Одна улыбка может обрушить город

Глава 46

The messenger, recalling the strict orders he had received before leaving, was filled with confusion but dared not show it. He hurriedly repeated what he had been instructed to say: "Since you, young master, left the capital, Madam has been very concerned. She constantly complains about how bitter this place is, fearing that you, young master, will not be able to get used to it, and you can't even eat or drink. Just before the New Year, you caught a cold, and no matter how much medicine you took, it didn't help at all. On the contrary, you became increasingly unable to get up. You only said that you wanted to see you, young master, and you are getting worse every day. The doctors in the Imperial Hospital all said that it was caused by your heart, and if it is not resolved soon, they are afraid that you will not make it. Your Excellency had no choice but to send me here as fast as possible to bring this letter. Everyone in the manor is hoping that you, young master, will return soon." As he spoke, he pretended to wipe the corner of his eye.

Xu Shirong was somewhat surprised, never expecting that Madam Xu was so seriously ill. Judging from his words, she seemed to be on the verge of death. Her heart skipped a beat, and when she turned around and saw Yang Huan following her, she hurriedly said, "You heard it just now, my mother is very ill, and I need to go back to the capital immediately."

"I want to go too!"

Without thinking, Yang Huan blurted it out.

Xu Shirong shook his head and said, “You can’t do it. Your legs haven’t fully recovered yet, and the construction of the seawall here is in full swing. How can you just abandon everything and come back with me? Besides, have you forgotten? Emperor Taizu had long ago stipulated that officials appointed to official posts outside the region cannot leave their jurisdiction without the court’s permission. Even though you are only a county magistrate, you can’t afford to run into this mess. If someone finds out and impeaches you, I’m afraid your father will be furious again.”

Yang Huan was speechless. He couldn't stop her from going back, nor could he bring himself to say it. He only considered her itinerary; not counting the time spent returning to the capital, the round trip alone would take more than two months. If her mother saw her daughter and immediately became lively again, that would be fine, but if she stayed any longer, things would get complicated. A bitter feeling welled up inside him. He dismissed everyone else, then tugged at her sleeve, his face contorted with distress, and said, "Can I secretly go back with you? I promise no one will know."

“No!” Xu Shirong refused decisively.

"You fly back immediately when your mother-in-law is missing you, but if I fall ill with lovesickness one day, judging from your usual behavior, you definitely won't care!"

Seeing her resolute refusal, Yang Huan felt a pang of sadness and huffed angrily.

Xu Shirong was feeling rather anxious and didn't bother with his jealousy and rivalry with his mother-in-law. She loudly called Xiao Que to come to her room to pack her things. After hurriedly packing a trunk, she turned around and saw Yang Huan still following behind her, looking at her expectantly. Her heart softened, and she whispered to comfort him, "I'll come back as soon as my mother's condition improves. You need to take good care of yourself and get your legs healed as soon as possible. You also need to manage the affairs of the sea dike and the yamen well, and don't be lazy or irresponsible while I'm not around. Xiao Que, be steady. Your injury hasn't fully healed yet, so I'll have her stay and take care of you. Xiao Die can come back with me."

Seeing that she seemed ready to leave immediately, Yang Huan hurriedly stopped her, saying, "Rest for the night, you can leave tomorrow. Why are you in such a rush!"

Xu Shirong sighed and said, "It would have been better if I hadn't known the news. Now that I know, I feel a little sad. Thinking that she is lying there waiting for me to return, I won't be able to rest easy tonight even if I don't leave. It's better to get on the road as soon as possible while it's still early, so that I can get to the capital sooner. Tonight, I can stay at an inn outside the city."

Yang Huan was unwilling to let her leave like this. He hurriedly said, "I'll take you to the inn, and you can come back tomorrow."

Xu Shirong glanced at him and shook her head, saying, "Your leg hasn't fully healed yet, and you still need others to take care of you. Why would you want to take me so far? What if you hurt your leg from the bumpy ride? If you really want to take me, just take me to the city gate."

Yang Huan had no choice but to have a carriage prepared. He also ordered Zhang, the head constable, to select four strong and experienced men from the yamen to serve as guards. Together with the envoy from the Xu family, there were five men in total. He instructed them to escort them carefully all the way to the capital before the carriages departed. Xiao Die sat in the smaller carriage behind, while he himself got into Xu Shirong's carriage, saying he wanted to see him off.

