Xuan Ling Taoist didn't seem to see He Heng hand the lot to Qu Qing Ju. He bowed to the two again, "Honored ones, there are no more guests today. This poor taoist bids farewell." Finishing, he stroked his beard and smiled as he walked away.
By the time Qu Qing Ju reacted, Xuan Ling Taoist had already walked into the forest path. She only had time to see his back before quickly disappearing.
This style of leaving people with a view of their backs really had the demeanor of a master. Qu Qing Ju lowered her head to play with the stick. Even though she couldn't understand the meaning of the stick, she could still see that there was something wrong with it.
Usually, there was a fixed number of lots in the lot pot, and the lot was particular about the format. The one she had just drawn, the antithesis wasn't neat, it didn't rhyme, it didn't match. Even the poem was pieced together and had no logic to speak of.
In reality, this lot had been casually written by the little Taoist from Wu Zhuang Guan? No wonder the Taoist had a profound expression and didn't understand the lot. He had found that the lot wasn't right?
"Nine mountains are quiet and green with red tears, the light of the third watch and the chicken at the fifth watch … …" Qu Qing Ju played with the lot as she recited the two unrelated lines. She raised an eyebrow and stood from the stool, "Wang ye, I don't think there's anything to look at. Let's go back."
He Heng saw that she didn't even look at the lot, but still gave it to Mu Jin behind her. He smiled and said: "Then let's go back." That Taoist said they were nobles, that something had happened in Jing and that there were fewer pilgrims. It was just that their clothing wasn't ordinary and there had been an assassination attempt a few days ago.
As to them walking up the mountain, he turned to look at Qu Qing Ju's flushed face. It was very obvious. Ghosts and gods, it was just a matter of the benevolent seeing benevolence and the wise seeing wisdom.
What nine mountains are quiet and green with red tears, the light of the third watch and the chicken at the fifth watch … … He Heng's expression suddenly changed. His steps paused and he turned to look at Mu Jin who was supporting Qu Qing Ju, "Let ben wang see the lot."
Seeing that wang fei didn't object, Mu Jin carefully presented the lot. Then she saw that wang ye's expression wasn't right.
"This lot is nonsense, don't bother keeping it," He Heng threw the lot to Qian Chang Xin beside him. He said to Qu Qing Ju, "The path down the mountain isn't easy, we'll take the carriage back."
Qu Qing Ju didn't look at his movements, smiling as she nodded. The two walked in front of He Ming. Seeing He Ming's bewildered expression, He Heng commented: "A lot that doesn't match up. It seems that your er sao's hand at drawing isn't that good."
Qu Qing Ju smiled and said: "Just now, I asked you to go with me, but you didn't want to go. You said you wanted me to beg with you. Now you're complaining that my luck isn't good. What kind of logic is that?"
"Fine, fine, good men don't fight with women," He Heng smiled and waved his hand, "Let's go down the mountain. There's a small stream at the foot of Bai Yun Mountain. We can have a picnic by the stream."
"This is good," He Ming acted as if he did not see the two flirting just now. There was a simple and honest smile on his face, "Yu di has long wanted to eat a meal in the green mountains and clear waters."
As the three of them talked, they walked along the stone path. For some reason, the topic turned to He Ming's assassination attempt in Jiangnan.
"The court might be arguing fiercely, but this matter will have a conclusion sooner or later," He Heng knew his dilemma. He patted his shoulder, consoling, "There are always difficult things in the world. You just have to endure it."
"Er ge is right. Even if fuhuang is the ruler of the Nine Five, he can't do as he pleases." He Ming smiled, "Don't worry, er ge, yu di understands."
He Heng nodded. Looking at the three step-carriage in front of him, he said: "Si di, please."
"Please." He Heng bowed slightly, showing the respect of a didi towards an older brother.
When the three of them got on the sedan, Qu Qing Ju looked out through the thin gauze of the sedan. She felt the sedan start to sway slightly as it moved forward. He Ming was right. Even the Emperor, as the ruler of the Nine Five, couldn't do as he pleased, much less others.
Suddenly, she straightened. The ruler of the Nine Five … … Nine … … Five … …
Patting her face, Qu Qing Ju once again lazily leaned back on the soft pillow. It didn't matter if she was thinking too much. Today, she had only gotten a useless stick and nothing else.
Every step down the mountain had to be steady. The servants carrying the palanquin carefully stepped on every stone step. When they stepped on flat ground, they all heaved a sigh of relief. The flat ground was much easier to walk than the downhill path, and it was also much safer.
Just at this time, they saw several carriages coming from another direction. The carriages all looked the same, and there were two armoured guards beside each carriage.
Qian Chang Xin narrowed his eyes to look and instantly understood. These were probably the candidates that had been sent into Jing from other places. His expression didn't change. He didn't let the sedan carriers change paths and continued forward.
The driver at the front didn't know who was coming, but seeing the number of guards following behind the three sedan, he knew that these were high ranking officials and nobles coming out for a stroll. He pushed the carriages to one side. After these people passed by, he started to drive the carriages again.
The candidates sitting in the carriages looked at the sedan that gradually moved away and started to converse in low voices.
"I wonder who's sitting in the sedan. Such a grand display." A candidate about fifteen years old spoke, "It looks so dignified."
"To have so many guards and attendants, it's not something a normal person can have," A slightly plump candidate glanced at her, "Maybe it's a wang ye or junwang."
"You're bluffing. Is it so easy to encounter wang ye?" Another candidate teased, "Maybe it's a wang fei's miss."
In an instant, the candidates in the same carriage started to laugh.
