Chapter 42
Days passed by.
The updates of "The Great Tang Female Painter" were gradually coming to an end. With only a dozen or so chapters left, Xu Ying released all the saved chapters in one go, making the readers in the comment section excitedly call her "Master Qingtang".
After everyone finished getting excited, they immediately went to read the article, and Song Yilian was no exception.
Watching the daily updates has now become a habit for her, and a perfectly legitimate reason for her to steal a moment of leisure from her busy schedule.
It was already December, and her research project was basically finished, but she was still busy because she planned to pursue further studies; she was applying for a doctoral program at Shanghai University.
Currently, her major ranks first in the country, and Shanghai University is undoubtedly the most prestigious university in the country, a dream school for countless students.
She was the same.
She has come a long way from being an ordinary college student, and she wants to go even higher.
Applying for a PhD program requires a lot of materials and a presentation entirely in English. She's been overwhelmed by this report lately. She's not afraid of the presentation itself; the weekly group meetings since starting graduate school have made her quite adept at it.
She was mainly afraid of answering the questions from the teachers after she finished reporting.
She was always a little insecure when answering questions in English, afraid that she wouldn't be able to answer the teacher's questions. So she kept trying to memorize the answers to any questions the teacher might ask.
Only when Eryuetian updates her daily can she relax her tense mind and have some fun. Especially with such a large amount of updates today, she can rest a little longer without any psychological burden.
happy!
She had seen the King of Wu being reprimanded by Emperor Taizong of Tang the last time.
The people, unaware of the reason for the assassination attempt on the Prince of Wu and the Prince of Gong's residence, were all condemning the bandits. However, the court officials had all received the news and knew that the Prince of Wu was at fault first.
The King of Wu's reputation was thus greatly damaged.
Other companies have done even worse things, but they keep it private. As long as it doesn't come out in the open, everyone can get by. But if you do bring it out in the open, don't blame others for looking down on you.
The King of Wu suffered a setback in his reputation and was fined half a year's salary by Emperor Taizong, so the matter gradually subsided.
As if things were going to rain on top of each other, just two months after the incident, when everything was gradually calming down, Prince Gong died. Strangely, before his death, Prince Gong petitioned for his second son to be granted a title, allowing him to inherit the royal title.
As for the eldest son, he was ruthlessly dismissed from his residence by Prince Gong with a mansion and two thousand taels of silver.
Of course, if things had ended there, no one would have been so shocked.
Although it is traditional to establish the eldest son as heir, there are precedents throughout history of favoring the youngest son and leaving most of the family business to him.
What caused a huge uproar was that the eldest son died suddenly just a few days after being expelled from the mansion.
I heard that the eldest son went boating on the lake because he was in a bad mood, but he accidentally fell into the water and drowned.
This matter originally had nothing to do with the King of Wu, but he happened to run into the eldest son that day. The eldest son was indignant, and the two had a few words exchanged.
It was a very minor matter, and the King of Wu didn't take it to heart at all afterward.
But things changed once the eldest son died.
The argument that day took place on Zhuque Avenue, and many people witnessed it. This inevitably caused some officials with ulterior motives to start whispering among themselves.
It's the Prince of Wu again. What a coincidence! Every time they encounter the Prince of Wu, the people of the Prince Gong's Mansion start to have bad luck. First, the Prince of Gong died, and now the eldest son has also died.
Is this really just a coincidence?
Rumors are just rumors; officials can only talk about them behind people's backs and can't do anything about it, but it's different for members of the royal family.
They are all relatives of the same clan as Prince Gong. If the matter between Prince Gong and the eldest son is resolved so simply, wouldn't that mean that the King of Wu can kill whomever he wants, leaving their lives with no guarantee at all?
The royal relatives and court officials now see the King of Wu as neither an eye nor a nose.
I used to think that the King of Wu had the demeanor of an emperor, but now I see him as nothing more than a villain who only resorts to underhanded tricks behind people's backs.
The King of Wu felt wronged.
However, this time the relatives of the Wu clan had strong opinions, and he could not protect them even if he wanted to. He had no choice but to reduce the Wu King's fief and demote him to quell the matter.
?
Song Yilian was still completely confused when she saw this.
She's been too tired lately and isn't even thinking while reading, so much so that she still hasn't figured out what's going on at this point, while the female protagonist in the story seems to be deep in thought.
