"These two bundles are mine."
"Who can prove it?"
“I can explain everything that’s inside clearly,” An Ruochen said confidently.
"I can too." Long Da's blunt remark shut her up. He actually, actually peeked into the girl's baggage, which contained her personal clothing.
An Ruochen blushed: "All the clothes inside are mine."
"That makes things easier. We can ask Master An to check. If they are all your clothes, then both bundles are yours."
An Ruochen froze, speechless. Making her father acknowledge her would be cutting off her path. An Ruochen bit her lip, weighing the pros and cons. Right now, escaping was more important than taking her baggage.
She turned around, put the bundle back, gritted her teeth to suppress her sadness, and whispered, "I'll return the bundle to the general, is that alright?"
But that didn't work. Long Daodao said, "Those who steal in the army should perform labor to atone for their sins."
An Ruochen panicked and pleaded in a low voice, "General, I am just a weak woman, please don't make things difficult for me."
Long Da ignored her pitiful appearance and said, "Those who are confined to the camp for labor service are not allowed to return home. The young lady has committed a serious mistake, and I cannot be lenient with her. Otherwise, how can I control thousands of soldiers? I'm afraid Master An will have to postpone Miss An's wedding."
An Ruochen's heart pounded. Everyone in Zhonglan City knew about her marriage, so it wasn't surprising that General Long knew as well. But he said her wedding would be postponed? Meaning she could only marry after completing her labor service?
An Ruochen suddenly lunged at Long Da, grabbing his sleeve and pleading urgently, "General, General, I was wrong! I intended to steal your bundle, and I truly deserve to die. I am willing to accept punishment. I can do everything: washing clothes, cooking, grinding ink, writing, mending clothes, cleaning the house—I can do it all! General, General, please punish me by making me stay and do chores!"
As she spoke, she looked up, trying to see Long Da's expression. But Long Da's face remained expressionless. An Ruochen couldn't read his mind, so she frowned, bit her lip, and scrunched up her face.
Then she clearly saw that the general was very arrogant, raising one eyebrow.
That day, Miss An was detained by General Long.
Later, as he kept fastening them, he accidentally ended up fastening them for the rest of his life!
Author's Note: That's all for Long Da's side story for now. Hope you enjoyed it.
Also, I need to take a break. Yesterday, my editor informed me that the Vietnamese rights to "Hey, Don't Mess Around" have been sold. I have a compulsion to revise my writing, and I hope to take this opportunity to correct any parts of the online version that aren't quite right. Coincidentally, I haven't gotten over my writer's block on "Three Marriages" yet, so I want to revise "Hey, Don't Mess Around" first, as a way to clear my head. So, for the next week, I'll mainly focus on revising my writing. If I figure out the plot of "Three Marriages," I'll continue writing.
Please forgive me, and thank you all for your continued support. I will work hard and be back soon.
56☆、A sense of déjà vu arises, and doubts suddenly arise.
For Bao'er's sake, Long Er went to the palace that day to request an audience with the Emperor.
The emperor was delighted to see him and set out a chessboard to play a few rounds with him.
Long Er hated the zither the most. Because everyone in the country loved it except him, he simply couldn't appreciate it. His second least favorite instrument was chess. Actually, he was quite skilled at chess, but every time he played with the emperor, the emperor would always ask him to "spend money for the country" in the end.
Although Long Er made a lot of money thanks to the emperor's favor, having to take the money out of his pocket felt like being stabbed in the back, making him feel uncomfortable.
Over time, Long Er developed a headache whenever he saw the chessboard, and felt even more pain in his liver whenever he thought of his money.
This time, however, the Emperor wasn't after Long Er's money; he was more interested in the gossip surrounding Long Er's marriage. He asked several questions in a row: How did they meet? How did they get engaged? How did you fall for a blind girl?
Long Er had a close relationship with the Emperor, and they spoke freely in private. He said, "I am handsome and talented, so it is common for women to fall in love with me."
Long Er's boasting made the Emperor burst out laughing: "That is indeed common, but it is not common for you to agree to marry her. You do not know that your delay in marriage has made several ministers concerned. They have come to me privately to ask me to help sound out your intentions or arrange a marriage."
Long Er, with smoke rising from his head, said, "Thank you for your kind words, sirs."
