The afternoon sun was just right. Jia She was warm from the sun and became more and more drowsy.
He was taking a nap in his room a moment ago. Since he started cultivating, he slept more and more every day. He wished he could make up for all the sleep he missed before. But he was woken up not long after he fell asleep and was told that his master asked him to wait here to welcome the guest.
Jia Xie was very puzzled.
Apart from knowing that Shui Jing had set up a fortune-telling stall, he knew nothing else. Shuijing didn't tell him, and he didn't intend to ask. It was not like when he was still Shuijing's study partner. They could talk about anything. So many years had passed. Shuijing must have a lot of secrets. Otherwise, he wouldn't have succeeded in usurping the throne before anyone could react. He thought very clearly. Shuijing was willing to tell him, so he would listen. If he didn't, he couldn't find out anything even if he cracked his head. He might even cause Shuijing to be disgusted. He finally had a good life. Why should he dig his own grave? And the more he knew, the more responsibility he had to bear. Jia Xie was very self-aware. Even if he didn't like Wen Dongyan, he knew that he didn't have the ability to do so. So he was happy to be an idle man.
What Jia Xie didn't understand was that this was not the capital. Who needed him to welcome the guest in person? It was not that he was conceited. He was a first-class general. Not everyone was qualified to welcome the guest …
Jia Xie's head became heavier and heavier as he thought about it. His upper and lower eyelids were already fighting. He almost fell asleep standing up.
"Master Jia, the guest is here." The servant who was waiting quietly at the side reminded him in a low voice. Seeing that Jia Xie was still dozing off, he couldn't help but raise his voice. "Master Jia? Master Jia! "
Jia Xie suddenly quivered. He turned to look at the servant in confusion. At his signal, he turned back to look at the green sedan chair that was slowly approaching. He knew that the guest was here. He quickly wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. He tidied his clothes, straightened his chest, and raised his head. He was ready to wait for the guest.
The white palanquin landed on the ground and the curtain was lifted. A person stepped out of the palanquin.
Jia Xie looked at the person in confusion. After a while, her eyes suddenly widened. "Sister … husband?" Her tone was very hesitant.
Lin Ruhai, who had just gotten out of the sedan chair and stood firmly on the ground, also looked at him in disbelief. "Eldest … Brother-in-law?"
Jia Xie's heart skipped a beat. She thought that it really was her brother-in-law, Lin Ruhai. No wonder the Shuijing had sent him to welcome them.
However …
How did Lin Ruhai become like this?
Jia Xie muttered in her heart. He and Lin Ruhai had not seen each other for more than ten years. In his memory, Lin Ruhai was still the same handsome young man who had just married a beautiful wife and had a bright future. He was not the old man in front of him with a pale face and a thin body with deep eye sockets. At first glance, he could tell that Lin Ruhai was seriously ill. Although he had changed a lot, he had done it on purpose. Lin Ruhai couldn't have done it on purpose, right?
Lin Ruhai's thoughts were also in a whirl. Although he knew that Jia Xie had been Prince Rui's study partner at the Shuijing, he also remembered that they had drifted apart and had not seen each other for many years. Jia Min had once nagged him, saying that her eldest brother was not good at literature or martial arts. After becoming the Prince's study partner, he did not give himself a promotion. If it had been her second brother, Jia Zheng, he definitely would not have been demoted and inherited the title. Maybe their Jia family would have returned to the glory of their ancestors.
Although Lin Ruhai did not openly comment on his two brothers-in-law, he agreed with Jia Min in his heart. In his opinion, Jia Xie was the kind of person who had a pile of good cards in her hands but played them badly. Thinking about how his Lin family had also inherited the title of Marquis, it had been passed down for five generations, all the way to his father's generation. He knew that he could not inherit the title of Marquis, so he studied hard. In the end, he had fought his way through the imperial examinations and did not disgrace his ancestors' reputation. If he was Jia Xie, his achievements would not be limited to what he had now. Perhaps his name would go down in history.
But Jia Xie had appeared here at this time. Presumably, her relationship with Prince Rui had improved. Lin Ruhai thought back. A year ago, the Jia family's letter to Jia Min mentioned that Jia Xie was always stealing chickens and touching dogs, hanging around the red-light district. How did such a good-for-nothing like her enter the Shuijing's eyes again?
Jia Xie did not know that Lin Ruhai was looking down on him in his heart. However, he and Jia Min's relationship with Lin Ruhai was very calm. Jia Min looked down on him as an older brother. Lin Ruhai, who had a good relationship with Jia Zheng, was not much better. Therefore, he did not have any of the enthusiasm he had when meeting relatives. He only said lightly: "Master has been waiting for a long time. Come with me."
