20demayo Chapter 72 072 Reward
Chapter 72 072 Reward
Chapter 72 072 Reward
The imperial edict arrived suddenly, and a large number of people in the main hall knelt down in an instant. Apart from An Shihou, Ye Pianran and others who had returned from the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, no one knew what was going on.
The imperial eunuch unfolded the decree and read aloud: "I am deeply grateful for Ye Pianran of the Marquis of Anshi's meritorious service in protecting the Golden Lotus Pavilion, and for her intelligence, quick wit, filial piety towards her mother, and love for her sisters. She is a model of women in our Great Xia. Therefore, I hereby order that her deeds be publicized and her good name be spread. I hereby reward her with one thousand taels of gold, ten thousand taels of silver, six pairs of jade ruyi scepters, fifty South Sea luminous pearls, five hundred bolts of silk from the Imperial Brocade Workshop, five hundred bolts of brocade, and one waist token for entering the palace. I hereby pardon Ye Bijun of the Marquis of Anshi's crime of disturbing the imperial banquet and reward her with a box of the superior wound-healing ointment, Hibiscus Regenerating Ointment. This is my decree."
Every time the eunuch announced a reward, a large box was carried into the Marquis's residence.
Upon hearing her name mentioned in the imperial edict, Ye Bijun was utterly shocked, yet also consumed by insane jealousy. What had Ye Pianran done at Qionglin Garden to earn such praise from the emperor and be rewarded with so much gold, silver, and silk? How wonderful it would be if she had received such gifts!
After announcing the imperial decree, the eunuch placed the decree, the waist token for entering the palace, and the brocade box containing the Hibiscus Regenerating Cream together, and said to Ye Pianran, "Miss Ye, please accept the decree."
"Your Majesty, I, Ye Pianran, thank you for your great kindness. May Your Majesty enjoy good health, longevity, and lasting blessings."
Ye Pianran kowtowed earnestly to express her gratitude, then rose and respectfully accepted the imperial edict and other rewards with both hands.
The eunuch smiled kindly and said, "His Majesty has another message for this old servant to convey to the young lady. He said that this waist token not only allows entry and exit from the palace, but also free access to Qionglin Garden. He hopes that the young lady can visit Qionglin Garden more often when she has free time, and also wishes the young lady to achieve success in her studies as soon as possible."
The Emperor wants her to tend to the Golden Lotus Pavilion more often. Ye Pianran smiled and replied, "Your Majesty, I will certainly do my best. Please rest assured."
At this moment, no one remembered Ye Bijun's injury; everyone was eyeing the rewards displayed in the room with envy. After the palace officials left, Old Madam Song cleared her throat and said, "Lanzhi, these rewards..."
Gongsun Yuan sneered inwardly and said, "Since these rewards were bestowed upon Ran'er by His Majesty, Ran'er should be free to dispose of them as he sees fit."
Everyone turned their attention to Ye Pianran, who casually said, "Steward Ye, of these silk brocades from Yujinfang, two hundred bolts will be kept for Lanxin Courtyard, two hundred for Ciyuan Hall, and the rest you may distribute to the various courtyards in the mansion so that everyone can have a few new clothes." She only specified the ownership of the silk brocades, without mentioning anything else.
Although what she wanted most was real money, Madam Song didn't dare to say much, only managing a forced smile as she said, "Hehe, Ran'er is so kind."
So, that's how you just let her matter go? Ye Bijun was unwilling to accept it, and she grabbed Old Madam Song's hand, insisting, "Grandmother, the injury on my face..."
"Alright, your cousin didn't forget to plead for you and get medicine even before His Majesty, so this matter probably has nothing to do with her. You should be thanking her," said Old Madam Song somewhat impatiently. The imperial decree has already been issued, which means everything Ye Pianran said earlier was true. What a foolish girl who doesn't know what's good for her!
Knowing she had missed her best chance to defeat Ye Pianran, Ye Bijun had no choice but to swallow all her pent-up frustration. Reluctantly, she stepped forward, head down, gritting her teeth.
"Thank you so much, cousin..."
“We are of the same lineage, Sister Bijun, there’s no need for such formalities.” Ye Pianran picked up the brocade box containing the Hibiscus Rejuvenating Cream with her slender fingers and offered it to Ye Bijun. Just as Ye Bijun was about to touch the box, she suddenly withdrew her hand, as if realizing something.
