Du Yu lowered his head and said, "I stirred up a hornet's nest and got stung by a bee."
It turned out that he had followed Zhenshu all the way to Liu Family Village yesterday, but Zhenshu's few words had left him disheartened. Fearing that staying any longer would only further annoy her, he slowly made his way to the market alone. He had intended to find an inn to rest for the day and then return to Liu Family Village to stay with Zhenshu the next day. However, the only inn in the market had been booked entirely by Yu Yichen, who prohibited anyone from entering or leaving.
He wasn't stupid; he suspected that Yu Yichen had also come for Zhenshu, and then he remembered the rumors in the capital that Zhenshu had once said she wanted to marry Yu Yichen. After thinking it over, he realized that apart from not being as beautiful as Yu Yichen, he was in no way inferior to him. So, in order to make Zhenshu fall in love with him again, he decided to work on his appearance.
Although the inn was occupied by Yu Yichen, this was still a market town, and many families had spare kang beds (heated brick beds) to accommodate passing travelers. Du Yu found a place to stay and asked the woman there for a pair of scissors to trim his beard. After trimming it clean, he slept, only to find that when he woke up and looked in the woman's bronze mirror, his beard had grown considerably longer. He decided, with a heavy heart, to pluck it all out, hoping it would give him skin as smooth as Yu Yichen's. So, enduring the pain, he began plucking his beard hair by hair in front of the mirror.
After shaving his beard, he still found his face rough and unkempt, so he went to ask the woman for some face cream. The woman was in her thirties, past the age of caring about her appearance, and the only thing she had at home was a box of hand cream, which she lent him a small amount of. He carefully applied the cream to his face and hands, hoping that his skin would be smoother the next day, and then fell asleep.
The next morning, he woke up full of joy but looked in the bronze mirror, only to be immediately shocked and horrified. He hadn't felt anything when he first plucked his beard, but after falling asleep, the marks had become visible, swollen as if stung by bees. His face was also covered in grease that was difficult to clean. Fearing that seeing Zhenshu like this would only make her dislike him more, he was heartbroken and desperate, so he curled up on the empty kang (heated brick bed) and sighed deeply. Because the window against the wall of the kang faced the street, he heard the commotion outside and saw Yu Yichen pulling Zhenshu out of the inn. He then jumped out, grabbed a dagger from somewhere, and rushed to help Yu Yichen.
After the fight was over, he realized that he hadn't washed the grime off his face, and he was too scared to look up.
After all, he was his subordinate, and had just saved his life. To show his concern, Yu Yichen asked, "Did you finish your business?"
Du Yu slumped his shoulders, shrugged, and shook his head, saying, "No."
Yu Yichen frowned, and saw him quickly look up and glance at Zhenshu before lowering his head and wailing, "My wife ran away with someone!"
Zhen Shu had clearly made a movement just now, which Yu Yichen quickly caught in his eyes; it seemed to be a throat-slitting gesture. Seeing Du Yu like this would normally make most people feel somewhat saddened, but Zhen Shu was different. She remained seated on her horse, devoid of joy or sorrow, holding a jade ruyi in her arms.
Yu Yichen turned to Zhenshu and asked, "Were you frightened?"
Zhen Shu shook her head, handed the jade ruyi to Yu Yichen, dismounted, and returned to the inn.
Du Yu looked closely and saw that Zhen Shu's legs were bare when she dismounted, and the large, royal blue robe she wore was the same one Yu Yichen had worn when he left the capital yesterday. Her hair was loose, and a large expanse of smooth neck was revealed through the wide, round collar, with a pair of pointed breasts bobbing as she walked. Clearly, she wore nothing but this robe. Seeing this, and then looking at Yu Yichen, a crippled man, who had actually taken his wife to spend the night in the inn, while he himself was curled up on the opposite kang (heated brick bed) stroking his beard, Du Yu felt even more heartbroken and simply squatted down, burying his face in his hands and crying bitterly.
☆、104|Chapter 104
Zhenshu went upstairs and saw that her inner bodice and undergarment were still on the washroom door, and she took them out one by one and put them on. Her outer short jacket and gauze skirt were pinned to the ground by the long arrows, and she had to work hard to remove them. However, they were full of holes and it was clear that she could not wear them.
