage to Beimo.
It was dark after they left the city and passed Shili Pavilion, so the group went to Xiliu Village to stay overnight.
Meng Xiaohe seemed to be out of Beijing for the first time. Everything was new to her and she smiled at everything she saw, which made Zhu Song's depressed mood much better.
Although the capital city is thousands of miles away from the Northern Desert, it would only take five days to get there if one hurried. However, Zhu Song and his group walked and stopped many times, and it took them nearly half a month to arrive. It really seemed like they were out for a trip.
To get to Beimo, one must pass through Beizhou, and now is the season for lychees. Meng Xiaohe likes lychees, so she stayed in Beizhou for a few days and met an old acquaintance there.
"Mr. Prefect?" Zhu Song looked at the old farmer who was busy and skilled in the orchard with great surprise. His fair skin had been tanned like wheat and his face was covered with wrinkles, but he looked much more energetic than before. He looked a few years older and younger than when he was in the capital.
"I'm not worthy of that title. I'm currently the magistrate of Lizhixiang County." Zhao Yuan recognized Zhu Song and was delighted to see him. "Master Zhu, are you here for a visit?"
Zhu Song said, "What kind of sightseeing? I was demoted to be the magistrate of Lingyang County. I'm passing through here and want to buy some lychees."
Zhao Yuan saw Zhu Song's bad face and knew he was unwilling to give up, so he advised him, "It might be a good thing to stay away from the chaos of the capital. I didn't understand it before, but it took me several years here to understand this."
Zhu Song smiled and said, "The increase in lychee production in Beizhou is inseparable from the research of Lord Zhao."
Zhao Yuan said, "Dealing with trees is more practical than dealing with people."
The two chatted for a while, and Zhao Yuan even took Zhu Song to personally introduce him to the various types of lychees and tasted them one by one. As a result, Zhu Song got a sore throat the next day and couldn't speak. Zhao Yuan felt very sorry when he found out.
Since everyone was angry and couldn't eat the lychees, they continued on their journey.
The air became dryer as we approached the northern desert, making us feel uncomfortable. Zhu Song even considered resigning as soon as he arrived in Lingyang County, but Meng Xiaohe talked him out of it.
"Since we're here, let's take a look at the situation first."
"Okay."
Now that everyone has arrived, they naturally have to report for duty. However, there is one thing that makes Zhu Song very unhappy, that is, the county magistrate of Lingyang County is still there, and he is the county magistrate again.
It was unheard of for a county to have two magistrates. The documents from the Ministry of Personnel had already arrived, so the entire county government knew about it, except for Zhu Song.
The magistrate of Lingyang County was an old man with a white beard. He looked to be in his seventies or eighties, but was actually only in his fifties. When he saw Zhu Song was so young, he was so happy that his eyes narrowed into slits.
"This must be Master Zhu, come in and sit down."
Zhu Song was a little confused by the old man's enthusiasm.
But he soon understood that because Lingyang County was remote and sparsely populated, there was basically no government affairs. The county magistrate's only job was to lead the yamen runners in sand control, enduring every day in the desert. The old county magistrate had been writing his resignation for twenty years but it had never been accepted. The successor he had been waiting for for twenty years was finally here, how could he not be moved?
The old magistrate handed him the shovel and said, "Go ahead and do your job well."
Zhu Song took a shovel and went with the yamen runners to control the desertification in a daze.
The so-called sand control is to plant tiger tail grass bought from the northern state in the desert. However, the desert not only has a harsh climate but also tornadoes. Often, a tornado will blow away all the grass half a month after planting. As a result, the sand control work in Lingyang County has been going on for over a year, but there is still no grass in the Lingyang Desert.
The yamen runners were already very skilled, pushing the cart, wielding the shovel, digging the hole, and planting the grass, all done in one go. But Zhu Song was clearly not used to it, and yellow sand flew all over his face. He spitted out the sand for a long time, but it still wasn't completely gone.
Zhu Song was discouraged and decided to go back and write his resignation immediately.
"Let's call it a day."
The yamen runners looked at Zhu Song and kindly reminded him, "No, that won't work. The prefect will come to inspect every two weeks, and the governor will come back every three months. If they find out we haven't done our job properly, we'll be beaten with sticks. Magistrate Lou was beaten several times before. Master Zhu, why don't you go back first and we'll leave when it's time."
As soon as he opened his mouth, yellow sand poured into it. Zhu Song's mouth was full of sand, so he didn't even want to talk. He nodded and turned away.
As a result, Zhu Song was unfamiliar with the place and got lost.
