A horse and a carriage with three or five people, blowing the warm wind and accompanied by the morning light, slowly walked along the peach blossom road. Tang Chen sat on the horse with his eyes closed, enjoying all the beauty of this spring day. If he raised his hand, it seemed as if he could pick the flowers blooming on the roadside.
Tang Chen looked at the branches of flowers in various shapes and sizes and couldn't help but sigh: "In this kind of weather, it would be a shame not to enjoy the breeze. Can I pick one of these flowers?"
Wang Yanzhou gently rubbed Tang Chen's forehead and said, "This flower is in full bloom. Why don't you just enjoy this one while I pick out a nice one for you to wear? How about that?"
Tang Chen replied happily: "Okay, okay, wear it to make it look nice. If it doesn't look nice, I won't pay you!"
"Yes, yes, yes."
Shangguan Bing'er sat alone in the carriage, watching the two chatting and laughing outside the window, and the dazzling peach blossom in Tang Chen's hair. She truly felt what it meant to be redundant. But she didn't want to let go. It had taken so much effort to reach Qingliang Valley, so much effort to be reunited. She couldn't just leave like this. At the very least, she had to tell him the thoughts that had been accumulating in her heart for countless years. She had to wait for a conclusion.
In the Qingliang Valley, people are intoxicated by the sudden warm spring sunshine. Outside the Qingliang Valley, some people's hearts are still in the cold wind and frost of the twelfth lunar month.
The mysterious man in black robes was in a thatched pavilion on the roadside not far from Qingliang Valley. He looked coldly at the passers-by coming in and out of the valley and said, "Have they arranged for them to go in?"
Shu Yang, standing behind the mysterious man, answered timidly, "After Shangguan Bing'er heard about Wang Yanzhou's situation, she was skeptical at first. But when Lin Qinghui mentioned it, she couldn't sit still and followed him eagerly."
The mysterious man nodded slightly and said, "Have your people be more careful. If you can get some useful information from her, that would be great. If not, that's fine too. Just don't let anyone catch you easily."
Shu Yang didn't know what he wanted. She only knew that the moment she saw this man appear in front of her again, her life seemed to be firmly in his hands. She had no choice but to say, "Then, where is Yao Niang?"
The mysterious man said coldly: "It was Black Crow who took her away in the first place. Wherever Black Crow is now, she will definitely be there too."
Shu Yang lowered his brows and thought for a moment, then asked tentatively, "Then, when do we start?"
The mysterious man chuckled upon hearing this and said, "Action? We don't need to do anything. Yao Niang will come to us on her own. As long as she still yearns for the prosperous world outside, she will definitely come to me. All we have to do is wait outside the valley."
...When Tang Chen returned to the palace with a bunch of peach branches that Wang Yanzhou had picked for her along the way, everyone looked at her with complicated eyes, the kind of complexity that Tang Chen could not interpret.
Shangguan Bing'er had just entered the mansion with Wang Yanzhou when they were greeted by Heiya and Xihe. Xihe suddenly stopped in front of her, then lunged at her like a madman. If Heiya hadn't stopped her, Xihe would have nearly injured someone.
"Who are you? Who are you?"
Shangguan Bing'er was so frightened by Xihe's brutality that she hid behind Wang Yanzhou, trembling. She swore that she had never seen this woman before, but why did this person look at her as if she were an enemy?
Seeing Xihe's continued rampage, Black Crow had no choice but to knock her unconscious again, pick her up by the waist, and prepare to take her back first:
"Well, Miss Shangguan, Xihe didn't mean to offend, sorry. Ah Chen, I'll take her back first."
Tang Chen looked at Xihe's hand that he had scratched, nodded a little worriedly and said, "Yeah, go quickly. Oh my God, I don't know what's wrong with her recently. Let Chen Xin take a look."
Wang Yanzhou said, "Zhong Qin, make some arrangements."
"learn."
Tang Chen sighed slightly and continued, "By the way, Zhong Qin, take Miss Shangguan to the guest room to rest first. I'm worried, so I'll go over and take a look."
"Yes, Miss Shangguan, please follow Zhong Qin this way," Zhong Qin said, then took a step to the side. Shangguan Bing'er saw this and didn't want to say anything more to Wang Yanzhou, so she left.
On the way to the guest room, Shangguan Bing'er asked Zhong Qin a lot about Wang Yanzhou in a roundabout way. Zhong Qin then said bluntly, "Miss Shangguan is an honored guest of our mansion. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask."
Shangguan Bing'er's cheeks flushed slightly. She knew she had too many questions, but there was nothing she could do. Although she and Wang Yanzhou grew up together, strictly speaking, it was only during the few short years when he was still in the capital. "When did Master Zhong Qin become Yanzhou's friend?"
Zhong Qin smiled and said, "Zhong Qin and I grew up together." After that, the two of them happened to walk to the small kitchen outside Meiwu. Zhong Qin continued to introduce, "Miss, please look, the small kitchen is over here. The big kitchen is a few corner doors away and is right by the lake."
Shangguan Bing'er looked at the layout and asked in confusion, "Why is there a kitchen so close?"
Zhong Qin explained, "To be honest, Madam likes to sneak in some late-night snacks. To ensure safety, Master set up a small kitchen next to Plum Grove."
"...I see," Zhong Qin's address to Tang Chen undoubtedly made Shangguan Bing'er feel even more depressed. Lin Qinghui had said that, strictly speaking, they weren't even engaged yet; yet, everyone in the mansion seemed to have completely accepted Tang Chen. She had to think of a solution.
The news of Shangguan Bing'er's arrival at the palace spread throughout the residence within an hour. Everyone shared the gossip they had gathered, speculating about the young lady's purpose and Wang Yanzhou's attitude.
...After just a few days, Shangguan Bing'er had basically familiarized herself with the layout of the mansion. As a result, she gradually grew bolder and could easily find the more important places without help.
Early in the morning, when Tang Chen had finished his breakfast at Wang Yanzhou's place and came back to Xihe to eat melon seeds and chat, a black crow fell from the sky.
Tang Chen asked expectantly, "What's wrong? Is there something fun?"
Black Crow said bluntly, "Your rival has gone to the garden with your lover."
"learn!"
After saying that, Tang Chen put the melon seeds back on the plate, clapped his hands, and rushed into Xihe's room. Black Crow thought she was a little crazy because of the stimulation, and helplessly reminded her: "Hey, you are going in the wrong direction!"
"That's right, bring Xihe with you. I'll show you my ability to predict the future." As he spoke, Tang Chen took the large straw hat he had woven out of reeds and hid it in Xihe's room. He also took a straw raincoat with him. If you didn't know better, you might think he was crazy.
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