Chapter 50

Zhao Yelan suffered from insomnia.

I have been suffering from insomnia for the past few days, but tonight is a little different. I used to close my eyes and think about it unconsciously. I still hope that I can fall asleep quickly.

But tonight, with his eyes open, he didn’t think about anything, just let go, and didn’t want to fall asleep.

For some reason, he felt that Yan Mingting was not asleep either.

But he didn’t turn over to confirm, he was afraid that the other party would continue to talk to him, intentionally or unintentionally, some words would cause confusion.

It was just dawn, and he heard Yan Mingting getting up, he heard him leaving the house lightly, and he heard the sound of people walking outside.

He sat up slowly, walked to the window, watched Yan Mingting and Zuo Ran leading the horses towards the gate, explaining the affairs of the house to Butler Tan, then raised his head, and suddenly looked at the bedroom.

Zhao Yelan was startled, and subconsciously dodged to the side. He didn’t return to the bed until the sound of horseshoes sounded outside the gate, and closed his eyes tightly.

When he woke up again, it was already noon, he took a three-day leave from the Hanlin Academy on the grounds of contracting a cold, and then put on the Jiangli sachet, resting at home, coughing from time to time.

“Did your lord not drink the medicine? Why does the cold seem to be getting worse?” Butler Tan worried, and couldn’t help nagging, “My lord, drink your medicine quickly, lest the general come back and see that you are still sick , to punish us.”

Zhao Yelan poured the medicine in front of him, then locked himself in the house, and felt a little bored after a while.

Obviously, he was used to being alone in the house in the past, but today it seemed to be particularly deserted.

He walked around the mansion, and the servants performed their duties and were busy in an orderly manner, but they didn’t gather together and secretly gossip about why the two masters were arguing again.

Even Xiao Gao was a little listless: “Why do I feel that after the general leaves, even the chickens are quiet? My lord, when will the general come back?”

“Miss him so soon?” Zhao Yelan asked.

“Ok.”

“Do you like him very much?”

“Uh-huh.”

In the afternoon, Zhao Yelan received a letter from Yan Mingting.

He opened it in surprise, the handwriting on it was a bit messy, it seemed that it was written in a hurry, and the letter explained that they had arrived at the first post station, so they wrote to report that they were safe.

In the evening, the second letter came again, from the second station.

After two days, Zhao Yelan received a total of six letters, all of which were small things—

Mengting, we have now arrived at the border of Longzhou, and it is raining heavily here. I wonder if it is raining in the capital? Remember to wear more, don’t catch the cold.

Mengting, let me tell you a joke, a soldier went to pee at night and was kicked down by a horseshoe haha! Zuo Ran also bumped into him, and Zuo Ran beat him up again haha!

Mengting, what did you eat tonight? We can only eat some dry food on the road tonight, the weather is hot and it is all rotten. In fact, I have long been used to this kind of life, but it may be that I have eaten so well in the capital in the past six months, and I have started to miss Mingji’s steamed stuffed buns and Huichunlou’s drunken shrimp. It’s all because of you.

Mengting, I had a dream at night, it was the time when we met for the first time. If at that time I took you directly to the barracks and served as my military adviser, would the war end sooner? Will we grow up together?

Mengting, He Cuizhang is still in Beijing, if you have any troubles, you can go to him, he has a letter from me, he can act for me.

Mengting, I regret it, I shouldn’t have left without saying goodbye when I left. I thought it would be worrying to say goodbye in person, but even if I didn’t say goodbye, I miss you a little now… I lied to you because I missed your braised pork.

“General, are you writing letters again?” Zuo Ran carried the water bag and went to the river to finish fetching water. He saw Yan Mingting was leaning against a big tree with a piece of biscuit in his mouth, bending his knees and writing with a pen.

Along the way, whenever he was free, Yan Mingting would write letters, and they would deliver them at a post station. Some were mailed, and some were crumpled up and thrown away.

“Have you rested yet?” Yan Mingting quickly chewed on the stale cake, then folded the letter, and said, “There is food at the next station, we can prepare dry food again.”

“Okay.” Zuo Ran raised his head and looked at the sun. The scorching sun made people sweat profusely. Today is the seventh day since they left the capital. According to their speed of traveling day and night, they will arrive in Huaizhou tomorrow.

“General, just watching you write a letter, why doesn’t it seem like you have received a letter from Mr. Zhao?” Zuo Ran asked curiously.

“Because we walk fast, the letters go back and forth, how can we catch up with our speed.” Yan Mingting got on his horse.

“It makes sense. Then when we get to Huaizhou, we might be able to receive a letter.” Zuo Ran said optimistically.

However, on the third day after arriving in Huaizhou, he did not receive any letter from Beijing.