"Who exactly is behind this? Female lead, can you tell us? Stop just thinking about it!"
Song Yilian couldn't wait to scroll down.
However, the author suddenly changes the subject in the following text, describing the female protagonist going to a temple to offer incense.
Coincidentally, Yan Huaijin ran into Princess Gong again when she was offering incense. No, she should be called the Dowager Princess now.
In the empty Buddhist hall, only two people were kneeling on prayer cushions.
Yan Huaijin clasped his hands together before the gods and Buddhas filling the hall and said, "Congratulations, Your Highness."
Consort Gong calmly replied, "You know."
It was because I found out that I came here to find her.
"Why? Do you have some deep-seated hatred for the King of Wu?"
Otherwise, why would they keep targeting the King of Wu?
Consort Gong smiled: "I have no grudge against Prince Wu. I just happen to need his help. In fact, I only noticed Prince Wu because of you."
Yan Huaijin's expression changed: "You deliberately invited me to the temple that day!"
Because by making an appointment with her, they could naturally lure the King of Wu to come, and then they could logically frame the King of Wu for the banditry.
"It turns out I'm the one who ruined him."
“I don’t want to harm anyone, but King Wu is indeed a good choice, isn’t he? If King Wu isn’t involved in this matter, who do you think would be the prime suspect?”
Of course, it's you and the second young master.
You and the second young master...
Yan Huaijin's eyes widened instantly: "You and the Second Young Master, you two...?!"
They were having an affair.
Consort Gong touched her swollen belly: "He's a fool too. I told him to have his father and elder brother come to offer incense together, but he thought he was clever and came by himself instead of his elder brother. Otherwise, I could have gotten rid of both of them at once. Why would the Prince of Wu have to suffer another undeserved disaster?"
"You've managed to make your shamelessness sound so elegant and refined."
Consort Gong didn't take it to heart. She slowly got up and lit incense, saying, "I'm just a little sorry for you. Your position as Princess Consort of Wu was lost because of me."
She was so eager to secure her position that she assumed Yan Huaijin was just like her, merely feigning innocence.
To everyone's surprise, Yan Huaijin suddenly laughed: "How do you know I'm not grateful to you?"
"What?" Consort Gong turned around in astonishment.
Yan Huaijin stood up from the prayer mat: "Thanks to you, the King of Wu was able to survive."
After this incident, the imperial family and court officials all disliked the Prince of Wu, and Emperor Taizong even took back the Prince of Wu's military power and part of his fiefdom.
The King of Wu was in a terrible state, but this way his life was spared.
At least he no longer had the ability to rally followers, and Emperor Taizong would no longer regard him as a threat to Li Zhi and would be eager to get rid of him.
Yan Huaijin sincerely thanked her: "Your Highness, thank you. Without you, I really wouldn't have been able to come up with such a perfect and natural solution."
After all, Emperor Taizong was suspicious. If he discovered that the Prince of Wu was deliberately hiding his talents, he would only become more wary. The current situation was good enough.
"What do you mean? What are you talking about?"
Consort Gong did not understand her meaning.
Unfortunately, her persistent questioning was destined to remain unanswered.
......
The main text ends here, and Song Yilian is completely stunned.
No, the ending had a sudden plot twist! The female lead turned out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing! But it was so captivating!!!
Song Yilian couldn't help but log onto the Taxue Forum. She was very excited and desperately needed to find readers who were just as shocked as she was so that they could share this feeling.
*
Xu Ying's sudden extra chapters caused a barrage of messages from people around her. Fuyou, Qingfeng, Lin Zhongxu, and Zhou Xingyun even seemed to have made a pact to invite her to dinner at the same time to celebrate the completion of her new book.
Xu Ying: "......"
How is she supposed to choose?
No matter who she chose, it was no good, so she simply refused to go to the film crew. Who knew that Tang Ningshuang in the crew also knew that her novel was finished, and after filming that night, she dragged Xu Ying to a nearby bar.
For some reason, Xu Ying felt a little guilty.
After finishing her meal with a guilty conscience, Xu Ying returned to the hotel and began packing her luggage, as she wanted to go back to her hometown.
She had paid and enrolled in a driving school back home before coming here, but who knew that Zhou Xingyun would buy the copyright to her novel so soon after she enrolled? So she went to Beijing and then came to Shanghai, and never had time to take the driving school exam.
