Jinghong Tower

Chapter 386 Peach Wood Hairpin
Zhou Cangyue won the battle and Wang Hao's army retreated a hundred miles away.

Zhou Cangyue was overjoyed. After walking around the big tent for a few times, he decided to write a letter to his sister Ran to inform her of the good news.

Ever since he came back from Jinling, he had always wanted to write a letter to Sister Ran, but every time he picked up the pen, he put it down again.

Write about his victory?

But those were just small matters. Sister Ran would probably laugh at him for being childish.

No, he is not the little kid in his previous life, nor is he the black girl in this life. He has grown up and become a man.

Therefore, this letter has been delayed until now.

Today's battle is enough to report the good news to Sister Ran.

Zhou Cangyue wrote eight full pages in a very eloquent manner. He wanted to write more, but there was no more paper.

What a bummer. I'll have to prepare some paper next time.

There is only faith, but I always feel like something is missing.

Sister Ran would always bring him gifts along with her letters.

What should he give to Sister Ran?

Zhou Cangyue thought about it, ran to a nearby village and found an old carpenter.

He was lucky to have found a piece of old peach wood.

From that day on, Bai Gou always saw Zhou Cangyue carving something mysteriously with a knife.

When he wanted to look, Zhou Cangyue covered the thing with his clothes.

Although they were good brothers who had been through thick and thin together, Bai Gou had to admit that Zhou Cangyue had a kind of extra majesty. Therefore, even Bai Gou didn't dare to force himself to see things that Zhou Cangyue didn't want him to see.

However, Zhou Cangyue did not expect that when the gift he had carefully prepared and the letter arrived in Jinling, He Ran was already on her way back to Beijing.

Zhou Cangyue was very upset when he heard the news. How could he forget that Sister Ran said she would return to Beijing after the spring exam.

Spring examination, Spring examination, he was really a rough man. If he had read a few more books, he would have remembered the time of the Spring Examination clearly. But he still didn't know the specific date of the Spring Examination.

For this purpose, Zhou Cangyue invited Zhang Shigong, took out the premium Biluochun that he was reluctant to drink (actually because he didn't understand it), and humbly asked Zhang Shigong for advice. Later, he simply asked Zhang Shigong to give him a one-hour lesson every three days.

This was the first time in his two lifetimes that he felt an urgent desire to learn.

He Ran finally received Zhou Cangyue's letter and gift after she arrived in the capital.

A fast horse had already gone to Beijing to report the news, so when He Ran and his party arrived at Shili Pavilion, they saw a large crowd of people.

Qing Zhuo turned his horse around and came to He Ran, saying, "Master, His Royal Highness Prince Zhao has come to greet you personally."

He Ran nodded slightly. It had been two years since she left Beijing and returned to Beijing.

In the past two years, news from the capital had been delivered to her every few days, and Prince Zhao Zhou Jian had been making more and more small moves.

He Ran was not surprised. She had thought about it since the day she rescued Zhou Jian from the red-light district.

Everyone has greed. When they are hungry, the first thing they desire is to fill their stomach.

When you can fill your stomach, you desire delicious food.

When you have delicious food every day, your greed will turn to your beautiful wife and concubines.

Zhou Jian, on the other hand, was a son of a prostitute named Gou'er, who transformed himself into King Zhao, a descendant of Taizu.

Not to mention a man like Zhou Jian who grew up in the mud, even many generals who have experienced hundreds of battles, once they come to Beijing and sit in high positions, will not be able to resist the temptation of power, wealth and beauty, and will become unrecognizable.

Therefore, before leaving Jinling, He Ran sent a secret order to Jinghong Tower in Zhending.

He secretly ordered Heitu to send Liu Ruyan to the capital.

Liu Ruyan, Zhou Jian’s biological mother, has been “raised” in a small courtyard for many years.

For Zhou Jian, He Ran can let him enjoy a life of glory, or send him back to the red-light district.

Two years is a period of complete transformation for a teenager.

The Zhou Jian in front of him no longer had the youthful and tender character of his youth. Perhaps it was because life in the palace was too comfortable. Zhou Jian's whole body seemed to have been fermented by yeast.

Looking at that round, white face, He Ran was stunned for a moment.

What is this ghost?

Headmaster He has been obsessed with looks for three lifetimes. She chose Zhou Jian back then because, firstly, Zhou Jian had a jade pendant that Zhou Chi had used, and secondly, because Zhou Jian had a pitiful look and had the potential to be a handsome young man.

But now, Zhou Jian, who is only seventeen or eighteen years old, has grown into a big hunk. It is conceivable that within three years, Zhou Jian will become an old man.

But Zhou Jian had to pretend to be in tears and act out the reunion after a long separation.

"Sister, you are back. I was so worried that I couldn't eat. Are you hurt?"

He Ran smiled. What a pitiful person. He couldn't eat but still got as fat as a pig.

