Chapter 459: Taking Back What's Hers, Meng Qianqian
Chapter 459: Taking Back What's Hers, Meng Qianqian
This place was originally supposed to be an underground cellar.
There was a similar cellar in the Yu family's mansion, used for storing wine.
To prevent water leakage, the Yu family's cellar did not allow torches inside, relying instead on night pearls embedded in the walls for illumination.
The cellar before her also had numerous night pearls, but they were not as large as those in the Yu family's cellar.
Out of caution, Meng Qianqian put on silver-thread gloves and caressed the night pearls on the wall.
A surge of intense familiarity flooded her mind.
"One, two, three..."
A childish voice echoed in the depths of her soul.
She had been here before, and she had even counted the night pearls on the wall.
Who had brought her here? What had happened here? Meng Qianqian struggled to recall, but whenever she tried to retrieve fragments of her past life's memories, it felt like a needle was stirring in her brain.
Her head throbbed with pain, and fine beads of sweat trickled down her cheeks.
She withdrew her hand from the night pearl and removed the silver-thread gloves.
Then, she began to carefully examine her surroundings.
Besides the night pearls, the walls were adorned with peculiar talismans, and the ground was painted with equally peculiar patterns in cinnabar.
These were unfamiliar to her.
In other words, during her previous visit here, there shouldn't have been any talismans or cinnabar drawings.
Meng Qianqian didn't know their purpose, but she silently memorized them, intending to ask Ji Li and Master Ziwu about them later.
"A cellar with only talismans and cinnabar drawings, and Xiao Rong Er actually stayed here for half an hour. What was she doing? Meditating?"
Meng Qianqian sat cross-legged in the center of the cinnabar drawing on the cellar floor.
"This doesn't seem like a place for meditation, though."
She furrowed her brows, suddenly sensing a fleeting shadow.
She looked up and saw two lanterns hanging on the beams, like two stars gazing at each other from afar.
She stood up and leaped, first removing the lantern on the right.
It was a hexagonal palace lantern, a style from the previous dynasty that had persisted to the present, not uncommon. Strangely, instead of paintings, its six sides were inscribed with a birthdate.
"The year of Renzi, the seventh day of the ninth month, at the third watch of the night, all six sides have the same birthdate. Whose birthdate is this?"
Meng Qianqian muttered to herself.
She looked up at the other lantern, "The writing on that one probably isn't a birthdate either."
She hung the lantern back and was about to remove the one on the right when sounds came from outside the courtyard. Footsteps approached, and it seemed that Xiao Rong Er had returned.
Meng Qianqian had to abandon her plan to investigate further.
She quickly glanced at the characters on the other lantern and left the cellar before Xiao Rong Er arrived.
It was already late, so Meng Qianqian decided to head to the Crown Prince's Mansion first and return another day to continue investigating the cellar's secrets.
Lu Yuan and Liu Qingyun still resided in the main courtyard, while Lu Zhaoyan stayed in Prince Ming's courtyard.
After their recognition as father and son, Lu Yuan no longer had Ji Feng follow him, openly keeping Yu Zichuan by his side.
The hunting falcon knocked on Yu Zichuan's window with its beak.
"Chirp!"
The mistress of the house had arrived! Yu Zichuan didn't understand.
Hunting Falcon: "..."
Since the little brother was unreliable, the hunting falcon had to find the dog man himself.
Meng Qianqian waited for Lu Yuan in the courtyard where she had met Liu Qingyun before.
Lu Yuan had come with Master Ziwu.
Master Ziwu looked at Meng Qianqian with a hint of resentment: "Can you show some respect to an old man?"
Dragging someone out of bed in the middle of the night was truly inconsiderate!
Meng Qianqian's gaze fell on the other person, an ordinary-looking old man, simply dressed, and not particularly ethereal in demeanor. However, upon closer inspection, one would notice a serene air of returning to simplicity between his brows.
"Master Ziwu."
She bowed respectfully.
Master Ziwu glanced at Meng Qianqian: "Do you know me?"
Meng Qianqian replied respectfully: "I've long admired your great name. I am Meng Qianqian, and if you don't mind, you can call me Xiao Jiu."
Master Ziwu nodded slightly: "Your speech is quite pleasant, young one."
"Please take a seat, Master."
Meng Qianqian invited the old master to sit in the main seat, then asked Lu Yuan, "Will anyone come here?"
Lu Yuan replied: "I've taken care of it."
"So soon?"
Meng Qianqian was a bit surprised, "It seems you get along well with your father."
Lu Yuan hummed in response.
Ever since their father-son relationship became clear, Lu Zhaoyan no longer guarded against Lu Yuan as he used to, and the people secretly watching him were all withdrawn.
He was free to do as he pleased, and Lu Zhaoyan rarely interfered.
