Chapter 13 Ji Yu is constantly watched by his mother-in-law...
The next day, before dawn, Zhuo Shuming entered Lin Qingdai's courtyard.
"lady."
"Good day, Madam."
Mingqian and Mingyue had been up for a while and were currently sweeping leaves and fallen flowers from the courtyard. Upon seeing their mistress approach, they quickly bowed.
"You all go about your business, I'll go in by myself."
Zhuo Shuming went straight into Lin Qingdai's bedroom.
She went to the bedside, lifted the gauze curtain and locked it on the hook, then sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her soft little daughter for a long time.
Her precious baby, after all the hard work of raising him to this age, is gradually becoming stronger.
result……
Zhuo Shuming couldn't help but sigh at the thought of his beloved daughter getting married and moving to Lingdong.
After a moment of silence, her emotions calmed down, and she reached out to touch her daughter's cheek.
My fingers were ice cold as I came in from outside.
The hand touched the little girl's face, and she suddenly woke up. Seeing that it was her mother, she froze on the spot, clearly a little confused.
Zhuo Shuming was amused by his daughter's bewildered expression and affectionately pinched her cheek.
"Little lazybones, it's time to get up. The merchant guild is distributing porridge today, so you need to go and help your mother."
Lin Qingdai woke up at the sound of the voice, but she remained in bed: "I've never heard my mother mention this before?"
The little girl's voice was soft and gentle, and she was still sleepy.
Zhuo Shuming: "It was decided half a month ago. Recently, there have been a lot of unexpected things happening, and my mother has been busy dealing with them, so she almost forgot about it."
"Get up quickly."
Do you want Mommy to dress you, like when you were little?
"Oh dear, what will I do if my darling marries into Lingdong?"
Before he knew it, he was thinking about his daughter's upcoming marriage to someone far away. Zhuo Shuming's mood instantly turned sour, and he couldn't hold back his emotions.
Seeing that her mother's expression was not right, Lin Qingdai quickly sat up, opened her arms wide and hugged her. Her slender white hands then landed on her back and gently stroked it from top to bottom. "Once Daidai has settled in over there, we will bring Mother to live with us."
"No one can take my mother away from me!"
Her rambling, nonsensical talk, lacking any semblance of a noblewoman's demeanor, somehow dispelled most of the bitterness in Zhuo Shuming's heart.
She pushed her daughter away and reached out to tap her forehead. "With his mother-in-law watching him every day, how could Ji Yujing agree to that?"
Lin Qingdai: "I don't care whether he agrees or not. Do you think I, the legitimate daughter of a first-rank nobleman, have to live at his mercy?"
Jiaojiao'er's domineering words amused Zhuo Shuming. "Well said."
The last bit of bitterness in my heart disappeared.
At this moment, Lin Qingdai lowered her head and nuzzled Zhuo Shuming's shoulder, saying in a low voice that only the two of them could hear, "Mother, I saw Ji Yujing yesterday."
Upon hearing this, Zhuo Shuming's back suddenly tensed up, and it took him a while to react.
She held her daughter's arms with both hands, staring intently at her. "Are you sure?"
Lin Qingdai: "Confirmed."
Zhuo Shuming: "This is outrageous! He's a general now, how can he be so willful?"
"If His Majesty finds out about this, and he's unlucky enough to be charged with the serious crime of dereliction of duty, he'll lose his head."
"What is he doing in the capital?"
Lin Qingdai: "I don't know the specifics, but I think he might want to recruit Mr. Yuyong to work for him."
"Is this the King of Weapons that your brother mentioned last time?"
Zhuo Shuming had spent most of her life in a grand mansion, and her understanding of weapons was limited to the sword her son carried and the knives and clubs of the family guards. If Lin Qingyu hadn't mentioned it, she wouldn't have known that there was such a person as the King of Weapons in Xun Kingdom.
Judging from Lin Qingyu's admiring gaze and the strength of the King of Weapons, she could roughly deduce the situation.
"Could it be that this season's relationship with Kyo really exists...?"
Zhuo Shuming omitted the following details.
I dare not say it, nor is there any need to.
After a long silence, she reached out and gently stroked her daughter's face. "Dai Dai, things have come to this point, and your mother has no way of giving you any advice."
"But as long as your mother has a breath left, she will do her best to protect you."
"Get up, and come with your mother to a place."
...
Zhuo Shuming led Lin Qingdai to the storage room in his home. This storage room was located behind the courtyard where Zhuo Shuming and Lin Yansen lived, and was surrounded by an artificial lake.
The lake is light blue, and the water is apricot-colored. Looking at it, it's as if a bright pearl has fallen into the heart of the lake, both beautiful and elegant.
