Chapter 20
Zhao Congyun has always been very careful with his drinking and rarely gets really drunk.
Tonight is an exception.
It was just a pot of sweet-scented osmanthus wine, but somehow he got drunk. Back in the palace, he drank all night, feeling dizzy and indifferent to everyone.
The emperor originally just wanted to have a meal with his brother in a friendly and respectful manner, but he could no longer tolerate him. Finally, he scolded him and ordered his men to send this disappointing brother back to the palace.
Zhao Congyun was so drunk that he didn't even react when his house caught fire.
Considering that the fire was small and Su Dingrou and the maids were frightened but safe, Uncle Dong did not wake him up.
By the time the aftermath was settled, it was almost two o'clock in the morning, and the mansion was gradually returning to peace. When Uncle Dong returned to the garden, he found Yue Mingming's room completely dark, without a single light.
...Has he already fallen asleep?
He suddenly felt something was wrong.
Given Yue Mingming's personality, how could she disappear when such a big thing happened in the mansion and Su Dingrou was involved?
Uncle Dong sent a secret signal, hoping to find the secret guard to inquire about the situation, but no one responded...
All six secret guards who followed Yue Mingming disappeared!
Uncle Dong reacted very quickly and pushed open the door of Yue Mingming's house. Sure enough, there was no one there.
Oh no!
It turned out that this strange fire was set at her!
Uncle Dong thought for a moment, and without disturbing anyone, he turned around and quietly flew towards Chenghuaizhai.
A passing goose leaves traces. Since they set fire to the mansion and robbed people, and even eliminated the secret guards, they must have left some clues...
But for Uncle Dong, just a little is enough!
*
Zhao Congyun did not sleep well.
The lingering feeling of boredom was brought into his dreams, turning into a long corridor that he could never finish walking through.
His mouth was dry and his heart was filled with anxiety. There was a figure not far away, but no matter how hard he tried to chase it, he couldn't catch it.
Every time he finally got a little closer, something like a vine would emerge and wrap around him. The more he struggled, the tighter it became, until it finally strangled him so much that he couldn't breathe...
Rumble!
A loud noise came from somewhere, and Zhao Congyun woke up suddenly with cold sweat all over his back.
With a splitting headache from a hangover, Zhao Congyun instinctively reached for the hangover soup by his bed. This was a tacit understanding between him and Uncle Dong. Every time he got drunk, Uncle Dong would prepare a bowl for him, without exception.
This time, I came up empty-handed.
Zhao Congyun stood up and opened the door. The thick night mixed with the cold wind blew around him, and he couldn't help shivering.
"Your Highness! Something happened!" Uncle Dong hurried over and ran close to him.
Zhao Congyun frowned and asked, "What's wrong? What was that loud noise just now?"
Uncle Dong paused, swallowed the worst news, and replied, "The Caoyun Wharf was bombed just now! The noise came from over there!"
Zhao Congyun was suddenly shocked: "Then tomorrow's grain transport ship must be... who is so bold?!"
Uncle Dong looked at him silently without answering.
Zhao Congyun immediately understood and gritted his teeth, "Is it him? He must be desperate!"
"Quickly take your men to the docks and try to recover the losses. Assist the patrol battalion to prevent further chaos!"
"Oh, right, the Ministry of Justice needs to be notified as well," Zhao Congyun rubbed his temples vigorously, slowly sorting out his thoughts, "And the Imperial Censorate..."
He suddenly stopped because Uncle Dong looked wrong.
Zhao Congyun's heart skipped a beat: "...is there anything else?"
"Mrs. Yue is missing."
Zhao Congyun was startled, his first reaction being anger. "It's already this late, and she's still fooling around like that! Are those secret guards dead? Why didn't they stop her?"
Uncle Dong lowered his eyes and said, "Madam Yue was taken away from the mansion... The six secret guards were all eliminated, and their bodies thrown into the fire. The servant named 'Xing'er' was also taken back by the concubine and imprisoned."
Zhao Congyun's body seemed to shake.
It's like stepping into an abyss.
"Did Li Pingru do it?" he asked anxiously, with a glimmer of hope in his heart.
...as long as it wasn't her crazy father.
Uncle Dong's face was solemn. "I checked the wounds on the body of the secret guard. They are very similar to those of the assassins we fought last time at Yuhu Lake."
He recounted the story of the fire at Chenghuai Zhai: "My guess is that this was an 'inside-outside conspiracy'. The Consort was responsible for setting the fire and luring Lady Yue over, but it was another group of people who took the people away."
Zhao Congyun listened silently, trying to think calmly about how to find someone, but his brain was against him and uncontrollably repeated the scene before he left the house.
The last words he said were a threat to her.
Zhao Congyun's heart tightened.
"Prince?" Uncle Dong called him.
Zhao Congyun came back to his senses and suddenly seemed to remember something. He went into the house, picked up a long sword, and rushed out quickly.
"What are you going to do?" Uncle Dong was shocked.
Zhao Congyun had a blank expression on his face, his eyes reddened. "Since he's an accomplice, Li Pingru must know where he is!"
Uncle Dong stopped him: "She won't admit it! If things go wrong, it might even expose your involvement in the canal transportation!"
Zhao Congyun ignored him.
"Your Highness, please reconsider!" Uncle Dong said anxiously. "The grain ship is burning at the dock, the corruption case hasn't been concluded, Sun Dayong is still in jail... and there are hundreds of thousands of disaster victims in Jiangzhou. Are you going to ignore them?"
