Chapter 624: Mobilizing the Golden Guards
Chu Qingzhi followed up on Fan Yuru’s comment, asking, “What do you think maturity is?”
“Well… like Brother Tang,” Fan Yuru articulated. “Qingzhi, 1 envy you. If there was a boy similar to Brother Tang, 1 definitely wouldn’t resist the arranged marriage.”
Chu Qingzhi responded, “Hongjun is young; he’ll mature with time. He won’t always be like this.”
Fan Yuru was silent while eating candy. After a while, having finished her candy, she said, “Qingzhi, 1 have to go for the medical service now.”
She suddenly leaned closer to Chu Qingzhi and whispered, “Actually, Hongjun is quite cute. 1 don’t dislike him.”
After saying this, Fan Yuru left a bit embarrassedly.
Watching Fan Yuru’s swiftly departing figure, Chu Qingzhi thought to herself, ‘Disciple, your master can only do so much. From now on, it’s all up to you.’
At the Chu Residence.
“Fifth Sister, I’ve concocted the ointment.”
Just as Chu Qingning was about to rest, she did not expect to see Chu Qingzhi return the moment she opened the door. She hurriedly went back to take out the ointment.
Chu Qingzhi smelled the ointment, which had a fragrance of jasmine flowers mixed with a faint medicinal scent. It was surprisingly pleasant.
“Fourth Sister, you’re ready to graduate.”
Chu Qingning, feeling a sense of achievement, said, “Then I’ll make a few more boxes later.”
“There’s no rush. The ointment isn’t needed until the day after tomorrow. Rest for now, and we can make more together tonight.”
“That sounds good.” Chu Qingning went to rest.
Chu Qingzhi took the ointment and was about to find someone to test it. She had just taken two steps when Shen Ruyue walked over. “Qingzhi.”
Shen Ruyue pulled Chu Qingzhi to sit on a stool. “Qingzhi, I have an idea.”
“What kind of ideas?”
“You previously mentioned finding an assistant for me. I’ve thought of two candidates, Xu Songnian and Xu Wenlin. What do you think?”
“These two children have good personalities and character. If you’ve thought it through, you can train them.”
“Would they be willing?”
“When the time comes, we’ll go back and ask them. We’ll see if they’re willing. If they’re unwilling, we’ll change the candidates.”
“Okay.” Shen Ruyue then mentioned, “Qingzhi, your brother and I have decided to go back tomorrow. I’m worried that Zhangjie and Yujun won’t be able to handle everything, and it might lead to chaos.”
Chu Qingzhi suggested, “We can all go back together after my second sister comes back for a visit with her husband. One more day won’t make a difference.”
After seeing Qingyue this time, she didn’t know when they would meet again.
Shen Ruyue agreed. “Then we’ll go back after seeing her.”
Chu Qingzhi nodded. “I’m going to test the medicine. Do you want to come?”
“What medicine?”
“I’ll tell you on the way.”
At dinner in the Chu Residence, the family was gathered in the dining hall.
They were still getting used to Chu Qingyue’s absence, and the meal was somewhat silent.
During this silence, Li Qingyu suddenly spoke, “Today, two matchmakers came to propose marriage for Qingshuang. What are your thoughts on this?”
Chu Qingshuang, caught off guard, choked on her food. It took her a moment to regain composure. “Mother, what are you talking about?”
Li Qingyu detailed the day’s events to everyone. “You all decide. Those two matchmakers are waiting for my reply.”
Chu Qingshuang immediately expressed her stance. “Mother, I don’t want to get married. It’s obvious they have ulterior motives; I won’t marry into such families.”
Even the usually reticent Chu Rong spoke up, “I disagree.”
Grandpa Chu and Granny Chu also shook their heads. First, they didn’t know much about the two families, and secondly, Qingshuang wouldn’t be able to adapt to such complicated families. She would surely have a hard time if she married into them.
Li Qingyu asked the children, “What do you think?”
Chu Xuhua analyzed, “Both the Zhang and Cai families are among the top porcelain families in the capital. Logically, they wouldn’t look up to a family like ours. Their interest in Qingshuang must be because of her talent in porcelain, with a strong ulterior motive… Such a marriage would definitely be throwing Qingshuang into the fire. I don’t approve.”
When faced with a difficult situation, her big brother had learned to analyze the situation calmly. Chu Qingzhi agreed, “I support my brother’s view.”
Li Qingyu looked around at everyone, “So, should I refuse them tomorrow?”
Chu Qingshuang quickly said, “Please do.”
The dinner became even more silent after this discussion, and it was a struggle to finish the meal.
Under the bright moonlight.
Wu Yaqing left her room and went to the backyard. She took out a unique whistle and blew into it.
Soon, a shadow swiftly approached from the darkness and landed in front of Wu Yaqing, greeting with a bow, “Princess.
Wu Yaqing stood straight, one hand behind her back, her expression serious, exuding the aura of a princess. “Have you found out anything about the matter I asked you to investigate?”
The black shadow took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Wu Yaqing. “Princess, please take a look.”
Wu Yaqing took the letter and read it carefully.
The contents of the letter were about Lu Yichen. It was a very detailed record of what Lu Yichen had experienced since he was born.
It turned out Lu Yichen was actually a king.
The Dating Dynasty currently had one hereditary king from a non-imperial family. Such kings were granted titles for helping the founder of the dynasty conquer the country.
Originally, there were seven, but over time, the other six disappeared for various reasons—treason, internal family strife, or being stripped of their titles for committing major crimes. Now, only one remained.
The current king was Lu Lizhang, in his forties, and usually very low-key, to the point of being almost invisible.
Lu Lizhang had a wife and two concubines.
His wife gave birth to twin brothers in their second year of marriage. According to tradition, if twins of the same gender are born, the younger sibling must be sent away to avoid bringing misfortune to the family.
Lu Yichen was that younger brother.
He was not only sent away but also given to an organization to be trained as an assassin. During those years, he faced harsh trials, including surviving in deserts and jungles, being thrown into snake pits, and being forced to fight his peers to the death…
After passing numerous tests, his first assignment was to take Tang Jinghong’s life.
However, he did not expect that during the process of following and investigating Tang Jinghong, Lu Yichen would be convinced by Tang Jinghong’s righteousness in protecting the country. Hence, he put down the weapon and joined the army. Fie even sneaked into the military camp controlled by Tang Jinghong. Later on, the two of them killed the enemy together and became good friends.
However, Lu Yichen, who had deliberately concealed his whereabouts, was eventually found not long ago.
The other party used Lu Yichen’s mother’s life to force him to go back.
After Lu Yichen was sent away and his whereabouts were unknown, his mother missed him so much that she fell ill. Later on, when she felt better, she converted to Buddhism.
This was the only worry in Lu Yichen’s heart.
After reading the letter, Wu Yaqing angrily crumpled it into a ball and coldly ordered, “Gather the Golden Guards and rescue him!”
The Golden Guards were an elite force trained specifically for Wu Yaqing by her mother when Wu Yaqing was ten. Each member was exceptionally skilled, capable of fighting hundreds, and their sole mission was to obey the Princess’s orders.
The shadow bowed and responded, “Yes, Princess..”