Chapter Seventy-One: The Man in the Portrait
When Wanli swaggered into Yongning Palace, he saw Minglan kneeling in the courtyard and being punished, his head drooping, and his appearance was embarrassed and funny.
The thick black sword eyebrows on one side were playfully high, Wan Li walked over with his hand, kicked him with his foundation moire boots, bent down and approached Minglan, smiling and sly:
"Hey, why did you kneel down and make my eldest sister angry?"
Punished for kneeling for nearly half an hour, Minglan supported his waist with one hand, and the porcelain piece made his knee painful, and the pain had already spread to his whole body. At this moment, the facial features of his blurry awl face shifted, and he grinned:
ββ¦β¦ Master Hou, don't mention it......"
"Alright, alright!"
Wan Li straightened his upper body and waved his hand impatiently:
"Ben Hou understands, just ask the eldest sister for you later."
After speaking, he stepped into the main hall with ease.
Wan Yuyao was sulking in the chair, her delicate face shrouded in frost, as if she could kill people in an instant. At his feet, there was the humble and prostrate Tu Duxue, her light body trembling and silent.
Xiang Wan Yuyao bowed his hand to the courtesy, and Wan Li laughed:
"How did Minglan's slave offend the eldest sister, you are so unrelenting to him."
Wan Yuyao rolled her eyes coldly, and threw herself at the door with a sharp cold glow at the bottom of her eyes, and said fiercely:
"That dog slave is becoming more and more capable, and now he dares to deceive this palace when he does things!"
"If you fatten him, you will be killed immediately!"
His eyes were cold, Wan Li turned his head to look outside, and was about to ask the reason, when Wan Yuyao's cold voice sounded slowly in his ears, like a cold blunt knife grinding over his skin, and the pain was strange:
"Xi'er, if you reveal useful news to this palace, this palace will reward you for your merits, and it will not treat you badly. But if you're like the one outside, thinking about the palace, the palace will never spare you, understand? β
The girl's low-hanging and narrow eyes swept over the sharp light, but her heart was unbearable, her complexion was light and submissive, and her lips were slightly opened:
"Back to Niangniang, the slave and maid heard clearly."
"Okay, go outside and help Minglan up, and tell him to go back and rest first, so he doesn't have to come in."
"Yes."
The girl got up and walked out of the main hall with her hands folded.
Coming to the courtyard, Tu Duxue stopped at the bottom of the steps, her cold and dull eyes met Minglan's scarlet and unwilling eyes, and then she approached with an expressionless face, stretching out her arms to support Minglan:
"Niangniang has a life, please get up, Lord Overseer."
With a slight movement, the bones of Minglan's whole body hurt so much that he felt like he was falling apart, and his limbs no longer obeyed him.
Reluctantly getting up from her arms, Minglan glared at the girl angrily, and her voice was as dark as a blade:
"Miss Twilight is really good at her skills and means, and she was in a hurry to cross the river and tear down the bridge when she entered the palace for a short time? But your plan of killing two birds with one stone may not work well in Yongning Palace! β
The girl's face was calm, and she suddenly picked her eyes and looked directly at Minglan:
"What is the Overseer talking about? What bird and who is a bird? Slaves and maids are dull and cannot hear clearly. β
Minglan pursed her lips, and her peach blossom eyes narrowed:
"Not only do you want Gu Yunxi to die, but you also want to use her life experience to say that you want Ben Du to accompany her to the funeral, but you underestimated Niangniang. Ben Du told you that as long as Niangniang still wants Leng Qingtang to be there, Gu Yunxi will not be able to die. β
The girl looked directly at the enchanting face of the charming man, and a hint of a sly smile suddenly appeared on her cold face:
"What about you? Leng Qingtang will live in Gu Yunxi, but your life and death are unpredictable. Either way, the situation is ...... for you right now It's not necessarily a dead end. β
In the main hall, Wan Li raised his neck in the direction of Tu Duxue's journey, raised his nose and sniffed the surging incense that remained, and the greedy fluttering of his nose kept moving.
"Oops!"
Wan Yuyao saw it, screamed in an irritable voice, hit Wan Li with her crisp hand, frowned angrily, and asked:
"Tell me quickly, why did you come to the palace today?"
