diymy Chapter 82 Jiang Qingxue's letter has finally been sent out!
Chapter 82 Jiang Qingxue's letter has finally been sent out!
Thinking of this, Xu Longxiang stood up, walked to Qin Mu, and bowed, saying:
"Your Majesty, I'll go to the kitchen to see if the food is ready. I've instructed them to prepare a new dish for you called 'Spring Breeze at Dawn,' a unique creation of the Prince's chef. You must try it."
As he said this, his gaze swept over Jiang Qingxue almost imperceptibly.
When he said that, he was actually hinting to Jiang Qingxue that he was going to find Chun'er soon and that she should get ready.
Xu Longxiang believed that with his tacit understanding with Jiang Qingxue, she would definitely understand what he meant.
Qin Mu waved his hand and said drunkenly:
"Alright... Minister Xu, you're very kind... Go then..."
Xu Longxiang lowered his head: "Yes."
He turned and walked towards the door.
As he turned around, he glanced at Jiang Qingxue out of the corner of his eye.
Jiang Qingxue sat next to Qin Mu, holding a wine pot in her hand.
When she heard the words "spring breeze at dawn," her body trembled almost imperceptibly!
Although it was very slight, Xu Longxiang saw it.
Her hand trembled, and the wine in the pot sloshed, spilling a few drops onto the table.
Her face paled instantly, and a hint of panic flashed in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it.
Xu Longxiang was certain.
She understood.
He didn't linger and quickly walked out of Zhenyue Hall.
......
Xu Longxiang did not actually go to the kitchen.
After leaving Zhenyue Hall, he immediately turned towards the servants' quarters in the backyard of the Prince's Mansion.
Chun'er was injured during the day and should be resting in her room now.
Xu Longxiang arrived at the servants' quarters area, which was much simpler than the front yard. There were rows of low bungalows, and the yard was piled with miscellaneous items. The air was filled with a faint smell of cooking oil and soap.
He found the head maid and asked in a low voice:
"Where does the maid who offended the nobleman during the day live?"
Upon seeing Xu Longxiang, the head maidservant immediately bowed and said:
"Your Highness, Chun'er is staying in the third room of the west wing. Her forehead injury is quite severe, and this old servant has already had someone apply medicine to it. She should be resting now."
Xu Longxiang nodded and walked towards the west wing.
He stopped in front of the third room and knocked gently.
"Who is it?" came Chun'er's weak voice from inside.
"It's me," Xu Longxiang said in a low voice.
The room was quiet for a moment, then there was a rustling sound, followed by footsteps.
The door was opened a crack, revealing Chun'er's pale face.
When she saw Xu Longxiang standing outside the door, surprise and panic flashed in her eyes, and she immediately tried to kneel down to pay her respects:
"S-Sir..."
"No need for formalities." Xu Longxiang reached out to help her up, his gaze falling on her forehead.
There were thick bandages wrapped around it, but you could still vaguely see the blood seeping out.
"Are you badly injured?" Xu Longxiang asked, his voice carrying a rare hint of gentleness.
Chun'er was flattered and quickly shook her head:
"No, it's not serious... just a superficial wound... thank you for your concern, Your Highness..."
Xu Longxiang nodded, went into the room, and closed the door behind him.
The room was small, containing only a wooden bed, a worn-out table, and a chair; nothing else.
Chun'er stood helplessly by the bed, her head down, not daring to look at Xu Longxiang.
Xu Longxiang sat down in the chair, his gaze sweeping across the room before finally settling on Chun'er:
"Chun'er, when you were serving Miss, where did you two often like to go for fun?"
Chun'er was taken aback, not understanding why the prince would suddenly ask this.
She thought for a moment, then said cautiously:
"Miss...Miss likes quiet and doesn't like going out much. But...sometimes she goes to the back mountain, where there's a cave. She says it's quiet there and suitable for being alone."
Xu Longxiang's heart stirred:
"The cave in the back mountain? Where exactly is it?"
"There's a pine forest halfway up the mountain behind the cave. You can see it by going through the pine forest. The entrance to the cave is hidden by vines, so it's hard to find unless you look carefully."
Chun'er recalled,
"When Miss was in a bad mood, she would go there. She would stay there for most of the day. This servant... this servant would sometimes secretly follow her and keep watch outside, afraid that something might happen to Miss."
Xu Longxiang nodded.
He stood up, took out a silver ingot from his pocket, and placed it on the table:
"Take this money and focus on recovering. Don't tell anyone about what happened today."
Chun'er looked at the silver ingot, her eyes reddened, and she immediately knelt down:
"Thank you, Your Highness! This servant...this servant will definitely not tell anyone!"
Xu Longxiang nodded, said nothing more, and turned to leave the room.
......
The night was dark.
The back mountain was quiet, with only the rustling of the wind through the pine forest.
Xu Longxiang arrived alone halfway up the mountain.
Following Chun'er's description, he found the pine forest.
After passing through the pine forest, we indeed saw a cave hidden by vines.
The entrance to the cave is small, only allowing one person to pass through at a time.
Xu Longxiang pushed aside the vines and went inside.
The cave was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.
He took out a tinderbox from his pocket and blew on it.
A faint halo of light illuminated the small area.
The cave was small, about two zhang in size, with rough walls and dry grass on the ground. In the corner were several pottery jars covered with a thick layer of dust, indicating that no one had been here for a long time.
Xu Longxiang sat down on the dry grass, put away the tinderbox, closed his eyes, and waited quietly.
