Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 703: The Willing One Takes the Bait
When one person said that Young Master Zhu was seriously injured and dying, Ah Liu just frowned slightly. When three or five people said so, he was just a little suspicious. But along the way, he heard a lot of such arguments. Some people even described the charm of the crossbow arrow in vivid detail. As the saying goes, three people make a tiger, and many words can melt gold. He couldn't help but change color.
When he thought that Zhang Shou's car was not like the one the emperor usually used when traveling incognito in the palace, which was lined with steel plates for protection, and when he thought that Zhang Shou was now at the public school, and he didn't know whether the people protecting him were doing their best, he almost wanted to turn his horse back. Fortunately, he remembered that the Fourth Prince was also at the public school, and there were always a lot of people from the South City Military Department and the Imperial Attendants nearby, so he forced himself to hold back.
But even so, he could not help but speed up his horse, which was originally just a trot. Although he did not violate the prohibition of galloping, he was able to flexibly shuttle between the carriages and horses in the middle of the avenue, and soon left many carriages and horses behind. Although many people did not know him, some people recognized him, and all kinds of discussions increased.
When Ah Liu finally arrived at the gate of the Duke of Zhao's mansion, he saw that the gatehouse, which used to be well-organized, was now as chaotic as an ant on a hot pot. No one noticed him getting off the horse. It was not until he led the horse forward that someone recognized him and quickly stepped forward to take the reins.
"Sixth brother, why are you here? Did Master Shou ask you to come visit the eldest master? This is simply lawless. Someone actually used a crossbow to assassinate the eldest master in broad daylight..."
Everyone was talking so long-winded that Ah Liu was too lazy to listen any more. He threw down the reins and strode inside. After entering the door, he even felt that walking fast was still too slow, so he simply ran as fast as he could while picking up the four-color supplement.
He was a person who came and went frequently, and although others were surprised to see him passing by like a gust of wind, they would not stop him. He was also very familiar with the layout of the Zhu family in the Zhaoguo Mansion - except for the courtyards of Zhu Ying and Jiu Niang, he had been to other places by others, so he knew them by heart.
So in a flash, he stopped outside the gate of Zhu Tingfang's Haoran Residence. The servant waiting at the door just blinked, and suddenly there was such a person in front of him. He was so scared that he almost screamed out loud. Fortunately, when he heard the word "ah", he recognized that it was Ah Liu, and he quickly covered his mouth.
Ah Liu glanced at the man, and seeing that he had no intention of stopping him, he walked straight in. As he gradually approached the main house, he suddenly sniffed and found that it was a pungent smell of medicine, and some of them were obviously medicines for stopping bleeding and promoting tissue regeneration, so his brows furrowed even more.
When Zhu Yi, who was guarding the door, saw Ah Liu approaching, he couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart and hurriedly reported, "Master, Master Shou 's sixth brother is here!"
"Let him in."
Hearing the voice clearly coming from the Madam, Ah Liu saw Zhu Yi's expression frozen, so he walked past everyone and walked in without a care. When he crossed the threshold, he walked quickly while squinting his eyes and quickly glanced around.
It was still the same layout as when I came last time. The three large rooms were not divided. In the middle was a large rosewood desk. A pair of swords hung on the west wall. The antique shelves on both sides did not have any valuable furnishings, but were filled with piles of books. On the east wall was a black lacquered carved step-out bed. Next to the bed sat the Madam on a chair. Next to it sat Ninth Lady on a brocade cushion.
As for Zhu Er, he was sitting at the end of the bed. In short, the family of three looked like they were visiting a sick person.
However, the injured soldier Zhu Tingfang, who should have been sitting or lying on the bed, was nowhere to be seen! Even though Ah Liu looked at the bed several times, he could not find any trace of Zhu Tingfang - although the quilt seemed to be bulging, as if someone was sleeping with his head covered, but how could he hide this?
Because of this, when he came forward with the four-color supplement, he couldn't help but ask in confusion, "Where is the eldest young master?"
The lady always liked the honest Ah Liu, and she immediately laughed and said, "I didn't expect that you would be the first one to come to visit after all the preparations I and they made! You looked like you even spent a lot of money to buy something? Bring it to me and let me see it!"
Seeing that the old lady did not answer his question but asked him about it, Ah Liu hesitated for a moment, but finally handed the things in his hand over. Jiu Niang took it for him, and opened the packages one by one in front of the old lady, and then joked: "Mother, look, a very old wild ginseng, Yunnan Panax notoginseng, and such a big Ganoderma lucidum..."
