"Don't say that." Li Yuezhen bowed to Qing'er who was bringing tea, looked at Zhuge Qing and replied: "You have indeed married the daughter of an oil dealer. I have guessed it a long time ago."
"Alas...that's what happened anyway. Although she entered the palace and became a palace concubine, she still can't change her past shrewdness. I don't think anyone will marry her, so...it hurts!"
Qing'er, who was standing behind him, pinched Zhuge Qing's arm hard.
Li Yuezhen squinted her eyes and showed a smile that was difficult for others to detect.
"Congratulations to both of you... I have been staying at Zhuge's house for so long, but I have never congratulated you two until now."
"No, no, I always ask you to deal with some troublesome things. That's why I have to apologize to you because I can't let you go back to Beijing."
"...Did something happen in the capital?"
Qing'er was about to leave when Zhuge Qing stopped her and asked her to sit down.
"Li Yuezhen, where did you meet Shui Qiancheng just now?"
"Near Flower Street...that's not a place where a child who doesn't understand the world should go."
"The child also has his friends. If a child of that age is too strictly controlled, he will easily get into trouble..."
Zhuge Qing folded his arms and groaned, Qing'er also sighed.
"We just turn a blind eye to things like him buying and eating randomly on the street, but Huajie is a bit... Today is the first time, so I won't say more. If he makes friends with bad people,
Friend, please ask Shui Xinyuan to speak to him properly."
Zhuge Qing said to Li Yuezhen in a low voice with a frown on his face.
"The queen is his sister. The emperor said he did not need other concubines, so he abolished the harem."
"It turns out that it's Jinzhuzhechi..."
"Don't look at me and say this. In short, those adults who originally planned to send their daughters to the harem and rely on their daughters to climb up the ladder have failed in their expectations and are now as anxious as ants on a hot pot."
"I understand."
Although he didn't make his words clear, Zhuge Qing knew that Li Yuezhen understood everything and nodded approvingly.
"Then I will be responsible for the internal work for the time being, and I will ask others to take over Weizhou's supervision work."
"Thank you. These people are working behind the scenes this time, so we have to find out the details secretly."
"... Shui Xinyuan and His Majesty finally got married, and they really can't live in peace."
Qing'er murmured lightly.
…
On a certain street in the northeastern area of the capital, there is a small mansion called Ranshui Pavilion.
Although it is a small house... its area is similar to that of a noble house. In the eyes of ordinary people, it definitely does not feel like a small house.
However, anyone who has ever been to a noble house will immediately notice that it is different as soon as they step into this house.
When you walk into the only door of Ranshui Pavilion, you will immediately see a high wall blocking your eyes.
Walk right along the high wall, looking for the entrance. After turning two turns, you finally find a small door.
Bend down and walk through the small door into the inside of the wall. What appears in front of you is still a high wall, and it is higher than the previous wall.
Continue walking along the wall to the right and you will see a gurgling creek.
Cross the bridge over the river and continue walking forward. After turning, a door appears.
When you walk into the door, what you see in front of you is the wall... Ranshui Pavilion is a house surrounded like a maze.
After entering the door, walking across the small bridge, the visitor walked around the house twice before finally arriving at the last door.
"……finally reached."
Lu Fusu took a breath and looked at the gardens and buildings in front of him.
Although you might think the house is very big when you stand outside, half of it is actually occupied by a maze. The house itself is small and elegant, not like a residence but more like a nunnery.
There was silence all around, except for the gurgling sound of water.
Crossing the center of the garden is a tributary of the Kyo River.
The nobles who built this house liked fishing in the past, so they drilled holes in the east and north walls to introduce the nearby Jingshui, so there were small bridges and flowing water in their own gardens.
There were no labyrinth-like walls at that time. Later, the descendant of a nobleman who liked fishing competed with the Lu family, who was the governor of Shenzhou in the Xia Kingdom, for the official position of governor. He attempted to murder the head of the Lu family, but failed and was placed under house arrest in his own home.
.
At that time, the Lu family sent people to demolish part of the garden and build a maze-like wall, but retained the tributaries.
The man who wanted to usurp the position of governor had been friends with the head of the Lu family for many years.
The governor may have felt that although the other party wanted to murder him, he was still a friend he trusted, so he felt compassion and allowed him to enjoy fishing in a home he would never leave.
The man who was under house arrest for betraying his friend felt deep remorse for the crime he had committed and shed bloody tears that dyed the tributaries of Jingshui red.
The news spread quickly and the house became known as Ranshui Pavilion.
After that man's death, the Xia Kingdom was destroyed, the Yuan Kingdom was established, and the capital became the capital of the Yuan Kingdom. Once a noble person committed a crime, he was often placed under house arrest in Ranshui Pavilion.
now……
Lu Fusu found a man sitting on a garden stone next to a tributary, fishing.
His figure was much thinner than what Lu Fusu was familiar with. In just six months, his face that still had some childishness seemed to have aged several years.
The fishing line hanging in the water moved and the fishing rod bent slightly.
