Chapter 451: The Majesty of the Liang Emperor
Chapter 451: The Majesty of the Liang Emperor
The sun shone brightly, and the weather was pleasant.
As usual, Meng Qianqian was drying medicinal herbs in the courtyard.
When she first arrived at Qianji Pavilion, disciples would often come to help her in the courtyard.
But ever since she consumed the Pavilion's "tonic," those disciples never came again.
Qianji Pavilion believed she was under their control and saw no need for further surveillance.
Tan'er bounced into the courtyard, "Sister!"
Meng Qianqian curved her lips slightly, "Tan'er."
Tan'er tilted her head towards the entrance, "Who's coming?"
Meng Qianqian looked closely and saw Shang Wuyou leading several tall and sturdy men into the courtyard.
Leading them was Shangguan Ling, dressed in the outer disciple's attire of Qianji Pavilion. Judging by the color of the token hanging from his waist, he seemed to have been promoted.
Indeed, the commander of the Golden Robe Guard in the Commander's Mansion could get promoted anywhere.
Shangguan Ling cupped his hands in greeting to Meng Qianqian, "Senior Sister Yan, this is the medicine cabinet personally selected by the Young Master for Elder Yan. Where should we place it?"
Meng Qianqian glanced at Shang Wuyou, then her gaze fell on the men carrying the medicine cabinet. She understood and said, "Master's storage room is here."
She led them into a side room.
As soon as the door closed, she immediately stepped forward, "Brother!"
Chenlong touched the human skin mask on his face.
His sister was the first to recognize him.
Proud.
"Little Tiger, guess who I am?"
Meng Qianqian looked at his silver hair, "With this hair, do you even need to guess?"
Ji Li, "I said you don't need to wear a human skin mask."
The other one was obvious, the Snake.
Meng Qianqian touched her forehead, "You two are too reckless."
One with silver hair, one with blue eyes, and the other... Although he didn't have any distinctive features, his aura stood out like a crane among chickens, unforgettable at first sight.
Shangguan Ling laughed, "Don't worry, everything is well prepared inside and out. We didn't encounter anyone along the way."
Shang Wuyou calmly said, "If we're discovered, I'll just say they're my men."
Meng Qianqian smiled, "Wu You has grown up."
Shang Wuyou turned his face, "I was never a child."
Tan'er said, "Yes, yes, Wu You isn't a child, Baozhu is! Baozhu needs to be coaxed once a day, but Wu You needs to be coaxed three times a day!"
Shang Wuyou, "Me? I don't do that."
Meng Qianqian found their bickering amusing and laughed, "Sit down."
The group sat around an eight-immortal table.
Chenlong sat to Meng Qianqian's left, and Shang Wuyou took the seat on her other side, adding, "This is the only available spot."
Meng Qianqian nodded with a smile, "Mhm."
Tan'er went to the rooftop to keep watch, a skill she learned from Yu Zichuan.
"It's been a while since I've seen Yu Zichuan. Are he, Uncle Yu, and Aunt Yu doing well?" Meng Qianqian asked.
"They're doing great," Chenlong replied.
Yu Zichuan was getting bored without any gossip to feed on.
He had come along today and was sent to find the Miaojiang King.
Meng Qianqian murmured, "In two days, Lu Qi and Gongsun Liuying will have their grand wedding. Has my maternal grandfather arrived in the Imperial City yet?"
According to the plan, the Miaojiang King should have departed early, but Liu Qingyun and Baozhu left later and still arrived at the Imperial City first.
Of course, this was also because those two great thieves from the jianghu traveled day and night without rest.
The Miaojiang King wasn't in a hurry to attend the wedding, and it was possible for him to arrive on the wedding day after leisurely enjoying the scenery along the way.
Chenlong said, "Shangguan Ling said you're investigating Prince Jin."
Meng Qianqian acknowledged, "I suspect he's Lu Yuan's birth father."
Shangguan Ling exclaimed in surprise, "Is that so? He found his birth father after recognizing a wild father? What a coincidence!"
Meng Qianqian shared the jade pendant incident with the group, "Lu Yuan's father is a prince from the Qin Royal Family. In the past, the only Qin Royal Family member who visited Miaojiang was Prince Jin."
"That's terrible," Shangguan Ling clicked his tongue, "Prince Jin has a legitimate wife. The Grand Commander can only be a concubine's son."
Ji Li snapped open her folding fan, "I heard that Princess Jin is a tigress, very fierce."
Chenlong analyzed rationally, "If we want to deal with Qianji Pavilion, the identity of a Great Liang Imperial Grandson might be useful."
Shangguan Ling said, "How useful can the identity of Prince Jin's son be? They have the National Guardian Qilin, and soon they'll have a daughter-in-law from Qianji Pavilion. How can a mere son of Prince Jin compare to the Qilin and Heaven's Chosen Daughter? Unless the Grand Commander is also given a title like 'Heaven's Chosen.'"
Mentioning this, he frowned, "Tell me, why does the Great Liang Emperor believe in these things? The Retired Emperor never believed in such baseless claims."
In the past, Meng Qianqian would have agreed with Shangguan Ling, but after her rebirth, she discovered that many things in the world were unexplainable.
She developed a sense of reverence for the divine.
Chenlong felt the same.
Seeing the group's silence, Shangguan Ling spoke up, "Why aren't you talking? Am I wrong? What Qilin? What Heaven's Chosen? They're obviously fake, just Qianji Pavilion's lies to deceive the world."
Ji Li said, "The Imperial City is filled with dragon energy. Prince Qin's ascension to the throne is a heavenly mandate. The alternating flashes of the Hook Chen Star and the Heavenly Treasury Star indicate that the National Guardian Qilin and Heaven's Chosen Daughter are indeed in the Imperial City."
