Looking at the Sword by Lamplight (VII)
Three days later, Bian Hongqiu sent a letter to the capital, along with a letter of apology for the Huangquezhou victory and his failure to capture the King of Jingxi, and a petition requesting the Crown Prince Regent to reduce his punishment. At 1:00 PM that same day, the personal guard sent to Xi Zhongting to retrieve the letter returned, bearing the unwavering words of the ruthless "Iron Wolf of the Battlefield": "This sudden attack was ill-considered, and I deeply regret it. The traitor's inner circle has not yet replied, so please wait for further news."
Finally, the guard said, "General Xi said he didn't know who Cai Zhao was, but he was guilty of colluding with the rebels and should be executed according to the law. Your Highness should report the truth to the capital."
Bian Hongqiu snorted lightly.
When the King of Jingxi just defected from the capital, Emperor Xue had no one under his command, and even those who held positions for nothing were willing to stay in the capital. But now he is willing to disregard the lives of the soldiers fighting on the front line for the sake of a prince.
He didn't want to say too much and dismissed his guards.
Liu Lang, who had retreated to the side, saw the others leave and then stepped forward again, continuing his report: "...Madam Li is currently taking Grandma Zhang with her. The King of Jingxi and his men have fled to the palace on Chunxiang Island. The officials are feeling uneasy. She has pried open the mouths of several people, but she has informed me that these people may not have even heard of what the court wants."
Bian Hongqiu pulled up the undershirt he had taken off his left shoulder, fastened the belt, and let down his long hair, which had been tied up. Seeing that he was applying the medicine so casually, Liu Lang was about to dissuade him, but he raised his hand to stop him. He heard him ask, "Did Madam Li say who the thing was most likely to be with?"
He speculated that the King of Jingxi truly didn't carry the "life-saving talisman" that had so terrified the imperial court, otherwise the spies wouldn't have needed to reveal all the secret rooms and compartments and announce that they had been searched. But if the King of Jingxi truly had such devoted and dedicated advisors, why hadn't they used the talisman to make a fuss over the decades? What opportunity were they waiting for?
Liu Lang said, "As far as Madam Li is concerned, it's either in the hands of Concubine Wen or Lord Wen."
Bian Hongqiu's expression darkened. "Is it Concubine Wen's brother, Wen Jiyun?"
"yes."
Bian Hongqiu gathered the lapels of his coat and thought to himself that this was really difficult to deal with.
Liu Lang's connection with the Liang Palace was superficial. Mr. Liu's lectures had previously focused on the major events described by historians, so he was unaware of the Wen family's involvement with the Liang Palace. Given Bian Hongqiu's age, he shouldn't have known about it, but as the head of the Liang Palace, he had already heard the full story from Shao Zheng and Mr. Liu.
Song Jingyan received the favor of King Liang and only regarded herself as a candle in the palace that could burn out at any time.
But the old King Liang never had such an idea. Before the civil strife in Dayu, he had arranged a marriage for Song Jingyan in the capital.
It was Wen Jiyun, the eldest son of Prime Minister Wen and the first person following King Jingxi.
According to Shao Zheng, Song Jingyan was not completely unwilling at that time, but she held an official position and was unwilling to marry into the Wen family no matter what.
Wen Xiang, who was very clear-headed about everything, was very open-minded. He said that his son did not have Song Jingyan's amazing talent, and was a cynical and stubborn donkey, but he had good character and was very considerate to his family. He was a suitable husband to serve tea and say sweet words. If Song Jingyan was willing, he would send her to the Prince of Liang's Mansion to warm Lord Song's bed.
After a month of back-and-forth, the old Prince of Liang had even chosen a mansion for Song Jingyan to establish her own household. The Minister of Literature, referring to his stubborn son, remained silent, yet acted as the master of the house, completely designing the layout of the courtyard. Song Jingyan tacitly allowed this man to come and go, even sitting at the table at the Prince of Liang's mansion.
Unexpectedly, before the wedding took place, the funeral of Prime Minister Wen came.
