The Salted Fish’s Political Marriage - Chapter 14

Raindrops tapped against the doors of Huiming Hall, beating the peach blossoms outside until they turned into fragrant mud and fell to the ground.

Mu Yanzhou picked up the sheet of thin paper before him, held it over the candle, and squinted as he watched it slowly turn into fly ash.

He had resisted the marriage so strongly that on the road to Chongjing for the alliance, he had been willing to die alongside him. Yet, after arriving in Chongjing, he had become a completely different person in just a single night. If he was not a spy, then what could the reason be?

Always arrogant and dismissive of everyone, he discovered that, at some point, he had developed a slight interest in a certain person.

Mu Yanzhou smiled. He brushed away the ash on the edge of the long table, not giving it much more thought.

At the hour of Chen, the weather was mild and the sun was bright.

The spring breeze swept through Huiming Hall, carrying a hint of medicinal fragrance. Before Song Mingzhi even reached the door, the servants who had been busy working stopped in unison and bowed to him.

“Greetings, Your Highness!” echoed from afar. It was a spectacular sight.

The rain in Chongjing had fallen for two consecutive days. Once it stopped, Song Mingzhi ordered the servants in the Prince’s manor to prepare a carriage and sent A-Lang to the gold shop in the South Market to retrieve the small gold bell he had left there. As for himself, he appeared outside Huiming Hall right on time.

Health cannot be maintained solely through food. Yesterday, Song Mingzhi had specifically invited someone from the Imperial Medical Bureau to take the Prince of Qi’s pulse. Early this morning, before dawn, the servants had followed the doctor’s orders to decoct the medicine, delivering it directly to the side of the Prince of Qi’s desk without delay.

Just as Song Mingzhi arrived at the door, he saw a servant walking out of Huiming Hall carrying a medicine bowl.

Song Mingzhi stopped in his tracks. “Wait.”

Before the words were fully out, he walked forward, took the bowl from the servant’s hands, and checked it carefully. The bowl was empty, with only a few unrefined medicinal residues clinging to the porcelain wall. It looked as though it had been finished.

Before the servant could bow, Song Mingzhi said, “It is fine, you may go.”

After speaking, he walked quickly into Huiming Hall, leaned over to the flower pot by the door, and sniffed carefully to determine if Mu Yanzhou had truly finished his medicine. When the imperial physician came to the manor yesterday, he mentioned that he had treated the Prince of Qi before, but the Prince had always complained that the herbal decoction was too bitter and never took it properly. He hinted to Song Mingzhi that he must confirm it himself.

Song Mingzhi naturally followed those instructions.

The flowers planted in Huiming Hall had been changed from orchids to roses. The soil in the pot seemed to have been loosened recently; it gave off a faint, raw scent but lacked the medicinal aroma Song Mingzhi expected. Seeing this, he finally felt at ease.

He was about to stand up when a voice reached his ears: “Song Mingzhi, don’t you trust me a little too little?”

Since learning Song Mingzhi’s Central Plains name, Mu Yanzhou always loved to call him by his full name when they were alone. Song Mingzhi had long since become numb to this.

He stood straight and said with a clear conscience, “This was the physician’s instruction.”

“Why are you so obedient to him?” Mu Yanzhou walked out of the study. He rubbed the newly sprouted leaves of the rose plant and stretched his shoulders, lazily saying, “Don’t worry, even for your sake, I intend to live a few more years.”

Before Song Mingzhi could respond, he leaned closer. “Are you moved?”

Song Mingzhi slowly shifted his gaze toward the study. “Then, Your Highness, why not read more books for me?”

Mu Yanzhou sighed, “You really are cold-hearted.”

The cold-hearted Song Mingzhi walked to the desk to check his progress, while carefully recalling the physician’s words from yesterday.

Although the Prince of Qi had always suffered from stomach ailments—which flared up every few days due to his drinking—it was not considered severe. It was certainly not enough to cost him his life in just a few years.

Song Mingzhi’s movement of flipping the page paused. Compared to the stomach ailment, the slight tremor in the Prince’s arm seemed more worthy of attention.

Logically speaking, as long as it is “fed” on time, the gu-insect should not have any visible effect on the host. If his guess was correct, the Prince had likely attempted to use external force to purge the gu-insect from his body, but not only did it fail, he had suffered a backlash. This was the illness the Prince truly needed to treat.

Seeing Song Mingzhi suddenly stop flipping the pages, Mu Yanzhou leaned in. “What is it? Is there a problem?”

Song Mingzhi immediately turned the page and said sternly, “None at present.”

Mu Yanzhou sat to the side silently. “You are truly terrifying.”

He did not see that Song Mingzhi’s hand had also trembled slightly.

Attempting to kill the gu-insect meant that he knew he had been poisoned. As a prince, for him to handle such a matter in silence without a word pointed back to Song Mingzhi’s suspicion: the poison might have been administered by his own father, the Emperor. However, even if that foolish ruler was the one behind the poisoning, he still had no way to verify whether the Prince of Qi was truly biding his time. If he were to suddenly change his attitude toward the Prince, it would only arouse suspicion. Song Mingzhi decided to stick to his current strategy.

