The person who will go to the Changshan Salt Commissioner's Office has been decided, and Yin Chengyu will be packing up and leaving soon.

Before leaving, he went to Kunning Palace to bid farewell to Queen Yu.

Queen Yu is now eight months pregnant, and her belly is much bigger than before. In another month or two, she will probably give birth.

Yin Chengyu helped Queen Yu sit down and personally poured her hot tea: "I don't know when I can return from this trip. There may be danger. When I am not in the palace, you must be careful and take care of yourself." He put a token in Queen Yu's hand: "I will not take all the people in the East Palace with me. If you encounter any problems, you can send someone to the East Palace to mobilize people and pass the news to grandfather."

In the previous life, Empress Yu’s death happened on February 21st.

It was already the fourth day of the second month. Although Yin Chengyu had already arranged for people to secretly protect Empress Yu and informed his grandfather to keep a closer eye on the palace, he was still nervous because he couldn't guard it himself, fearing that he would not be able to avoid the tragedy of his previous life if it happened again.

His expression was too solemn, and Empress Yu finally comforted him: "What could possibly happen to me in the palace? As for you, the dangers of Tianjin are unpredictable, so you must not take risks." She knew her son's temperament very well, but he would strive to do his best in everything he did and would not allow himself to have any flaws: "Nothing is more important than your safety."

"My son knows."

Yin Chengyu chatted with Queen Yu for a while, and responded to whatever she said. After sitting for three quarters of an hour, he saw that Queen Yu looked tired, so he stopped talking and asked the nanny to help her rest.

When I came out of Kunning Palace, I saw Xue Shu waiting outside the palace.

He is now the Supervisor of the Horse Guards and the Chief of the Western Factory, and he is also in charge of the Four Guard Camps, holding real power. He no longer wears the brown clothes and white boots that ordinary servants wear. Under his black cloak, he wears a silk robe with four beasts and unicorn patterns given by Emperor Longfeng. He wears a black silk hat with gold painting on it, and his thin and powerful waist is tied up with a rhinoceros horn belt. He has an upright posture and outstanding temperament.

At first glance, Yin Chengyu seemed to see the arrogant Nine Thousand Years Old from his previous life again.

He paused for a moment before walking forward and said, "Supervisor Xue, please wait here. Is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

Now the emperor clearly intended to train Xue Shu to be his trusted confidant, and Yin Chengyu was happy to see it happen. On the surface, he naturally kept a distance from Xue Shu, and his tone was polite but not intimate enough.

Xue Shu bowed and said, "The five hundred warriors of the Four Guards have been assembled, and the boats at Tongzhou Wharf are ready. I am here to confirm with Your Highness the time for departure tomorrow."

"It is better to go early than late. Let's set out at the hour of Yin."

Yin Chengyu walked side by side with him, and glanced at him again with the corner of his eye, saying, "Clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse. Supervisor Xue is indeed different now than he used to be."

Xue Shu didn't feel that he was any different, but when he met Yin Chengyu's gaze, he was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly an idea came to him. He asked in a low voice: "Your Highness, do you like me wearing this?"

Yin Chengyu retracted his gaze and said calmly, "It's just a polite remark, Supervisor Xue, don't take it seriously."

After saying that, she quickened her pace and left him behind.

This scene was seen by others and also heard by Emperor Longfeng, which immediately made him feel more at ease.

It seems that he did not choose the wrong person. The prince and Xue Shu must have had conflicts for a long time.

The office of the Changlu Salt Commissioner was located in Tianjin Wei.

Tianjin is located at the lower end of the Nine Rivers and is known as the "Gateway to Beijing". The Grand Canal also flows through it, making water transportation convenient. If you board a ship at Shuntianfu Tongzhou Wharf, you can reach Tianjin in two days at most.

At 3 p.m. the next day, before daybreak in the east, Yin Chengyu boarded a carriage and, escorted by Xue Shu and five hundred imperial guards, headed for Tongzhou Wharf to board a ship.

Due to the haste of the trip, the boat we took on this trip was a takaya. A takaya is a ship used to transport goods. Although the interior of the building for living has been deliberately tidied and decorated, it is still not as comfortable as a yellow boat.

Not long after the canal boat set sail, Yin Chengyu felt a little seasick.

He leaned on the imperial concubine couch by the porthole, his whole body felt weak and he had no strength to move. He didn't even have breakfast, but leaned against the window in dismay to enjoy the breeze. The boat swayed with the waves, and his internal organs seemed to sway along with it, his face pale.

Seeing this, Zheng Duobao became extremely anxious and went to the kitchen himself to supervise the people in preparing some light and appetizing meals.

Xue Shu was standing by his side, and he was also worried when he saw him like this. After a slight hesitation, he said, "If your Highness feels very uncomfortable, I can press your acupuncture points for you. It can help relieve some of the dizziness."

Yin Chengyu raised his eyes and glanced at him. He must have been in great pain and looked very fragile. He didn't hesitate for too long and nodded: "You try it."

After getting the consent, Xue Shu took off his boots, got on the couch, knelt behind him, let him rest his head on his knees, and skillfully rubbed his temples to relieve the discomfort.

"Your Highness, you can't survive without food or water. The boat will have to sail on the water for a day and a night and will arrive tomorrow evening. Ginger is good for the stomach and relieves nausea. I'll have someone cook a bowl of ginger soup for you later. Drink half a bowl before dinner, and you'll feel better."

Yin Chengyu half closed his eyes and said unhappily, "I don't want to drink."

