Translator: NovelMultiverse | Editor: NovelMultiverse
Yu Linglong didnât move; she seemed to be asleep .
Lord Xu apparently felt that this news was very fresh, and told the entire situation to Yu Linglong: âGan Yezhou has been the crown prince and prince for 20 years . Now that he is powerful, it is too difficult to pay . He is only in his 50s . All of a sudden, his son went missing, and the people in the house of Gan still donât know how urgent it is!â
Yu Linglong knew that Lord Xu always gossiped . He wouldnât let go of the affairs of inner courtyards of the Yu house, and naturally he knew everything about other peopleâs homes . Now Lord Xu kept speaking while she was only listening to the cicadas singing outside the window .
Lord Xu was obviously very content, and he told Yu Linglong all the rumors he heard outside: âDid you know? People say that the Blue Lotus Cult has tied up the little son of the Gan family, and they say that they would use this to blackmail Gan Yezhou . They would make Gan Yezhou write a letter to persuade his father to abdicate and give the crown to the prince . â
Yu Linglong finally opened her eyes: âAbdicate?â
It was the first time that she heard Lord Xu talk about things in the court . Although she didnât understand ancient rules, she also knew that the throne was hereditary . Now the emperor was in good health . Why do they want him to abdicate?
When Lord Xu saw Yu Linglong speaking, he was even more interested: âLinglong, donât you know what it means to abdicate? Iâll tell youââ
âOkay,â Yu Linglong interrupted Lord Xu impatiently, âWho will be the emperor, and what does it have to do with the Blue Lotus Cult?â
Lord Xu said nonchalantly, âProbably because they feel that the emperor is old and weak?â
Yu Linglong was really speechless with this lord . As for the prince, she didnât have any business with him . His fatherâs throne was unstable, and he didnât take it seriously .
Yu Linglong said faintly: âYour house is all messed up, and you still have free time to come out and play?â
Lord Xu leaned forward with a smile and said in a low voice: âI donât care about them . I just want to protect you . â
Yu Linglong only felt cold all over, even the wind from Lord Xuâs fan felt cold .
There was a lot of chaos outside, and people were panicking, but Lord Xu still had the mood to have a love affair .
Fragments of sunlight came in from the window lattice and sprinkled onto Yu Linglongâs body . A dress embroidered with celestial blue water and a lotus flower was draped on the couch, adding a touch of beauty to her slender body . On her porcelain-white face, her fan-like eyelashes hung down slightly, casting a long shadow and shaking like butterfly wings . This scene was really pleasing to the eyes .
The person on the couch turned sideways . With a lazy and charming posture, she said casually: âThe people of the Qinglian Cult are really stupid . If you catch a child, could you make the emperor listen to them?â
Lord Xu smiled and said: âYou donât know? This kid is empress Ganâs nephew and the only descendant of the Gan family . Even in the face of the empress, the father is more dedicated . â
Yu Linglong was sensitive to the estrangement in Lord Xuâs words, calling the emperor father, and only referring to the empress as empress .
Perhaps living in the royal family was not necessarily a lucky thing . At the very least, the people in it were not necessarily happy .
Yu Linglong didnât care about Lord Xuâs mood, and immediately focused on another matter he mentioned .
âEmpress Gan...is Gan Taifuâs younger sister?â
This Gan Taifu sounded very powerful . He was the teacher of the prince, and his younger sister was the empress queen . When this was sorted out, would the uncle teach the nephew?
Lord Xu said dismissively: âYes, havenât you heard of it before?â
He didnât pay attention to Yu Linglongâs thoughtful look, and Lord Xu obviously didnât care about these twists and turns, and he immediately changed the subject: âIs the dagger I gave you last time easy to use?â
Yu Linglong remembered that the dagger that Lord Xu had sent was indispensable for saving her from danger twice, and the expression on her face relaxed a little: âItâs okay, itâs pretty easy to kill dogs with . â
Lord Xu was taken aback: âYou...you used it to kill dogs?â
Yu Linglong raised her eyebrows: âWhatâs the matter?â
Lord Xu reluctantly shook his head and sighed: âWhat a waste . â
Yu Linglong said coldly: âWho is wasteful? Go and see for yourself, what is in the vacant buildings on the west side of the yard?â
Speaking of wasting things, who was better at that than Lord Xu? She didnât know where he got it from, she didnât want him to spend money on her . The vacant rooms in Pinlan Garden were all filled with things sent by this guy, and they were almost piled up to the ceiling .
