Ping Zhao Lu

Chapter 158 Does He Think I’m Stupid?

"Yeah." Xu Zhouye raised the corner of his lips slightly and responded softly. He nestled in Chu Yunxiao's arms with peace of mind.

At this moment, everything around them no longer matters, except for their figures hugging each other.

……

Late at night, Lianzhou.

Chu Heyuan and Shi'an moved quietly and silently through the deserted narrow alley.

Their steps were light and made almost no sound.

At the end of the alley, the two of them turned left tacitly, and suddenly a more remote and narrow road appeared in front of them.

The narrow path was overgrown with weeds on both sides, and the lush branches and leaves were intertwined with each other, forming a natural barrier.

The road is so narrow that only one person can pass through, and even two people walking side by side find it quite difficult.

In desperation, they had to move forward slowly, one in front and one behind, while struggling to use their hands to push away the tall and dense leaves.

Shi'an, who was walking behind, noticed that the towering bushes beside him were much taller than the little prince.

As a result, it was not only extremely inconvenient for the prince to walk, but his clothes could easily be soiled by the messy branches and leaves, and he might even fall and get injured accidentally.

Thinking of this, Shi'an stretched out his right hand without hesitation, gently picked up Chu Heyuan, and let him lie steadily on his shoulder.

Then free your left hand and start clearing obstacles on the path ahead so that you can successfully pass this difficult and dangerous road.

Chu Heyuan, who was suddenly picked up, was a little dazed for a moment.

He was picked up in such a lively manner.

He didn't even resist.

This Shian...

It's getting more and more presumptuous!

Although she was thinking this in her mind, her body was very honest and she didn't show any intention of resisting. Instead, she couldn't help but hug Shi'an tightly, fearing that she would accidentally slip off his shoulders.

After noticing Chu Heyuan's little move, Shi An, who was walking in front, couldn't help but chuckle. He said softly, "Don't worry, Your Highness. I will definitely hold you tightly."

Chu Heyuan: "..."

After a long time, as if time had been stretched out, the two finally passed through the narrow and dark alley and came to a dilapidated temple.

The temple looks quite old, with mottled and peeling walls and broken tiles on the roof.

The surroundings were pitch black, as if they had been stained with ink.

In the dim moonlight, one could see an old Buddha statue placed in the center of the main hall. Covered in dust and cobwebs, it looked particularly desolate.

In front of the Buddha statue, there are some scattered offerings, some of which have become moldy and spoiled, emitting a unpleasant smell.

Shi'an took cautious steps and walked forward first. He gently walked around the Buddha statue and walked to the back, then lowered his voice and called softly, "Liu Niang..."

The woman lying on a worn straw mat heard someone calling her name and sat up abruptly. Her movements were a little hasty, as if she had not yet fully woken up from her sleep.

At this moment, Chu Heyuan also slowly walked over. He was holding several bulging bags filled with various foods.

He handed the food to the woman with a smile and said, "Liu Niang, we are here to visit you!"

A brilliant smile suddenly broke out on Liu Niang's weather-beaten face.

She stretched out her rough, cracked hands, took the things Chu Heyuan handed over with some trembling, and held them tightly in her arms. Then, she clasped her hands together and nodded repeatedly to Chu Heyuan and Shi'an to express her gratitude.

Seeing this, Chu Heyuan quickly reached out to stop Liu Niang from thanking him. He said sincerely, "We should be the ones thanking you. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have recognized Governor Yuan's true character so quickly, nor would we have realized how miserable the people in this city are."

He would never have imagined that the lady who was pulling at his clothes on the side of the road was actually the wife of Governor Yuan.

Before his promotion to governor, Yuan Jianshan spent some time in Luo County. At that time, striving for advancement, he frequently attended various social events. His wife, Liu Niang, cared for the family, young and old.

Liu Niang is a native villager. By chance, she saved Yuan Jianshan who was attacked by his enemies in the woods and was unconscious. She brought him home and took good care of him.

After Yuan Jianshan woke up, he saw that the person who saved him was a young and beautiful woman. In addition to being grateful, he also developed feelings of love for her.

So he began to pursue Liu Niang.

After a lot of hard struggle, Yuan Jianshan finally got what he wanted and married the beauty.

Although Yuan Jianshan was only a county magistrate at that time, he was also a good official who cared about the people. He would rather live a frugal life himself than donate to those people in difficult circumstances.

