Tian Gui Escapes: The Abdominal Black Two Treasures 104 Wishes Long Life

  Ba Ge returned to the post house. Yelü Qi lay on the bed, his robust body now weak and feeble, his face gaunt from several days of illness, with deep eye sockets and heavy dark circles under his eyes that seemed to foretell his impending death.

  "The Second Prince." By the time Bagu called out as he walked up to the bed, Yelü Qi's consciousness was already hazy.

  "What...what's going on?" Yelü Qi's voice had weakened, "Is...who did it?"

  Ba Ge furrowed his brow, and only when he saw that there was no one around him did he dare to walk forward, almost sticking to his ear, saying the words that Hua Xi Yan had said to him: "In my opinion, it seems that Palace Concubine Huang doesn't need to lie. If Second Prince has something going on, Dong Ling can't shirk this responsibility. And now Dong Ling dares to wash his hands of it, can't not say, is because——"

  "Why?"

  Because Dongling people grasped the evidence of those people's assassination of the Second Prince.

  Yelü Qi didn't have a brain full of mush, and as for Ba Ge's words, if you think about it carefully, there's no logical error. In other words, the thing that made him most uneasy in his heart had finally happened.

  "Are you talking about holy water?"

  Only the holy water of Dayuan, if it was Dayuan that caused trouble in his body, then even if he died, there would still be traces of the holy water left behind. Therefore, Dongling is not afraid of being held accountable by Dayuan and simply lets go.

  Yelü Xiezhen narrowed his eyes: "But how could the Empress of Dongling know about the Holy Water?"

  Alright, let's assume that Lízi Mò had fought with the Dayuan Kingdom before and might have heard about this magical creature. However, the secret of the holy water has always been inaccessible to anyone outside the royal family of the Dayuan Kingdom. In other words, neither Lízi Mò nor Huā Xīyán should know that those who died from being possessed by the holy water would leave behind evidence.

  In that case, if someone hadn't colluded with the Dongling people to inform Li Zimo and his men, then it's likely that no one had colluded with them. Because colluding with the Dongling people to harm this great ambassador of Dayan would bring no benefits to the reputation of the Dongling imperial family, and Li Zimo wouldn't do something so unprofitable. Moreover, Li Zimo is a naturally suspicious person - there isn't an emperor who isn't suspicious - and he wouldn't believe in things that aren't right before his eyes.

  Ba Ge's body shook, and he thought of another thing: "The third princess said that it was possible that she was killed in the palace, but until now, no body has been found. Instead, I sent someone to investigate in the palace, saying that someone seemed to have been eaten by a green monster."

  If Lihua wasn't killed by the Dongling people, then it was the poisonous hands of the Dayuan country that suffered the same fate as him. Yelü Qihu breathed heavily: "Those people are afraid, they're afraid that Lihua will help me do things, help me obtain the throne..."

  "It's possible, Second Prince," Bagu said.

  Yelü Xie laughed palely: "I don't believe it. You say the death of Lihua has nothing to do with Empress Xiao? I know that women are jealous, and she is no exception. No matter how Lihua died, she must have had a hand in it."

  Ba Ge did not dare respond.

  "However, what you said makes sense. It's possible that this illness of mine was indeed caused by someone from my own country. If that's the case, the only way to cure me would be to find..."

  "Does the Second Prince mean to set out immediately and return to the country to find Yu Shui?"

  Only those of the Water Tribe can control holy water.

  "No!" Yelü Qijie shook his head firmly, "If I return to Dayuan with this body, either I'll die on the way or as soon as I get back, I'll be caught and taken to the king's presence for questioning, it's still death. On the other hand, if I rely on Dongling here, the Emperor of Dongling, out of responsibility, wouldn't dare let others come to assassinate me."

  "The illness of the second prince—" Bagu asked, watching as the holy water continued to wreak havoc on his body. He wouldn't be able to hold on for a few more days.

  "Don't be afraid." Yelü Qi's confidence was unwavering. "Since someone can poison me, it means that the person controlling the holy water is in the capital and won't be able to run far. What you need to do is help this king wait for the rabbit to come to him, catch that person, and make them serve this king. This king wants to see who dares to plot against this king's life!"

  Ba Ge nodded.

  In the moonlit hall, after Ba Ge and others left, Hua Xiyuan chatted with Li Jiyao about family matters as if nothing had happened.