Zuo Ran didn’t have the heart to ask about Yan Mingting’s letter, because she was worried about how to rescue Yin Pinglu.

When he first arrived in Huaizhou, Yan Mingting received a good report from his subordinates. The troops who arrived first joined forces with Huaizhou officers and soldiers to capture a large number of bandits alive.

Yan Mingting sent people to investigate the whereabouts of these two people, and they were taken over by the prefect of Huaizhou.

Yan Mingting chatted with the prefect Yin for a while, and then mentioned Yin Pinglu: “Master Yin is so lucky to have such a good daughter as Pinglu.”

Prefect Yin asked suspiciously: “General Yan knows Ping Lu?”

“Didn’t she tell you? We met at the border. She has a clever mind and helped me a lot.” Yan Mingting said.

Prefect Yin naturally heard Yin Pinglu say this, but he didn’t believe it at all. How could she, a weak woman, know Yan Mingting on the battlefield? Not to mention that it can be of great help, if this is the case, why didn’t anyone mention Yin Pinglu’s name when the court discussed meritorious deeds and rewards? It must be the lie that this girl made up in order to escape.

But now hearing Yan Mingting admit it in person, he was horrified in his heart, but there was a smile on his face: “So that’s the case, maybe it’s because she was lucky, and just happened to come up with some crazy ideas.”

“You can’t say that. The battlefield is changing rapidly, and it’s not just a few tricks that can turn the tide. Your daughter is very talented.” Yan Mingting said seriously.

“Oh, what’s the use of having a great talent? She was a bit ignorant when she was studying and practicing calligraphy in her early years. No one would look down on her. Not only did she take the initiative to divorce her fiancé, but she even ran away with a lowly girl. The biggest joke in Huaizhou. This woman is not married, what are you talking about? My face is almost lost by her.” Yin Zhifu said angrily.

Yan Mingting could see his stubbornness and stubbornness, probably in his eyes, even the prostitute was accused of marrying Shangfeng for his official position, let alone Yin Pinglu, a rebellious concubine.

Yan Mingting once heard Yin Pinglu mention that the magistrate Yin has eight daughters, and a young son who is just three years old. All the older sisters are married to powerful people, and the last one is the magistrate’s wife. Among the remaining school-age daughters, only Yin Pinglu is still unmarried.

He knew that it was difficult to change Yin Zhifu’s mentality with just a few words, so he said: “I came to the mansion today, and I actually have something to ask. Lu borrowed to help.”

“This…” Zhifu Yin wiped the sweat off his face, wondering why, “It’s really not that the humble official wants to refuse the general’s request, it’s just that Ping Lu has contracted a serious illness these days and is still recuperating in the room, it is unknown whether he will recover or not. We are also helpless.”

“Since that’s the case… then I’ll bother you. There are many female relatives in the house, so I won’t stay here. I will stay in the biggest inn in the city. If Yin Pinglu recovers, you can let her come to see me directly. ” Yan Mingting said.

“Okay, okay.” Prefect Yin repeatedly agreed, and then graciously sent him to the inn himself.

After the people left, Zuo Ran appeared secretly: “General, how is Ping Lu?”

“Not too good.” Yan Mingting frowned, “You go to his house late at night to check on the guards, just don’t startle them.”

“it is good.”

At midnight, Zuo Ranye came back and said: “The security is tight, especially around Pinglu’s room, full of guards, and doctors come in and out. Is the prefect Yin afraid of her escape and wants to imprison her?” ?”

“No, she should have escaped.” Yan Mingting said.

“what?”

“With the magistrate Yin’s temperament, how could he be willing to refuse such a good opportunity when he heard that I borrowed someone? Moreover, he was the one who warmly invited me to be a guest at the mansion, but he didn’t ask me to stay after listening to my request. It should be because we are afraid that we will find out that the person has already run away, so we lie about the disease and send people to strictly guard it to create false appearances.”

“Then what should we do? Nothing will happen to Pinglu, right?” Zuo Ran was worried.

“We are divided into two groups. You bring a team of people and stay in the inn, keep an eye on the movement of the Yin Mansion, and send someone to deliver some medicinal materials and supplements in my name every day or two, so that the Prefect Yin has to speed up. I’m going to look for Yin Pinglu. Once you find someone, don’t act rashly, and notify me immediately.” Yan Mingting said, “I still have to track down the whereabouts of the two thieves.”

“Okay, I understand.” Zuo Ran said calmly.

Yan Mingting glanced at her unexpectedly: “You seem to be… a lot more stable.”

“I’m stupid and weak. It’s hard to find her by myself, but I believe in the general. The more it is like this, the less I can panic, so as not to delay my progress.” Zuo Ran said firmly, “And I believe She is so smart, she will definitely save the day.”

