Chapter 74: Secret Story [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
After a serious illness, Qi Shan was left with a condition known as "porcelain doll".
Since he doesn't have to do anything, he says he's so idle that he can only sit on the porch and bask in the sun while holding the newly hired cat.
He even gave the raccoon a name.
【Suzhou】
Upon hearing the name and seeing Qi Shan's pale and weak appearance, Chu Yao said, "The first leaf falls, a sign of autumn; the last cicadas chirp in the evening; the season of Su Shang begins—Su Shang? Why did you give your 'new bride' such a mournful name? You might as well call her Huai Xu."
The color white in autumn is called "pure" (素), and the cold wind in autumn is the same as "merchant" (商), hence the name "pure merchant" (素商), which sounds neither joyful nor auspicious.
Qi Shan lazily lifted her eyelids: "Because it sounds nice."
Summer has passed and autumn is approaching, so Su Shang is very appropriate for the season.
As for whether it's festive or not—
Qi Shan doesn't believe in these things.
Feeling bored, Shen Tang was watching the chubby little boy practice martial arts with her chin resting on her hand when she joined the conversation between the two of them, saying with great interest, "Its eyes are quite nice, so we could name it 'Cuiwei'. What do you think?"
Qi Shan and Chu Yao said in unison, "Vulgar."
After they finished speaking, the two looked at each other with subtle expressions, their brows twitching, before turning their faces away in different directions.
Shen Tang: "..."
Is this the kind of situation you two are supposed to be good at?
Fortunately, the knocking at the door eased her awkwardness, and she quickly slipped on her wooden clogs and rushed to open it. Standing outside were two faces, one familiar and one unfamiliar. The familiar face gave her a bright and enthusiastic greeting; it was Zhai Le: "Hello, Brother Chen!"
The other person, needless to say, is Zhai Le's cousin.
Shen Tang was surprised, but still stepped aside to let the two in.
The cousin looked somewhat embarrassed and helpless.
Zhai Le, on the other hand, was quite at ease. With his hands behind his back, his long ponytail swayed from side to side as he walked, seemingly carrying his joy with every strand. He casually put his arm around Shen Tang's shoulder: "Brother Shen, why aren't you selling wine at your stall today?"
Shen Tang: "So you made this trip just to buy wine?"
Zhai Le looks young, but his drinking habit is quite severe.
"Of course not, cough cough cough—it's also about the Martial Courage Tiger Tally." Zhai Le led Shen Tang aside, cautiously glancing at his cousin's expression. Seeing that his complexion was alright, he whispered, "Weren't we just teasing him last time—"
"How was the reaction?"
Zhai Le said with a bitter face, "What can I do? I got a lesson."
The key is that the disguise is quite impressive, and Zhai Le couldn't remove it, so he had to ask Qi Shan for help, and while he was at it, he also wanted to buy some wine.
Shen Tang: "..."
On the other side, Zhai Le's cousin also greeted Qi Shan and explained the purpose of their visit, which made Qi Shan smile wryly.
"If you had come a little earlier, you could have been of more help."
Zhai Letang looked slightly flustered: "What does this mean?"
Qi Shan pointed to herself, her smile tinged with bitterness: "I encountered some trouble yesterday, and my anger overwhelmed me, damaging my internal organs. I need to rest and recuperate for the next two days and must not indulge in any literary pursuits. If you are not in a hurry, we can come another day. If you are in a hurry, I will do my best to try."
Upon hearing this, Zhai Le hurriedly spoke up before his cousin could.
"No rush, no rush. Mr. Qi, your recovery is the priority."
Seeing that Qi Shan's face was pale, his eyes were bluish, and his breathing was irregular, his cousin Zhai Le knew he was indeed injured. Zhai Le had also said that the pretense was something he had taken the initiative to do, and the responsibility lay with Zhai Le, not the scholar before him, so it was not appropriate to force him to continue.
He also said, "Recovering from my injuries is the priority; this matter is not urgent."
He paused for a moment, then said, "I have some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine. If you trust me, sir, may I examine your pulse and medical records?"