  Lin Xuanqi saw that everything was fine here and turned around to leave.

  Li Ji-yao saw him and exclaimed: "I heard that General Lin has taken a wife, is it true or false?"

  Lin Xuanqi turned around, and her cold eyes seemed to glare at her for a moment, just like the big mouthed county princess who didn't please him.

  Hua Yuye saw the situation and shook her head, saying to Li Jiuyao: "There are indeed a few invitations for me to be the matchmaker, which I have kept here."

  "Who wants to ask the empress to be a matchmaker?" Li Jiuyao's appetite was immediately lifted, and she asked with great enthusiasm.

  When it comes to that person, Hua Yuxuan was also slightly surprised when she received the news. However, after thinking about it later, since the Emperor had Lin's family arrested and everyone was intimidated, including those court officials who used to look down on her, they all changed their attitude. For example, Li Daren from the Ministry of Officials. Didn't his wife die in a trap on Nameless Island?

  This Lord Li still doesn't know how his wife died to this day, the only thing he knows is that when his wife went to the imperial family's summer resort, she seemed to have offended the emperor. If it was like that, then the emperor not killing the entire Li family for the mistake his wife made would be a great fortune amidst misfortune.

  Also, this Lord Li is not as loving a husband as Old Master Lin. The Ninth Lady had a reputation for being beautiful, and to say something unpleasant, having a wife who is too beautiful is absolutely not a good thing, because it can even lead to her properly committing adultery with the former emperor, making him wear a green hat and be ridiculed by the officials of the imperial court. With the Ninth Lady's death, this problem has been permanently resolved for him.

  Mr. Li is now most grateful that, precisely because of his wife's death, when Old Man Lin furiously wanted to avenge his own wife and went to the Emperor, he didn't follow him to make trouble, thus avoiding another death.

  The survivors now all know that Li Zimo's methods are ruthless and cruel. In the past, Li Zimo only secretly killed people, such as killing Empress Hu or provoking people to rebel before taking them down, like exterminating the Sun Manor. Now, Li Zimo thinks these methods are too troublesome, so if he wants to kill someone, he'll just kill them, and if he wants to wipe out a family, he'll just do it directly.

  Under the rule of such an emperor, how can people not be panicked? Especially those who have done some bad things to the emperor in the past. Li Zimo's move to destroy the Lin family is truly a case of killing a chicken to scare the monkeys. It has made all the officials in the imperial court anxious and unable to sleep. Until now, everyone is still unclear how Li Zimo was able to take down the Lin family. Logically speaking, Old Master Lin is a clever person who has left himself a way to fight against the emperor, but he was taken down by the emperor overnight, this Li Zimo is too mysterious.

  No matter what, Lord Li felt that the Emperor was becoming increasingly mysterious and unpredictable. As Lízi Mò didn't like flattery, it was hard to curry favor with him, so in order to show loyalty, he could only take the winding path of Huā Xī Yuàn's clever plan to save the country.

  Originally, the master of the imperial palace looked down on her. They thought she was just a seductress and had no other skills. But the emperor has been favoring her for so many years, and after the empress dowager's death, it seems that his favoritism towards her has become even more intense. Everyone who wanted to curse her to step down quickly did not have a good ending. Smarter people should know when to adapt to the situation.

  Mr. Li finally used his own daughter's marriage as a bargaining chip, hoping that his daughter, Li Xiuyan, could secure a suitable marriage through Hua Yexi. Firstly, it would show the respect and admiration of the Li family towards the master of the Moon Chamber, which is equivalent to flattering the emperor's self-esteem and hobbies, a win-win situation. Secondly, Hua Yexi must want to appear capable and kind-hearted, and would not randomly arrange a marriage for her daughter.

  After Li's move, many noble people in the imperial court privately scolded him, saying he had become a dog of the Moon Palace, even selling his own daughter to please his master. However, despite the criticism, everyone also saw the brilliance of Mr. Li's move. Before long, the petitions for Princess Hua Yueyan to grant marriage to their sons or daughters piled up on her desk like snowflakes.

  Li Ji Yao listened to these interesting things as if listening to a joke, and said: "No wonder the queen is so hardworking. You know, brother, he has never been interested in such things."

  How could he possibly have an interest in such things? When he really had an interest, it wasn't about playing matchmaker for adults, but rather calculating how to use his power to turn pairs of men and women into legendary star-crossed lovers, all for the sake of his own gain.

