Chapter 29
In the palace.
Tian Wenshan and Meng She stared at each other, as quiet as chickens.
His Majesty disappeared an hour ago, but they don't know how long he's actually been gone, because His Majesty woke up once and asked the eunuchs who were taking care of him to leave. When the eunuchs realized something was wrong and went back in, His Majesty was already gone.
Meanwhile, Tian Wenshan secretly searched the entire palace and finally found His Majesty.
His Majesty has secret guards by his side, so he probably left through a secret passage. The secret passages in the palace are interconnected, and Tian Wenshan doesn't know where His Majesty went.
But he had a vague idea, so he quickly sent a message to the young imperial uncle, asking him to call Lord Pei away from the Pei residence.
This was the first time Tian Wenshan had experienced something like this, but it was commonplace when His Majesty was still the seventh prince. His Majesty was not bound by dogma and was the late emperor's favorite prince, so he almost displayed his arbitrariness to the fullest extent.
Therefore, the late emperor did not have high hopes for Your Majesty's succession, and even when he paved the way for Your Majesty, it was towards a life of wealth and leisure.
Until His Majesty ascended the throne, he visibly calmed down and lost his impetuous demeanor that seemed ready to quit at any moment. Even if he disliked court affairs, he would spend a whole day reviewing memorials in the Chengming Hall.
But unexpectedly, His Majesty left the palace at such a critical moment without informing anyone.
Meng She said, "I won't stay in the palace either. I'll go outside and try my luck; maybe I can run into His Majesty."
Tian Wenshan thought Meng She's words made sense, so he personally saw Meng She off and had people keep the news that His Majesty was not in the palace a secret. Therefore, when the imperial physician wanted to take His Majesty's pulse that night, he also refused.
When Meng She was leaving the palace, he bumped into Physician Sun Ying and stepped forward with his umbrella, saying, "Physician Sun, please wait!"
Before becoming a doctor in the army, he traveled all over the country seeking out and treating difficult and complicated diseases. Since he was also traveling around, he had naturally heard of Sun Ying, who was also a traveling doctor.
Later, when the country was at peace, they all opened clinics in the capital, making it difficult for them not to know each other.
Sun Ying slowed down.
Meng She stepped forward and asked familiarly, "May I ask how Her Highness the Imperial Concubine is?"
Sun Ying said, "The Empress has already woken up. We must thank Doctor Meng for his recommendation."
"No problem, no problem. As soon as I took her pulse, I knew that Her Majesty's illness could only be cured by you. I must thank you for saving Her Majesty."
Sun Ying chuckled and listened as Meng She rambled on for a while, finally saying ingratiatingly, "Dr. Sun, yesterday I went to examine the pulse of the Lady of the Pei family, and her pulse was very similar to that of the Imperial Concubine..."
Sun Ying said calmly, "The Imperial Concubine's pulse does indeed resemble that of a patient I treated before. However, she had ingested something by mistake and was treated by an incompetent doctor, which is why she was in that condition. It's hard to say about the Imperial Concubine's case."
Meng She believed that Sun Ying recognized the person in the palace as Lady Pei, but did not want to expose the royal family's secrets, so she referred to her in this way.
Sun Ying's words dispelled Meng She's doubts, as she had no reason to cover for Madam Pei. Perhaps he was just being too suspicious?
After leaving the palace, Meng She bowed to Sun Ying, who nodded to the side, and then the two turned and boarded different carriages.
As soon as Meng She got into the carriage, he was startled by Wei Si, who was squatting inside. His heart almost jumped out of his throat.
This kid was dressed all in black, but his eyes were surprisingly bright.
The first impression he gives is that he's a bit silly.
But maybe it's just good luck for a fool.
Meng She thought to himself, "This guy is stupid but skilled in martial arts. Not only was he chosen to protect Madam Pei, avoiding the dangers of other secret guards, but he also got a good evaluation in front of His Majesty."
Wei Si said, "Doctor Meng, His Majesty is at home and wants you to come and treat him."
He couldn't get into the palace, but His Majesty casually gave him an order, so he could only wait in the carriage. Unexpectedly, in just a short while, Doctor Meng came out of the palace before the gates were locked.
