The Rebirth of Space: the Lucky Girl From a Farm Family

Chapter 353 Eccentricity

Lu Chao returned to his home in Qiwan Lane in the north of the city and went straight to his study. He said to Du Bin who was following him: "Go and see if everything is arranged properly? Tell them that they can only succeed and not fail."

Du Bin nodded in agreement, "Yes, little one, let's go right away."

Du Bin turned around and walked to the door, stopped and asked, "Old Master, you haven't eaten yet. Could you please ask someone to bring some food in for the old man?"

Lu Chao thought for a while and said, "Have someone bring you a bowl of noodles. The noodles should be cooked soft and a little soft. The noodles should be small and the soup should be thick. Add some green cabbage leaves and a poached egg."

Du Bin bowed and said, "Okay, I'll take note of it."

Du Bin opened the door and went out.

After Du Bin left, Lu Chao leaned on the recliner, closed his eyes slightly, and went over tomorrow's events in his mind.

The Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony is a good day for the whole world to celebrate in Daxing. On this day, almost the whole city comes out, from the imperial street to the altar, and the streets along the way are crowded with cheering people.

In previous years, as the Duke of Beijing, he rode in a large and comfortable carriage specially prepared for him by the Ministry of Rites, followed by the carriages of several princes, and went to the altar together.

He liked the spacious carriage, half of which was surrounded by windows and curtains made of light gauze. Sitting in the carriage, he could see everything around him clearly without lifting the curtains, and he could also hear people's exclamations, " That’s the British father!”

 He likes to hear people’s cheers and see their envious eyes.

 Besides this, he preferred the attentiveness and thoughtfulness of the Ministry of Rites.

There is a roaring charcoal stove burning in the car, and the cabin is warm.

The table in the car was not only filled with various snacks, but also a purple gold clay pot with the Chinese characters "British Duke" engraved on it. The pot contains his favorite Tieguanyin.

Of course, the jade plates on which various snacks are placed are also engraved with the Chinese characters "British Public".

 He didn't like eating these snacks, and he hardly moved at all on the jade plate.

 But when he saw the neatly arranged jade plates with the Chinese characters "British Male" engraved on them, he felt very happy.

Of course, the one that wins his heart the most is the purple gold clay pot.

Every year during the heaven-sacrifice ceremony, he would receive a purple-gold clay pot.

 In the twenty-fifth year of his reign, he collected a total of twenty-four purple gold sand pots.

Twelve of the twenty-four pots are vividly engraved with the Chinese zodiac. The purple gold sand pot with a tiger engraved on it that he is fond of using now comes from this place.

He was born in the year of Tiger. He received this pot during the Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony when he was forty-eight years old. He has been using this pot to this day.

In addition to the twelve zodiac pots, there are eight engraved with the British Duke's great achievements, and two engraved with his resume.

The year before last, he began to cultivate his moral character and take care of flowers and plants. From the year before last, the purple and gold sand pot given to him by the Ministry of Rites during the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven was the Four Gentlemen.

The officials of the Ministry of Rites said that it was the emperor's order. The flowers the year before last were plum blossoms, and the flowers last year were orchids. If he goes again this year, the Ministry of Rites should prepare bamboo for him, right?

 “Old man, here comes the noodles.”

 The servant came in with cooked noodles, and the sound of his voice interrupted Lu Chao's thoughts.

Lu Chao sat up from the recliner and walked to the table to eat noodles.

Before finishing the bowl of noodles, Du Bin came back.

Lu Chao quickly finished the noodles in the bowl, lowered his head and took two sips of the soup, then put the bowl aside, reached for the handkerchief on the table, wiped his mouth, and asked: "How is it? Is everything arranged?"

Du Bin leaned forward and said, "Go back to the old man, everything has been arranged.

According to the plan, tonight, four people will be arranged to stay at an inn near the princess's mansion, so that they can keep an eye on Princess Yanran's whereabouts.

 Some people dispersed along the road, while the rest waited near Banshixian on Gongchen Road.

This time the half-day leisure on Gongchen Road during the festival is the property of Princess Yanran. If Princess Yanran goes to see the excitement, she must go to this shop, so we will start here.

If the matter is exposed, they will immediately bite the poison and kill themselves. "

Lu Chao nodded, "Okay, thank you for your hard work. Let's go eat quickly."

Du Bin leaned forward and said, "Yes, the little one is in the side room. If the old master has any instructions, just shout and the little one will come over immediately."

Lu Chao waved his hand, "I understand, go ahead."

Du Bin walked to the door and met Lu Dingning who was about to enter the house. He was stunned for a moment. He didn't know when he arrived at the door. Did he listen to what he just said?

Du Bin quickly came to his senses, bowed and said, "Second Master."

Lu Dingning saw Du Bin's flustered expression, feeling very uncomfortable and strange. Lu Dingning looked up at the room and nodded towards Du Bin with a half-smile, "Is father in the study? I came to see him for something."

