Late afternoon is one of the most beautiful moments in summer. The grass by the side has already started to make a sound, with short and long calls, the breeze blows, the rice fields make a soft rustling sound, the air is fresh and cool, riding towards the sunset at a leisurely pace, it's really a very comfortable thing.

  She glanced sideways and saw Jiang Changyang riding slowly with the reins in hand, his bright blue robe with a missing sleeve, his pure black horse, standing out particularly under the sunset glow, against the dark blue evening sky, beside the emerald green rice fields, giving off an inexplicable sense of harmony.

  She didn't know that he also looked good in bright colors. In Peony's impression, he seemed to have never worn such bright colors before, either gray or black, or else green, those dull colors hadn't made him lose his luster, on the contrary, they had set off his temperament even more. People can be divided into three types: one type is that no matter what kind of clothes they wear, it's only the clothes that are seen, not the person; another type is that people rely on their clothes, and if they dress well, they naturally look better; there is also a third type, which is that no matter what they wear, clothes are just an accompaniment. In Peony's opinion, Jiang Changyang clearly belonged to the latter category. At this point, she was extremely curious about this person's identity.

  Pan Rong's good friend, a guest of the Shangshu Mansion, dared to make a match with the Junzhu, and was deeply favored by the King of Fen. At this moment, he also got along with the steward of the Ningwang Mansion, had a fine house near the Furong Garden, and had an estate here. His horse riding, knife skills, and ball skills were all exquisite. Such an outstanding person, yet enthusiastic, if he were a younger brother of a powerful family, he should be very famous. However, people like Duan Furen didn't even know who he was, not to mention asking him about his identity. Unfortunately, she couldn't ask him about his identity.

  "Peony cleared his throat and opened the conversation: 'I'm always causing you trouble, it's really embarrassing. I won't say thank you again, but if there's anything I can help with, please don't hesitate.'"

  "Don't worry, if there's a need, I won't be polite." Jiang Changyang smiled slightly and glanced at Peony - she was wearing an orange-red hu dress today, her waist still as slender as before, although she had darkened a bit compared to the last time they played polo, but looked much healthier and more vibrant. Her mental state was also completely different from before. At this moment, she was lively and full of vitality, almost like two completely different people compared to Liu's fragile noblewoman who seemed to be blown down by the wind. Indeed, a wealthy and aristocratic family is a place that slowly turns living people into dead ones.

  Peony smiled and then cooled down. This was helpless, as the two were not familiar with each other and didn't have much common topics to talk about. He didn't speak much, and Peony wasn't a talkative person either, so she wouldn't try to make small talk to get close to him.

  The group walked silently for about the time it took to burn an incense stick before Jiang Changyang broke the silence: "How did you feel after taking that headache medicine last time?"

  "Ah," Peony replied vaguely, "It's been okay, my headache hasn't recurred."

  Chiang Chang-yang said, "That's good. In the past, my mother also had a headache problem, and when it acted up, she couldn't do anything. Although this prescription isn't the best, it was carefully prepared after much thought, and now she only uses this one. She hasn't had an attack in a long time. Since taking it has been effective, I'll have someone send some more over later."

  The peony never took that medicine, she was pretending to be ill that day and had no habit of taking medicine casually. She was also afraid of taking those black pills, how could she take that medicine? When she heard him say that someone would send it over again, she hurriedly said: "No need, the last time they sent some, there's still a lot left."

  Jiang Changyang felt that her phrase "good, good" was like a child's, and he couldn't help but smile: "Whether it's placed on the left or right, it's just idle, so it's better to give it to someone who can use it. Don't decline, if you feel uneasy, you can pay for the medicine."

  The peony's face turned red and she couldn't help but say: "Actually, I was faking it when I got sick last time."

  Since it was a fake illness, and he didn't actually get sick later on, then naturally he hadn't taken the medicine. Jiang Changyang was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "Forget it, since that's how it is, let's just consider it settled. After all, it's just medicine, not something good."

  Peony saw him and didn't think much of it, let out a soft sigh, and smiled: "But if I get sick again, I'll have to try that medicine for sure."

  Yu He muttered softly behind her: "I've never seen anyone say they want to get sick themselves."

  Peony turned her head and smiled at Rain Lotus: "Who would say that getting sick is just getting sick?" She wanted to get it, if it weren't for Jiang Changyang and others following behind her, Rain Lotus would have first made a "tsk" sound and then said two sentences of "no taboos".

  Yu He still looked unhappy: "Even if it's true, you shouldn't say it casually."

  "Right, hopefully there won't be a chance to taste that medicine."

