Chapter 82: Yuecheng Hundred Miles, the Contemporary Jia Xu
Two days later, Shang Yuwan and his group arrived safely in Yuecheng. Yuecheng was located east of Dayu, quite far from the place guarded by General Zhendong, and the journey took three days by carriage.
As the sun sets, they walk into the city under the setting sun's glow. At a glance, they can see the city full of blooming peach blossoms and swaying green willows. Everything is dyed with a layer of light golden light.
In March, when the weather is warm, people walking on the street are either wearing blue shirts or gauze robes, and they seem to be shouting on both sides of the street.
Completely different from Luzhou City.
Xiao Qinggu brought a group of people to the City Lord's Mansion, and City Lord Xin welcomed them warmly.
They had been working non-stop in Luzhou City for so many days that no matter how hard they tried to hide their exhaustion, they couldn't hide it. City Lord Xin was not blind and quickly arranged for everyone to be settled according to Xiao Qinggu's instructions. When Xiao Qinggu saw Xiaoman, he was silent for a moment, but eventually he imprisoned her and Mingshu, whose head was covered and whose face was not visible, in the secret cell in the City Lord's Mansion.
Yue Zhu saw it, but didn't say much.
Shang Yuwan couldn't sleep, so he lay on the roof most of the night watching the people in Yuecheng.
"Yuwan?"
The bell on the eaves rang softly, and a voice came from downstairs.
Shang Yuwan sat up and looked down. The person coming in was wearing a white dress with blue patterns. It was Xiao Qingxu.
Yuecheng is a little warmer than Luzhoucheng and Yanmen, but he still wears a cloak and dresses thicker than others.
The two of them, one above and one below, looked at each other silently in the light of the lantern.
"...Do you want to come up?" Shang Yuwan always felt that this kind of eye contact was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember where.
While my mind was still thinking, my mouth had already made the invitation.
Xiao Qingxu was in his room. He saw Shang Yuwan lying on the roof through the window and came over as if possessed.
He didn't know how to start and was stunned when he heard it.
Shang Yuwan felt a little awkward about the sudden silence, so she said, "It's pretty good up there, do you want to take a look?"
Yuecheng was Xiao Qinggu's fiefdom. This girl was lucky, as City Lord Xin managed Yuecheng in perfect order, so she never had to worry about anything. Yuecheng wasn't as strict as Yanmen, nor was it governed by Emperor Chengming like in Kyoto, so the market closed early.
The management here is relatively lax. Since today is the first day of the Spring Flower Festival, Yuecheng is still brightly lit at midnight and is bustling with people.
Before Xiao Qingxu's brain could react, he nodded.
Shang Yuwan thought that he was weak, so he flew down, put his arms around the man's thin waist and flew up again.
She put the stunned man aside, turned around and lay down in a "big" shape.
After a while, perhaps feeling something was wrong, he crossed his legs.
“…” seems even more wrong.
Shang Yuwan placed her hands on her stomach, intertwining her fingers. She didn't know what was wrong with her. She had clearly been the one who asked the host to come up, but now she felt uncomfortable.
Xiao Qingxu sat obediently with his legs bent and his hands on his knees, and asked, "Why don't you go to the Spring Flower Festival?"
"It's just a custom in Yuecheng. I don't like to join in the fun."
In her previous life in Kyoto, Shang Yuwan always considered whether to join in the fun or not. As for this Spring Flower Festival, she was really tired and didn't want to go at all.
Xiao Qinggu was in high spirits. He took Ji Suxian and Ju Gongcheng out to play and it was unknown when they would be back.
“…I see.”
The two fell into silence.
After a while, Xiao Qingxu's butt hurt from sitting so much that he just lay down like Shang Yuwan, but he didn't cross his legs.
The two people chatted in a random manner.
"What's the latest news?"
"No. Langjiang is very quiet, Qu Qi is silent, and Li Man and You Kou are as quiet as chickens. Kyoto will probably not really get lively until we arrive."
"How was the trial going for Mingshu and Xiaoman?"
"Hard bones, nothing came out of it."
"...Don't get hurt too badly. After all, you belong to the princess. There's no need for a clear letter. Just increase the punishment if you refuse to open your mouth."
