The wind and rain still hadn't stopped, but the turmoil had subsided.
It was already past midnight, but Yun'an, as a city that never sleeps, still had bright lights in its bustling streets. With the lifting of the curfew, from time to time, the sounds of singing, dancing, and music could be heard coming from the pavilions along the street.
On Dongzheng Street, two horses walked side by side.
Yejingtang wore a bamboo hat and a coir raincoat, riding on his big fat horse, and was also holding the reins of Sanniang's steed in his hand. The Black Lin Spear, which had been left outside the Taiji Hall, was probably picked up by the secret guards and wasn't with him at the moment.
It had been a long time since he left the imperial city, but his mood still hadn't calmed down.
When he carried Yu Hu back to Changle Palace and saw that everyone in the entire imperial city had been sent away and the bedroom was full of Yu Hu's things, it was hard not to guess her identity.
Yu Hu seemed to be a scheming queen and wasn't as easy to coax as Benben. It was impossible to predict what she would do to him in the future.
Moreover, he had provoked the Empress Dowager today. Even if she didn't take revenge on him, he was afraid that he would never be able to touch the ginkgo tree that he had been longing for...
The ginkgo tree...
Yejingtang raised his head and looked back at the imperial city that he had already left far behind. Today, the Fushou Palace was tidying up the tunnel, and there were many craftsmen inside. The imperial guards and secret guards were also patrolling inside to prevent any accidents. It might be even more difficult to sneak in and dig for things than usual.
Yejingtang pondered for a while and temporarily gave up the idea of going back for the third time. He returned to Tianshui Bridge.
Tianshui Bridge was a street full of department stores. At night, the shops were all closed, and there wasn't a single person to be seen on the empty street.
Yejingtang returned to Pei's Alley. After knocking on the door and handing the horses to the servant, he passed through the Hanging Flower Gate and came to the back residence.
The lights in the back residence had already been turned off, but there was still some movement in the courtyard of the Western Residence.
Yejingtang walked through the corridors and buildings to the Western Residence and saw Zhe Yunli, dressed like a delicate young lady, holding a knife in her arms and pacing back and forth in her boudoir.
"Yunli. Why aren't you asleep so late?"
Hearing the noise, Zhe Yunli quickly ran to the window:
"Brother Jingtang, you're finally back! Just now, Master Qiu went crazy and stood on top of Mingyu Building shouting, 'Old man Xuanyuan, you didn't expect it, did you? I, Qiu Tianhe, am out again! Hahaha...'. Half of the city could hear it. Is Master Qiu okay?"
Yejingtang had expected that Qiu Tianhe's actions on Mingyu Building would cause a commotion throughout the city. He smiled and said:
"It's okay. Master Qiu helped the yamen deal with Duke Cao today and made a great contribution. I guess he'll regain his freedom soon."
Zhe Yunli's eyes lit up, and she leaned on the windowsill and asked:
"Fought with Duke Cao? Did Master Qiu win?"
Zhe Yunli crossed her arms and leaned on the windowsill, which was probably a pose that squeezed her chest. In the collar of her pink and white short dress, there was a noticeable bulge, which was obviously not that big two months ago.
However, Zhe Yunli was almost sixteen years old, at an age when she was still growing. She had even grown a little taller, so it wasn't surprising that her chest was developing quickly. At this rate, she might catch up with Shiniang when she turned eighteen...
Yejingtang noticed this difference out of the corner of his eye but didn't pay much attention to it. He replied:
"He didn't win. Master Qiu was badly beaten. He was directly thrown onto the main street of the mansion and couldn't get up for a long time..."
"Ah?!"
The expectant look in Zhe Yunli's eyes froze. But after thinking carefully, she nodded:
"Duke Cao is an old monster who has been around since the founding of the Great Wei Dynasty. Shifu said he's extremely powerful. It's reasonable that Master Qiu couldn't beat him... So what happened in the end? Who took care of Duke Cao? The Eight-Armed Dizang?"
A look of pride appeared in Yejingtang's eyes, and he pointed his thumb at himself:
"Who else could it be? I charged into the Taiji Hall alone and knocked down Duke Cao with one spear."
?
Zhe Yunli frowned and didn't believe it at all:
"How is that possible... Even if it's true, it must be that Master Qiu had already weakened Duke Cao, and you just went up and finished him off."
"Hehe~"
Yejingtang smiled and then looked around:
"Where's your Shiniang?"
"Shiniang was afraid that Master Qiu would go crazy and do something reckless, so she went with Niaoniao to find out the situation. Third Aunt also went with them. They probably haven't come back yet."
"Oh. You should rest early. I'll go over and take a look."
Yejingtang didn't stay long when he saw this. After telling Yunli to go to bed early to avoid getting beaten by her mother, he went to the Middle Residence.
Grand Aunt also lived in the Middle Residence and had already gone to bed at this time.
Yejingtang quietly came to Sanniang's courtyard and looked around. He found that Xiuhe had already fallen asleep in the side room, so he didn't disturb her.
After waiting in the courtyard for a while and not seeing Luo Ning and Sanniang come back, various troublesome matters instead flooded into his mind.
