Not just anyone could ride in a vermillion-wheeled carriage. According to the rules of the Great Yan Dynasty, only princesses and royal consorts of sufficient rank could be specially granted a vermillion-wheeled carriage.
And among such vermillion-wheeled carriages with golden dragon carvings, only the eldest princess of Anyang in the entire Great Yan Dynasty was granted one.
Inside the spacious and luxurious carriage, Lingxi sat by the window, catching a glimpse of the two figures passing by. She recalled the scene of sending Wei Nanxun back earlier.
Along the way, this little girl hadn’t said a word. She didn’t cry or make a fuss about being framed, but remained calm and decisive. When she saw the master, she was respectful and measured, neither humble nor arrogant. Even in private, she didn’t try to inquire too much about the master’s identity or cling to relationships. She was indeed someone who understood the rules.
There were many obedient and sensible people in this world, but few who were self-aware.
“Master, everything has been done according to your instructions, but this servant observes that the Crown Prince doesn’t seem to believe it.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
The light inside the carriage was somewhat dim. As the low, lazy voice sounded, people noticed the figure leaning against the carriage wall.
Even though he was sitting, and the shadows obscured his face, he still had the imposing aura of Mount Tai, making even the spacious carriage seem cramped.
A broadsword lay across his side, as wide as a woman’s palm. It was dark and gleaming with a cold light, and one could faintly see mottled bloodstains on the sharp blade, making one feel intimidated.
“Master, no one knows your whereabouts except His Majesty and the eldest princess. At this critical juncture, if something unexpected happens, should this servant eliminate this variable?”
The person sitting in the carriage was none other than the emperor’s younger brother, the Great Yan God of War who struck fear into the hearts of enemies, Prince Su, Pei Ji.
He was one of the two people the emperor trusted most. This time, he secretly returned to the capital using the carriages of the eldest princess of Anyang. He was summoned back by imperial decree, and even the Crown Prince and the Empress Dowager didn’t know he had returned.
As for the matter he was going to handle, no one knew except the emperor.
Hearing Lingxi’s words, Pei Ji seemed to see those eyes before him, clearly as weak as weeds, wanting to break them, yet as resilient as cattail silk.
His slender fingers with thin calluses lightly tapped on the broadsword, revealing a hint of murderous aura in his casualness.
“Leave her for now.”
“Yes…”
Lingxi couldn’t help but feel surprised. She had been following him for many years and understood the master’s temperament. Although she felt that Wei Nanxun might not have seen his face clearly, she was still sensible enough. However, she still made this suggestion for safety reasons, but she didn’t expect the prince to spare her life.
This was somewhat unexpected to her.
By the time she returned to the Wei family, it was completely dark. Wei Nanxun had just taken a trip to the gates of hell, and was extremely tired. She didn’t have the energy to deal with anyone else.
Fortunately, with Wei Mingzhao’s matter, Wang Shi and the others had no time to pay attention to her. She gave a salute, dealt with a few words, and hid back in her own small courtyard.
Servants had already prepared hot water for her to bathe early. They were not qualified to bring maids into the palace. Naturally, Zhixia didn’t know what she had experienced in the palace.
After the other maids retreated, she took off her clothes and revealed the injuries on her body.
Zhixia was so frightened that she almost exclaimed, “Miss, what happened to you? Where did all these wounds come from? No, this servant must call a doctor.”
The reason why Wei Nanxun trusted Zhixia so much, and didn’t even avoid her when showing the wounds, was because Zhixia had been serving her since she was a child. In her previous life, she followed her into the palace, and was not only loyal but also protected her in everything. The days of discomfort and fear when she first entered the palace were all spent with Zhixia accompanying her.
It’s not you, it’s me.Just looking for a good time.Later, she was coaxed by Wei Mingzhao, who said that Zhixia had reached the age to get married, and took the initiative to choose a guard for her.
The marriage looked very good. The other party was handsome and talented, and marrying over would be considered a small official’s wife. She wouldn’t have to serve people anymore, so she agreed to it.
It wasn’t until a year later that Wei Nanxun learned that this guard was a gambler and a lecher. He not only gambled away all the dowry she had given to Zhixia, but also sold Zhixia to an old rich man who was old enough to be her grandfather as a concubine.
She tried everything to rescue Zhixia, but the two mistresses were never able to see each other again until she died.
Therefore, she didn’t care about others, Zhixia was the only person she trusted, and she must make her complete in this life.