The Emperor laughed heartily: "You can't blame them. Taking you as their son-in-law is like adding another treasury to their household. With your business connections and personal networks, those officials certainly see you as a piece of easy prey."
"Your Majesty, those officials and that piece of fat meat are all your subjects. Is it appropriate for you to say that?"
"I also think that the fat piece of meat should not be left to rot for too long, otherwise the infighting will disturb the minds of the ministers, which would be bad."
"Your Majesty flatters me."
"I am seriously considering that if you do not marry soon, I should arrange a marriage for you this year. Those who are eyeing you covetously are always nagging me, and it is also annoying me."
"Your Majesty isn't annoyed by the constant nagging, but rather by seeing me living a carefree life without having to marry, isn't that what bothers you?"
"Hmph, you're quite perceptive. You advise me to marry this woman and that woman to consolidate my power and establish my authority, yet you yourself refuse to serve as an official, preferring to earn a pittance and live a carefree life outside. I find that displeasing no matter how I look at it."
“Your Majesty, what are you saying? How could a commoner like me advise Your Majesty on taking concubines and other women? It is clearly Your Majesty who is very happy with his new marriage. He also spends the meager money I earn quite easily. Now you’re complaining about me?”
The Emperor glared at him sideways: "I had no choice in the matter. Do you think having more concubines would make me happy? None of them are pleasant people, they're all quite boring. If I could be like you, able to choose whether to marry or not, and marry or not, how wonderful that would be."
"How could a commoner like me have the good fortune to not marry when I want to and marry when I want to? Just now someone said that if I don't get married soon, I will be betrothed to someone else."
The Emperor laughed heartily again: "That's true. If you had waited a few months longer, I would have definitely arranged for you to marry the daughter of a high-ranking official."
Long Er smiled, but he knew in his heart that although the Emperor's words were somewhat joking, if a real conflict arose, he was capable of forcing a marriage to win over his ministers and stabilize the overall situation. However, if such a situation were to occur, it would not only depend on which side the Emperor valued more, but also on the Emperor's ability to resolve the situation and devise a plan.
Just like this chessboard in front of me.
Long Er smiled, placed a piece, and said, "I will definitely tell Mu'er when I get back that I congratulate her on seizing the initiative and winning the first prize."
"It seems you are quite satisfied with this lady?"
"Her obedience and charm are exactly what I desire." Long Er said this with great pride. Mu'er had indeed been incredibly compliant since marrying him, which filled him with a great sense of accomplishment as a man. Of course, he automatically ignored the occasional moments when he was speechless after being choked up by her words.
The Emperor stared at the chessboard, thought for a long time, and then made a move. He snorted, "Don't come here to show off. My magnanimity is not much different from yours. Be careful, or I might get upset and make you spend money under some pretext."
"I have the broadest mind."
The emperor looked up and then burst into laughter: "You really dare to say that."
Long Er laughed and then said, "My darling has gotten into trouble."
The Emperor was taken aback: "My precious baby?"
Long Er nodded.
The Emperor was somewhat surprised: "This child has certainly grown up, managing to cause you to come looking for me." He had met Bao'er twice before; she was a shy and well-behaved child. Back then, Long Er had agreed beforehand to call her Bao'er, the adorable little girl, and the Emperor's shy and lovely smile left a deep impression on him. "What did she do?"
Long Er recounted how Bao'er had angered the qin envoy of Ximin Kingdom by playing the qin recklessly in the restaurant, resulting in a challenge being issued to her. The Emperor listened, stunned. Should he praise the child for her audacity?
"This matter was not difficult to handle originally, but for some reason the news spread quickly, and now we are in a difficult situation. Minister Tian of the Ministry of Rites is not good at explaining to the Qin Envoy of Ximin Kingdom that he has refused the matter, which may cause a dispute."
The Emperor nodded: "His concerns are not wrong. Why did the Western Min Kingdom suddenly come to compete in the zither? I don't understand the ins and outs of it. The ministers didn't have any good suggestions either, so we had no choice but to accept it. Now that Bao'er has come up, the Ministry of Rites naturally doesn't dare to make a decision on its own, but if they report it again for the sake of the child, it will be embarrassing."
