Chapter 848 - 850 - Looking for You Has Been Tough_1
At that moment, footsteps could be heard from outside. Muyu came in carrying a bowl of medicine soup for Bai Ruozhu to check, saying, "Madam, the medicine is ready. Should I take it to Dang Youshen?"
Bai Ruozhu’s face inadvertently betrayed a hint of disgust. She raised her voice to stop Muyu outside, "Just take it directly to him."
"Yes." After speaking, Muyu picked up the medicine soup and left.
Jiang Yichun stared at Bai Ruozhu’s face, his eyes revealing a shade of doubt, "What’s wrong? Your reaction just now was a bit odd."
The corner of Bai Ruozhu’s mouth twitched, "It’s nothing, I just feel a bit uncomfortable and don’t want to smell the medicine."
Of course, she didn’t want to smell that saliva and phlegm-added medicine. Just thinking about it made her feel quite nauseous, and Bai Ruozhu felt a bit queasy at the thought. Of course, she didn’t go into detail, and although she was disgusted, she still felt Muyu’s actions were rather satisfying. She was afraid that if she told Jiang Yichun, he might punish Muyu again.
Jiang Yichun suddenly grasped her hand, his calloused fingertips unexpectedly landing on her pulse.
There was concern on his face, as well as some anticipation, but soon his fingers slid away, his face showing relief, yet there was disappointment hidden in the depths of his eyes.
Bai Ruozhu blinked, and suddenly understood what he was thinking. He thought she felt nauseous from the scent of the medicine, thinking she had accidentally become...
She couldn’t help but laugh, hooking her arms around his neck and saying, "Silly, aren’t I using contraceptives? How could I be?"
"Medicine isn’t foolproof, I was just worried that in case something happened, it could harm you." Jiang Yichun spoke as he touched her cheek, internally chiding himself for his wild thoughts. She was only seventeen, they already had Dengdeng, and even if they wanted more children, there were plenty of days ahead. What mattered more was that she was healthy, so she could stay by his side and grow old together.
After being affectionate for a while longer, and seeing Tu Ying return, Jiang Yichun could only kiss Bai Ruozhu’s forehead, then he stepped out.
Tu Ying entered the room somewhat embarrassed, explaining, "My brother and the others in his room wanted to sleep, so I had to excuse myself."
Bai Ruozhu chuckled, "You really have it rough."
Tu Ying, too, was from a prestigious family, yet here she was, sneaking around all the time. She would spend the night in her brother’s room and not leave, and moreover, her brother shared the room with several classmates. Those unaware might think this young lady had no sense of propriety.
The next morning, Bai Ruozhu awoke to find that Jianqi had already returned, so she summoned him to inquire about the investigation.
Jianqi saw no need to keep anything from Tu Ying and began to recount.
"As the master instructed, I gave the silver to Xiaoru. She said her parents had both passed away, and no relatives were willing to take her in. As an orphan girl, she could only rely on singing to earn a living. Unfortunately, she had offended that bully, Chen Qiang. She also mentioned that she didn’t want to trouble the master and planned to hire a horse carriage to head south by herself. After all, as a singer, she could sing anywhere."
Jianqi paused before continuing, "It seems like she intends to go to Xuanlang City to watch the Study Palace competition, to catch a glimpse of her idol, Tang Feng."
"She doesn’t know we’re going to participate in the Study Palace competition, does she?" Tu Ying asked, somewhat surprised.
"Perhaps she guessed it, but she didn’t ask me to take her with me. I arranged a horse carriage for her and watched as she left Jiuzi City safely before I went to investigate Chen Qiang’s affair," Jianqi said.
Bai Ruozhu nodded. Jianqi’s actions were indeed reliable and reassuring. Knowing that Xiaoru had left safely, she could finally let go of her worries. However, a woman wandering alone in the outside world would face an uncertain future, and her fate was now in her own hands.
Seeing Bai Ruozhu’s satisfaction with his actions, Jianqi continued, "Chen Qiang is actually just a servant of the family, but because the Chen family of Jiangnan is powerful, and the daughter of the Chen family is the legal wife of the Huainan King, even a family servant like him could dominate in Jiuzi City."
"Do you know why he forbids people to sing Tang Feng’s poetry?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
"Chen Qiang is actually the trusted confidant of Chen Zhong, the eldest son of the Chen family. The reason is that Chen Zhong was originally one of the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan, but he was ousted from the ranking after Tang Feng won the title of ’Scholar,’" Jianqi answered.
Tu Ying couldn’t help but laugh, "Chen Zhong has his subordinates do such things, isn’t he ashamed? If he is capable, let him push Tang Feng out again. Can they really stop everyone from talking?"
"There’s also another reason for Chen Zhong’s hatred towards Tang Feng. It is said that Tang Feng took his mother’s surname and is actually the illegitimate son of the old master of the Chen family," Jianqi revealed.
This time, Bai Ruozhu was somewhat surprised. Weren’t illegitimate children shunned in ancient times? How then could Tang Feng’s status be recognized as one of the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan, rising above the others to become the first in rank?
"Tang Feng’s mother, Lianluo, was a famous courtesan in Jiangnan, known for her purity. Later, she was drawn to Chen Feichen’s literary talents and gave herself to him. When the Chen family arranged a marriage for Chen Feichen, Lianluo, a woman of strong character, refused to become his concubine and instead bought her own freedom and opened a tea house. The people of Jiangnan admire talented women. To this day, many scholars visit Lianluo’s tea house to drink and exchange poetry, and they respect her as a lay Buddhist. Therefore, no one ridicules Tang Feng’s background," Jianqi continued.
Bai Ruozhu and Tu Ying both listened with curiosity, feeling that, in terms of cultural norms and rules, Jiangnan was much more open than the Northwest.
Jiang Yichun was discussing the route with his deputy officer, pointing to a place on the map and saying, "The terrain here is treacherous, and we may be ambushed. You should do this..."
After giving instructions to the deputy officer and watching him leave, Jiang Yichun then commanded his dark guard on another matter. Afterward, he left the inn, ordering the team to continue the journey.
The place Jiang Yichun pointed to was called Luoyan Slope, where the land dips low with small hills on both sides. During this season, the trees on the mountains are lush and verdant, and if anyone were to ambush there, it wouldn’t be easy to spot them.
There are no particularly high mountains along their route; even the small hills, considered mere earthen slopes in the Northwest, are numerous enough to serve as advantageous spots for ambush and stealth attacks.
Before getting into the carriage, Jiang Yichun spoke to Bai Ruozhu about Luoyan Slope. He hadn’t mentioned it the previous night for fear it would disturb her sleep, so he had held off until now. Bai Ruozhu nodded after hearing it and said, "Don’t worry, I will take good care of the children. You should focus on leading the troops without distraction. The entire team needs your command."
"I know your capabilities, but still, be extra cautious. If anything happens, you must ensure your own and our son’s safety," Jiang Yichun said, squeezing her hand, then reluctantly letting go and turning to call Wen Shu to signal the departure.
As the group left the inn, Bai Ruozhu and Tu Ying boarded the horse carriage, while Jiang Yichun mounted his horse. They were to meet with the soldiers stationed at the town’s entrance, but they had barely taken a few steps when they heard a young girl shout, "Brother Jiang, don’t leave, I’ve had such a hard time looking for you!"
Bai Ruozhu’s eyes twitched. What would a girl want with Jiang Yichun? But she quickly remembered the voice as very familiar. In haste, she lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked out to see, indeed, it was the little loli, Diao Yao.
It turned out that the phrase "I’ve had such a hard time looking for you" was mainly directed at her.