The fox borrows the tiger's power
Passing by the mask stall again, the stall owner noticed Qi Guanlan's gaze, immediately straightened his hoodie, and stood up. "Sir, do you have anything you like?"
"Fox masks are the most popular right now; someone almost got into a fight over one the other day."
Wen Ruo smiled slightly, "What the shopkeeper said is true."
"Sir, that voice sounds familiar." The shopkeeper paused, then said, "Isn't this fox mask from our shop too?"
Wen Ruo nodded, and the stall owner immediately smiled, "So you're a repeat customer."
Qi Guanlan took out a tiger mask, the "king" character on the forehead was still pasted with gold foil. He put it on his face, turned around, and hummed, "Isn't it majestic?"
The stall owner gave a thumbs-up and praised, "Young master has a good eye. Coupled with your handsome and upright demeanor, you are truly majestic and extraordinary."
"Are you two newlyweds? You look very well-matched standing together."
"no."
That's an exaggeration.
Wen Ruo denied it directly. Qi Guanlan's Adam's apple bobbed, and he snorted lightly. The stall owner had nothing else but a keen eye for talent. He praised Qi Guanlan lavishly, his eyes glancing at the purse at his waist from time to time.
"Since it's a festival today, I'll give you a discount. This golden tiger mask is 100 coins."
"So expensive! Hers is only ten coins." But Wen Ruo didn't say anything. Qi Guanlan wasn't short of money, so it was better to give the stall owner a good holiday.
Qi Guanlan put it on and didn't take it off, seemingly quite satisfied. "No problem."
The stall owner's mouth nearly stretched to his ears as he eagerly extended his hand, "Thank you, young master."
"Fox, hand over the money!"
Wen Ruo looked at him in disbelief, "Me?"
"The fox is borrowing the tiger's power; I'm paying for it, is there a problem?"
“No problem!” Wen Ruo forced a smile and turned to the shopkeeper. “Give me a discount, considering I’m a repeat customer.”
The shopkeeper glanced at the two men, hesitated for a moment, and then, as if he had made up his mind, gritted his teeth and said, "Eighty, that's the lowest I can go. Look at this king, this beard, this pattern, I've used gold leaf on all of them."
Wen Ruo emptied her money bag and counted it. "But I only have fifty."
The stall owner glanced at Qi Guanlan, his eyes darting around. This young master's purse was already quite full, so why did he insist that the young lady pay? He really couldn't understand why the richer he was, the stingier he became.
The stall owner sighed helplessly, "Fifty it is then, young lady, but you should keep your eyes open."
Wen Ruo laughed and gave him all the coins. "Thanks for the reminder, I will."
Ha, he's become a stingy person.
Qi Guanlan took out his purse, took out a bracelet, and put it directly on Wen Ruo's wrist. He then turned to the stall owner and said, "Say it again."
"Gold!" The stall owner's eyes lit up. "I misspoke, young master, you're joking."
Wen Ruo didn't see clearly; her first impression was that it was cool, and the surface was pitted and uneven. Looking down, she saw a complex red braided rope strung with more than a dozen golden walnuts. "You're not kidding?"
"Return it to its rightful owner, and please don't bury it under the crabapple tree. It's much more convenient to take it whenever you need it."
Wen Ruo smiled, took off her bracelet, and carefully put it into her purse. Qi Guanlan glanced at it, then suddenly took back a string of copper coins and stuffed them into his purse as well. He looked around a few times and said, "The crabapple blossoms are quite beautiful."
The stall owner was dumbfounded. Qi Guanlan tossed down a piece of silver, saying, "Here's some extra for you."
The stall owner smiled broadly as he saw the two off.
At that time, tourists flocked to the terrace, hoping to catch a glimpse of the emperor's face, for His Majesty was a man of great beauty and grace.
Tiger led Fox through the crowd and quickly arrived at the city gate. Before the guards could even draw their swords, Qi Guanlan removed his mask.
The passage proceeded smoothly, with guards on both sides of the entrance. The guards wore turbans and brocade jackets, with black daggers at their waists. They stood tall and straight, and when they saw the two people, they did not move or even blink.
Wen Ruo suddenly understood what he was going to do.
He really does act on a whim.
Wen Ruo pretended to be out of breath and stopped halfway. She leaned against the wall and looked down. The performance on the terrace was clearly visible and quite lively.