“Silly Zhixia, if you call a doctor, wouldn’t everyone know that I’m injured? It’s okay, I’m fine, they’re all just skin injuries. I brought the best wound medicine, and it will be fine soon, and it won’t leave scars.”
She briefly explained what happened today, especially omitting the thrilling parts, only saying that she met the maid of the eldest princess, and was rescued by a kind person, and that Wei Mingzhao was suffering the consequences of her own actions.
Even if she said it lightly, Zhixia’s face was still full of distress, and her movements to wipe her body were even more careful, for fear of hurting her.
“This Crown Prince looks like a human being, but why is he so bad-hearted? He actually used such despicable means. Fortunately, the young lady was smart and rejected the eldest young lady’s proposal, otherwise entering the palace would be no different from jumping into a fire pit.”
Someone could accompany her to scold Pei Yuyan and Wei Mingzhao. Even without substantial help, it made her feel a little more relaxed.
“Okay, okay, this matter is known to heaven, earth, you, and me. We can’t leak a word outside, otherwise, your young lady, I, will lose my head.”
Zhixia was good in every way, but her temperament was a little simple. She was afraid that she would be tricked into talking at some point. Sure enough, when she heard that she was in danger, Zhixia immediately covered her mouth: “Don’t worry, young lady, even if someone tortures this servant severely, this servant will never leak a word!”
It made Wei Nanxun show the first smile of the day. After laughing, she was also thinking that with today’s incident, Wei Mingzhao’s wedding date must be brought forward compared to her previous life.
Pei Yuyan owed the Wei family, and it was not good to propose that she be a dowry again, so she had to make plans for her future early.
She had no plans to marry, but she had to find a way to keep her younger brother’s studies and the family business accumulated by her father in her own hands.
Her father ranked second at home and was born of a concubine. His biological mother passed away early, and he had to make a living under the hand of his stepmother since he was a child, developing an obedient and honest temperament. The only rebellion in his life should have been marrying her mother.
Although he was not a material for studying, he had a good understanding of business, and he had accumulated a lot of family business by traveling north and south.
But he was honest and was brainwashed by the people around him, always feeling that doing business was inferior to others. He had to rely on the Duke’s mansion to have someone take care of his business, so he handed over most of the money he had earned over the years to his grandmother to support the expenses of the entire mansion.
Don’t look at the glory of the Duke’s mansion, in fact, the little salary of the uncle can’t support the expenses of the whole family at all. Most of the money is earned by her father.
In the past, she was as stupid as her father, clearly the whole family looked down on their family, but they still eagerly gave them money to spend, but still couldn’t get a good word.
I’m looking for someone in Lucena City today.Willing to lie about how we met.Even if the money earned in a certain month was less, she felt that it was her fault, and she would rather be tight-lipped than provide for the mansion first.
In the previous life, she would eventually agree to enter the palace, wasn’t it also because her grandmother used her younger brother’s future and her father’s business as a coercion.
But what was the result? Her younger brother was still being squeezed out by his cousins at home. A year before she had an accident, her younger brother was wrongly accused of injuring the son of someone’s family. Not only did no one in the Wei family help him speak, but they even directly sent him to that family to apologize, causing her younger brother to have his legs broken alive and spend his life in a wheelchair.
When her father learned the news, he was so angry that he was bedridden. No one in the Wei family cared about his condition, and they took over his business with peace of mind.
Now that she thought about it, Wei Mingzhao might have been particularly good to her at the beginning because her father held most of the money bag in the mansion, and at the same time, she could gain a good reputation for treating her concubine sister well.
Since they were nobles of the Duke’s mansion and looked down on merchants, then in this life, she would keep all the money in her own hands, protect her younger brother and father, and never let those people take advantage of her.
Now the best way is to separate the family, but with her father’s character, he will never agree. This matter must be done slowly.
The two mistresses talked for a while, and the water was a little cold, so Wei Nanxun was about to get up.
Zhixia wiped her body and couldn’t help but mutter again: “Miss, why are there more mosquitoes in the palace than in our mansion? They specifically bite such tricky places. This servant will get you ointment to apply in a while.”
Mosquitoes? It was a bit hot at noon, but she had no memory of being bitten by mosquitoes.
Wei Nanxun stepped out of the tub in confusion, and happened to look back and saw herself in the bronze mirror. There were red and pink marks on the back of her neck, chest, including the side of her breasts.
With a whoosh, her face instantly burned red.
What kind of mosquitoes were these! It was clearly…