Chapter 21 Stop pretending, he's gone
"Come in."
A guard in silver armor walked in and bowed respectfully, "Your Highness, before the city gates were closed, the second Miss Qiao arrived."
He was the one who came from the capital with His Highness, so naturally he recognized Miss Qiao II.
Not to mention that Miss Qiao was beautiful and kind, she was not at all arrogant and conceited like those young ladies from aristocratic families. She could even talk and joke with the guards. She was a very good person with a beautiful heart and a kind heart.
A hint of surprise flashed in He Zhiyu's deep eyes. Qiao Er?
New Year's Eve is coming soon, why is she here?
"Did she come with Yihuan?"
The guard shook his head. "To answer your question, Your Highness, no. Second Miss Qiao came with Yun Yao."
With Yun Yao?
Qingzhou is not only dangerous now, but there is no New Year atmosphere at all. Not including outside the city, the entire northern city of Qingzhou accommodates tens of thousands of refugees. Why come to Qingzhou at this time?
The guard added, "Miss Qiao was almost surrounded and injured by refugees outside the city. Fortunately, she brought a lot of guards to escort her all the way in."
He Zhiyu stood up, "Where is she now? She is so naughty, and she is not spoiled like this. She must have sneaked out of the Jin Mansion!"
"Miss Qiao Er is in the granary now."
"Granary?" He Zhiyu became more and more confused the more he listened. He had no idea what she wanted to do.
The guard quickly added, "Miss Qiao brought an anonymous donation of 5,000 shi of rice. The person guarding the granary did not know Miss Qiao and wanted to report it to Your Highness, so I came directly to report it to Your Highness. Now Miss Qiao is staying in the inn."
Jing Yuan's jaw dropped in shock, "Five thousand dan of rice? That would solve your highness's current predicament!"
He Zhiyu's ink-black eyes were filled with a hint of joy, and his long raven-feather eyelashes formed a shadow under the candlelight, hiding the emotions in his eyes.
Most likely, the 5,000 shi of rice was raised by Mr. Jin.
Qiao Wanyan made the anonymous donation because she didn't want herself to know, but it actually helped her a lot.
The guard asked, "Your Highness, would you like me to bring Miss Qiao over?"
Miss Qiao has made such a great contribution, he has to speak well of her. It would be best if His Highness could praise her in person to make Miss Qiao happy and not do her good deeds in vain!
He Zhiyu was silent for a moment. "That's it. She donated anonymously and didn't come to me directly. She just didn't want me to know she was here. Send someone to watch over her secretly and don't let her get into trouble in Qingzhou."
"yes."
In the private room of the inn, Zi Yuan walked in with a pot of tea, "What a shabby inn this is. There's not even a decent cup of tea. I'm sorry, miss. I guess this tea is the cheapest tea sold in bulk."
Qiao Wanyan asked, "Is Yunyao settled?"
"It's settled. That little girl is really easy to take care of. She doesn't care where she lives or what she eats. She seems to be happy and excited about everything she does. I find her interesting just by looking at her."
Qiao Wanyan smiled and said, "The day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve. This is the first time I won't be spending it with my father, mother, and grandfather."
Zi Yuan sighed, "Miss, why don't you go find His Royal Highness the Crown Prince? You sent so much food, His Royal Highness will definitely be touched. Isn't this a good opportunity that you missed?"
Sending so much food and donating it anonymously, isn't this just a waste of money and doing good deeds?
Qiao Wanyan looked at herself in the mirror and carefully applied the jade cream. She said softly, "If you do a lot of bad things and are punished for multiple crimes, that's very satisfying. It's the same for doing good things."
The corners of her mouth curled up into a smile, full of endless sarcasm and teasing. In her eyes, there was no pure and kind love, only the ambition and determination to pursue power and wealth.
"I want Prince to have the most unforgettable New Year's Eve of his life."
Qingzhou City was not as lively as Yongzhou, but the New Year's Eve was also filled with a festive atmosphere. Big red lanterns were hung high, and young children ran and made noises in groups of three or five on the street, forming a stark contrast to the dead atmosphere of the previous few days.
With food, the refugees were appeased, and the people of Qingzhou City were no longer in panic and were ready to flee with their belongings at any time to avoid being burned, killed and looted by the refugees.
He Zhiyu inspected the North City for several rounds and finally smiled, as warm as the spring sun. He was happy that the refugees had hot porridge to drink, and was relieved that the corrupt and defected prefect was caught.
The natural disaster in Qingzhou is almost over, and I can return to Beijing after some time.
I don’t know how long Yihuan will stay at the Jin family. If he can go back after New Year’s Eve, we can travel together again.
I don’t know how she is doing in the Jin Mansion.
"Your Highness, you have been busy these past few days. Today is New Year's Eve, let's go back to the official post first. I will have someone prepare a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner, which will not be difficult to prepare even if we are not in the capital."
He Zhiyu jumped up and sat on the horse, his back straight as a pine tree, dignified and gorgeous.
"Go to Minglou Inn."
Jing Yuan understood that His Highness was finally going to meet Miss Qiao II.
Not to mention Minglou Inn, there was not a single guest staying in any inn in the entire Qingzhou.
Firstly, there were refugees pouring in here, and secondly, who would stay out instead of going home on New Year's Eve? So Qiao Wanyan let herself go in the inn's kitchen.
The sleeves were held in place by the loops, revealing her slender arms, which were dazzlingly white. Her delicate hands, which were only used for reading, writing, gardening, and putting on makeup, were wrapping dumplings with thick, uneven dough.
There was a lot of flour on her fair face, but it was not very obvious. For a person who loves beauty, she didn't feel dirty at all at this moment, but instead, she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.
Yun Yao picked up a dumpling and said with a smile: "Look, Sister Yan, this is the most beautiful one I made! I will give it to Sister Yan when the time comes!"
"Okay, Yaoyao's dumplings must be delicious."
Yun Yao smiled with eyes curved, "Can you let me eat what Sister Yan made too?"
Qiao Wanyan looked embarrassed, "Yaoyao, the dumplings I made are for a very important person."
Yun Yao tilted her head slightly, "A very important person? Is it the prince? Didn't Sister Yao say she didn't like the prince? My Lord is such a liar, saying you don't like him, but sending him food and making dumplings from thousands of miles away, you are saying one thing and thinking another."
Qiao Wanyan's face turned red slowly, and she felt a little embarrassed.
Zi Yuan was unhappy, "Miss Yun, how can you say that about our young lady?"
Qiao Wanyan looked down at the dumplings in her hands, her eyes were like cold stars, filled with endless sadness and loneliness.
In the distance, He Zhiyu looked at her lost appearance with complicated emotions in his eyes.
Lu Jinye appeared from nowhere and walked over. He picked up a piece of dough and kneaded it in his hand without making a sound. "Don't pretend. He's gone."
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