"Why are you still so weak? Did you use all the herbal medicine to grow taller?"
Wen Ruo thought of the bowls of soup and suddenly felt acid reflux. She immediately got up and said with a bitter face, "Young Master really didn't consider my feelings at all."
"When borrowing someone else's power, you should always go for the biggest one." This is based on his years of experience.
“You don’t understand what it feels like to suddenly become rich,” Wen Ruo said, raising her hands in surrender. “I suddenly have to pay my respects to the emperor and empress. I come from a humble family. I’m scared, I’m nervous, and I have limited capacity to handle it.”
Qi Guanlan scoffed, "You're not even afraid of robbers, and my family isn't bad people, so what are you afraid of?"
"You've seen too much of this and you're not afraid anymore. But what does it mean to 'pay homage to the emperor's countenance'? You probably don't even understand that."
"We're all human, we don't have three heads and six arms, what's there to be afraid of?"
Wen Ruo, clinging to the wall, said bluntly, "You don't understand!"
The time was approaching. Qi Guanlan frowned, looked around, raised his sleeve to block the view of the person behind him, and whispered in her ear: "My uncle is afraid of his wife, my aunt loves to eat braised pork knuckle, my cousin loves to pretend to be a knight-errant, and you must know my mother."
"
Wen Ruo was so shocked that half of her body went numb. When Qi Guanlan saw that she had let go, he half-dragged and half-pulled her up to Xuan'an Tower.
"Look up!" Qi Guanlan commanded, and then helped her remove her mask.
Wen Ruo looked up at the sky. The moonlight was alluring, and the cool breeze brushed her face, dispelling her restlessness.
Qi Guanlan: "Happy Holidays!"
At this moment, music filled the air, hundreds of thousands of lights on the street resembled a sea of stars, lanterns slowly rose from the city tower, fireworks suddenly burst forth with tremendous sound, as if it were daytime, and countless shouts of praise and cheers of "Long live the Emperor!" rang out from below the city.
...
"Isn't that the girl who was gazing deeply into Zhao Heng's eyes!"
"She was actually standing on the city wall."
"The rumor that Qi Guanlan wanted to recognize her as his sworn sister is true."
"What a blessing."
Envious comments flooded in like a tide. Sun Yueyou stood below the terrace, her fists clenched tightly. "Mother, look who's on the city wall?"
Yue Li turned her head, her gaze falling on Sun Changfeng's face, and scolded, "You were reckless today, and ruined my good deed by acting on your own."
Sun Yueyou bit her lip, her ears ringing. She turned her head and said, "Shut up!"
Fu Jingjiang would rather go home and sit on the sidelines than accompany her to see her mother.
"It's so noisy!"
"What are you doing out here if you don't like crowds?" Being scolded on a holiday was naturally unpleasant. Then the man recognized her and, after looking at her closely for a few moments, immediately exclaimed, "Isn't this the girl who's going to take someone as her servant!"
"Who is she? What nonsense is she spouting?" Sun Yueyou's face turned ashen, her mocking laughter echoing through the room. The man looked at her defiantly, "I saw it with my own eyes, I'm telling you, that was ten thousand taels!"
"There's also a gigolo in the middle, the relationships are very complicated."
"That girl knelt down without hesitation, but unfortunately her mother threw her away."
"Her mother is confused too."
"I think it was done on purpose, otherwise wouldn't it have benefited her family?"
...
A strong gaze came from below, and the cold wind on the city wall bullied the weak and feared the strong. Strands of messy hair flew across her face, and Wen Ruo's nose itched slightly. She hurriedly covered her mouth, but still couldn't help but sneeze a few times.
Thanks to Qi Guanlan, she is now even more famous than Xi You.
"Wen Ruo!"
Qi Mingshuo exclaimed in surprise, and several pairs of eyes, as if smelling prey, turned to her. She was the rabbit lying in wait, with no one around to help her.
The Crown Prince, that big mouth, had only been heard of before, but had never been seen. He was indeed as handsome as Miss Zhou had described. Now, with his hands clasped in a fist salute, Qi Guanlan's words seemed to have some truth to them.
Princess Rongjing was at least somewhat familiar with the place. On the throne in the very center, the Emperor and the Empress sat together, and it was impossible to tell whose brocade sleeves with the same pattern belonged to whom.
