Painting Doctor Jinhua

Chapter 153: First Confrontation with Lu Lingxuan

As soon as Xiao Jinyu said this, these people retreated in fear. At this moment, Ling Ye, holding a sharp sword, a cold light suddenly crossed the sky, illuminating the night in white. However, in a flash, one of them was brought in front of Lanling King and Xiao Jinyu by Ling Ye.

"Tell me, who ordered you to come here and falsely convey the imperial edict?" Ling Ye asked sternly.

The man was so frightened that his face turned pale and he was trembling all over. He stammered for a long time before uttering a few words: "Yes, yes, it's Governor Han... Knight, spare my life! Spare my life!"

"Go back and tell your master that if you dare to attack me again, you will be killed immediately!"

"Yes Yes!"

As soon as Ling Ye loosened his grip, the man immediately staggered forward, and the rest of the people fled in panic!

Gao Changgong then ordered Zhao Wu to take a guard and follow the group in the direction they fled.

Ling Ye picked up the imperial edict that fell on the ground and handed it to Xiao Jinyu.

After reading it, Xiao Jinyu's eyes showed a light of enlightenment, and she immediately handed the imperial edict to Gao Changgong.

After seeing this, Gao Changgong also sighed and sneered: "Sure enough, it was not written by Gao Zhan himself. These people even dared to forge an imperial decree!"

"Chang Gong, don't trust others easily!"

Thinking back to the original owner's memories in his previous life, Gao Changgong was given a cup of poisoned wine by the last emperor Gao Wei, and he drank it without even thinking about it. His loyalty and bravery did not receive the slightest reward, but he was determined to die!

If we can't change some of his ideas, he might be easily ambushed by those people!

Feeling her concerned and slightly worried gaze, Gao Changgong felt a little warm in his heart and nodded immediately.

"Don't worry, Yu. I won't...but you just married me and you have to face danger again and again with me."

There was a hint of guilt and heartache in his eyes.

"Unless it's a dangerous situation, we should share the hardships together!"

After Xiao Jinyu said this, the two of them smiled at each other again, put aside the dark clouds and ran towards the south city.

"The South City is the current capital of Qi, with four gates on the east and west sides and three gates on the south side. Since Xinghe moved the capital, people from all over the country have flocked here, and the neighborhoods are overflowing. There are more than 400 blocks, and there are at least 400,000 people in the city."

"Moreover, the emperor and the people of Qi also believe in Buddhism. There are more than 4,000 temples and more than 80,000 monks and nuns around Yecheng..."

Speaking of this, Gao Changgong thought of the day of the debate at Fahua Mountain, when Xiao Jinyu had denounced the harm that the proliferation of Buddhist temples had brought to the country and the people. He couldn't help but smile bitterly and looked at Xiao Jinyu.

"The south of Nancheng is where the common people live, while Zhongtan, Qidi, Tiangong and Yuan Zisi are where the nobles live. Prince, Princess, Yonghe and I will say goodbye to you now. If you have any requests, you can send us a message. We will live in Zhongtan. The Prince's Lanling Palace is in Tiangong, right?"

Cui Heng said politely and King Lanling nodded.

He said goodbye to Li Mi and rushed to the north of the city. As he was riding his horse, Li Mi turned back and shouted:

"Xiao Jinyu, I, Li Mi, said that with just one appointment, I can travel thousands of miles. I will do my best to help you. Don't forget!"

"take care!"

This time, he did not call her "young lady" or "princess", but called her by her name. In this era, after a woman married someone else, she would take her husband's surname. Even after her death, only this surname would be left in the family tree. They did not even deserve to have their names remembered. Li Mi called her by her name, which was a sign of his sincere respect for her.

Li Mi truly only treats her as a friend!

Xiao Jinyu was deeply moved and felt a sense of joy at being recognized.

Gao Changgong saw tears in her eyes, so he held her hand tightly and said, "Ayu, let's go home!"

"it is good!"

Xiao Jinyu had just said "OK" when Gao Changgong stretched out his arms, grabbed her waist and lifted her up, then carried her to his horse's back and whispered in her ear, "I'm worried about you being far away!"