Wan Li took away his squinting gaze, turned back to face the woman, smiled with a smile, and arched his hand:
"This time it is God who helps me, and today's entry into the palace actually brings you a secret."
"Another secret?"
Wan Yuyao pressed the corners of her mouth suspiciously, and watched in a deep voice as Wan Li took out a page of rice paper from the sleeve pocket of the brocade robe, and unfolded it to Wan Yuyao.
"Eldest sister, look, who is this in the painting?"
Wan Yuyao lowered her eyes slightly, and the streamer in her eyes flashed for a moment to look at the portrait, and she suddenly looked shocked:
"Could it be...... Is this Zheng Ran? β
Wan Li smiled treacherously, his eyes shot a cold light, and he shook his head and said:
"After getting this portrait, the younger brother verified with his father and confirmed that the painting was undoubtedly Zheng Ran."
Wan Yuyao frowned, waved her hand to signal Wan Li to move closer to her, and asked in a low voice:
"Where did you get this portrait?"
Lip hooking:
"Speaking of which, the eldest sister may not believe it, this is Lei Huan sitting in the Swift Tower not long ago, and he got a glimpse of the picture from the state of mind of the person who broke the formation, and put pen to paper.
The people who broke the formation that day wore masks, and their facial features could not be recognized, but among them, there were female attendants of the fourth grade of the East Factory. It can be inferred from this that Dongchang or the Admiral of Dongchang himself has an inseparable relationship with Zheng Ran. β
It's Leng Qingtang......
Wan Yuyao's eyes were staring suddenly, the bottom of her eyes was bright and mottled, and the meaning was unclear:
ββ¦β¦ Leng Qingtang, will it break the Xuan Array? β
Wan Li's face was slightly impatient, and he shook his head desperately:
"How can the eldest sister be so confused, even if Leng Qingtang will not break the formation, with that fake Tu Duxue as evidence, it is enough to show that the person who broke the formation is related to Dongchang, and Zheng Ran will appear in his state of mind, this is a good opportunity for us to bring down Leng Qingtang!"
Wan Yuyao's crystal face quietly swept over a thin shock, her eyes were stunned for a moment, and her words suddenly changed:
"Okay, I'm tired today, so let's go here. While it is not raining, you should also leave the palace and return to Nanyuan quickly! β
Wan Li's eyes widened suddenly, and he didn't know what the eldest sister meant by her sudden change of sex. A fist clenched angrily, and he was about to continue to say something, when he saw Wan Yuyao close the rice paper in his hand and hand it to Lihu without looking back:
"Go, find a safe place, and keep it carefully for the main palace."
"Eldest sister?"
"Alright, you can go back. In the harem land, as a marquis, you are also a minister, so it will be inconvenient to stay longer. β
ββ¦β¦ The subordinate retired. β
was inexplicably ordered to be evicted by his own sister, Wan Li's face was ugly but it was not easy to stay, so he had to flick his sleeves and retreat.
East Factoryββ
It was already dark, and Gu Yunxi rummaged through the cabinets in his own room in the south courtyard.
Qing'er pushed the door in, carrying a pot of hot water and waiting for her girl to wash.
Gu Yunxi took out a small wooden box from the carved cabinet with rich flowers, and said happily to Qing'er:
"I can't believe that what I left here in the past is still there."
Qing'er put down the kettle and said to her:
"Who's to say it isn't? Not to mention in Dongchang, after you left the Admiral's Mansion that year, no one dared to touch the decorations in your house, and the next person only went in to do daily cleaning. β
Gu Yunxi smiled, and sat on the edge of the table with a wooden box in his hand:
"Don't be busy, Qing'er, come here, while the Overseer is busy in the front hall, you and I can sit down and talk."
Qing'er was pouring water into the basin, and when she heard the order, she stopped working and wiped her hands, and leaned in front of Gu Yunxi with a puzzled expression:
"Girl, what are you going to say to me?"
"Sit."
Gu Yunxi's shallow eyes turned to the round chair opposite him, and raised his chin with a smile.
"This ......"
Qing'er's eyebrows frowned slightly, and she hesitated:
"It's not in order."
The girl in my memory has a delicate and lovely face, with a sweet smile, which makes people very approachable.
