I forced myself to calm down, speaking as calmly as possible and bowing, "I respectfully bid farewell to Your Majesty."
He smiled and said, "Did I tell you that there's no need to be so formal when we're alone? Or have you forgotten?"
"Do you need me to help you recall?"
"No, no, you don't have to." My face flushed rapidly again. "Thank you very much...you."
He laughed out loud, then said leisurely: "The more you are like this, the more I don't want to leave..."
???
It's difficult.
He gently tapped my forehead with his finger, his voice as gentle as the moonlight outside: "Go to bed early, and don't read the storybook too late."
I nodded, and he walked out of the house with light steps. After a while, I heard the loud sound of "Get going" outside the yard.
The pillow here is made of porcelain, otherwise I really want to cover my entire face with it. Lying under the thick quilt, I forced myself to plan how to properly give Duan Xiao's money to Cheng Yao's family tomorrow.
It gets dark early in winter, and in spring and autumn, it should be pitch black outside the window at dusk. According to the arrangement of Eunuch Afu, I took a carriage out of the palace through a side door, and the coachman took me directly back to the shogunate.
I watched Qianji Money House pass by in front of my eyes in a flash, just like the blurry lights and hurried passers-by.
When I arrived at the gate of the shogunate, the maids were surprised to see me and hurriedly opened the door to welcome me in. A maid ran into the house to get all the news. At once, several doors were pushed open, and I saw Zhuang, Mu Anguo and Mu Chenfeng running out of the room.
"Shuang, Shuang'er?" Zhuang was overjoyed. "Why are you back?"
She held my hand and her face was filled with worry: "Did you suffer any injustice in the palace..."
"You can't get out after being wronged." Mu Anguo corrected.
"I just haven't received any letters from my brother, so I was a little worried and came back to check." I subconsciously looked at Mu Chenfeng.
You are a seven-foot-tall man with a strong physique. You don’t seem to have any missing limbs or any illness. Why don’t you reply to my letter?
"Ah," Mu Chenfeng scratched his head awkwardly, "Brother forgot."
Immediately, he came up with a playful smile: "I'm sorry to have worried my sister, we are fine, hehe..."
Mu Anguo glanced at him: "You!"
Zhuang was busy trying to smooth things over: "It's cool to stand in the yard, let's go inside first!"
Seeing that the three of them were all fine, I thought I could save some time by negotiating with the groom to get to Cheng Yao at Dongbei Gate. So I stood there, looking at my father and said, "Has Doctor Jiang come to see Dad?"
"Yes, yes, here I come!" Zhuang replied with a smile, "The medicine that Doctor Jiang prescribed is indeed very effective!"
Mu Anguo nodded with approval on his face.
Then I have nothing to worry about: "It is against the rules to come out this time... His Majesty only allowed me to stay for a while. Since my father, mother and brother are all fine, I will return first."
Zhuang was reluctant to let me go, and Mu Anguo showed concern but still said in a deep voice: "Shuang'er is right, don't give people a chance to talk about it."
I nodded and said goodbye to them one by one, then returned to the carriage. I really came and went in a hurry.
When the carriage was halfway there, I carefully drew aside the curtain. "Brother... I want to buy something for... His Majesty. Could you please let me go shopping alone?"
The more he looked, the more familiar the groom in front of him seemed. He spoke first, "Please, Zhaoyi Mu, but I must follow you and protect you."
I remembered now, it was Song Heng who refused to see the guard who was guarding the door that day.
"Then you can just stand guard at the door of the store..." I tried to test him, "You grown man, follow me shopping..."
I winked at him, saying, "Your Majesty hasn't even gone shopping with me yet..."
He was stunned for a moment, then stopped the carriage: "Mu Zhaoyi, don't, don't make things up!"
I got it! I waved my hand, and the carriage happened to stop at Qianji Qianfang. It was really a blessing from heaven! I hurried to jump off the carriage: "I'll just go here for a walk! It will be quick!"
He suddenly stretched out his arm and said, "Mu Zhaoyi, this is a money shop, a place to deposit and withdraw money, not a store for buying things."
You know so much, kid!
I laughed and got back into the carriage: "Oh, really? Haha, I was too anxious."
He responded, I have to seize the opportunity to go to Cheng Yao's house: "Let's go to Dongbeimen, there are things I want to buy."
"Yes." He was very obedient. He raised his whip and went towards Cheng Yao's house.
I heard from Duan Xiao about Cheng Yao's family situation. His father worked as a manual laborer everywhere, and his mother supplemented the family income by selling embroidery. Cheng Yao's sister was the maid who framed us and is still in the Ministry of Punishment.
Relying on the memory of buying crabapple pastries for the children that day, I searched for the door of Cheng Yao's house and finally saw the small wooden door. I quickly stopped.
"This is a residential area..." The groom was a little confused.
"Yeah, I know. There's an embroiderer here. She's very good at embroidery. I want to buy her embroidery!" This time she jumped down from the side without waiting for him to stop her.
He led the horse and repeatedly urged me to come back quickly. I nodded and said, "Don't worry, I'll do what I say."
I knocked on the door, but no one answered. I knocked again and the door opened by itself with a creak. It turned out that it was not locked at all.
I tentatively went inside and asked, "Excuse me, is Cheng Yao here?"
Finally, a familiar face appeared and ran into the yard holding a candle: "Who are you?"
I just remembered that I was dressed as a man that day, and I was too busy to explain: "I am Mr. Duan's friend, Cheng Yao. Mr. Duan told me about you!"
When Duan Xiao was mentioned, his suspicious expression faded a lot. A woman ran out and said anxiously, "Yao'er, why don't you bring the doctor in?"
doctor?
Now it was my turn to be confused. Cheng Yao responded, "Mother, it's not a doctor, it's Brother Duan's friend."
"Oh," the woman was a little disappointed when she saw me, and hurried back into the house, muttering, "Didn't Doctor Sun say he would be here soon..."
"Cheng Yao, what's going on?" I looked at him with a frown.
He moved the candle closer to me and suddenly opened his eyes wide: "You are the brother from that day!"
"So smart!" I nodded. Now that I was close to him and with the bright light of the candle, I realized that his eyes were red, obviously he had been crying.
"What did your mother just say about the doctor?" I asked hurriedly.
"My father slipped and fell on the road when he was coming back from work. Doctor Sun took our money but never came to see him." Cheng Yao did not hide it and showed some composure and calmness of an adult.
"Which street is Doctor Sun on?" I asked hurriedly.
"The southernmost side of Xiaximen." He blinked and said, "Brother, sister, can you help me look for it?"
I actually like such straightforward and honest children: "Don't worry, I'll go right away."
He suddenly stopped me and explained, "Originally, I should have gone, but, but I'm worried about my mother..."
Thinking of the woman's deathly pale face just now, I nodded and understood.
I hurried out to find the groom. Seeing me so quickly, the groom smiled happily: "Mu Zhaoyi."
"Please take me to the southernmost side of Xia Ximen and find a doctor named Sun." I pleaded.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