"But, thanks to you just now!"

In the situation just now, no one could calmly judge the authenticity of the imperial edict. Not only him, but also the guards around him were very grateful to the princess for taking prompt action to kill the person who falsely conveyed the imperial edict!

Otherwise, the consequences are unimaginable...

"Let's go! Let's all go home!"

The guards were also very happy. This mission to Southern Chen was full of ups and downs and dangers, but no matter what, they finally returned home safely.

Back home!

After entering the city, it didn't take long for them to reach Lanling Prince's Mansion. He also gave the guards a holiday so that they could go back and reunite with their families.

Prince Lanling then carried Xiao Jinyu into the palace, the gate of which was wide open. Steward Liu came up with a group of servants and guards. When they first saw Xiao Jinyu and the troops she brought with her, they were all stunned.

Lanling Wang smiled and said, "She is my wife, your Lanling Wangfei, and the mistress of this place!"

The servants were all a little stunned. After hesitating for a moment, they said in unison: "Princess, please enter the palace!"

Only one person looked a little worried, so he walked up to Gao Changgong and asked in a low voice:

"But, Prince, marriage is a matter of parents' orders and matchmaker's words. Has the Prince explained this to his stepmother?"

"I am my own princess, and I have the final say. Manager Liu, please stop talking. My father has passed away, and my mother is nowhere to be found. Even my stepmother doesn't care about anything. I have already proposed to her Xiao family in front of everyone in the world, and vowed to marry her. The ceremony is complete. Tomorrow I will take Ah Yu to tell her about this!"

Without waiting for Liu Guanshi to refute, Lu Yu carried Xiao Jinyu to the bedroom. He glanced at Liu Guanshi and the servants who were still in a daze, and shouted, "Hurry up and get some hot water for the prince. The prince and the princess need to take a bath and go to bed. We traveled all night and it took us more than ten days to get back to Yecheng from Pengcheng!"

"Yes Yes!"

"Let me serve the princess!"

Ah Xiu hesitated for a moment, then ran away with the servants.

There are mostly men in Prince Lanling's mansion. How can your lady get by without a maid?

Lu Yu also ordered people to clean up some rooms so that Ling Ye and the dozen or so soldiers he brought with him could settle down.

Phoenix was still unhappy, and after taking a bath, he got used to sleeping on the roof.

This night finally passed without any danger!

After taking a bath, the people who returned fell into a tired sleep, and everything became peaceful and beautiful again!

……

But Lu Lingxuan in the Beigong did not have such a peaceful and beautiful life. When she saw the people kneeling timidly in front of her, a very complicated look appeared on Lu Lingxuan's face.

Seemingly smiling but not smiling, seeming angry but not angry.

She is also a person who is very good at hiding her anger, so her unusual calmness often represents unusual anger.

"A little girl of fifteen actually scared you to death!"

"Prince Lanling didn't kill you, but released you all?"

It was just two extremely gentle and calm sentences, but the people kneeling below lowered their heads in fear.

“Mother—” A young man with braided hair came out from behind the curtain and whispered, “Prince Lanling has returned home with his princess. We were unable to kill him along the way. Besides the fact that his princess is a ruthless person who can use thunder and fire bombs, there is also a group of soldiers brought by that woman. There are not many people, but each of them is considered to be top-notch!”

Lu Lingxuan glanced at her son Mutipo and was a little surprised: "Another group of troops?"

"Yes, mother. What should we do about tonight? I thought that with Lanling Wang's loyalty and bravery, he would not doubt the imperial edict. As long as he was willing to dismount and accept the edict, our people could kill him like they did when they killed Huainan Wang Sima Yun in the Western Jin Dynasty, and then find someone else to take the blame for Lanling Wang's death. But his princess seemed to be able to see through our thoughts and prevented Lanling Wang from dismounting to accept the edict. She also made a prompt decision and shot the person who delivered the edict to death!"

Lu Lingxuan raised her eyebrows, narrowed her eyes slightly, and an unfathomable smile appeared at the corner of her lips.