Perhaps Xue Shu's technique was quite good. He recovered some of his spirit and continued to talk to Xue Shu: "In the 14th year of Longfeng, Shandong suffered a flood and I was ordered to provide disaster relief. I also went by water. That was my first time traveling by boat, and it was much more chaotic than now. There was a cook on the boat at that time. After hearing about it, she sent me a small pot of homemade..." Halfway through the conversation, he couldn't remember what the thing was called, so he just skipped it and continued: "That thing seems to be made of ginger, refreshing and appetizing. During those days on the boat, I relied on it to eat."

"It's pickled ginger." Xue Shu continued.

"Yes, it's pickled ginger!" Yin Chengyu said, a little confused again, looking up at him: "How do you know?"

Xue Shu lowered his eyes, his voice lacking any ups and downs: "In the fourteenth year of Longfeng, I was in Jiningzhou. Every household in Jiningzhou knows how to make this purple ginger sauce, so the cook must be from Jiningzhou."

Yin Chengyu suddenly realized that it was no wonder that when he wanted to reward the cook, she refused to accept it and said it was not worth much money.

"Are you also from Jining Prefecture?" Yin Chengyu had already asked when he realized that he seemed to know nothing about Xue Shu's past.

No one knows where his ancestral home is or who his family is.

From the time he met Xue Shu, he was already the respected Nine Thousand Years Old. As for his past, it was buried under this identity and no one dared to ask.

"No, my ancestral home is in Shaanxi, near Jiayuguan. Later I moved to Jining."

This was the first time Yin Chengyu had heard of this. He became interested and more curious: "Then why did you move to Jining? Do you have other relatives at home? Why did you think of purifying yourself and entering the palace?"

Xue Shu was silent for a moment after hearing the series of questions. He then said, "The Jiayuguan area has been robbed and invaded by the Oirat for many years. My mother, elder sister and I could not stand it, so we decided to go to Shandong to look for relatives... Later, we settled in Jining and did some small business."

"Later, Jining was hit by a flood, my mother died of illness, and my eldest sister got married. I was alone with nowhere to go, so I went to Wangjing." When talking about the past and deceased relatives, he only mentioned them in a few words and his tone was very nonchalant.

Yin Chengyu, who was originally full of interest, fell silent. He stared at him for a moment and said, "The past is the past. There is nothing to talk about. Tell me something else interesting."

Xue Shu readily accepted the advice and stopped talking about those old stories that were full of staleness. Instead, he told him about the interesting things he encountered in the market.

His voice was deep and pleasant, and Yin Chengyu fell asleep while listening to it. He rested his head on Xue Shu's legs, his long hair spread out, his beautiful eyes closed, and the noble and distant aura around him was also put away, showing an unusual softness and fragility.

Xue Shu carefully moved his head onto the soft pillow before getting off the couch.

He did not leave immediately, but stood beside the imperial concubine's couch for a while before he said softly, "Actually, I was also at the fish platform at that time."

Neither of them was telling the truth to the other.

In the 14th year of Longfeng, Shandong was indeed hit by a flood. But floods in Shandong happened every year and were not uncommon. What really alarmed the Crown Prince was that an epidemic broke out in Yutai County, which was under the jurisdiction of Jining Prefecture.

At that time, he and his mother and eldest sister had just settled in Yutai for half a year.

After the outbreak of the epidemic, Yutai County became like a purgatory on earth.

The governor of Yutai County ignored the lives of the people after the outbreak and ordered soldiers to seal off the entire Yutai County after a hasty report. The living, the dead, and the sick were all confined together, and those who were not sick at first became sick after a long time.

What's even worse is the lack of food.

After the flood, houses were destroyed and food supplies were exhausted. The besieged people fought to the death for the little food they had. Some were so hungry that they even exchanged their children for food.

In such a hopeless situation, my mother also contracted the disease.

Those infected with the disease were even more ostracized. They could only live in half-collapsed temples. They could not find food, let alone medicine. They could only rely on grass roots and tree bark to fill their stomachs every day. It was more like waiting for death than living.

Later, in exchange for medicinal herbs for treatment, the eldest sister gave herself to Mr. Xu, who had been coveting her for a long time.

But even so, my mother still couldn't make it.

Before his mother's body was cold, his eldest sister also disappeared. He asked around and found out that Xu Yuanwai had bribed the guards and escaped from Yutai County. His eldest sister was also taken away.

Later, I heard that the epidemic in the city was too serious, and the order was issued to burn the city.

He was in a state of confusion at that time, as if he was stuck in a bottomless quagmire and could not get out no matter what he did, so he thought that maybe death would be a good thing.

In this dirty and chaotic world, there is nothing worth lingering on.

Until he inadvertently raised his head and saw the city gate wide open, and Yin Chengyu, dressed in plain clothes and with black hair, walked in gracefully.

Like a god descended to earth.

In the past, he disdained others to pray to gods and Buddhas. There were so many people suffering, how could the gods take care of them all? It is better to rely on yourself than to rely on others.

But later he realized that God can indeed save people from suffering.

He said that the Yutai County magistrate had neglected his duties and had already been punished.

He said that he was with the people, Yutai would never be burned down, and everyone would survive.

So he really survived, struggled out of the mud, walked step by step to Wangjing, and walked in front of him.

From then on, he was the god he served devoutly.

The author has something to say:

Gou Gou: I am willing to dedicate everything I have to God, including my body.

Your Highness:?