Just yesterday, her driving instructor messaged her again, asking if she wanted to take the exam.
She thought about it and agreed.
It's not right to keep dragging it out. Now that the production team is on track and her novel has just finished, she has plenty of time to go back and take the exam.
Without hesitation, Xu Ying bought a train ticket home on the spot.
The train ticket was for tomorrow, which is why Xu Ying packed her bags as soon as she got back.
"Huh?"
After packing her luggage, Xu Ying suddenly realized that she seemed to have forgotten to tell Lin Zhongxu about this, so she quickly picked up her phone and sent him a message.
Xu Ying: I'm planning to go back to my hometown tomorrow. Is there anything you'd like me to take with me?
It was already quite late, and judging from Lin Zhongxu's schedule, he was probably already asleep. Xu Ying regretted not having thought of this sooner.
never mind.
If you don't bring it this time, there will be next time; there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.
She put down her phone, stuffed the last few things into her suitcase, and took her pajamas to the bathroom to take a shower.
When she came out of the shower, she found that Lin Zhongxu had sent her messages and made several phone calls. She had put her phone on vibrate mode and hadn't heard them at all.
She quickly called back, and Lin Zhongxu's breathless voice immediately came from the other end: "Sister, I'm coming to find you now."
!
"Now," Xu Ying paused, her hand still wiping her hair.
"Yes, I bought clothes for my grandparents a long time ago. I was planning to take them over myself during the Chinese New Year. Since you're going back, could you please take them back for me?"
"It's the middle of the night, you can come back tomorrow."
"I don't know what time your train is tomorrow, I'm afraid I'll keep you from getting on the train... Anyway, I'm getting on the train now."
Xu Ying could faintly hear Lin Zhongxu and the driver talking through the phone, but he quickly hung up.
"......"
Okay.
The two lived in the same city but different districts. It took Lin Zhongxu more than forty minutes to get here from school, which was thanks to the fact that there was no traffic at night, otherwise it would have taken even longer during rush hour.
He chose to come at this time because he was afraid of encountering traffic jams when he came tomorrow.
How much did you buy?
Xu Ying was somewhat surprised to see him carrying three large shopping bags.
"Actually, there aren't many items. It's mainly because the clothes are too thick and take up too much space." Moreover, one of the three shopping bags contained Xu Ying's things. Lin Zhongxu handed that bag to Xu Ying, saying, "This is for you."
Xu Ying took the bag and took out a short white down jacket. The jacket was well-made and of good quality, and looked fluffy and comfortable.
Xu Ying was surprised that he had bought it for her and didn't know what to say for a moment.
“I thought of you when I was buying clothes for my grandparents, so I bought you one at the mall as well,” Lin Zhongxu stammered as he spoke.
The lights in the room were too bright, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.
Actually, he bought not only coats for his grandparents, but also pants and sweaters. However, when it came to Xiaoying's turn, he suddenly felt embarrassed to go into the women's clothing store. In the end, he only bought a coat and quickly left the mall.
Xu Ying clutched the hem of her dress: "Thank you, the dress is very pretty..."
"Would you like to give it a try?"
“Now,” Xu Ying paused for a moment, “that works too.”
Xu Ying simply put the down jacket over her pajamas. The pajamas were a bit fluffy, and she couldn't put one hand inside the sleeve. Lin Zhongxu even helped her straighten it.
The two were standing a little too close.
Xu Ying quickly put on her clothes and took a few steps back, pretending to go to the bathroom to look in the mirror.
"The clothes are nice, and they're very warm to wear."
"By the way, didn't you say you were going to bring it over for the New Year yourself? Why are you suddenly asking me to take it back?"
Xu Ying made conversation.
The atmosphere would be even stranger if no one spoke.
"I..." Lin Zhongxu was speechless for a moment.
He heard that Xu Ying was leaving, so he instinctively found an excuse to come over.
He changed the subject: "I'm a little hungry. Sister Xiaoying, are you hungry? Do you want to go downstairs for a late-night snack?"
Xu Ying remained silent.
Can she say she just finished eating?
"Okay, wait for me to change my clothes. There's a barbecue restaurant downstairs, let's go get some skewers."
Lin Zhongxu hummed in agreement and went to stand at the door.
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Author's Note: Revised
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