Chapter 354: 354 Not a relative

Chapter 354: 354 Not a relative

Chapter 354 Chapter 354 Non-relatives

Chu Lingxiao's so-called "wait a little longer" lasted three days, but Chu Lingyu only stayed in mourning for three days before being buried.

No family in the capital received a funeral notice from the Chu family, so no one went to express condolences.

All the governments in the capital saw the Chu family hanging a white cloth and knew that there was a funeral in his family. None of the others knew about it. They made speculations for a while. So the Chu family announced that there had been a lot of things at home recently. Before Chu Lingyu died, he said that the funeral should be simple. In addition, The madam is ill, and the old man is so irritated by the white-haired man sending the black-haired man away that he has been bedridden.

As a result, even Chu Yunyi was kept a secret for several days, and he didn't know about it until the seventh day of March.

At the moment, Chu Yunyi was a little surprised and hesitant. He wanted to go back to Chu's house to ask about the situation, but he felt uncomfortable and couldn't help but ask Yun Zhan what he thought.

Yunzhan said: "Since they didn't call you, what were you going to do? Besides, what do these things have to do with you?"

Chu Yunyi: "..."

Chu Yunyi thought about it carefully and felt that what Yunzhan said was true.

Yun Zhan was actually talking about himself and his feelings as a concubine. As long as the Yun family didn't come to call him, either it was no big deal, or they simply didn't want him to know, so he could just pretend he didn't know.

Chu Lingyu's death didn't even cause a single ripple, it just passed away, no one cared about it, no one cared about it.

After Chu Lingyu was buried, the Chu family continued to thank guests behind closed doors.

The news of Chu Lingyu's burial also reached Shen Qianchen's ears.

As long as the Chu family didn't bother his mother and younger brother, Shen Qianchen didn't bother to pay attention to the affairs of the Chu family and only told Amber to pay more attention. Anyway, they have spies in the Chu family. If something big happens in the Chu family, those spies will take the opportunity. Prince Chen's Mansion delivered the news.

On this day, Shen Qianchen, who had been hiding in the house for several days, rarely left his house and went to the side hall of Shaohua Hall to meet people.

"Princess, I just came back from Yuzhou today. This trip has been a little fruitful." A middle-aged man with a lean figure and a green shirt solemnly saluted Shen Qianchen with cupped fists.

I saw that he had an ordinary appearance, a medium height, neither fat nor thin. He was a kind of figure who was hidden in the crowd. On his dark face, he had a pair of bright, triangular eyes, and his energy was reserved.

Shen Qianchen looked at the other party with interest. Jiang Yuan told her that this man was called Lao Dou, who also retired from the army. He was a good at finding out information. He used to be a spy in the army, so he was sent by Gu Jue to visit the old man of the Chu family. Work at home.

Jiang Yuan said succinctly: "Old Dou, just tell me."

Lao Dou responded respectfully. He maintained his clasped fist posture and reported in an orderly manner: "Princess, my subordinates have inquired in Changheng Town. When Aunt Jiang was three months pregnant, she was sent to her by the old Marquis. Went to Hengzhen, Henan Province. Accompanying Aunt Jiang at that time were Aunt Cui and the princess’s later supervisor, Aunt Yu.”

"When Aunt Jiang arrived in Changheng Town, she rushed all the way. Worried about the unstable fetal position, she asked Dr. Li from the local Li's Hospital to check her pulse. After that, Dr. Li would check Aunt Jiang's pulse every ten days."

"According to several servants at the Chu family's old house, Aunt Jiang was depressed and reclusive when she first arrived there. She rarely left the courtyard where she lived, so they didn't have much contact with her."

"However, Aunt Jiang attaches great importance to the fetus in her belly. When she was six or seven months pregnant, she asked her to go to the villagers in the area and ask for Baijia cloth, and she would personally give the baby Baijia clothes."

"Aunt Jiang's pregnancy was not easy. When the fetus was seven months old, both the doctor and Mrs. Wen said that the belly was too big. They were worried that the fetus would be difficult to give birth if it was too big. They asked her to eat less and move more. At that time, , people in the house often see her maids and nuns helping her walk around the garden. "

"One evening in July, one month before giving birth, Aunt Jiang accidentally slipped and fell in the garden. She fell hard and fell to the ground. Many people in the garden saw it and said Aunt Jiang saw the blood and couldn't stop bleeding."

"Later, I asked the servants of the old house to ask for the doctor, and it was the old doctor Li who was invited." Old Dou said, his eyes flashing, and he glanced at the princess's face.