However, in terms of getting along, one wanted to overturn the heavens, while the other wanted to clean up the family.
Meng Qianqian saw through his tsundere act and smiled, "Alright, I won't say more."
Master Ziwu yawned: "If you're calling me this late, it better be a matter of great urgency."
Meng Qianqian politely said: "Please forgive this junior for the disturbance, Master. As you said, the matter is indeed quite urgent.
Mr. Ziwu said, "I like what you're saying, old man."
Lu Yuan scoffed, "You didn't get enough of the mountain."
Mr. Ziwu glared at him.
Meng Qianqian gently squeezed Lu Yuan's hand under her wide sleeve, and Lu Yuan, without making a sound, looked up at the sky and held her hand as he sat down in the chair.
Mr. Ziwu took a sip of tea, "My teeth hurt!"
Meng Qianqian spoke of Gongsun Yanming's audience with the Emperor, "His Majesty doesn't believe it for now, but Gongsun Yanming won't give up easily. Tomorrow, he will send Gongsun Liuying to the palace, and once she diagnoses you with cold poison, your identity will be exposed."
With Xun Xiangguo's crimes announced to the world, Lu Yuan's cold poison incident in the Xun family was no longer a secret.
Mr. Ziwu stroked his beard, "There are many people under the heavens who have been afflicted by cold poison, not just him."
Meng Qianqian shook her head, "But it's a coincidence that they're the same age, and they don't have a father. Moreover, 'Yuan' is very similar to the character in your name... It's really hard to argue against it."
Mr. Ziwu said to Lu Yuan, "Who made you choose such a name?"
Meng Qianqian quickly said, "It's not his fault. According to the plan, someone was supposed to attend the Crown Prince's grand wedding as 'Lu Yuan,' but unfortunately, they haven't arrived in the Imperial City yet, and Yu Zichuan hasn't been able to find them."
Her maternal grandfather and Luo Shan must have been delayed by something.
This is what they call 'plans never survive contact with the enemy.'
Meng Qianqian paused, then said, "Why don't you stay at the Crown Prince's Mansion for a few days and not go to the palace?"
Lu Yuan smiled, "That would be boring. They've dug a pit and are waiting for me to jump in. If I don't show up, wouldn't it be a waste of their efforts?"
Mr. Ziwu enjoyed the drama, "Exactly! Go to the palace and face death!"
Meng Qianqian, "Mr. Ziwu!"
Mr. Ziwu waved his hand, "I know, I know. I was just speaking casually. This kid has a strong life force; he won't die! Compared to him, you, little doll—"
"What's wrong with her?"
Lu Yuan asked immediately.
Mr. Ziwu teased, "Oh, are you concerned?"
"Yes."
Lu Yuan, for once, didn't make a joke and admitted it straightforwardly.
Meng Qianqian twirled her fingers.
Suddenly, her heart felt a little sweet. What was happening?
Mr. Ziwu stared at Meng Qianqian without blinking, "You have a calamity."
Meng Qianqian was taken aback, "Me?"
Mr. Ziwu asked, "Little doll, tell me your birthdate."
Meng Qianqian told him her birthdate in this life.
Mr. Ziwu stroked his beard, "Little doll, your birthdate indicates an early death. You shouldn't have lived this long, but when I observe your facial features, I see an extremely noble destiny."
Meng Qianqian's heart skipped a beat.
Would Mr. Ziwu be able to calculate that she was a wandering ghost who had borrowed a corpse to reincarnate?
"Oh no, I can't calculate it, I can't!"
Mr. Ziwu was at a loss.
Meng Qianqian secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
She wasn't the real Meng Qianqian; she was Shang Xiaojiu, and her soul had reincarnated into Meng Qianqian's body. This fate was probably impossible for anyone to calculate.
Lu Yuan glanced at Meng Qianqian and asked Mr. Ziwu, "So, you say she has a great calamity?"
Mr. Ziwu muttered, "Great calamities often come with great fortune. Perhaps it's not a calamity but a fortune. If you pass through it, it's fortune; if you don't, it's a calamity."
"Master Ziwu clenched the talisman paper, "This is one of Wushan's forbidden arts... Qianji Pavilion is so bold! They actually dared to secretly learn Wushan's forbidden techniques!"
Lu Yuan asked curiously, "Old man, what kind of forbidden technique is this?"
Master Ziwu suppressed the anger in his heart, "It's a forbidden technique that alters one's destiny. Someone has swapped destinies. In the year of Renzi, on the seventh day of the ninth month, shouldn't the lantern be above this position?"
He pointed to the left side of the totem.
Meng Qianqian nodded, "That's right."
Lu Yuan pondered for a moment, then suddenly spoke, "Gongsun Liuying's birthdate."
Meng Qianqian was taken aback.
