Encounter
Xia Zhi returned shortly afterward with the vendor, panting heavily, indicating that they had run very fast.
"Miss, this is the best wound medicine in the pharmacy."
Jiang Yi nodded, handed the small bottle of medicine to Ziyun, and instructed, "Miss Ziyun, please take this bottle of medicine and use it first. If it's not enough, I'll bring you more another day."
Ziyun took the porcelain bottle and held it tightly in her palm. She lifted her skirt and was about to kneel down to Jiang Yi when Jiang Yi helped her up.
"Don't do that. We've known each other for a while, we can't just stand by and watch someone die."
"I will remember your great kindness, young lady, and I will repay you even if it means serving you like a slave. Thank you both, young lady and young man."
Jiang Yi smiled: "I don't need you to repay me. Go back and apply this medicine to your sister. I hope she gets better soon. The Flying Drum Dance was wonderful."
With tears welling up in her eyes, Ziyun nodded heavily. Since the two had been talking for so long, Aunt Liu would inevitably become suspicious and question her when they got back. So Jiang Yi casually picked out an octagonal lantern from the stall and gave it to her. Ziyun nodded her thanks again and again before slowly turning to leave.
The vendor rubbed his hands together and smiled obsequiously: "Miss, would you mind paying for my errand and the light?"
Jiang Yi: "What?! Delivery fee?! Excuse me, did I ask you to go? Didn't you go along on your own out of kindness?"
"Hey, you can't say that. It's true that I went with you, but you didn't stop me! Besides, who knows how many customers I missed while I was away from the stall? I'm being lenient by not even calculating the money I lost!"
"How can you be like this? It was clearly you..." Xia Zhi was very angry, her little face puffed up, and she put her hands on her hips, about to step forward to argue with him, but Jiang Yi stopped her, "Miss..."
"If you keep doing business like this, I think you'll have to close down sooner or later. You should take advantage of your youth and find another way out."
Jiang Yi smiled, took out a silver ingot from her purse, and slapped it onto his stall.
"No need to look anymore. Oh, by the way, you'd better keep what we just said a secret, or you'll be in big trouble on your way home. By the way, my husband is a famous butcher at the slaughterhouse; he can chop off a pig's leg with one stroke without any problem..."
By the end, Jiang Yi almost burst out laughing. She had rambled on and on, but the threat in her words was obvious. Her goal was to make the vendor back down and not dare to complain to Aunt Liu.
The thought of portraying He Lin, that pretty boy, as a vicious butcher made her want to laugh. The image was far too far off. Jiang Yi couldn't bear to imagine He Lin wielding a knife and slaughtering a pig; it was too funny. She absolutely couldn't let He Lin know that she was spreading rumors about him outside...
Jiang Yi pulled Xia Zhi away, their figures gradually disappearing into the crowd until they vanished from sight.
The vendor picked up the gleaming silver ingot, and it took him a while to come to his senses. He couldn't help but touch his nose. What was that? A butcher? What did that have to do with him? How utterly baffling!
As the crowd surged, a familiar face slowly walked with the flow of people to the stall, reached out and picked up a lamp, looking around.
Seeing that there were no people around, the stall owner grinned and said, "Brother Yu, you're here."
Gu Ziyu glanced at him and asked, "What's got you so excited?"
"Hehe, I just met a rich and foolish young lady. She gave me a silver ingot after just a few words."
"Not bad, Lao Ma. You might not have made any money for three years, but once you do, you'll live off it for three years. I bet you didn't trick some girl out of it."
"I wouldn't dare, Brother Yu. Don't worry, we're legitimate businessmen."
Gu Ziyu was genuinely amused by this and nodded, "Okay."
After saying that, he handed over the lantern in his hand, with an inconspicuous little piece of paper between his fingers.
After receiving the note, Old Ma slipped it into the gap in his belt, his face beaming with smiles, and loudly called out, "Sir, would you like to take another look?"
As Gu Ziyu was selecting lanterns, she seemed to casually take two steps closer to him and whispered, "Act according to orders, and do not act rashly."
"yes."
Then Gu Ziyu glanced back twice, his gaze sharp, like a hawk hunting in the dark, before stepping into the crowd...
·
From a magnificent pavilion in the backyard of the Prime Minister's residence, melodious and graceful music drifted out.
Shangguan Dehui slowly stepped up the stairs. The maid beside him was about to bow when she saw this, but he silently waved her away.
Shangguan Muya sat on a low stool facing the railing, her bright eyes gazing at the night sky before her, her ten fingers gently plucking the strings of her zither, completely unaware of the person behind her.
When the song ended, Shangguan Muya didn't hear the usual clapping and praise from her maid. She couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Why aren't you saying anything tonight? Did you eat too many sugar figurines and stick your teeth together?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a few low, hearty laughs were heard, followed by a soft sigh: "My daughter has grown up and has her own worries. How could I, as her father, dare to disturb her?"
Shangguan Muya turned her head and saw that her father was standing just a few steps behind her. She quickly stood up to greet him: "Father, what brings you here?"
"Your father noticed you didn't eat much for dinner, so he came to check on you. It just so happens that the Second Prince sent someone to deliver a gift to you as an apology, so I brought it along as well."
Shangguan Muya asked suspiciously, "An apology? What does my cousin mean by that? When did he do anything to wrong me?"
Shangguan Dehui didn't answer the question, but simply held out the box in front of her, a hint of seriousness flashing deep in her eyes, but she still chuckled and said, "Open it and see if you like it."
