Chi Yu mentioned: "Do you want to go and have a look?"

Wei Xiu pulled his sleeve imperceptibly and said, "Brother Yu, you can go back in the carriage. This place is not far from Prince Kang's Mansion. I can walk there by myself."

They had agreed to play polo at Prince Kang's mansion.

Chi Yu and he had always had a tacit understanding, so he smiled and said nonchalantly, "Okay, then I'll go back to the palace first."

After separating from Chi Yu, Wei Xiu walked slowly towards Prince Kang's Mansion.

When he was halfway there, he turned again and headed towards Zuoshi Street.

Wei Xiu kept keeping an eye on the carriage out of the corner of his eye. The carriage was still following him closely, keeping a certain distance from him.

Zuoshi Street is narrow and has many alleys, so it is difficult for a horse-drawn carriage to enter. Most of the people are pedestrians, and it is very busy and lively.

Wei Xiu went to a bookstore by himself, stayed there for a while, bought a book, and asked people on the way where he could buy the four treasures of the study.

"Go over there," the passerby pointed to a small alley and said enthusiastically, "Go to the end and turn right. There is an old shop there. It sells very good things."

"Thank you."

Wei Xiu bowed in thanks and followed the instructions of the passerby into the alley. He walked slowly at first, then suddenly quickened his pace and turned right.

The guard did not walk away, but stood against the wall, hiding himself in the reflection of the wall.

After waiting for a while, he heard the sound of footsteps and slightly rapid breathing.

The footsteps were very gentle and the walking speed was not fast, so there should be only one person.

Then, a long shadow appeared at the entrance of the alley. Judging from the shadow, it was a woman.

Can handle it!

Wei Xiu’s mind was made up.

At the moment when the man turned, Wei Xiu's toes quickly turned on the ground, and a small sword appeared in his hand, and then he approached quickly.

The man was startled, and before he could react, he was forced against the wall.

Wei Xiu turned his wrist and put the curved knife against her neck.

All the movements were clean and neat, without any drag.

Wei Xiu breathed a sigh of relief. This was the first time he used a knife outside of training.

He was different from Sheng Yan and Jiao Yang. He didn't need to start from the basics. Of course, he also practiced horse stance, but before he could learn it well, his brother-in-law taught him a few self-defense moves.

My brother-in-law said that he would be easily put in a sack if he went out, so if he was being followed, if he was sure that there was only one person following him, he could use this trick to catch the enemy off guard and defeat him first.

If there are several people following him, he should use more caution to distract them.

He practiced this move over and over again, and it had already taken shape.

But until his brother-in-law passed away, this was the only trick he knew.

He didn't show it on his face, just pretending to be Sheng Yan, and asked coldly: "Who are you?"

This is a woman. Or rather a lady, about thirty years old, dressed in brocade clothes and wearing pearl hairpins. She doesn't look like a commoner, but more like an official.

The wife of an official family came to follow me personally?

The guard's unsheathed curved knife was pressed against her slender neck, and it seemed that if he exerted a little force, the sharp blade would cut her neck.

Wei Xiu always did things with moderation and controlled the strength of his hands very accurately. However, the other party obviously didn't know this. She felt the cold touch on her neck and was so scared that her whole body was shaking.

It took her a while to come back to her senses, and she trembled and said, "Jue'er, you are Jue'er, right? Put down the knife, put down the knife, I am your aunt."

"Aunt?" Wei Xiu had no expression on his face, but his tail was slightly raised, and his sword did not move away.

Sheng said hurriedly, "My last name is Sheng, and I am your biological aunt. You must be Jue'er, right? You look exactly like my sister-in-law, especially your eyes, which are exactly the same... Jue'er, can you please put down the knife first? Let's talk slowly about what you want to say."

Sheng's breathing became extremely chaotic, but she dared not move, for fear that the knife would really cut her throat.

Wei Xiu still ignored it.

Even when she called herself his aunt, his face showed no emotion.

My sister said that she had not told any other members of the Sheng family except Sheng Yan about his affairs, and my sister would not lie to her.

If my sister said she didn’t say it, then she definitely didn’t say it.

"Why are you following me?" Wei Xiu asked coldly.

