Chapter 58 The girl lies tightly in Xie Guanlan's arms
The murderer reached out to the girl from a distance and tried to grab her long hair.
And with his other hand, he had already raised a sharp dagger high, wanting to kill her with one blow.
The familiar silver butterfly hairpin was deeply embedded in his arm, and the silver-threaded butterfly wings were violently destroyed and deformed, as if they had died pitifully.
Xie Guanlan's face was hidden in the shadow of the lantern and could not be seen clearly.
The next moment, he suddenly jumped up.
He ran towards Wen Xingluo.
The moment he was about to get close, he put his arm around the girl's slender waist and pulled her into his arms.
The other hand had already unsheathed the sword.
The sharp blade illuminated Wen Xingluo's eyes.
She saw Xie Guanlan raise his knife and slash.
The hat flew out.
An ugly bald head rolled down to the side of Xie Guanlan's military boots.
"Don't look."
Xie Guanlan sheathed his sword, pressed Wen Xingluo's head with his big hand, and pressed her face against his chest.
A large amount of blood gushed out of the murderer's skull, and then he fell to the ground with a bang.
Wen Xingluo was trembling all over, and his heart was still beating fast.
She had died once, and she was more familiar with the despair of dying than anyone else.
But now, someone pulled her out of the abyss of death.
The girl leaned tightly in Xie Guanlan's arms, her tears soaking his clothes.
The smell of blood in the nostrils was replaced by the scent of sandalwood on the young man's body.
The smell that used to be a scent of fear, tonight gave her an inexplicable sense of security.
Xie Guanlan...
Xie Guanlan...
The girl whispered the name between her lips.
Not sure if it was because she had survived the ordeal or because of the name, but her palms were hot and sweaty, and her heartbeat quickened a little.
Such a sudden heartbeat sound, in the hot and noisy night market, was like the first thunder before the arrival of midsummer.
…
It was late at night, but the lights in Canglang Pavilion were as bright as day.
Chen Lezhi pinched the corner of his clothes and stood dejectedly in the study: "I didn't mean to abandon Ningning... There were so many people at the night market, I thought the murderer wouldn't dare to show up..."
Xie Guanlan sat cross-leggedly on it and added a piece of sandalwood to the incense burner.
His face was hidden behind the swirling incense mist, making it impossible to see his expression.
"I don't blame you." Wen Xingluo took Chen Lezhi's hand seriously, "It's the murderer's fault, not yours."
"Wuwuwu Ningning! I will definitely take good care of you next time!"
Chen Lezhi hugged her and cried loudly.
Chen Yushi coughed lightly and apologized to Xie Guanlan, "My sister is naughty. I will discipline her when I get home. I heard that my sister was frightened tonight, so the Chen family will prepare a generous gift to make amends."
"No need." Xie Guanlan refused coldly, "You should leave tonight."
Chen Lezhi was in the wrong and did not dare to bargain. He had to say goodbye to Wen Xingluo and left with Chen Yushi reluctantly.
There were only two people left in the room.
Wen Xingluo hung his head and said, "Thank you so much for saving me tonight, Prince."
Xie Guanlan ignored her and ordered Fushan: "Send her back to Xiejinyuan."
Wen Xingluo looked up at him cautiously, "Are you angry? Angry that I ran around in the middle of the night and almost tarnished your political achievements..."
Xie Guanlan had no expression on his face.
After a while, he said, "Do you know that you almost died tonight? If you died——"
Wen Xingluo looked at him.
His whole body was tense, and his narrow eyes, as dark as the cold abyss, gave her the illusion that he cared about her.
But Xie Guanlan just continued coldly: "If you die, how can I explain to Grandmother and Fourth Brother?"
Wen Xingluo still looked at him.
The candlelight from the nine lamps shone on his body, outlining a thin layer of gold. It was clearly a warm flame, but it had a cold metallic texture. Even the gorgeous scarlet clothes he was wearing had a cool and noble tone in the long night.
The prince of Zhenbei Palace is of noble birth and has made great military achievements.
Untouchable and inviolable.
She lowered her eyelashes and whispered, "I'm sorry."
Wen Xingluo was personally sent back to Xiejinyuan by Fushan, leaving Xie Guanlan alone in the study.
He took out a black silk handkerchief from his sleeve, opened it, and found a hairpin inside.
It was the one that Wen Xingluo stabbed into the gangster's arm.
He touched the silver butterfly on the hairpin.
The butterfly's wings drooped limply, and its entire body was stained with dark red blood, making it look less beautiful.
Thinking of Wen Xingluo's loss before he left, he called out, "Yishui."
A dark figure emerged from the corner: "Master?"
Xie Guanlan pinched the hairpin and said, "Go and order a new one."
She looks good in this style of hairpin.
After a pause, he added, "It has to be pure gold."
After Yishui left, Xie Guanlan looked at the report from the military camp for a while, and Fushan came back with a lantern.
Fushan said respectfully, "Your Highness, the young lady has been sent back to Xiejinyuan. Also, our spies just reported back that Wen Ruyun and Wen Yueyin, brother and sister, have secretly dug a cave on the top of the northern mountain outside the city and pawned a lot of valuables. They've spent all their savings in the past few days and have accumulated a large amount of rice, flour, grain, and oil."
Xie Guanlan closed the report.
He twirled the silver butterfly hairpin and said meaningfully, "Storing grain for sale... It seems the Wen brothers and sisters also know that Shu County is about to be flooded. How are things going at the Imperial Astronomical Observatory?"
"News just arrived from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory. After several days of observation, there is indeed a high probability of continuous torrential rain this summer, causing floods! Prince, this young lady can actually predict the future!"
The broken and bloody silver butterfly was reflected in Xie Guanlan's narrow eyes.
Can Wen Xingluo predict the future?
He doesn't think so.
He locked the silver butterfly in the back of a drawer and ordered, "Send people to the surrounding counties to gather grain. Chen Yushi feels guilty about the Zhenbei Palace, so you can buy it from him at a low price."
Food alone is not enough.
Shu County has not experienced floods for hundreds of years, so how to drain the flood is also a problem.
Xie Guanlan stood up and started flipping through the books on the bookshelf.
The other side.
North mountain on the outskirts of the city.
The cave is very large, enough to store tens of thousands of kilograms of food.
Wen Ruyun held the torch, still unsure: "Yue Yin, did you really dream of a flood in Shu County? This time we stole our family savings and pawned a lot of valuables. What if there is no flood at all? Then father will blame us..."
"Don't worry, second brother." Wen Yueyin said confidently, "From childhood to adulthood, when have I ever lied to you? After this flood, use the money you earn to start the Shu brocade business. With your intelligence and talent, you will definitely become the richest man in Shu County! Maybe even the richest man in the world. By then, father and eldest brother will be rising rapidly in the court, and you will be able to make things happen in the business world with just a flick of your hand. Our family will be powerful and wealthy enough to rival a country. Good days are ahead!"
Wen Ruyun was moved after hearing her description.
When they become powerful and wealthy enough to rival a country, even Xie Guanlan will have to look after them.
That damn girl Wen Xingluo will definitely regret recognizing the Xie brothers as her stepbrothers.
By that time, even if she knelt down at his feet crying, he would no longer want her as a second-hand sister!
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