On the third day of February, the weather in Beijing was still cold and gloomy.
"The prince returns to his residence."
With the announcement, the people of Prince Qing's Mansion bowed to greet him, looking at Prince Jin'an who had returned from the court meeting in the palace. The chamberlain who followed closely behind him held up the imperial edict representing the emperor's order.
"Your Highness, when will we set off?"
In the hall, Prince Jin'an took off his cloak and spread his hands, while the maids changed into court clothes and into traveling clothes.
"Leave after noon." Prince Jin'an said, "Lead the Imperial Army to join the Guanxi Army."
The clothes were taken off and put on one by one, and a wide belt was put on. Prince Jin'an waved his hand, and the maids hurriedly bowed and left.
"Your Highness, Lei Qianjun and others will come together with the Kansai Army." The chamberlain whispered.
Prince Jin'an smiled slightly and nodded.
"They have worked hard for so many years wandering around," he said.
The chamberlain responded with a smile but did not dare. He watched Prince Jin'an pick up a box from the shelf and take out something from it.
This was something I got when I came back from Mrs. Cheng's house that day. I hugged it like a treasure and locked it up when I got back.
I don't know when I put it into a long sachet and hung it on my waist.
"Your Highness, what is this?" he couldn't help but ask.
"A gift in exchange for two bird whistles." Prince Jin'an said with a smile.
Two bird whistles?
The chamberlain stared.
"Where is Prince Qing?" Prince Jin'an asked, straightening his clothes and striding out.
After playing all morning, Prince Qing was sitting in front of a table eating a big meal after washing up, and ignored the people sitting next to him.
"Brother Six."
Prince Jin'an reached out and stroked his head.
"My brother has gone out and will probably not come back for more than half a year or a year. Just be obedient at home and don't be afraid. There are many people taking care of you."
King Qing mumbled a few words of kindness, which was certainly not a response to the words of the King of Jin'an County.
"Brother Six."
Prince Jin'an looked around and saw that all the maids in the palace had already left. He reached out to untie the sachet and took out the bamboo tube.
"Look, she gave this to me."
King Qing looked over this time and stretched out his hand to grab it.
The prince of Jin'an County hurriedly raised his head to avoid it.
"You can't play with this, it's too dangerous." He laughed.
Wherever King Qing is willing to obey, his whole body is hung up on him.
Laughter rang out in the hall.
Sitting upright and looking at Prince Qing who was using other things to distract the bamboo tube, Prince Jin'an let out a breath and hung the bag on his body.
"Your Highness, it's time to go."
The waiter outside the door reminded.
Prince Jin'an stood up and looked at Prince Qing who was being pulled up by several palace ladies.
"Your Highness, you can go with peace of mind. Prince Qing will be taken care of by us." The older palace lady said with a smile, while looking at Prince Qing again, "Your Highness, Prince Qing, bid farewell to the prince."
King Qing ignored it and lowered his head to play with the wooden ball in his hand.
Prince Jin'an stepped forward and hugged him.
Yes, it is this kind of person, the one who is close to her, who would want to hug her, because with peace of mind, or in other words, frankness and trust, she can show him... and her the chest where her softest heart is.
"I'm going." Prince Jin'an said, patting Prince Qing who was already struggling impatiently, letting go of his hand, turned around and strode away.
Desheng Tower in February is as warm as spring.
In the beautifully decorated corridor, clothes rustled, and the sound quickly stopped.
"elder sister?"
Chun Ling looked at Madam Zhu who stopped and asked in confusion.
"I..." Miss Zhu hesitated for a moment, turned around, "I won't accept guests."
Chun Ling stared in surprise.
"Sister?" she said hurriedly, "but Thirteenth Lang Qin is here too."
Madam Zhu has already raised her feet and walked back along the road.
"There are still seven days until the Ministry of Rites Induction Examination." She said, looking back at the box on the other side of the bridge, "How can you have fun at this time?"
It's none of your business!
Chun Ling cursed angrily in her heart.
You obviously want to see me, otherwise you wouldn't have heard the aunt say that someone was coming, and you wouldn't have even finished your makeup before rushing to change clothes!
What are you pretending to do now?
"Sister." She hurriedly followed, blinking her watery eyes, "But what if he came to see you specially?"
"Nonsense!" Mrs. Zhu shouted with raised eyebrows.
Chun Ling hurriedly lowered her head with a bit of timidity.
Seeing her look, Madam Zhu softened her tone.
"Don't talk nonsense like that, it will taint his reputation," she said.
Chun Ling raised her head and nodded.
"Sister, you are so kind to him," she said.
Miss Zhu smiled.
"In our entertainment venue, even if it is true or false, at least when facing this guest, you have to be true to your feelings." She said, "Even if you are acting, you have to be genuine and worthy of the guest's money."
Chun Ling nodded and watched Miss Zhu go inward. The warmth in her eyes disappeared and was replaced by disdain.
Are you the only one who knows how to act?
Moreover, your acting is too fake!
Looking at the closed door, Chun Ling's eyes flickered for a moment, then she turned around and walked quickly towards the covered bridge.
Opening the door, the chatter and laughter in the box rushed towards my face.
"...No matter what topic we cover, current affairs must be indispensable..."
The words stopped as the door was opened, and all the scholars and gentlemen in the room looked over.
Chun Ling knelt down, timidly.
"Miss Zhu said there will be no guests today," she said.
These words made everyone in the hall a little dissatisfied.