Now, the voice of the person in front of him has not changed, but his facial features are completely sweet, and his expression is as cold as an empty valley spring stream, with a breathtaking sharpness and coldness.
"Qing'er, you know me best, I have never been a servant since the day I met you, I am the master, and the two of us are a pair of close sisters."
Qing'er pursed her pink lips, nodded with a light smile, and slowly sat down opposite.
The four eyes are facing each other, and the memories in their minds are like rotating marquees, and the scenes are constantly changing.
That year, they were all in their cardamom years, with their own good hearts, unrestrained, and spoke freely. However, time flies, the white horse passes through the gap, and when they reunite, they are no longer young people.
The eyelashes twitched suddenly, and a stream of heat rushed into her eyes, Qing'er raised her hand to wipe her face and sniffed:
"Girl, every time I see you like this, the slave and maid think that we were in the Admiral's Mansion in the past, and the slave and maid really care for you. For the East Factory, for our father, you have paid too much. β
Gu Yunxi chuckled astringently, his eyes were wet and red, and the bottom of his eyes was shining, flashing:
"The Overseer has saved my life, and he has been working silently for many years to investigate the real culprit behind the murder of my family, and I am willing to do anything for him."
The wet eyes were raised, and Gu Yunxi looked directly at Qing'er:
"Don't mention the past, let's talk about you and Brother Xiaoshen. Now that I see you like this, I know that he is very good to you. How, you have decided not to marry him? β
Qing'er's face was shy, her fleshy little face immediately flew into the clouds, her eyes were bright and bright, and she walked for a moment before turning her head to the side, her ten fingers were tightly interlocked, and she said firmly:
"Hmmm! The slave thought clearly, and he was his person in this life. β
Gu Yunxi's eyes were dyed with moving water, and his eyebrows were happy:
"You can see that he loves you very much."
Qing'er lowered her eyes shallowly, a trace of aftertaste bitterness filled her heart, her eyelashes were slightly cool, and her voice trembled slightly:
"That year, I went to Mingfu with Shifangtou to save you, but fell into Minglan's trap, and those beasts were ...... to me I thought my life was ruined, and if I hadn't waited for your whereabouts, I might have found a short-term view, and I wouldn't have the face to face caution.
On the night he returned to Beijing, he stayed in front of my door for a whole day and a night, and he said to me, "I will never leave me for the rest of my life, and I want to live well, and wait for you to come back with him and Shifang......"
Gu Yunxi's eyelashes suddenly raised, and while he was shaken by this indestructible feeling, there were also several doubts in his heart.
Blinking, Gu Yunxi spoke:
"Qing'er, did you misunderstand? Youβhow do you know you're not perfect? β
Qing'er looked sad, looked at Gu Yunxi in surprise, and murmured:
"The other party is all beasts from the West Factory...... Minglan already hates Dongchang to the core, how can he let go of the intruders? β
Gu Yunxi's face was burning, and he kept shaking his head:
"No, I was on the side that year, and it was true that you were unconscious and almost suffered a poisonous hand, but Minglan did order Ti Qi to stop, but he was not angry, so he ordered his subordinates to persecute them at the head of the ten blocks."
Qing'er's eyes widened in astonishment, covering her mouth with her hands, and her chest was like a rising tide, with ups and downs:
"Say that, say that......"
The girl was very excited, and faced Gu Yunxi and cried and laughed:
"Slaves, slaves and maids are still perfect?!"
Crying for a while, Gu Yunxi nodded firmly, and his voice trembled:
"I think it's very true, there will be no mistakes, it's good that you didn't refuse Brother Xiao Shen for this, otherwise in two years, Brother Xiao Shen wouldn't be sad to death?"
Qing'er burst into tears in an instant, and she was surprised and surprised.
Gu Yunxi wiped the corners of his eyes and took a deep breath:
"Now it's okay, the misunderstanding has been resolved, and you and Brother Xiaoshen will cherish each other even more in the future. The Overseer has said that after dealing with the matter at hand, he will choose a good day and an auspicious day to complete the marriage for the two of you. This is a little bit of my heart, you take it. β
Gu Yunxi pushed the wooden box on the table to Qing'er.
Qing'er Nu was puzzled:
"Girl, what's in there?"
Gu Yunxi smiled lightly:
"Your dowry, open it and take a look."