Chapter 14 Chapter 14 Death Escape Plan...
When Lu Sui came out of Shoukang Palace, she was wearing a veil on her head. Ying Yi deliberately reminded her that the Crown Princess had been unwell recently, and the imperial physician had been coming here frequently to recuperate her body to ensure that she could give birth to a royal heir smoothly.
When Suiying and his group arrived at the door, they heard Xiao Mao giving orders to the servants.
"Continue giving the Crown Princess her medicine."
Lu Suizhu felt indescribable strangeness after hearing just this one sentence, but he didn't have time to think about it. After the people inside came out, Lu Suizhu went in to report.
When she handed the paper given by Pei Zhiji to Xiao Mao, who didn't know what it was for, she was still a little nervous, and her slender fingers curled up in her sleeves and gently scratched it.
Every conversation with Xiao Mao was like a life-or-death struggle for her.
This cold atmosphere ended only when Xiao Mao calmly raised his head. He did not say anything, but whispered a few words to Yingyi.
Incense was rising from the stove, but the smell was not noticeable in the air.
In less than half an incense stick of time, Ying Yi appeared. He took out a green porcelain bottle without any pattern from his arms and threw it into Lu Suizhu's hand with an expressionless face.
Then he staggered, Lu Suizhu frowned, glared at Ying Yi with dissatisfaction, and looked at Xiao Mao with confusion in his eyes.
What is he going to do now?
"This medicine is called Rixiao. It is colorless and tasteless. You only need to drop a drop into Pei Zhiji's food every day, and he will be dead within a month." There was a hint of ruthlessness in Xiao Maozui's calm eyes.
The more he spoke, the more Lu Suizhu's heart trembled. It seemed that life and death depended on Xiao Mao's flick of a finger. She bit her lower lip lightly, and it took a long time before she put the porcelain bottle in her arms.
"If Pei Zhiji dies, Your Highness, aren't you afraid that the Crown Princess will resent you?"
She was not aware of the hatred between Xiao Mao and Pei Zhiji, and she knew very well that she could not change anything. The Crown Princess was the only reason Lu Suizhu could think of to persuade Xiao Mao.
"I will never let her know."
It was snowing heavily when I went out. Bright silver shone on the bricks and tiles of the palace walls, and the ground was covered with white as if thousands of flying cotton wools.
The bottle of "Rixiao" felt heavy against her chest. It was so cold today, but it emitted an undeniable heat that burned Lu Suizhu's body.
Does she really want to do this?
Killing innocent people for the sake of his own life.
But Xiao Mao's words just now were still ringing in his ears, and he had a rare friendly expression on his face.
"If you succeed in this, I will give you a hundred taels of gold and set you free from all restraints."
She walked along the edge of the East Palace and out of the palace, leaving deep and shallow footprints in the snow. Each step was heavy, and the white snow weighed heavily on her shoulders.
Through the blurred vision of the heavy snow, she saw a palace maid hurriedly holding a brazier and burning it. A wisp of white smoke slowly rose. Lu Suizhu seemed to have seen the palace maid before. She was someone in Xiao Mao's room.
She hid in the dark and observed for a long time. The palace maid watched the fire in the charcoal basin gradually go out, and seeing that there was no one around, she huddled up and went to hide from the snow by herself.
After the people had completely left, Lu Suizhu hurried forward to search in the charcoal basin. The heavy snow was like torn cotton cloth, covering the surface of the flames piece by piece.
It was still burning inside. Lu Suizhu ignored the burning pain on the back of her hand and reached into the charcoal basin to take out the unburned debris.
The back of her hand turned red instantly. Ignoring the pain, she quickly pieced the scraps of paper together, which looked like a place name.
"Southeast Fan Creek."
This is the exact location of the prince's private mine that Pei Zhiji wanted to know.
Fanxi Fanxi, the Shen Wenjian in the list of candidates that she overheard that day seemed to be from Fanxi. She wondered if the two were related.
Even though Xiao Mao is not a good person, Pei Zhiji now knows her identity. When trust collapses, Lord Pei may not be trustworthy.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Suizhu tore the crumbs that had been burnt by the fire into pieces, crushed them into powder, raised his hand and scattered them into the air, allowing them to completely blend into the color of the warm sky with white dew.
It was snowing heavily and people were staying at home. There were fewer and fewer people on the road. As soon as Lu Suizhu left the palace, she threw away her veil.
She walked along Louyue Pavilion and passed through a small alley, then turned right and walked deeper into the alley. There was a carpenter's shop at the end of the alley.
There were few customers. A waiter was sitting on the doorstep, yawning. When he saw a beautiful woman come in, he was very excited and shouted to the inside, "Master, there are customers."
The clerk treated Lu Suizhu warmly and invited her in. The carpentry shop was not big and was a bit remote, but it was kept clean and tidy by the owner.
Inside the shop are some finely polished wood carvings, door frames, tables, chairs, and benches...
As soon as Lu Suizhu sat down, she saw a handsome man in linen clothes coming out of the inner room. When he saw Lu Suizhu, he smiled slightly, brushed off the wood chips on his body, and put down his sleeves.
A few days ago, Chen Guyan asked someone to pass on a message, saying that there was a clue about Lu Suizhu's biological parents. She was worried about it and rushed here directly after leaving the East Palace.