"He hasn't figured it out, but I have no choice but to come to the Emperor. Refusing the challenge from the Western Min Kingdom might cause trouble, but accepting it isn't a good thing either. Bao'er doesn't know anything about playing the zither. If she really plays something recklessly in the palace, then since the Western Min Kingdom has ulterior motives, they naturally won't let go of this opportunity to mock her. If that happens and the national prestige is disgraced, I don't know whose responsibility it will be."
That hits the nail on the head. It wouldn't look good to punish a mere child, and it wouldn't be reasonable to punish the Ministry of Rites either. The Emperor raised an eyebrow and asked directly, "What's your idea?"
"If it's going to be a musical duel, there's no reason for my precious child to go it alone. There are plenty of children learning the zither in the capital. If the Emperor gives the Ministry of Rites a word, our country's young zither players cannot lose to those from the Western Min Kingdom in terms of numbers and momentum. Adults versus adults, children versus children. They've come from afar, bringing so many children learning the zither. It must have been premeditated."
The Emperor suddenly understood and nodded. "What you've said has truly reminded me. I've heard that the chief musician of the Western Min Kingdom is exceptionally skilled, with few rivals. We've already lost Shi Boyin, and now we've lost Hua Yibai. Although our other musicians are also renowned, to my ears, they are not as talented as those two. Now that Bao'er has taken the lead, we can indeed find a pretext in the field of child musicians to diminish the prestige of the Western Min Kingdom."
Long Er nodded in agreement. He wasn't interested in anything like trying to diminish someone's prestige, and playing the zither was too boring for him to care about. As long as the other children were dragged into it, and his Bao'er wasn't the one to stand out, that would be fine. With so many people and so much trouble, Bao'er might not even need to touch the zither; let the real zither players compete among themselves.
After discussing the matter in detail, the ruler and the commoner chatted for a while, gossiped, and played two games of chess. Finally, Long Er left satisfied.
When Long Er entered the palace to meet the emperor, Ju Mu'er was shopping.
Because her "magnanimous" husband was unwilling to let Bao'er use the little zither she had given him, Ju Mu'er decided to buy a new one. And she also wanted to take this opportunity to see Lin Yueyao.
According to Long Er's rules, Ju Mu'er, who has poor eyesight, cannot go out alone without a servant. So Ju Mu'er took her maid Xiao Zhu with her, and coincidentally Su Qing came over, so they went together.
The zither was quickly chosen, but there was a short wait. Ju Mu'er said she was a little hungry and wanted to rest and have some snacks at the nearby restaurant. Su Qing accompanied her, leaving Xiao Zhu to wait at the zither shop to pick it up. Ju Mu'er sat down in a private room and then sent Su Qing away to buy some incense. No sooner had Su Qing left than Lin Yueshan entered.
Lin Yueshan brought news. It turned out that the Qin envoys from Ximin Kingdom had gone to Xichun Hall to seek pleasure, and after a few drinks, they started rambling on and on. They said that the Qin master Shi Boyin had once studied the Qin in their Ximin Kingdom, making them the strongest in the field. Their chief Qin player, Ya Lili, had even taught Shi Boyin to play the Qin, making her his teacher. The two had deeply fallen in love, but tragically, Shi Boyin died in Xiao Kingdom in the end.
Ju Mu'er frowned: "Did they say what their purpose is in coming to our Xiao Kingdom to compete in the zither?"
“That wasn’t mentioned. But whatever they want to do, I think this is a great opportunity for us.” Lin Yueshan said, “Madam’s zither skills are extraordinary. Why not take this opportunity to enter the palace and meet the Emperor to plead your case in person?”
Ju Mu'er shook her head: "The enemy is in the dark, while we are in the light. If we make a big show of seeking justice before we understand the situation, we may fail to get justice and cut off our own escape route. Miss Yueyao, please don't be in a hurry."
"But two years have passed, and the longer it drags on, the harder it is to overturn the case. The witnesses from back then are no longer in the capital, and we have no physical evidence. The more we investigate, the more hopeless it seems. How can we avenge Yi Bai's injustice? If the murderer cannot be brought to justice, I will die with my eyes open in disgrace." Lin Yueyao became agitated as she spoke: "Madam said she was willing to help me back then, but now that she has married into a wealthy family, she has no worries about food or clothing and enjoys all the riches and honors. Has she long since lost that sincerity? Now that we have finally obtained an opportunity to meet the Emperor, an opportunity to plead our case that we would have begged for, what does it mean that Madam is making such a fuss?"
