At the beginning of Mao hour, Suzaku City was already shrouded in the blue and white light of midsummer dawn.
At this time when most places have not yet woken up from the remaining night, a few places have begun to become lively.
For example, the upper reaches of Qingxi River.
The hustle and bustle of the cool night had only been silent for an hour or two, and there were already many voices in the area facing the ferry pavilion of the old courtyard.
At this moment, the people running for a living became hawkers at the morning stall.
Maybe he woke up early after having a good dream in the middle of the night, or maybe he was thinking of waking up the customers. They would fight for the front position and become red-faced.
Sometimes, the stall at the front is just set up, and the maids and boys waiting in the pavilion come to visit. The food is several times higher than that in other places, but these sleepy maids and boys don't care. Men who are drunk and woken up will not care anymore.
"This is probably the same as the charcoal seller who wears thin clothes but looks forward to colder weather."
Wang Yeqing sat at the low table, sipping a bowl of hot porridge.
There was a vendor nibbling cold, coarse-grain steamed buns beside him. Wang Xiuwei looked away, still a little puzzled: "Shouldn't these thin porridge steamed buns cost the same to them?"
Wang Xiuwei turned his back to the ferry pavilion behind him and said in a sarcastic voice: "But here, the men who live in Mianhua are never short of money, so naturally they sell them at high prices."
"How do you feel during this time?" Wang Xiu tilted his head slightly and looked at his daughter.
In the past in Jinguan City, she would ask Wang Xiuwei to address him as master from time to time. Now that she has left that sad place, she likes to hear this title more and more.
"Mom, if we sit here so arrogantly, will we be stared at?"
The sky was getting brighter and brighter. Wang Xiuwei looked at the other side with his peripheral vision. The buildings in the old courtyard were already exposed in the sky, with their vermilion and indigo pavilions and eaves.
"You used to be by my side, but you still never thought about these issues. Now the sense of crisis is much stronger."
Wang Yeqing smiled slightly, raised his eyebrows and said, "I didn't expect Liu Yueshan to have such knowledge. It would be unfair to let her just run the shop."
The mother and daughter were eating breakfast in the middle of the commotion. Wang Xiuwei had already changed into ordinary clothes like Wang Yeqing. The vendors and servants buying food were walking around, but no one cared about what they said.
Wang Xiuwei didn't know that Wang Yeqing had spilled his spiritual consciousness, but he was still cautious enough and whispered: "The City Lord's Mansion obviously wants you to show up. I think Sister Yueshan's analysis is good. They may even let Mother Rescue those four oirans and consume your energy bit by bit."
"This is their obvious routine." Wang Yeqing wore the indigo-colored scarf that Mrs. Ordinary used to wrap her hair. When she lowered her head to drink porridge, her face was calm and beautiful, without much emotion.
As soon as Wang Xiuwei saw her like this, he knew that she had her own plan, and it was obvious that she did not intend to say it out loud.
"Where did Sister Ye go?" Wang Xiuwei asked.
In the past few days, I have been working with the woman Ye Henhe, and the cooperation has been pretty good. Wang Yeqing has become less suspicious of her and said softly: "I'm still watching the group of Tibetan soldiers in the old courtyard. You don't have to worry about me, today You and Yue Shan should hide the matter well, and it’s okay to gain more knowledge, but don’t show up and act recklessly, otherwise it will hinder my actions.”
Sure enough, he will take action...
Wang Xiuwei couldn't explain her feelings. On the one hand, compared to the four oirans, Wang Yeqing was in an absolutely unique position in her heart. People were born with closeness. If Wang Yeqing was put in danger, she would naturally not be far away, but On the other hand, seeing Wang Yeqing knowing that danger was waiting for her and still trying to save others made her extremely proud and filled her with deep admiration.
"Let's go."
Wang Yeqing bought several more portions of food, leaving only one portion and giving the rest to Wang Xiuwei.
The mother and daughter walked in opposite directions among the lively crowd before dawn.
At Chenshi, when all the food vendors had left, a truly eerie silence ushered in by the Qingxi River.
On the streets built along the river in the west of the city, the early morning river breeze brings the water vapor from the river to the shore. At normal times, you can already see a few pedestrians breathing in the fresh air.
Several windows on the second floor of Linfeng Building were opened, and the people who stayed in the inn last night were whispering about something. Someone wanted to go out for a walk on the street, but was stopped by the waiter with a smiling face, so there were more comments.
Normally, these inns built near the river should have opened their doors long ago. Today, these inns crowded along the riverside streets seemed to maintain a tacit understanding and ordered the doors of the inns to be closed tightly. Even those staying overnight guests who were angry and wanted to leave just asked the waiter to go. Put on a small face and get scolded.
Liu Yueshan ate the breakfast brought back by Wang Xiuwei in small bites. After listening carefully for a long time, she looked at Wang Xiuwei's calm profile and said with some confusion: "It stands to reason that the four oirans from the old courtyard were arrested. These people You should have known this a long time ago, why are you still showing confusion about this situation?"