Time passes little by little.
After an unknown amount of time, a very faint sound came from the cave entrance.
The vines were parted, and a slender figure slipped in.
Xu Longxiang immediately opened his eyes and looked towards the cave entrance.
Moonlight streamed in through the cave entrance, barely outlining the silhouette of a person—
A flowing, light green dress with wide sleeves, a moon-white sheer long gown, and long, jet-black hair loosely tied up...
It's Jiang Qingxue!
Xu Longxiang was overjoyed and almost couldn't help but rush up and hug her!
But he held back.
He stood up and lowered his voice:
"Qingxue..."
Jiang Qingxue entered the cave and saw Xu Longxiang, but her eyes showed little surprise, instead filled with tension and panic.
She walked quickly to Xu Longxiang, her voice urgent:
"Brother Longxiang, I sneaked out under the pretext of going to the toilet. I can't stay long. Here's a letter; I have to go back now."
As she spoke, she took out a folded letter from her sleeve and handed it to Xu Longxiang.
"Qingxue..." Xu Longxiang's voice choked with emotion, "I'm so sorry you had to go through all this..."
Jiang Qingxue shook her head:
"I'm not wronged. I'd do anything for you."
Xu Longxiang felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing this and nodded solemnly:
"Don't worry, I will definitely come to pick you up when the time is right."
Jiang Qingxue nodded and said:
"I trust you."
Then, without lingering, she turned around and quickly walked out of the cave.
The figure quickly disappeared into the night.
Xu Longxiang stood in the cave, holding the letter, a feeling he couldn't quite describe welling up inside him.
There was excitement, guilt, anger, and... a faint sense of unease.
Qingxue's appearance just now...
It seems like they were too nervous and too rushed.
There wasn't even time to look at him or say another word.
Are you afraid of being discovered?
still is……
Xu Longxiang shook off these thoughts, walked to the cave entrance, and opened the letter by the moonlight.
He recognized the letter's handwriting, which belonged to Jiang Qingxue.
Xu Longxiang didn't think much of it and quickly began reading.
The letter contained a lot of information, totaling three pages.
The first half describes some of the things Jiang Qingxue observed in the palace—
Qin Mu's daily routine, the places he frequents, and the people he usually accompanies...
This information may seem trivial, but it is very valuable to Xu Longxiang.
The middle section is Jiang Qingxue's assessment of the forces surrounding Qin Mu.
She wrote:
"Besides the Imperial Guards who are on the surface, His Majesty also has a secret force called the Dragon Shadow Guards. These people are highly skilled in martial arts and move around mysteriously. I have only seen them a handful of times in the three months I have been in the palace."
The leader among them possessed an unfathomable aura. I overheard Commander Zhao Kuo discussing among himself, saying that this person was probably... beyond the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.
Beyond the Celestial Realm!
Xu Longxiang's pupils suddenly contracted!
Although he had some suspicions, seeing Jiang Qingxue confirm it with his own eyes still sent shockwaves through his heart!
really!
Qin Mu really has a terrestrial immortal by his side!
The mysterious expert who remotely controlled the attack from Qinglan Mountain and defeated Li Wuhen was the leader of the Dragon Shadow Guard!
Xu Longxiang clenched his fist and continued reading.
The latter part of the letter is Jiang Qingxue's analysis of Qin Mu's personality.
She wrote:
"His Majesty appears foolish, but is actually quite shrewd. His attitude towards me... though seemingly affectionate, is actually full of tests. Whenever we are intimate, he always asks about the affairs of the Northern Border, and about you, the Crown Prince..."
Seeing this, Xu Longxiang felt another pang of pain in his heart.
Intimacy...
That beast Qin Mu was actually testing Qingxue and inquiring about news from the Northern Border while he was doing that kind of thing to her!
Damn!
Damn!
Xu Longxiang's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he almost crushed the letter!
But he forced himself to calm down and continue watching.
At the end of the letter, Jiang Qingxue wrote:
"Brother Longxiang, I am doing well in the palace, please don't worry. I only hope that you will soon achieve great things and take me away from this cage."
The letter was signed: "Respectfully submitted by Xue'er."
After reading the letter, Xu Longxiang remained silent for a long time.
Qin Mu indeed had a powerful figure who appeared to be a terrestrial immortal by his side.
Fortunately, he managed to refrain from making a move.
Otherwise, things could go wrong.
What he didn't know was that the information in the letter was a mixture of truth and falsehood.
Some of them are true—for example, the existence of the Dragon Shadow Guard.
Some of these claims are misleading—for example, that Qin Mu has a powerful immortal by his side.
There is also a lot of information about Qin Mu's daily life, a mix of truth and falsehood.
When these pieces of information are put together, they create a highly misleading picture.
And this is exactly what Qin Mu wants Xu Longxiang to believe.
Xu Longxiang held the letter and stood at the entrance of the cave, gazing at the brightly lit Zhenbei Prince's Mansion below, his eyes gleaming.
He had initially only guessed, but now that it had been "confirmed," he felt much more at ease.
It's always better to know how powerful the enemy is than to know nothing at all.
At least now he knows Qin Mu's trump card.
That mysterious, powerful terrestrial immortal.
Knowing this, he can develop a targeted plan.
For example... try to lure the tiger away from the mountain, or find a power that can counter the terrestrial deities.
Xu Longxiang took a deep breath, carefully folded the letter, and put it in his pocket.
Then he turned around and walked out of the cave.