  Men, after all, prioritize benefits, and private relationships between men and women are basically nonsense. Those ministers who did not ask him to grant marriage also counted as smart, knowing his cruel and bloodless temperament.

  Huā Yùyán took a sip of tea, raised her eyes, and saw that Lín Yuèqí had not left. She turned her head back, seemingly interested in watching how she would handle these matters.

  She knew that Lin Muyong had been sent to his mansion as a concubine. She didn't know how he would deal with Lin Muyong. Lin Muyong was also one of the most unfortunate women in the world. Hua Xiyuan knew that once Lin Muyong entered this man's mansion, she would be doomed for life, unable to escape, and would be tortured miserably.

  Lin Muyong deserved it or not, Hua Xiyuan couldn't say. Presumably the emperor finally came up with this method, but it wasn't to torment Lin Muyong, just to make him behave and do things for the imperial court. So Lin Muyong was just a sacrifice in the struggle between the emperor and his ministers. There's nothing to sympathize or pity about. No, as long as you see Lin Muyong's outcome and are yourself caught up in this whirlpool, you can't help but feel chilled to the bone. This is what happens to anyone who mixes with the jianghu world - no one can avoid getting beaten.

  Cough cough.

  Huayu Yan caught a slight cold due to the dry autumn weather and accidentally irritated her throat, coughing a few times.

  Li Ji-yao saw her cough and immediately reached out to pat her back.

  Li Ji-yao was afraid that she would exhaust herself and fall ill, worrying excessively. With so many calculations in her mind, she felt mentally exhausted. Empress Hu's heart condition had been exacerbated by such turmoil. Hua Xi-yan didn't want to think about anything, but if she didn't think, how could she protect herself? She couldn't help but think.

  It's not that Hua Yexi didn't know what kind of person Li Daren was. However, since he could send his own daughter to her as a test subject, it can only be said that Li Daren's feelings for this daughter were just so-so.

  It's also true that daughters are like water splashed out, but sons are the most reliable.

  The Li family has more than one daughter, Lee Siu-yin. If I'm not mistaken, this concubine of Mr. Li's gave birth to two sons for him, and neither of them was adopted by the ninth wife. Now that the ninth wife is dead, Mr. Li wants to promote his concubine to the position of first wife, and let their two sons take over the household. Lee Siu-yin must be married off as soon as possible, like a burden being thrown away. It's likely that Mr. Li's concubine has also been thinking about this move, perhaps it was even her idea for Mr. Li to send Lee Siu-yin to her place.

  He was anxious to marry off his daughter, but didn't want to waste her as a chess piece. He hoped that this marriage would bring some benefits to the Li family and not damage their reputation. However, Li Xiuyan's temper was something he knew all too well - after her mother's death, she had been mistreated by her stepmother and favored by her father's concubine, so it was likely that she harbored resentment towards the Li family. Mr. Li naturally wanted to guard against his daughter's potential revenge, not wanting her future husband's family to help her take revenge on the Li family and make them suffer losses.

  It seems that Li's thoughts can be figured out clearly. That is, Mr. Li has calculated and knows that his daughter must have seen something at the summer resort, or it can be said that the royal family is also afraid that Li Xiuyan will talk too much and reveal some secrets of the royal family. So, it's best to send her to the palace voluntarily and let them handle it.

  What a well-planned chess piece! As expected of the one in charge of human affairs, he's much more formidable than Lin Laoye who only knows how to peep through copper coin holes.

  "Sister-in-law, have some water." Li Ji-yao's heart was racing as she told Liu Ayi to hurry and get a fresh cup of hot water.

  Hua Yu Nian could feel her holding his hand, gripping it tightly, and lowering her head. He could see the pale joints of her bones. In his heart, he knew that since that incident, even this innocent and lively princess had come to realize that only she could be trusted and relied upon. Perhaps not even the eldest princess could have kept Li Ji Yao safe, but only Hua Yu Nian could.

  So what should these people do when she makes a mistake?

  Her eyebrows furrowed deeply. As for her two sons, she wasn't too worried about them. Because she knew he liked these two sons, and after all, they were his own flesh and blood. But as for people like Li Ji Yao, those who could only be used by him, their future fate was uncertain.

  "It's just autumn cough, Young Master doesn't need to worry." Hua Xiuyan took the honey water from Liu Yiniang and drank a mouthful to soothe her throat.