“I, I…”

Sheng's eyes were a little evasive, and she said, "I saw you on the street. You look so much like your mother, I recognized you at first sight...Ah!"

Sheng let out a scream and suddenly felt a slight pain in her neck. She was so scared that her tears and snot flowed into a ball.

"If you don't want to talk about it, forget it."

Wei Xiu said calmly, "It's just that my hands are a little sore. This knife is too heavy and I can't lift it."

He was really about to lose control.

However, my brother-in-law said that if you want to bluff someone, you have to make it look real and not reveal your true intentions.

"I, I said."

Sheng was so frightened that she cried and said, "Someone told me that you were Jue'er, so I came here to see you."

Wei Xiu narrowed his eyes slightly: "Who said that?"

Sheng shook her head and said, "I don't know. I just received a letter. I don't know who that person is."

Of course she knew who told her, but she couldn't let Wei Xiu know.

Sheng squeezed her hands hidden in her sleeves and told herself that he was just a half-grown child and she could make him believe it.

Thinking of this, she became more confident and said, "Jue'er, you've been missing for so long. Your aunt really missed you, so as soon as she heard about you, she rushed over to see you."

Tears welled up in her eyes and she was almost crying.

She looked so excited, like a mother seeing her long-lost child.

Wei Xiu pondered for a moment, then retracted his sword. He did not sheath it, but held it in his hand and said calmly, "My name is Wei Xiu, not Sheng Jue."

Sheng heaved a sigh of relief and leaned against the wall behind her. Seeing Wei Xiu leave without looking back, she called out to him, "Jue'er, do you know how your mother died?"

Wei Xiu stopped and slowly looked towards her.

Sheng was delighted. As expected, no one would ignore it if they heard that there was a hidden story behind their mother's death.

Without waiting for Wei Xiu to ask, Sheng said quickly, "It was your father! Your father disliked your mother's family background, so he deliberately killed your mother. Not only that, he also abandoned you, just to prevent you from taking the title of the eldest son. He could marry a noblewoman."

"Brother Jue, you have to believe me. Sheng Yan is the same age as you. If your father really cared about your mother, how could he let a bastard son be born?!"

Sheng gritted her teeth and said, "I have always had a good relationship with your mother. Since your mother passed away, I am really, very sad..."

She took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the corners of her eyes. Her eyes became redder and her voice became a little choked.

She looked at Wei Xiu and the knife in his hand carefully.

She couldn't see any emotion in his eyes, which made all the things Sheng had planned to say go to waste and she became even more flustered.

Wei Xiu had been staying in the Zhenbei Palace and rarely went out. Sheng went to the gate of the palace and waited for him several times, but he never showed up.

As a widow, she can't go out very often.

After Zhao Yuanrou got married, she was a princess consort after all, and she did not suffer any torture in the Zhao family. However, after King Zhao was imprisoned, her life in the Zhao family became worse and worse. The Zhao family thought she would bring trouble to them, so they treated her in every way, and her family did not help her.

She only went out twice before being treated strangely by the Zhao family for a long time and she dared not go out again.

I heard that the results will be announced today, and the person who came to the capital with Wei Xiu is a candidate for this year's exam. Wei Xiu might come out to pick him up, so Sheng came here to try his luck.

Wei Xiu did look very similar to Xu, and she recognized him almost at first sight.

She originally wanted to find an opportunity to meet him by chance, but there were too many people on Zuoshi Street, and Wei Xiu turned into an alley and disappeared in an instant. She had no choice but to get off the carriage and follow him.

She had never thought that she would be able to talk to him under such circumstances, and the words she had prepared for several days came out in a disorganized and incoherent manner.

Sheng calmed himself down and tried to steer the conversation back to the topic.

She grabbed Wei Xiu's sleeve and said seriously, "Jue'er, you have returned to Beijing, why don't you go home? You are the eldest son of the Sheng family, and everything in the Sheng family should be yours."

Seeing that Wei Xiu was not moved, Sheng brought up Xu again: "Even if it's not for yourself, you should think about your mother. Your mother must also hope that you can go back, otherwise she will give the Sheng family to Sheng Yan, a bastard, and your mother's spirit in heaven will not be at peace."