All she knew was that the two were arm in arm, the table was covered with yellow silk with pearls embellishing the edges, fruit buds were placed on the table, and a long-spouted silver pot and wine vessels were placed next to it.
Wen Ruo realized what was happening and knelt down with a thud. Qi Guanlan frowned. This was a stone slab; just hearing the sound of it made him realize how painful it was. He now understood how scared she was.
Qi Hao: "It's a big holiday, why kneel? No need for formalities."
Xue Lingrou: "That's right. These high-ranking officials and nobles are now truly sharing the joy with the people."
The Empress is quite eloquent.
Wen Ruo: "Thank you, Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress."
Qi Guanlan took her arm and helped her up, saying, "I told you the old man didn't take good care of you."
Qi Mingshuo looked at his cousin, and before he could speak, Qi Guanlan explained directly, "She was wronged, so I brought her here to borrow the tiger's power. The greatest power here must be that of my uncle and aunt."
A hint of surprise flashed across Qi Mingshuo's face. "Who bullied her?"
Qi Guanlan nitpicked and said a few things, which made Wen Ru feel embarrassed. She could only manage to interject, "Thank you for helping me out, Young Master Qi."
She was just saying it casually; it was just a minor squabble, nothing to warrant taking it to His Majesty's ears. He's exaggerating it too much, making her sound so pitiful.
Qi Hao: "You're Master Yi's apprentice? He really refuses to become an official?"
Wen Ruo: "I only studied under him for two months. As far as I know, he likes to travel around."
Qi Hao sighed in disappointment, but Qi Mingshuo's eyes suddenly lit up. "If you go with him, won't you be riding horses all over the world?"
Wen Ruo shook her head. "Your Highness is joking. I can't ride a horse, I don't know many characters, and I don't know martial arts. How could I possibly make my way in the martial world? Master Yi is a benevolent healer who walks country roads, helping people and saving lives. He doesn't get involved in the affairs of the martial world."
Qi Mingshuo looked regretful, while Xue Lingrou raised the corners of her mouth, "So what are your plans for the future?"
"I haven't decided yet."
"Do you want to get into Honghu Academy?"
Wen Ruo's heart pounded. She looked at the Empress and stammered, "My knowledge is limited."
"The most important thing is to be eager to learn. Following Mr. Yi is also a good option. Who knows, another miracle doctor might emerge in the future, practicing medicine throughout the world."
Qi Guanlan: "Uncle, since the report was successful and the person involved is here, shouldn't we give them a reward?"
"Since General Gu also said you'd be included," Qi Hao pondered for a moment, then said, "Why don't you have the Empress write a letter of recommendation, and then it's up to you whether you go or not?"
Those who pass the academy's exams and receive the dean's recommendation and guarantee, and who pass the palace examination, can enter the imperial court to serve. Those who excel in the examinations can directly become officials.
There are not many academies with this qualification, and Honghu Academy is one of them. It can be said to be the second Imperial Academy.
Wen Ruo immediately knelt down, overjoyed. She bit her lip, afraid that she might burst out laughing without realizing it.
Her long dress swayed gently, a reminder of life's ups and downs, but a new year brought great fortune. Fireworks burst forth again, one after another, mirroring her mood—a beauty so overwhelming it was almost indistinguishable from any direction.
She glanced at Qi Guanlan out of the corner of her eye, wondering how she should thank him.
Qi Guanlan smiled and said, "Congratulations!"
"Wen Ruo? Am I seeing things?"
As the lantern festival was drawing to a close, Zhao Heng came with his father and mother to pay their respects. When he saw her, he paused for a moment, and Wen Ruo smiled gently, "Young Master Zhao is so young, how could that be?"
Zhao Heng: "Do you want me to take you home?"
Qi Guanlan said coldly, "You're quite good at playing the good guy among the people I brought."
Wen Ruo smiled and said, "Thank you both, young masters. I'm already famous enough!"
Qi Guanlan raised an eyebrow, "What are you afraid of!"
Wen Ruo sighed softly, "People are afraid of becoming famous, just as pigs are afraid of getting fat."
The Empress quickly covered her mouth, but laughter escaped through her fingers. Qi Hao stretched out his long sleeve, and Xue Lingrou hid behind it to look at Rong Jing. Princess Rong Jing couldn't help but shake her head.
"Even if you're famous, can you compare to me?"
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