  Lin Xuanqi stood beside her, those icy eyes lightly sweeping across Li Jiuyao's face.

  As the only darling of the Empress Dowager and a relative of the Emperor, Li Jiayao's marriage was actually in high demand. However, since the Emperor had not given an imperial decree, no one dared to come forward to ask for her hand in marriage.

  Regardless of how much people dislike Li Ji Yao's personality, someone like Lin Xuan Qi with a cold heart would also have some considerations for this marriage.

  Hua Yuexuan had already made some calculations in her heart, thinking: "General Lin's mansion only has one concubine, that is absolutely not like a proper household. This Miss Li from the Li family would be quite suitable for General Lin."

  Lin Xuanqi looked at her coldly. The emperor and empress were like dumping garbage, shoving unwanted girls into his mansion one by one.

  "Good things come in pairs, General Lin. Don't you think?" Hua Xiyue's lips curved slightly, as if smiling but not quite.

  Lin Xuanqi cupped her hands: "If I can get the empress's permission to marry, it would be my good fortune."

  Li Jiya blinked her eyes repeatedly, as if she couldn't understand the riddle between them.

  The queen's eyes drooped slightly as she said, "I'm tired, all of you can withdraw."

  When she said that, everyone could only retreat. Lin Xuanqi's big step when walking away, and Li Jiuyao's three glances back with each step, were all seen by her.

  After the guests left, the two little princes came out from behind the screen and accompanied her to play for a while. Seeing that she was tired, the young prince thoughtfully said to take his brother back to Guangyang Hall. Hua Xiuyan waved her hand and allowed them to leave. She lay on the couch, carefully thinking about how to tell him this matter.

  Li Zimo went out early this morning, not to work, but to run a private errand. His father-in-law's birthday is coming up and he claims to want to keep it low-key, so as the emperor, he can't make an appearance to host the celebration for his father-in-law. However, as the son-in-law, he still needs to show some filial piety. He also wants to win her favor. So when he found out that she was going to write two auspicious characters to celebrate her father's birthday, he personally went to find the oldest living longevity star in the capital and asked for the auspicious characters. After getting them, he rushed to the gold shop to supervise the work himself.

  It's finally done after half a day of hard work. The golden ingot made by the goldsmith is finally ready for him to take a look at how it turned out.

  He went out in plain clothes, and neither the old man of longevity nor the owner of the gold shop could recognize him as the emperor. He only knew that he called himself Mr. White, and his attire looked like a rich family's young master, nothing else.

  "Master Bai, if you find anything unsatisfactory, I'll have it remade." The boss tried his best to please him, because he was a generous spender.

  To win over the father-in-law, how can he not be generous. The usually frugal and thrifty Li Zimo, at this critical moment today, for his father-in-law's sake, a thousand taels of silver is nothing.

  However, this folk craftsmanship is definitely no match for the imperial kiln. This thing has been reworked several times, and the emperor with high standards can't help but find it not quite satisfactory.

  The owner and craftsmen of the gold shop were all busy with sweat dripping from their foreheads.

  Li Mo finally let out a long sigh: "Forget it, just leave it like this. Li Shun De, give him the money."

  No way, this is the shop she set up. If it were him, he would directly order his subordinates to do it and would definitely make two of the best couplets for him. But she didn't want that. She just wanted to work hard for her father's couplet like an ordinary person, so as to show her filial piety was true.

  What she said is actually right. Filial piety can't be bought with money. Nobody is perfect, and it's the imperfect things that are real.

  He took the red silk embroidered with auspicious words, carefully wrapped two pieces of lucky gold and put them in a box. Li Zimo planned to personally deliver this birthday gift to his father-in-law's house. So, he said to Li Shunde: "Bring out both young princes, I want to take them to pay their respects."

  Li Shunde nodded and replied yes, then asked if he should also bring out Hua Xiyuan together.

  Li Zimo thought for a moment, and then went to pick her up. When she arrived there, she didn't know if her father-in-law and mother-in-law would scold her. She knew it was hard being a daughter-in-law, and every time she went home, she got scolded by the lady of the house.

  "Let's go and pick up your mother." After some thought, he still wanted to bring her along. Thinking of their family, it would be the first time they were complete when visiting his parents' home.