Shen Qianchen didn't speak either. He drank tea and listened to the other party's words, seeming to be fully focused and yet careless.

From time to time, the sound of wind blowing flowers and trees could be heard in the hall, and even the passage of time seemed to slow down.

Old Dou calmed down and continued calmly: "My subordinates thought that this old doctor Li was worth investigating, so they sent someone to look for him."

"However, Dr. Li's family moved from Changheng Town ten years ago to western Henan. On this trip, it took us a lot of effort to find someone and bring him back to the capital from Yuzhou."

Originally, it would not take more than a month to travel back and forth from the capital to Yuzhou. They were also looking for Dr. Li, so they delayed some time and came back so late.

Fortunately, they found Dr. Li, otherwise their trip to Yuzhou would be equivalent to finding nothing and they would not be able to explain to the prince.

Lao Dou was secretly thankful in his heart.

Shen Qianchen put down the tea cup and asked, "Where are the people?"

"People are waiting outside." Lao Dou replied quickly.

So, Lao Dou went out and gave instructions to the boy waiting outside the hall. The boy quickly ran out of the courtyard and quickly brought in a skinny and stooped old man in gray clothes.

The old man in gray clothes seemed to be in his sixties. His hair was gray, his long face was covered with deep wrinkles, and he could not hide his fear in his steps.

The temperature in March was obviously pleasant, but there were beads of sweat all over his forehead and temples.

Old Doctor Li has lived to this age and has never left Yuzhou. Unexpectedly, when he reached his sixties, he was actually taken to the capital thousands of miles away, and was also brought to meet a nobleman.

Princess, such an unattainable noble person was something he had never dared to think about in the past. Old Doctor Li couldn't help but feel uneasy.

Old Doctor Li had just received the advice and replied tremblingly: "At that time, Aunt Jiang fell down, and I... When the grassroots checked her pulse, they found that there was excessive blood loss and the fetal position was unstable... The grassroots were incompetent, so they said they were powerless. Aunt Jiang and the two nuns around her scolded her and drove the poor people away. They said they wanted to find a better doctor elsewhere. "

Old Doctor Li frowned and sighed, and lamented: "Changheng Town is a small place. At that time, apart from my Li's Medical Hall, there were only two other famous medical centers. However, the common people later I don’t know which doctor the Chu family invited to visit.”

"Cao Min never went to Chu House again after that."

Old Doctor Li became more and more nervous as he talked, and couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his forehead with his sleeves.

There was silence in the side hall for a moment.

Shen Qianchen took another sip of tea, and then asked, "Doctor, do you still remember Aunt Jiang's pulse?"

"Back to Princess..." Old Doctor Li swallowed.

Fifteen years have passed since this incident. Originally, Old Doctor Li had forgotten about Aunt Jiang. After all, he had been practicing medicine for more than 40 years and had encountered countless pregnant women. It wasn't until people from Prince Chen's Mansion came to the door in mid-February that he recalled this past incident.

As he said just now, Changheng Town is a small place, and the Chu family is the largest family in the area, so Old Doctor Li always has some impression of this matter.

At that time, he discovered that the fetus in Aunt Jiang's belly would most likely not be saved. To tell the truth, Aunt Jiang was very excited and almost hysterical, which made Old Doctor Li feel a little panicked. He was afraid that if the child was gone, the Chu family would turn their anger on him and cause trouble for their medical clinic. Therefore, after returning home from the Chu family's old house, he wrote down Aunt Jiang's pulse report to prevent just in case.

But later, there was no sound from the Chu family. Later, when he heard that the Chu family's aunt gave birth to the child safely, he felt relieved and collected the pulse record together with other pulse records recording difficult and complicated diseases. stand up.

This hiding place lasted fourteen years.

This time, people from Prince Chen's Mansion came to him and repeatedly asked him about Aunt Jiang fifteen years ago. He was also afraid, so he recalled it carefully and remembered the pulse case.

"The common people have found the case from back then." Old Doctor Li said dryly, not daring to look directly at Shen Qianchen, who was looking up at him. He only felt that the other person was very noble, and he was different from the wealthy daughters of the small families he had seen in the town before. Very different.

One is in the sky and the other is on the ground. In fact, there is no comparison. Old Doctor Li sighed secretly in his heart and awkwardly wiped the cold sweat with his sleeves.

The pulse file was kept by Lao Dou himself. At this time, he took out the pulse file and presented it to Hu Hu.