Seeing this, she still wore the royal blue robe over her clothes, pulling the belt up from her waist. Yu Yichen came up, took the belt from her, and fastened it for her, asking softly, "Why didn't you run just now?"
Zhenshu turned around and saw that he also looked tired, so she leaned against him and sighed, "I'm afraid they'll kill you, so I don't dare to leave."
Yu Yichen wrapped his arms around her waist and said, "Even if they want to kill me, there's nothing you can do. You might as well run away quickly to save yourself."
Zhenshu laughed and said, "Actually, I wanted to jump off my horse and fight them to the death. I didn't want them to kill you, or at least not in front of me. But then I thought, if I jumped off, you might be distracted while looking after me, and you might die even faster because of it. I wish I could... I wish I could be like Du Yu and sweep them away to save you."
What she didn't say aloud was: If you die, or are about to die, I will rush to fight you, and even if I can't kill a single person, I will do everything in my power to get to your side, protect you, and not let them insult you.
Yu Yichen placed the jade ruyi back on the table and then smiled, saying, "My little shopkeeper is no ordinary woman."
An ordinary woman would probably have screamed and collapsed in fear at the sight of a stray arrow. But she was different. Not only could she find her way to get dressed, but she could also take her jade ruyi with her when she went out, intending to use it to kill the enemy.
She was a woman born with a chivalrous spirit, which is why he fell in love with her.
The whereabouts of those Tartars are unknown, but they still roam the area. Yu Yichen sent men to the capital to summon officials from Yingtian Prefecture and the Censorate to thoroughly investigate the matter, but Zhenshu certainly could not return to Liu Family Village. Those Tartars had seen her; if she went back, it would only endanger Liu Wensi and Zhenyuan. Seeing this, Zhenshu wrote a letter and asked Yu Yichen to find a subordinate she didn't recognize to deliver it. She then rode back to the capital with Yu Yichen on the same horse.
Du Yu followed behind on his skinny horse, the one he used to patrol the streets of Yingtian Prefecture. He saw Zhen Shu and Yu Yichen riding together in the distance, sometimes embracing and whispering to each other. He felt a deep sorrow in his heart, cursing Yu Yichen as a castrated eunuch who deserved a terrible death. He thought to himself, "That guy doesn't even have any clothes on him. Does he only touch my wife when he's with her?"
Thinking about the word "touch," his thoughts drifted back to Zhen Shu's smooth thighs when she dismounted. Compared to three years ago, she had grown taller, her breasts were fuller, and her legs were white and smooth. He wondered what it would feel like to touch them.
Although Zhenshu rode alongside Yu Yichen, she couldn't help but turn back to glance at Du Yu, who was following far behind. Earlier at the market, when Yu Yichen asked Du Yu if things were done, she was afraid he would reveal their past relationship, so she glared at Du Yu from horseback and slit her throat.
Fortunately, Du Yu didn't dare to say it aloud.
After all this chaos, she was wearing Yu Yichen's clothes and ran out of the inn with him. Du Yu would probably give up if he saw her.
It was late evening when they arrived in the capital, under a bright moon and sparse stars. Upon reaching the East Market, Zhenshu dismounted and refused further escort from Yu Yichen. They remained silent for a moment, and after parting, Zhenshu went alone to the mounting shop. Exhausted from the day, she walked with difficulty, and when she reached the shop, she leaned against a pillar, completely drained, and stood there blankly.
"Young shopkeeper, it's been a long time!" someone greeted her from across the room.
Zhen Shu saw that the homeless old man she hadn't seen in a long time was sitting cross-legged on the ground. She walked over and asked, "Old man, where have you been these days? I haven't seen you in a long time."
The old man said, “Your place is sheltered from the wind and away from the street, so it was a good place to rest. But a few days ago, some people dressed in black came and tried to stake out the area, so they drove me away. I saw them leave these past two days, so I quietly moved back here.”
Zhenshu suddenly remembered that when she returned after asking Zhenxiu for the undergarment, Zhenyu's men hadn't yet come to keep watch. Presumably, the old man was still staying here then. She reached into her hand, took out a handful of copper coins, and put them into the old man's rice bowl before asking, "Once, our mounting shop closed a little late. It was about two months after I first gave you some food. Did you see anything that day, old man?"
