Lights out
Jiang Nian did not miss the implication of Xiao Yingzhu's words.
At this point, the core reason for riding in the same car finally began to emerge.
Eyes that have adapted to the darkness can now clearly see the brick and tile houses without moonlight.
We are almost at Jiang Mansion.
"Your Excellency has your own reasons for going wherever you go, and I naturally don't mind."
A flash of light flashed across Jiang Nian's clear eyes.
“But I do know.”
—
There seemed to be some gravel on the road that got stuck on the wheels, causing the car to bump a bit, then move forward smoothly again.
A young man's voice came from outside.
"Miss, we are almost at the Jiang Mansion."
Jiang Nian looked away and out the window. The things weighing on his heart had not yet been relieved, and his hands lightly resting on his legs were still clenched.
"How are you planning to return home?"
The dark gaze still fell on her face, as if it had substance.
"Don't bother Miss Jiang..."
He paused for a moment, a subtle emotion revealed.
"Are you in danger?"
Jiang Nian didn't expect Xiao Yingzhu to ask this. He was stunned for a moment before shaking his head.
"Your Excellency underestimates me. I always carry self-defense equipment with me when I go out."
Outside, the houses receded in the dim light.
The other person smiled, glanced out the window, and immediately changed the topic back to the previous one.
"Then Miss Jiang still has a question that has not been answered."
"If it's okay, tell me now."
His tone was lazy and a little nonchalant, like a hunter lurking in the depths.
Jiang Nian sometimes inexplicably felt that Xiao Yingzhu's way of asking questions was to insert them into the conversation, as if it were a light conversation.
Although his questions were bland and casual, he always managed to hit the nail on the head. Sometimes it seemed as if he could see through her thoughts and deliberately lead the conversation in another direction.
It was as if he wanted to suddenly touch the depths of her heart, or like the shadow of a swallow touching and disappearing on the calm water, leaving no trace.
The ripples are as tasteless as boiling water and will gradually fade away after a while.
The sweet and rich fragrance in the room has not yet dissipated.
"have."
Jiang Nian raised her eyes again, her fingertips still slightly clenched, and looked at him with genuine confusion.
"I have a relative who wants to discuss business with me."
…
—
When they returned to Jiang's house and opened the wing room, Guizhi was still sitting on the stone steps outside the wing room, with her hands on her cheeks.
When I walked in, I found that he was asleep.
Although there is still some heat at night in the autumn, it is not a good idea to sleep outside late at night as you may catch a cold.
Jiang Nian bent down and gently patted Guizhi, who was sleeping soundly against the eaves.
"Guizhi, Guizhi?"
She sighed.
"Wake up and go back to sleep."
Guizhi, whose sweet dream was disturbed, suddenly raised her hand and waved it around, almost bumping into Jiang Nian who was standing in front of her and calling her.
The slight gust of cool wind brought by the waving made Guizhi realize that something was wrong, and he suddenly raised his head.
"Miss, why are you...?"
He raised his head too suddenly and his neck made a "crackling" sound. Guizhi hissed and rubbed his neck.
"Oh, miss, that's not right."
After looking around, Guizhi was a little confused.
"Why did I fall asleep here?"
Jiang Nian laughed and said, "You must be too tired. Go and rest quickly."
"Yeah, okay, ah no."
Guizhi remembered what Jiangmu had just told her.
"Madam said she prepared some porridge for you to fill your stomach. It's still warming in the kitchen. Miss, go and try it."
After a busy day, I chatted with Xiao Yingzhu almost all night. Even though I was a little close to him, I couldn't help but tense up.
Jiang Nian raised his hand to cover a yawn and responded with tears in his eyes.
"Okay, I'll wash up first."
—
The candlelight in the wing room flickered, and after an unknown amount of time, a figure appeared through the carved wooden window.
The light in the window faded away, and the darkness became more apparent.
The two secret guards jumped lightly over the eaves under the moonlight shrouded in clouds and mist, and appeared silently in front of Xiao Yingzhu who had just turned his eyes away from the room.
It was quiet all around, and the slight wind had died down.