  Jiang Changyang smiled and said, "Although it's said that way, if you really want to try what the medicine tastes like, you can get some to taste. In the future, when speaking of it, you'll at least know more about its flavor than others."

  Everyone couldn't help but smile, and Peony didn't expect him to joke around too. He also smiled and said: "It's hard to decline your kindness, so I'll definitely try it when I get back. Next time if we meet again, you ask me how the medicine you sent last time tasted - was it bitter, sweet or sour? I'll have to answer at least two of those."

  With this joke, the atmosphere between the two groups became much more harmonious. Peony took the opportunity to ask about the few peonies he had, and whether they had found a suitable gardener. Jiang Changyang said: "A friend recommended someone who came over and took care of them very well. The variety of peony you wanted last time, I asked two days ago, it seems to be ready soon. In two days, I will have someone send it over. Should it be sent directly to the mansion or to the villa?"

  "Look, wherever is convenient for you, there are people on both sides."

  "Presumably you want to plant it in this garden? My place often has people coming to the villa, next time I'll have someone deliver it directly to you."

  As they spoke, the city gate was already in sight. Two riders were galloping towards them from a distance. Wu called out to Jiang Changyang softly, and Jiang Changyang turned his head to look at Peony: "You don't have to worry about the river course anymore. If anyone else comes looking for trouble, just push it onto me."

  Although Peony didn't intend to do so, he thought that Jiang was also kind-hearted, so he didn't say much and just bid him farewell. Jiang Changyang clasped his fists together, swung his whip in the air, and soon merged with the two riders who had rushed forward, but instead of hurrying away, they stood still and conversed in hushed tones for a moment before proceeding. Before leaving, the two riders deliberately turned their heads to glance at Peony and the others.

  Yu He smiled and said: "As I said, this Mr. Jiang is really a kind-hearted person. With his help, that matter will be much simpler."

  Those two men who came to pick up Jiang Changyang didn't have that kind of yudao at their waist, but rather a horizontal knife. Their sitting posture was also slightly different from ordinary men, more like soldiers. Peony brought her gaze back and said indifferently: "Let's hurry up, after taking a bath, we can just make it in time for dinner."

  He Zhizhong listened to Peony's account of the events, remained silent for a moment, and had already thought of a plan in his mind. Instead of speaking directly, he asked Peony, "What do you plan to do?"

  "I think this matter should be reported to the Ning Wang Fu first. Although Jiang Changyang is helping us, his situation is different from ours and he dares to stand out because he has something to rely on, but we don't. Since they are targeting me intentionally, they will bypass him and find other excuses to trouble me. Therefore, this matter must be solved thoroughly. With many powerful people around, if it's not handled properly this time, even if I manage to build the garden with great difficulty, I'm afraid I still won't be able to keep it and will end up with nothing but a futile effort."

  He Zhizhong nodded in agreement: "Then what do you think we should do?"

  "Let's first send someone to inquire about the identity of that steward Deng in the Ning Wang Fu, what kind of position he holds and what his intentions are. Then we'll figure out a way to pass this matter on to the person in charge. Not by reporting it, but by saying that I wasn't thorough enough and didn't give prior notice, so I'm going to apologize and offer gifts. But this matter may not be able to avoid involving my maternal uncle's family."

  Mrs. Cen stopped what she was doing, looked up and stared at herself sternly. Peony hastily apologized with a smile: "In the past, they have always been helping us, and they are in that position. Although we can also solve this matter through other means, I am afraid that they will misunderstand that we are deliberately avoiding them, going behind their backs to ask others for help, and wanting to break off our relationship with them, which would only make things worse. Besides, I mentioned my cousin-in-law in front of that person today, so I'm also involved."

  Mrs. Cen's lips moved, but she didn't express any opposition. He Zhizhong said with interest: "What if the person in charge wasn't acting on his own accord, but was instructed by someone above him, and the goal was to target your land and house? After all, times have changed, and the unlucky reputation of that land and house is gone. The surrounding area is worth a lot of money, and there are many people who want it. You need to know that, from an emotional and rational perspective, your uncle will certainly help with this matter, but he is still just the chief historian of the Wang Mansion, and is still a person of the Wang Mansion. If someone's intention is to think about the interests of the Wang Mansion, even if he wants to help you with this matter, it may be limited and difficult, and there are some things that he can't say to Ning Wang."