His steps suddenly stopped, his hand loosened, and the sword fell to the ground with a clang.
That’s right! He forgot that he had a gold and silver chain around his neck. It looked majestic on ordinary days, but it always reminded him that freedom was like a mirage, out of reach!
However, he was unwilling to give in. His chest felt so tight that it almost exploded. He took a deep breath and said, "So... you don't care whether she lives or dies?"
It didn't seem like he was asking Uncle Dong, but more like he was questioning himself.
Uncle Dong said resolutely, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Leave this matter to me! I swear here that I will find him, or I will lose all my martial arts skills and die a miserable death!"
Zhao Congyun's pupils shrank slightly, and he opened his mouth, finally uttering only two words in a low voice: "...Trouble!"
"Prepare the car and go to Yaoyue Tower."
"Now?" Uncle Dong was surprised.
"I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself... and will kill Li Pingru!"
There is another reason that cannot be expressed - Yue Mingming's shadow is everywhere in this garden, how can he stay here?
Before leaving, he suddenly paused, turned back and warned, "Remember to find a reason to bring Xing'er out... Otherwise, she'll come back and blame us for not saving her."
“…”Uncle Dong nodded.
At that moment, he only felt the unprecedented loneliness and poverty on Zhao Congyun's back, which made him feel sad.
*
Yue Mingming didn't know whether she was lucky or the game gave her the halo of the protagonist, but when she was swimming to exhaustion, she was luckily rescued by a pleasure boat.
Although the owner of the pleasure boat saved her, he was not friendly. After handing her hot tea and a blanket, he didn't even say a simple greeting and just started playing the piano.
Yue Mingming always felt that this woman looked familiar.
After waiting for the song to end, Yue Mingming asked, "Sister, could you please take me to Prince Jia's Mansion..."
The owner of the pleasure boat looked her over carefully and flatly refused: "No! You have to come back with me. I want to do an experiment."
Yue Mingming's head buzzed.
Did she poke some perverts today? Compared to these weird people, Zhao Congyun is like an angel descended to earth!
She suddenly missed the palace, the ginseng garden, and... the people in the garden very much.
"I'm telling you, I'm useless!" Yue Mingming tried to explain, "I can't play any of the music, chess, calligraphy, or painting. I have a bad temper and poor health... I'm really not cut out for an experiment! I can pay you whatever you want. Please let me go!"
The owner of the pleasure boat was stunned for a moment, then said with interest, "You're quite interesting..."
“…”
It sounded like a compliment, but coming from a pervert's mouth, Yue Mingming didn't know how to understand it.
She was tired and scared, and soon developed a fever. Her only regret was that she did not faint from the fever. She could only watch as the owner of the houseboat took her into a gorgeous little building and threw her onto a fragrant big bed.
Damn it… She probably guessed what kind of a hell of a place this was!
However, after waiting for a long time, the imagined plot did not happen. Instead, someone began to wipe her forehead with a wet towel.
Cautious and clumsy.
Yue Mingming opened his eyes in shock, only to see that the other person was just a little girl of four or five years old, as pretty as a doll in a New Year picture.
Such a young maid...is she a child laborer?
The little girl kept poking her forehead with the towel like a chicken pecking at rice, which made Yue Mingming a little irritable.
"Who are you? Um...can you please stop?"
The little girl paused after hearing this and said seriously, "My name is Anian. Auntie said you were not feeling well, so she asked me to take care of you. Are you feeling better now?"
"...I have a fever. How can I get better so quickly?"
Yue Mingming felt that he must have gone crazy, otherwise why would he argue with a child? He also felt that she looked familiar.
Ah Nian thought for a moment and started poking her again: "When I had a fever, Auntie did this. Since you are not well yet, I will continue to help you."
Yue Mingming sighed. Is this really a four or five-year-old child? How could there be such an old-fashioned child?
"Can you give me some water to drink?"
"Okay, you wait." Anian jumped off the bed quickly, fiddled with it for a while, and brought a bowl of tea.
Yue Mingming took it and found it was neither too hot nor too cold, just the right temperature. He was quite a careful child... perhaps he had been doing this kind of waiter work since he was a child.
Her heart softened, and after thanking her, she tentatively asked, "Little girl, where is this place?"
Ah Nian shook her head firmly: "Auntie said that I can't tell you, lest you run away."
Yue Mingming choked, and Ah Nian continued, "I won't tell you anything, so don't ask. Is there anything else you need? I can help you, but I can't talk to you anymore."
“…”
What kind of person is the kind of child he raises!
Yue Mingming was both angry and amused: "Don't bother you anymore... I feel dizzy and want to sleep! You can go now!"
Ah Nian seemed relieved: "Okay, I'll come and bring you the medicine in three hours."
She tucked in the corner of Yue Mingming's quilt in a businesslike manner, added a tranquilizing pill to the incense burner, and tiptoed away.
The surroundings returned to silence, and the fragrance spread. Yue Mingming was a little dazed, as if she smelled a familiar scent.
The smell belongs to Zhao Congyun.
It was a little less crisp than the pine snow scent on his body, more calm and stable, but just as pleasant.
Yue Mingming remembered that this was the incense that he often burned in his study... The face of the owner of the pleasure boat finally appeared in her memory. She had indeed seen this person before - the dancer who flirted with Zhao Congyun in public at the Yuhu dinner.
...This is Yaoyue Tower, and the person who saved her is Jiang Huan!
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