Chapter 244: Spring Branch Lane (Part 1)
Sun Wei smiled and said, "Don't worry, Madam. The Crown Prince's opinion has nothing to do with you. Madam, you must have heard about the Crown Prince's temperament. He is very stubborn. If others say one thing, he will go the other way. It's just his temper. With time, he will agree."
Fang nodded slightly, looked at Sun Wei and smiled.
"Now that the princess has said that, I'm relieved," she said. "If this can be accomplished, not only will the queen mother's wish be fulfilled, but we'll also become a family. From now on, the princess's affairs will be ours, and a harmonious family like ours will be perfect, isn't that perfect?"
Sun Wei naturally understood the implicit meaning of these words.
"Madam, you are absolutely right." She smiled.
After saying this, she seemed to recall something and said to Fang, "The chrysanthemums in Tang Garden have been blooming abundantly these days. I was thinking of inviting you to visit the garden and admire them. What do you think, Madam?"
Fang's eyes moved.
——
"On the day Master Yu returned to the capital, he visited the Marquis' Mansion in Huai'an County." The next day, before Sun Wei returned, Sima Jun had already received news from his spies, "He took the family from the Marquis' Mansion and settled them in a house in Chunzhi Lane. And then..."
"Huaian County Marquis' Mansion?" Sima Jun suddenly interrupted, "But your surname is Sun?"
"Exactly."
Sima Jun frowned and suddenly remembered something.
On the return boat, Yu Yi told him about his manuscript, which included a famous scholar named Sun Yu.
"The Sun family of Wujun?" Sima Jun asked again.
"Exactly."
"Who are the family that Master Yu took away?" he asked.
"I don't know for sure. I only heard that he was a poor relative who came from the south to seek refuge. I don't know why he was treated so well by Master Yu."
Sima Jun pondered: "Which house in Chunzhi Lane are you talking about?"
It’s not too difficult to find out which house in Chunzhi Lane it is.
Because Yu Yi always attracted a large crowd whenever he went out, no matter where he went, it was no secret. Deng Lian's spies easily found out where he had been.
"That's the place." The spy led Sima Jun to Chunzhi Lane and pointed ahead, saying, "Because Master Yu has been in and out of here several times, this house has been frequently spied on by idle people. Recently, they've even added guards outside the house."
Sima Jun nodded slightly.
Looking further, I saw that the alley was not busy at all, and the three or four servants in front of the house seemed out of place.
"Prince, do you want to submit a letter?" Yin Wen asked.
Sima Jun was about to speak when he suddenly heard a voice behind him: "I greet the prince!"
Turning around, I saw that the person coming was a young man in his twenties, but he was a stranger.
Yin Wen was about to step forward and scold him for being rude, but Sima Jun stopped him.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The man looked nervous and excited. He bowed to Sima Jun and said, "My name is Sun Zhi, and my father is Sun Rong, the chief clerk of the Ministry of Rites."
Hearing this name, Sima Jun understood.
"Is he from the Marquis' Mansion in Huaian County?" he asked.
Sun Zhi obviously didn't expect that Sima Jun actually knew about his family, and he couldn't help but feel happy.
"Your Highness, it is indeed my uncle," he said hurriedly. "Sun Kuo, the Marquis of Huaian County, is none other than my uncle."
Sima Jun looked at Sun Zhi and said, "So, the Sun family living in Chunzhi Lane are also your clansmen?"
"That's right," Sun Zhi replied, "The people living here are my uncle Sun Nian and his family."
Sima Jun nodded.
"I went to see Master Yu Yi today, but he wasn't home. I heard he's been coming here a lot lately, so I happened to be passing by, so I came to see him." Sima Jun lied casually, feeling that he had become as shameless as Mrs. Lu recently. "I wonder what the relationship is between Master Yu and your uncle?"
Sun Zhi said, "Your Highness. Master Yu and my great-uncle Sun Yu are old friends. When my great-uncle was alive, he asked Master Yu to look after my uncle's family. So Master Yu vacated a courtyard and settled my uncle's family there."
"Oh?" Sima Jun's eyes flickered slightly. "I once heard Master Yu say that he and a Mr. Sun from Anning were old acquaintances. Could it be that the family you're talking about is from Anning?"
"That's right." Sun Zhi's face showed joy. "Does the prince know him?"
Sima Jun said, "I am acquainted with Master Yu, but I have only heard him mention it."
As he spoke, he looked at Sun Zhi and said, "Do you know if your great-uncle has ever been to other places besides Anning, such as Cangwu?"
Sun Zhi was a little surprised: "I don't know..." As he said that, he seemed to remember something and waved behind him, "Aqiao, come here!"
Sima Jun looked over and saw a half-height young man with a pigtail hairstyle staring at him in a daze.
"What are you standing there for?" Sun Zhi hurriedly pulled him in front of Sima Jun and said, "Why don't you come over and pay your respects to the Prince of Yuzhang?"
Sun Qiao's face flushed red, and he saluted awkwardly, stammering, "Sun Qiao... um... greetings, Prince!"
"No need to be so polite." Sima Jun looked him over. "Your name is Sun Qiao?"
Sun Zhi continued, "This is my cousin, my great-uncle's grandson." He then asked Sun Qiao, "The prince just asked if your grandfather had ever been to the Cangwu area."
Sun Qiao looked shy and shook his head: "Grandfather never left An Ning."
Sima Jun said "hmm", but didn't seem to want to ask any more questions. He just looked at Sun Qiao.
"How old are you?" he asked.
"twelve."
He was about to ask more when a servant came to report, "Prince, the princess has returned home."
Sima Jun's eyes flashed, and he responded. He only asked Yin Wen to give him some reward money, then turned and left.
Looking at Sima Jun's back, Sun Zhi felt regretful. He was thinking about how to talk to Sima Jun for a while, but suddenly he found that Sun Qiao ran out.
"Prince!" he shouted at Sima Jun who was mounting his horse.
Sima Jun turned around.
He ran forward and looked up at Sima Jun with bright eyes.
"I followed my father north from Anning, passing through Dayuling, and heard many people speak of the Crown Prince's fame in defeating bandits!" He mustered his courage, imitating the tone of an adult, and spoke nervously, "I want to ask... I want to ask, Crown Prince, how can I become his subordinate?"
Sima Jun looked at him.
For some reason, this face gave him a sense of déjà vu.
Since he took command of the army and gained some reputation, many people like Sun Qiao, who were full of passion, stood in front of him and wanted to join his army.
He usually ignores it.
But when he looked at Sun Qiao, he couldn't keep a cold expression.
"When you have mastered martial arts, come find me again." Sima Jun said lightly.
Sun Qiao smiled brightly, bowed to him, and answered crisply, "Yes!"
Sima Jun said nothing more and rode away on his horse.
Sun Qiao still stood there grinning foolishly.
Sun Zhi looked at Sima Jun's back and knew in his heart that he must not let Sun Nian and his family leave.
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