The old lady smiled as she watched her daughter-in-law show her the four-color tonic. Then she suddenly asked, "Ah Liu, did Ah Shou ask you to buy these things? Or did you choose them yourself?"
"The young master let me decide for myself." Ah Liu confessed honestly. He thought that he could be brief with others, but he had to make it clear to the Zhu family, so he added, "I found the most famous pharmacy in the outer city and asked them to prepare the best four-color tonic. The shopkeeper asked me if I wanted the store's treasure, wild ginseng, and of course I said yes. Anyway, if the eldest master is injured, it's always a good idea to give him more tonic."
Sure enough...the Madam and Jiu Niang looked at each other and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
Zhu Er endured it again and again, but finally couldn't help but complain: "Sixth brother, have you ever thought that if you rush to buy supplements like this, others will think that my eldest brother is dying? Besides, these things may be first-class precious things to that business, but our family... No, your Zhang Garden also has them!"
Seeing that Ah Liu was stunned for the first time, Zhu Er, who had never had the upper hand over Ah Liu, was immediately cheered up: "Really, I'm not lying to you! Don't you know that because your brother-in-law has been weak since childhood, Yingying has sent him supplements many times? Moreover, I heard that when your brother-in-law and you were in the village, your grandmother also sent people medicinal supplements. They were all the best treasures..."
Before he could finish his words, he suddenly felt a pain in his forehead, and he immediately covered his forehead and cried out. He looked again and saw Jiu Niang standing in front of him with a slightly angry look on her face. He immediately shut up and smiled at his stepmother in a flattering manner.
"A Liu came to visit your eldest brother on behalf of A Shou. He has good intentions. Why are you saying so much?" After scolding Zhu Er, Jiu Niang said with a smile, "It is said that a gift of goose feathers from a thousand miles away is more valuable than a gift of money. What's more, you sent such a valuable gift. As for what Er Lang said just now, others would think that Da Lang was seriously injured... Haha, you can see the current situation."
"The family had originally announced to the public that he was safe, and at the same time, we were all gathered here to deal with the people who came to visit him... We wanted people to think that Dalang was seriously injured. So, you hit the jackpot."
"Really?" Ah Liu asked, then lowered his head in embarrassment, "I'm sorry, it was all my carelessness."
"It's okay, Ah Liu, you have good intentions. I thought you would buy out all the items in the pharmacy, but you only bought four. You are very frugal. I know that you are just like Ah Shou, and you have always been thrifty. This time you came to the pharmacy and asked for the best, and you didn't even bargain. This is also because you care about others. In fact..."
The lady paused and said nonchalantly, "In fact, I secretly sent several groups of people to the Duke of Qin's Mansion, the Earl of Weinan's Mansion, and even the Prince of Jiangdu's Mansion to ask for aged old mountain ginseng. Although I told them to go and come back quickly and keep their mouths shut, I think some news would inevitably leak out, so when you came in, you should have seen the nervous expressions of the other people in the family, right?"
Understanding the intention of the Madam to create confusion, Ah Liu could not help but frowned suspiciously: "But even if the assassin has accomplices, they will not dare to come to the Duke of Zhao's mansion after hearing this news, right?"
Zhu Er forgot the lesson he had just learned and couldn't help but interrupt again, "The assassins are not that bold, but there must be someone who has ill intentions towards my elder brother! My elder brother integrated the Five Cities Army with an iron fist, and now there are countless people drooling over his position. At this moment, there must be countless people who wish he was dead or disabled... Oh, mother, please don't hit me, I'm really not cursing him, and I don't dare to do that!"
Seeing Zhu Er looking so aggrieved after being hit on the head by Jiu Niang, Ah Liu glanced at him and then withdrew his gaze, then hesitantly said, "But what if others don't fall for it?"
The lady understood the unspoken words of Ah Liu, and immediately said with a smile: "You want to ask, if the assassin had taken action, he should have only had the opportunity to shoot one arrow, and the onlookers should have been able to see the truth of the matter clearly, so why are there rumors all over the streets that Da Lang was seriously injured?"
Seeing that Ah Liu nodded, Jiu Niang said, "Because the Second Prince's servant was caught at dawn, it was still early when Da Lang went out, and there were not many people on the road. After the incident, the only three passers-by were invited back to the West City Military Division. Da Lang paid them five strings of cash out of his own pocket, so they were naturally happy to stay in the West City Military Division."
