Ji Wushang looked around and knew that Ji Wusi should be nearby. Finally, he saw Ji Wusi in the last row, training with the soldiers.
At this time, they practiced fist and foot techniques.
Ji Wushang felt a surge of excitement. He was only seven or eight years old, but he was wearing heavy armor and training with the soldiers. His little face was tense as he practiced his punches earnestly.
"Miss?" Zhu'er also saw Ji Wusi at this moment. "Young Master is so good at boxing!"
"Keep your voice down, don't distract him." Ji Wushang glanced at Zhu'er. Everyone around was cheering, but he just didn't want to distract him.
Ji Wushang quietly watched the soldiers finish their boxing and training. The crowd slowly dispersed, but Ji Wushang remained, craning his neck to watch.
Zhu'er stepped forward and said, "Miss, why don't we go see the young master now!"
"Okay, let's go."
Just as Ji Wushang was about to leave, he bumped into someone.
Huangfu Ting stared blankly at Ji Wushang, his eyes filled with scrutiny and questions. Ji Wushang had no time to pay him any attention. "Second Prince," Zhu'er also bowed.
"Rise." Huangfu Ting looked at her. "What are you looking at?"
“It’s my younger brother.” Ji Wushang tried his best to appear patient. “Zhu’er, go check if Wu Zi is alright. I’ll be going to see him later. I hope my elder brother is there too.”
"Yes." Zhu'er nodded, then bowed to Huangfu Ting and left.
How old is your younger brother?
“My younger brother is eight years old,” Ji Wushang said. “If Your Highness has nothing else to do, I will take my leave so that I may meet with my younger brother.”
"I've come to ask you why you didn't listen to me. Didn't you see the note I gave you? It was to have the Empress Dowager bestow wine upon you?" Huangfu Ting was clearly here to hold you accountable.
"Your Highness, the situation at the time was unavoidable." But thinking about it, he still hasn't felt unwell. He doesn't know if it's because the wine was fine, or if the antidote he drank first neutralized it.
"Aren't you feeling unwell?" Huangfu Ting looked at her. "By the way, why didn't I see your fourth sister?"
It's Ji Yinxue again, humph! Ji Wushang sneered, his eyes fixed on Huangfu Ting. This man is definitely connected to Ji Yinxue.
"Don't look at me like that, or you'll die a horrible death!" Huangfu Ting's tone immediately turned cold.
Ji Wushang immediately looked at him. The aura he was exuding was incredibly oppressive, and the murderous aura seemed to want to kill him! However, what puzzled Ji Wushang was that his appearance resembled someone, but who exactly was it?
"Woman, don't be so stubborn!" he said coldly. "The wine you drank was already contaminated; you'd better figure out what to do about it! Haha!" Huangfu Ting sneered twice, "You don't know what's good for you!"
"Thank you for the reminder, Second Prince. I am truly flattered," Ji Wushang said with a smile. This man is unpredictable, more cunning than anyone else! Was that his true nature just now?
Huangfu Ting gave her a cold look and then left.
Ji Wushang didn't care much when he saw him leave. If he wanted to hurt me, I, Ji Wushang, would be ready to fight back anytime!
Ji Wushang jogged all the way to Ji Wusi's place. After walking for a while, he saw Zhu'er waiting for him outside a tent and waving her little hand.
Ji Wushang beamed with joy, lifted her skirt slightly, and ran forward, calling out, "Zhu'er."
"Miss, the young master and the eldest young master are inside!"
"Okay, what are they doing? Would it be bad to disturb them if I went in now?" Ji Wushang was somewhat pleased.
"Miss, the eldest young master is teaching the young master some military strategy!" Zhu'er said with a smile.
Ji Wushang nodded, "Then I'll go in later."
But just then, Ji Tiankui came out. As soon as he saw Ji Wushang and Zhu'er standing outside, he smiled and said, "I knew my little sister was here. Come in quickly! Wu Zi has been missing you."
"Yes, thank you, brother!" Ji Wushang smiled and then lifted the curtain to go inside. Sure enough, as soon as he entered, Ji Wusi looked up and rushed over, "Sister!"
"Hmm, Wu Zi." Ji Wushang smiled and tried to pick him up, but Ji Wusi stepped back, which startled Ji Wushang.
“I’m a man now, I can’t let my older sister hug me anymore!” Ji Wusi said seriously.
Ji Wushang was stunned again. He hadn't expected that he would say such a thing, which moved him deeply.
Ji Wushang squatted down. "Wu Zi, what did you just say? Say it again for your older sister."
“Sister, I am a man now, so I must be independent and become a strong and upright man! Therefore, I cannot let my sister hug me so easily!” Ji Wusi said earnestly again.