"Oh right, I suddenly remembered that my older brother once gave me something from the Western Regions that he said could heal wounds. It's called something like oil..." She frowned and thought hard.
Ling Shu interjected, "Miss, call it 'essential oil'."
“Yes, essential oils.” Ye Pianran looked at Ye Yanxun. “Big brother, do you have any more?”
Ye Yanxun never expected her to mention this. A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead. He shook his head, trying to remain calm, and said, "I got it by chance. There's only one copy. Once I give it to you, it's gone."
“I thought it was precious at the time, so I kept it in the house without using it. Anyway, I won’t need it in the future, so why don’t I give it to Sister Bijun so that the injury on her face can heal faster? What do you think, brother?”
Ye Yanxun gritted his teeth to keep his expression from changing. Ye Pianran hadn't used that thing? Then why hadn't her facial injury healed? Could it be that she knew something and had been secretly watching him for a long time? No, impossible. He believed he had been very discreet; even Gongsun Yuan hadn't noticed, so Ye Pianran shouldn't know either!
This might be a test from her; he can't panic!
Suppressing his unease, Ye Yanxun smiled gently and elegantly as always: "Of course it's possible."
Is it really something from the Western Regions? Ye Bijun's eyes lit up, her gaze filled with anticipation.
"Lingyi, go back to my room and bring me that bottle of 'essential oil'," Ye Pianran said, then handed the Hibiscus Regenerating Cream to Ye Bijun.
Ye Bijun, being cautious, said, "Qiaoyi, go with Lingyi."
"Yes."
A short while later, Qiaoyi and Lingyi returned with a small, exquisitely crafted porcelain bottle. Qiaoyi whispered in Ye Bijun's ear, "Miss, I've examined it carefully. The seal on the bottle hasn't been opened, so no one should have tampered with it."
Holding up the porcelain bottle, Ye Bijun asked Ye Yanxun, "Is this it?"
Ye Yanxun nodded slightly: "Exactly."
"Then how should this thing be used?" Although Ye Bijun looked down on Ye Yanxun, she clearly trusted him more than Ye Pianran.
"Just apply one drop daily along with the wound medicine," Ye Yanxun said. Oh well, he could only blame Ye Bijun for being too stupid; why should he help someone who had no use to him?
Ye Bijun was completely relieved and happily took the Hibiscus Regenerating Cream and the bottle of essential oil to bid farewell to Marquis Anshi and Madam Song.
After she left, Ye Pianran naturally did not want to stay any longer. She made an excuse that she was tired and decisively helped Gongsun Yuan back to Lanxin Courtyard.
Ye Pianran hadn't slept all night and had exhausted herself dealing with so many conspiracies and schemes. She was truly exhausted and hadn't even had time to change her clothes before she drifted off to sleep.
Gongsun Yuan tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her eyes filled with sorrow. She wondered what kind of conspiracies and traps awaited them in the future…
On the other hand, after sending Madam Song back to Ciyuantang, Aunt Song took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention and secretly went to find Ye Yanxun in the Marquis's mansion.
"Aunt Song, what a rare guest." Ye Yanxun said casually, his hands behind his back, looking at Aunt Song who had a very obsequious expression.
Aunt Song giggled and called out, "Young Master."
This form of address made Ye Yanxun raise an eyebrow and say, "What, Aunt Song, are you coming to me intending to walk right into my trap?"
"Young Master, what are you saying? You agreed to this just to give me a chance, didn't you?" Aunt Song said ingratiatingly.
Ye Yanxun calmly took a sip of tea and said, "How do you know I would choose to help you? Ran'er is my sister. She has suffered such a great injustice, and I cannot sit idly by." He deliberately emphasized the word "sister".
"Forget it, isn't that the most cunning person in the entire Marquis's mansion?" Aunt Song thought to herself, but smiled on the surface: "Because we have the same goal. And, at least for now, we can be considered partners."
"The same purpose?" Ye Yanxun put down the quilt in his hand, his gaze sharpening. "I think, Aunt Song, you should recognize one fact. You and I have never shared the same purpose, because you—are not worthy."
Aunt Song was so angry she wanted to burst into a tirade. Who was unworthy? He was just a son born to a concubine. His own mother couldn't even enter the Marquis's mansion. Did he really think that just because he was raised in Lanxin Courtyard, he was qualified to inherit the Marquis's title?