She appealed to his emotions: "Jue'er, your mother only has you as her son. If you don't go back, who will be able to offer incense to her in the future?"

"Your mother died unjustly. You should avenge her. Otherwise, you would be unworthy of being a son of a human being."

Sheng said all the words in one breath, full of righteous indignation, as if she was standing up for Xu.

Sure enough, a touch of emotion flashed across Wei Xiu's eyes, and he asked, "How did my mother die..."

"Your mother..." Sheng wiped her tears and started crying first, "Your mother was pushed into the lake and drowned by the nanny who was with your stepmother."

She cried bitterly.

"Your stepmother and your father had a secret love affair. In order to marry your stepmother, your father first abandoned you, and then you teamed up with your stepmother to kill your mother."

Sheng told the story one by one.

After Liu was divorced, she inquired about the matter and found out about the hidden story. However, when Sheng heard the story, the whole story took on a different meaning.

Wei Xiu waited for her to finish her words before he asked, "Why didn't my sister avenge my mother?"

The topic finally turned to the direction she hoped for. Sheng felt relieved and said, "You have suffered a lot for many years, but your sister lives a good life every day. What good is it for her to avenge your mother? She will also offend your father. With a murderer father, how can she get a good marriage? Will the Zhenbei Palace still want her?"

"Think about it, how come she has never contacted you in all these years?"

"If your stepmother hadn't confessed this time, she wouldn't have cared about your life or death at all."

"Brother Jue, you've been missing for so many years. Your sister's closest brother is no longer you, but Sheng Yan."

"Otherwise, why wouldn't your sister let you go back?"

As Sheng spoke, she almost believed it herself.

She continued, "Your sister must be planning to register Sheng Yan under your mother's name and let Sheng Yan inherit the Sheng family in the future. Jue'er, don't let others fool you. Everything in the Sheng family is yours."

Wei Xiu didn't say anything, nor did he leave. He seemed to be listening to her carefully, which made Sheng feel relieved.

Sheng became more and more excited and kept talking on and on. The general meaning of her speech was that his sister was not sincere to him and asked him to avenge Xu.

After she finished speaking, Sheng added, "Jue'er, your aunt is only doing this for your own good."

"I understand." Wei Xiu said calmly, "If everything is ok, I'll leave first."

After he finished speaking, he sheathed his sword, turned around and left, this time without looking back.

Sheng heaved a sigh of relief and pressed her back against the wall, still feeling a little flustered.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead. She was really scared just now. She didn't expect that Sheng Jue also liked to wield swords and guns like Sheng Yan. She didn't know how her eldest brother taught the child. He ruined the reputation of their scholarly family.

Fortunately, Wei Xiu believed it.

He is just a child, how could he not believe it?

Sheng didn't care whether Wei Xiu would confront Sheng Xiyan or not. Ninety percent of what she said was true and ten percent was false. Even if they confronted each other, Wei Xiu would not be able to be sure who was lying.

Now, it is enough to leave a thorn in his heart.

Sheng tightened her grip around the handkerchief, never expecting that she could really find Sheng Jue.

When Sheng found out that Sheng Jue had actually returned, she simply couldn't believe it. After all, so many years had passed and everything had changed.

But no matter how much she didn't believe it, Sheng Jue's return did not do her any bad things and he could even save her daughter.

Thinking of her daughter, Sheng's heart ached.

She had raised her daughter like a treasure since she was little, but now she had met such a fate. Whenever she thought of it, she felt heartbroken.

Thinking about how she had to disguise herself as a food delivery woman to see her daughter a while ago, Sheng's heart was almost broken.

Rou'er looked haggard, with dull eyes, as if she was disheartened. When she saw her, she was dazed and insisted that she was not her daughter and wanted to go home.

She burst into tears.

This is no longer the proud and beautiful Rouer.

I don't know how they treated her harshly.

Zheng Xintong told her that King Zhao had offended Xiao Shuo, and only if Xiao Shuo fell, could Rou'er and King Zhao be released.

Only if Xiao Shuo falls can Rou'er escape the fate of being a prisoner.