  By this time, the news of the disturbance in the palace caused by Ba Ge had finally reached the ears of the Emperor.

  Those dark eyes under his knitted eyebrows suddenly flashed with a fierce storm, and he coldly sneered: "Is this Great Yan Country looking to die again?"

  "Your Majesty." Yi Feng carefully responded, "The empress has sent him away. No one in the palace was injured."

  "Hmm. I know, she's letting them go at each other like dogs." With these words, Li Zimo walked to the front of the Jin Pavilion with his hands behind his back, and saw a large perfume shop run by a Duan person diagonally across from him, his eyebrows slightly raised, with a hint of coldness at the tip of his brow.

  Yi Feng and others naturally did not know what he meant by this, but simply followed behind him.

  At this moment, Yu Shuilong was surrounded by Ba Ge and his men in his own small courtyard.

  Bo'er ordered him to rush to the posthouse and rescue Yelü Qi immediately.

  Yu Shui furrowed his brow, but he was thinking about who had leaked his whereabouts to Ba Ge. He heard that Ye Lü Qi had been controlled by the holy water and was slightly surprised. Apart from him, could it be that someone else from the Yu Shui family had come to the capital?

  Save or not save Yelü Qi, in Shui Long's heart he was calculating. Because he had to consider whether Yelü Qi would find out that it was him who killed Lihua and turn around and kill him.

  Ba Ge's heart was burning like fire, and it wasn't easy to get news about Yu Shui Long from his companions in the capital. It turned out that he was investigating internal spies at the post house according to Ye Lu Qi's instructions, but for a while, if the other party didn't make a move, who knows when they would be able to catch the spy. In the end, he finally remembered that Yu Shui Long seemed to have been doing business with people from Dong Ling in the past, making fragrant powder. The Yu family, apart from being officials, also ran their own businesses and accumulated wealth.

  Yu Shuilong learned how he found him here, seemingly without suspecting his purpose for coming to Dongling this time. So, he finally decided to probe Yelü Qi first.

  Following Ba Ge, they arrived at the post house. At first glance, Yu Lu Qi, who had been tortured by illness to the point of being unrecognizable, made Yu Shui's heart tremble. The other party was ruthlessly determined to eliminate Yu Lu Qi. As for who would dare kill the Second Imperial Son, Yu Shui couldn't think of anyone at the moment. After all, the King of Da Yan relied on this second son, who was like a wild bull, to fight and defend the country. Ordinary people wouldn't dare touch Yu Lu Qi without the king's permission.

  This person is either extremely bold or has obtained the king's tacit consent.

  Thinking of this, Yu Shuilong hesitated again.

  Yu Wulong had considered, Yelu Qi had thought of it early, so he said to him: "If you cure this king, on the day when this king can ascend to the throne of the king, your grandfather's position is the position you will sit in the future."

  His grandfather, the Grand Priest Wang's position, was what everyone in the Yu family wanted to get. Yu Shui Long was no exception. So every time there was a struggle for the throne within the imperial family of Da Yan, it would cause the Yu clan to split and become enemies with each other. Before Yu Shui Long arrived, he was hesitating which prince's camp to support, like a big tree that had not yet decided which direction to lean towards.

  Yelü Qi saw him hesitating and made a killing move: "I, the king, appreciate you because only you can use anyone as a chess piece without fear, with great ambitions and strategic victories. No matter what you did in the past or will do in the future, as long as you can help me ascend to the throne, I trust that you will do anything."

  The implication of this statement seems to be an excuse, exempting him from the guilt of killing Lihua.

  Yu Shuilong was somewhat regretful about killing Lihua, but thinking back to her previous actions, he realized that on the other hand, she had also done it for the sake of her brother Yelü Qi. He consoled himself by thinking that he had saved his sister's life in the underworld. Therefore, Yu Shuilong finally agreed to help Yelü Qi get rid of the holy water in his body after some hesitation.

  The method requires about three days. However, upon Water Dragon's slight incantation, the holy water mark appeared as green spots on Yelü Qi's skin. It turned out that Dongling Tianzi and the Empress's guess was not wrong, it was indeed a person from Dayuan who wanted to kill his own people.

  Yelü Xi clenched his fists and closed his eyes: One day, he would kill everyone who dared to think of killing him.

  Having received the emperor's decree, Hua Xiyuan got on a carriage with Liu Gugu's support. The two sons sat in another carriage and headed to the palace together to meet Li Zimo.

