Chapter 168: A Dreamless Night
Chapter 168 A Dreamless Night
In the afternoon sun, everything seems quiet.
The river flows quietly.
The mountains, rivers and fields changed into their spring colors.
The birds chirped and jumped from one branch to another.
In the distance there are shepherd boys singing.
There are farmers working in the fields.
Occasionally, a knight on horseback would appear, and when passing by the Green Willow Garden, he would subconsciously slow down his pace.
Le Lanji sat under the crabapple tree, quietly listening to the nursery rhymes coming from outside the wall, a smile unconsciously appearing on the corners of her mouth.
Sometimes she would play the piano and immerse herself in the ocean of music.
The sound of the piano is still smooth and pleasant, but there have been significant changes inside.
Half a year ago, when she was imprisoned in the Chengdu Palace, the sound of her piano was gentle and sad, carrying endless resentment and hatred.
A few months ago, when she was in Jinmenwu, the sound of her piano was low and wandering, with a little confusion and a hint of expectation.
Now, she was in the Green Willow Garden. The sound of the piano was cheerful and bright, and she felt indescribable joy and perhaps a little shy.
The zither is like its artist.
The sound of the piano is the voice of the human heart.
The east wind suddenly blew, rippling the green water in the pool.
The crabapple blossoms fluttered and fell on the table.
Le Lanji gently brushed away the petals.
Under the petals was a roster with the first few words being "Liang County Martial Arts School".
Yes, a group of wooden houses are being built on the wasteland east of Liang County. After completion, all student soldiers will move here to study, train and work together.
There are numerous warriors who are good at fighting and killing around Shao Xun, but there is an extreme shortage of talents suitable for management - this requires not only the ability to write and count, among the student soldiers of each term, there are currently only a dozen or so who can barely do the job, and they lack experience.
Le Lanji would occasionally help out, such as organizing the roster, calculating and purchasing all kinds of supplies needed for martial arts, etc., and then send a manager from Lvliu Garden to carry out the specific tasks.
There are now dozens of servants in Green Willow Garden, many of whom came from the former Chengdu Palace.
To these servants, the familiar people and the princess were still there, the only difference was that the male master of the whole mansion had changed. It had "little impact" and they could just do what they were supposed to do.
Lan Ji was more comfortable commanding them, and she felt more secure psychologically. The early preparations for Liang County Martial Arts were handled by several old servants from the Chengdu Palace who had been in charge for decades, so nothing would go wrong.
After hurriedly finishing the last bit of business, Lan Ji lazily walked to the low couch next to her, yawned, and prepared to take a nap.
I slept until the sun was setting.
Shao Xun returned home early with a heavy heart, planning to make some arrangements. Suddenly, when he saw the beautiful woman sleeping soundly under the crabapple tree, he immediately laughed.
The spring clothes are thin, but the fragrance is overwhelming.
The beauty's round and undulating buttocks were facing him. He never got tired of looking at them, never got enough of playing with them, always wanted to explore their secrets, and always lost his temper on them...
He gently picked up the beauty and carried her to her bedroom, as there would be guests arriving later.
"My dear, do you seem worried?" Lan Ji woke up quickly, put her arms around his neck, and asked softly.
"Something big has happened in Luoyang." Shao Xun put the woman on the bed, pulled a thin blanket over her, gently covered her, then sat on the bedside and said, "The emperor has passed away, the crown prince has ascended the throne in front of the coffin, changed the reign to Yongjia, and issued a general amnesty. The queen was frightened and fled to Liang County, and will be at Green Willow Garden soon."
Le Lanji's eyes widened, even wider than that night in Jinmenwu.
"Don't think too much about this." Shao Xun stroked her face gently and asked, "I met Nanyang County Magistrate Le Kuan in Guangchengze. Do you know him?"
"He was a cousin." Le Lanji said, "When I was a child, I lived in the old house, which was 90 miles south of Nanyang City. My cousin often came to visit. My father took him to participate in several elegant talks. The cousin's reputation gradually rose, and later he was recruited into the government."
"It's really easy to become an official from a noble family. All you have to do is brag a few words." Shao Xun said with emotion.
Le Lanji chuckled and said, "Isn't this what several generations have been fighting for?"
"I have no family background, so how can our children become officials in the future?" Shao Xun asked with a smile.
Le Lanji's face turned red and she said nothing.
The room fell silent for a moment.
After a moment, Lan Ji asked softly, "How about I write a letter and ask my uncle to come to Green Willow Garden?"
"Can you brothers come over and sit with us?" Shao Xun asked.
"Okay." She agreed immediately.
If Shao Xun hadn't mentioned it, she wouldn't have contacted her family for the time being. Now that it was mentioned, she was somewhat happy and naturally wanted to see her family.
Going south over a mountain from Liang County is the border of Luyang County of Nanyang State, which is very close.
Shao Xun made great achievements in Liang County and Guangchengze. After a long time, the outside world would know about it and there would always be discussions about it.
Based on the principle of differentiation and attraction, he wanted to create a gap among the aristocratic families in Nanyang and Yingchuan.
In the direction of Nanyang, he chose the local tyrant Le’s.
The current Le family may not think highly of him, or be willing to join the system he created, but it is always a good idea to contact them in advance and establish a good relationship.
It would be really embarrassing if I fought hard in the north and ended up getting stabbed in Liang County and Guangchengze.