Seeing Yu Linglongâs anger, Lord Xu hurriedly said with a smile: âLinglong, I was wrong . You can do whatever you like with the things I give you, let alone killing dogs, chickens, or toads!â
Yu Linglong was speechless . She really couldnât do anything with this guy . She beat him, and he escaped quickly and came back in a few days; she scolded him, and he was always smiling, never getting angry at her; she ignored him, and he went straight through the house, visiting Pinlan Garden to report from time to time .
She thought this little prince would use up his fresh energy in a few days, but who knew that he would persevere in pursuing her .
Yu Linglong sighed, âLeave, I want to rest . â
Heâd never seen Yu Linglong look so pleasant . Lord Xu was almost happy . His eyes narrowed when he laughed . Hearing Yu Linglong saying this, he said, âLinglong, Iâll take you to an opera tomorrow, okay?â
Yu Linglong waved her hand impatiently: âNo, Iâm not going anywhere on such a hot day!â
The more frustrated Lord Xu got, the more courageous he became: âThen I will ask the theater troupe to sing for you in the house!â
Yu Linglongâs anger boiled over . She grabbed the teacup and threw it: âI canât talk to you anymore!â
Only when Yu Linglong was furious would Lord Xu obediently pick up his tail and leave . He brushed the tea from his clothes and said with a grin: âThen you rest first, and I will see you tomorrow!â
After finally dismissing the sticky candy, Yu Linglong was lying on the couch, but she was a little impetuous and could no longer sleep .
What Lord Xu had said just now kept circling in her mind . She seemed to think there was something important, but she couldnât grasp it . After thinking about it for a moment, she suddenly had an inspiration and immediately had an idea .
Turning over and sitting up, Yu Linglong said in a loud voice: âXuan Cao, Lingâer!â
...
Early the next morning, two carriages pulling a pile of large boxes stopped at the back door of the Yu house .
The head person knocked on the door, and a door-keeper poked her head out and looked at them suspiciously: âWho are you looking for?â
The man smiled and said, âWe are in the Lubao troupe . The Fourth Lady of your house said that today we are going to sing . â
The woman at the back door looked at them suspiciously: âWait here . Iâll go in and report to the mistress . â
The door slammed shut, and the person behind whispered, âIsnât it just a generalâs mansion? Itâs so difficult for even a working woman to speak . â
The troupe leader hurriedly stopped them and said, âStop talking . Itâs nothing to wait a while . â
A girl in a floral dress chuckled softly: âWhy is the troupe leader so careful? We have served officials bigger than this general, but we havenât seen the troupe leader so frightened . â
The troupe leader spat back: âWhat do you know? When the capital is being searched for Blue Lotus cultists these days, and how can anyone listen to the opera? The theater group hasnât opened for many days . If we donât serve them carefully, youâll all be left cold and hungry!â
The girl turned her back and stuck her tongue out, afraid to speak .
The people in the troupe were chatting in low voices, and no one noticed that in the dark, several pairs of scrutinizing eyes were looking at them .
After a while, the gatekeeper came and opened the door: âCome in . â
A group of people filed in with the carriage and followed the gatekeeper into the inner courtyard .
The woman led them to a hall and said: âThe Fourth Lady has ordered you to just sing here for one hour . Set up the stage first . â
The troupe leader replied: âYes, yes . Please rest assured . Tell the fourth lady we will definitely use all our abilities to serve you nobles . â
The woman nodded and went to the inner courtyard to report .