Shen Guyan opened this carpentry shop after he resigned from his official position. His father was a famous carpenter in the village. He learned from his father since he was a child. He was extremely talented and had exquisite craftsmanship. However, he later took the imperial examinations and did not have much time, so he had to give up.
The boy was sent off to do the remaining chores in the backyard, leaving them alone in the house.
Shen Guyan took out a map from the drawer. There were traces of circles and scratches on it. He looked extremely serious.
"I contacted a former colleague and retrieved the Ministry of Revenue records. I looked up all the counties and prefectures affected by the flood in the sixth year of Zhenji and received disaster relief funds from the imperial court. I roughly concentrated the area on the southeastern coastal areas. Then I checked several areas where the damage was less severe and did not cause casualties."
“There are probably only a few spots left.”
As he spoke, he gestured on the map with his fingers.
"Liangxi, Wuzhou, Xiayi, Fanxi, and actually my hometown, Yunshui. But I grew up there. If anyone in a family is looking for their daughter, I will definitely know. So just search within these four counties, and you will definitely find your parents."
When Shen Guyan said the latter part, his voice was firm, his eyes were encouraging, and a faint smile appeared on his cheek when he looked at Lu Suizhu.
Although she knew it was impossible, Lu Suizhu couldn't help but harbor hope: "Why are you helping me like this?"
"Because you are the first girl I have ever helped when I saw injustice, I will definitely help you to the end."
She was a little sad at first, but after hearing his teasing, Lu Suizhu laughed and continued to press the issue: "Chen Guyan, can you do me one last favor?"
"What is it?"
"Help me collect the body."
After coming out of Chen Guyan's carpentry shop, Lu Suizhu went straight back to Qingfeng Cottage. Because of the Pei Mansion's broken family rules, if she didn't want to be suspected, she had to rush back at the hour of Xu.
When leaving the carpenter's shop, Shen Guyan gave her a bottle of fake death medicine. Meeting her slightly shocked look, he explained a little awkwardly.
"This is something I prepared for the prisoners. When I first became a prison officer, I witnessed too many injustices that were difficult to redress, and I was always powerless to do anything about it. I figured that if the day ever came when I couldn't get over it, then I could just commit a crime."
When Fang Dian came over with a lantern and saw the person coming, she was a little bit surprised. Until she confirmed that it was really Lu Suizhu, she dropped the lantern on the ground and excitedly went forward to hug her.
"Miss, I thought you didn't want me anymore. When I heard Qin Wuniang say you had entered the Pei Mansion, I didn't dare to disturb you rashly. It was only when you sent someone to buy Cui Ji's candy cakes that day that I was sure you were okay."
Fang Dian has always been a steady person, and her voice was a little choked at this time. She and Lu Suizhu were both orphans, and they could be said to have depended on each other for all these years. Although they were nominally master and servant, they were actually more like family.
The two of them sat down in the house. Fang Dian went to the kitchen to make a pot of ginger tea to dispel the cold outside. Lu Suizhu carefully confirmed that no one was eavesdropping outside the window before he began to talk about his experiences of the past few days in a disjointed manner.
Fang Dian was nervous as she listened, but she didn't dare interrupt. Her eyelashes trembled like petals blown by the wind, and her grip on Lu Suizhu gradually tightened.
"Fang Dian, after I leave Pei Mansion completely, you will take the money I saved for you in the box and go to a place where no one knows you and live a good life." Lu Suizhu said this with some difficulty, but she really didn't want to implicate any innocent person because of her own affairs.
"No, I want to follow the young lady. If the young lady wants to fake her death and escape, she will definitely need someone to pick her up. My chances of success will be greater if I work with Master Shen. After we get out safely, I will go with the young lady to the southeast to find relatives." Fang Dian has always been calm, and she made a decision in just a few words.
Lu Suizhu knew her personality very well. She seemed gentle but was actually stubborn. A warm feeling flowed through her heart. The corners of her mouth rose slightly and she nodded at her.
With the help of Fang Dian and Shen Guyan, the plan became clearer.
It is not a long-term solution for her to maneuver between Xiao Mao and Pei Zhiji every day. If she doesn't want to implicate Qin Wuniang, Yuanyuan and others, she must make Xiao Mao think that she is dead.
When I was chatting with Qiu Zhu a few days ago, she said that the old lady's birthday was less than a month away. With the reputation and status of the Pei family, the families of officials in the court would surely come to celebrate her birthday. No one would pay attention to her, a concubine who didn't even have a title.
With such a good opportunity, she must plan carefully.
As the sky darkened and the fog seemed to turn gray, I had no choice but to say goodbye to Fangdian.
After calling a carriage to rush back to Pei Mansion, Lu Suizhu first returned to her room, put the bottle of fake death medicine and a bottle of "Rixiao" bulk in her arms into the drawer beside the bed, and locked it.
The moment the things left her hands, she felt a lot lighter, no longer as uncomfortable as before as if she was carrying two weights in her arms.
Qiu Zhu was right. Pei Xingzhi was indeed diligent and tireless in his work. Lu Suizhu knocked on the door symbolically and walked in directly.
"What's wrong with your hand?" Pei Zhiji did not blame her for being reckless. Instead, he saw the red back of her hand at a glance.
After he reminded her, Lu Suizhu remembered that she was burned by fire when she was picking up something today. Now the back of her hand looked red, which was very scary. It was fine when she didn't see the fire, but now she saw it and it hurt a little.
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