Jiang Ting handed the teacup back to the maid and asked considerately, "Awu, how are you feeling today? I heard that there is a new doctor in Huatuo Hall. His ancestors were doctors in the previous dynasty and are very good at treating chest pain. I will ask him to come and see you."

Jiang Ting frowned slightly, unable to hide the worry on his face: "Speaking of which, our doctor Zhou Liang's medical skills are still not good enough. You have had chest pain for so many years, and it has not improved."

"No need." Jingle said softly, "I've been feeling better recently."

She picked up a black piece with her slender fingers and placed it lightly on the board. The situation on the board became even more tense. The two sides were already at loggerheads, neither side willing to give in.

Jiang Ting obviously didn't believe it, and he advised: "Achen will be back soon. If he sees you sick, he will be worried. It's not good for you to be so afraid of illness and doctors."

Jingle avoided his topic and said, "It is said that if a person is not comfortable, he will not be able to help but think about many things. I thought about what would happen if I died. Then, I had a dream. In the dream, Achen died in the Northern Frontier. Later, I also died, and the Zhenbei Palace was gone."

Jiang Ting held down her hand holding the chess piece and said disapprovingly, "You think about it during the day and dream about it at night. You were just too idle in the past. When Miss Shengda marries you, you'll have someone to talk to and won't be so idle all day."

"Listen to me first." Jingle pulled his hand away and said seriously, "I've thought about it carefully. If Achen and I are both dead, you and I will be dead. The emperor is the best at pretending, and he won't kill you. But Yi Ge'er is a member of the Chu family and the Zhenbei Palace. There is no one in our Chu family who is greedy and afraid of death. When the time comes, Yi Ge'er will take up the responsibility of the Zhenbei Palace like his elder brother."

Jingle had her own pride and she was proud of her family name, so she would not allow her son to abandon this family name because of greed and fear of death.

As members of the Chu family, they have to take care of more than just their own survival. They also have to take care of the soldiers in the Northern Frontier. As long as there are still people in the Chu family, they can still protect the Northern Frontier Army. Otherwise, what awaits them will be liquidation by the emperor one by one.

"Jiang Ting, can you promise me?" Jingle rarely called him by his full name.

"Don't worry." Jiang Ting promised, "I promised you that if you always worry so much, your chest pain will never be cured."

"You said it." Jingle smiled, her smile was as charming as fire. "If there really comes such a day, if you break your promise, my father's spirit and I will not forgive you."

"Okay." Jiang Ting looked helpless and said, "You were worried about Achen before, but now Achen is fine and we are about to arrive in the capital. You started to have wild thoughts again."

He said with a gentle expression: "With Achen here, the Zhenbei Palace will not collapse."

When talking about her son, Jingle couldn't help but relax her brows and said proudly, "Yes, Achen was raised by my father himself."

Jiang Ting's eyes flickered for a moment, and he said nonchalantly, "If you don't want to rest so early, go pack up and see if there's anything you want to bring to Chen'er. I have to leave for Yizhou tomorrow."

"Going to Yizhou?" Jingle raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, "You are going to Yizhou?"

Jiang Ting nodded with a smile: "The emperor asked me to pick up Chen'er."

Of course, he did not go to meet the emperor as a father, but as an official of the Honglu Temple, he went with the Ministry of Rites to negotiate the etiquette and other trivial matters of welcoming the emperor to Beijing. Originally, this task was not Jiang Ting's turn, but the emperor specially asked him to go.

Jiang Ting asked with a smile: "Why are you stunned?"

Jingle smiled and said, "I haven't seen Chen'er for a long time. I don't know what he likes. Forget about the cakes. The weather is going to be bad. I'll think about it..."

"Take your time to think about it. There's no rush." ​​Jiang Ting looked at the chessboard, picked up a white piece, and dropped it with a "pop".

The white piece aggressively took over a piece of the black piece's territory, breaking up the half of the world that the black piece had already occupied.

"Where's Madam Wu?" Jiang Ting said casually, "It seems like I haven't seen her for a while."