Lin Ruhai was speechless. In his heart, he thought that Jia Xie was really not likable. He also drank tea in the teahouse for a long time before waiting for the sedan chair to pick him up. How could he be blamed for making master wait for a long time?
At this time, the Shuijing was lazily sitting at the head of the main hall. He yawned and half squinted his eyes as he looked outside. He had just woken up from his afternoon nap and was still a bit dispirited. It was not until he saw Jia Xie leading Lin Ruhai in that he rubbed his eyes and forced himself to be alert.
"Ye, Lin Ruhai is here." Jia Xie was the first to speak.
Lin Ruhai had kept his head down ever since he entered the door. At this time, he secretly raised his head to take a look. Because the Shuijing rarely stayed in the capital and he had always been working in Yangzhou, this was the first time he saw the Shuijing. But regarding the Shuijing's reputation, it was like thunder to his ears.
After the former Crown Prince failed to usurp the throne and was buried in a sea of fire, the Retired Emperor originally wanted to appoint the Third Prince, who was the son of the Second Empress, as the new Crown Prince. But before the Retired Emperor could announce the imperial edict, the Shuijing took control of the entire capital. The Imperial Palace's imperial guards and the army stationed outside the capital did not react at all, allowing the Shuijing to set off a reign of terror in the capital and the Imperial Palace.
There was a rumor that before the Emperor passed away, the Emperor gave the Tiger Tally, which could mobilize the army, to the Shuijing. But very few people believed it. After all, the Shuijing was the Emperor's younger brother, not his son. No matter how much the Emperor favored the Shuijing, he would not be so muddle-headed as to give the Tiger Tally, which could threaten the throne of his descendants, to an outsider. Moreover, whether or not the Tiger Tally existed was still unknown. But once this matter came out, everyone was convinced that the Tiger Tally existed and that it was in the hands of the Shuijing. But at that time, what they thought was no longer important.
The night the Shuijing took control of the Imperial Palace, the Second Empress and the Third Prince fell ill and did not live to see the next day. But outsiders did not know what the truth was. The Second Empress's maternal family, Duke Xiu's Mansion, as well as some of their relatives, were all executed. The number of officials in the Imperial Court was reduced by half. At that time, the air of the capital was filled with the smell of blood. Lin Ruhai remembered that at that time, Jia Min was also in a state of panic. Because aside from Duke Xiu's Mansion, among the four princes and eight dukes, Duke Dongping, Duke Zhiguo, and Duke Zhiguo, were also in the homes of those whose families had been executed.
Although Lin Ruhai was far away from the political center, he had also heard that the Retired Emperor had long planned to depose the Crown Prince and set up another Crown Prince. However, the former Crown Prince was the eldest son of the Di Family. Since childhood, he was intelligent and eager to learn, excelling in both civil and martial arts. He was humble and had a gentle personality. Moreover, he was good at governing and had a good reputation both inside and outside the Imperial Court. If not for the sudden usurpation of the throne, the Retired Emperor would not have been able to set up another Crown Prince.
Shuijing suddenly massacred the Imperial Court, and those who died were all supporters of the Second Empress and the Third Prince. Many people, including Lin Ruhai, speculated that there was a hidden story behind the former Crown Prince's usurpation of the throne, and that it was related to the Second Empress and the Third Prince. Shuijing and the former Crown Prince were close in age and had grown up together. They were very close to each other. It was absolutely possible that Shui Jing was enraged because the previous Crown Prince was killed by someone. Moreover, after the Shuijing forced the Retired Emperor to abdicate, he did not become the Emperor himself. Instead, he sent the former Crown Prince's younger brother, the Ninth Prince, who had been raised by him since childhood and was only fifteen years old, to the throne.
Although loyal officials such as Lin Ruhai were dissatisfied with the Shuijing's attempt to force the Retired Emperor to abdicate and usurp the throne, the one who became the Emperor was not him. They felt uncomfortable for a few days before they accepted it. In any case, the Retired Emperor's throne was going to be passed on to his own son. As the saying goes, the First Empress does not appoint the First Empress. Since the former Crown Prince was no longer alive, the Ninth Prince was the most noble. It was also in accordance with etiquette for him to become the Emperor.
However, they did not expect that the "Bloodthirsty Prince" who shocked both inside and outside the Imperial Court was not the least bit fierce and evil. Instead, he was very handsome.
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