Du Bin stepped aside and said, "Go back to the second master. The old master is in the study."

 Lü Chao in the room heard Lu Dingning’s voice and raised his voice: “Come in.”

Lu Dingning passed Du Bin and walked into the house. Du Bin followed Lu Dingning back into the house.

When Lu Chao saw Du Bin returning, he said to him, "Go and eat."

Du Bin got Lu Chao's order, bowed and retreated.

Lu Dingning looked at Du Bin's back in a daze. He had an intuition that Du Bin was very nervous about him. Why should he be on guard against him? What were Du Bin and his father plotting?"

Lu Chao looked at Lu Dingning and asked, "What's the matter with you?"

 Seeing this unsatisfactory son, Lu Chao couldn't help but feel agitated, and his questions were extremely impatient!

Lu Dingning came back to his senses and said, "It's not a big deal. I'm just a little short on money. I asked my father for some money."

Lu Dingning stared at Lu Chao, watching the anger welling up in his father's eyes. Just when he thought his father would roar at him, the anger in his father's eyes died down again in an instant.

Lu Chao did not expect that Lu Dingning would be so frank in asking for money, which made him unable to even reprimand him. He just asked: "How much do you want?"

Lu Dingning said: "My father gives me more at a time, so that I don't have to come to my father every day to talk."

Lu Chao opened the desk drawer, took a stack of banknotes and handed it over, "Save some money, life is a steady stream. We have no income now, so we can save when we can, do you understand?"

Lu Dingning promised, "Okay, my son knows."

Lu Chao said: "Take it and go back, I want to rest.

Lu Dingning took the money and left the study, feeling certain that his father was hiding something from him.

In Prince Qi's Mansion, Wei Tian led a man in black into the study, bowed to Prince Qi and said, "Your Majesty, Ah Quan is back."

 King Qi turned around from the window, his eyes fell on A Quan, who was dressed in black, and asked: "How is it? Did you succeed?"

Ah Quan knelt down on one knee, bowed and said, "My lord, I failed to succeed."

"You didn't succeed?" King Qi took a few steps forward, stared at Ah Quan and asked, "One Lu Zixun plus several women and children, and you didn't succeed!"

Ah Quan lowered his head and said, "Yes, in addition to the escorting officers, there are also several secret guards secretly escorting Lu Zixun's family."

King Qi looked at Ah Quan in surprise, knelt down and asked, "You said there were secret guards escorting Lu Zixun's family."

"Yes, there are secret guards escorting us. The skills of those people are not inferior to those of others. They are all very skilled."

"Have you checked clearly? How many secret guards are there? Do you know who they are?"

“Master, I saw four people, they seemed to be from the British government.”

King Qi waved his hand and said: "Okay, you go down first."

　Ah Quan withdrew.

 The King of Qi said to Wei Tian: "After these two days of work, let's check up on this old man Lu Chao."

 Wei Tian bowed down to respond. "Yes, I understand, little one."

"Your Majesty, Master Cheng wants to see you." The chamberlain came in and reported.

 King Qi's heart tightened and he turned his head to look at the hourglass on the cupboard. It was already this hour. What was Li Cheng doing here?

He said: "Please come in."

 The chamberlain retreated. Li Cheng stepped in hurriedly. "Your Majesty!"

"What happened?"

  King Qi and Li Cheng spoke at the same time. Li Cheng said: "I have received a message that Commander Fan of the Royal Forest Army will be personally responsible for tomorrow's ceremony. Also, at noon, the emperor summoned Ruan Jinsong to the palace. Privy Huang resigned, and Ruan Jinsong took over the duties of Privy Huang. ”

 King Qi looked at Li Cheng in astonishment and asked in disbelief: "Ruan Jinsong will be the Privy Councilor?"

Li Cheng nodded, "Yes, the emperor should have had this idea for a long time. In the days since Ruan Jinsong returned to Beijing, he went to the Gyeonggi camp almost every day in the name of his friends.

Meeting friends is just an excuse. Ruan Jinsong’s real purpose is to win over the generals in the Gyeonggi Camp.

I met Jiang Ying in the afternoon. Jiang Ying told me that in addition to the Royal Forest Army, the emperor also deployed people from the Gyeonggi Camp to provide security for tomorrow's Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony.

Your lord, you must not take action tomorrow, otherwise..."

 Li Cheng did not say the next words.

 The King of Qi understood what Li Cheng meant.

King Qi sighed slightly, and after a while, he said: "For the first time in so many years, my father called people from the Gyeonggi Camp to set up defenses. In my father's heart, he is different after all."

Li Cheng stood aside and did not answer the words. He could not answer the words.

 King Qi looked up at Li Cheng and asked, "Did my father know who he was, so he favored him in everything these years?"

Li Cheng shook his head and replied: "I don't know. However, as a blood relative, the emperor can understand if he notices it."

King Qi couldn't calm down, "My father is partial!"

Li Cheng lowered his head and became mute, saying nothing.