Jingle said calmly: "I asked her to go to Miss Shanda's place. When Ah Chen comes back, we should arrange their marriage. I asked Grandma Wu to take care of her for a few days."

Jiang Ting nodded slightly, without asking any more questions, Jingle said: "You have to get up early tomorrow, go to bed early. I have been feeling uncomfortable these days, go to bed later, and think about what to bring to Chen, you don't have to worry about me."

When she smiled, she was as charming and graceful as a blooming peony.

Jiang Ting was stunned for a moment, then he said, "Okay then. I have to leave early tomorrow morning, so I'll rest in the front yard so as not to wake you up. If you have anything to bring to Achen, just have someone bring it over."

Jingle agreed with a smile.

He stood up, walked behind Jingle, and put his hands on her shoulders.

Jingle's shoulders stiffened unconsciously for a moment, but quickly returned to normal. Jiang Ting rubbed her shoulders, reminded her a few words like "rest early", "don't be too tired", "I'll take you out for a walk to relax after Achen's wedding", and then left.

As soon as Jiang Ting left, Jingle picked up the white piece he had just put down and wanted to throw it back into the chess box, but after holding it in his hand for a while, he put it back to its original position.

Then, he picked up another black piece and pondered.

Nanny Lan went over, put out the incense, added some tea for her, and then stood silently behind her.

I don't know how long it was, but I heard a crisp "pop" and the black piece decisively gave up the good situation in the upper right corner and fell into the white formation.

This is the white piece's territory, but it is also the white piece's weakness.

"My father always said that we should not look ahead and behind. If we can move forward, we should not retreat." Jingle's eyes were sharp, and her pair of charming peach blossom eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a sharp edge like a sword unsheathed, full of sharpness.

"Princess." Nanny Lan pursed her lips hesitantly, "Could it be that the guest of honor wants to return to the clan..."

"I'm afraid he regrets it." Jingle's eyes dimmed, and he said, "Our late emperor was the best at putting on a show. No one would have said that he was loyal to the vassal kings and trusted and relied on my father."

"Although Jiang Ting is a third place winner, he is more or less a rare talent, but the imperial examination is held every three years, and there is a third place winner every three years. Among the powerful people in the capital, what does a third place winner count for? Not to mention other people who took the same exam as Jiang Ting, there were also some who were extremely talented and very successful at one time, but now their names are no longer heard in the court."

"But it's different now that we have the Zhenbei Palace as our support. We in Darong don't have the rule that the imperial concubine can't serve as an official in the court."

Jingle sneered, "But now, he is probably worried that if the Zhenbei Palace is destroyed, he will also be implicated."

Jingle has thought about it carefully these days.

For a couple who have been together for more than 20 years, there are some things that really cannot be delved into too deeply. Once you delve into them and remove the veil covering your eyes, everything will become clear.

Jiang Ting agreed to marry into the Zhenbei Palace for the sake of a smooth career, glory and wealth. Jingle was not surprised, but he got what he wanted with the help of the Zhenbei Palace. However, after achieving his goal, he wanted to drag the Zhenbei Palace into the mud, which she could not tolerate.

Nanny Lan was silent.

When Princess Jingle was looking for a husband, the old prince originally wanted to pick the youngest sons or illegitimate sons from the military families in the northern border. As long as he had good character, he had even picked one and asked him to come to the capital to meet the princess and see if they were willing. But when the man was still on the way to the capital, the late emperor suddenly arranged a marriage without even asking the old prince, and the one he arranged was this newly-promoted third place winner.

The princess did not want to embarrass the old prince, so she only met Jiang Ting once and asked him who else was in his family, why he had not married at the age of 20, and whether he was really willing to marry, so that the child would take the surname "Chu" in the future, and only after three generations could one branch return to the family. At that time, Jiang Ting was very willing, so the princess agreed.

Even though it was a blind marriage, over the years, the princess did not treat Yibin as a son-in-law. Yibin's parents and family were all well settled, enjoying wealth and glory. Even in the court, she helped him whenever she could. Yibin was only forty years old, but he had already been ranked third. For a child from a poor family, it was impossible for him to climb to this position on his own.