After fifteen years, the paper of the pulse report has turned yellow, and there are some brown stains on the corner of the paper. Fortunately, the ink marks on it are very clear.

Shen Qianchen looked at the pulse table carefully, word for word.

According to Dr. Li's records, Aunt Jiang had pain in her lower abdomen, non-stop bleeding in her lower body, bright red blood, purple tongue, stringy and slippery pulse. She suffered from Chongren damage due to trauma and the fetal yuan was not solid, which was a symptom of fetal leakage.

Shen Qianchen moved his eyebrows.

If Old Doctor Li had not diagnosed the wrong pulse, Aunt Jiang’s pregnancy would probably not have been saved at that time. At least this was not something that an ordinary doctor could do. Even in the capital, several imperial doctors who were good at gynecology at the Imperial Hospital probably could not. This fetus cannot be saved.

Shen Qianchen left this pulse record and said to Old Doctor Li in a gentle tone: "Thank you very much, Old Doctor Li, for letting you travel all the way to the capital."

With that said, she asked Jiang Yuan to prepare a thank-you gift for the other party, so that he could not make this trip in vain.

Old Doctor Li hurriedly said that he didn't dare, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Jiang Yuan personally invited the old doctor Li out and gave him a gift of five hundred taels as a thank you. He also found two guards from the palace and asked them to send the old man back to Yuzhou in two days.

Old Doctor Li went out, but Old Dou did not leave. Next, he would continue to report the following things:

"After Aunt Jiang fell down in July of that year, she announced that she never left the house to protect her pregnancy. It wasn't until August 20 that she heard the baby's cry."

Lao Dou's eyes flickered and his expression was very complicated.

They also spent a lot of energy. After all, fifteen years have passed, many people have either died or left, and many people's memories have become blurred. They asked everyone they could. It was probably because the old patriarch of the Chu family passed away and the Chu family held a large-scale flowing-water banquet during the funeral. Many people in the town went to eat at the flowing-water banquet, so some people could barely remember the date. .

Lao Dou finally said: "Princess, this is what my subordinates have found."

He was a smart man and could guess what the princess was suspecting, but he had no evidence.

Shen Qianchen was not too disappointed, his expression remained as usual.

After all, after so many years, they were able to find this out. The investigation of Old Doctor Li was much more detailed than the investigation by Duke Mu's Mansion last year.

"Thank you for your hard work." Shen Qianchen said with a smile, then dismissed Lao Dou and asked him to go down and rest.

She sat alone in the side hall, meditating quietly.

August 20th was her birthday, or in other words, it was what she had always thought of as her birthday in her previous life. Could the crying baby those people in her hometown talk about be Chu Qianhuang, or would it be herself who was carried away by Chu Lingxiao?

"Meow!"

The black cat, which had been wandering outside the hall for a long time, saw that there was finally no one in the room. It barked happily and ran into the hall.

The black cat had no idea what was bothering its owner. It carelessly rubbed against her skirt and then jumped briskly onto her lap. Its four snow-white cat paws accidentally stretched out its sharp claws. The hook damaged her skirt.

Amber felt extremely distressed when she looked at it. Although this skirt was not new, the princess had only worn it a few times before it was snagged by this stupid cat.

The black cat was completely unaware of Amber's anger and meowed several times in a milky voice, begging to be petted.

"Bad thing!" Shen Qianchen stretched out his finger and flicked the black cat's forehead lightly, envious of the bad cat's heartlessness.

"Princess," Hu Bo couldn't help but ask when she saw that Shen Qianchen was worried, "Do you suspect that Aunt Jiang actually..." had a miscarriage? Amber didn't say the last three words, but both master and servant knew it well.

If, on that July evening fifteen years ago, Aunt Jiang had a miscarriage because of her fall in the garden, then where did Chu Qianhuang come from?

Amber swallowed her saliva and murmured: "Isn't the eldest lady..." Aunt Jiang's biological child?

Shen Qianchen touched the cat's right hand and paused. This pause was equivalent to answering Amber's guess.

The reason why Shen Qianchen asked Gu Jue to send someone to investigate was because he felt that Aunt Jiang's attitude towards Chu Qianhuang was very strange. It was not like she was really nice to Chu Yunyi. She loved her from the bottom of her heart and had no selfish motives. Then It is the loving heart of a mother towards her children.

For Chu Yunyi, Aunt Jiang is a qualified biological mother.

But whether it was towards herself or Chu Qianhuang, Aunt Jiang's attitude was very subtle. She had no love, no protection, and she didn't even wish her daughter well.

Even those mothers who favor sons over daughters, most hope that their daughters will live well.