Is this even possible? It turns out that money makes the world go round!
Ah Liu thought so in his heart, but asked, "Do you want my help?"
Without waiting for his grandmother and stepmother to reply, Zhu Er said quickly, "No, no, there are so many people in the Duke Zhao's mansion, but you are the only one who is most capable by your brother-in-law's side. How can I let you run around for him? Besides, my eldest brother sneaked out through the secret passage and brought several of his most capable people with him. Who knows where he is hiding right now, waiting for the thunderbolt strike, and you won't be able to find him!"
Seeing Ah Liu showing an unconvinced expression, Zhu Erqing knew that he had said the wrong thing, and hurriedly made amends: "Besides, it was unreasonable for the assassin to assassinate big brother. What does the eldest prince's affairs have to do with big brother? We must be on guard against him making a feint to the east and attacking in the west..."
Before he finished speaking, Ah Liu suddenly turned around and walked out, obviously to prevent someone from making a feint to the east and attacking Zhang Shou from the west. Zhu Er hurriedly reminded him, "Don't worry too much about your brother-in-law. There are so many people from the Five Cities Army and Horses Division watching there! Yingying might be leaving the palace right now after hearing the news..."
"I'm going to pick up the young lady!" Ah Liu interrupted Zhu Er and said this without any doubt. However, he had already reached the door and left without even turning his head.
"Wait until I send her back, then go to the young master's place!"
Seeing him disappear outside the door like flying, the old lady and Jiu Niang couldn't help but smile, and Zhu Er wiped the sweat from his forehead, then smiled at his grandmother and stepmother in a flattering manner: "Now grandma and mother don't have to worry about Yingying. With him alone, it's really worth dozens of others. If Yingying hears about big brother's affairs and loses her composure, there are still people to suppress her..."
"Are you sure that Ah Liu can control Yingying, and that Yingying is not the one who is controlling him?" Jiu Niang asked with a half-smile. Seeing Zhu Er dumbfounded, and then he covered his face and sighed, she smiled and said, "Erlang, your eldest brother is not here, and we have spread such rumors. Since there is the first person to inspect the flaw, there is no guarantee that there will be a second and third one. So..."
"Change your clothes and make a sacrifice. Even if others find out, they won't complain that our family is too careless when they go back."
Zhu Er suddenly understood what his stepmother meant. His eyes widened and he began to stutter: "Mother, are you saying... are you saying that you want... that I should pretend to be your eldest brother?"
The lady also laughed. She stood up slowly, and then looked down at Zhu Er, who was completely numb at the end of the bed, and said thoughtfully, "If your mother hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't have noticed that you, Erlang, are actually quite similar to your elder brother."
"Like a ghost! You all said that I don't look like him since I was a child! Even if he lies on the bed, he looks like a young hero who cannot be insulted. Even if I wear armor, I just look like a deserter! Why are you making up stories that we look alike now? Zhu Er was feeling sad and helpless, but he didn't expect his grandmother to come forward and gently stroke his head, just like she did when he was a child."
"Having such a hardworking brother, you have been under a lot of pressure since you were a child. Fortunately, you have a good temper and have found your future. Your parents don't have to worry anymore. I asked people to search the farms and found a few old farmers who are simple in character but can read and write. I will ask them to follow you to Cangzhou."
Seeing Zhu Er was surprised and happy, the lady said calmly, "I have praised the emperor before for finally being sensible. The emperor said that you should try your best to collect seeds from overseas and conduct various seed selection and cultivation experiments. Once there are results, the emperor will plant them in the Western Garden himself. When there are results, they will be promoted from the capital. You will be credited as the first contributor."
"Grandma, this... is this true?" Zhu Er was so surprised that he couldn't even close his mouth. But when he saw his grandmother nod slightly, he knew that she was a person who never spoke lightly, and he couldn't help but be overjoyed.
Although he was not so willing to stay in bed and pretend to be injured, he still tried his best to calm himself down, and then looked at his stepmother with a tragic and solemn look as if he was going to the execution ground and said: "Mother, I have thought it through. My eldest brother's business is my business. You tell me what to do!"
Jiu Niang caught a glimpse of the coldness on the lady's face, and recalled the danger she had learned from her followers when Zhu Tingfang came back. She said with a half-smile, "Just pretend to be asleep. As the saying goes, fishing is for those who are willing to take the bait!"