Chapter Fifty-Seven

The carriage departed from the back gate, turned onto the main road in front of the county government office, and headed west.

Xu Shirong turned her head and saw Yang Huan sitting next to her with a worried expression. Feeling sorry for him, she took his hand and said softly, "It's only a few months, it will pass in the blink of an eye. It's not like you're leaving and never coming back."

Yang Huan was already feeling incredibly depressed and filled with the sorrow of parting. Seeing her hold his hand and speak to him so softly and coolly, he felt a little comforted. He took the opportunity to pull her into his arms, pressing his face against her neck and rubbing it a few times. He felt her skin was warm and smooth, like jade, and inhaled the faint, warm fragrance emanating from her neck. Then he sighed deeply and said, "Will you miss me when you go?"

Xu Shirong hadn't felt it before, but now that she was on the westward journey in the carriage, listening to the rumbling of the wheels, a sense of melancholy arose in her heart. She rested her head on his shoulder and murmured an "Mmm."

Seeing her docile nature, Yang Huan recalled the good thing that had happened when he was mistakenly beaten earlier. On a whim, he reached out and hugged her waist, gently lifting her up so that she sat face-to-face on his lap.

Xu Shirong was startled. Yang Huan had already leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Hold me." Seeing that she didn't move and just stared at him with wide eyes, seemingly not understanding what he meant, he sighed inwardly. Thinking that there were still ten miles or so to the city gate, if he didn't seize the opportunity now, the next time might really be months later. With a determined heart, he grabbed her hand and pressed it to his own.

Xu Shirong then realized what was happening and felt a little embarrassed. Just as she was about to pull her hand back, Yang Huan pressed her hand back down forcefully, pressed his forehead against hers, and pleaded in a low voice, "You're leaving now, and we don't know when you'll be back. Please have pity on me. There's still a long way to the city gate."

Xu Shirong paused for a moment, and Yang Huan's hand had already slipped inside her skirt and reached up.

Xu Shirong was in no mood to think about this anymore, and being in the car, she instinctively shook her head and refused. He pleaded softly, and she felt his erection, which she had just been pressed against, sending a chill down her spine. Knowing they would be separated soon and she didn't know when she would be able to return, she couldn't bear to go against his wishes. Looking around the car, she suppressed her unease and hesitated, saying softly, "It's not convenient here, how can we go..."

Yang Huan was delighted to hear that she had softened her stance. Without saying much, he lifted her skirt up to her thighs, pulled down her underpants, and did the same to himself. Then he grabbed her buttocks, lifted them slightly, and pressed them against his already hard erection, whispering, "Hook your legs around my waist."

Xu Shirong finally understood his intentions; he wanted to sit on the soft stool with her back against the carriage wall and take her, something she had never thought of before. She dared not look at him, burying her head in his shoulder, tightly embracing his back, closing her eyes and letting him do as he pleased. Outside, the spring chill lingered, but inside the carriage, a thousand allurements intertwined, an atmosphere of boundless spring. Only when they estimated they were almost at the city gate did Yang Huan reluctantly call it a day. Perhaps fearing discovery by those outside, both of them held their breath. Now, after it was over, Xu Shirong was slightly out of breath, her eyes hazy, while Yang Huan's forehead was covered in a fine layer of sweat.

Just as the two women finished adjusting their clothes, the carriage slowly came to a stop. A voice outside said, "Sir, we've arrived at the West Gate. Should we continue escorting you?"

Seeing the look of reluctance on his face, as if he wished he could follow her all the way to the capital, Xu Shirong recalled the absurd scene from earlier, and her own face flushed and her heart pounded. Seeing that he didn't speak, she leaned over and kissed his cheek before whispering, "Even after a thousand miles of seeing you off, we must eventually part. Go back now. If I return and find out you've fallen back into your old ways and gotten involved in some romantic entanglements..."