Sheng clenched her fists, thinking that her daughter must be a dragon among men and could even ascend to the phoenix throne.

Now he is being harmed by treacherous villains.

Rou'er is young and shouldn't be trapped in this square wall for her whole life.

She knew that the second daughter of the Zheng family didn't really want to help her, but she had no other choice.

At worst, she would just give up her life!

Sheng calmed himself down and left quickly.

After Sheng left, Wei Xiu came out from the corner again. His eyes moved slightly, and his ink-black pupils were heavy, unable to tell whether he was happy or angry.

He lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then walked back in the direction he came from.

"Ash!"

"You said it looked like you, and it really is you!"

Just as Wei Xiu walked out of the alley and was about to go to Prince Kang's Mansion, he was stopped by a young man riding a white horse. The young man flicked the whip in the air, and a look of high spirits appeared on his handsome face.

He said, "Ah Xiu, why are you still buying books? Come on, get on the horse, I'll take you for a ride."

Wei Xiu looked at his short Mongolian horse, afraid that he might fall, and shook his head decisively: "No need."

Then he bowed and greeted: "Master Zhuang."

"Why call me Master Zhuang? Just call me Ah Cheng." Seeing that he was unwilling to ride with him, Zhuang Haocheng simply jumped off the horse, put his arm around his shoulder and said, "Let's go, let's go together."

"There's an epidemic in Beijing recently. Don't run around everywhere. You might get infected if you're not careful."

"Epidemic?" Wei Xiu felt a little uncomfortable being so close to someone and moved his shoulders slightly.

Zhuang Haocheng said helplessly: "I just heard about it yesterday. It's the same as the epidemic ten years ago. Do you know the epidemic ten years ago? Oh, you probably don't know, you..."

He gestured roughly and said, "You were only this old ten years ago, you definitely didn't know!"

Wei Xiu: “…”

He skillfully interrupted Zhuang Haocheng's words, picked out the key points, and asked: "The epidemic ten years ago? Was it the time when the previous emperor passed away?"

"Yes, yes, yes." Zhuang Haocheng said, "So you know it, that's it. I don't know why it has suddenly become popular in Beijing recently. Also, I heard that several people have fallen ill. You'd better not run around recently. If you run around, you will be in trouble if you get infected accidentally. Don't you know this..."

"Who is sick?" Wei Xiu asked again.

Zhuang Haocheng counted on his fingers and said, "There is the wife of Earl Ning'an, the wife of Prince Yu, the wife of Duke Cheng'en, and the wife of the Prince of Cheng'en... Oh, the wife of the Prince is very ill."

As he spoke, he was still a little frightened and said disapprovingly, "My mother insisted on going to see the Crown Prince's wife, and I had a hard time stopping her."

Wei Xiu asked, "Is Duke Cheng'en the Queen Mother's mother's family?"

Titles such as Duke Cheng'en and Duke Mu'en were mostly given to the empress or the empress dowager's maternal family and were a kind of honorific title.

Zhuang Haocheng nodded and answered the question: "Yes."

Wei Xiu asked again: "Is the wife of Duke Cheng'en very ill?"

"The Crown Prince's wife is more serious." Zhuang Haocheng said, "Lord Cheng'en specially asked Governor Xiao to give him a few imperial doctors."

The families of ministers were not qualified to employ imperial physicians. They needed to submit a memorial and wait for the emperor's "grant". Although the emperor would most likely grant the physician, rules were rules.

"It was the imperial physician who told my grandmother," Zhuang Haocheng said, pointing his finger. "The emperor asked Imperial Physician Jiang to come and treat my grandmother's headache every ten days. It was he who said that. My grandmother told my mother, and I happened to hear it. My mother even insisted on going to visit..."

Zhuang Haocheng talked a lot, but Wei Xiu was good at grasping the key points, so he just let him talk and asked a few questions that interested him from time to time.

Zhuang Haocheng didn't care at all that he kept interrupting him. He just became more and more cheerful as he talked. By the time they arrived at Prince Kang's mansion, Wei Xiu had already asked everything he wanted to know.