“That’s right.” Yan Mingting said with a smile, “Maybe she has escaped safely, we live in this inn, there is a lot of people coming and going, the news will spread out soon, once she finds out, she will come to us of.”

“Ok!”

Early the next morning, Yan Mingting went to the jail to interrogate a few bandits, asked about the two bandit leaders, and came up with a piece of information—

There were people behind them, and those two were also coaxed into making trouble.

But this information does not need to be tortured at all, he can guess that bandits appear in several areas at the same time, what else can they be without premeditation, like cats, they will collectively estrus when the season comes?

In the afternoon, he took people to the cottage to check the situation, and it was already destroyed. But it doesn’t matter if there is anything left behind, or the two will come back secretly, he sent several teams to several directions to track down the trace.

A day later, he finally found a clue. Not far from the cottage, there was a grass field with a line of shallow traces. The grass was obviously sparser than the side. He walked down this road and found a secret passage. He led people in to search it. The inside was in a mess, and there were a few pieces of jewelry on the ground, which he hadn’t had time to take away.

He looked around and found a letter, ordering the two to rush to Quzhou, and someone answered.

He immediately summoned three teams to chase along several roads, and brought news to the officials in Quzhou, while he kept some people in Huaizhou to prevent the other party from deliberately moving the tiger away from the mountain.

He was busy for several days in a row. After dinner, he was free to write a letter. He wrote down everything in the past few days in detail. Instead of delivering a letter, go out and find the messenger.

However, the messenger hadn’t been found yet, but he met Zuo Ran first, who was standing on the bridge, staring at the calm water in a daze.

“What are you thinking about?” Yan Mingting walked over and asked.

Zuo Ran was startled, and turned to look at him: “General…have you eaten yet?”

“Well, what about you? Why didn’t you guard the Yin residence?”

“I kept someone, but I don’t want to go near that right now.” Zuo Ran pouted, turned and walked down the bridge.

The two walked along the river, and finally came to a pavilion, Zuo Rancai said: “The old man went to Yin’s mansion today, the guy who is going to marry Ping Lu Xuxian, you haven’t seen the groveling look of Yin Zhifu …”

Yan Mingting knew that she was feeling unfair and angry for Yin Pinglu, so she didn’t speak immediately. After she complained for a while, and scolded the two people bloody, she laughed and asked, “Calm down?”

“No.”

“Then you can continue to scold for as long as you want.”

Hearing this, Zuo Ran laughed awkwardly: “Sorry, I wasted your time listening to my complaint.”

“Nothing, I’m happy to hear that, and I feel better.”

“Is the general worried about the bandits?” After Zuo Ran asked, seeing that he didn’t respond, he guessed another reason, “Or because he didn’t receive a letter from Mr. Zhao?”

As expected, Yan Mingting’s expression moved a little.

“When we first met you, we thought you were a wooden pile, and we didn’t even know what it was. At that time, you saved a beautiful woman. How many times did she show you how many times she showed you, and her mind was clear. In the end, you If you say something heart-wrenchingly, you will never marry a wife in this life.”

“She came to the barracks without authorization and disrupted military discipline. It’s not bad that I didn’t punish her.”

“Then Master Zhao will obediently observe your military discipline?” Zuo Ran teased.

Yan Mingting glanced at her, Zuo Ran stopped teasing him, but after a while, he heard him sigh deeply: “If you just don’t reply, then it will be fine.”

“What?” Zuo Ran wondered.

“He may be… gone.”

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t know.” Yan Mingting said in a deep voice, “He should have been planning for a long time.”

Judging from Zhao Yelan’s abnormal behavior recently, on the surface he agreed to all his requests in a meticulous and thoughtful way to celebrate his birthday, but when he thought about it deeply, it seemed more like he was dealing with funeral affairs. In particular, the other layers of identities of Gu Niaoyou and Kan Chuan were exposed to him. If it wasn’t for a sudden incident, Zhao Yelan would not have easily revealed it to him.

So the plan on that note probably refers to the plan to leave.

As for how to leave, he didn’t know, but with Zhao Yelan’s temperament, if he really planned to leave, he would definitely make arrangements.

I’m afraid that after returning to Beijing this time, Zhao Yelan will no longer be in the General’s Mansion.

Zuo Ran was very surprised, but he didn’t quite understand what happened to these two people. He just asked, “Since you guessed that he was going to leave, why didn’t you stop him?”

Yan Mingting smiled palely: “He has been an important minister over ten thousand people, he has endless money, and he has cultivated many forces. It is not difficult to return to his prominent status. But he But he would rather give up this kind of life, it can only show that he really wants to leave…There is nothing in Beijing worth his memory.”

