By the time Xue Rui, Liu Tan, and the others returned to Huazhen Garden, it was already afternoon. Xue Rui brought Yu Shu to his residence and ordered the servants to prepare a meal for her. He then went to the East Courtyard alone to look for Liu Tan.
Liu Tan lived in a small lakeside building. When Xue Rui came downstairs, he met Jing Chen who was coming out. The two looked at each other, nodded in greeting, and walked away.
"Cousin, you're here." Liu Tan had changed into a comfortable cotton robe and was drinking tea in the pavilion. He gestured for Xue Rui to sit opposite him and waved to the palace maids who were waiting on him. Two of them obediently came forward to fan Xue Rui and pour him herbal tea.
Xue Rui only glanced at the many eyes and ears in the pavilion, but didn't say anything to ask Liu Tan to leave.
"There's something fishy about what happened in the paddock today."
Liu Tan's face darkened. He nodded and said, "I thought about it carefully on the way back. There is indeed something fishy. Every year, there are hunting teams patrolling the Western Mountain Paddock. Whenever a ferocious beast appears, it is either hunted or chased deep into the mountains. The fierce tiger we encountered today was most likely lured out of the mountains by someone in advance. "
Xue Rui thought for a moment and said, "According to what you said earlier, you met the tiger near Qiuping Hill. The West Mountain Paddock is so big, and you happened to run into it. Moreover, it chased you all the way to the periphery before showing its head. This tiger is really 'thoughtful'."
Liu Tan narrowed his eyes. "Cousin, are you saying that someone deliberately lured us to Qiuping Hill and then lured the tiger to chase us?"
Xue Rui didn't answer and asked, "Who do you think it is?"
"It's suspicious that Twelfth Brother didn't travel with us, but he doesn't have the means to do so. Seventh Brother didn't come to worship the ancestors and is in the capital, but it's not impossible for him to reach Huazhen Garden. Eighth Brother is a coward and would never do such a risky thing."
Liu Tan analyzed them one by one. Although he didn't point them out, he already had a suspect in his words.
Xue Rui laughed soundlessly and said in a low voice, "It can't be Ning Wang."
Liu Tan frowned and said with slight displeasure, "Why can't it be him?"
Xue Rui's dry and slender fingers gently tapped on the tea table. His eyes were not clear as he said: "I have known him since I was six years old. It has been more than ten years since then. I know very well what kind of person the Seventh Prince is. If the tiger was released by him today, Your Highness would not be able to sit here and talk to me in one piece."
Hearing this, a flash of disapproval flashed across Liu Tan's face. He knew that compared to him, the son of an imperial consort who had been neglected for many years, Liu Hao, who had been favored by his imperial father since he was young, was indeed stronger than the other brothers in every aspect.
But after the Double Sun Meeting, he had successfully suppressed Liu Hao and felt that this imperial brother was not someone he couldn't deal with. He even had a faint feeling of contempt.
In his view, Xue Rui's evaluation of Liu Hao was exaggerated.
"Then who does Biao Xiong think is behind this?"
Xue Rui raised his head to look at him, the corners of his mouth moving slightly. He said in a pure and kind voice, "Why don't you go investigate personally? Who is with us today? Who is it that got lost along the way? Why did the Twelfth Prince suddenly have an upset stomach? "
Xue Rui only pointed in a direction and did not have the slightest intention of overstepping his boundaries.
Liu Tan admitted that with his current ability, he still could not order Xue Rui to do things for him. So he nodded at him reservedly, indicating that he would send people to investigate.
After discussing business, Xue Rui took a few sips of the cold drink at Liu Tan's place and asked casually, "When did Daozi arrive at Huazhen Garden?
"When did Daoist Child arrive at Huazhen Garden? I haven't seen him for the past few days."
"I'm not sure about that. Martial Uncle should have arrived earlier than us. He also refused to tell me. Maybe Imperial Father has other arrangements."
"You didn't mention it when we met yesterday. Why are you together today?" Xue Rui's expression was only curious.
Liu Tan did not hide it from him. "When we came back this morning, Martial Uncle came to find me. I invited him to go hunting with me. Fortunately, he accompanied us. Otherwise, I don't know how many people would have been killed by the tiger."
His tone was not overly afraid. Because even if Jing Chen did not help him today, he still had a way to save himself. It was just that he could not save the people around him.
Xue Rui asked about the details that he wanted to know, and then he brushed it off and didn't continue this topic.
The two cousins talked for a full hour in the Water Pavilion before Xue Rui left.
Liu Tan looked in the direction of his departure. He turned around and glanced at the servants around him. He said in a cold voice,
He said coldly, "Watch your mouths. Know what to remember and what not to remember."
He had been back in the capital for less than half a year, and there were very few loyal servants around him. There were some things that could not be heard by others, but he deliberately let them hear it. In the future, he could keep those who could be useful.
Yu Shu stayed in Xue Rui's residence. It was much more relaxing than the small courtyard where the six people lived. There were people serving her with warm water and bathing. After bathing, food was served. When eating, there was a maid waving a fan at the side, which made Yu Shu think that she had returned to Wangji Tower.