The yellow sand was blown up, covering the footprints. It was the same everywhere, and even the direction was difficult to tell. The sun was still strong. Zhu Song was speechless and wanted to die, but he didn't want to really die. He just walked honestly, no matter where he went, he had to walk anyway.
Sweat was pouring down like crazy, and his heels felt like they were filled with lead. He started to feel dizzy and dazed. Zhu Song fell down in a daze, and then he heard a scream of "Ah". Zhu Song quickly opened his eyes. The huge sun was so strong that it made him dizzy. Oh, no, there was someone under him.
Zhu Song quickly sat up and saw a white-haired old man lying under the yellow sand. His face was covered with yellow sand, so he couldn't see his features clearly, but the blood stains at the corners of his mouth were clearly visible.
"Hey, are you dead?" Zhu Song was shocked and hurried to check his breath, but he was pulled down in mid-air.
"Help. Help me."
Not dead yet. Zhu Song quickly pulled him up, and the yellow sand on his face fell off. Only then could he see clearly that it was a very young and beautiful face. Zhu Song twitched his lips and said, "Fuck, you are not a monster, are you?"
"I am a human." The young man said this with difficulty and fell on Zhu Song.
"Tsk." Zhu Song scratched his head in annoyance. He couldn't get out anyway, and now there were more people. What should he do?
Although Zhu Song was very annoyed, he still carried the man on his back. Strangely enough, after carrying him on his back, Zhu Song actually walked out of the desert smoothly.
The moment he set foot on normal land, Zhu Song even thought, is this person a lucky star?
Zhu Song took the man back to the county government office. Since they had just arrived in Lingyang County and there was no inn, Zhu Song and his party temporarily stayed in the county government office.
Zhu Song handed the man over to Xu Songlan. Meng Xiaohe had been researching food these days, and when she heard the sound, she hurried over. When she saw the man's face, she exclaimed, "Wow, what a handsome old man."
Zhu Song sat there panting, very tired, and didn't say anything. After Xu Songlan felt the man's pulse, she said to Meng Xiaohe, "He's probably under twenty years old."
Meng Xiaohe was very surprised, "Then why is his hair all white?"
Xu Songlan said, "I need to take off my clothes and check if there are any wounds."
Meng Xiaohe blurted out, "Just take it off."
Zhu Song leaned over the table and said what Xu Songlan hadn't said, "Get out."
Meng Xiaohe wanted to refuse, "Hey, he's just a patient..."
Zhu Song was so exhausted that he didn't want to say much, so he just said, "Let's go."
"I'm leaving." Meng Xiaohe walked out reluctantly.
"close the door."
"knew."
After the door was closed, Xu Songlan undressed the man. Zhu Song checked the man's clothes and found nothing. The only thing on him was the black pendant hanging around his neck. It smelled of a faint fragrance, but even Xu Songlan couldn't tell what it was.
The man's body was covered with scars, not many from blows, but mostly small red bumps as small as the tips of rice grains.
Zhu Song frowned and asked, "What is this?"
After a careful examination, Xu Songlan said, "It should be a needle wound."
There is a punishment in the Dali Temple called the Red Hedgehog, which involves piercing the entire body of a person with thousands of silver needles. The long and thin needles will cause severe pain but only a little bleeding. When the body is full of needles and blood, it looks like a red hedgehog from a distance.
However, the Dali Temple rarely used punishments, so Zhu Song had never seen needle wounds.
Zhu Song reasonably guessed, "Could it be that this is a serious criminal?"
Xu Songlan didn't answer this question when he came back. He just asked, "Do we need to save him?"
Zhu Chan said: "Save."
"good."
The man wasn't seriously injured; he fainted from heatstroke. He woke up soon after, but he had lost his memory. He couldn't remember much. The only thing he remembered was a good friend named Yu Wusheng, and the black pendant he wore around his neck was a gift from Yu Wusheng. The only other thing he remembered was a turtle gate.
Oh, he still remembered his name was Xia Yunqing.
When the old county magistrate heard about this, he said "Oh" as if he knew the inside story.
Zhu Song asked, "Oh what?"
The old county magistrate said to him, "Don't ask questions in a certain way. Ask what's going on."
Although Zhu Song was somewhat speechless, he was still kind to the old man, so he followed his lead and asked, "What's going on?"
The old county magistrate was satisfied and then said to him, "It's a gang of bandits called Yulingmen."
Hearing the bandits' blessing, he became excited, "How can there be bandits in this godforsaken place?"
The old county magistrate was dissatisfied with his choice of words. "How can you say that? How can this be called a place where no one lives?"
"Oh, sorry, I spoke too quickly." Zhu Song was still trying to save the situation when he heard the old magistrate say, "This place is so ugly that not even a single feather can be seen."