Ji Wushang nodded, tears welling in his eyes, which he held back. If his mother could see him like this, see Ji Wusi speak such words, how happy she would be! Sadly, his mother would never hear those words again…
Ji Wusi stepped forward and said, "Sister, you're crying."
"I'm not crying, I'm happy!" Ji Wushang smiled as she wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. "Wu Zi has finally grown up. I was so happy to see you practicing boxing on the training ground just now. Come, let your older sister see your military uniform."
"Hmm." Ji Wusi pursed his lips and stepped back, standing in front of Ji Wushang. He then spread his arms. The armor on his body made him look weaker, but Ji Wushang could still see the heroic spirit between his sword-like eyebrows.
Ji Wushang nodded, "That's great."
“From now on, Wu Zi can protect my elder sister!” Ji Wusi looked at her. “I will study military strategy diligently! My elder brother says I’m progressing quickly!”
“Yes. Wu Zi, as long as you can grow up healthy, your elder sister is willing to endure a hundred times the torment.” Ji Wu Shang looked at him.
"Wu Zi doesn't want to disappoint his elder sister. Wu Zi will definitely do his best to bring honor to the family!"
Seeing his serious expression, Ji Wushang chuckled, "Come on, take your sister to see this training ground."
"Yes, sir!" Ji Wusi stood at attention and gave a standard military salute.
——
Bei Gong Jue Shi frowned as he looked at Yi Yun Muchen intently. "Do you know what that means?"
"I want to ask you, are there any places with some majestic palaces?" Yi Yun Muchen looked up at him, her eyes gentle, her originally large eyes becoming even clearer and brighter after bathing.
For a moment, Bei Gong Jue Shi was lost in thought, but he quickly replied, "The palace you mentioned is only in the Imperial City."
"The Imperial City? Is it the capital of the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty?" Yi Yun Muchen blurted out, and immediately wished she could swallow the words back down her throat!
"You're not from the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty?" Bei Gong Jue Shi narrowed his eyes, his murderous aura already faintly visible.
Seeing his expression, Yi Yun Muchen immediately tapped her chopsticks and bowl. "What?! I'm just a kid from the countryside, how would I know what our capital is? So when I heard 'Imperial City' with the word 'Emperor' in it, I thought, is it the capital of our Great Xia Zhou Dynasty?" As she spoke, Yi Yun Muchen immediately turned her attention to him, "Why are you so nervous?"
"Uh." Bei Gong Jue Shi looked somewhat embarrassed, raised the wine cup in front of him, and drank the wine in one gulp. "Yes, the Imperial City is indeed the capital of our Great Xia Zhou Dynasty." That heartbreaking place! He hoped he would never set foot on that land again.
"Then how do I get there? You should know the way, right?" Yi Yun Muchen's eyes lit up. "I guess my brother means he should be in the imperial city with its magnificent palaces. Whether he's actually in the palace or not, we'll have to wait for further confirmation." Yi Yun Muchen tried her best to sound pitiful. She would have to rely on this man to find her brother, even though he was in great danger!
However, he managed to find out the information in less than half a day, which made me admire his ability. If I could let him lead the way to the capital, I could find Yiyun Upper City through the next step!
Bei Gong Jue Shi narrowed his eyes. "I'll draw you a map, and you can find your way there yourself."
Yi Yunmu Chen was shocked, "You're not coming with me?"
"No." Bei Gong Jue Shi drank another cup of wine. He didn't want to go to that place anymore. "Have a meal, and then I'll draw a map for you."
"Yes." Yi Yun Muchen had no choice but to nod. If he didn't want to take her along, then she couldn't force him. Yi Yun Muchen then began to eat, his eyes fixed on the dishes in front of him, quickly starting his feast.
Bei Gong Jue Shi watched him scrambling to swallow his food and couldn't bear it any longer. "Eat slowly. It's not like I'm not giving you any. I'm not letting you leave before you finish eating!"
"I... I can't stop," Yi Yun Muchen finally managed to say while chewing.
Bei Gong Jue Shi put down his chopsticks. "What did you say? You can't stop?"
"Um, well, I just love eating this so much that I can't stop." Yi Yun Muchen swallowed the chicken leg meat, then put the wine glass in front of him to his mouth and drank the wine.
Bei Gong Jue Shi was somewhat surprised by his appetite, "You eat so much, how come you don't grow taller?"
"I don't know either." Yi Yunmu Chen gestured to him, "You should eat quickly, otherwise I'll finish eating."
“Okay.” Bei Gong Jue Shi nodded, but when his gaze fell on the plate, there was only leftover food left, and Yi Yun Muchen was still using chopsticks to pick it up.