Lu Yuan explained, "When I moved into the Crown Prince's Mansion, they were busy arranging the wedding between Lu Qi and Gongsun Liuying. I saw their marriage announcement, and Gongsun Liuying's birthdate was indeed the year of Renzi, the seventh day of the ninth month, at the third hour of the night."
Lu Yuan had a photographic memory, so Meng Qianqian had no reason to doubt his words.
If this birthdate belonged to Gongsun Liuying...
Then, either someone had swapped Gongsun Liuying's destiny, or Gongsun Liuying had taken someone else's.
Meng Qianqian asked, "What will happen to the person whose destiny is swapped?"
Master Ziwu sighed, "They will become weak and may even die."
Meng Qianqian whispered, "I remember my brother saying that Gongsun Liuying was born prematurely. If her destiny was swapped, she wouldn't have survived until now."
So, it was Gongsun Liuying who had stolen someone else's destiny.
"I knew Qianji Pavilion was despicable, but I underestimated their shamelessness."
Compared to the Grand Minister, Qianji Pavilion was ten or a hundred times worse!
"So, they stole their own 'heaven's mandate.' Master, is there a way to break this forbidden technique?"
"I don't know."
Master Ziwu shook his head helplessly, "Our master forbids us from practicing forbidden techniques, and we're not even allowed to look at them. Once, my junior fellow disciple and I secretly took a peek, but our master found out and punished us for three months. After that, I never dared to think about forbidden techniques again."
Lu Yuan spoke with a hint of sarcasm, "It seems your junior fellow disciple wasn't honest and stole the forbidden technique from Wushan."
Master Ziwu glanced at Lu Yuan, as if to say, 'Don't blame me for scolding him.'
Thinking of something, he said, "However, I once overheard our master mention that forbidden techniques have a high risk of backfiring, but I don't know the specifics of how they do so."
Meng Qianqian recalled the conversation she had overheard between Xiao Rong Er and Gongsun Liuying.
Gongsun Liuying had lost control of her silver needles, could this be the backlash of the forbidden technique?
If that was the case, it would be excellent.
Meng Qianqian spoke seriously, "Tomorrow, I'll find a way to enter the palace with Gongsun Liuying."
Lu Yuan furrowed his brows, "Why are you going to the palace?"
Meng Qianqian explained, "Qianji Pavilion has kept this information well hidden, but Gongsun Liuying has already lost control of her silver needles. As long as I expose her medical skills in the palace, her words will no longer hold any weight with the Liang Emperor."
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
If they missed this chance, they might not get another.
Who knew if Gongsun Liuying's luck would recover through some evil method?
There was a saying that went, 'Strike when she's down, and take her life!'
Once Gongsun Liuying lost the title of 'Heaven's Chosen Daughter,' it would be like severing one of Gongsun Yanming's arms.
Lu Yuan turned to Master Ziwu, "Old man, why don't you go and expose Gongsun Yanming?"
Master Ziwu chuckled, "Even if I'm willing to go, it's up to your grandfather to believe me."
He was not part of the imperial court, but he understood its workings.
Gongsun Yanming was highly valued by the Liang Emperor and had made significant contributions to the establishment of the country. His relationship with the Liang Emperor was not something ordinary people could meddle with.
If his words had any effect, the Liang Emperor should have immediately set things right after he revealed that Lu Yuan was the National Guardian Qilin.
Lu Yuan smiled, "There's no rush. As long as you're willing, I have a way to make everything go smoothly."
Master Ziwu said, "Don't talk big, young man."
Lu Yuan replied, "Just wait for the good news."
Master Ziwu had wanted to say, 'It's none of my business. Clean up your own mess.'
But he swallowed the words before they left his mouth.
The use of forbidden techniques by someone from their sect was a serious act of defiance against the master's orders.
As a disciple of Wushan, he had an obligation to help his master clean up this mess.
After discussing their plan, Master Ziwu returned to rest.
Lu Yuan escorted Meng Qianqian to the back door.
As Meng Qianqian climbed over the courtyard wall, Lu Yuan spoke softly, "Wasn't Shang Xiaojiu born in the year of Jiazhen?"
Meng Qianqian was startled.
Chen Long's words suddenly flashed through her mind—
"Gongsun Liuying was born prematurely and should have been hard to raise, but she became whiter and plumper day by day, while you grew thinner."
"When you were born, someone also predicted that you would live a long life, but you—"
"The moment Gongsun Liuying was born, you held her in your arms."
A gust of night wind blew, and Meng Qianqian felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
Lu Yuan looked up, meeting her pale little face in the moonlight.
Under the cold moonlight, his gaze was incredibly gentle.
"Take it back, Xiaojiu."
Ah, isn't today's chapter super heartwarming?
(End of Chapter)
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