Wang Xiuwei's eyes followed the clear waves on the river, recalling the scenes before dawn, "Even if these men say it's a pity that the oiran was caught, I'm afraid it's just a pity that these oirans have become those in charge of the punishment swamp prison." The plaything of the rich and powerful.”
"Each of them has their own things to do, so they don't really care about the life and death of these oirans."
This is indeed a normal thing. Liu Yueshan nodded in understanding and sighed softly: "The things hidden behind this atmosphere are beyond their understanding. The unknown is the most puzzling and confusing."
Wang Xiuwei said: "The innkeepers who are qualified to buy property in this noble area at our feet are more or less connected with the upper-class dignitaries of Suzaku City. At this time, they responded to Tongtong and ordered the door of the inn to be closed. But in this way, after Madam rescued people, , but there is no place to hide."
The two of them thought about this matter for most of the night, but later, they felt that the sentence made sense.
The most dangerous places are the safest.
It is obviously impossible for Wang Yeqing to escape with four courtesans after rescuing people.
They both thought about the inn where they stayed from the old courtyard and the flower boats on the river.
The relationship behind these innkeepers is complicated. As long as you avoid the initial investigation, you will have much more room for maneuver when moving later. After all, the most indispensable thing along the streets is the crowded inns and restaurants.
It’s just that this idea is obviously dead now. Wang Xiuwei said softly: "We are still looking at Zhuque City with the same perspective as we look at the situation in Jinguan City... There are no top ten families in Zhuque City. To a certain extent, this Baihao is the local emperor of Zhuque City. Once the soldiers who search are here, now I’m afraid the inns with closed doors will only welcome you with smiles.”
"Since you are greeted with a smile, there is still a chance as long as you hide it. After all, Bai Hao will not personally lead his troops to chase a few courtesans." Liu Yueshan still felt that this was the best way he could think of at the moment.
The two sat opposite each other in silence for a while. A breeze from the river blew into the second-floor window. Liu Yueshan was awakened by the coolness and was deep in thought. She raised her eyes and looked at Wang Xiuwei who was sitting opposite her and asked, "What did Madam say?"
Wang Xiuwei's eyes moved, and his slender eyebrows arched slightly, "My mother told us to hide. We can look but don't take action."
"Our rash action will indeed affect or even drag down Madam. Then have you told Madam how powerful the formation of those soldiers is?" Liu Yueshan asked softly. Although she did not have Wang Xiuwei's deepest worries, after arriving at Jinguan City, Wang Yeqing helped her handle everything smoothly, but this kindness was equally as heavy as a mountain.
"As Sister Yueshan, as you expected last night, there are indeed soldiers hiding in the old courtyard."
"how many?"
"These soldiers are hiding in the residences of the four arrested courtesans. There are about three to four hundred people in each residence. My mother and the others found out early, and Sister Ye has been watching."
Liu Yueshan breathed a sigh of relief. Although she knew that these more than a thousand people must be elite soldiers and definitely not comparable to the soldiers she met in Shule City, as long as she kept an eye on them, Mrs. Wang's strength would never The possibility of being trapped in a tight siege.
"It's a pity that my mother-in-law didn't even want to tell me what she planned to do." Wang Xiuwei knew Wang Yeqing's character very well, and now his eyes fell on the river, full of frustration and helplessness that he couldn't do anything to help.
"We just need to take over the courtesans from Madam." The porridge was already a little cold. Liu Yueshan picked up the snacks on the table and stood up.
Wang Xiuwei looked at it with some doubts, and Liu Yueshan explained softly: "Before you came back this morning, I asked the waiter to hire two carriages to the south of the city. It might be useful."
"Someone will definitely be tempted by the huge amount of money, but will the secret be leaked easily?" Wang Xiuwei's eyes lit up, and he understood that Liu Yueshan had already started to take action.
"There are very few people we can trust." Liu Yueshan sighed: "So for the sake of safety, I don't plan to let the two coachmen pull the car."
Wang Xiu nodded slightly. She had been trained by Wang Yeqing since she was a child. She was actually in good health and had a third-grade cultivation level. The general strength of those soldiers was around fifth-grade. If she only met a group of a dozen soldiers, she would It is absolutely possible to find a way out.
At this time, she no longer refused: "Then I will come. If the other carriage is unable to pass, you can also ask Sister Ye to help."
She said this because she considered that Liu Yueshan had no martial arts skills and was probably still very weak after experiencing disasters before.
Liu Yueshan was still very moved, but she said softly: "Don't worry, I will take you to meet two people."
In front of the stable behind the inn, Liu Yueshan called softly, and two children got out of the carriage.
Seeing Wang Xiuwei's surprised look, Liu Yueshan explained softly: "Yu Xiaoshu volunteered to find him."