"Xiao Luan really left her a considerable fortune. She had hidden her daughter for so many years. She originally thought that she was just a pretty girl who used her beauty to please men, but she didn't expect that she was actually a wise man who was decisive and resourceful..."

As she spoke, she suddenly stood up and said in a cold voice: "Very good, after so many years, it is also very good to meet such an opponent. Let's see who can laugh last and become the number one person in the court of Northern Qi!"

After saying that, he looked at Mutipo.

"Let's leave these people who falsely convey the imperial edict to Minister He to deal with! He will know what to do!"

Mutipo showed a happy expression: "Yes!"

"Also, it's time to ask the people from Xingyang Zheng's family to come and make things difficult for them!"

"Mother wants that Zheng girl..."

"The Zheng family of Xingyang was originally a help to Gao Changgong. Zheng Daozhong even wanted to marry his eldest granddaughter to Lanling King to form an alliance with him. But now the news that Lanling King married Xiao's daughter has spread from Southern Chen to our Qi State. The Zheng family will definitely be angry about this. Friendship in this world is born out of interests. If we can't be in-laws, then we can only become enemies!"

"Gao Changgong cut off his own arm, so it's not our fault!"

"Yes! Mother!"

Thinking of Gao Changgong's handsome face, Lu Lingxuan felt very sorry. She had thought about winning him over and making him her lover. Even Queen Hu had had such an idea before. But Gao Changgong was a stubborn person. Not only did he have no interest in women, but he was also full of contempt for them.

Thinking about it, he couldn't help but laugh: No, now it seems that I am not completely uninterested in women.

……

It was a dreamless night and soon a new day came. When Gao Changgong opened his eyes, he habitually looked at the person beside him, but seeing that there was no one beside him, he got up anxiously and looked around the bedroom.

He quickly ran to the dressing table and was surprised to see Xiao Jinyu sitting in front of it, with A Xiu helping her wash and comb her hair.

Hearing the footsteps, Xiao Jinyu turned around and looked at Gao Changgong.

"Chang Gong, you're up!"

Gao Changgong nodded with a smile, then strode over and hugged her in his arms: "I thought you were gone again! Fortunately, you are here!"

"I'm sorry for making Chang Gong worried!" Xiao Jinyu didn't expect that incident to leave such a deep shadow in his heart. She felt even more guilty and stroked his face. "I'm new to Yecheng. There must be a lot of people I want to meet. I want to dress up well, at least not lose my momentum."

Gao Changgong found it funny and was touched at the same time. Then he noticed that she was indeed dressed up differently today than usual.

At this moment, she was wearing a long dress made of soft lavender silk. She had only a hairpin given to her by Xiao Xian pinned on her black hair, revealing her graceful white neck. She looked both graceful and elegant like a southern girl, and had an aura that was unapproachable.

"You're beautiful even without dressing up!" he couldn't help but say.

"You are going to the palace to meet the emperor of your Qi country today, right?" she asked, and suddenly requested, "Chang Gong, I will go with you!"

"no--"

Seeing his worried look, she added, "Don't worry, I won't let the emperor of your Qi country fall in love with me! Believe me!"

"Today I will settle my experiences along the way in front of the Emperor of Qi and seek justice for you."

Having said this, he added,

"By the way, I'll help your grandmother, Empress Dowager Lou, to check her illness..."

When Gao Changgong heard the word "see a doctor", his eyes lit up.

"Ayu, are you saying that my grandmother's illness can still be cured?"

"I haven't seen it yet, but everything depends on human efforts. I will try my best!"

Gao Changgong couldn't help but hold her in his arms again, kissed her cheek which still had the arrow marks, and said in a hoarse voice: "Ayu, thank you!"

"So, Chang Gong, let me go into the palace with you!"

Ah Xiu was watching from the side and felt quite embarrassed and touched, thinking: My wife finally married a good husband who treated her well, unlike her who met the wrong man and ended up regretting it all her life.

However, who wouldn’t love someone like you?

……

When Gao Changgong took Xiao Jinyu's hand and walked out of the mansion, he saw dozens of soldiers standing outside the mansion. There was also a lot of noise and bustle in front of the mansion gate. It must be that the news of his return to Yecheng had spread, so it attracted many people to watch.