Ju Mu'er pursed her lips, remained silent for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "Miss Yueyao, please go back first. I will let you know how to handle this matter."
Lin Yueyao gritted her teeth, turned around and left.
Ju Mu'er sat quietly, and some things suddenly became clear in her mind. At this moment, Su Qing and Xiao Zhu arrived, each carrying something and chatting and laughing. The three of them sat down, ate some snacks, and then left together.
Just as she stepped out of the private room, she happened to run into Ding Yanshan and two other young ladies from wealthy families coming out of another private room. Upon seeing Ju Mu'er, the two young ladies simultaneously turned to Ding Yanshan, raised an eyebrow, and walked away with smiles.
Ding Yanshan was so angry her face turned green. After the robbery, rumors spread like wildfire. Although nothing actually happened after the robbery, her reputation was ruined. The daughters of wealthy families who were once close to her all distanced themselves from her, not to mention the noble young men of marriageable age who had previously frequently shown interest in her—they had all disappeared without a trace.
Ding Yanshan hadn't had a single good day lately, but Ju Mu'er, who had suffered the same fate as her, had still managed to marry into the Long family smoothly. She even heard rumors that the Second Master Long publicly professed his love for her on the Lantern Festival, and the two were very affectionate. This made Ding Yanshan feel incredibly resentful and couldn't find any comfort in it.
Ding Yanshan had finally managed to meet up with two friends that day, but they were indifferent to her. When they encountered Ju Mu'er on their way out, they even gave her a mocking look. Enraged, Ding Yanshan couldn't help but glare at Ju Mu'er to vent her anger.
It was fine for her to glare at Ju Mu'er; Ju Mu'er couldn't see it. But Su Qing, standing to the side, was unhappy and glared back at her on Ju Mu'er's behalf. Ding Yanshan's maid was indignant and scolded Su Qing, "What are you glaring at? How dare you disrespect my young lady!"
Su Qing was a street vendor who had seen all sorts of people and wasn't afraid of being cursed at. She replied immediately, "I didn't mean any disrespect. I just thought Miss Ding was beautiful and had eyes like a cow, so I couldn't help but imitate her."
"You..." The maid was so angry that she swung her hand at her, but Su Qing was prepared and grabbed her wrist with a swift movement. "Want to hit me? I'm not afraid of you! I've trained myself now."
"Yu'er." "Qing'er."
Ding Yanshan and Ju Mu'er stopped the two of them at the same time.
Ding Yanshan was both angry and anxious; she couldn't bear the embarrassment of being in public. Ju Mu'er, however, only realized why Su Qing was acting like a firecracker after hearing that shout.
Before she could say anything, Ding Yanshan turned her head and shouted, "Let's go!" and led Yu'er away.
Su Qing made a face at her back and skipped after her downstairs. Ju Mu'er couldn't say anything to her in front of Xiao Zhu, so she could only sigh and follow slowly behind.
As they left the restaurant, they ran into Ding Yanshan boarding her carriage. The coachman closed the door for her and turned to get into his seat, when two children chased after him and bumped into him. The coachman's hat fell off, and he picked it up, put it on, and scolded the two children for being so inconsiderate, before getting into the front seat of the carriage.
Su Qing muttered, "A wicked young lady raises a wicked servant."
Ju Mu'er suddenly stopped, grabbed Su Qing's hand, and asked, "What does the coachman look like?"
"A very ordinary appearance, tall and big, ordinary eyes, ordinary nose, nothing too special."
Ju Mu'er frowned: "Have you seen him before?"
"No, how could I have seen the servants of the Ding family before?"
“But I’ve heard his voice before.” Ju Mu’er turned her head. She heard the clattering of the carriage as it drove away. She looked in that direction but saw only darkness. She couldn’t see the carriage or the driver’s face.
But there was one thing she was certain of.
“I’ve heard his voice before.”
57☆, Second Master's Reprimand During a Dangerous Encounter
"Where have I heard of this?" Su Qing turned around and stared at the carriage that had already driven away.
Does he have a beard?
“No. His face was clean. I saw his face clearly when his hat fell off.” Su Qing answered, then suddenly paused. “Could it be that bandit leader? Oh dear, now that you mention it, his voice sounds familiar too.”
Ju Mu'er gripped the bamboo cane tightly and suddenly said, "Xiao Zhu, go and call someone quickly."