Jingle said nothing more.

She continued to play the chess game. The white and black pieces fell on the board alternately. The inner room was so quiet that only the crisp sound of the pieces falling could be heard.

The night is getting deeper.

Before I knew it, the gong had struck three times and it was already three o'clock in the morning.

Jingle dropped another black piece. At this point, the situation on the chessboard had been settled and the white piece had lost.

"Princess!"

There was a sound of anxious footsteps, and then a maid reported in a panic outside the curtain: "The guest of honor was beaten!"

Jingle's hand trembled, and his wide sleeves swept across the chessboard. The white and black pieces were immediately mixed together, and the chessboard was in chaos.

Jingle calmed down and asked, "What's going on?"

The maid reported in one breath: "Zhao Ping said that the guest of honor suddenly insisted on going out during the second watch, and he couldn't stop him. The guest of honor rode his horse into the street and was stopped by the imperial guards patrolling the street. Because he resisted, he was pulled off the horse by the imperial guards and his calf was injured. The guest of honor was almost taken away by the imperial guards. Later, Zhao Ping caught up and said that he was a guest of honor from our palace, so he was sent back by the imperial guards."

Zhao Ping is Jiang Ting's long-time attendant and Xiaoyu's biological brother.

There was a curfew in the capital, and if Jiang Ting went out during the curfew, he would naturally be captured by the patrolling imperial guards. If he had not been a guest of honor at the Zhenbei Palace, he would have been taken to jail by now.

"Go call Dr. Zhou Liang, I'll go take a look."

Nanny Lan quickly took out a thin shawl and put it on her.

Midsummer has passed, the daytime is still relatively hot, but the cool breeze at night already has a hint of autumn.

Jingle hurried to the front yard.

Doctor Zhou Liang had not arrived yet. Jiang Ting was holding his injured leg and groaning in pain. He curled up in agony, his forehead covered with cold sweat.

I heard from Zhao Ping that his injured part was his right calf, which seemed to be fractured.

As a scholar, the worst injury he had ever suffered was a cut on his finger while cutting paper. The pain of a broken leg was beyond his imagination.

Jingle's eyes were calm. She raised her hand, asked Nanny Lan and the others to stay outside, and walked in by herself, sending away all the people in the room.

"Jiang Ting."

Jingle sat down on the stool beside the bed and called softly.

When Jiang Ting heard Jingle's call, he just looked up with a dazed look in his eyes. The pain made him not want to think.

Jingle asked, "Are you okay?"

Jiang Ting shook his head, forced a smile, and said, "Awu... I was probably too sleepy, and thought it was daybreak and time to go to the government office, so I ran out. What time is it now?"

Jingle did not answer but asked: "Jiang Ting, do you still remember what you promised me?" Her voice sounded far and near in Jiang Ting's ears.

Jiang Ting's head also felt a dull pain. He raised his hand to rub it, but for a moment he couldn't tell whether his head or his legs hurt more.

He didn't sleep well that night. He had dreams one after another. In the end, he could hardly tell whether it was a dream or reality.

Jiang Ting sat up slowly, and accidentally touched his injured leg, wailing in pain. He gritted his teeth and asked, "Awu, what are you talking about?"

"I'm already dead, don't you remember?" Jingle said calmly, "You asked Aunt Wu to give me the herb Heart-Erosion Herb, and I had a chest pain attack, and I'm already dead."

"Why are you trying to hurt me?!"

When she said the last sentence, her voice suddenly became sharp, shocking Jiang Ting's whole body. He seemed to remember something and looked at Jingle in disbelief.

Yes! He remembered.

Chu Yuanchen died, and Jingle also died.

He could finally breathe a sigh of relief, no longer having to worry about being implicated by the Zhenbei Palace. He could finally remove the shackles of the Zhenbei Palace that were around his neck.

He quickly asked Yi'er to submit a petition to return the military power and territory of the Northern Frontier, and then he could not wait to take Yi'er to change his surname and return to his clan.

