Chapter 147 [VIP]
Li Mu racked his brains the whole way but couldn't recall ever knowing a young man.
His daily life revolves around two fixed points: going home to eat and take care of his children, and spending his days training in the military camp. He has no time to go anywhere else.
When I got to the gate of the military camp, I finally saw the people standing outside.
Li Mu paused, feeling that the person looked familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before. After looking closely, he remembered that he had met this person once at Qingfeng Temple. He wondered what this person wanted from him.
Lin Sui also saw Marquis Wuping. Today, he was wearing light armor and looked quite robust. Coupled with his very tall stature, he walked over like a small mountain. The courage she had mustered earlier vanished upon seeing his face, and Lin Sui even turned to run away.
Li Mu wasn't ugly; he had thick eyebrows and big eyes and could be considered handsome. However, the dark blue birthmark on his left eye covered half of it, and coupled with his battle-hardened aura, it was a genuine, hard-earned bloodlust that ordinary people wouldn't dare to look directly at.
What brings you here?
Lin Sui's legs went weak and she knelt on the ground, her voice trembling as she pleaded, "Please forgive me, Your Highness, don't cause trouble for my brother and sister-in-law..."
"What?" His voice was too soft for Li Mu to hear.
Lin Sui bit her lip and mustered her courage to say it again, "Please, Lord Marquis, don't cause trouble for my brother and sister-in-law."
Li Mu scratched his head, thinking to himself that there was nothing wrong with his ears, so why couldn't he understand what he was saying? Who were his brother and sister-in-law? When had he ever caused them any trouble?
"You stand up and speak first."
Lin Sui slowly stood up. She was a little dizzy from walking under the blazing sun and almost fell over.
A large hand supported his arm and steadied him.
Lin Sui was startled and quickly withdrew her hand. "Thank you, Lord Marquis."
Several generals nearby witnessed this scene and began to cheer loudly, mimicking the words in high-pitched voices: "Thank you, Lord Marquis!"
Li Mu's face darkened further. He turned back and pointed at them, then turned to Lin Sui and said, "Let's go sit down in the next room and talk."
Lin Sui didn't dare to refuse and followed Li Mu into the small house guarding the camp gate. Li Mu asked him to sit down, but Lin Sui only dared to put half of his buttocks on the ground, his whole body tense as if he wanted to run away at any moment.
"What did you just say about not causing trouble for your brother and sister-in-law? Who are your brother and sister-in-law, and why did you say that?"
Lin Sui guessed that Madam Wei hadn't had a chance to tell Marquis Wuping about this yet, which gave her more confidence, so she recounted the whole story from beginning to end.
"The shopkeeper's wife claims to be your aunt, and she said she would have you come and confiscate my sister-in-law's shop. I had no other choice but to come to you. Please, Your Excellency, have mercy on us..." Lin Sui finished speaking and knelt on the ground to kowtow.
"Get up quickly." Li Mu pulled the man up and, seeing him crying with tears streaming down his face, quickly took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to him to wipe his face.
"Thank you, thank you, Lord Marquis." Lin Sui sobbed as she took it.
"Since it is as you say, and I am not someone who cannot distinguish right from wrong, I will naturally not cause you any trouble."
Lin Sui looked up in surprise, "Really?!"
Li Mu nodded. It was true that Manager Wei's wife was his aunt, but he had long since severed ties with his father's side, and as a result, he had probably not been in contact with this aunt for many years and did not even remember her. He did not expect that she would dare to use his name to commit evil deeds outside.
"Don't worry about this. I'll send someone to give them a warning, and they won't bother your shop again."
"Thank you, Lord Marquis, thank you so much!" Lin Sui finally felt relieved, and a grateful smile appeared on her face.
He was already handsome, and his pitiful appearance easily aroused men's sympathy. When Li Mu thought about how he had lost his husband at such a young age, he couldn't help but feel a little more pity for him.
"You came alone?"
Lin Sui nodded, "I went to your residence first, but couldn't find anyone, so I asked around all the way here."
This frail young man traveled so far alone to the military camp to find him, just so as not to implicate his brother and sister-in-law. I felt even more affection for him.
"I'll have someone drive you back later."
"No, no need to trouble yourself, I can walk back by myself."
Li Mu said in a way that left no room for refusal, "This place is remote, and you might encounter bad guys on the road. It's too dangerous for a young man like you." After saying that, he called over Tian Baihu, who was standing by watching the commotion.
"Old Tian, go and get a horse-drawn carriage and take this young man back."
"Hey!" Tian Baihu chuckled as he went to hitch up the carriage. Soon, a flatbed cart carrying military supplies came over. "Young master, get in the carriage."
The flatbed truck was too high, and Lin Sui tried several times but couldn't climb up. Li Mu, who was standing behind him, couldn't bear to watch, so he put one hand on Lin Sui's waist and helped him up.
Lin Sui blushed deeply and whispered her thanks, "Thank you, Your Highness..."
*
Meanwhile, her family had no idea that Lin Sui had gone to the military camp alone.
After settling into the new house, Wang Ying returned home, only to find that she didn't see Lin Sui, but instead saw Qing Yun hanging clothes to dry in the yard.
"Where is Sui Di?"
Qingyun said, "Didn't he go to the bridal chamber?"
"No, I haven't seen him all morning."
Chen Qingyun scratched her head, "He said he was going to the new house to find you..."
Wang Ying's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that this child went to negotiate with Manager Wei?
"I'll go out for a bit. If Mother asks, just say I went to the shop."
Wang Ying, along with Tian Ju and Ma Zhandong, hurriedly rushed towards the Wei family's incense and candle shop. Along the way, Wang Ying was extremely anxious, fearing that Lin Sui would do something foolish.