Yang Huan looked up and saw her smiling as she spoke, her eyes and brows still tinged with the lingering allure of their earlier encounter. His heart fluttered, and he was about to swear an oath to the heavens again when Xu Shirong stopped him, saying, "Alright, alright, I believe you. Don't come up with any more 'turtle-carrying' nonsense. If I really asked you to carry it, I'd be afraid you'd fall. Just remember my words. Let's go back now." Seeing that he was still sitting there, looking unwilling, she had no choice but to go and push open the carriage door herself. Yang Huan saw that everyone outside was looking at him, and Erbao was already by the carriage, ready to help him down, so he had no choice but to get off.

Xu Shirong nodded and smiled at Yang Huan outside the carriage, saying, "Let's go!" The coachman immediately cracked his whip, spurred the horse, and continued eastward. Only Yang Huan remained by the roadside, staring blankly at the departing carriage.

Erbao, however, happily stepped forward to urge Yang Huan to go back. He called out several times, but Yang Huan ignored him, staring fixedly ahead. Following his gaze, Erbao saw that the road ahead was already empty, and the carriage had shrunk to a small dot, almost out of sight. Erbao urged him again, and only then did Yang Huan sigh deeply, reluctantly being helped into another carriage, heading west back.

When Xu Shirong and her party arrived at the inn where they had stayed the previous times, it was already early in the evening. Seeing that everyone looked somewhat tired, and feeling a bit sore herself, she sent someone in to inquire about rooms. She was a little worried that the inn was full, but to her surprise, the same innkeeper she had met before personally greeted her at the gate, smiling broadly and saying respectfully, "Knowing that Madam was coming to stay, we reserved the best room for her. Madam's entourage is also all prepared. Please come in and have a meal before you rest."

Xu Shirong was somewhat surprised, assuming that the messenger had prepared the room in advance on the instructions of the Xu family. Looking at the man, she saw that he also looked blank, clearly unaware of the arrangement beforehand. Even more puzzled, she asked the innkeeper, "Who prepared this room for me in advance?"

The shopkeeper chuckled and kept urging her to go inside, avoiding answering her questions. He then repeatedly told the shop assistant who had followed him out to lead her and her entourage's horses and luggage inside.

Xu Shirong was somewhat surprised and suspicious. Judging from the innkeeper's appearance, he seemed to have been instructed not to say anything more. She wanted to ask more, but seeing that everyone behind her had smiling faces, she figured they were tired from their journey and hungry, and were eager for some hot soup and rice. After thinking for a moment, she had no choice but to suppress her doubts and ordered everyone to go in and find lodging. The food that arrived was exceptionally exquisite: a cluster of carved honey-glazed dishes, including carved plum blossom balls, honey-glazed winter melon fish, carved red floral patterns, and large pieces of papaya; another cluster of dried meats, including strips of pork, dried shrimp, dried meat, and breast milk; then a cluster of dragon-shaped pastries, containing lychee sago cakes, peach strips, crispy walnuts, and fragrant grapes; followed by hot dishes such as flower-steamed quail, three-crisp soup, stir-fried eel, and shrimp and fish soup; and finally, braised oysters with ginger and vinegar. It was practically a smaller version of the banquet she had seen in the former Grand Commandant's mansion, with the table overflowing with food, leaving her speechless with astonishment. She asked the servant to remove some of the dishes, saying that she couldn't possibly use so much by herself, but the servant respectfully replied that he had been instructed to do so and couldn't change it arbitrarily. Helpless, Xu Shirong had no choice but to have Xiaodie take the food and distribute it to the yamen runners and messengers. They ate until their cheeks were bulging, while she herself only mixed some of the three-crisp soup into the fragrant rice and ate it, and then felt full.

After Xu Shirong finished her meal, she entered the room and found it already warmed by a fine silver charcoal brazier, emitting a pleasant, faint, sweet fragrance. On the central table sat a box of gold-embroidered incense and herbs, ten small compartments filled with licorice flowers, costus root, cloves, borneol, atractylodes, ginseng, and other aromatics—merely for fragrance, intended only to give the smokers a fresh and pleasant aroma. Beside it was a large platter of seasonal cut fruit, including spring lotus root, sliced oranges, pears, fresh radish, and sliced candied mushrooms—some of which were rarely seen even in the Qingmen County government office. Behind the screen, a bathtub was already filled with steaming fragrant water, and the towels and soap beside it were all brand new and of the highest quality.