No other instructions were needed. The place their master ordered them to guard and protect was the courtyard where they landed.
The two secret guards passed by Xiao Yingzhu, and the letter was put away. The black cover was only exposed in the air for a moment before the clouds and mist dissipated, and then disappeared in an instant.
The moon's shadow fell on the water in the courtyard, and the surrounding ground was reflected with shallow and bright ripples.
Xiao Yingzhu suppressed the heavy and complicated thoughts in his eyes and no longer stayed in the moonlit courtyard. He turned around and disappeared in the courtyard.
—
Qin Lan took the note from Ai.
The crow that was delivering the message to Xizhen landed on the flowerpot in front of the window. Its two black crows reflected the person in front of it like a mirror. After a while, it tilted its head quietly.
Ai, who was standing aside silently waiting for Qin Lan's reply, turned around and saw Ya. Through the withered branches in the flowerpot, the girl's face was hazy in the dawn light coming in from the window, and her expression could not be seen clearly.
The person who wrote on the note used concise and efficient language. He was Qu Yan, a soldier who went to Cang County for investigation.
[The Wumi people... believers are suspected of secretly spreading various mirrors... choosing gods... with great power and splendor.]
The mailbox on the crow's foot was pulled out, Ai opened it and looked inside, then closed it again in an instant.
"What did you write?"
Ai turned around and looked at Qin Lan.
“It’s not for us.”
"A letter was sent from the Donglan border to Pingzhou." Ai glanced at the crow that was spreading its wings and pecking at its feathers. "Xiaodu changed his route."
Qin Lan burned the note in his hand and thought about the place names that Xiao Dufei had passed by according to the direction the letter was sent back.
"There was a disaster in Yuchuan. Xiaodu probably avoided that place and came to rest with me."
Qin Lan put the mailbox back in place, looked at the two lively little black beans, and laughed dumbly:
"Okay, you're really smart. When we set off, I'll take it with me to Xiao Yingzhu's place."
The place of Yuchuan is close to where Qin Lan rested temporarily on his way back. Xiaodu is familiar with Xiao Yingzhu and Qin Lan, so he will naturally find a place that is close and where he can rest.
However, Xiao Yingzhu also knew Xiaodu's lazy nature, and the messages he usually sent were not military secrets.
But Xiaodu flew very fast.
Qin Lan fed Xiaodu some food and looked between its feet thoughtfully.
So what information is not confidential but urgent?
With no thoughts in his mind for a moment, Qin Lan bent his fingers and tapped Xiaodu's head lightly.
—
The next day
Guizhi got up early in the morning to dry the quilt. Seeing that Jiang Nian got up a little later than usual, she felt confused when she thought about the time when she came back.
"Miss, why don't you sleep a little longer? You've had very little time to rest these days. Madam came to ask last night if your sleep schedule had been a little messed up recently."
Jiang Nian was still worried about something. The trees outside the yard were lush and green. She turned her eyes away from the bright and overlapping green leaves and smiled softly at Guizhi.
"My father went out to offer sacrifices to the Medicine King God a few days ago. According to the calculations, he should be back today. I was just planning to pack up and go find him."
She hadn't seen her father for a few days, and Zhou Jinyu's affairs were still vague to her.
I talked about him with Xiao Yingzhu last night, but her reaction was somewhat intriguing.
It cannot be attributed to the fact that he had anticipated this in advance, so there was no surprise on his face.
But she did not miss the elusive subtle expression that flashed across Xiao Yingzhu's face when she mentioned her relatives.
The timing of Zhou Jinyu's "business talk" was too coincidental.
Rather than being a conflict of interest as it appears on the surface, it is more like a crack leading to darkness.
If you are not careful, you will be swallowed into the bottomless black hole at the will of the person behind you.
Xiao Yingzhu seemed to know something, but for some reason, he did not express it directly.
Instead, he left himself an address for later discussion.
—
There was still moisture left from the early morning at this hour. Jiang Nian stood by the door for a while, collected his thoughts, turned around and went back to the house to pack his clothes.
The old conversation with my father about cooperation was still ringing in my ears. I stood outside my father's study and knocked on the door again. The figure of a person inside could be vaguely seen through the window paper.