In Pinlan Garden, Yu Linglong looked at Xuan Cao in the bronze mirror, carefully inserted the last gold hairpin on her hair, and then faintly said: âPeople will go to the yards, saying that to welcome the old lady back home, I invited everyone to watch the show . â
Lingâer was such a child . After hearing these words, she couldnât help asking: âMiss, can the people in our yard go to the theater?â
Yu Linglong nodded: âGo! All of you! The more people, the better!â
There would be too many people to distract the people in black and make her plans easier .
Hearing that they could watch the show, the maids of Pinlan Garden were all delighted and happily went to each house and courtyard to inform everyone .
In the past few months, this was the first time Yu Linglong invited everyone to watch a show . Who wouldnât dare to come? Besides, Yu Linglong made it plain and clear that she had invited the theater troupe to welcome Lady Yuâs return home . Even if someone wanted to dishonor Yu Linglong, they still had to honor Lady Yu .
If you donât go to the theater, do you not welcome Lady Yu?
No one would take this risk, and the excited maids were all urging their mistresses to go, so all the ladies of the Yu Mansion, big and small, agreed to go, and Mu Shi was no exception .
As soon as the stage of the Lubao troupe was set up, people had already arrived one after another, taking their seats .
Yu Qianfangâs hair had grown an inch . In the hot weather, the black veil was still densely wrapped around her head, but her blue and white scalp was finally gone .
The scars on Yu Qianjiaoâs face remained unhealed, but fortunately, Mu Shi did everything possible to find her a pair of ivory dentures, which finally supported her shriveled cheeks without being too embarrassing . [Read this novel and other amazing translated novels from the original source at the âNovel Multiverse dot comâ website @ novelmultiverse . com]
Yu Qianliu was not hurt, and her hair was nice, but when she saw Yu Linglong, she looked like a mouse who saw a cat, and she didnât dare approach her even from a distance .
Yu Linglong looked around at the crowd and couldnât help feeling very satisfied . Now, no one in the Yu house dared to look down on her as a commonerâs daughter, let alone bully her .
Yu Weide and Yu Weiyuan were sitting at the same table . As usual, they moved silently, but they were not very noticeable .
With the support of Concubine Dong, Mu Shi slowly walked to the seat of honor . Seeing Yu Linglong sitting on the side, she hurriedly sat down a little farther away and looked at Yu Linglong nervously from time to time .
Was this girl going to invite everyone to the opera?
She didnât believe that Yu Linglong would be so kind . When she remembered that all the money for the opera was taken from her, Mu Shi was in pain .
But she didnât dare to say anything . Yu Linglong was under the guise of Lady Yu . Even if she was the mistress of the house, she couldnât do anything wrong .n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Lady Yu finally arrived . Everyone hurriedly got up and bowed to her, and said in unison, âWe pay our respects to the lady . â
Lady Yu had lived on the mountain for three years . Now, when she saw the scene full of children and grandchildren, she couldnât restrain her smile: âPlease rise . â
Yu Linglong sat next to Lady Yu and said: âWhatever kind of opera the old lady likes to listen to, just request it . â
The host who had been waiting a long time ago hurriedly offered the playbook . The maid next to Lady Yu carefully took it and gave it to Lady Yu: âLady, please read it . â
Lady Yu smiled and said to Yu Linglong: âItâs a bother to show your filial piety, itâs extremely difficult to get this Lubao troupe . â
Yu Linglong smiled slightly and didnât take it to heart . Right now, there were more important things to worry about .
Lady Yu flipped through the playbook, ordered a few lively scenes, and smiled, and said to the troupe leader: âSing well and our Fourth Lady will reward you heavily!â
After speaking, she said to Yu Linglong amused: âFourth Girl, donât be stingy . If you donât have money, Iâm afraid they wonât sing with all their hearts!â
Yu Linglong pursed her lips and nodded faintly . The troupe leader looked pleased and respectfully saluted: âPlease rest assured, Lady and Fourth Lady, the younger ones must use all their skills to serve the distinguished guests . â
This group of masters traveled all over . They were knowledgeable, and they could see who was in charge of this mansion at a glance, so naturally they tried their best to flatter them .
