twin moon

Chapter 28: The Third Act

Guihongyuan is a rare quiet world in King Ye's palace.There is a clear and clean pool in the garden. At the turn of spring and summer, swan geese returning from Qinmengze to the north often settle here, which is why it got its name.

It was the summer solstice, and the tung flowers that were in full bloom in the garden in the early morning almost fell clean in one day, leaving a thick layer on the ground, as if a pink snow had just fallen.The sky was getting dark, and the surroundings were lonely, but a series of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded in the corridor in front of the garden.It was Qi Ziyin in plain clothes who was pushing the door away, looking in a hurry, as if planning to leave the palace.

"Why did the young master run so fast when he saw me? It's almost night, where are you going?"

Wan Shi hurriedly followed behind him, muttering in his mouth.

"Ning Yue just sent me a message from Brother Mu, that Jiang Yan was seriously injured in the martial arts competition at the upper school field of Baishaying in the afternoon. He is my friend, I have to go and see!"

The boy in white originally planned to sneak out, but the guard dozing off in the side room was very vigilant, and the slight sound he made on the wooden floor immediately attracted the other's attention.In desperation, he had no choice but to stop, turned around and explained to the other party.

"Young master Ziyin, are you stealing my parrot again?" Wan Shi quickly caught up with the boy, but his tone of reproach became even stronger.

"Brother Shitou, why are you so stingy? I also buy half of Brother Mu's food." After a few perfunctory words, Qi Ziyin wanted to take the opportunity to slip away again, but was grabbed by the other party. back swing:
"Young master, wait a minute. The one-month confinement imposed by the king has just passed halfway. If you slip out of the palace in such a grandiose way, who can bear the blame of the king?"

"Isn't there brother Shitou who sits in the palace for me? If someone comes looking for it, just say that I have already fallen asleep. Besides, it's so late, who else will think of me when they have nothing to do?"

Qi Ziyin twitched the hem of his clothes as he spoke, and started to run forward again.

However, when Wan Shi thought of the scolding he received when he was accused by Mr. Gou in front of the king last time, he couldn't help but feel numb from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and shook his head vigorously:

"No, you can't go anywhere today, young master."

"If you want me to stay, Brother Stone has to catch up first!"

The white-clothed boy laughed mischievously, and his steps didn't stop for a moment, and he ran further in the blink of an eye.He rarely had any playmates in Guihong Garden on weekdays, and would often intentionally provoke Wan Shi to chase him for fun.

So, the two chased each other in the intricate corridors one after the other.But just when Qi Ziyin managed to get rid of Wan Shi and passed a corner, he bumped into the same figure head-on, and fell to the ground on his back with a cry of surprise.

"Oh, Yin'er, what are you doing in such a hurry?" The man on the opposite side seemed to have been hit hard, and said with his hands on his chest.

Qi Ziyin rubbed his painful buttocks and got up, but saw that the person he bumped into was short and fat, with dark brown spots all over his face. It was his uncle Jinghaihou Qi Shouyu.

The young man immediately put away the smile on his face, and showed an expression that he planned to do something bad but was caught by someone: "Uncle Wang, why are you free to come back to Hongyuan today?"

"Why, can't this king come and see his own nephew?"

As Jinghaihou said, he reached out and touched the top of Qi Ziyin's head.This move made the child slightly frowned in disgust, but he didn't dodge.

All along, the boy in white didn't like his uncle very much.Every time Qi Shouyu enters the palace, he always brings back many new gadgets that the boat master collected when he went out to sea, but without exception, these things are all sent to his elder brother Qi Zixiu's East Palace, and only those things that are rejected by the prince will be sent again. Come to Guihongyuan.

It stands to reason that Marquis Jinghai's loyalty to Lord Ye has long been a good story in the court and the public, so it is understandable to get closer to the eldest son.Here, Qi Ziyin, who was born as a concubine, didn't feel anything wrong at all.But as he got older, he felt more and more in his heart that the other party's actions were not purely for the sake of building a good relationship with the future prince, but for other purposes.