  I heard that I'm going to see Grandma and Grandpa, and also celebrate Grandpa's birthday. Xiao MuMu has never seen Grandpa before and doesn't know what he looks like. At first, she listened to the little prince describe him as a kind and amiable old man. Xiao MuMu narrowed her eyes and thought: This old man seems like the Santa Claus that Mother talked about, I should give him gifts.

  Gong Hongwen often gives gifts to his younger grandchildren, all of which are handmade by himself. For example, many of the toys played by the young prince were made by Gong Hongwen himself.

  "I like this grandfather." Little Mu Mu held the woodpecker made by Gong Hongwen that nodded its head on its own, his heart was flying, and he couldn't wait to see the grandfather who looked like Santa Claus.

  The little prince carefully rolled up a longevity character he had written himself, which was to be given to Grandfather as a birthday gift. Thinking that his younger brother seemed not to have prepared anything, he asked his younger brother: "Mumu, what do you plan to do?"

  Xiao Mu Mu slyly narrowed his small eyes: "I've been ready for a long time."

  Miyabi Hirofumi's birthday is actually tomorrow, but the Miyabi family has guests coming over tomorrow. So, Hana Yūgiri and her family can only come early today to celebrate Hirofumi's birthday.

  Suddenly hearing that her daughter and son-in-law had brought the child, Madame Wang was not very pleased in her heart. She thought that she had already told her daughter before to pass on the message to the palace, repeatedly instructing her not to disturb the emperor. This was absolutely a wronged case for Hua Yu Cai. It was her father's birthday, and there was no need for her to remind him; he would definitely remember it.

  It came suddenly, and the Gong family was not prepared at all, which was exactly what the emperor wanted. Seeing that even Gong Xiangyu didn't know about it and wasn't waiting in the Gong house, Li Zimo smiled with satisfaction, turned up his sleeves and walked into the Gong house. A group of people followed him, stepping into the narrow courtyard of the Gong house.

  Madam Wang and Gong Hongwen, with all the old and young of the Gong family, respectfully welcomed the imperial carriage in the courtyard.

  Li Zimo turned around with a hint of his father's scrutiny, glanced at the two little princes: "What gifts did you bring for your grandfather's birthday?"

  Hearing this, Miyabi Hirofumi hastily waved his hand: "No need. The two children are still young."

  Grandpa and grandma Wang doted on their two little great-grandchildren.

  The young prince, as the eldest, should take the lead and step forward first. After kneeling down with both knees on the ground, he respectfully presented a scroll to Gong Hongwen: "Wishing Grandfather a longevity comparable to Mount Nanshan."

  "Your Highness, please get up quickly." Gong Hongwen received the birthday gift handed over by the young prince with both hands in a similarly respectful manner, and at the same time helped the young prince to his feet, personally dusting off the dirt on the young prince's knees. He said from the heart, "Your Highness, don't rush to kneel next time, let someone lay down a cushion first before kneeling."

  The young prince said: "Grandfather, actually I don't have many chances to kneel, occasionally kneeling is a good exercise for the body."

  Miyabi Hirofumi was slightly startled, but he felt that this young master who had grown up since childhood seemed to be different from the serious and dignified appearance of the past, and actually said a few jokes.

  The little prince's handsome eyebrows are no longer as worried and anxious as they used to be, but instead, under the flying (eyebrows), it seems like a sunbeam has been scattered.

  The greatest credit for changing the young prince's mind might not be his own daughter, Hua Xiyan. Gong Hongyu thought to himself as he looked over and saw Xiao Muzi.

  Little Wooden rushed over, suddenly grabbed his two hands, bent down and kissed him on the face, chin, forehead, nose, and even eyes, saying "Wooden wishes Grandpa a long life of one hundred years, to continue spoiling Wooden, to continue making things for Wooden like Santa Claus, and to be with Wooden forever, loving and being loved."

  If it's said that the young prince just knelt down to give Wang Gongwen a blessing, that would be the epitome of filial piety, making everyone who saw it feel deeply moved and almost heartbroken. But now, with Muxi suddenly pulling out this scene, in stark contrast, and considering that almost no one has ever seen such a birthday celebration method before, they could only stare in shock.

  Hua Yu Yan's face changed in an instant, and she only wanted to cover her eyes with her hands.