Immediately afterwards, Wen Jiyun, who blamed Emperor Ling for the death of Prime Minister Wen, hid in the capital and waited until the current emperor ascended the throne. He then joined forces with King Jingxi to turn the entire court upside down.
Although Bian Hongqiu had never heard Song Jingyan mention this past incident, that didn't mean she didn't care at all. Song Jingyan wasn't the type to express her feelings out loud to relieve her sorrow. Only the attentive Mr. Liu had mentioned it. Song Jingyan had kept Wen Jiyun's design for the new house and courtyard in her study.
He pondered for a moment and took out a roll of special traceless paper.
As the name suggests, traceless paper is written with special ink. After the ink dries, the writing will fade away, and the reader must cover it with special potion to reproduce the content.
Bian Hongqiu didn't write much, just picked up the pen and wrote a three-character name on it.
He rolled up the paper and handed it to Liu Lang. "Take the letter to Madam Li. If I'm not mistaken, the person His Majesty sent to assist the King of Jingxi was this person." He relaxed his stiff neck and leaned back in his armchair. "It wouldn't be easy for His Majesty to send someone so brazenly, but this good-for-nothing is way too slow."
"For ten years, I dug through Dayu from north to south with a hoe, but I couldn't find even a small thing."
Liu Lang responded, "If it's this person, could you please ask Madam Li to contact them for us first?"
Bian Hongqiu shook his head. "We have no idea what the situation is like around King Jingxi. Madam Li will surely make the decision. Please lend a hand and act according to her judgment."
Li Yan was a man of few words, never dragging his feet, and never leaving any evidence behind. He had been too hasty in helping them a few days ago at Huangque Island, allowing someone to follow the clues and kill even his own wife. Now, he struggled to work for the King of Jingxi, feeling "no greater sorrow than a broken heart," and his acting was quite popular.
She was dressed in plain clothes, not in white. Even with powder on her face, one could see the haggard look, which was quite moving.
The maidservant beside Concubine Wen came from the temporary official residence built on Chunxiang Island and said goodbye to her. "Madam, please accept my condolences. The Queen is very worried about you. However, since you have passed away, there are too many people around the prince who are indecisive. I hope you can cheer up as soon as possible and help the prince."
Li Yan raised her lips slightly and nodded, still remaining silent.
The female official had no choice but to sigh and leave.
Li Yan watched her leave in the carriage, then, supported by Zhang Qionggou, she slowly returned to the mansion. Once back in the house, after dismissing the attendants, Zhang Qionggou produced a secret letter from Huangquezhou. She opened the longer one first, which contained only one sentence. She lowered her head and said, "It says there's no danger in Minghe." Zhang Qionggou breathed a sigh of relief.
Afterwards, Li Yan unfolded the rolled seamless paper and pressed it directly into the inkstone filled with medicine. The small square of paper floated in the liquid. Li Yan pondered over these three words for a long time, and then slowly wrote a "可" on the blank seamless paper handed to him by Zhang Qionggou, and added four words "婉待好消息".
She gestured to Zhang Qiong Gou to return the letter as usual, and added, "Since Concubine Wen is so concerned, we should go to the temporary palace to keep her company. She is completely devoted to the prince, and now that she sleeps apart from him, she must be feeling very uncomfortable. If Concubine Wen is upset, General Xiao Fang will surely be heartbroken too."
Zhang Qionggou's eyes were filled with confusion, but she didn't hesitate to serve Li Yan. She hid the traceless paper in her sleeve, pushed the door open, and went to the small kitchen to urge the preparation of a soothing soup for Li Yan. Then, she deftly slid the secret letter onto the stove and left as if nothing had happened. The unfamiliar servants around her, whose faces she couldn't remember, saluted her one by one. One of them, a short, plump, and honest cook, with a fawning expression, pulled out a magnolia flower, wilted by the oil, from her apron: "The magnolias of Chunxiangzhou are in bloom. I'm giving this to Madam."
The people around laughed at him.