Zhu Song fell silent. It turned out that he also had a love for his hometown.
"Let's talk about the bandits."
"I've strayed off topic." The old magistrate then began to talk about the bandits. "The Yuling Sect is a gang of bandits who commit all sorts of evil acts and take pleasure in abusing people. They're notorious throughout Lingyang County. The young man you rescued probably escaped from there."
Zhu Song understood that Xia Yunqing had suffered inhuman abuse in Yuling Sect and had lost his memory due to the shock.
The old magistrate continued, "The Yuling Sect has been around for almost ten years, and this person is the first one to escape from there. He's truly lucky."
Zhu Song asked, "It's so bad, why don't you suppress the bandits?"
The old county magistrate said, "A cunning rabbit has three burrows. The Yuling Sect often changes locations. Three years ago, the governor personally led a group to suppress the bandits, but they didn't see a single hair. They walked in the desert for three days and finally fainted from the sun. I had to carry them back."
Zhu Song was filled with fighting spirit. "I must wipe out the Yuling Sect, a bunch of beasts who disregard human lives, and restore peace to Lingyang County."
Suppressing bandits is always better than controlling desertification.
The old county magistrate was moved by Zhu Song's passionate fighting spirit and said, "Okay, go ahead and do it. I will fully support you."
Zhu Song returned the shovel to him. The old county magistrate looked down at his old friend who had been with him for many years and sighed heavily.
From that day on, Zhu Song began to suppress the bandits, but unlike what the old county magistrate said, he not only did not see a single hair, he didn't even find a rabbit hole.
Wandering around in the desert every day, and then coming back with a mouthful of sand.
Xia Yunqing recovered quickly under Xu Songlan's treatment, but his memory was still not restored. He was handsome, hardworking, and even had a talent for cooking. He was very much loved by Meng Xiaohe, who kept saying "Qingqing" and "Qingqing" every day, as if she loved him more than Zhu Song, her own son.
But honestly, even though Xia Yunqing had only been learning how to cook for a few days, his cooking was infinitely better than Meng Xiaohe's. A full stomach and a full stomach gave him more energy, making him even more motivated to hunt the bandits.
After searching for nearly a month, Zhu Song finally found traces of the Yuling Sect when he was tanned as black as charcoal.
Zhu Song originally thought that they were a group of vicious bandits, but he didn't expect them to be a group of misfits. Not only were they ugly, but they were also full of pretense. Before Zhu Song could even move his hands, a group of people fell to the ground and cried for their mothers.
Zhu Song destroyed the lair of the Yuling Sect. The gate was indeed made of a large turtle shell as Xia Yunqing said. The Yuling Sect's manager said, "This is our belief."
Zhu Song frowned and asked, "What faith?"
The manager couldn't answer, so Zhu Song kicked him hard twice. The manager still couldn't answer, so Zhu Song kicked him twice again, and he answered.
"Yes, faith in turtles."
Zhu Song rolled his eyes and kicked him twice. He felt dizzy and gave up.
Zhu Song and his men searched the Yuling Gate, but apart from a few bloody whips, they did not find any other tools used to torture people. Even the rumors that many people were robbed were not seen. They only saw a few good-looking people, but they were stupid and knew nothing.
The Yuling Sect's steward, after being woken up by the splash of water, complained, "Sir, we were just a little lustful, but we didn't have any other bad intentions."
Zhu Song wanted to kick him again, "Damn it! He's already robbing the people, and he still has no bad intentions."
The manager flinched, but still said, "They were all sold voluntarily. We didn't steal them."
Zhu Song frowned when he heard this. How could this be sold?
"Tell me the truth about what happened."
The manager replied, "Lingyang County is very poor, and there are many people selling their children. It's just that we have more money, so there are more buyers. Some people can't bear to sell their own children, so they steal other people's children and sell them, which makes us notorious."
"Are you still feeling wronged?"
Zhu Song raised his eyebrows and glared. The steward quickly waved his hands, "Don't dare, don't dare. We knew the truth but didn't say it out loud. We were also wrong. You can punish us however you want. We have absolutely no complaints."
Zhu Song said, "That's nice to say. I've been looking for you for a month. If you don't have some ability, can you hide for a month?"
The manager replied, "Just hide in the homes of ordinary people. They're all familiar customers, so it won't be difficult for them to help cover up for you."
This is a nest of snakes and rats.
However, Zhu Song was unable to investigate the matter in detail. Why? Because an imperial edict arrived from the capital, reinstating Zhu Song and ordering him to return to the capital within five days.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