Mu Shi was left aside . She was so angry that she didnât say a word, or else she would succumb to internal injuries .
With Yu Linglong present, the others were even more reluctant to come up . Only Concubine Mei was on the side with Zhang Luoshui and talking to Lady Yu for fun, and finally, the atmosphere warmed .
In a short while, the gong was already on the stage, and the dull atmosphere gradually became lively .
Yu Linglong sat for a while, then got up and walked out . Lingâer and Xuan Cao hurriedly followed, but she waved their hands to stop them .
There were some things she must do by herself .
She saw that the sun was high in the sky, and the Yu house was quiet everywhere . Everyone was watching the show, and no one was to be seen .
Yu Linglong walked slowly in the garden . The sky was scorching like fire, and the ground was full of cherry red and willow green . She did not feel the heat at all but felt that there was a cold and invisible pressure around her slowly approaching .
Sensing a gust of wind behind her, she didnât turn her head back, and said coldly, âArenât you tired after being with me for so long?â
In the blink of an eye, a long black figure appeared on her side . The silver mask glowed with cold radiance in the sun, and the silver eagle on the corner of the robe fluttered in the grass by the roadside, fluttering like a butterfly .
The manâs thin lips were slowly raised, and a pair of brilliant eyes looked down at Yu Linglong with inquiry and sarcasm: âSince you know that you canât escape my eyes and ears, why donât you hand them out generously?â
Yu Linglong snorted coldly: âDoes anyone who is secretly monitoring others have the face to talk about being upright?â
The manâs eyes suddenly became cold: âYou are testing my patience . â
The tall body suddenly approached with a threatening force . Yu Linglong only felt a familiar smell pass by her nose . Before she could think of anything, the manâs low voice had already sounded in her ears .
âMy patience isnât very great, so youâd better give him to me immediately!â
Yu Linglongâs expression did not change, and she continued to walk forward slowly: âDonât follow me anymore . Where is he now? I donât even know . â
Her slender arm was suddenly grabbed by the manâs big hand . The manâs suppressed anger sounded like muffled thunder in the sky, buzzing in her ears: âSo you really let Feng Xuanyuan leave!?â
Yu Linglongâs pink mouth twisted into a sarcastic smile: âDidnât you already know?â
Two clusters of angry flames leaped in the manâs eyes, and they were about to burn the petite woman in front of him: âImpossible! I ordered people to keep all exitsââ
Yu Linglong raised her pretty face without fear, and interrupted him coldly: âAre you sure you know every exit of the Yu house?â
The man let go of Yu Linglongâs hand, and raised his hand to push Yu Linglong away: âYou are too bold!â
Before the palm of his hand touched Yu Linglongâs clothes, his wrist was tightly pinched by a small white hand . Yu Linglong narrowed her beautiful eyes and stared straight at the eyes behind the silver mask .
âIf you didnât catch anyone, how would your master punish you? Huh?â
Feeling the sudden tightening of the manâs muscles in her hand, Yu Linglong slowly let go of his hand: âChase after him now, maybe thereâs still time . â
A suspicious arc was drawn across the corner of the manâs lips: âWill you help me?â
Yu Linglong sneered: âI am not interested in the grudges between you . All I want is to stay out of the situation and not help anyone . â
So she only needed Feng Xuanyuan to not die in the Yu house, and then he wouldnât have anything to do with her . After leaving the Yu house, if Feng Xuanyuan was dead or alive, it had nothing to do with her .
The gloomy eyes pierced Yu Linglongâs beautiful face with a cold light . The man looked at her for a while, then turned around suddenly, and disappeared in the blink of an eye .
Yu Linglong watched the black shadow disappear like a ghost and immediately turned back to the stage .
âXuan Cao, Lingâer, follow the plan . â
...
The night finally came .
The leader of the Lubao troupe got the reward and asked everyone to pack their things and walk to the back door .