Zhang Qionggou just glanced at her lightly and left without paying any attention to the embarrassed cook.
The cook watched her leave at a loss. The simple magnolia fell to the ground and was crushed by a series of deliberate footprints.
Bian Hongqiu carefully placed the pressed magnolia flower onto the jade hairpin. He held it up to the bright sunlight, comparing it for a moment and realizing he'd carved the pistil crookedly. He twirled the hairpin around his fingertips several times, then decided the jade wasn't the best. He gave up the fuss, took out the gourd peel, polished it, and kept it for himself.
He brushed the flat magnolia flowers into his teacup, distracted himself to look at Meng Shizhuang who was still sleeping, and said to himself: "Ashi, why haven't you woken up yet? Have you never had a good rest all these years?" He thought for a while, and from the bowl of blooming magnolia flowers that Qiuhe brought in, he chose the most beautiful one and put it in Meng Shizhuang's hair.
Bian Hongqiu tilted his head and looked carefully at every inch of Meng Shizhuang's face - just like he had been in a daze these past few days.
He continued to talk to himself, "I told Mr. Liu a long time ago that if you get better, you can stand out from the crowd of self-promoting, vulgar women in the Western Border Army. But he insisted that Qi Ziyu, the old bachelor who had been rejected three times, was the best looking."
The mediocre old bachelor just came in holding a pigeon. When he heard his prince's evaluation of him, his heart was broken. He staggered back a few steps in disbelief with his heavily armored legs, shaking the whole room three times.
Bian Hongqiu knew which idiot had come in without turning around. He turned around with a completely different expression on his face: "General Qi, what's the important business?" If there was no important business, he would punish the idiot who had broken into his bedroom and send him out to be used as a training target for other Western Border troops.
General Qi's battle-hardened heart of steel couldn't compare to the "ice-cold heart" of His Highness Prince Liang. His handsome face was almost twisted into wrinkles, and even his hoarse voice hinted at grievance: "Your Highness, I heard that pigeons are a tonic. I thought you've been injured and have been busy with affairs these days, so I caught some to help you recover."
Bian Hongqiu had a blank expression on his face, thinking to himself that this idiot had been coming to me for no reason for the past ten years. "Tell me, what do you want to ask of me?"
Qi Ziyu smiled innocently: "Your Highness, the raid on Huangquezhou is over, but Mr. Liu wants us to write some detailed action plan to present to Your Highness, please take a look..." General Qi, who could barely recognize the Thousand Character Classic, was still a rough man who could not read or write. Dealing with these delicate matters was almost killing him. He would rather go on training day and night than worry about it while biting the tip of the pen.
Bian Hongqiu interrupted him: "Go write."
Qi Ziyu opened his mouth to say something more, but Bian Hongqiu suddenly realized, "Huangquezhou isn't a wild bird forest. Where did you catch the pigeon?"
Qi Ziyu's heart sank as he met Bian Hongqiu's narrowed eyes. He'd mistakenly caught training pigeons on numerous occasions before, and Bian Hongqiu had even confiscated his wife's money. There was no way he'd make that mistake again. Bian Hongqiu immediately thought of a possibility: "Yesterday, Shao Zheng and I were patrolling the city and noticed a strong business selling flowers and birds on Huangque Island. Did you buy them from the merchants there?"
Qi Ziyu was immediately speechless.
Bian Hongqiu sent the man away: "You are lying. Others write one copy, and you write three copies for me, with every detail. Send them to me for my personal review."
Then he threatened in advance: "If you delay here any longer, I will let Shao Zheng take you out."
That wasn't just a brainteaser. Although he wasn't afraid of the training, General Shao would definitely hit him in the face and beat him like a pig. Subjugated by Bian Hongqiu's tyranny, Qi Ziyu could only walk away with his head down, clutching the fat pigeon's wings.
Bian Hongqiu rubbed his brows and was about to continue polishing the jade hairpin to calm his mind, but when he turned around, he met Meng Shizhuang's slightly confused but very bright eyes.
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