  That's natural. Just like everyone says that a secretary is the leader's confidant, but if someone wants to use the secretary's relatives' interests to curry favor with the leader, wouldn't it be difficult for the secretary to directly appeal to the leader? Peony had already considered this and smiled: "If it's really like that, I naturally won't make things difficult for him. I'll just go find someone else who can talk to Ning Wang, one person won't work, there's another, there will always be someone who can get things done. As for the truth of the matter, who to ask for help, and how to proceed, it's all up to you, Table Uncle, to advise. As long as I grasp the situation, he probably won't make things difficult either."

  He Zhizhong deliberately made things difficult for her: "One step back, even if he still refuses to help you, or if he happens to be absent at that time, and the matter is urgent, what will you do? Who are you going to look for?"

  "Can't just let my estate be occupied for nothing. I'll swallow my pride and seek out all possible people who can help, such as Madame Bai, Madame Dou, and if not, I'll go find Princess Kangcheng. Even if the gatekeeper doesn't allow me in, I'll wait outside until she comes out. These are things that can be done when there's still a chance to resolve it peacefully. If none of these methods work, then I'll go to the yamen and strike the drum to plead for justice!"

  He Zhizhong pressed on: "What if you beat the drum to proclaim your grievances, but still can't solve the problem? In any case, you must let go of this manor. What will you do then?" That is to say, this manor is what Ning Wang wants!

  "Whatever, I'll just give it to him. As long as I'm still alive, I have a chance to make a comeback and get what I want. I can repay kindness with kindness and revenge with revenge. But if I die, then I truly lose everything. It's all just a few sighs and snickers anyway."

  "Good!" He Zhizhong slapped the table and laughed: "Since that's the case, you can do this thing according to your own idea! Don't delay, go to find your uncle tomorrow to tell him about it."

  Peony didn't expect that the result of her confrontation with her father would be like this, he wouldn't take action himself and instead wanted her to do it. But asking her to beg Li Yuan... She thought for half a day before a vague image of Li Yuan appeared in her mind, seemingly a thin, middle-aged man who always wore a smile on his face but had sharp eyes.

  If it were before, it would be fine. Although she had never seen him since coming here, it was no big deal to ask her to see him alone. But now that he and Mrs. Cui are both on guard against her, they are afraid that she will have a private affair with Li Yi. If she goes to the Li's house to find him, Mrs. Cui might give her a look of disdain, or say something insinuating, making herself uncomfortable and others uncomfortable too. If she intercepts him halfway, who knows what people would think, still not comfortable. Either way is not good, Peony naturally wanted to retreat, looking pitifully at Mrs. Xun.

  Madam Cen looked at her seriously: "Don't go looking for Li Wei!"

  Peony sat in He Zhizhong and Qian's room, grasping the hem of her clothes and refusing to leave. He Zhizhong sat beside her, sipping tea and looking at the account book, smiling and admiring his daughter's stubbornness with great relish.

  Madam Cen couldn't bear it anymore and said: "In this situation, you'd better accompany her for a trip."

  He Zhizhong finally looked at Peony and said with a smile: "Just now, you said that you wanted to thicken your skin and ask others for help. Why did you retreat as soon as you came? Is it difficult to see your own relatives than outsiders? Even if there is really a misunderstanding, what's wrong with that? You stand upright, what are you afraid of? Now we can rely on each other, if not, you still have to take this step. When people are forced to desperation, they know that dignity is not as important as survival. Of course, the dignity that should be had cannot be lost." He also had a sentence in his heart, if others have prejudices against you, and you avoid them, isn't it more likely to confirm their prejudices? If it were him, he would show his good side in front of others. But thinking of Peony's situation, it's not something that can change the impression for a long time, so he didn't say it out loud.

  Peony heard the joke and immediately went over to hug He Zhizhong's arm, saying: "Dad, good dad, everything starts with difficulty. This time you'd better accompany me, next time I'll go by myself. I'm really not familiar with my cousin, you ask me to intercept him, if he gives me a cold face, as a daughter, I would be embarrassed."

  He Zhizhong gently stroked his daughter's upturned nose: "You, this time I will naturally accompany you. But next time you really have to rely on yourself."

  In the Ning Wang Fu, after all the preparations for the burial objects of the queen were completed, Li Yuan finally had a chance to catch his breath. Due to the long period of not resting properly, his legs and feet were sore, he couldn't stand or walk, and his mouth was also blistered from heat and cracked with blood. He looked extremely tired and disheveled. His subordinates advised him to go home and rest for a night, but he didn't dare leave, instead, he walked to the outside of Ning Wang's study and quietly asked the attendant An Ning: "How is the young master's food and drink today? Has he taken his medicine?"

  An Ning had yet to respond when a low and powerful voice came from the study: "Yuan Chu, come in."