Aunt Jiang was more inclined to use Chu Qianhuang, and she was more like taking revenge on herself.

If Chu Qianhuang is not her biological daughter, then her "cold heart" towards Chu Qianhuang can be explained.

Suddenly, Shen Qianchen recalled what Master Juehui said to Chu Qianhuang that day at Baiyun Temple: "Come from where you came from, go to where you are going, the cycle of cause and effect."

She always felt that this sentence hinted that the real Chu Qianhuang might still come back.

Most of the time, Shen Qianchen believed in victory, but in this matter, she seemed to be unable to do anything.

Shen Qianchen sighed silently.

The Chu Qianhuang raised by Shen Zhi himself was definitely not like the one he has now.

It would be great if the original Chu Qianhuang could come back!

Although many of Shen Qianchen's memories of her previous life in the Chu family have been blurred, she is certain that Chu Qianhuang in her previous life must have been occupied by this person.

Therefore, after Brother Mu fell from the rockery in the previous life, it was Chu Qianhuang who covered up Aunt Cui, and Aunt Cui escaped. No one suspected Aunt Cui;

Therefore, even when Shen Zhi passed away, Chu Qianhuang was not too sad;

Therefore, when he was suspected of having a flaw in his reputation for just a small amount of money, Chu Qianhuang did not stand up to speak for himself.

…

Thinking of Chu Qianhuang, Shen Qianchen couldn't help but look at the sky outside. The sky was blue, with white clouds slowly drifting southward in the wind, and the clouds were unpredictable.

Shen Qianchen knew that Chu Qianhuang could not go to Hao Kingdom. Gu Jue would not hide the letters from flying pigeons she received. Prince Rui and the others should be returning to Beijing soon.

Shen Qianchen happily touched the cat's back a few times, his lips curved, his eyes sparkling, and his smile as bright as the rising sun.

After Chu Qianhuang returned to Beijing, some matters needed to be settled quickly, and this matter was delayed even longer.

"Meow!" The black cat narrowed its eyes and meowed with satisfaction, as if agreeing with Shen Qianchen.

Shen Qianchen was in a light mood, but Prince Rui, who was far away in Yuzhou, had a huge headache.

After he stood up, his first words were: "Has Deputy Commander Xu returned from Changjing Town?"

At this moment, Prince Rui and his party are in Yuan'an County, which is more than ten miles away from Changjing Town. They have been in this small county for several days.

"Your Majesty, Deputy Commander Xu hasn't come back yet." Chang Sui shook his head.

Prince Rui: “…”

Prince Rui's face was extremely ugly. In just a few days, he had lost a lot of weight, and a lot of gray hair had grown on his temples due to worry.

He raised his hand to rub his temples. He even lost the appetite for breakfast. He looked through the window in the direction of Changjing Town, his eyes in a trance.

Until now, Prince Rui was still confused. That evening, shortly after they and the Andaman County King and his party entered Changjing Town, they all fainted.

When Prince Rui woke up in his carriage, it was already the next morning. They returned to the entrance of Changjing Town. Others were lying on the ground or unconscious in the carriage. Everyone woke up one after another at about the same time.

At first, Prince Rui thought they had encountered robbers, but there were many Qi people in the team, including Yuan Zhitong.

Only the king of Andaman and his party of Hao people were missing.

At that moment, Prince Rui sent the Jinwu Guards to investigate the whereabouts of King Andaman and the others. However, the Jinwu Guards searched the entire Changjing Town and could not find Andaman and the others.

In the next three days, Jinwuwei searched the town several times, but still found nothing. There was neither blood nor bodies in the town.

Andaman and the others seemed to have disappeared out of thin air, without a trace.

For a time, people were in confusion and speculations abounded.

This incident was so unbelievable that Prince Rui probably guessed that the Andaman County King and the others had most likely encountered something unexpected...

"Your Majesty, Princess Anxing would like to see you." At this time, Chang Sui's voice woke Prince Rui from his thoughts.

Chang Sui looked at his master worriedly, knowing that the prince had barely slept a wink last night.

Prince Rui frowned slightly, feeling that these little girls were too young but too petty, so he dismissed her casually: "Tell her that I have official duties!"

Chang Sui responded and withdrew.

Prince Rui made a fist with his right hand and tapped it irritably on the table. He couldn't help but think of Chu Qianhuang.

They could not find any trace of Andaman in Changjing Town. Prince Rui had ordered an immediate return to the capital. At that time, it was Chu Qianhuang who dissuaded him and asked him to stay for a few more days.