Shangguan Muya opened the solid wood box, inside which was a book. She took it out and exclaimed in surprise, "This is 'Tune of the Orchid'? Isn't it in the palace library? My cousin actually gave me this score. I begged him for a long time, but he wouldn't let me make a copy."
"Don't you know the Second Prince? He's always indulged and spoiled you since you were little."
Shangguan Muya carefully opened the sheet music, her eyes filled with undisguised affection and joy.
"I must thank my cousin properly another day; this gift is so precious."
Seeing his daughter so infatuated, Shangguan Dehui couldn't help but shake his head slightly. "Muya, come and sit with your father for a while."
"Okay, sure."
After putting away the sheet music, Shangguan Muya sat down and poured two cups of hot tea.
Have you been feeling better these past few days?
"Much better. The doctor said the remaining toxins have been almost completely cleared up."
Shangguan Dehui took a sip of tea and sighed, "That's good. You're my only precious daughter. If anything were to happen to you, how would I face your mother... Muya, I'm sorry, but everything I did was for your own good."
"Father, of course I know you're doing this for my own good. What's wrong with you tonight? Why can't I understand what you're saying?"
"Your injury this time was just an accident, and it will never happen again."
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Muya vaguely sensed something. Her father's words tonight were incoherent and too abnormal, and to make matters worse, her cousin came to apologize to her with gifts.
She composed herself and said seriously, "Father, on the day of the Crown Prince's birthday banquet, I was bitten by a snake, and the Eastern Palace caught fire. This was not an act of God, but a man-made disaster! His Highness has already sent Lord Jiang to investigate. Why are you so sure that this was just an accident? Do you and my cousin know something?"
Incense burned in a nearby incense burner, its fragrance drifting into the air. What was originally a relaxing scent now smelled slightly suffocating.
After a moment of silence, Shangguan Dehui gently patted the back of her hand and said, "Muya, my good daughter, remember, no matter what happens outside, it has nothing to do with you."
Shangguan Muya almost burst into tears, her brows furrowed with worry as she said, "Father! What are you and my cousin plotting? Don't make me worry, okay? I've never had a mother since I was little, I can't lose my father too!"
Shangguan Dehui raised his hand and touched her head, saying softly, "Silly child, your father is the Prime Minister, second only to the emperor. What could possibly happen to me? Don't overthink it. Let's not talk about this anymore. Muya, do you have someone you like? You're of marriageable age now. Tell your father, which family's son is he? Let me see if he's worthy of my daughter."
At this point, Shangguan Muya shook her head, her expression somber, and said, "Father, please don't worry about me. I know that my marriage is mostly beyond my control, and besides, he and I are ultimately not meant to be..."
A few days ago, the Empress sent her personal maid to visit the Prime Minister's residence, testing her intentions in her words. From that moment on, Shangguan Muya understood everything. She had no say in her marriage. Even if the person she was to marry was not the Crown Prince, it was very likely to be the eldest son of the He family.
The only exception would not be a married illegitimate son...
Yin Zhaobai leaned against the tree trunk with his arms crossed, hiding in the shadows and staring at the figure on the pavilion. His eyes were dark and unfathomable. After standing there for a while, he spat out the blade of grass he was holding in his mouth and slipped into the darkness.
"..."
After Shangguan Dehui left, Shangguan Muya stood alone by the railing, gazing into the distance. A breeze picked up, rustling the tree branches.
Worried that she would catch a cold, the maidservant went inside and brought her a cloak to put on her.
"Why didn't you take the opportunity to tell the truth just now, Miss? Perhaps Master has a way."
Shangguan Muya sighed softly, pulled her cloak tighter, and said helplessly, "He's already married, what can I do? Miss Jiang is my savior, and seeing how loving she and Young Master Lin are, I don't want to disturb them too much."
"It's strange, really. Why did His Majesty suddenly bestow a marriage upon Young Master Lin, and to a concubine's daughter? Given General He's position in court, even if Young Master Lin is born out of wedlock, his bride should at least be a noblewoman from a prestigious family..."
Shangguan Muya didn't speak, but she knew the answer in her heart.
He Lin's marriage was bestowed by His Majesty, and it is said that it was the Eldest Princess who brought it up to His Majesty. By chance, at a banquet, the Eldest Princess discovered that He Lin had feelings for her. After returning home, she proposed the marriage to His Majesty, and a girl was randomly chosen in the capital and hastily granted to He Lin as his wife.
As for the Princess's purpose in doing this, it was to make her completely give up on He Lin. As the daughter of the Prime Minister, she wouldn't become a concubine, and both the Empress and the Princess were eager to curry favor with her father. She had no say in her own marriage, and was even dragging him down to marry a stranger…
However, judging from the Crown Prince's birthday banquet, He Lin and Jiang Yi seem to have a good relationship. Although Jiang Yi was not invited to the Crown Prince's banquet, He Lin still brought her. He defended her in front of everyone, and his expression of concern for her was genuine.
If He Lin can be happy, that's enough for her.
Shangguan Muya lifted her left sleeve, looked down at a scar on her forearm, and couldn't help but rub it a few times with her thumb on her other hand, her eyelashes trembling.
That year, she went to a temple outside the city to pray for blessings. On the way, she encountered a group of villains and was rescued by He Lin, who happened to be passing by. He didn't say anything and didn't answer her questions. He just silently bandaged her knife wound, threw her a black cloak, and left. Later, she learned that the person who saved her was the second young master of the General's Mansion, He Lin.
Their meeting was just like those described in plays: it started beautifully, but the ending was always unsatisfactory; they were destined to be together but ultimately separated...
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