  Li Yuan busied himself dusting off his robes, then walked in at a moderate pace, just as he was about to pay his respects. The Ning King, sitting behind the desk, raised his bloodshot eyes and looked him up and down before saying, "No need for formalities, come take a look at these few things."

  Li Yuan took two steps forward, stopped and looked up to see that in front of the Ning King was placed a golden basket with a precious pearl and a pair of gold-mounted red jade armlets inside, which were exactly what Li Yi had bought. Next to it was another crystal clear, exquisitely carved pillow made from a whole piece of aquamarine. These were all rare treasures, and after a moment's thought, he understood why the Ning King had called him here, but didn't say anything, simply saying: "These are all precious things that can't be found everywhere."

  The king fell silent for a moment, then said: "I plan to bury these things with the queen together. This pair of gold-mounted red jade armlets was given by the empress, and this crystal pillow was also given by my father at the family banquet last year. They were all her favorite things when she was alive."

  Li Yuan thought to himself, the other day the Emperor just issued a decree prohibiting lavish burials. The Ning Wang was young and lost his wife, it's understandable that he would want to give his queen a grand burial, but there's no need to use the imperial gift for the burial, is there? However, he didn't say this directly, instead he kept praising Qin Fei's virtues, saying she was wise, humble, filial and considerate. The Ning Wang's eyes reddened again as he listened, and after a while, he sighed and said: "Forget it, Ah Qin cares about me and only wishes me well, how can I do something that would make her unhappy? Just have someone put it away. You mentioned the other day that the thousand-flavor dishes prepared for the queen's funeral were too extravagant, you can reduce them as you see fit, but don't take away the things she was used to having by her side."

  Li Yuansong let out a breath and responded with a hint of excitement. The Ning King glanced at him, but saw that his cheeks had sunk in, his eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep, the skin under his eyes was dark, his mouth had large blisters, and his lips were cracked and bleeding. He could see that he was exhausted. So he said warmly: "You've been working hard these past few days, there's nothing else for now, you can go back tonight and get a good rest."

  Li Yuandao: "Your Highness, you must take care of your body."

  The king of Ning waved his hand wearily, indicating for him to withdraw.

  Li Yuan dragged his exhausted self out of the Ning Wang Fu, just about to mount his horse, when he suddenly saw a figure flying towards him like a bird. Next, He Zhizhong, with his tall and chubby build, came over with a big smile on his face: "Big Brother-in-law, I know you're tired, look at how you're walking all shaky, this is specially prepared for you, come on."

  Li Yuan's eyes scanned the surroundings and soon spotted a man holding a horse, quietly watching his peony. He hesitated for a moment before getting on the horseback, smiling: "Still, brother-in-law knows how to care about big uncle. What, bringing the kid out for some fresh air?"

  He Zhong got on his horse and followed him, smiling: "She's busy to the point of no return, where does she have the leisure to come out and relax? It's just that her garden is in big trouble, and she came to ask for your help. She didn't dare delay you for too long, let's walk and talk."

  Ying left the Wangfu gate, Peony hurried forward to greet her and ask about her well-being. Li Yuan discreetly took a glance at her and smiled: "You look much better than before. Speak, what's on your mind?"

  Peony saw his attitude was still quite amiable, and he busily poured out the story of what had happened. Li Yuan stroked his beard, narrowed his eyes and said: "I understand, tomorrow evening I'll give you an answer."

  He Zhizhong took the opportunity to say: "Big Uncle, do you know who Jiang Changyang is? He has helped Dan Niang several times, and we are very grateful in our hearts."

  Li Yuan glanced at He Shi's father and daughter, saw Peony looking at him with a pair of clear black and white eyes, curiously waiting for his answer, and relaxed a little, smiled slightly: "He seems to have a kinship with Zhu Guogong. Specifically what kind of kinship, others are not clear. But I think it won't be someone who doesn't matter."

  When it comes to Zhu Guogong, a famous general of this dynasty, I'm afraid no one in the capital doesn't know him. He was born into a declining noble family and joined the army at a young age. At 18, he single-handedly beheaded over 20 enemies, which made his name known far and wide. Afterwards, he went through many battles big and small, each time fully displaying his bravery, wisdom, and strategic thinking. With his contributions to the throne, he is humble and calm in nature, earning the trust and respect of the Emperor. If Jiang Changyang is a close relative of his, it's no wonder that he dares to oppose Qinghua and others.

  He Zhizhong didn't ask any more questions and changed the subject to something lighter. After leaving An Yi Fang, he instructed the rickshaw driver to take good care of Li Yuan on his way home, and then took the peony to Dong Shi Si Lang's spice shop.