The old man looked around and said, "Young shopkeeper, it was precisely because I wanted to tell you this that I risked coming here to wait for you."
He lowered his voice and said, “That day, some customers did come to pick up goods. They were dressed in nice, bright clothes, and left after they finished. Later, another person came. I couldn’t hear him clearly from here, but that person got into an argument with your father. Later, your father even came to the door to grab him, but he failed and the man got away. I was afraid of getting into trouble, so I also rolled up my blanket and ran away. After that, someone started keeping watch at your door, so I didn’t dare to come anymore.”
Zhen Shuxin's heart was in her throat, and she asked again, "What did that person look like? Could you describe him, old man?"
The old man said, "Actually, he often walks around your backyard, but he rarely comes to the front."
Zhenshu had already guessed who it was, and angrily clenched her fists, asking, "Is it a young man this tall, with fair skin?"
The old man said, "That's right. He and your wife do visit each other quite often."
That's how it happened. That day, a big customer came and ordered some calligraphy and paintings, so Song Anrong left the shop open and waited for him. After delivering the goods, he had some silver notes in his hand. Zhang Rui, who was probably already waiting for an opportunity, went into the shop and chatted with Song Anrong. While Song Anrong was distracted, Zhang Rui knocked him unconscious with a heavy object, took the silver notes, and tried to leave. However, Song Anrong chased after him, and they struggled against the door. Finally, Song Anrong collapsed and lost consciousness, and Zhang Rui escaped.
No wonder Song Anrong was fine after moving to the Song residence. But when Zhang Rui entered, he immediately glared and hissed. He wanted to accuse the murderer, but he couldn't speak and died just like that.
Zhenshu was so angry that she gritted her teeth and got up to rush towards Yingtian Prefecture, intending to tear Zhang Rui to shreds and kill him with her own hands. She walked quickly alone until she left the East Market, when she suddenly realized that the streets were probably under curfew and she couldn't leave. The streets were deserted, and filled with regret and hatred, she squatted down at the foot of the street and burst into tears.
"Wife!" It was Du Yu's voice. He squatted down beside her and took out a dirty handkerchief from his pocket, intending to hand it to Zhenshu.
Zhenshu looked up, grabbed Du Yu's arm, and asked, "Are you working in Yingtian Prefecture?"
Du Yu nodded, then shook his head and said, "I was transferred to the Inspectorate yesterday."
Zhen Shu asked, "Could you possibly call it 'Opening the Ward'?"
Du Yu touched his body and thankfully found that he still had the goldfish pouch with him. He nodded and said, "Yes."
Zhen Shu looked around and saw that Du Yu was wearing a sword. She drew it out and said, "Go, go and call the ward for me."
Du Yu accompanied her to the street below, where they shouted loudly. The night watchman, having seen his gold fish-shaped pouch, recognized him as a deputy inspector from the Censorate, and several men released them from the street. Du Yu saw Zhen Shu walking ahead, holding a gleaming sword, and jogged up to catch up, asking, "Was your father murdered?"
With tears streaming down her face, Zhen Shu nodded and said, "Yes, that guy is currently imprisoned in the Yingtian Prefecture prison."
Du Yu was secretly delighted, but also felt guilty for being so happy about the death of someone else's father. But now that Yu Yichen was not around, it was the perfect opportunity for him to show off his skills in front of the beauty. So he led the way and said, "Since he has already been arrested and thrown into jail, we can't let him hear the midnight bell. Come on, I'll take you there."
The two stormed to the gate of Yingtian Prefecture. When the yamen runners saw that it was Du Yu, who had been promoted, they all bowed and let them pass, and accompanied them to the prison behind the gate.
Zhang Rui waited in vain for Su to send someone to rescue him, but at least he had been moved to the first floor. Moreover, thanks to the care of the Prefect Wang, his private room now had bedding, and the food was much better than before. So now he could eat and sleep well, and was just waiting for Su to send someone to rescue him.
When Zhenshu arrived at the prison gate, she saw that it was locked and Zhang Rui was still fast asleep inside. Enraged, she chopped at the door and shouted, "Zhang Rui, you come here!"
Zhang Rui, still half asleep, saw Zhen Shu arrive and quickly jumped out of bed, smiling broadly as she greeted her, "Second Sister, what brings you here?"