He also advised those who had gone astray to return to the right path.

However, everything changed later.

After he was promoted to the position of Chief Secretary, he gradually became intoxicated by the warm hospitality of the Inspector, the Sima and others. He frequently met with all kinds of dignitaries with them and indulged in wine and sex all day long.

Not only that, under the constant instigation of others, he began to make friends with the daughters of powerful families, his purpose was nothing more than for his future career.

In order to be promoted to the position of governor as soon as possible, Yuan Jianshan deliberately approached Wang Xiao, the daughter of the previous governor.

Wang Xiao is a young lady who lives in seclusion. She is ignorant of the ways of the world and finds it difficult to distinguish the true feelings of a man. She is soon deceived by Yuan Jianshan's sweet words.

At first, Governor Wang did not agree to this marriage. After all, he knew men's minds very well, and he himself had ascended to the position of Governor by this means.

However, his daughter believed in Yuan Jianshan completely, and even if he brought up the fact that Yuan Jianshan already had a wife and children, it was difficult to change her mind.

Wang Xiao could not understand her father's behavior and always believed that her father was hindering her from pursuing true love. She repeatedly threatened to commit suicide to force her father to agree to let her marry Yuan Jianshan.

Governor Wang had no choice but to agree to the marriage.

Soon, Yuan Jianshan was promoted as he wished.

He was overjoyed and brought his parents and young son to the city, leaving Liu Niang alone there.

After that, the youngest son was announced to the outside world as the son of his deceased wife.

Unexpectedly, less than a month after his son was brought back, he was tortured to death by the children of wealthy families in the school.

Upon hearing the sad news, Liu Niang was filled with grief and anger, and repeatedly went to the governor's mansion to cause trouble.

Because Governor Yuan was notorious, everyone regarded Liu Niang as a mad woman who was greedy for power. After all, her ex-wife had passed away, and no one would believe a madman who suddenly appeared to cause trouble and could barely read.

Even though she was despised by everyone, Liu Niang did not back down and would do anything for her son.

Since the local authorities are powerless to do anything about this matter, they will go to the capital to file a complaint.

However, Yuan Jianshan soon learned about this matter. He made up his mind and sent someone to poison the mute Liu Niang so that she could not speak. He even wanted to kill her, but in the end he could not bear it and let her fend for herself.

From then on, Liu Niang became a lunatic in the eyes of the world.

She could often be seen acting like a madman and grabbing every passerby, especially visitors from other places.

But passers-by did not understand what she meant, nor did they want to pay attention to a crazy woman, so they all chose to stay away indifferently.

……

Prince Huai's Mansion

Rong Yu'an was awake in the middle of the night, writing hastily, and no one knew what he was writing. But he quickly rolled up the small note and put it into the small bamboo tube, then walked stealthily towards a secluded corner of the yard with the white dove in his arms.

When he got there, he looked around and made sure there was no one around, then released the white dove.

Shortly after the white dove flew out of the yard, it was shot down by an arrow.

The person who shot the arrow was Chu Yunzheng's personal guard Da Zuo.

He nimbly caught the falling white dove, skillfully untied the mailbox tied to the pigeon's feet, and then quickly walked to Chu Yunzheng who was standing in front of the door.

Chu Yunzheng took the mailbox expressionlessly, gently opened the lid, and took out the small note inside.

He unfolded the note and read it carefully in the moonlight. At first, his expression remained calm, but as he read deeper, his eyebrows knitted together and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, revealing a disdainful smile.

"Hmph, does this guy really think I'm a fool? It's bad enough that he passes on information to his master every now and then, but he actually dares to describe me as so stupid! This is simply outrageous!" Chu Yunzheng said angrily.

Da Zuo had a deadpan expression on his face, listening to his prince's abuse as if it were normal.

Seeing him like this, Chu Yunzheng was immediately furious. "What's with that expression on your face? Take it back!"

Da Zuo: "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but this is how I look."

Chu Yunzheng: "..."

Chu Yunzheng sighed helplessly, "Forget it, just continue to send the letter to him."

Da Zuo was a little embarrassed, "The pigeon is dead."

Chu Yunzheng clenched his fists, smiled, and gritted his teeth, "If it dies, won't you go get another one?"

"That makes sense." Da Zuo nodded in sudden realization, "I'll go right away."