After a few pleasantries, He Ran led his men into the city. The people of the capital spontaneously lined the streets to welcome them, and He Ran waved in greeting.

She did not enter the palace, but went straight back to Lao Mofang Hutong.

As soon as I entered the door, Shoumei handed me a letter.

"Boss, this was just delivered this afternoon."

There were only six words on the envelope: "Personally written by Mr. He," without a signature. But when He Ran saw the handwriting on the envelope, she smiled. This was a letter from Hei Mei.

After He Ran received the letter, she weighed it and found it was heavy. Inside the huge letter was a rectangular box.

He Ran was curious, did Zhou Cangyue have a gift for her?
And this time the sealing wax is also very interesting, it is just one word - victory.

He Ran curled the corners of her lips. Did the little black girl win the battle?

As she did every time, she carefully cut off the sealing wax, and sure enough, there was a rectangular wooden box inside.

The box was rough, unpolished, and had wooden splinters, but there was an exquisite little lock on this rough box.

He Ran laughed. This kind of lock that can only protect against gentlemen but not villains is the same whether it is locked or not. However, this little lock is quite cute.

She called Xiaoli and asked her to open the small lock.

Xiaoli pulled a piece of wire from her head and poked it a few times, and the small lock opened.

"Can this lock still be used in the future?" He Ran asked.

Xiaoli smiled and said, "Don't worry, the lock core is intact."

He Ran gave her a thumbs up, and Xiaoli tactfully retreated.

Zhang Jiahui came over excitedly and asked, "Sister Xiaoli, is the boss here?"

Xiaoli hissed, "The boss is busy, Master Zhang, please come over later."

Zhang Jiahui felt distressed: "Alas, the boss has been busy since he came back, and he can't rest for a moment."

After sending Zhang Jiahui away, Xiaoli Dama Jindao stood guard outside the door, waiting for whoever came.

It was a letter from the Beggars' Sect. When the boss received the letter, he seemed calm, but Xiaoli could feel that he was very happy, a happiness that came from the bottom of his heart.

Over the years, the boss has been busy every day. It is rare that Zhou Cangyue can make the boss smile, so let the boss relax.

Xiaoli couldn't help but feel distressed. The boss was too tired. It seemed that everyone had forgotten that the boss was still a young girl.

Inside the house, He Ran did not open the box immediately. She took out the letter and started reading.

As she looked at him, the smile in He Ran's eyes gradually spread and filled her entire eyes.

He Ran had read countless reports of victory, some written by generals themselves, and some written by clerks in the army, but none of them were as vivid and vivid as Zhou Cangyue's. He Ran thought that if there was a day when the world was peaceful and there were no wars to fight, Zhou Cangyue and He Yamin could publish comic strips together.

Alas, Shu is far away, and I don’t know if Zhou Cangyue has seen the latest comic book.

In He Ran's opinion, Zhou Cangyue must have loved reading comics in his previous life, so he must like reading comic strips in this life as well.

No, he likes to watch the Japanese being torn apart by bare hands.

He Ran laughed.

The laughter reached Xiaoli's ears through the wooden door, and Xiaoli smiled with two dimples.

See, that’s what she said, Zhou Cangyue can make the boss happy. Ever since the death of Old Madam Meng, the boss has never laughed so happily again.

He Ran read the eight pages in one breath and laughed for a while before she remembered the wooden box.

She opened the wooden box and saw what was inside.

It turned out to be a box of wooden hairpins.

Yes, a box, squeezed together, reminding He Ran of the box she used to store pencils in her previous life.

I counted them and there were eighteen in total.

These are eighteen peach wood hairpins!
Usually, this kind of wooden hairpin is either engraved with flowers, plants, cloud patterns, and the word "Fu", or is completely smooth and has nothing on it.

But the eighteen hairpins in front of him were carved into eighteen kinds of weapons!

The carving is not delicate and the polishing is not smooth enough, but it looks simple and cute.

He Ran played with them one by one. It seemed that she would have to play with them more often in the future. Others played with strings, but she played with hairpins. It seemed that she had quite a personality.

Zhou Cangyue did not mention these peach wood hairpins in the letter, not a single word, but He Ran's sixth sense told her that these hairpins were made by Zhou Cangyue.

It was carved by him himself, and the box, which could easily prick your hand with wooden splinters if you weren't careful, was also made by Zhou Cangyue himself.

He Ran recalled the dress Zhou Cangyue gave her many years ago. That dress was sewn by Zhou Cangyue.

I have to admit that Zhou Cangyue has a pair of skillful hands.

He Ran also felt that it was inappropriate to let Zhou Cangyue edit the comic strip. He should be asked to help Dong Jinzhen. Maybe he could even carve a flower on the cannon.

He Ran laughed again. Zhou Cangyue was quite useful.

However, Zhou Cangyue gave her a gift, so she had to return the favor.