Many people came to Prince Kang's Mansion, and Wei Xiu was a stranger to them. However, he was brought here by Zhuang Haocheng himself, so no one was too resistant to him. Even though he didn't like to talk much, they didn't mind and called him "Ah Xiu Ah Xiu".

Wei Xiu: “…”Are all the people in the capital so familiar?

The polo team is divided into two teams. The team headed by Zhuang Haocheng has players of different statuses, including the eldest grandson of a duke like Zhuang Haocheng, and the illegitimate son of a third-rank official like Sheng Yan.

Their opponent, the grandson of King Yue, chose the legitimate sons or grandsons of the nobles in the capital.

Wei Xiu did not play on the field, but decisively acted as the military strategist, deploying the troops and commanding the troops like a god, allowing Zhuang Haocheng and his men to win a crushing victory.

Zhuang Haocheng was overjoyed and immediately acknowledged Wei Xiu as his younger brother. He said in a very nice way: "Sheng Yan's younger brother is my younger brother!" He waved his hand and said to his teammates, "From now on, you have to call me brother when you go out!"

Wei Xiu: “…”

He really doesn't want to be the younger brother of so many people.

However, before he could figure out how to refuse, seven or eight voices changed from "Ah Xiu" to "brother"...

Wei Xiu stroked his forehead, feeling that he had become much smaller after arriving in the capital.

Zhuang Haocheng invited them to dinner, and they went out for a big meal. Zhuang Haocheng enthusiastically said that he would send him back to the Zhenbei Palace, and said that he would take him to play Cuju another day and let him be the military advisor, vowing to defeat the Yue King Shisun.

From what he said, Wei Xiu judged that they had been defeated in every battle and had never won.

"sister."

When passing by Baicaotang, Wei Xiu suddenly paused and saw Sheng Xiyan walking out from inside, so he called out.

Sheng Xiyan was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Xiu'er."

She came to Baicaotang because of the Shiquan Cream.

After trying the medicine on so many people, the old doctor adjusted the prescription several times. Sheng Xiyan came over to take the pulse and discussed with him about making some improvements.

Zhuang Haocheng looked at Wei Xiu, then at Sheng Xiyan, and called out warmly, "Sister!"

Sheng Xiyan looked uncertain and called out, "Ah Cheng?"

Zhuang Haocheng nodded vigorously: "Sister, you recognize me."

"Guess."

Sheng Xiyan smiled slightly. She had heard this name countless times from Sheng Yan and knew that Sheng Yan and Ah Cheng got along well, but this was the first time she saw him in person.

She smiled and said, "Are you done? Did you win?"

"We won!" It was Zhuang Haocheng who answered. He put his arm around Wei Xiu's shoulder and said excitedly, "Brother Xiu is really awesome!"

Sheng Xiyan smiled. It was obvious that Wei Xiu was having a lot of fun playing with them.

She had not expected to meet him and had no gift for him, so Sheng Xiyan simply gave him a sachet that she had prepared herself at Baicaotang.

She made several sachets and planned to give them to Jiaoyang and the others, so she gave one to Zhuang Haocheng and Wei Xiu respectively.

Zhuang Haocheng happily took it, hung it around his waist, and waved goodbye to them: "Goodbye, sister! Goodbye, brother Xiu!"

Zhuang Haocheng waved his hand lively and walked away with brisk steps.

Sheng Xiyan covered her mouth with her hands and smiled, saying, "Let's go back."

Sheng Xiyan came here in a carriage. After getting on the carriage, Wei Xiu said bluntly: "Sister, the Queen Mother may have contracted an epidemic."

Sheng Xiyan raised her eyebrows and looked at him.

Wei Xiu said it as a matter of course. He first told Sheng Xiyan what Zhuang Haocheng said, and then expressed his own judgment.

"Ah Cheng said that the wife of Duke Cheng'en had visited the Queen Mother not long ago." Wei Xiu said, "The wife of Duke Cheng'en fell ill a few days ago."

"Sister, is someone using the wife of Duke Cheng'en to infect the Queen Mother with the epidemic?"

Wei Xiu said this very seriously.

Ordinary people would only think that the Queen Mother was ill and passed the illness on to the wife of Duke Cheng'en who came to visit her.

Wei Xiu, however, did the exact opposite.