I met my father in the main hall while having breakfast this morning, and we agreed on a time to come to the study to ask him questions.
There was a response from inside. Jiang Nian lowered her eyes, adjusted her skirt slightly, gently pushed the door open and walked in.
After exchanging greetings with Mr. Jiang, she directly told him the purpose of her visit.
"When my daughter was working with Duke Xiao earlier, I forgot to mention something to you, father."
Jiang Nian raised his eyes, observing Jiang's father's expression subtly without leaving any trace, and continued to ask Jiang's father tentatively.
"My daughter was once obsessed with personal affairs and failed to devote herself to the family business. Now I apologize to my father again."
"But recently, my daughter has become concerned that Duke Xiao may have ulterior motives within the family, so she has requested to see you and inquire about past events."
Following Father Jiang's signal to continue, Jiang Nian paused for a moment and asked softly:
"Has your family ever discussed an alliance with anyone? Has your family ever leaked his secret recipe to anyone?"
Seeing Jiang Nian's slightly serious expression, Father Jiang thought something serious had happened during her conversation with Xiao Yingzhu. His slightly frown relaxed again and he waved his hand gently.
"Don't worry, this is a secret recipe passed down from my family. I have never revealed it to anyone, so you can rest assured."
"It's just a matter of alliance..."
The words suddenly stopped, and Father Jiang narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he was lost in memories.
Jiang Nian lowered his eyes and stood there for a while before he heard his father stand up and search the bookshelf for the paper he had tucked in there.
The sound of bamboo scrolls being turned over could be heard in the house, and finally the suppressed contract appeared at the bottom of the scrolls.
She blinked slowly as the warm light coming in from the window cast a shadow of a person in front of the bookshelf on the ground.
After a few days, the answer to this confusing matter was finally revealed. Although I already had a rough guess in my heart, I still felt a sense of urgency.
You shouldn't make a decision without seeing the receipt your father has produced.
Zhou Jinyu's gentle face appeared in his mind, and Jiang Nian's heart sank inexplicably.
The figure on the ground swayed, and Father Jiang turned around and walked to the table, putting down the paper in his hand.
"This contract has been around for a while."
He stretched out his hand and waved towards Jiang Nian, motioning her to stand beside him.
"You can take a look, but the matter was dropped a long time ago and it doesn't count now."
Not counted?
Jiang Nian picked up the contract and read it carefully.
Apart from the fact that this piece of paper looked a little yellowed due to being stored for a long time, the rest of the content was the same as on the paper Zhou Jinyu gave her.
Her gaze lingered for a moment on the signature.
The time on this contract of my father's was ten years earlier than the one Zhou Jinyu gave him.
It has been exactly ten years since this contract was negotiated.
Father Jiang was still sitting next to her waiting for her response. Jiang Nian gently put the contract back on the table and suppressed the chill that was spreading from the bottom of her heart to her whole body.
She pretended to be normal, with a look of confusion that showed some curiosity.
"Father, why did we break our contract with them?"
Father Jiang stared at the contract intently, and after a while he slowly replied.
"When I was negotiating the contract with your second uncle, it was just when the eldest son took over the family business."
"And as you can see, the contract clearly states that its terms are only effective during the lifetime of the parties involved."
"The eldest son...died from a sudden illness."
"You may have heard of that name. He is young and promising, and very talented."
"My name is Zhou Jinyu."
Father Jiang sighed deeply.
"It's a pity that a doctor who doesn't heal himself will inevitably suffer misfortune."
Jiang Nian gently closed his eyes, and pushed his fingers hanging by his side hard inside, only then did he dispel the sudden heavy heart palpitations and the buzzing sound that suddenly rose in his ears.
"I understand. Thank you, father, for answering your daughter's question."
She bowed, and finally opened the door as her father watched her leave, and walked into the sunshine in the courtyard.
The soft beams of light enveloped her skirt, and the thin material was warm, but the coldness all over her body did not subside.
Zhou Jinyu is dead, so who was the Zhou Jinyu we saw a few days ago?
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