The man pulled up the fishing rod, and the fish jumped lively and slapped the water with its tail.
However, the man seemed not interested in the results of his fishing. He removed the hook and immediately put the fish back into the water.
The freed fish disappeared into the water in the blink of an eye.
"...are you going to let them go like this?"
After hearing Lu Fusu's question, Lu Wuxian slowly raised his head.
Even when he saw Lu Fusu, Lu Wuxian remained expressionless. After a while, he finally realized that it was his brother who he hated so much that he gritted his teeth, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.
"What are you here for?"
"I have something to talk to you about."
Lu Wuxian stood up and dropped the fishing rod.
"Now that things have happened, there is nothing left to say!"
"...Can you often catch fish here?"
"What did you catch?"
"Fish!"
Lu Wuxian was a little excited, but after hearing Lu Fusu's unexpected answer, he couldn't help but look at his brother on the other side a little discouraged.
"...You came here looking for a place to fish?"
"No. I didn't expect that you can catch fish in this small river."
Lu Fusu nodded in admiration and walked across the small bridge to the inner courtyard where Lu Wuxian was.
"I didn't expect it to be so organized. Has a gardener come to clean it up?"
"How can there be a gardener? I take care of everything."
"You? Are you okay?"
Lu Wuxian pouted and picked up the fishing rod.
His unhappy expression was the same as before.
"Whether it works or not, we have to do it."
Anyway, idle time is idle... Lu Wuxian muttered and walked towards the house.
Lu Fusu took a closer look and found that he only brought a fishing rod and no fish cage. It seemed that he planned to release the fish he caught from the beginning.
"It's not easy to organize it so orderly. There are all kinds of flowers in all seasons, and the planting locations are just right."
Lu Wuxian, who was walking on the stairs, turned his head and widened his eyes. He might have been too surprised to hear Lu Fusu's praise, but when his eyes met Lu Fusu's, he hurriedly turned his head again.
"It's nothing special...I didn't plant it."
"If you don't know how to take care of it, no matter what you plant, it will be overgrown with weeds. It's a good thing that you have the talent and patience to cultivate flowers."
"Didn't I say it? I didn't plant it! It was planted by the meddlesome maid. I just have nothing to do..."
"I'm sorry! I have too many things to do."
A low and calm female voice came from inside the house.
After a while, a maid appeared and walked down the stairs, kneeling in front of Lu Fusu.
"Hello, sir, it seems that you are an acquaintance of His Highness Wuxian."
"Mei Lian, he is not a guest!"
"I am Lu Fusu."
"Your Majesty is here to welcome you, but you are welcome from afar."
"No need to say hello to him! Get him out of here!"
The maid raised her head and found that she was younger than she thought.
She was probably 17 or 18 years old. She was wearing plain clothes and no makeup, but she had beautiful features and was considered a beauty.
"Are you the maid who grows flowers?"
"Yes, the little girl's name is Jiang Lianzhu. Your Majesty, please come into the house. The girl will go make tea right away."
"No need to let him in."
Lu Wuxian roared with a red face, and Lian Mei turned back to look at him.
"It's rare for guests to come to your door, so you should treat them well. Don't you usually say that you are so busy all day long?"
"Why should I entertain him? He is the one who brought me to where I am today!"
"I know it very well. It was you who fought against the Emperor, and you brought it upon yourself."
"……Well!"
"You have time to talk about these things in the past, why not prepare some snacks first?"
"you……"
Before Lu Wuxian could refute, Lian Mei had already walked into the room.
This maid speaks straightforwardly and without mercy, and can compete with Zhuge Qing's wife.
"This maid is so brave. I never thought you would let this type of woman stay by your side."
"...I don't want to either! But she is the only one willing to come with me."
Lu Wuxian said angrily and walked up the stairs.
Lu Fusu also followed him into the house.
There is a round table, two chairs, and a bench in the room. There are horse decorations on the decorative shelves, and old paintings and calligraphy are hung on the walls. The simple environment is very different from Lu Wuxian's previous life, but Lu Wuxian is very happy.
Sit naturally on the hard looking bench.
"Sit wherever you want. No matter what I say, Sister Lian will bring you tea."
He sat on the bench because he didn't want to sit at the same table as his hateful brother.
This was his powerless resistance.
"...What do you mean that only that maid is willing to come with you?"
The crime of forging an imperial edict and trying to kill his brother to usurp the throne was definitely not a light one. However, Lu Wuxian was a prince, so he was not exiled or imprisoned, but was placed under house arrest in Ranshui Pavilion.
This house is always under surveillance. Lu Wuxian is never allowed to go out, invite guests to the house, or write letters. However, there is no restriction on having only one maid.
As long as Lu Wuxian is willing, he can arrange multiple maids.
"It's not interesting, that's what it means... When I learned that I was going to be sent to Ranshui Pavilion, I asked the maids of Qinghe Palace for someone who could take care of my daily life. What was the result? Only Sister Lian was willing to come with me."
Lu Wuxian snorted and showed a self-deprecating smile.