Finally, he could live with dignity, no longer having to worry that when the emperor came to liquidate the Zhenbei Palace one day, he would be convicted and his life would be in danger.

However, the emperor would not let him go and wanted to send troops to arrest him, so he ran away, ran away...

He rode out on horseback, but was stopped by the imperial guards.

So, he has been caught by the emperor now?

He looked at Jingle, whose eyes were supposed to be dead, with a dazed look on his face. He asked with a trembling voice, "Where is this place?"

"The underworld." Jingle curled his lips, "You are already dead, and we meet again in the underworld. Are you happy? You killed me, but you also came to accompany me. We can be said to have lived and died together, don't you think?"

Is he really dead?

So, this is the underworld?!

His head hurt even more, and a ball of rage surged to the top of his head. The fear of death made his emotions completely collapse. He stared at Jingle in front of him and shouted hysterically: "Chu Wu, you deserve it! You were the one who wanted to harm me first! You deserve to die."

This roar seemed to vent all the hatred that had been suppressed for a long time.

Jingle's eyes darkened completely.

Originally, although she had her doubts and found some evidence from the details, she still held a glimmer of hope and thought that he might not be so cruel.

But now, there is still something she doesn't understand.

"I harmed you?" Jingle sneered, "How did I harm you? Did I force you to enter the Zhenbei Palace?"

"You hurt me, it's you."

Jiang Tingxuan vented some words that he had kept hidden for a long time, and at this moment, he blurted out: "The Chu family relies on their status as vassal kings to go against the emperor. You are not afraid of death, but don't implicate me!"

"No, I have been implicated. I am already dead... I was killed by you. Why didn't you tell me that the Chu family would be liquidated by the emperor at any time? They would be stripped of their titles and exterminated! Why did you force me to die with you..."

"So, you want to kill me?" Jingle showed a bitter smile, "As long as the Zhenbei Palace is gone, you can be free?"

"Yes!" Jiang Ting gasped for air, his chest rising and falling, and he said in hatred, "As long as there is no Zhenbei Palace, no Zhenbei Palace..." He would not be worried day and night, fearing that he would be implicated and die without a burial place. But, he still died! Thinking that he was already dead, Jiang Ting burst into tears.

"If it weren't for the Zhenbei Palace, you wouldn't know where you'd be working in a remote village. You're just a small third place winner. Do you really think you have the talent to become a prime minister?" Jingle stood up. "You've been supported by the Zhenbei Palace and its rich connections. That's why you've become a third-rank official."

She picked up the cup on the table, poured some cold water into it, and then said, "If you are really afraid of being implicated by my Zhenbei Palace, you can just leave. Do I, Chu Wu, have to rely on you? It's just that you are reluctant to give up the honor and wealth of the Zhenbei Palace, and you don't want to take the risk. Did my Zhenbei Palace deceive you? Don't make yourself sound so innocent."

Jiang Ting covered his head, his face was pale and tears were streaming down his face.

He originally thought that being chosen as the Tanhua would allow him to rise rapidly from then on. However, after arriving at the Hanlin Academy, he realized that a mere Tanhua Lang was nothing.

In the Hanlin Academy, there are countless top scorers, and some have wasted more than ten years and still haven't gotten a real position even though their beards have turned white.

At this time, the late emperor asked him if he was willing to become the son-in-law of the Zhenbei Palace...

The scenes from that year kept flashing in his mind, and finally stopped on Jingle's indifferent face. Then, a glass of cold water was splashed on his face.

"Since you are so unwilling, I, Chu Wu, will not force you. Zhenbei Palace has given you 22 years of glory and wealth, and you are now a third-rank official. You gave Zhenbei Palace two children, Achen and Yige'er. The grudge between you and me is wiped out."

The cold water made Jiang Ting shudder. His eyes were a little dazed. At this moment, he seemed to realize something. His pupils shrank sharply, as if he was half asleep and half awake.

"It looks like you're awake now," Jingle said with a faint smile, "That's good, it's better than me having to repeat it again."

Jiang Ting was stunned for a long time, the cool water flowing down his hair. He slowly recalled what he had just said, his heart in a panic.