Zhen Shu brandished her sword and lunged forward, but in her extreme anger and having never wielded a sword before, she lost her aim and only managed to stab Zhang Rui in the arm. Seeing a hole in his arm from which blood was already seeping, Zhang Rui quickly covered it and backed away, saying, "We're siblings, what are you doing?"
Zhenshu continued to thrust her sword in, shouting, "Give me back my father's life!"
Zhang Rui then realized that his robbery of the money had been exposed, and he still argued, "The money was given to me by my father willingly. I didn't touch it. He only got a stroke because he accidentally fell down."
Zhen Shu gritted her teeth in anger. Seeing Du Yu bring the guards to unlock the door, she stood panting and waited. Once the guards opened the lock, they flung open the door and rushed in, about to stab Zhang Rui with their swords. Du Yu quickly stepped forward and snatched the sword away, saying, "This thing has too much blood energy. Don't move it anymore. Just use your hands to vent your anger a couple of times."
He saw that prisoners from other cells were already surrounding the door, banging on it and making a fuss. The guard also came over to stop them, and shouted, "Go back to sleep, all of you!"
Knowing his crimes were exposed and he feared execution, Zhang Rui seized the opportunity when Du Yu turned away to restrain the other prisoners and tried to rush out. Du Yu reached out, grabbed Zhang Rui by the hair like a chick, lifted him high above his head, and threw him heavily to the ground. He then stomped on Zhang Rui, breaking one of his joints, before leaving the cell. He closed the cell door behind him and pointed at the prisoners who were breaking the locks and causing trouble, asking, "Anyone else want to cause trouble?"
Seeing that Du Yu was tall and strong, and could grab an adult man as easily as a chick, these people were all terrified and quietly rolled back to their beds, pretending to be dead. The guards also brought in many more guards, completely surrounding the area, with spears pointed everywhere, establishing a state of emergency. Zhen Shu saw Zhang Rui lying on the ground pretending to be dead, lifted his robe and stomped on him several times, asking, "Have you no conscience? You dog-like thing! Our family raised you, supported you, and even let you take the imperial examinations, and you actually killed my father!"
Zhang Rui still tried to defend himself, saying, "If my sister had been willing to help me find a good job like she did with Tong Qisheng, why would I have had to rob me?"
Seeing that he was still stubbornly unrepentant, Zhenshu spat and said, "No wonder your eldest and second brothers don't want you. You heartless bastard, today is your death day."
She couldn't find anything to kill Zhang Rui, and after searching the entire prison without success, she started kicking Zhang Rui's back again, cursing incessantly. Du Yu, seeing that she had vented her anger, came in and pulled Zhen Shu aside, saying, "There's no need to dirty your hands for such a useless person. I'll have these guards take care of him for you in a bit, okay?"
Zhen Shu was furious and couldn't hold back. She even stretched out her foot to kick Zhang Rui. Du Yu saw that she was also angry and knew that she had a fiery temper. He picked her up and carried her on his shoulder, and walked out. He instructed the guard, "Find two guards to beat him to death. Just say that he intended to escape from prison."
The guard agreed and personally escorted Du Yu out of the cell before returning to the prison. He pointed to two guards and said, "That is the newly appointed Deputy Inspector General of the Censorate, the son of the Protector-General. I'm giving you a chance to prove yourselves. Go now."
After hearing this, the two guards bowed in thanks to the prison guard, went into the cell, dragged Zhang Rui away, and left a trail of blood all the way to the back.
Du Yu carried Zhen Shu out of the prison twice. He thought to himself that it was almost midnight and she must be exhausted after running around all day. He decided to take her to his cell to rest for the night before returning to the East Market. So he carried her to his cell.
Zhenshu finally came to her senses and turned around, saying, "Du Yu, put me down quickly."
Du Yu chuckled and said, "We're almost there, just wait a little longer."
Upon reaching the door of the inspector's office, he was filled with excitement and joy. He kicked the door open and put down the document, only to hear two sweet voices inside calling out, "Congratulations on your promotion, Inspector!"
☆、105|Chapter 105
Du Yu's mind went blank for a moment. He and Zhen Shu both looked into the room and saw two scantily clad women sitting on the edge of his small bed. The room was brightly lit and had a table of food and wine, with a strong, pungent incense burning.