As Yejingtang's thoughts turned, he remembered something. He turned around and entered Sanniang's boudoir. He groped under the bed, and the bed split in the middle, revealing a hidden tunnel underneath.
Yejingtang jumped into the tunnel, lit the lampstand in the tunnel, and then walked to the door at the deep end of the tunnel and opened it.
Behind the door was the incense hall of the Qinglong Hall. One could also leave from here. Every time there was a meeting, to avoid being noticed, all the incense masters would come in from the exit at the other end. However, usually, the door at the exit was bolted, and it couldn't be entered from the outside.
At this time, there was naturally no one in the Qinglong Hall. After lighting the lampstand, only the nine empty armchairs could be seen placed on both sides of the main hall.
Behind the chair of the Chief Leader was a spirit tablet table, on which there were several spirit tablets. The spirit tablet of his adoptive father, Pei Yuanfeng, was also among them.
Yejingtang came closer, took three sticks of incense from the spirit tablet table, bowed three times to his adoptive father's spirit tablet, inserted the incense into the incense burner, and looked at the spirit tablet, thinking secretly.
When he left Liangzhou and entered the capital, his adoptive father's will had entrusted him with three things.
The matter of handing over the family property was considered completed, and he was also fulfilling his filial duty for his adoptive father by protecting the Pei family's dependents.
Regarding the matter of entering the palace to find the Minglong Diagram, although there were some difficulties in digging for the ginkgo tree, it could be considered that by a stroke of luck, he had obtained a Jade Bone Diagram.
As for the main matter of destroying the Xuanyuan Dynasty and avenging his adoptive father, he hadn't started planning it yet, but Junshantai had taken the initiative first. This was an urgent matter, and he definitely had to find a way to deal with Junshantai next.
Although he hadn't done everything perfectly, it had only been a few months since he entered the capital, and it was already not easy to have achieved this much. He had also completed an additional task and found a virtuous wife.
If his adoptive father had a spirit in heaven, he probably wouldn't say that his son was useless...
——
"Jiji ji..."
In the Pei family's mansion, Niaoniao, who had been tired all day, flew back from the night rain. It rushed into Yunli's room, slid a long distance on the ground after landing, and directly became motionless.
"Ji? Are you dead?"
"Ji..."
Two figures followed closely behind and landed under the eaves of the main house in the main courtyard.
Pei Xiangjun was dressed in a black tight-fitting outfit and wore a black bamboo hat. After running around for most of the day, she was a bit tired. She pushed open the door:
"Jingtang is probably still busy with official duties in the city. The government really treats people like cattle. Fortunately, he came back to rest last night..."
Luo Ning was wearing a cyan long dress and a veil hat. After running around in the night rain for half the night, even her underwear was soaked through. After entering the door and putting down the veil hat, she untied her belt:
"I just went to take a look outside the Black Yamen. Imperial Doctor Wang went in to treat someone's injury. Qiu Tianhe was still chatting with the White-Haired Diting on the roof. It seems that things have been finished. What else could he be busy with?"
"It seems that the west of the city is still sealed off. He's probably over there..."
While chatting, the lights in the boudoir turned on.
Pei Xiangjun closed the doors and windows, raised her hand to untie her belt, and the black tight-fitting clothes fell to the ground. Like Luo Ning, there wasn't a dry spot on her body.
Pei Xiangjun came to the wardrobe beside the beautiful bed, opened the cabinet door, took out two sets of clean nightgowns from inside, and sat on the bedside.
Luo Ning sat down beside the canopy bed, reached behind her back to untie her clothes. Out of the corner of her eye, she looked at Sanniang's quite impressive chest and involuntarily straightened her back a little.
Pei Xiangjun敏锐地察觉到了这一点 and also straightened up slightly:
"What's the use of straightening up? It's clearly a whole circle bigger than yours."
Luo Ning thought this woman was just showing off her "assets" and said coldly:
"What's the use of being big? You don't need it anyway, and it's a burden in a fight."
There was a hint of pride in Pei Xiangjun's eyes: "Jealous? Not needing it and not having it are two different things."
Luo Ning's eyes darkened slightly, but after thinking for a while, she remembered another troublesome matter.
Today, when she went to look outside the Black Yamen, she could confirm that Qiu Tianhe had gone to fight Duke Cao to atone for his crimes and make contributions. Judging from the relationship between Qiu Tianhe and the Six Fiends of the Black Yamen, he would probably regain his freedom soon.
She and Yunli had come to the capital with the purpose of rescuing Qiu Tianhe. Now that their goal had been achieved, as the wife of the sect leader, she couldn't continue to stay in the capital to "rescue" someone.
Not to mention Xue Baijin, she couldn't even explain it to Yunli.
The little thief was doing well in officialdom and definitely wouldn't go back to Nanxiao Mountain to be a rebel with her. Sanniang also wouldn't let the little thief go.
In fact, she didn't want the little thief to give up his bright future either. Her plan in her heart was that if she really couldn't find an excuse, she would go back to Nanxiao Mountain and stay there for a few months to pretend, and then find an excuse to come back.
