Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Vomiting blood again
With the imperial examination approaching, Lu Suizhu and Wu Lianjin packed their bags and returned to Shangjing.
Before they had even finished washing the clothes, the usually bossy servant took the initiative to grab them and hang them up to dry. This made Lu Suizhu a little suspicious: "Brother, has he changed his personality?"
Shen Wenjian laughed dryly twice: "Maybe recently some officials and wealthy businessmen have come to my humble house with gifts and servants, so he is afraid that I will no longer want him."
"It's strange, though. Minister Pei, who hasn't been seen in the capital for a long time, suddenly came to the academy yesterday. He read my article and praised it highly to Lord Su Liao. Word of this spread, and many people started to curry favor with me and give me gifts."
Wu Lianjin lowered his head in thought, feeling increasingly depressed. He immediately excused himself from leaving, saying he was going to visit the silk shops in Shangjing. Shen Wenjian also returned to the academy to study, so he left with him.
Lu Suizhu was left alone. She suddenly remembered what Pei Zhiji had said in Fanxi, that he would wait for her in Shangjing, and her heart wavered for a moment.
This time he stood up for her brother in the academy, and she should thank him both morally and logically.
Thinking this in her heart, she packed up and prepared to go out. When she reached the door, she met the flustered Fulin, who was gasping for breath.
"Miss Lu, I'm looking for you!"
Seeing that he was thirsty and anxious and couldn't speak clearly, Lu Suizhu hurriedly scooped a bowl of cold water from the jar in the yard. After a few cups of cool water, Fulin started talking.
"Two days ago, my master went to a noble family to take measurements, saying he wanted to order a Luohan bed. But he didn't come back until midnight. I thought it was because he was taking measurements too late, so I stayed at the host's house. But I didn't expect him to wait for two days. I got anxious, thinking that my master didn't have anyone he knew well in the capital, so I had no choice but to discuss it with Miss Lu."
After saying this, Fulin wiped the water from the corner of his mouth and said, "This is the location of the mansion left by that noble family. I have been asking around for a long time but haven't found it. Maybe there is no such place in Shangjing."
Fuqi was so anxious that he started sweating and drank several bowls of water in a row.
Lu Suizhu took the note, which read:
Baolu Street, East Gate.
Baolu Street, Baolu, Baolu, isn't it "Palace", East Gate, together it is the East Palace.
The gloomy sky cast a shadow on a corner of the palace gate. The city walls were a dark red, and the green branches were growing in an orderly manner like the meridians of the human body.
Lu Suizhu raised her head to look at the plaque of the East Palace. In the vast land, there was such a gloomy and depressing imperial city. How could she not feel the vastness of the world and burst into tears when she was here?
The door was wide open, and Xiao Mao was leisurely drinking tea with a smile on his face.
"I have been waiting for Master Lu for a long time."
In Tangweixuan, Shen Guyan was blindfolded with a white cloth, his limbs were tied to a chair, he had a handkerchief in his mouth, and his head was hanging low, as if his neck was broken and hanging from a beam.
The moment Lu Suizhu felt cold, she ran forward with unsteady steps to check Chen Guyan's breath. She felt with the back of her hand that he was still breathing warmly. Fortunately, he was just unconscious.
What does your Highness mean by this?"
He didn't kneel down, but looked straight ahead.
Xiao Mao was not angry at all. Instead, he laughed: "How could I not have realized that Master Lu was such an interesting person before?"
Lu Suizhu stood there with a frown on her face, feeling that he was becoming increasingly insane.
"Look, you're so ordinary, yet you can make so many men bow down to you. There was Pei Huaishen before, and Pei Zhiji after. Even this blockhead like Chen Guyan treats you very differently."
"?"
Lu Suizhu clenched her fists and held her breath. It was clearly him who asked her to go undercover in Pei Mansion, so why did she act like she had betrayed him?
Xiao Mao took out a dagger from somewhere and rubbed it against Chen Guyan's neck. Every finger of his was terrifying and vicious, and it jumped wildly in Lu Suizhu's heart.
"When I was reading the files of the Ministry of Justice, I saw a very interesting case." Looking up at Lu Suizhu's expression, which was indeed very pale, Xiao Mao continued.
"Lu, a zither player from Louyue Pavilion, accidentally killed his customer, Sun Dayong, but was ultimately acquitted. The judge of the case was none other than Shen Guyan, who had recently taken office at the Ministry of Justice—Shen Fazhi."
The knife swayed in front of her eyes, and its bright color dazzled her eyes. When her gaze fell on the sharp blade, Lu Suizhu's heart was gripped.
"Why did His Royal Highness the Crown Prince act this way? Was it to vent his anger?"
Xiao Mao looked up at her, took a few steps closer, grabbed her collar, and said angrily, "How dare you say that the Fanxi illegal mining case has nothing to do with Pei Zhiji? He left Shangjing for so long, and right after that, the mine was blown up. You were the only one present when I killed Li Taifu. Do you think you can escape responsibility?"
"Your Highness, if you are so angry, why don't you go and confront Lord Pei face to face? Or do you simply not dare to do so, so you can only take it out on a weak woman like me and a commoner like Shen Guyan."
Lu Suizhu had been at the mercy of Xiao Mao for too long, and was exhausted both physically and mentally. If he said it to his face now, even if he died, he would not have too many regrets in his afterlife.
"Yes, very good."