In the blink of an eye, Song Mingzhi finished checking the pages on the table and picked up his pen to record Mu Yanzhou’s progress. He closed the record book and said to Mu Yanzhou, “Knowledge from books is ultimately shallow.”

He then let out a light laugh.

Mu Yanzhou stood up and quietly took half a step back. Based on recent experience, whenever Song Mingzhi smiled at him like that, it was rarely anything good.

Sure enough!

Song Mingzhi set down the Strategy for Governance that Mu Yanzhou had been copying and calmly uttered, “I think, Your Highness, it is time for you to learn a bit more about current affairs.”

Mu Yanzhou closed his eyes in despair. “I knew it!”

The original owner’s father was one of the “Three Great Commandery Princes” of Shulan. The fact that he had led diplomatic missions to the Central Plains many times during his life, and that the original owner had followed him to Chongjing City as a child, was no secret.

Unlike the secret of the Prince of Qi’s poisoning, there was no need to hide the events of the original owner’s childhood. Song Mingzhi even planned to thank the person who saved the original owner properly once he found them.

A-Lang did not try to keep his journey a secret from those around him. Before long, he returned to the manor in the Prince’s carriage, bringing the small bell with him.

“Young Master!” A-Lang trotted into the Zhuohua Courtyard. From afar, he called out toward the tree, “Master Ah Zhi, the gold shop owner has found out!”

Architecture in this dynasty mostly utilized a “bright halls, dark rooms” layout, with rooms often having only front-facing windows. Therefore, even during the day, one often needed to light candles to read or write. Since burying himself in a sea of flames in his previous life, Song Mingzhi had developed a fear of fire. During the day, he often sat by the window or, as he was doing now, soaked up the sun alone in the courtyard.

Song Mingzhi put down his book and looked up at A-Lang. “What did the owner say?”

At the same time, in the corner of the courtyard, a guard Mu Yanzhou had assigned to monitor Song Mingzhi secretly shifted his gaze toward them.

A-Lang, who was panting heavily, leaned against the tree. “The owner, the owner…”

Song Mingzhi did not have the original owner’s memories, so although he was curious about who had saved him, he was not overly agitated. He signaled for someone to bring tea and said, “Do not rush.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

A-Lang took the tea and drank it in one gulp. Then, he impatiently stepped forward and handed the small bell back to Song Mingzhi, gasping for air. “The gold shop owner said he went through several intermediaries and finally found the craftsman who made this bell.”

Sunlight pierced through the peach blossom branches, falling onto his shoulders like crushed gold. Song Mingzhi nodded. “Did the craftsman have any clues?”

“He did, but I didn’t quite understand it all.” A-Lang scratched his head, looking puzzled. “He said this bell was ordered by someone from the Liu family.”

He then looked down at Song Mingzhi, curious. “Young Master, what does ‘the Liu family’ mean?”

Song Mingzhi tightened his grip on the bell. He muttered, “The Liu family…”

This was known by everyone. Although Song Mingzhi carried an air of nobility, after staying there for a while, the servants in Zhuohua Courtyard gradually realized he didn’t have the typical airs of a Prince Consort. Consequently, A-Lang had become increasingly talkative. When he had nothing to do, he would often hang out with the other servants to chat. Therefore, as soon as A-Lang finished speaking, the maid who had come to deliver tea immediately explained, “Master A-Lang may not know, but the ‘Liu family’ of Great Chu refers to the maternal clan of our Empress Xianping!”

The Liu family rose to prominence in the previous dynasty and had fought alongside the founding emperor of Great Chu, earning real merit for helping him ascend the throne. Later, when the Prince of Qi’s maternal grandfather led troops to assist the current Emperor in seizing the throne, the Liu family became even more prestigious. Thus, there was only one “Liu family” in Great Chu.

As soon as the maid finished speaking, the Zhuohua Courtyard suddenly went silent. The guard hiding in the corner, responsible for monitoring Song Mingzhi, immediately pricked up his ears.

Only A-Lang remained oblivious to what was happening. He said, “Oh,” and continued, “That craftsman said this small bell in Young Master’s hand seemed to be one of the birthday gifts that someone from the Liu family gave to a ‘younger generation member of the family’.”

Although the Liu family was prestigious, their family line was sparse; the Prince of Qi did not have any cousins. Therefore, the younger generation member mentioned by the craftsman…

Song Mingzhi muttered, “The Prince of Qi.”

No, it couldn’t be that coincidental, could it?

The people in the courtyard had already heard this from A-Lang, and the maid exclaimed excitedly, “So, Your Highness and the Prince actually have such a connection!”

On the other side of the courtyard, the guard monitoring Song Mingzhi suddenly widened his eyes. That’s great. The Prince likes the Consort so much; he will surely be happy to hear this. His heart raced twice, and he turned to head toward Huiming Hall to tell Mu Yanzhou.

However, after a few moments, the guard’s footsteps suddenly faltered.

Wait a minute! I almost forgot. The Prince is only pretending.

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