When Xue Rui came back, Yu Shu was lying on the rattan chair in the inner hall and dozing off. She did not hear the sound of him entering.
Xue Rui didn't ask anyone to wake her up, and he walked over slowly. He took the fan from the servant girl and gestured for them to leave, then he sat down on the soft stool by Yu Shu's side. He had a smile on his face as he watched Yu Shu doze off with her head tilted to one side, and then he fanned her.
Yu Shu was a light sleeper and woke up after a while. She narrowed her eyes and saw a handsome face. She was not very surprised. After staring for a while, she yawned and sat up. Rubbing her face, she asked him,
"You're back. Have you eaten?"
Xue Rui looked at her lazy movements and couldn't help but brush the messy hair at her temples. He put it behind her ear and smiled,
"I ate at Wang Ye's. Don't sleep anymore. Accompany me and talk. Rest well at night. Tomorrow, we will leave for Jing. "
Yu Shu instantly woke up, "Going back so soon?"
"En, Thirteenth Princess has been frightened. Ning Wang wants to take her back to Jing. It is not convenient for us to stay alone, so we will go with them."
"Oh," Yu Shu's face was slightly regretful. She looked at Xue Rui and said honestly, "It's nothing else, just that I couldn't eat the wild game you hunted. It's a pity."
Xue Rui smiled, "What's so hard about that? Didn't we bring back the pheasants and rabbits? We can roast them by the lake tonight."
"Ha, that's good." Yu Shu became alert again. She crossed her legs and changed to a more comfortable sitting position. She took the fan from his hand and waved it between the two of them. She asked curiously,
"Such a big tiger, how did it get to the edge of the enclosure? Didn't they say that vicious birds and fierce beasts usually hide among people?"
Xue Rui calmly told her, "If it didn't run out by itself, it was lured out by someone."
Yu Shu's expression was strange. Hearing his words, she had a guess — someone had ill intentions and wanted to kill.
As to whose life and why, she didn't need to think about the answer before she knew it. Da An had been celebrating for fourteen years, and the princes had all come of age. The Empress had no children, and the Eastern Palace had no ruler. This was clearly a situation of the princes fighting for the throne. The princes that had a chance of succeeding the throne were fighting each other. Who didn't want who to die?
Not to mention today's incident, Yu Shu had been implicated once before. That had been during the Shuang Yang Conference. She had been tricked by Shui Yun and had been tied up by Liu Hao's subordinates and locked in the basement. In the end, the tendons of Shui Yun's hands and feet had been cut. She had barely managed to keep her life. After the incident, Liu Hao had successfully framed the Fourth Prince and caused one person to be eliminated.
The road to the fight for the throne was filled with corpses. Even though Shui Yun had the Heaven's Eye Technique, she was still used as a raft. It could be seen how dangerous it was.
Xue Rui saw that she had stopped fanning herself and calmly looked at her expression. He asked softly, "Are you afraid?"
Yu Shu raised her head to look at the talented and handsome Xue Rui. Her eyes were bright and she couldn't help but ask herself —
Did Liu Tan want to be the Emperor?
This was undoubtedly nonsense. She asked in turn: Why didn't Liu Tan want to be the Emperor?
Just based on Liu Tan's performance at the Shuang Yang Conference, she could see that the young Ninth Prince was not without ambition.
Then, as Liu Tan's mother, the Xue family, would naturally be his support. Xue Rui, as the eldest son of the Xue family, would inherit the large family business in the future. All the situations indicated that Xue Rui would definitely participate in this fight for the throne.
It wasn't that Yu Shu didn't understand this, but it was the first time she had thought so clearly and seen so clearly.
"A Shu." Xue Rui called out softly at the right time and held Yu Shu's wrist that was holding the fan. There were some worries in his heart that he couldn't explain, but he still said to her gently,
"Don't think too much."
Yu Shu pulled back her thoughts and met Xue Rui's reassuring gaze. She thought: He doesn't know where she came from, so he probably doesn't know that she, as a modern person, can see through this fight for the throne.
However, he had told her the truth about the tricks in the enclosure. It was probably to test her. If she understood in the future, she would regret talking to him.
After all, the two of them had been together for a long time. Yu Shu had a bit of an advantage and understood Xue Rui's heart. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry —
This guy only knew how to play tricks on her. Why didn't he think about what kind of person she was? She could only share blessings and not trials and tribulations?
He had underestimated her too much.
"En, I don't want to anymore." Yu Shu smiled and leaned back on the recliner. She gently pulled her wrist back and slowly swayed it. She thought to herself that it was fine. If he thought she was ignorant, then she would continue to pretend to be ignorant. When the day came that he wanted to talk, she would have a "good" talk with him.
The next morning, after breakfast, the group of people who had stayed in Huazhen Garden left for the capital.
When Yu Shu arrived, she squeezed into a carriage with a group of people. When she returned, she could even lie down.
Xue Rui sat across from Yu Shu. He watched as she held half a book in her hands. Her body was slanted and she wanted to lie down, so he said,
"Sit up straight. If you lie down and read, your eyes will fall out."