However, neither the father nor the eldest brother made any comments on this matter, and the young man is not allowed to speculate wildly.

Until now, Qi Ziyin saw that Uncle Wang was followed by an attendant, holding a beautifully crafted red lacquer gift box in his hand.He only thought it was something that his elder brother didn't want, and immediately shook his head and declined:
"Uncle Wang, please take the gift back. My return to Hongyuan is too small to fit it."

"Tsk, this king specially brought you something good, how can you take it back?"

Jinghaihou was noncommittal, turned around and opened the top cover of the gift box.In an instant, a dazzling white light appeared in the dim corridor, as if the stars in the sky fell into the world.And this light is emitted from the box.

"What is this?"

Qi Ziyin had never even heard of the gift from the other party.He couldn't help but believe that this thing was specially brought for him, and suddenly he became very interested.

"This is a bright moon pearl that can only be picked in the warm southern waters. The King ordered someone to bring it back from the Luoying Islands in the south of Dun Kingdom, and give it to my nephew to play with. What do you think of it?"

"That's good, but—"

"But what, take it for you. I have something to ask you today, may I have a place to talk?" Jinghaihou smiled, and forced the gift box into the young man's arms.

For a moment, Qi Ziyin didn't know how to reject the other party's kindness, but he wanted to get rid of Uncle Wang quickly so that he could sneak out of the palace, so he half pushed and half accepted the moon bead.

"Oh, young master, you can give me a good meal to find it!"

The voice of the bodyguard suddenly sounded behind him, so scared that Qi Ziyin almost dropped the wooden box in his hand to the ground.The night was dark, and after the lid of the box was closed, Wan Shi could only see the back of the boy in plain clothes from a distance, and only when he ran closer did he realize that there were other people standing beside him.

"This subordinate has seen Lord Hou."

The young guards were a little surprised that the prince, who was busy with everything, didn't inform him in advance, and why he chose to visit after sunset.In a panic, he hurriedly knelt down on one knee and saluted.

"Wan Shi, if you didn't follow Young Master Ziyin after nightfall, how could you allow him to run around in the huge Guihong Garden by himself?" Jinghaihou stood in the shadows, unable to distinguish between happiness and anger.

"Subordinate, this subordinate went to the Black Bamboo Hall to pick up books for the young master, but he forgot that he was waiting for me here. The Master Tai Tuo said earlier in the morning that he would be tested tonight, and the young master wanted to take advantage of the time when he was free. Look through the classics more..."

"Yin'er is going to have an exam tonight? That's really a coincidence. I don't know what kind of evil this old man Tai Tu has fallen into. Ever since I was studying, I like to take exams at night, just like the lamps and candles in the Black Bamboo Hall. Not counting the general expenses in the palace."

A faint trace of displeasure flashed across Jinghaihou's face, but it was fleeting, "Then it's better for me to come back another day, Yin'er, you should go to the Black Bamboo Hall as soon as possible."

"This—it's unnecessary. Just now, when my subordinates went to pick up the books, they just heard a message from Master Taifu, saying that he is a little tired tonight, and the exam will be taken another day."

Wan Shi was afraid that the other party would accompany him to send the young master to Black Bamboo Hall, so he shook his head hastily and lied again.

Hearing that the guard smoothed things over for him, Qi Ziyin couldn't help but nodded his head quietly to express his gratitude.

"That's the best. Yin'er and I have something to say, you all step back first."

Marquis Jinghai waved his wide sleeves and signaled Wan Shi and his attendants to retreat to a distance. After confirming that there was no one else around, he asked:
"Nephew, I want to ask you, today there was a black-eyed kid in the Baisha camp, who almost defeated the captain in the Benhai camp, and made my boat master feel ashamed. I heard that his name seems to be Jiang Yan. Is it the same? Nephew, do you also have contacts?"

Apart from Wan Shi, the young man has never mentioned the matter of getting acquainted with Jiang Yan and Ning Yue in the market a few days ago.Hearing the other party's question, he only said that Jiang Yan invited Uncle Wang to give him a message, and his expression immediately became tense:
"Uncle Wang, did you come from the Baisha camp? Could it be that Jiang Yan was seriously injured? Where is he now? What's the situation?"