  Needless to say, Xiao Mu's methods are only something that a daughter who has been to the modern world can teach. If her son's lazy ways were to be traced back to her, wouldn't she lose face? Moreover, she would inevitably be scolded by the Empress Dowager.

  No matter what his wife thought, Wang Hongwen's face was completely red from being kissed by the child, as red as a peach. He looked like he had just been granted a great fortune. So, Wang Hongwen was overjoyed, so happy that he couldn't contain himself. With both hands, he picked up Mu Mu and laughed: "Ah, how can this child be so lovable! Alright, Grandpa will make things for you every day, Grandpa will spend his whole life watching over you."

  One hand holding Mu Mu, the other stroking the clever little head of Xiao Tai Zi, Gong Hongwen was so moved that his eyes were a bit red, and he said to his daughter and son-in-law: "You've taught him well, you've taught him well."

  The heart that had been hanging in the balance finally felt a little more at ease.

  Li Zimo brought her and presented the lucky gold that had just been taken out of the gold shop, while saying some words of blessing.

  Wang Hongwen kept saying "good, good", leading them into the house and insisting that they have a cup of tea before leaving.

  Madam Wang gave her daughter a meaningful glance as she was about to enter the house.

  Huā Yùyán helplessly rubbed her temples and followed her mother to another courtyard.

  As expected, when the emperor was not around, Empress Guo started scolding her: "Didn't I tell you not to speak?"

  "Mother, it's not that I wanted to come, but he himself wanted to come, and brought me and the child along." Huā Xī Yán said. If possible, she didn't want to come with him either, after all, making a big fuss about it, she had originally planned to find a time to secretly send off Fú Jīn by herself. Who knew that he would get the news so quickly, and immediately know where she was sending Fú Jīn, and insist on interfering.

  Thinking of the good fortune in it actually having a share for her brother as well, Hua Xiyue quietly informed Madame Gong: "The good fortune that my brother entrusted me to make."

  "I know that your brother and I have mentioned it before, also to avoid surprising your father with two pieces of good fortune at once." said Madame Gong.

  Generally, it's one piece per person. Giving more is also not good. They are husband and wife, giving one piece together is enough, giving two pieces is also too much.

  "Where's Ge?" Hua Xiyuan entered the house and found Gong Xiangru was not there.

  "Where can your brother go? He's still serving the imperial court," said Madame Wang.

  Huā Yùyán was skeptical of this. They came out of the palace, and her brother was in the Ministry of Punishment, so it's unlikely that he wouldn't have gotten some news. Until now, there has been no movement from Gong Xiangru, which can only mean that Gong Xiangru is not in the Ministry of Punishment, or perhaps he's not on duty.

  Zi Yunyan was lying at home, because her foot wasn't good, she had a fracture in her calf that needed to be taken care of for several months before she could get out of bed and walk. Therefore, every day was boringly spent lying at home.

  What's been giving her a headache is that Chen Youjun, just like before, comes to see her every day. Old Master Qi accompanied Chen Youjun on the first day, but from the second day onwards, he started talking nonsense, completely ignoring him and letting Chen Youjun come and go freely in her boudoir. He himself knew Chen Youjun was coming, so he would either leave the mansion, saying he had to work at the yamen or meet with old friends, in short, not wanting to disturb the young lovers' romance.

  Mr. Qi's magnanimous attitude surprised even Wang Shu, who said that Mr. Qi was as open-minded as a person from the Great Yuan.

  Chen Youjun sat beside her bed, not only taking her pulse and diagnosing her illness but also bringing a medical book, knowing she was interested in medicine, using this topic to get closer to her.

  Can't help but say, Chen Youjun's way of doing things, even when pursuing a woman, is somewhat clever and strategic. Knowing she was resistant to him, he didn't try to force the issue, instead using something she liked as a way to break through.

  Zi Yunyan was lying in bed, feeling bored. The only things she could do to alleviate her boredom were reading or chatting with others. However, chatting wasn't her strong suit, and reading for too long made her tired. But then there was someone who lectured her like a teacher, which surprisingly lifted her spirits a bit.

  Chen Youjun even took some medicinal herbs from his own home and let her see and smell them in order to teach her about medicine.

  The fragrance of herbs refreshed her heart and spleen. Suddenly, she felt a sense of openness and joy, and thought: Did he also plant herbs in the palace?

  Chen Youjun saw her spacing out and grabbed one of her hands, his fingertips touching the center of her palm.