Meng She was startled: "Silly boy, why didn't you say so earlier!"
He quickly instructed the coachman to drive the horses at full speed.
When the bodyguards were injured, he would usually come to their homes to treat them, so he knew what Wei Si meant as soon as he mentioned the house.
Meng She turned around and asked Wei Si, "What is Your Majesty doing now?"
"Take a hot bath and drink ginger soup."
"?"
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Pei Jin was busy at the government office until midnight. The rain outside had stopped. He originally wanted to sleep in the office fully clothed and make do for the night, but after thinking about it, he decided to return to the Pei residence.
Upon arriving at Hengwu Garden, several lamps remained lit under the eaves, illuminating the path from the courtyard to the front of the house.
Pei Jin felt a warm glow in his heart. He dismissed his attendant and quickly stepped forward to open the door.
The room was quiet. Okra was not there, and the tea on the table was untouched. He walked in and entered the bedroom, where he saw Qi Yu lying on her side on the bed. The faint candlelight flickered, and her eyelashes trembled slightly, as if she might wake up at any moment, or as if she was waiting for someone.
Pei Jin quietly took off his slightly damp cloak and draped it over the rack behind the screen. He planned to check Qi Yu's forehead temperature and, if it was normal, spend the rest of the night on the couch.
He stepped forward, and before he could even reach out, he noticed Qi Yu's shoes, which were half-wet and splattered with mud on the toes, and the cloak beside her that showed signs of having been used.
She went to the courtyard.
It was raining when we went.
As Pei Jin thought about it, he gradually felt a little angry. He reached out and placed his hand on Qi Yu's forehead.
Fortunately, everything is normal.
Pei Jin calmed down a bit and was about to pull his hand away when Qi Yu, half-asleep, grabbed his hand: "You're here?"
Pei Jin said, "Yes, I'm back."
Even though Qi Yu didn't know when he would return, she still left a few lights on to wait for him and put herself in a light sleep so that she would be startled awake by any noise.
Is this how she figured out how ordinary couples should get along?
Pei Jin felt a little strange. He thought of the wet shoes and the used cloak, and deduced that Qi Yu had even waited for him in the courtyard for a while.
But when no one came, they turned back inside.
Pei Jin said, "Go back to sleep. I just got back and I'm still cold. Sleep on the couch tonight."
Qi Yu opened her eyes and silently released Pei Jin's hand.
She mistook Pei Jin for Wu Shiyan.
It wasn't until Pei Jin spoke that she instantly came to her senses.
Qi Yu was no longer sleepy. Seeing Pei Jin's handsome and gentle face appear even more so in the dim candlelight, she pulled the blanket up a little and hummed in response.
There was a soft couch in the bedroom, where Pei Jin rested after washing up.
There was someone inside. Qi Yu tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She couldn't understand why Pei Jin had gone to such lengths to come back from the government office in the middle of the night.
In this way, Wu Shiyan would definitely not be able to get in, because Pei Jin would notice if there was any movement.
Qi Yu noticed her heart pounding wildly. In that instant, she even had a desperate thought: if Wu Shiyan barged in right now and the truth came out, it wouldn't be so bad.
But Wu Shiyan did not come in. While Qi Yu was wide awake and lost in thought, the sound of a flute drifted from afar.
The sound was coming from the house next door.
With the sound of the flute playing next door, Wu Shiyan wouldn't suddenly appear at the Pei residence.
Qi Yu's heart gradually calmed down, and she closed her eyes with peace of mind.
As soon as one piece ended, another began. Just when Pei Jin thought the flute music was about to stop, it would start playing again in the next instant.
It was clearly the same piece of music, yet it was played over and over again, and the original longing was replaced by resentment, eventually becoming even more mournful.
Pei Jin couldn't sleep.
Hengwu Courtyard is good in every way, secluded and quiet, but it's a bit too close to the neighboring house, so the sound of the flute is impossible to ignore.
Early in the morning, Qi Yu waved her hand in front of Pei Jin.
Pei Jin forced a smile and said, "Madam."
Okra looked a little listless: "Why is there suddenly noise next door?"
It's usually deathly quiet, not even a bird chirping, but last night someone played the flute for half the night, which was really strange.