The dagger in Xiao Mao's hand stabbed directly into Chen Guyan's left shoulder. In just a moment, the knife came down and the man on the chair groaned, his veins bulging with pain, and then he lowered his head heavily.
"No--" Lu Suizhu's eyes were bloodshot and his brain was mixed into a ball. When he knelt down and begged, he was thrown out by Xiao Yimao.
Too much drug was given, and it was unknown whether Shen Guyan hadn't woken up or had fainted from the pain again.
She supported herself on the ground with her elbows, tears in her eyes, and struggled to pull at a piece of Xiao Mao's clothes: "Your Highness, Your Highness, I have spoken carelessly. Please don't hurt him. If you have anything to say, come to me. Shen Gu said he is innocent."
Xiao Mao leaned over and pinched her chin, his tone mocking: "This is not like her. Wipe away your tears, just like you did just now."
For fear of angering her again, Lu Suizhu had no choice but to go along with it. Tears were stuck in her eyes and she immediately turned into the same beautiful woman with angry eyes that made her look pitiful.
Touching her face with satisfaction, Xiao Mao thought that beauties are indeed all alike. Although their charm and demeanor are slightly different, they are still acceptable.
"Take it off."
"What?"
The dagger hit Chen Guyan's chest again, and Lu Suizhu's skin seemed to be covered with fine thorns.
He didn't say anything, just quietly enjoyed it.
Lu Suizhu bit her lip and closed her eyes, almost wanting to exploit herself to the point of exhaustion.
When only the last piece of clothing was left, Xiao Mao felt that he had lost interest. Just then, someone outside the door announced, "Minister Pei is here."
Pei Zhiji rushed in without waiting for anyone to pass on the message, took off his cloak and covered Lu Suizhu with it, picked her up with a stern face, and walked out without even looking back.
She had never felt that the road to the East Palace was so long. It was even more terrifying than the endless mountain roads and the alleys where rain was pouring. She huddled in Pei Zhiji's arms, her ears pressed against his chest.
He jumps so fast. He must be very tired after such a long journey.
Although Pei Zhiji was anxious, he still walked steadily, holding the cloak with his hands to wrap her tightly.
As soon as they left the palace, he stuffed her into a carriage and told the driver to go back home, with a cold face from beginning to end.
After dismissing all the servants and closing the door, Pei Zhiji turned around and looked at her, his brows furrowed and his voice filled with obvious displeasure.
"You care so much about Chen Guyan that you're willing to do anything for him? If I had gone a minute later today, would you have let Xiao Mao take whatever he wanted for Chen Guyan?"
I was already feeling aggrieved and had no place to vent my grievances, and he scolded me indiscriminately, which immediately made me angry. The resentment accumulated in my heart came to my lips, and I started to speak without thinking.
"Master Pei's words are very high-sounding. How many good things are there among you men? Master Pei helped me in every way, isn't it also for my body, wanting to spend the night with me?"
"If Master Pei is willing, I can serve you once."
Amidst the gloomy sky, returning crows flew across, drawing a semicircle.
Pei Zhiji's ears were buzzing, and his chest was churning again after hearing these words. He was so miserable that he held on to the window with one hand and spat out a mouthful of blood.
The instigator stood there like a quail. Lu Suizhu regretted his harsh words and dared not say another word.
Those eyes, which were already so handsome that they moved people's hearts, were now staring at her like a wronged ghost. There was still blood at the corner of his mouth, which made his pretended appearance look shattered.
He tugged at her sleeve, his brows furrowed like a small mountain, and asked blankly, "Is this how you look at me?"
"No, I... was in a hurry." Lu Suizhu was tongue-tied at the moment and wanted to slap herself twice. How could she argue with a patient?
She took the initiative to touch Pei Zhiji's hand, which was so cold.
"Don't be angry."
Pei Zhiji didn't say a word. He closed his eyes in pain and swallowed the blood. Lu Suizhu picked up the medicine that was placed beside her, which was for some unknown purpose, and sat beside the bed, handing it to his mouth spoon by spoon.
After a long while, he saw his expression ease a little, and then he spoke hesitantly: "Chen Gu said he..."
"Suo Ye has already sent him back."
That's good. Lu Suizhu felt relieved. Even if he was angry, he was not a person without sense of propriety.
With her back to Pei Zhiji, she changed into a new dress, and a rustling sound could not help making when she was dressing and undressing.
Pei Zhiji closed his eyes to try not to think or recall the past, but he found that the harder he tried to restrain himself, the more the images in his mind became lingering and the more they multiplied.
This kind of self-disdain and mockery gradually spread to her heart and was hard to get rid of. Perhaps it was just as Lu Suizhu said, all men were not good, otherwise how could they find it so difficult to control even the most basic desires.
It was a waste of his youth to read so many Buddhist scriptures, but they were all just a bunch of idioms.
If the master knew about this, he would definitely scold him.
"I have to go back quickly, otherwise my brother will worry." Lu Suizhu used a hairpin to tie a loose bun, lifted the hair scattered on her neck, and the scent of osmanthus oil hit her face.
During the time when he was blind, his sense of smell was extremely sensitive, and he was surrounded by this smell every day.
"I have already sent someone to inform your brother that he is coming to my house today to play the piano for the women in my family."
When he went out, it was drizzling outside, and Lu Suizhu casually picked up an oil-paper umbrella with yellow-brown patterns.
Not far from Pei Mansion, the person standing in the rain was not Shen Wenjian, but Wu Lianjin who was not holding an umbrella.
Lu Suizhu walked over and called out, "Cousin."
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