"It's just a pity that the Divine Maiden isn't here. She would have seen even more than I have."
Shangguan Ling: ...Why do I suddenly feel out of place?
As they were talking, the window lattice was slammed hard.
Tan'er supported herself with one hand and went to the bed, opening the window.
The falcon poked its head in and chirped.
Meng Qianqian asked, "Any news?"
The falcon strutted into the room and landed on the Eight Immortals table, first showing off its impressive chest muscles and then strutting around proudly, allowing everyone to smell the beggar's chicken it had eaten.
It was indeed a formidable bird!
Meng Qianqian took out a jar of dried meat.
The falcon immediately began its performance.
It spread its wings and presented a non-existent note.
Meng Qianqian translated, "Mother read the note."
The falcon dramatically retreated a few steps, chirping in exaggeration.
Meng Qianqian said, "Mother was terrified."
"Chirp, chirp, chirp!"
"Prince Jin has arrived."
"Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp!"
The falcon hopped down and used its wings to embrace the Snake's leg.
Meng Qianqian's mouth twitched, "Are you sure Mother is that shameless?"
It was hugging Prince Jin's leg and refusing to let go!
The falcon was startled and jumped up, only to bump into the corner of the table... or rather, the air beside it.
The falcon's feathers ruffled, and it looked around in confusion.
Shangguan Ling asked, "What happened this time?"
Meng Qianqian replied, "Prince Jin denied it, and Mother... was so heartbroken that she bumped into a pillar and died."
Shangguan Ling's body trembled, "What the..."
The falcon, covered in wounds, struggled to move across the ground using its wings.
Meng Qianqian took out a dagger, "Tonight, we'll have roasted falcon."
The falcon, expecting a hundred rounds of water and some dried meat, got straight to the point.
It picked up Liu Qingyun's hairband and pounced on Shang Wuyou, flapping its wings and chirping, "Chirp, chirp, chirp! Chirp, chirp, chirp! Chirp, chirp, chirp!"
Then, it wiped its beak with its wing and walked away, looking satisfied.
Meng Qianqian's hand shook, and the dagger dropped.
Shangguan Ling asked her, "What's this about?"
Meng Qianqian said, "A forced move, eat and run."
Shangguan Ling: "..."
Everyone: "..."
At this moment, Liu Qingyun was completely unaware that her dark history had been revealed by a falcon, and she was even smiling in her dreams, fortunately, no one knew.
In the Imperial Study.
Prince Jin entered the palace together with Prince Ming.
When Eunuch Yu was sent to summon Prince Jin, Prince Ming happened to be there as well.
"Your Majesty."
The two princes bowed to the Liang Emperor.
The Crown Prince greeted Prince Jin, "Big brother."
Prince Jin nodded.
Prince Ming said, "Second brother is also here."
The Liang Emperor turned to Prince Ming, "I didn't summon you. What are you doing here?"
Prince Ming pouted, "Your son missed you, Father. Can't I come to see you?"
Among the Liang Emperor's six sons, Prince Ming was the most wayward and a true playboy.
The Liang Emperor was annoyed by his presence and ordered him to leave.
"What's all this rambling?"
Prince Ming waved his folding fan and heard the laughter of the precious piglet.
"Is that my little niece whom I've never met?"
Intrigued by the laughter, Prince Ming headed towards the small garden.
From a distance, he saw a little tiger cub hugging a football, rolling around on the grass, looking absolutely adorable.
Just as he was about to approach and play with the little one, he caught sight of Lu Yuan on the swing, and his smile froze, "You're here too?"
Lu Yuan smiled, "Hello, Uncle Six."
"Hello to you too, old man."
Seeing this fellow, Prince Ming recalled the beating he had endured recently, "Don't think I don't know, you're not my second brother's real son."
Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow, "Oh? Would Uncle Six dare to say this in front of His Majesty?"
Prince Ming was taken aback.
He hummed, "Even if my father favors you, you can't surpass Lu Qi. He is the rightful heir of Da Liang, the lucky star of my father."
Lu Yuan smiled casually, "In that case, why waste time on me? Go, he's in the study. Hurry and find him."
Prince Ming said, "You're uneducated. Qi Er has a better background than you, more talented, and more diligent."
Lu Yuan replied, "Uncle Six is right."
Prince Ming thought, Is this kid learning how to argue? He found arguing with Lu Yuan uninteresting and didn't want to hold the little one in front of him, lest it seem like he was showing off his affection for them as father and daughter.
He decided to return to the Imperial Study and eavesdrop on his father's conversation with his two brothers.
"I ask you, did you go to that inn back then?"
"Your son has stayed in too many inns, and I can't recall which one you're referring to."
"Your Majesty, the case files have arrived."
Eunuch Yu entered the Imperial Study carrying two case files.
When Prince Jin went to Miaojiang, it was under the orders of Prince Qin, and officials accompanied him throughout the journey, keeping detailed records of his accommodations and meals.
Prince Jin couldn't remember, but the case files clearly stated everything.
The Liang Emperor opened the file and asked Lu Zhaoyan, "Which month and day?"
Lu Zhaoyan replied, "The ninth day of the winter month."
The reason he remembered so clearly was not because something happened with "Dou Qingyi" that night, but because it was the day he lost Xiao Bai.
The Liang Emperor's gaze fell on Prince Jin's face, and he asked with an imposing aura, "Did you have an affair with a commoner woman in town?"
Prince Jin's eyes flickered.
The Liang Emperor had his answer.
Today was also a short chapter, and the Liang Emperor's efficiency was indeed impressive! I can't afford a king crab, but I'd love a king's ticket!
(End of Chapter)
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