Bei Gongjue sighed inwardly, shook his head, put down his chopsticks, and watched him put the last piece of meat into his mouth and finish eating.
"It's delicious, thank you!" Yi Yunmu Chen exclaimed. "It's been so long since I've had such a satisfying meal, thank you!"
"Hehe!" Bei Gong Jue Shi really didn't know what to say. This brat was really hungry! Oh well, let's just consider it a farewell dinner!
Bei Gong Jue Shi immediately stood up. "I'll go draw a map."
"Okay." Yi Yun Muchen watched him go outside, eat the last bit of food, and then Yi Yun Muchen followed him to take a look.
Upon entering, they saw the man sitting at his desk, holding a wolf-hair brush in his left hand, carefully drawing a map on rice paper. Yi Yun Muchen stepped forward.
Bei Gong Jue Shi didn't even look up, continuing to paint. "Sit aside and wait."
"Hmm." Yi Yun Muchen moved a stool and sat down in front of him. Looking at his vigorous calligraphy on the finished drawings, Yi Yun Muchen said, "Your calligraphy is quite beautiful."
Bei Gong Jue Shi hummed in response, without much reaction.
Yi Yun Muchen looked up at him. Actually, this man wasn't so bad, but she wasn't the Western Region princess she used to be. Now she was being hunted down everywhere by her uncle, Yi Yun Shenshan, and she had already lied to him under a different identity...
It's impossible now. In his eyes, I'm just a brat. After today, I'll leave him forever and never see him again.
She absolutely could not tell him the truth, because Yi Yun Muchen knew that deceiving someone could really make them feel terrible.
It would be better to keep him from knowing the truth and end their friendship as soon as possible.
Bei Gong Jue Shi suddenly felt that she was very quiet, so he looked up and saw that she was resting her chin on her hand and looking at him. Although her eyes were on him, it was obvious that she was lost in thought.
What is this little thing thinking?
Bei Gong Jueshi lowered his head and finished drawing the last stroke. He looked up and saw that she was still thinking about something, so he had no choice but to say, "Chen Mu, Chen Mu."
"Ah! I'm here!" Yi Yunmu Chen immediately snapped back to reality. "Is it finished?"
"Hmm, take a look. If there's anything you don't understand, just tell me." Bei Gong Jue Shi looked at her, his eyes softening. "Here you go."
Yi Yun Muchen nodded and accepted the Xuan paper he was given. She then unfolded it. There was no official road leading directly to the capital; one had to travel almost entirely along side roads, with several small towns in between. These were ideal places for ambushes. Yi Yun Muchen looked at the characters on it, but while they were beautiful to look at, she couldn't understand them... The script of the Western Regions and the script of the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty were vastly different. Although she had grown up in a royal family, she never imagined that one day she would marry someone from the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty, nor did she ever imagine that one day she would set foot on the land of the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty and see the Great Xia Zhou Dynasty script written by others!
"Um, I can't read, could you explain it to me?" Yi Yun Muchen looked at him pleadingly.
"You don't recognize it? Fine, I'll tell you." Bei Gong Jue Shi recalled that he was already a beggar, and judging from his appearance and eating habits, he was just a country bumpkin. What words could he possibly know?
"This means grass, this means tavern and teahouse, and what's written here, 'Three steps and no turning back,' means hurry up and leave, don't linger here, this place is a bit dangerous..." Bei Gong Jue Shi thought to himself, he had done more than enough, who could be so kind as to say so much!
I've never been so kind or patient before!
That's enough, this is the only time, there won't be a second time!
Finally, after explaining the whole picture, Bei Gong Jue Shi looked up to see his reaction, but unexpectedly, he saw Yi Yun Muchen dozing off!
Bei Gong Jue Shi was instantly enraged. Had he wasted his breath? He didn't appreciate it at all!
"Bang!" Bei Gong Jue Shi slammed his fist on the desk, instantly creating a large hole. The desk collapsed, and Yi Yun Muchen shouted, "Something's happened!"
"What happened?" Bei Gong Jue Shi asked coldly, his face dark.
Yi Yunmu Chen finally reacted and looked at the desk, "You, you have such strong strength."
"I was talking about the map, and you're telling me to go to sleep? Are you tired?" Bei Gong Jue Shi coldly questioned.
"Um, I'm really tired, thank you for your understanding." Yi Yun Muchen ignored his anger. "Please tell me again! I know you definitely won't refuse." Yi Yun Muchen moved the teacup next to her in a flattering manner in front of him. "Drink some tea, continue." Her little face, with its ingratiating expression, seemed to say, "See how good I am to you, please tell me again!"