Qi Yu felt a little guilty, so she told Pei Jin to have a meal and then go to bed to catch up on his sleep. She also gave Qiu Kui a day off so she could go back to her room to rest.
Qi Yu said, "I'll go visit the neighbor next door and see if I can get him to stop blowing his pipe tonight."
Pei Jin pulled Qi Yu back: "Don't go. The other party is too resentful. We can't deal with this kind of person."
Moreover, this area is extremely valuable, so to be able to own such a large house here, one must probably have powerful connections in the capital.
He was worried about Qi Yu going alone with the housekeeper.
Pei Jin said, "I'll handle this."
Find out who the powerful figures backing the other party are and impeach them.
Qi Yu nodded hesitantly.
Pei Jin continued, "If you're bored, you can go to the study next door to read some books. I don't use that study often, so some books are just piled up there because I have nowhere else to put them."
"Or take your maid and go for a stroll in the garden, but not for too long, as it's getting chilly today."
"You can also go out of the mansion to shop. You don't need to bring any money. Just put it on the Pei family's tab. But remember to bring the maids and guards from the mansion with you."
Qi Yu thought for a moment and said, "I'll go to the study."
Since the study was right next door, Pei Jin did not arrange for any other maids.
Qi Yu probably preferred not to have any of the Pei family's maids around her, rather than being served.
After breakfast, Hengwu Courtyard returned to tranquility.
Lin Qi also found an opportunity to tell Qi Yu about Zhao Wanyi waking up last night.
Qi Yu felt a weight lifted from her heart, and her body felt much lighter.
Then she thought of Wu Shiyan. Everyone who listened to the flute for half the night fell asleep as soon as they hit the bed, so Wu Shiyan must be sleeping at this time as well.
She certainly didn't necessarily need to see him.
Qi Yu went to the study, and as soon as she pushed open the door, she was shocked by the collection of books inside.
The books here were of all kinds, which piqued her interest. After picking out a few books, she found a chair, sat down, opened the books, and began to read them quickly.
The book Qi Yu took, although its title sounded like a travelogue—which was why she picked it out—was actually a storybook.
It tells the story of a well-bred young lady and a gentle young man. The two are well-matched in terms of social standing, so the plot develops very smoothly, and they get married without any obstacles.
Because of the fluent and vivid writing style, Qi Yu did not put the book down, but continued reading.
A few pages passed, and the plot quickly progressed to the wedding night. Qi Yu was still wondering what the second half of the book would be about when her hand stopped turning the pages.
She looked too fast, and by the time she realized what she had seen, it was too late.
The wedding night... Accompanied by several pages of detailed descriptions and clear illustrations, Qi Yu finally realized that this was a book intended to enlighten noble ladies and scions of aristocratic families.
No wonder the protagonists are such a perfect match.
Qi Yu's face was burning hot. She looked up, her eyes sparkling, but after a moment, she buried herself in her book again.
This rare learning opportunity should not be missed.
She was so engrossed in reading that she didn't realize someone had come in until the study door was pushed open.
Qi Yu coughed lightly, her cheeks flushed. Thinking it was a maid serving tea, she said, "Put the tea down and leave."
The study door closed again, and someone whispered, "Ayu, it's me."
Qi Yu looked up, her watery eyes showing a hint of panic as she looked at the person who had come.
Her radiant appearance and smiling face contrasted sharply with Wu Shiyan's coldness and listless expression.
Wu Shiyan's voice was hoarse, and he rambled incoherently: "Pei Jin is sleeping, no one will find us."
Qi Yu: "?"
Wu Shiyan continued slowly, "He was here last night, so I couldn't go in. I could only linger outside the window for a long time, but Ayu didn't notice me."
Qi Yu: "..."
"In order to secretly send messages to A-Yu, I played the flute for half the night."
“…”
Wu Shiyan's gaze fell on the book in Qi Yu's hand. Judging from just a few lines of text written in reverse, he realized: "I've also read the book in A Yu's hand."
As soon as he finished speaking, an unnatural blush spread across his face, his lips curled up, and his gaze gradually heated up.
It swept away the previous slump.
Wu Shiyan had only one thought in his mind: It's so hot.
Qi Yu: "!!"
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