"Ah, Awu..."

No matter how eloquent Jiang Ting was, he didn't know what to say to excuse himself, so he could only say, "I had a headache and said some nonsense. Ah Wu, don't take it seriously."

"Awu, you are deliberately saying these words to me in anger, right? How about I apologize to you? I can even kowtow and serve you tea..."

Jiang Ting tried to grab Jingle in panic, but Jingle just let go of her hand and he missed and fell off the bed.

Jingle said indifferently, "Jiang Ting, we will write off all the splendor and wealth that the Zhenbei Palace gave you, but you poisoned me and made me suffer from the Heart-Eroding Grass for four years, so I still want to take it back. I, Chu Wu, have always been clear about gratitude and resentment."

Jingle kicked his broken calf hard, and Jiang Ting, who was caught off guard, let out a sharp scream, and unspeakable pain spread throughout his body from the broken bones.

"You want my life. Since I'm not dead, I'll just cripple one of your legs. That's fair." Jingle looked at his twisted calf and said coldly, "Jiang Ting, you're divorced."

"You don't have to worry about being implicated by the Zhenbei Palace anymore."

"I just don't know what you would be without the Zhenbei Palace!"

After saying this last sentence, Jingle left without looking back.

The moment she walked out of the inner room, a trace of sadness flashed in her eyes and a tear rolled down from the corner of her eye.

"Princess."

Nanny Lan raised her hand to support her, looking worried but hesitant to speak.

She sighed softly in her heart. Even if this marriage was given by the late emperor, they had been married for more than 20 years and had two children. How could they really have no feelings for each other? What's more, the princess was a sentimental person.

"I'm fine."

Jingle closed her eyes for a moment, but when she opened them again, her peach blossom eyes were as calm and reserved as ever.

She felt a dull pain in her heart, but compared to the pain she felt when the heart-eating grass attacked, it was so slight that it could be completely ignored.

"After daybreak, send someone to Honglu Temple to tell them that Yibin had a nightmare yesterday and accidentally broke his leg, so he can't go to Yizhou." Jingle ordered.

She thought: Jiang Ting wandered the streets during curfew and was stopped by the patrolling imperial guards, causing him to fall off his horse. The emperor will surely know about it tomorrow morning. Now that Jiang Ting has resigned from his job in Yizhou, the emperor will probably have too many speculations in his mind. After all, nightmares are too much of a made-up excuse.

Indeed, the nightmare story was too fake and the emperor did not believe it at all. He even sent an imperial physician to the Zhenbei Palace to check. However, Jiang Ting's leg was indeed broken and the dislocation was serious. He was afraid that he would be disabled. He even had a high fever and was in a daze. He could not go to Yizhou.

The emperor had no choice but to appoint someone else.

The entire capital city was busy preparing for Chu Yuanchen's return. In just four or five days, all the private rooms in the street restaurants were almost fully booked.

When the Ministry of Rites finally confirmed the specific date for Chu Yuanchen to enter the city, Hongkelou sent a small wooden sign for the reservation.

The wooden sign was delivered in the afternoon, but Sheng Xiyan had been in the small study and only saw it now.

Holding the wooden sign, Sheng Xiyan said to Xigui with a hint of pride: "Miss, I'm smart. I asked you to book it a long time ago." It's still the position with the best view!

Xigui praised happily: "Young lady, you are smart and clever, unparalleled in the world."

Sheng Xiyan's eyes curved and she smiled very happily. She loved being praised!

Sheng Xiyan handed her the wooden sign and asked her to keep it, saying, "Go and have a rest. I'll read for a while."

Recently, before going to bed, she would reread the content she had copied down from the medical books during the day. Xigui did not disturb her and left quietly.

Sheng Xiyan went back to the study room by herself. When she opened the door, she was stunned.

The stunning young man sitting behind her desk was looking at her with a pair of sparkling peach blossom eyes and smiling brilliantly.

Sheng Xiyan blinked, and blinked again...

Chu, Chu Yuanchen? !

Why is he here!?