 King Qi circled around the room and said angrily: "I have been planning for a long time, so let's just forget it? If you miss tomorrow, when will you have another chance?"

Li Cheng advised: "Your Majesty, we must wait for opportunities and adapt to changes. To achieve success, it depends on the right time, place, and people. Only when all conditions are met can we succeed in one fell swoop. Otherwise, if you make a mistake, you will make mistakes every step of the way."

 King Qi silently circled, and finally, he raised his head and shouted to the door: "Here comes someone."

 Wei Tian opened the door and came in.

 King Qi ordered: "If you pass on the order, tomorrow's plan will be cancelled."

Wei Tian bowed down and retreated.

Li Cheng breathed a heavy sigh of relief, raised his hands and said goodbye: "I'm going back first."

  King Qi waved his hand, "Go ahead!"

Watching Li Cheng exit the room, after a moment, King Qi slapped his hands heavily on the table, frightening Wei Tian who entered the room and trembled.

 “Your Majesty!”

 King Qi looked up at the trembling Wei Tian and said, "Wait for me to wash up."

 Wei Tian hurried forward to serve.

 King Qi said cluelessly: "It's not just my father who is partial, right?"

Wei Tian raised his head and looked at King Qi, and asked confusedly: "Who is the prince talking about? I don't understand."

  King Qi had a sullen face and said nothing.

 Wei Tian felt uneasy and did not dare to ask any more questions. He just lowered his head and served him carefully and attentively.

 On the winter solstice, Huada gives everyone a day off.

Wang Qin asked Hongxia and Chaoyang: "Will you two come with me to watch the fun?"

Hongxia shook her head, "Aunt Wang, please take Chaoyang. She likes the excitement, but I don't like this. There are too many people, and the noise will give me a headache. I will go to Wutong Lane to talk to the second lady."

Seeing that Hongxia was unwilling to go out, Wang Qin did not force her, "Okay, you go and talk to the second lady, and you can bring the elixir that the princess gave to the second lady. Chaoyang, let's go." After Wang Qin gave the order, he turned around Said to Han Yang.

Wang Qin saw Chaoyang wearing a white washed muslin jacket and asked, "Where are your new clothes? Why are you wearing these again?"

Chaoyang blushed and replied: "Wearing new clothes is getting in the way of doing things. Today I am washing myself. I like to wear old clothes and do things. It feels more comfortable."

Wang Qin sighed and said, "You are a first-class girl who follows the princess. Someone else does the washing and washing."

Chaoyang smiled and said, "Isn't the princess not in the mansion today? The servants are also idle, helping Liu Ma and the others with some things."

Wang Qin smiled and said: "You girl is so heart-warming. It won't be a problem if you wear the new clothes more often. There are two sets of new clothes in a month. How many new clothes have you saved? Hurry up and put them on, and then Let’s go see the excitement.”

"Okay, slave, go and change now, Aunt Wang, wait for slave." Chaoyang bowed his knees and responded.

Wang Qin shouted towards Chaoyang's back: "You are the girl of our princess's palace, dress nicely, don't embarrass our princess."

 “I know this!” Chaoyang replied as he walked.

Chaoyang went into the house and changed into a lavender cloud-patterned brocade dress and came out and asked Wang Qin, "Aunt Wang, is this dress appropriate for this slave?"

Wang Qin looked up and down and asked, "Is this the one the princess rewarded you with?"

Chaoyang nodded and said, "Yes, the princess grew up quickly and couldn't wear this clothes before she wore them, so she gave them to her slaves."

Wang Qin nodded with satisfaction: "It looks good. This is Sichuan brocade. It looks great on you. Just wear this and let's set off."

Chaoyang asked: "How should we get there? Walk or take a car? Go to Yujie or somewhere else?"

Wang Qin replied: "It's a day off today, and the princess is not in the palace. We have nothing to do. We simply take the car to Gongchen and watch the excitement for half a day, and have lunch for half a day. We will go shopping in the afternoon. I will treat you today. How about we go to Fanlou for dinner?”

"Okay, this slave is in good hands today. Hongxia, are you going? There is delicious food."

“You go with Aunt Wang, I’ll go to Wutong Lane to talk to the second lady.”

“Then let’s go.” Chaoyang waved to Hongxia and followed Wang Qin to the second gate.

 The two of them got on the bus at the second gate, and Junxin drove off.

The car arrived at the gate and met up with Hua Da, Su Er, Han Shi and others, and the group headed to Gongchen Road.

Hua Dasuer rode in front, and Han Shi rode beside the carriage, chatting with Wang Qin all over the world.

 At the beginning, there were not many pedestrians on the road, but as we walked, there were more and more people.

 Two quarters of an hour later, the carriage stopped.

Wang Qin stuck out his head and asked, "What's going on?"

Han Shi said: "We have reached the back alley that has been busy for half a day. There are many carts selling snacks on the road blocking the road. It would be faster for you to get off the car and walk there."

 (End of this chapter)