Zhen Shu was so angry that she almost fainted, but when she saw the two women in the room, who were almost naked, she couldn't help but laugh. She pointed at Du Yu and said, "So you've been promoted. Now you probably don't need to trick women into bed anymore. Your subordinates will bring you women."
Du Yu was speechless with anger. He recalled that when he left home yesterday morning, the Prefect Wang had asked him if he would be back that night. He knew that the bastard had set it up to please him. He was both angry and wronged. He grabbed Zhen Shu's hand and said, "My wife, I swear to God, since we separated, I have not touched a single woman for the past three years in mourning for you. It's true."
As he was about to raise his hand to swear, he suddenly remembered that night in the small hut, when he had just raised his hand to swear when he was struck by lightning with a loud bang. He was so frightened that he withdrew his hand behind his back and said, "Everything I said is the truth."
Zhenshu relaxed at this moment, went into the room, picked a chair and sat down, and then called the two girls over and said, "I haven't eaten all day, I'm afraid you're also hungry while waiting for him, let's eat together."
These two were originally courtesans from a brothel. The Prefect Wang had paid them some money to come and do business with Du Yu, hoping to curry favor with him. They had heard he was a young general and a newly appointed governor. As is often the case with brothel madams who love money and young ladies who love good looks, they were eager to serve handsome young men and were therefore quite excited. However, to their surprise, the governor had brought his own wife with him. The two women felt somewhat embarrassed but dared not disobey, and sat down on the chairs.
One of the bolder ones, holding a wine cup, trembling as he presented the letter to the Empress Dowager: "We servants have come under orders, unaware that our mistress is here. We are deeply ashamed."
Seeing that the table was laden with plump chickens and ducks, but a bit greasy because they were cold, Zhenshu picked out some vegetables to eat and declined the drinks, saying, "I never drink alcohol. If you want to drink, then drink as much as you like. I'll leave after I finish eating."
He tapped the bowl again and asked, "Is there any rice?"
Du Yu, who was standing at the door, looked around for rice after hearing this. The prostitute smiled and said, "Rice is not served at this kind of meal. Please have some pastries to tide you over, Madam."
Zhenshu grabbed another piece of pastry and swallowed it, then shoveled down several mouthfuls of food before grabbing the teapot and chugging it down before bowing and saying, "Gentlemen, I must take my leave now. Please don't stand on ceremony, enjoy your meal."
After saying that, he pushed open the door of the office and strode out.
After leaving Yingtian Prefecture and turning the corner, she patted her chest, panting heavily, and then stood there stunned, tears streaming down her face. Du Yu followed her out and stood behind her, wanting to explain what had just happened, but knowing that she was probably still thinking about her father, who had been killed by Zhang Rui, rather than the prostitute in the brothel, he continued to walk slowly behind her.
The moon was high in the sky, and there wasn't a single pedestrian on the street. The two walked slowly, one after the other. Suddenly, Zhenshu stopped and turned around, saying, "Thank you for today."
Du Yu quickly waved his hand and said, "It's nothing, I was just asked to do this job."
Zhen Shu said, "No, it wasn't. It was at the market. If it weren't for you, Yu Yichen would probably have been killed by them today."
They were originally on opposing sides. Yu Yichen colluded with foreign barbarians, and now that they were being besieged by them, he still stepped forward to save them, which can be considered quite righteous.
Du Yu didn't want Zhen Shu to know that he did it to reassure her, so he waved his hand and said, "He is my superior, saving him is my duty."
Zhenshu pressed her hand to her chest and said, "You saw it today too, the clothes I'm wearing are his. I don't want to marry him, and I know he's a bad person, but I can't marry you either."
Du Yu didn't know how to explain the difference between Yu Yichen and him. After racking his brains for a while, he finally said, "We've been through that, you understand. He's different from other men. He can't have children with you or have sex with you, do you understand?"
Zhenshu was somewhat angered by his words, turned around and walked away quickly, saying, "I understand, I understand completely. But I will never marry you again. You swore before that if you lied to me, you would be struck by lightning, and I also said that if you lied to me again, I would never see you again. In the end, you still lied to me, so..."