But she dared not say such a thing to Ye Yanxun, because she knew all too well that this young man, who was not yet twenty, was extremely ruthless, and she did not want her and Wen Jin's lives to be in danger because of him.
"Young Master, you're overthinking it. What I meant was that we're all in the same boat," Aunt Song said meekly.
"If you want me to keep this a secret for you, it's not impossible." Ye Yanxun narrowed his eyes in satisfaction. "But that depends on what kind of benefits you can offer me, Aunt Song."
This kid actually wants some benefits! But if we don't agree, what if he tells Gongsun Yuan about this? That would be terrible!
Aunt Song gritted her teeth, rolled her eyes, and said, "As long as the young master can keep this a secret for me, Wen Jin and I will be at the young master's beck and call from now on and will do our best to help the young master achieve his wish."
"Oh? Then please remember what I said today, Aunt Song, and don't do anything underhanded behind my back," Ye Yanxun curled his lips into a refined and handsome smile, but his eyes were incredibly sinister. "Otherwise, don't blame me for turning ruthless."
——※※※——
On the other side, as soon as Ye Yingrou stepped into the Red Lotus Pavilion, she shouted sternly, "Pack your things and get out of here immediately! Don't leave anything in the Red Lotus Pavilion that could expose Ronghua Tower. Destroy all the secret rooms and passages!"
Ji Hongbo, the manager of Honglianfang—or rather, the deputy manager of Ronghualou—was shocked and stepped forward to ask, "Why so suddenly? What happened?"
"Don't ask so many questions, just do as instructed!" Ye Yingrou said.
A quarter of an hour later, a new group of people had quietly changed inside the Red Lotus Pavilion. After sealing off the secret room and passageway and watching as everything bearing the Ronghua Tower's logo was burned, Ye Yingrou finally breathed a sigh of relief as she and Ji Hongbo retreated to the Xu residence in Yanliu Lane.
"Rou'er, what exactly happened?" Ji Hongbo poured her a cup of tea and asked with a worried expression.
Ye Yingrou took a deep breath and said with a grim face, "I was careless for a moment and almost got caught by the Ministry of Justice when I made a move in Qionglin Garden. Eleven sacrificed himself to draw attention to me, but the Prince of Beiwu recognized him as a Jianghu assassin. The Emperor now wants the Prince of Beiwu to thoroughly investigate the organization behind Eleven, but he has the Ronghua Tower totem on his body. Once he enters the Ministry of Justice's prison, Ronghua Tower will surely be destroyed within two days! I really can't think of any other way but to withdraw from the capital and disappear from the organization!"
"Doesn't the Northern Martial King always dislike attending banquets held in the palace? Why is he here in the Qionglin Garden?"
Ye Yingrou said, "I want to know why even more than you do."
Ji Hongbo thought for a moment and said, "Actually, there is a way. We can send someone to the Ministry of Justice prison to remove the mark on Eleven's body, and then eliminate everyone who has seen the mark. Perhaps we can escape this calamity."
“No way! Is the Ministry of Justice prison such an easy place to get into? What if we fail again? Wouldn’t that just put the evidence right in front of the Ministry of Justice and the Northern Martial King?” Ye Yingrou immediately rejected the idea.
"Find Ji Linchuan," Ji Hongbo said.
Ji Linchuan, Ronghua Tower's most deeply hidden secret weapon, is the best in the world in terms of lightness skill and hidden weapons. As long as he wants, there is no place he cannot enter and no person he cannot kill. He is indeed the best candidate to enter and leave the Ministry of Justice's prison.
"As long as he's there, this mission will definitely not fail, and he can stay by your side to protect you. If one day, you really can't escape the Ministry of Justice or the Northern Martial King finding out about you, you can also have Ji Linchuan completely eliminate you."
“But…” Ye Yingrou frowned, somewhat hesitant.
A cold glint flashed in Ji Hongbo's eyes. "Rou'er, if you really want to achieve great things, then you must not have any scruples. In the eyes of us, there are no nobles or high-ranking officials, only people who can be used and dead people who have lost their value."
Remembering how Ye Pianran had avoided Chunyu Yang's traps several times in Qionglin Garden, Ye Yingrou steeled her heart, no longer hesitating, narrowed her eyes and said coldly, "Fine, have Ji Linchuan come to see me immediately!"