Shang Yuwan thought for a moment and then asked, "Are there any high-ranking officials or nobles in this city?"
Xiao Qingxu noticed she was thinking, and said, "There aren't any high-ranking officials, but there is Baili Pu and his apprentice Yuan Ji. These two spoke well of the Shang family, and Baili Pu even impeached Emperor Chengming because of this. He offended people and was ordered to return home to recuperate for a period of time, and was temporarily dismissed from his official position. Now that Liman and Youkou are invading Dayu, Emperor Chengming has asked them to return to the capital early."
"Yuecheng is Bailipu's hometown. After the Spring Flower Festival, he should be heading back to Beijing."
"Baili Pu, Yuan Ji..." This is really like sending a pillow when you are sleepy.
Shang Yuwan thought about it carefully.
In her previous life, she had met Bailipu in Kyoto. This old man could be regarded as the most stubborn and pedantic scholar in Dayu, but he was also a man who cared about the people of the world. In the court of Dayu, he was a loyal minister like her father, and he was as honest and upright as a good official in a novel.
As for Yuan Ji - there is no need to say much about the purpose of Emperor Chengming letting the master and disciple return to the capital. He simply wanted Yuan Ji to come up with ideas so that the soldiers of Dayu could have a legitimate reason to give Liman and You Kou a hard time.
The reason is simple: Yuan Ji is a vicious person who will do anything to deal with his enemies.
It would be great if he could come up with a legitimate gimmick.
Shang Yuwan blinked. In her past life, she hadn't interacted much with this man because, in her mother's words, he was a modern-day Jia Xu—an elder from her mother's hometown.
Mother seemed to like the man named "Jia Xu" quite a lot, but she still warned Shang Yuwan not to get too close to such a person, otherwise she would not know when or how she would die.
Having this person by Bailipu's side, I don't know whether it is a blessing or a curse for Xiao Qinggu.
Bai Xiaoye and Cheng Yishui, who were secretly guarding Xiao Qingxu: "..."
What are these two people doing? Isn't it uncomfortable to lie there and chat?
Shang Yuwan was lost in thought when he suddenly felt dizzy and something covered his eyes. He reached out and picked it off; it was a petal.
During the Spring Flower Festival, the people of Yuecheng like to light a spring flower lantern, put a small bag of flower petals at the bottom of the lantern, and release it into the sky.
The bag is made of mesh, which allows petals to fall out from the gaps and drift away in the wind, like a rain of flowers.
The petals fell on Shang Yuwan and Xiao Qingxu's faces, bodies, and hands.
There was silence.
Flowers are falling like rain, and the Wu hook is hanging high. For some reason, it seems even stranger.
In the end, Shang Yuwan took off the petals on her face and chose to break the silence first.
"Your identity, and you...are you really unwilling to tell me?"
It took Xiao Qingxu a long time before he replied with a "hmm".
"Why?"
"I told you, none of this matters anymore." Xiao Qingxu finally stopped hiding it from her. "I'm going to die soon, you know."
“—Is it because of me?”
"No, it's me."
Shang Yuwan suddenly turned her head and met Xiao Qingxu's gaze directly.
Their hair was intertwined and tangled.
"I'm the one who let you down."
In an instant, Shang Yuwan thought of so many things.
[Wan'er, Daddy is sorry for you and your daughter.]
[Your parents have let you down. In this life... your parents have let you down...]
Shang Yuwan's eyes gradually became moist, bloodshot crawled up his pupils, and he fled in panic.
Xiao Qingxu watched her escape and returned to his room in silence, without sleeping all night.
Bai Xiaoye and Cheng Yishui witnessed the whole process. They scratched their heads and looked at each other.
"Do you understand?"
"No."
The two turned around and looked at the guest who had also witnessed the whole thing: "What about you?"
The guests all shook their heads, "No."
"How's it going, Lord Shang?"
"Just like the OP, I didn't sleep all night."
"Hiss." Cheng Yishui really couldn't understand. What did these two mean?
Bai Xiaoye touched his chin and decided to tell Ji Suxian the news. This girl has read a lot of storybooks and should know more than them, the grown men.
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