Yu Shu made an "oh" sound and sat up reluctantly. Xue Rui liked to control her. If she didn't listen to his words, he would nag her the whole way.
Last night, Xue Rui took her to the lakeside to eat some wild game. In a moment of happiness, they drank some wine. The two of them only went to bed in the middle of the night. Now that they woke up so early, she felt a bit tired.
On the way, the carriage stopped several times. The return journey was faster than when they came. At dusk, they arrived at An Ling City. They entered the city from the west gate and went their separate ways.
Xue Rui sent Yu Shu to the door of her house and left. When Yu Shu entered the door, a servant ran to the backyard to report. When she entered the second door, Yun Dou ran out to greet her. She went forward to take her luggage and said happily,
"Miss, you're back. Madam and Taitai are talking about you."
Yu Shu had been away from the capital for a few days. When she came back, she felt close to her maidservant. She went back to her room to wash her face, change her sweaty clothes, and went to the big room to meet the elders.
In the central room, Old Madam He was holding her grandson. Zhao Hui sat on the lower seat and patted Yu Shu's palm to talk. This mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were both kind people. They didn't ask about the ancestral worship ceremony, but only cared about how she was doing these days.
Yu Shu also liked to listen to people's gentle words. She patiently talked to them for a while. Seeing that it was time for dinner, Zhao Hui urged people to prepare dinner. He Fangzhi and Yu Xiaoxiu hadn't returned yet.
"Why isn't godfather here at this time?" Yu Shu looked outside the door.
Old Madam He answered, "He said that there have been many patients in the medical center these days. He's too busy to leave and often only returns home after dark. If it wasn't for the fact that he still has a child at home, I'm afraid he would have to stay in the medical center at night."
He Fangzhi's medical ethics were indescribable. Yu Shu said in admiration, "Godfather has a kind and righteous heart.
Although Old Madam He was dissatisfied with her son spending all day in the medical center and not at home, she was satisfied with her grandson. Hearing Yu Shu's praise, she beamed with joy.
Zhao Hui pulled Yu Shu's hand and said, "This is because of the plaque that the emperor bestowed. When your father first came here, no one believed in him. These days, he has accumulated virtue in medicine and his reputation has become more and more famous. I didn't have time to tell you, but two days ago, someone from the General's Mansion invited him to come and see a doctor. "
With this, He Fangzhi led Yu Xiaoxiu home.
"Sister, sister, you're back!"
Before entering the door, she heard the sound first. Yu Shu turned her head and saw Yu Xiaoxiu come in like a gust of wind.
Yu Shu smiled and pulled Yu Xiaoxiu to the other side to sit down, giving the seat to He Fangzhi who came in later.
"Why did you only finish school now? Did you run off to play? "
Yu Xiaoxiu scratched his head and turned to look at He Fangzhi. He Fangzhi explained for him, "No, this child is very obedient. He came to the medical center early after school to help me."
Yu Shu's nose twitched. Sure enough, she smelled the smell of medicinal herbs on Yu Xiaoxiu's body.
The family sat at the table and had a reunion dinner. They talked and laughed, and it was livelier than usual.
At night, Yu Shu was sitting at the table reviewing the homework of Taishi Shuyuan when she heard Yu Xiaoxiu knock on the door.
"Sister, I want to talk to you."
"Come in."
Yu Xiaoxiu pushed the door open and walked to Yu Shu's side. There was a trace of hesitation on his gentle face, "Can I ask you a favor?"
Yu Shu put down her book and turned around. She put her arm on the back of the chair and smiled, "Say it."
"It's, it's Hu Tian 'er." Yu Xiaoxiu frowned, "He hasn't been to school for a few days. Mu Xiu, I went to his house yesterday and saw that he has lost a lot of weight. He told me that half a month ago, his mother took him to the Great Yi Shop to have his fortune read. A teacher said that he would have a bloody calamity, so his mother locked him up at home and didn't allow him to go out. She even said that she would hire a teacher to teach him, so that he wouldn't be allowed to study at Baichuan Shuyuan anymore."
Yu Shu didn't find it strange. The Hu family was a powerful and wealthy family. Hu Tian 'er was like a precious baby to the young master. How could his mother allow anything to happen to him? In order to avoid trouble, she wouldn't let him go to school. The Hu family couldn't afford to hire a few teachers.
Yu Xiaoxiu continued, "But Hu Tian 'er didn't believe it.
"But Hu Tian 'er doesn't believe it. He said that the teachers in the Yi Shop are all liars. They made up lies to fool his mother. Sister, I know you're powerful. Can you read his fortune and see if he's going to have a bloody calamity? Don't let him lose the chance to go to the library just because of a lie."
Yu Shu raised her eyebrows and said, "I can read his fortune, but he doesn't believe the teachers in the Great Yi Shop. Does he only believe me?"
Yu Xiaoxiu hurriedly said, "Why wouldn't he believe you? Sister, you're a fortune-teller!"
Yu Shu wanted to say that the title of fortune-teller didn't match with that of a fortune-teller. But when she saw Yu Xiaoxiu's proud face, she couldn't bear to reject his request. She raised her hand and patted his head, saying,
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