After bathing, Xu Shirong went to bed, turned off the light, and tried to sleep. The more she thought about it, the more uneasy and uncertain she became, making it impossible for her to fall asleep. She recalled repeatedly asking the innkeeper and staff who had given such instructions, only to be met with evasive and secretive responses. Who knew she was returning to the capital and went to such lengths to arrange her stay? What was their purpose? At first, she thought of Yang Huan, but the thought quickly faded. Given his character, if it were him, he would have already told her; why would he be so secretive, not even leaving his name? If it wasn't him, she racked her brains but couldn't think of anyone else who would go to such lengths. Seeing that it was already past midnight, and that if she didn't sleep soon she might be unable to get up and miss her journey the next day, she forced herself to dispel her doubts, closed her eyes, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

The next day, as she prepared to leave the inn, her entourage was full of energy, and the horses, well-fed and ready to go, were ready to gallop. Xu Shirong asked the innkeeper for the bill, but he hurriedly waved his hands, saying that the honored guest had already paid and he dared not take any more money from her. Helpless, Xu Shirong finally left the inn, and the innkeeper respectfully saw her off to the gate.

The next few days were much the same. Whenever her group sought lodging, arrangements were always made in advance. When asked their names, the innkeepers either shook their heads and said they didn't know, or seemed completely clueless. Moreover, after several days, one of the more astute accompanying officers secretly informed her that another group had been closely following them. They followed her wherever she went, and whenever she stopped to rest, the other group would also stop nearby, always keeping a respectful distance.

Reminded, Xu Shirong paid attention to the rear as he traveled the next day and saw five or six men on horseback following him about ten zhang away. They were all strong and ordinary-looking, and judging from their attire, they seemed to be from wealthy families.

Xu Shirong frowned and told the driver to stop and rest by the roadside. The group of people did indeed stop, pretending to rest by the roadside.

The constables and Xu's messenger had expected a long and arduous journey, lasting a month or two, to be escorting them. Unexpectedly, the past few days had been smooth sailing; everything was arranged, and they only needed to eat and drink their fill, feeling secretly pleased. Now, realizing they were being followed, and recalling Magistrate Yang's instructions before their departure, they were unsure of the other party's intentions and became somewhat nervous.

Xu Shirong thought for a moment, then sent the quick-witted constable over to inquire. From afar, she saw that the men seemed eager to answer any questions. When he returned, he immediately said, "Don't worry, Madam. They said they were also going to the capital, but it was their first time traveling and they weren't familiar with the way. Last time, when they stayed at the hotel, they overheard that our group was also going to the capital, so they came along for convenience. When we asked them questions, they were very polite, saying they had disturbed Madam and asked for her forgiveness."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Xu Shirong. Xu Shirong glanced in that direction again, realizing that it must have been just an excuse, and indeed, they didn't seem to have any ill intentions. Since they were traveling like this, it wasn't appropriate to forbid them from following, so they had to suppress their suspicions and continue westward. They traveled like this for about a month, until they reached the outskirts of the capital, when the group of followers suddenly and quietly disappeared.

Xu Shirong already understood that the arrangements for this journey and this group of people were definitely related. She just didn't know who was instructing them. Now that they were almost in the capital, she was increasingly worried about Madam Xu's illness. Although she couldn't figure it out, she suppressed it and put it aside for the time being, only thinking about getting to the capital and entering the Xu residence as soon as possible.

When they arrived at the Xu residence in the capital, it was already dusk. It seemed that the people in the Xu residence knew when she arrived. As soon as the group arrived at the gate of the Hanlin Academy, which was guarded by two stone lions, they saw that the gate was wide open and seven or eight servants came out to greet them.

Chapter fifty-eight

Xu Shirong hurried along the way, and the closer she got to the capital, the more uneasy she felt. This unease stemmed partly from worry about Madam Xu's illness, partly from the mysterious visitor along the way, and partly from something she herself was unsure of. Seeing that the Xu family had apparently known her return date and opened the gates to welcome her, she was slightly taken aback. Recognizing the steward she had seen on her previous visit, who was now directing servants to move the trunks, she hurriedly asked, "How is my mother's health now?"

The steward greeted him and then said with a smile, "Madam was just now learning that the young master had arrived, and she is very happy about it."