Including him Yan Mingting.

He tried to use his family property and birthday wishes to keep him, but if the other party was still indifferent, then what’s the use of forcing him to stay?

Zuo Ran frowned, and when he looked at him again, he saw an unprecedented loneliness on his face, and he didn’t know how to comfort him, so he could only stay quietly with him.

The night in Jiangnan Water Village is very lively and lively, but it is a bit more gentle than the capital city. There are many talented men and women on the lake in the middle of the road.

One of the most beautiful painting boats was gliding slowly on the water, with several beauties standing on the bow, leaning against the pavilion. The beauties raised their heads to look at Yan Mingting, with undisguised surprise, they looked at each other a few times, then got off the boat one by one, walked to the pavilion, and bowed themselves: “Young master, my master has prepared tea and snacks, I would like to invite you to board the boat.”

Yan Mingting smelled the fragrance of flowers, then looked at the bouquets of flowers on the ornately decorated boat, guessed which boudoir girl it was, and thought that the folk customs in the south of the Yangtze River were really open.

“No need.” Yan Mingting bluntly refused.

Zuo Ran stepped forward, stopped in front of him, and said to the women: “My son is married, I hope you all respect yourself.”

The group of women glanced at each other with different expressions, they all returned to the boat, and replied truthfully: “Master, that young master already has a family, so he refuses to board the boat.”

“Since he already has a family, let’s not bother him.”

Yan Mingting had turned around and was about to leave, but when he heard this weak voice with a slight smile, he turned his head in surprise, and jumped onto the bow in a blink of an eye, and the girls exclaimed one after another.

A row of bead curtains vaguely blocked the people inside, and Yan Mingting was afraid that he had just misheard for a while, and also worried that the master had a similar voice, he hesitated, lowered his eyes and asked, “Who is your Excellency?”

“Young Master, you can tell right away.” A girl pushed suddenly from behind, and he was caught off guard and broke into the curtain.

There was a laughing voice from behind, and Zuo Ran’s worried voice: “My lord!”

“It’s okay, you go back first.” Yan Mingting ordered.

Zuo Ran was taken aback for a moment, and then was dragged away by those girls.

There were only two people left on the boat, and Yan Mingting stared dumbfounded at the person sitting in front of the table. He was dressed in blue and purple, wearing a jade hairpin, and his pretty face was like the moon in the water. Unpredictable, making people unable to tell whether it is an illusion or reality.

After a long while, Yan Mingting made a difficult voice: “Why did you appear here?”

“Long time no see.” Zhao Yelan smiled slightly, put one hand on the table, resting his chin, looked at him leisurely, and commented, “I’m a little thinner.”

Yan Mingting walked up to him in two or three steps, and suddenly grabbed his face.

“?”

“Are you itchy?” Zhao Yelan immediately glared at him angrily.

With this expression, Zhao Yelan was undoubtedly, he was not dreaming.

“Why are you here? Didn’t you plan to leave?” Yan Mingting blurted out.

Hearing this, Zhao Yelan stood up, sneered, slowly grabbed his collar, raised his head slightly, and said, “Yan Mingting, do you know who I am?”

Yan Mingting lowered his eyes, met his gaze, and stared at him rightly.

“When you and I met for the first time, what I said to you, what General Yan was fighting for the people, was just a policy of preservation. If Zhao Xuan can’t convince your father to join him, then I have to take your Yan family You can’t stand in anyone’s team. The doctor sent to the frontier to treat you is just to win you over.” Zhao Yelan said word by word.

“What are you talking about all of a sudden…Mengting?” Yan Mingting looked at the face close at hand, a little dazed, “If you wanted to say these things, I would have already guessed…”

Zhao Yelan clenched his neckline tightly, his eyes sharp: “I am selfish, mean and ungrateful, greedy for money and power, and full of calculations. I have punished corrupt officials, and I have also cruelly harmed loyal and good people. I will use any means to achieve my goals. A person like me, If you die, you will go to hell. But there is a person who is short-sighted and wants to provoke me. How can I let him enjoy the glory, wealth, and wives and concubines? I want him to live and die from now on. leave me.”

——————–

The author has something to say:

I know a lot of people want to see Lord Zhao flee to death (in fact, I really want to see the scene where the general goes crazy), but Master Zhao originally planned to leave the Xuan Dynasty alone, and he would not stay in the territory for safety. , so it is impossible to see the general again, even if you fall in love in the future, you will have to sneak around. But Master Zhao now has someone in his heart, so he has to change the original plan. Moreover, our Lord Zhao is someone who wants to do great things, he will fall in love with the general openly, and he will also realize freedom in the true sense!