Lin Qingdai, who came with her mother, remained silent throughout the journey.
Jiaojiao seemed to sense the weight of what she was about to say, a weight she might not even be able to bear.
The mother and daughter stopped in front of a narrow door, and Zhuo Shuming took out the key and opened the door.
After walking through a long, narrow corridor, they arrived at the hall.
The hall was filled with many rare and precious treasures, some in boxes and others scattered on storage shelves. But regardless of their form, these things were all carefully preserved, and everything within Lin Qingdai's sight was spotless.
"Since you're all here, take a good look and see if there's anything you like. Mother will put it all into the dowry list."
Lin Qingdai's face flushed slightly. "Mother."
Seeing her like this, Zhuo Shuming's heart melted instantly, and he couldn't bear to tease her anymore. "Alright, let's get down to business."
After saying that, she walked to a painting on the wall, lifted it slightly, and knocked three times, revealing a hidden compartment.
She opened the door to the hidden compartment and pressed the key hidden inside.
Suddenly, the layout of the hall changed dramatically. What shocked Lin Qingdai the most was that layers of stairs appeared before her eyes, stretching endlessly down to the ground.
"Walk."
Lin Qingdai helped her mother down the stairs, and after a while they arrived at the basement.
The underground structure was not much different from the interior, except that there were bookshelves on both sides. Zhuo Shuming walked straight to one of the bookshelves and pulled out a black wooden box.
The mother and daughter found a table and sat down. Zhuo Shuming pushed the wooden box in front of his daughter, then, meeting her surprised gaze, smiled and said...
"Open it and see what's inside!"
Lin Qingdai obediently unfastened the lock on the wooden box and then pushed open the lid.
The ancient books in the wooden box suddenly caught her eye, along with the musty smell of paper worn down by time.
She took out the book and flipped through it casually.
Just as she suspected, there was something hidden inside the book. She took it out, unfolded it, and examined it closely; it was part of a map.
"Mother, what is this?"
Zhuo Shuming paused for a moment before speaking, and at that moment, the smile on her face completely vanished.
"This is part of a treasure map."
"Could it be the legendary 'Suppressing Mountains and Rivers'?"
Almost instantly, Lin Qingdai guessed correctly.
Zhuo Shuming's eyes widened in surprise. "How did Dai Dai know?"
Lin Qingdai truthfully stated: "In a travelogue called 'Zhang Xian's Travels Through Forty-Eight Prefectures'."
The book mentions that there are hidden treasures within the territory of Xun Kingdom.
Whoever obtains it will obtain the world.
Until today, she had always thought that this was something Zhang Xian had made up to attract attention, but she never expected it to be true.
Part of the treasure map is still in her home.
Zhuo Shuming knew how clever her daughter was at studying, and as soon as she finished speaking, the surprise in her eyes disappeared completely.
Let's get back to the main topic.
"During the reign of Emperor Ming, he was already searching for a secret treasure that could protect the mountains and rivers. However, despite his best efforts, he was unable to collect all the treasure maps."
"The ancestors of the Zhuo family once considered giving up this part of the family, but after thinking about it, they gave up."
"At that time, the royal family only had a quarter of the treasure map. Even if the Zhuo family gave it to them, it wouldn't be of much use. It's better to hide it and observe the subsequent situation before making a decision."
Unexpectedly, this observation lasted for a century.
Emperor Ming is gone. His descendants once propelled the Xun Kingdom to great power, but now, it seems...
Thinking of the chaotic situation and the fact that her sickly little darling was about to step into this "turbulent and unpredictable world," Zhuo Shuming couldn't help but sigh deeply again. "Dai Dai, today your mother is giving you this treasure map."
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingdai instinctively refused, "How can that be?"
This picture is extremely valuable.
She was afraid she couldn't protect him.
Zhuo Shuming understood her thoughts, reached out and affectionately stroked her hair, "Dai Dai, whether the world is in chaos or where it will ultimately go, we women can never decide."
"But we have families and friends, we have to do something, right?"
At that moment, Zhuo Shuming's voice was gentler than ever before, "Dai Dai, your mother is not as intelligent and calm as you. I am very relieved to entrust this treasure map to you for safekeeping."
"Mother doesn't ask for much. She only hopes that Dai Dai can protect herself and her relatives and friends as much as possible in the future. Even if she is poor and humble in the future, as long as everyone is together, that will be the greatest fortune."
Lin Qingdai listened quietly, and when Zhuo Shuming finished speaking, she crossed her fair hands across the small table and grasped Zhuo Shuming's hands tightly. "Mother, don't think too much, it's not good for your health."
"If you truly believe that Dai Dai is intelligent and calm, then you should no longer concern yourself with outside affairs and leave everything to Dai Dai."