When it comes to gift-giving, what should I give?
In fact, as early as when Zhou Cangyue left Jinling, He Ran had decided to give him a few Benlei Cannons, but she had to wait for Dong Jinzhen's construction period.

But now He Ran wanted to give Zhou Cangyue something, not a cannon or a weapon, but something for Zhou Cangyue himself.

He Ran thought of the things she had given Zhou Cangyue before. They were either food or daily necessities, mainly practical. But what Zhou Cangyue gave her was different. There were pens made of feathers, clothes, and these hairpins.

Oh, and there's that sketchbook.

When He Ran thought of the sketchbook, she knew what to give.

When she has time, she will draw a picture by herself and give it to him as a return gift.

But, I have to wait until she is free.

The next day, He Ran entered the palace and summoned officials from various departments in the Wenzheng Hall. She was busy for a whole day and was about to leave the palace to visit Lao Guanghuai and his wife at Lao's house. However, as soon as she walked out of the Wenzheng Hall, she saw Zhou Jian walking towards her, swaying his fat body with a big fan in his hand, which looked out of place.

"Sister, I have asked the imperial kitchen to prepare a banquet. I want to express my longing for you. I hope you will come and show us your presence."

He Ran nodded: "Okay."

She looked behind Zhou Jian and saw a strange face serving him.

Yesterday at Shiliting, Zhou Jian was surrounded by unfamiliar faces.

He Ran asked, "Why don't I see Chunwang?"

Zhou Jian's eyes turned red: "Sister, the winter before last, Chunwang went to play on the ice and fell into the water."

He choked up and couldn't continue.

He Ran nodded. The winter two years ago?

Very good, you killed Chunwang as soon as I left.

What's the matter with falling into the water? This trick can only fool fools.

He Ran looked at the boy behind Zhou Jian and narrowed her eyes: "What's your name?"

The young man was terrified and knelt down quickly: "To reply to the master, I am a humble man with a great talent."

He Ran narrowed her eyes: "Gao Cai? Didn't you purify yourself?"

Gao Cai was stunned. What did the boss mean? Did he want to castrate him?

“No.” Gao Cai said timidly.

He Ran: "Go find Yuan Ying and ask him to find someone to cleanse you."

Gao Cai was surprised. No, why did they want to castrate him as soon as they met?

He looked at Zhou Jian pleadingly, wanting Zhou Jian to plead for him.

Zhou Jian hurriedly said: "But Chunwang didn't purify himself before."

He Ran still said in a calm tone: "Chunwang is Chunwang, he is him, it's just a small matter, you don't need to interfere."

Zhou Jian swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue and clenched his hands into fists in his sleeves.

Seeing him standing still, He Ran smiled: "Didn't you say you would treat me to a meal and tell me how much you miss me? Why, do you want to reschedule?"

Zhou Jian seemed to have just woken up from a dream and said hurriedly, "No, no, no need to reschedule. No need to reschedule."

After saying that, he led the way in front, leading He Ran to the harem.

Gao Cai also wanted to follow, but after taking a few steps, his body was lifted up from behind. He turned around and saw that it was Liuxia and Jinbo who were beside He Ran.

"Don't you know where Eunuch Yuan is? Don't worry, we'll take you there."

Gao Cai, whose real name is Feng Cai, is Feng Cairen's cousin.

Long before He Ran went south, Chunwang and Lao Hu had reported to He Ran that Zhou Jian had sent Jinwang away many times and had met Feng Cairen by chance.

It's just that He Ran was about to go south at that time and had no time to pay attention to him, and at that time, Zhou Jian also behaved well and docilely.

Just three months after He Ran left Beijing, Zhou Jian planned to push Chunwang into the lake in the Imperial Garden.

There was only a thin layer of ice on the lake at that time. Before that, Zhou Jian had tested Chunwang and found out that Chunwang could not swim.

Unfortunately, Zhou Jian underestimated Chunwang.

Back then, he insisted on having Chunwang serve him because Chunwang was bought on the spot and he thought that Chunwang was at least not arranged for him by He Ran.

But later, he gradually felt that Chunwang and he were not of the same mind. Even though Chunwang was bought back then, Chunwang still joined He Ran later.

So he came up with this idea to kill Chunwang.

But Zhou Jian didn't know that Chunwang was indeed bought, but he was picked out by Li Jinxiu when he was five years old, and he received the same training as Liuxia and the others.

Chunwang can not only swim, he can also hold his breath in the water for a long time.

Zhou Jian pushed Chunwang into the lake and dared not stay there. When he saw that Chunwang did not show up, he ran away.

Chunwang is not dead and has always been in Jinghong Tower.

The hairpin of the Eighteen Weapons. I seem to have used this prop before, but I can't remember which book it was in. I'm sure you can't remember it either. So let's just treat it as the first time this prop appeared, haha~