If she was going to be away for a while, she definitely had to prevent the little thief from getting into trouble. Although she wasn't very willing in her heart, from a rational perspective, someone still had to help the little thief regulate his body.
Luo Ning didn't know how far the Princess and the little thief had gone. Judging by her feeling, they probably hadn't had any special relationship yet.
If she had to choose between the Princess and Sanniang, she would definitely prefer Sanniang, who was also a woman from the martial arts world.To bring up a female prince from the imperial court is just asking for trouble for oneself...
Luo Ning thought secretly for a moment and then turned to look at Sanniang beside her:
"Yejingtang isn't here. Let's have an open and honest chat in private. Do you also like Jingtang?"
Pei Xiangjun's movements paused slightly, and she looked at Luo Ning, who had a very dominant "first wife" demeanor:
"What do you mean?"
"I don't mean to be jealous or quarrel with you. I'm just talking about the matter objectively."
As Luo Ning spoke, she glanced at Sanniang and suddenly found that Sanniang was of the same type as her—looking very fair and beautiful, the kind that the little thief couldn't get enough of...
Luo Ning felt quite strange. She pulled the thin quilt over and covered her legs, and continued:
"You should know that Yejingtang's body needs to be regulated regularly. I might have to go out for a while, and someone must be there to regulate the little thief's body every day. If you like Jingtang, I... I won't make things difficult for you. But if you continue to pretend and hesitate and don't tell me your true feelings, I'll ask someone else for help."
Pei Xiangjun didn't expect Luo Ning to bring this up again. She blinked her eyes and showed a bit of surprise—she used to be unclear whether her kindness to Jingtang was because of Honghua Tower or because of her personal feelings.
But ever since that vixen stole the limelight from her at the gate, almost making her depressed, and then fed Jingtang in Guangji...
It would be a lie to say that she had no feelings for Jingtang.
Pei Xiangjun's eyes flickered, and she thought for a while:
"About this matter... I'll discuss it with Jingtang. You don't need to worry."
"What are you going to discuss?"
Luo Ning was unhappy when she heard this talk about "seniority".
"You're only brave when it comes to fighting. You might not even be as good as Xiuhe in this kind of thing. I pulled Jingtang away right in front of your house, and you didn't even dare to say a word. When I asked you to wipe Jingtang's face with your chest, you obediently untied your clothes. You even pretended nothing happened after Jingtang kissed your chest. Relying on yourself to discuss it, by the time there are a lot of girls in the house, you'll probably still be playing in the mud here."
?!
Pei Xiangjun thought these words were really harsh and was a bit annoyed:
"What kind of words are those? Last time I was going to regulate Jingtang's body, but you insisted on snatching it. If you hadn't butted in, it's really hard to say who would be being coy now. I... I didn't want to quarrel with you, you vixen, and make Jingtang feel embarrassed, so I gave you some leeway."
"So you do like him?"
"..."
Pei Xiangjun took a slight breath and thought for a while:
"I met Jingtang first, and his Grand Aunt has long planned to betroth me to Jingtang. Even if you and Jingtang have already... already had a relationship, according to the order, you should still listen to me..."
Luo Ning raised her hand: "Let's not talk about who came first and who came later for now. Although Yejingtang is lustful, he's only lustful towards me. If you don't take the initiative to express your feelings, he definitely won't pay attention to you. Once I'm gone, and you're still being hesitant, and he has no one to regulate his body and holds it in, what if something happens..."
Pei Xiangjun frowned slightly: "You mean, I should take the initiative to find Jingtang and pour out my heart, and then... then what?"
Luo Ning nodded slightly: "There are still two pills left from the medicine we bought last time. If you're too embarrassed to say it, just take one, and then everything will be solved tomorrow."
Pei Xiangjun had a strange look in her eyes: "I... I'm not being forced. Why would I drug myself? But about this matter..."
Luo Ning said unhappily: "Sanniang, I'm telling you the truth. If you're like this again, I really won't pay attention to you in the future."
"Alright, I know. Why are you being so fierce... If you're not here, I'll naturally help Jingtang regulate his body. You take care of Jingtang meticulously, and I'm no less than you in the slightest. When are you leaving?"
?
Luo Ning felt that Sanniang was really heartless and was even hoping that she would leave quickly.
"I don't want to leave, but there's something going on at home. I'm not sure... Don't wait until it's too late to start preparing. If you don't make things clear in advance, I'll take Jingtang with me when I go out, and you can think about it slowly in the capital by yourself."
"Sigh~"
Pei Xiangjun sat beside her, and her beautiful face showed a rather complicated expression, as if she was secretly thinking.
Luo Ning didn't disturb her and just changed her clothes unhurriedly. But when she was halfway through changing, she suddenly heard a sound coming from under the bed:
Ka~
Hua la——
"Ah!"
Two exclamations!
———
In the Qinglong Hall, the incense smoke curled up.
Yejingtang stood with his hands behind his back in front of the spirit tablet, recalling the little bits and pieces of his life with his adoptive father.
In the past, his adoptive father was always drunk and seemed like an ordinary old man, and he didn't feel anything special about it.
Now that he had experienced life