"Sir, are you going to meet guests later?" asked Lan Ji.
"The Queen's carriage is only ten miles away. She will come with the county magistrate Yang Zuyan and the palace general Chen Jing." Shao Xun tucked in Lan Ji's quilt and said, "Have a sleep. I won't be busy in a few days, so I'll take you hunting in the mountains."
Le Lanji nodded gently, her heart filled with joy.
In her 25 years of life, this was the first time a man was willing to coax her like this. Because of this joy, she was willing to ask the elders in her clan, brothers, sisters, and friends she met during her teenage years to see if they could help her husband.
******
As soon as it got dark, people shouted and horses neighed outside the Green Willow Garden.
Yang Xianrong got off the carriage and looked at the mansion with a critical eye.
It must be the mansion of some wealthy country tycoon. A huge amount of money was spent on it, but it has the air of a nouveau riche with little substance.
I don’t know how it fell into Shao Xun’s hands.
He is not a good person, and can even be said to be one of the most ruthless people in Luoyang, capable of doing anything. Most of the people in this house are not decent.
Shao Xun did not intend to make a big fanfare, but instead led the person in very low-key.
Chen Jing wanted to say something, but Shao Xun waved his hand and said, "I already know what General Chen meant. We'll talk tomorrow."
Chen Jing nodded and took his soldiers to the village north of Green Willow Garden to stay overnight.
Yang Man hesitated for a while, then said goodbye and said he would come back tomorrow.
Le Lanji got up again.
She was not even a concubine in the Green Willow Garden. Strictly speaking, she was a maid. Logically, she had no right to see Yang Xianrong.
But she still came and brought wine and food that she made herself.
"You..." Yang Xianrong looked at Le Lanji's increasingly beautiful face, feeling a little surprised and even jealous. For a moment, she was speechless and didn't know what to say.
"Queen, please enjoy your meal." Lan Ji put down the food box and took out the delicious food one by one.
"Are you happy now?" Yang Xianrong said sourly, and then thought of his own situation, and the discomfort in his heart came up, don't even mention it!
Le Lanji did not directly answer Yang Xianrong's question. She just sighed and said, "If I had married a few years later, I would have met my husband."
"Haha, who wouldn't be eyeing the daughter of the Shangshu Ling? What's Shao Xun's family background? If you were not a widow or a criminal, how could he succeed?" Yang Xianrong said with a sneer.
Le Lanji was not angry either. She just calmly arranged the tableware and plates with grace and ease, and her movements were brisk.
Yang Xianrong was disappointed. But she was really hungry, so she didn't care about getting angry with Lan Ji and started eating right there.
Le Lanji just sat opposite quietly without saying a word.
Yang Xianrong suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
Le once climbed over her head - although she was only the Consort of the Younger Brother, before Sima Ying's downfall, everyone knew that the Consort of the Younger Brother had much more power than the Queen.
After Sima Ying was defeated, Le was severely controlled by her for a while.
But how long had it been since then? Leshi seemed to have climbed over her head again.
This woman looks quite elegant, generous and graceful, but she is definitely not an easy person to deal with.
With such a shameless and seductive figure, how could Shao Xun resist? He would definitely be completely taken advantage of by her.
Uh, speaking of Shao Xun, Shao Xun is here.
"Empress, I am on duty at the mansion tonight, and I will not let any bad guys disturb you." Outside the room there were the sounds of weapons and armor colliding, as well as Shao Xun's low voiced orders to assign sentries.
Yang Xianrong felt a little touched.
She subconsciously glanced at Le Lanji.
Lan Ji had lowered her head, and no one knew what she was thinking.
Yang Xianrong suddenly felt that the food tasted even better, her appetite increased, and she ate a lot.
However, as she ate, she came to her senses.
Why should we, a slave like Le, be angry with each other?
Alas, I have been scared to death for the past two days and one night. It seems that I am tired.
After finishing her meal in silence, Le Lanji packed up her utensils and left.
After a while, several maids from the Chengdu Palace came in and helped Yang Xianrong bathe.
When everything was ready, the moon was already high above the willow trees.
It was Yang Xianrong’s first time lying on a high bed and she felt a little curious.
There were light footsteps and the sound of armor leaves colliding outside the window.
"Shao Qing, is that you?" Yang Xianrong suddenly shouted.
"Queen, it's you, my subject."
Yang Xianrong breathed a sigh of relief, stretched comfortably, and fell asleep wrapped in the quilt.
Late at midnight, Yang Xianrong suddenly woke up.
There seemed to be no sound outside the window.
Her heart was pounding, and she was subconsciously a little scared. She couldn't help but shout, "Shao Qing?"
"Don't be afraid, Queen. I'm here." The sound of Jia Ye sounded again, along with that steady and powerful voice.
"Yeah." Yang Xianrong lay back down and suddenly felt like crying.
How could I, with such a good family background and noble status, end up like this?
Is there really no place for me in this world?
What had she done wrong? Why was her life so miserable? Why were there so many people trying to harm her?
She couldn't figure it out and could only shed tears silently in the dead of night.
After thinking about it for a long time, perhaps because she was too tired or too frightened, Yang Xianrong finally fell into a deep sleep.
A dreamless night.
Yang Xianrong, who did not wake up until noon, suddenly realized that this was the first time in many years that she had slept so peacefully.
She was stunned for a long time.
(End of this chapter)