"That is to say, you two really know each other?"

Jinghaihou's complexion changed slightly, and he comforted his nephew, "Nephew, don't worry, some skin injuries are unavoidable in school competitions. But this king is very interested, what is the origin of this black-eyed boy? ?”

"Why did Uncle Wang suddenly care about his nephew's friends?"

Qi Ziyin couldn't figure out what the other party wanted, but he had a vague feeling that the Marquis of Jinghai came here for some other purpose, so he couldn't help but get on guard, "I——I'm not familiar with him, I just met him once. It’s just fate. At that time, my nephew thought he was a good person, so I wanted to make a new friend.”

"Unfamiliar?" Although Jinghaihou was still smiling, his eyes seemed to disbelieve the words of the plain-clothed boy.

"Uncle Wang, these days I have been confined by my father in Guihong Garden, and I am not allowed to go anywhere except Black Bamboo Hall, let alone leave the palace. How can I get to know someone who has just entered the city? ?”

Jing Haihou, whose face was full of brown spots, looked at the boy in front of him, and didn't say anything more.After a long time, the suspicion in his eyes finally dissipated, but the smile on his face became even thicker:
"My nephew is right. However, I would like to remind you kindly that you are the young master of my country Ye. Now that refugees are everywhere, don't get too close to strangers who have just entered the city, so as not to cause unnecessary trouble. Trouble."

"Trouble? Isn't Uncle Wang serious? Jiang Yan - he seems like a good guy -" Qi Ziyin squinted his eyes and glanced at the person in front of him.

"You know people, you know your face, you don't know your heart. But I heard that a few days ago, there was a black-eyed boy on Zitong Street who caused quite a commotion with a red-haired girl, and even Chi Lingwei couldn't get it live."

Hearing this, the doubts in Qi Ziyin's heart became more intense.He didn't understand why Uncle Wang would pay attention to such a trivial matter in the streets.Besides, Xiang Baili should be responsible for the forbidden army.But he was afraid that he would slip up if he continued to argue, so he had to follow the other party's meaning and say:

"Yes...my nephew knows..."

Jinghaihou didn't seem to intend to continue asking, nodded his head slightly, and reached out to touch the top of the child's head:
"That's good. If you learn the details of the black-eyed kid in the future, please send Wan Shi to inform the king. After all, there are mixed fish and dragons among the sailors. As the warlord, the king must serve the country. Responsible. You are also a descendant of my Qi family, and you must never forget your identity, do you know that?..."

Qi Shouyu eloquently explained the truth to his nephew, and then called Wan Shi to escort the young master back to his room to rest.As soon as the boy in white left, the attendants waiting in the distance immediately came forward and asked in a low voice:
"Master Hou, young master, did he just admit that he was the one who spent a lot of money on Zitong Street to quell the incident for Jiang Yan?"

"There is no need to admit it, the king knows it must be him. Yin'er can tell without hesitation that Jiang Yan entered the city only a few days ago, so she must have met the two children on the day they entered the city. According to eyewitnesses, There was indeed a fellow Jiang Yan who was about the same age as that girl in Zitong Street that day. And our young master prefers to wear white clothes..."

Jinghaihou gently stroked the sparse beard on his chin, and after thinking for a while, he ordered in a low voice:

"From now on, more people will be placed in Guihong Garden, and they will keep an eye on my nephew's every word and action, as well as all his dealings with that black-eyed boy, and report back to this king at any time. Remember, this Don't let anyone notice the matter, no matter Wan Shi, Gou Qinghong, including the person above the main hall, the same is true..."

The night became darker and darker.And the figures of Jinghaihou and his attendants, who were whispering, also quietly hid in the shadow of the corridor, and they were never seen again.

　Thank you for your attention to "Twin Moons", and hope that the wheat grown by the little raccoon can meet your appetite.You can pay attention to the official account of the same name~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)