Chu Qianhuang said: "Your Majesty, I think it is not appropriate to return to the capital now."

"The King of Andaman is missing now. If you return to Beijing now, I'm afraid it won't be easy to explain to the Emperor!"

"Your Majesty, it's impossible for so many people to disappear out of thin air. Since we can't find anyone in Changjing Town or the dock, why don't we look for them in other towns near Changjing Town?"

"Even if something happens to Haoren, he will have to die and see his body."

The words Chu Qianhuang said at that time still echo clearly in Prince Rui's ears.

Prince Rui actually had no idea. This incident was so bizarre that he didn’t even know how to write it down. After all, he couldn’t explain to the emperor why the Prince of Andaman disappeared, let alone what happened to Andaman and the other Hao people. Dead or alive.

To put it harshly, it would be okay if a person is alive, but if he dies within the borders of Daqi, things will be in trouble. How should Daqi explain to Hao Emperor Wuhaduluo? !

Therefore, after what Chu Qianhuang said, Prince Rui changed his mind again and ordered to station in Yuan'an County for a few days, allowing Commander Xu of Jinwu Guard to continue searching for the whereabouts of Andaman and other Hao people near Changjing Town. .

This search has led to the present.

If you still can’t find someone, should you keep looking? Prince Rui was struggling again.

Changsui had already arrived outside the house and said politely to Yuan Zhitong who was waiting under the eaves: "Your Highness Princess Anxing, the prince is busy. Please come back."

Yuan Zhitong had a gentle smile. Although he suffered a soft blow here, his attitude was still approachable. After a few words of polite response, he turned around.

The next moment, the corners of her lips turned up uncontrollably, and she couldn't hide the joy at the corners of her eyes and brows.

No news is the best news!

Last month, when they arrived in Changjing Town, Yuan Zhitong had already accepted his fate, but he didn't expect that it would take another turn at the last moment.

Andaman is missing, so she doesn’t have to go to Nanhao!

When Yuan Zhitong walked out of the small courtyard where Prince Rui lived, he happened to pass by a tall and mighty middle-aged man. He nodded slightly to him: "Deputy Commander Xu!"

Deputy Commander Xu had a solemn look on his face, bowed to Yuan Zhitong absentmindedly, said he was going to find Prince Rui to revive him, and left in a hurry.

If it were a real princess, Prince Rui and Deputy Commander Xu would not be so contemptuous, but everyone knew that Yuan Zhitong was just the emperor's adopted daughter, nothing more than a victim. Not worth mentioning.

However, Yuan Zhitong didn't care about their slights at all. What she was concerned about was that Deputy Commander Xu still hadn't found anyone.

Yuan Zhitong and the eldest maid exchanged glances calmly, with a peach-like blush on their cheeks.

If possible, who would want to leave their hometown and go to a foreign country!

God is wise, she can go back to the capital!

Yuan Zhitong's eyes were filled with tears, and he was so excited that he almost cried.

She looked back and watched Deputy Commander Xu enter the room, then continued walking forward, thinking to herself: It's just a matter of staying here for a few more days, it's nothing.

On the other side, Deputy Commander Xu asked the commander to follow him into the room. His expression was solemn, which made Prince Rui's heart skip a beat.

He originally thought that this errand to send off his relatives couldn't be simpler, wasn't it just to **** Yuan Zhitong and his two concubines to the Kingdom of Hao, but he didn't expect that a simple errand would encounter such a bizarre turn of events!

Prince Rui felt that the green vegetable and shredded chicken porridge in his mouth no longer tasted good.

Deputy Commander Xu said straight to the point: "Your Majesty, we just found a lot of unidentified corpses in a mass grave about five miles away from Changjing Town. But they are not Hao people. They are the corpses of Daqi people. There are hundreds of them." ”

"Judging from the degree of decomposition of the corpses, they must be at least half a year old. Judging from the wounds, they must have been massacred!"

As he spoke, Deputy Commander Xu frowned deeply, his face as dark as water.

He had also wondered where the disappeared citizens of Changjing Town had gone, and now he finally found the answer.

Prince Rui: “…”

When Prince Rui heard what the other party said about corpses and decay, his appetite disappeared and he couldn't eat the porridge anymore. He picked up the handkerchief and wiped his mouth.

Chang Sui quickly handed Prince Rui a cup of tea to rinse his mouth with.

Prince Rui drank tea absentmindedly, with a huge stone pressed against his heart.

How could this nice town be massacred? !

(End of chapter)