Several figures in the dark stared closely at the movement of everyone in the troupe, and whispered: âHow is it, are there any problems?â
âI checked . When they came in the morning, there were 28 people . Now there are 25 people . There should be three people in the carriage . â
âThere should be? Are you sure!?â
âThis......â
âYou donât know the commanderâs temper? Are you sure or not!?â
After a moment of silence, the answering voice said softly: âIâm not sure . â
âI would rather kill someone accidentally than let him go . â The cold voice said in the dark, âSearch!â
The Lubao troupe had just turned the corner when they were stopped by a few men in black .
Feeling that the other people were not good, the troupe leader hurried forward and trotted a few steps: âDear fellows, what can I do to help...â
They didnât wait for the troupe leader to finish, but he was pushed aside roughly by a man in black, and several black figures went straight to the carriage .
The people around were so frightened by the sudden situation that none of them dared to step forward .
The thin carriage curtain was suddenly lifted, and several people in the car were startled and raised their faces .
With the dim light of the lantern on the front of the car, the few ink-filled faces in the car looked strange .
Looking at the costumes on them before they had time to change, the head man in black snorted heavily, looked at them sharply, and confirmed that there were only three people in the narrow carriage before lowering the curtain .
The men in black didnât say a word . They turned and left, and disappeared suddenly like apparitions .
The horrified people looked at each other . The troupe leader recovered and waved in a panic: âGo, go!â
...
Three days passed, and the days seemed to return to calm . The only change in Pinlan Garden was that Tong Hua, who was not important, was suddenly promoted to a second-class maid, who could enter the inner room to serve Yu Linglong .
In the quiet afternoon, there were only waves of cicadas in the yard . Xiao Qing sat in the shadow under the porch, her nimble hands flying around, embroidering a complicated pattern .
When the curtain in the main room was lifted, Xiao Qing looked up and saw Tong Hua walking out with a basin of water . She hurriedly put away the work in her hands and greeted her with a smile: âIs the lady awake? â
Tong Hua smiled shyly: âNot yet . â
Seeing Xiao Qing look at the copper basin in her hand, Tonghua lowered her head and explained: âThe sky is too dry . Iâm afraid the dust in the room is too much, so I wiped the table and bench . â
Xiao Qing smiled, concealing a trace of jealousy under her eyes, and said: âYou have great eyesight and value, and you want to get something like this . No wonder the lady only promoted you . â
Tong Huaâs face turned red, and she said softly: âItâs just my luck . â
Xiao Qing cleared her throat and said, âIâll ask you this, why havenât you seen Lingâer for several days?â
Tong Hua shook her head hesitantly: âI donât know either . â
Xiao Qing looked around and lowered her voice, âDid you ask Xuan Cao?â
Tong Hua raised her head in surprise: âHow...how is this easy to ask?â
Xiao Qing smiled awkwardly: âThey are sisters who do things together . I just care about her . Could it be that she did something wrong and was thrown out by the young lady?â
Facing Xiao Qingâs questioning, Tong Hua only shook her head apologetically: âSister Xiao Qing, I really donât know . â
Xiao Qing was resentful to her and flicked Tonghuaâs forehead: âYou, what a problem, I was really blind to this open position!â
Tong Hua hadnât spoken yet, but only heard a cold voice in the room: âIf you canât mention her, how can you mention yourself?â
The two maids were startled, and hurriedly turned around and bowed together: âMiss . â
Yu Linglong said in a low voice, âLeave, Tong Hua . Xiao Qing, come in . â
Xiao Qing groaned inwardly but didnât dare to disobey in the slightest . She walked in lightly and knelt down as soon as she entered the room .
âI know that I was wrong, and I no longer dare to gossip anymore . I beg you to spare me this time!â
Yu Linglong looked condescendingly at Xiao Qing: âI spared you the first time, and you dared to offend me a second time . Did you forget the punishment last time?â
Xiao Qing couldnât help feeling a faint pain under her knees, and her tears couldnât stop streaming down: âI really know I was wrong, and I donât dare to ask anymore!â