"We finally got out, and we were just waiting to listen to the piano for a while," someone said.
"The young lady said, I wish you all the best for your high school." Chun Ling saluted and said, "After the big exam, I am willing to sing and dance for you."
Everyone in the room laughed.
"This Miss Zhu is still a strict teacher."
"As expected of Miss Zhu, what she longs for and remembers in her heart is the path of sacred learning."
A bunch of self-righteous idiots!
Chun Ling laughed in her heart. She raised her head and saw that the man was not among the chatter and laughter. She was stunned for a moment and looked around.
At the window facing the street, Thirteenth Qin held a wine bowl and looked out of the window, seemingly not hearing the joking in the house at all.
"Come and see," he said suddenly, pointing out.
The jokers gathered around and looked at the street. A group of Imperial Guards was passing along the street. Behind them were the royal guard of honor, carriages and horses.
"It's Prince Ping!" someone said.
"Today the prince of Jin'an County went to Maoping Road as an ambassador, and the emperor ordered King Ping to see him off on his behalf," Qin Thirteenth Lang said.
"Yes, Prince Jin'an personally requested to go to Maoping Road."
"I really didn't expect that this boy who recruits children would have such courage."
Didn't expect that?
Qin Shisanlang sneered, could this boy who recruited children have lived safely and with countless favors just by relying on his recruitment?
"..In order to share His Majesty's worries and appease the people, the prince initially set an example..."
When these words reached his ears, Qin Shisanlang even laughed.
For His Majesty and all the people, only a ghost can believe that it was just for himself. It seems that the emperor must have been frightened that day when he became ill. He knew that the emperor's favor would not last long, so he wanted to find some credit for himself.
As a clan member, if you want to take credit for yourself, are you thinking too much?
Qin Shisanlang squinted his eyes, looked at the honor guard gradually disappearing, raised his tea bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
"...The Prince of Jin'an County is very close to Mrs. Cheng. I have seen the Prince's car driving at Mrs. Cheng's place several times..."
"...Isn't Qinyin Jingzhai just for him..."
The room was filled with laughter that could only be understood but could not be expressed in words.
Qin Shisanlang threw the tea bowl on the table.
"I'm taking the first step," he said.
Everyone was so surprised that before they could recover, they saw Qin Shisanlang walking out quickly.
Chun Ling, who was sitting on her knees by the door, hurriedly avoided and accidentally fell to the ground. She didn't even let the young master take a second look. She swayed away in a gust of wind, and the young man behind him trotted away holding his cloak before catching up.
"Okay, what happened?"
"He is bound to win this time and will definitely go to school."
People in the room talked and laughed. Chun Ling, who was sitting on her knees outside the door, bit her lower lip and stood up while stroking the door.
What's wrong?
It’s not because you mentioned that woman!
That woman!
Chun Ling raised her head, "Why can't she die? Why can't anyone cure her? How come the more she lives, the more comfortable she becomes, and even the royal family is involved!"
After hooking up with the royal family, who would like this thirteenth son?
Chun Ling turned her head again, this little lady Zhu only had the title of oiran, so why was she so pretentious that she couldn't get along with the royal relatives and nobles?
"Hey, what are you still doing here?"
Someone said.
Chun Ling came back to her senses and hurriedly saluted and turned around in panic. After walking a few steps, she heard a commotion in front of her and saw a few intellectuals downstairs leading a wealthy young man in, surrounded by many people.
"Who is this?" she couldn't help but ask.
"That's it." Zhike, who was walking by, heard this, glanced downstairs, and said with a smile, "The 19th Young Master of the Gao family."
"The Gao family?" Chun Ling asked, "The Gao family, relatives of the emperor?"
Zhike smiled and nodded.
"There is the Queen Mother, there is the Imperial Concubine, and there is the Gao family of His Royal Highness Prince Ping." He said with a smile, "When the tiger leaves the mountain, the young men of the Gao family dare to visit Desheng Tower."
Zhike walked over quickly while laughing.
That Gao family...
Chun Ling looked downstairs again, leaning against the building thoughtfully.
……………………………………………
In Jiangzhou, it was raining continuously in February. Cheng Liu Niang was only wrapped in a cloak, ignoring the girl trotting behind her holding an umbrella, and walked quickly. As soon as she arrived at the door of the hall, she heard a snapping sound inside.
"What a bastard!"
Mr. Cheng said.
"Master, you just took the medicine. The doctor said that this winter will be difficult to endure, so don't do it again." Mrs. Cheng said hurriedly, while looking at the letters on the case, "What did Shiro write?"
"Silang wrote that the second brother and his wife bullied the young lady." Mr. Cheng said.
Mrs. Cheng's eyes suddenly widened.
"They?" she said, "They bully the little girl? Are they crazy? Don't they know that the bad girl is not to be messed with?"
Mr. Cheng stared at her.
"What nonsense!" he shouted.
"Is this nonsense?" Mrs. Cheng lowered her head and said to herself, "It's obviously true."
Mr. Cheng no longer paid attention to her, lowered his head, picked up the letter and continued reading, his expression changed for a moment.
Cheng Liu Niang was outside the door and was about to step in when she heard another snap inside.
Mr. Cheng took the letter back to several cases again.
"Pack your things, I'm going to Beijing!" he said.
Going to Beijing?
Mrs. Cheng turned to look at him, and Cheng Liuniang also stepped over, both of them looking surprised. (To be continued)