  In that instant, she was startled to the point of quickly withdrawing her hand, her face turned pale by half, and her lips trembled as if ready to issue an order to drive him away.

  Chen Youjun just smiled at her, and in the shallow dimples, a few points of bright spring hope could dispel her worries. He said: "Miss Qi knows my intentions, I don't want to hide it either. If possible, another day, I'll send a matchmaker to the Qi mansion to propose."

  Qī Yún yān xī kǒu qì, shuō: "Chén dàifū de xīnyì mín nǚ wú fú xiāo shòu, hái qǐng Chén dàifū jǐn kuài dǎxiāo zhè huāngdàn de niàntóu."

  Translation:

  Qiyun took a deep breath and said, "The thoughts of Doctor Chen are beyond the luck of ordinary women to enjoy. Please ask Doctor Chen to dispel this absurd idea as soon as possible."

  "Fair maiden, you are a rare find. I, Chen Youjun, have a deep affection for Miss Qi, why is it considered an absurd idea?" Chen Youjun said, his voice laced with tenderness, his gaze at her was also soft and gentle.

  It's clear that he is serious about her and it's a must for him.

  Qī Yún said coldly and harshly: "Since Doctor Chen already knows what Min's intentions are, why must he stubbornly stick to his own views and harm himself?"

  "Does Miss Qi really like that person so much?" Chen Youjun said in a gentle voice, "I know I'm not as good as him. Maybe I can't give Miss Qi wealth and luxury, but I'll definitely take care of Miss Qi for life, make her happy, and won't let her worry. But in my opinion, that person can only make Miss Qi sick and worried, he can't bring happiness to Miss Qi. Such a person, I also don't trust him enough to hand over Miss Qi to him."

  These words undoubtedly hit her soft spot. Who says that falling in love with someone is joyful and happy? If love is built on such anxiety and worry, then she, Qi Yunyan, has truly experienced what it means to love.

  No matter what, she loves him. She likes him so much that she can't even control herself.

  Looking at Chen Youjun, he wasn't a bad person after all. She sincerely wanted to let him go quickly, so she put on a cold face and said: "I want to rest now. Please, Doctor Chen, do as you please."

  Chen Youjun just stared at her pale face, which showed no signs of improvement, and his eyebrows were deeply furrowed with worry. As he walked out of her boudoir, he looked up at the sky and asked Xiao Yaotong, who was following him: "Did Palace Master go to Renxin Zhai today?"

  Xiao Yao Tong replied: "It seems I heard that Gong Da Ren is going to Ren Xin Zhai today."

  Chen Youjun walked out of the Qi Mansion and said to the sedan chair bearer, "Go to Ren Xin Zhai."

  Palace guard, Miyoshi, has been busy lately due to his heavy responsibility of monitoring the epidemic. He often comes to Renxin Temple for inspections. The frequent visits and crowds of onlookers have become a headache for him. So, when he doesn't bring too many people from Tai Hospital with him, like today, he enters through the back door of Renxin Temple to check on the patients inside.

  When Chen Youjun arrived, he learned that he was in the backyard of the building and went straight there.

  Because Gong Xiangyu ordered them to let him be alone for a while to observe the situation, those doctors and medicine boys did not dare to surround him. Gong Xiangyu walked into a shed in the backyard of the mansion, occasionally stopping to take a look at a patient's condition.

  Chen Youjun saw an opportunity and quietly walked to Gong Xiangru's back when no one else noticed. Liu Shu saw it was him and didn't stop him.

  "Sir." Chen Youjun called out softly with great respect.

  Hearing the voice, Gong Xiangru slowly turned around and saw him. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she forced a warm and polite smile onto her lips, asking: "Is there something that Doctor Chen needs to discuss with me?"

  Chen Youjun faced him, and felt that his refined and elegant face was silently forming a sharp and stern expression. He was obviously an official, not just an ordinary doctor, and the distance between them was clear. However, for her sake, Chen Youjun steeled himself and said: "It's like this, sir. Previously, you entrusted me with a patient, and after I examined his pulse, I found that he had a heart disease, and his condition has not improved until now. I wonder if you could go visit him? I'm really afraid of failing to fulfill your entrustment."

  Of course, I knew who he was talking about. The profile of Gong Xiangru suddenly became blurry. Silence filled the space between the two people.