Xiao Jinyu couldn't help but feel nervous. At this moment, a young man in white clothes with black patterns and narrow sleeves ran up to her, looked her up and down with surprise in his eyes.

"Fourth brother, this is the woman you brought back from the South. She is indeed extremely beautiful. It's a pity that there is a flaw in this beauty. Why is there a scar on her face? Is it from the injury she suffered during the journey?" After saying this, his tone revealed great regret.

Gao Changgong immediately stepped forward and blocked the boy's sight.

"Yanzong, she is your fourth sister-in-law!" His tone was cold and warning. Then, he introduced her to Xiao Jinyu, "This is the one I told you about, my fifth brother Gao Yanzong!"

Xiao Jinyu nodded. The original owner had a very vague memory of the young man's appearance, but he had a certain impression of the name: when Gao Changgong was given the poisoned wine, the original owner asked Gao Yanzong to quickly ask Gao Wei to revoke the order. Unfortunately, his tearful memorial did not win Gao Wei's sympathy.

Later, the Northern Zhou invaded the Northern Qi, Gao Wei fled, and Gao Yanzong's generals supported him as the new ruler of Northern Qi.

Unfortunately, he was defeated in the end!

Seeing Gao Changgong so nervous at this moment, the young man couldn't help but be amazed and sighed: Fourth brother is really nervous about this precious girl. At first, when he heard those rumors from the south, he didn't believe them, but now it seems to be true!

"Fourth brother, are you really going to marry her with the entire Cizhou Kiln? That's..." He lowered his voice and whispered in his ear, "That's the royal family's property. It will bring you a fatal disaster! Also, if you marry her, what about the girl from the Zheng family? That girl has admired you for a long time and will not marry anyone else but you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a girl in a long green gauze dress ran out from the guards and looked at Gao Changgong with affectionate eyes.

"Xiao Guan, you are finally back!"

The girl smiled sweetly, and when she glanced at Xiao Jinyu, a hint of surprise and sadness flashed in her eyes. However, when her gaze fell on the arrow mark on her cheek, a hint of imperceptible pride appeared in her eyes.

When she looked at Xiao Jinyu, Xiao Jinyu also looked at her.

This is Zheng!

Gao Changgong's wife in his previous life was with him throughout his life.

After Gao Changgong's death, she converted to Buddhism and no longer cared about worldly affairs.

In her previous life, Zheng had always played the role of a virtuous wife, but after the original owner entered Lanling Prince's Mansion as a concubine, she repeatedly made things difficult for the original owner. Once, she even wanted to sell the original owner to Queen Mother Hu when Lanling Prince was away. Fortunately, Lanling Prince's guards passed the message to him, allowing Gao Changgong to arrive in time and save the original owner's life.

From this we can see that Zheng was a woman who was extremely good at lying.

Gao Changgong was completely unaware and just nodded politely, then took Xiao Jinyu's hand and said, "We just returned to Yecheng at midnight last night and have not yet paid our respects to His Majesty. Now we have to go to the palace to meet His Majesty! If you have nothing else to do, why don't you all go away?"

Just as he was about to leave, Gao Yanzong stopped him and asked, "Fourth brother, are you taking her with you?" Then he reminded him in a low voice, "Fourth brother, don't take her with you. She is too beautiful! Just leave her at home! Don't worry, fourth brother, I can help you protect her!"

"Xiao Guan, Yan Zong is right, she is too beautiful. If you bring her into the palace, it will bring disaster. It will not be good for you or her!"

Zheng Yue also ran over and said with concern.

These words sounded particularly sincere. Gao Changgong was originally worried that entering the palace would bring trouble to Xiao Jinyu. After thinking it over again and again, he said to Xiao Jinyu: "Ayu, why don't I go to the palace alone? I know you are worried about me. Don't worry, I'm fine!"

Xiao Jinyu pondered for a moment, and seeing more and more people gathering outside the mansion, he nodded.

"That's fine, but Chang Gong, if the emperor makes any request, you should just agree to it first!"

Gao Changgong nodded, and rode away with Lu Yu towards the imperial palace in the south city.