Qi Shan did not refuse: "Thank you for your trouble."
Regardless of whether this person's gaze is sincere and genuine, even if it were genuine, his injuries are real, without a doubt.
Zhai Le also came over, barely daring to breathe.
After taking his pulse, he asked, "Brother, how is Mr. Qi's health? How did he become so ill after only a day or two? He seems to be in a state of extreme anger. What could have angered Wenxin like this?"
Zhai Le has worked with Qi Shan before.
Although Mr. Qi's literary talent was not as high as his elder brother's, his strength, experience, and knowledge were all superior. Putting himself in his brother's shoes, he couldn't imagine what kind of blow his brother must have suffered to become so sickly and ill overnight due to "anger overwhelming the heart."
Zhai Le's cousin glanced at his younger cousin.
The latter immediately muted his microphone.
He asked, "Is Mr. Qi from Xin?"
After the notice was posted yesterday, countless people in Xiaocheng cursed Zheng Qiao's ancestors for eighteen generations. In fact, the restaurants near where the two were staying were filled with the essence of table-banging, bowl-smashing, and all sorts of insults. Some hot-tempered literati even fainted from anger.
He understood that feeling.
Even if Xin was a bad country, it at least provided them with a stable place for the first half of their lives. Geng was a powerful nation, and it was only natural that Xin declined and was eventually destroyed. In the past two hundred years, countless countries have risen and fallen in glory.
Xin State was just one of them.
Zheng Qiao's actions made it "unique." Never before had a nation suffered such humiliation after its destruction.
The people didn't care who sat on the throne before, but now they grit their teeth and curse, hoping that some country will take away Zheng Qiao, this tyrant.
Some even more astutely pointed out: "Zheng Qiao, that sycophant, probably remembers that he rose to his position through a ruthless, exploitative path, and he feels resentful and humiliated. He thinks that by having his enemy's daughter also exploited, he can cleanse himself of any guilt and feel relieved. Humph, rotten is rotten!"
Qi Shan's face paled slightly.
He nodded and said, "Yes."
"well."
Zhai Letang sighed.
After careful consideration, he wrote another prescription. Qi Shan also knew some traditional Chinese medicine. Judging from the prescription alone, the young man's prescription was much more reasonable than the previous doctor's. So he asked the old woman to help him get the medicine from the pharmacy again.
After a conversation, he found that the young man was quite to his liking and got along well with both him and Chu Yao, and they chatted happily for a while.
Zhai Le, bored, dragged Shen Tang into a sparring match with a wooden sword.
In contrast, Gong Cheng's situation was not so easy; the doctor prescribed strong medicine to save his life.
The room was filled with a strong, bitter smell of medicine.
"Yun Chi, I shouldn't have told you if I knew the reaction would be this strong." Guan'er sighed, looking at Gong Cheng, whose brows seemed to hold a hint of suicidal intent, a mixture of anger at his lack of ambition and pity. But what he was really thinking was only known to himself and Gu Chi, who was sipping tea with his eyes downcast.
Gong Cheng said, "We'll find out sooner or later."
It was quiet for a while.
He added, "Old man, why did you have to bring me back..."
The servant advised, "The princess is already gone... but the other members of the Gong clan are still alive. If you are gone, they will have even less to rely on..."
There are rumors circulating that the King of Xin loves Gong Cheng more than the Queen. He clarifies that this is not a rumor, but a fact.
As a prince of the Northern Desert, when he was a hostage in the capital of Xin Kingdom, he got along well with Gong Cheng and several other young men from aristocratic families.
Through Gong Cheng's connections, he would occasionally visit the inner court to play polo with Princess Wang and a group of noble ladies, and thus learned some secrets—
For example, the king did indeed treat Gong Cheng with greater affection.
For example, Gong Cheng and Princess Wang were childhood sweethearts, but when Gong Cheng probed the king's opinion by asking if he could be his son-in-law, he was rejected. Some popular speculations are not without basis.
For example--
I heard that Zheng Qiao once admired Princess Wang.
Unfortunately, she herself was the male concubine on the emperor's bed.
(End of this chapter)
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