Jiecao Jushi is over seventy years old, which is considered a long life in Dayong.
She did not follow the example of reclusive literati who built a thatched hut in the mountains, spending their days picking flowers, tending plants, composing poems, and writing couplets. Instead, she lived with her children in Suzhou, where the Jiangnan prefectural government was located.
According to the information provided by Xia Guang, the hermit Jiecao has a son and a daughter, both of whom she adopted later. She has an eccentric personality and does not change the surnames of her adopted son and daughter, but uses their original names.
It took about an hour on horseback to find 'Wangbeiju' in a very remote part of the southern city.
Zhao Shu's gaze lingered on the three characters "Wangbeiju". The characters were extremely beautiful, like clouds drifting across the sky. They were not arrogant, but powerfully drawn; not grand, but exuding a majestic air. They possessed a unique and proud spirit within their delicate beauty.
There is also a couplet on the door. The couplet seems to have a hidden meaning, but it is not clear. However, judging from the literal meaning, it can be seen that the owner of this residence is a person with a broad mind.
First line: The sea embraces all rivers; its vastness lies in its capacity.
The second line reads: "A sheer cliff stands a thousand feet high; without desire, one is invincible."
As Jiang Ying and Empress Yide's teacher, Zhao Shu naturally went to knock on the door herself, without asking anyone else to do it. She gently knocked on the door, and soon a young boy opened it with a 'ga' and peeked out. Seeing Zhao Shu's gentle and quiet demeanor, he immediately felt a sense of goodwill towards her. However, when he saw Wei Tingsi's cold face and domineering eyes, he withdrew his head back, leaving only a crack in the door.
"Young man, may I ask if Jiecao Residence is open?" Zhao Shu asked politely, raising her hand to bow in the manner of a scholar.
Upon hearing this, the young boy knew they had come to see the hermit Jiecao, and immediately tried to close the door. Zhao Shu quickly stopped him, saying, "Brother, brother, we've come from the Yongwang Mansion in the capital. My mother is a student of the hermit Jiecao, and I've come to see my master."
The young man was taken aback. He looked Zhao Shu up and down, and asked with some disbelief, "You're from the Prince Yong's residence? Do you have any proof?"
It was obvious that he knew about the Prince Yong's residence, but strangely, he required proof instead of reporting it. Zhao Shu's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition came over her.
"I am the best proof. If you don't believe me, let me in. You'll know when you see me. I look a lot like my father and mother." She did indeed look somewhat like Jiang Ying and somewhat like Prince Yong.
Of course, this couldn't actually serve as proof, but she racked her brains and couldn't think of anything that could prove her identity. The Prince Yong's Mansion did have the Prince Yong's Decree, but she wasn't really keen on taking it out at the moment.
The boy grinned as if he were listening to a joke, then stopped laughing and tried to close the door again without a word. Zhao Shu quickly stopped him, squeezed her hand inside, pulled off the Yongwang token hanging on her body, and showed it to him. "I am Princess Jun of the Yongwang Mansion. Open the door now!"
The young boy was no pushover either. He glanced at her disdainfully and said, "Miss, the Master does not receive guests. Please leave. He would not see even a prince, let alone a princess."
“My mother is a student of the lay Buddhist, and I have come to pay my respects to my master.” From the moment she asked for proof, Zhao Shu knew that the lay Buddhist Jiecao would not want to see her, or anyone in the royal family.
This is why she didn't send out invitations but went directly to their door.
"I'm sorry, the layman does not receive guests, nor does he have any disciples." The boy had spoken so much and entangled with Zhao Shu just now, but it was only because he was curious about the three words 'Prince Yong's Mansion'. He did know that the layman had a student who had become the Princess of Yong, but the layman forbade him to say so and told those around him that he had no students.
Driven by curiosity, he made Zhao Shu talk so much.
Zhao Shu wanted to say something, but Xiao Tong pushed her hand away and slammed the door shut.
"Brother, brother, hey..." Zhao Shu knocked on the door a few more times, but no one came out to open it, not even a sound.
"Shushu, stop calling, I won't open the door for you," Wei Tingsi said.
Zhao Shu exhaled a breath of stale air, glanced at the vines climbing the high wall, and became more and more interested in looking at them.
Little Guozi next to her also looked at it. It was just an ordinary ivy or morning glory, nothing special. Why did the princess keep looking at it?
Wei Tingsi immediately saw through Zhao Shu's thoughts, smiled wryly, and remained silent, waiting for Zhao Shu's next move.
Since it was her master's residence, Zhao Shu was too embarrassed to climb over the wall immediately. She knocked on the door for a while, but no one answered. There were few people in the area, and she didn't see a single stranger for a long time.
"Little Guo, you stay here and guard." Zhao Shu was worried about Prince Yong, so she didn't have time to play the game of patiently persuading him. She rolled up her sleeves, tucked her folding fan into her jade belt, and prepared to climb the wall.
Of course, she was only pretending to climb the wall; she was too embarrassed to ask Wei Tingsi for help. After all, having him take her inside would involve physical contact, and she was being a reserved person right now…
Wei Tingsi was helpless. This woman wouldn't even ask him for help. He shook his head, put his arm around Zhao Shu's waist, and climbed over the high wall.
Upon entering, they landed right behind an osmanthus tree. The tree was not tall, only about two meters, and its dense foliage conveniently blocked their figures.
In front of the osmanthus tree was a path lined with green bamboo. When the summer breeze blew, the bamboo leaves rustled in the wind. Just now, the child and the man were talking.
"Young master, what has arrived is a beautiful young lady dressed as a man, a cold-blooded man, and a pale-faced eunuch." The boy was quite talkative, and the words he used to describe them were extremely apt.
However, Xiao Guozi wasn't that pale; he was just a bit paler than the average man. Zhao Shu didn't pay attention to any of that. What surprised her was that the boy could tell she was a woman and that Xiao Guozi was a eunuch!
"Where is your mother?" The man didn't say much after hearing this, but instead asked another question.
Zhao Shu was startled, not expecting that the man was the adopted son of the Hermit of the Grass-Knot. Through the gaps in the green leaves, she could only see his profile. The man was vaguely a frail scholar, so weak that he seemed like he would fall over if the wind blew him down. He was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old.
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