Mrs. Li also noticed Ren Shimin's attire and quickly asked, "Master, do you want to take a bath first?"
Ren Shimin looked down at his clothes and frowned, "I've been wearing them for so many days that I've gotten used to them. Now that you've reminded me, I feel like I stink. Go get some hot water."
Li hurried downstairs and asked someone to boil water and get clothes for Ren Shimin.
Ren Yaoqi leaned over and said, "Dad, has your journey been rough?"
Ren Shimin reached out and pushed Ren Yaoqi's head away: "Don't come over here, Daddy smells terrible."
Ren Yaoqi said with a grin, "A dog doesn't mind its mother being ugly, and I don't mind its father being smelly."
Ren Shimin didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he heard this, but he didn't chase her away. "I originally planned to leave after attending the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet in the palace, but something happened and then I got delayed. Then there were banquets of all sizes."
"Oh? Did something serious happen?" Or was Xiao Jingxi's condition worsening? Even the return trip was in trouble? Ren Yaoqi couldn't help but worry.
Ren Shimin took the tea brought by the maid, without any of his usual extravagant demands, and just opened the lid of the bowl and drank. Fortunately, the weather was cold now, so the tea was served just in time for him to drink.
Ren Shimin took two sips of hot tea before saying, "This matter is both big and small. The Second Young Master Xiao made an appearance at a literary competition, and was somehow seen by Prime Minister Yan's wife. Madam Yan then told the Empress Dowager that she wanted to marry the Yan family's daughter to the Second Young Master."
Ren Yaoqi was stunned when he heard this: "Miss Yan?"
Ren Yaoqi remembered that in her previous life, Miss Yan also fell in love with Xiao Jingxi and even chased him to Yanbei.
"Didn't they say Second Young Master Xiao was ill?" Ren Yaoqi asked. It seemed that his illness was not serious.
Ren Shimin nodded. "The Second Young Master only showed up at the literary competition, and then he stayed at the guesthouse to recuperate. He only came out for a short while at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet because he couldn't miss it." At this point, Ren Shimin sighed. "I wonder how the Second Young Master Xiao is doing now."
Ren Yaoqi frowned: "He didn't come back with you this time?"
Ren Shimin sighed, "We were originally going to travel together, but the Emperor and the Empress Dowager were unwilling to let us go. We finally managed to escape, but the journey wasn't peaceful. We encountered two groups of assassins, and finally, Second Young Master Xiao suggested that he go our separate ways. After that, Second Young Master Xiao's carriage disappeared, but after he left, the journey became peaceful again. It seems those assassins were after Second Young Master Xiao."
After hearing this, Ren Yaoqi's heart, which had originally been relieved, became anxious again.
Xiao Jingxi hasn't come back yet.
Encountered an assassin again? Ren Yaoqi couldn't help but think of the last assassination that happened when he rode in his carriage and the poison in his body. He wondered how many times he would encounter such a thing in a year?
Ren Yaoqi wanted to ask Ren Shimin some more details, but then Mrs. Li came over and said the bath water was ready. Ren Shimin was invited to take a bath. Looking at Ren Shimin's exhausted face, Ren Yaoqi finally held back, wanting to wait until Ren Shimin had rested before asking again.
A few days after Third Master Ren returned, there was still no news of Xiao Jingxi. However, for some unknown reason, the Yanbei Palace kept quiet about Second Master Xiao's absence from Yanbei. Even Ren Shimin and the others were told not to discuss the matter. However, Ren Yaoqi heard from Ren Yijun that the official road to Kyoto had seen more than double the usual number of people coming and going.
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