"Okay?"
The delicate, willow-like daughter dared to try to erase the heavy gloom weighing on her mother's heart—a seemingly absurd and doomed endeavor to anyone else. However, meeting her daughter's bright and resolute gaze, the gloom in Zhuo Shuming's heart gradually dissipated.
She wasn't certain that her daughter could fulfill her expectations, but she felt that having such a daughter made her life worthwhile, even if she died.
"good."
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingdai smiled, her eyebrows curving upwards, her eyes shining with an unbelievable brilliance, as if a light had suddenly fallen into them.
"Then let's pinky swear."
She let go of her mother's hand, raised her right hand slightly, and hooked her little finger in the air.
She had a lively and proud demeanor.
Zhuo Shuming chuckled, "You!"
In the end, she gave in to her daughter's wishes and beckoned to her with her finger.
After the unexpected incident, the mother and daughter carefully put away the treasure map and left the small building.
After a simple breakfast, they summoned Qingwu, and the mother and her two daughters, along with a group of servants, headed towards Baoshan Street, located in the northwest of the imperial city.
This Baoshan Street, though its name sounds rich and beautiful, is actually the poorest place in the imperial city, inhabited mostly by impoverished people from other places who come to the capital to make a living.
The Zhuo family has been wealthy for a century, and they come here to distribute porridge on the 20th of every month.
It's called "serving porridge," but it actually includes both porridge and snacks. There are three kinds of snacks each time, some are custom-made from restaurants in the city, and some are made by the Lin family's private chef or Lin Qingdai.
In short, it shows great sincerity.
To the impoverished people of Baoshan Street, the Zhuo family was like gods, and the two young ladies of the Lin family were like fairies descended from the heavens. The 20th of each month was their New Year's Day, and they would always wear their best clothes to receive food, partly out of joy, but also because they didn't want to offend the noble people with their dirt.
Ji and Jing completed a full set of punches before dawn broke.
It was a cold, misty spring morning, and the chill was still sharp. Ji Yujing was dressed rather lightly, yet he was still covered in sweat.
His clothes were soaked and clung to his chest and back, revealing his well-defined muscles.
"Brother Ci."
Suddenly, a young man came up to him, calling him familiarly with a smile in his eyes.
The young man's name was Zhao Ning. He and Ji Yujing grew up together and moved to the capital with their parents when they were teenagers.
He and Ji Yujing had not seen each other for many years, but their connection had never been broken. So when Ji Yujing appeared at his door last night, he and his parents were only surprised for a few breaths before returning to normal and happily welcoming the guest.
“Zhao Ning”.
Ji Yujing smiled and approached her friend, "Where are we going for breakfast today? It's on me."
Zhao Ning: "Let's save it for next time, someone's treating us today."
Ji Yujing, observing his expression, sensed his joy as if it were a festival, and couldn't help but feel curious. "Who is it?"
Zhao Ning: "The Zhuo family."
"The matriarch of the Lin family, Zhuo Shuming, is the eldest daughter of the Zhuo family. She manages the Zhuo family's business in the capital."
Upon hearing this, a beautiful figure appeared in Ji Yujing's mind.
Zhao Ning continued, "The Zhuo family is truly benevolent. For over a hundred years, they have been distributing porridge on Baoshan Street. Unless the weather is extremely bad and the distribution is delayed, you can always see members of the Zhuo family on the morning of the 20th of each month."
“It used to be Old Master Zhuo, but after the Zhuo family moved to the south, Madam Lin took over the management of this matter.”
"If you're lucky, you might even get to see the two young ladies from the Lin family; each one is an incredibly beautiful woman, like a fairy."
Zhao Ning thought that Ji Yujing had just arrived in the capital and lacked understanding of the people and things there, so she spoke in extra detail.
After finishing his sentence, he paused to catch his breath and then asked him again.
"Want to go see him? There are very few people who have seen what you really look like. Now that you have such a big 'scar' on your face, it wouldn't hurt to go see him?"
"If all else fails, I'll go and get it for you to try. Maybe there are some pastries made by Miss Lin herself."
When the topic of cakes came up, Ji Yujing couldn't help but think of the medicinal meal that Lin Qingdai had prepared at the old man Yu Yong's place.
The various novel combinations produced wonderful flavors, making even someone like him, who grew up in a secluded place and was accustomed to and familiar with the uses of various herbs, feel inferior.
At the end of his turbulent thoughts, Ji Yujing subtly curled the corners of his mouth.
Zhao Ning, sensing something amiss, couldn't help but ask, "Brother Ji, what are you laughing at?"
Ji Yujing came to his senses and said, "I'm laughing at my good luck. I encountered such a grand event as soon as I arrived in the capital."
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