The guard driving the carriage heard the commotion inside the carriage and his face became colder. With this kind of bravado, they didn't have the fate of being a noble mistress.
He thought about the news he had heard from the outside. He heard that Jing City wasn't stable these days. Cheng Wang and Duan Wang had both gone to the outskirts of Jing to recover. Thinking about it, his expression couldn't help but change. Was it Duan Wang or Cheng Wang that had just passed by? Otherwise, at this time, who would have such a grand display to appear in this place?
When the sedan stopped, the curtain in front of Qu Qing Ju was opened. She held Mu Jin's hand as she came out of the sedan. Looking at the patch of green grass that had grown in front of her and the stream at the end of the grass, she couldn't help but sigh: "This place is really beautiful."
She turned back to look and saw the servants had already started to set up the boilers, chairs and benches. In a short while, everything that needed to be prepared was ready. Qu Qing Ju felt that the period dramas that the artists under her command acted in in her previous life were too weak. Just the ability of the servants to do things wasn't good enough.
He Heng walked next to her and pointed at the other side of the stream, declaring, "This stream is very wide so it's named Qing Xi River. There's also a manor on the other side. It was bestowed to me by fuhuang two years ago."
Qu Qing Ju gave a small smile at the worry of not being able to live in all of these houses: "Fuhuang has a loving heart, but it's a pity that we don't go out often and can't finish living in the manor that fuhuang bestowed. It's such a pity."
"In the future, if there's time, I will accompany you out more," He Heng saw that she was smiling happily and the smile on his face became even more pronounced. He pulled her to sit at the table that had been set up and announced, "I'll get the guards to go hunt some wild game and have the chefs from the fu make some wild things to try."
He Ming basked in the warm sun and his heart also warmed. He pointed at the stream and ordered: "Sun Hai, go see if there are fish in the stream. If there are, bring a fishing rod."
Sun Hai hurriedly ran to the stream to look and quickly ran back. He smiled and said: "Wang ye, this one sees fish swimming in the water, but I don't know how big they are."
"Then ben wang will go fishing," He stood and raised his hands to He Heng, "Er ge, didi will go fishing for a while."
He Heng nodded, "Be careful not to wet your shoes."
Hearing this, He Ming smiled, "Er ge, don't worry, didi knows."
Qu Qing Ju watched as He Ming lifted his robe and tied the back of the robe around his waist. He had the servants carry a stool and a fishing rod and bait to the stream. She couldn't help but sigh. A seventeen or eighteen year old youth, in her previous life, would have been a brat. He Ming was already so mature. It was rare for him to show some of the liveliness of a youth. She didn't know if it was genuine or just an act.
She glanced at He Heng beside her. The person beside her was just over twenty years old but already had such thought and skill. It could be seen that the Imperial House was a place to train people. The complexity of it surpassed the entertainment circles of her previous life. If one lost in the entertainment circle, they would lose fame and fortune. If they lost in the Imperial House, they would lose their lives, their wives and children.
Thinking about it, it wasn't easy for He Heng, a young man just over twenty years old, to achieve what he was doing now. She felt a sliver of motherly instincts rise from deep inside her.
But thinking about this person's scheming, that sliver of motherly instincts instantly disappeared. She used a silver skewer to pick up a piece of pear and put it in her mouth. It was smooth and juicy, the taste pretty good. She picked up another piece and held it in front of He Heng, indicating for him to have a taste.
He took a bite from Qu Qing Ju's hand. He Heng nodded and smiled, commenting: "Not bad."
Qian Chang Xin glanced at the fragrant pear that was placed very close to wang fei. Wang ye didn't seem to like eating pears?
In Jin An Princess Royal's fu, He Gui Nian flipped through the card in her hand. Her expression was calm as she said: "Just say that ben gong is tired these past few days and won't see any guests." These people just wanted her to find some information about Duan Wang and Cheng Wang. They didn't think about how much she, a woman, would know. Even if she knew, she wouldn't tell them.
Thinking of the news she received from the palace, she hesitated for a moment before summoning her trusted aide, Du mama, to say, "At the painting banquet last time, ben gong heard that er dimei likes to eat fruits. Ben gong has obtained a lot of new fruits. Have someone send some to er dimei. In addition, send the herbs ben gong prepared for er di and si di as well."
After Du mama finished listening, she suggested: "Princess, the court is in a mess because of the assassination attempt. Why don't you wait a few days before sending it over?"
He Gui Nian's expression was grave as she replied: "The Imperial Guards found that the arrow used to assassinate Duan Wang might have been made of normal craftsmanship, but the wood used for the arrow hilt was a tree unique to one of Rui Wang's villas. This matter has been handed over to the Judicial Office and the Ministry of Justice. It will be reported to fuhuang sooner or later."
Du mama's expression changed slightly. A beat later, she opened her mouth to speak: "The Emperor has always favoured Rui Wang. This way … …"
"The people of the world are watching," He Gui Nian caressed a card, "Even if fuhuang wholeheartedly favours Rui Wang, it can't stop the mouths of the people of the world. No matter the result, Rui Wang in this life … … unless ben gong's other three brothers are gone, he has no fate with the throne."
"Nubi will do it now," Du mama understood and hurriedly retreated.
She flipped open the card in her hand. On it was written Wei shi of Chang De Gong Fu. She smiled coldly. Did she think that just because it was the old taitai of Chang De Gong Fu, she had to give face? She really thought too highly of herself. There were many people in Jing City that she wouldn't give face to, much less an old furen of a duke's fu that was destined to fall.
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