He was uneducated, had simple ideas, and had been oppressed and tormented by his ex-husband's family for a long time, which led to his self-denying personality. He was used to taking all the blame on himself and didn't like to cause them any trouble.
If anything were to happen to me, how would I explain it to my aunt...?
Upon arriving at the Wei family's incense and candle shop, Wang Ying stormed in, shouting angrily, "Where's your boss?!"
The waiter recognized Wang Ying and quickly asked, "The boss isn't here. What can I do for you?"
"Did my younger brother just come over?"
The waiter recalled for a moment and nodded, "He did come by, saying he was looking for our manager, but I told him he wasn't here and he left."
Wang Ying didn't believe it. "Manager Wei is really not here?"
"She's not here. This morning, the shopkeeper's wife opened the door, threw the key to me, and went back."
Seeing that he didn't seem to be lying, Wang Ying led the two out of the shop. Looking at the bustling street, she was overwhelmed with worry. The city was so big, where were they going to find someone?
“Let’s split up and ask around. Tianju, you go to Zhenghe Street, Maqianzi, you go to Zhengtong Street, and I’ll search here on Zhengyang Street. We’ll ask everyone we meet and see if we can find it.”
"Yes." The two of them ran off nimbly.
Wang Ying began asking along the main street, but after asking from noon until the afternoon, he still had no news. Just when he was about to despair, he suddenly heard someone calling him.
"Sister-in-law, sister-in-law!"
Lin Sui looked up and saw a carriage approaching from not far away, with Lin Sui sitting inside!
"Sir, could you please stop the vehicle?"
"Whoa~" Tian Baihu tightened the rope. "Young master, get out of the carriage slowly."
Lin Sui slowly jumped down, supporting herself on the carriage shaft. "Thank you, sir."
"You're welcome." Tian Baihu turned the car around and drove away.
Wang Ying rushed over and grabbed Lin Sui, looking her up and down. "Sui-di, where have you been? We've been looking for you everywhere!"
Lin Sui lowered her head guiltily, "I'm sorry, sister-in-law, I made you worry."
Seeing his appearance, Wang Ying couldn't bear to scold him too much. "Where did you go? Who brought you back just now?"
Lin Sui hesitated for a moment, then told him about her solo trip to the military camp to find Marquis Wuping. "He promised me he wouldn't cause trouble for our shop!"
Wang Ying was terrified. He had actually traveled such a long distance alone, and he never expected to actually meet Marquis Wuping.
"Don't do that again next time. What if something happens? How am I supposed to explain it to your mother?"
"I understand..."
Wang Ying sighed, "I know you're afraid of dragging us down, but you're still young. We adults will take care of everything, so you don't need to worry about it."
Lin Sui felt a lump in her throat and secretly wiped away a tear. It was so good to have her sister-in-law around.
No one knows what Marquis Wuping said, but a few days later, Manager Wei, along with his wife and gifts, personally came to apologize.
Wang Ying confiscated the items, as long as the two of them loudly proclaimed at the door that they had slandered Lin Sui and helped clear his name.
Manager Wei was so embarrassed that his face turned red. He stood at the door, unable to open his mouth, but his wife called out twice and then hurriedly left.
Her jinxed nephew, who hadn't visited her for years since he learned about the incident, suddenly came to their door yesterday and threatened them, saying that if they dared to use his name to cause trouble again, he would kidnap his two sons and send them to the army.
Madam Wei was so frightened that she almost lost her mind. The next day, she quickly dragged her husband to the Wang family's ice shop to apologize.
*
The matter passed quickly, and before we knew it, it was the end of July. Chen Qingyan and his group were about to take the provincial examination.
The eighth day of the eighth lunar month is the day of the provincial examination. This year is a major examination held every three years, and candidates from all over the prefecture have gathered in the prefectural city to participate in this examination.
Some people who lived far away came as early as six months in advance, rented houses in the prefectural city, and waited patiently. Others arrived late and couldn't even find a place to stay, as all the inns in the city were full. Not to mention the dormitory rooms, even the woodsheds were almost full of people.
Students dressed in Confucian robes and hats could be seen everywhere on the streets and alleys, and the teahouses and taverns were filled with discussions about the provincial examinations, creating a very strong examination atmosphere.
My two cousins from Tianyang County also came. My second cousin, Li Bingchen, is taking the provincial examination this year, his third time. My eldest cousin, Li Bingwen, accompanied him to the exam.
My eldest uncle had originally planned to come, but he suffered a back ailment these past few days and was in so much pain that he couldn't get out of bed. So he had no choice but to send his two sons to the prefectural city.
The two brought a lot of things with them and, following the address left in the letter, found the rented courtyard.
When they arrived, they found the gate tightly closed and the courtyard quiet and deserted.
Li Bingchen asked doubtfully, "We didn't go to the wrong place, did we?"
"That's right, it's the seventh house in Xizi Hutong, there's a jujube tree in front of the door."
"Then why is no one here?"
The two brothers looked worried. Could it be that their aunt had just said in her letter that everything was fine at home?
Just then, a neighbor came out from nearby, and Li Bingwen quickly went up to ask, "Uncle, didn't a family surnamed Chen live in this house before?"
The old man said, "Oh, you mean the previous tenant? I heard they bought a new house and moved away."
Li Bingwen's face lit up with joy. "Do you know where they moved to?"
"Still in this alley, the third house at the front."
The two hurried over, knocked on the door, and after a while, finally saw a familiar face.
Uncle Chen stared at the two men at the door for a moment, then asked, "You two... are you Tian Yang's cousin?"
"You still remember us, sir?"
Uncle Chen hurriedly opened the door, "Come in quickly! Young master, madam, young master is here!"
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