Chapter 594: Jing-ge'er, are you exhausted? [Thanks! Bow again! Owe]

By the side of Jinming Pond,

After seeing the Xie family win the peony jade carving with a very good meaning, the crowd watching dispersed one after another, some returning to their own tents, others gathering with friends they were on good terms with.

In Jinming Pond,

The two small dragon boats that won the competition sailed toward the big dragon boat moored in front of the Water-Facing Hall.

On the big dragon boat,

"Your Majesty, the Tan family is after all a Duke's mansion, and they are old relatives with the Cao family! Since the Tan family's young master has the ambition to make progress, it's better to go to the northern army, it's better to go with the flow..."

A titled lady sitting not far from the Empress said with a smile.

Princess Pingning held a handkerchief and wiped her temples.

Taking advantage of the cover of the action, Princess Pingning secretly rolled her eyes at the titled lady who was talking in front of the Empress.

This titled lady, in terms of relationship, was the Empress's cousin, a close relative, and her daughter was married to the third branch of the Duke of Anguo's mansion.

After wiping her temples and putting down the handkerchief, Princess Pingning's face was still full of smiles. Looking at her expression, those who didn't know would think Princess Pingning strongly agreed with the titled lady's words.

The Empress smiled and said: "Having ambition, being able to endure hardship, and wanting to serve the country is good. I wonder what position the Tan family's child wants to seek?"

The titled lady who spoke just now had a face full of smiles and said: "Your Majesty, I heard that the Zheng family's Second Young Master became a commander of the infantry as soon as he entered the army! For a disciple of the Duke of Anguo's mansion, being a commander of the cavalry is excellent."

As soon as these words were spoken, the several daughters-in-law of the Cao family around the Empress all showed surprised expressions on their faces.

In the army, those who can be called commanders have at least five hundred people under their command in the infantry, and at least two hundred cavalry in the cavalry.

This titled lady opened her mouth and asked for a military position of a commander, which was really somewhat ignorant of the height of the sky and the depth of the earth.

Seeming to notice the gazes around, the titled lady who spoke added: "Of course, the Tan family's young master naturally has to start as a small soldier like the disciples of the Marquis Xu family."

The Empress shook her head and smiled: "The Tan family's child, no matter what, also has a hereditary title, how can he start as a small soldier!"

"Mother is right," Princess Pingning said with a smile to the side: "This daughter thinks that the Tan family's young master could perhaps first be a captain in the capital's imperial guard, train for a year or two, and then go north."

When Princess Pingning was speaking,

Zhao Fang, who had finished watching the competition by the side of the big dragon boat, walked toward the Empress with Qi Heng and Liang Han.

"Mother, this son just saw that on the east bank, for some reason, someone fell into the water!"

"Fell into the water? Nothing happened, right?" the Empress asked with concern.

Zhao Fang shook his head: "I didn't see it very clearly. Looking at it, no one was calling for help, so it should be fine."

The Empress nodded slightly.

"Mother, what are you chatting about with the several titled ladies?"

Zhao Fang asked with curiosity on his face.

The Empress briefly said a few words.

After listening, Zhao Fang looked at Qi Heng and Liang Han with some inquiry in his eyes, and said somewhat uncertainly: "Mother, is the Tan family's young master the noble disciple who previously retreated without fighting when competing with Jin Kingdom warriors on the polo field?"

"This son also heard that there was a noble disciple who knelt down to the Jin Kingdom warriors to avoid being beaten? Is that also the Tan family's young master?"

Liang Han leaned to the side and bowed: "Your Highness, it's not the Tan family's young master, it's the disciple of the Marquis Jinxiang's family."

"Oh! Right, right, right, it's his family's."

Listening to Zhao Fang and Liang Han singing in harmony, a certain madam on the boat with her daughter hurriedly lowered her head to avoid eye contact with those looking over.

Before they had said a few words, an eunuch walked to the side and said: "Your Majesty, Empress, Your Highness, the young masters of the two families who won the competition have already boarded the boat and are preparing to offer thanks."

"Proclaim them quickly," Zhao Fang said with a smile.

After Chai Jin and Xiong Yan boarded the big dragon boat and finished offering thanks to the Emperor and Empress, Zhao Fang hurriedly asked: "Jin-ge'er, what happened on the east bank by the pond just now? How come I saw someone jumping into the water?"

Chai Jin and Xiong Yan bowed and cupped their hands, looked at each other, and told the situation of 'blocking people', 'talking', and 'jumping into the water' that they had seen.

"So, it was Xu family's Jing-ge'er who suspected that the disciples of the Han and Tan families were causing trouble? And the two groups didn't fight?" Zhao Fang asked suspiciously.

Chai Jin and Xiong Yan both shook their heads.

Zhao Fang first looked at the titled lady who was just speaking to ask for an official position for the Tan family's disciple in his mother's mouth, and then turned his head to look at the Emperor who was talking to the head eunuch beside him.

Zhao Fang turned his head back, looked at the four people including Chai Jin and Liang Han, and asked: "If you encountered this situation, would you jump into the water like the Tan family's young master?"

The four people including Qi Heng looked at each other, and Chai Jin said: "Replying to Your Highness, no! Since the two families' disciples didn't cause trouble, why jump into the water? If they jumped, wouldn't it be admitting that they were the ones who did it?"

As soon as Chai Jin finished speaking, the titled lady said: "Everyone knows that Xu Fifth Young Master is highly skilled in martial arts, I think the two young masters were coerced by him to jump into the water!"

Zhi-jie'er of the Cao family, who was sitting near the madams of the Cao family, shook her head in disapproval and said: "Since it wasn't their own doing, even if someone coerced them, they should have the courage to fight back!"

"Dare to say it wasn't their own doing! But, today they had equal numbers, yet they didn't resist at all and jumped into the water themselves. Then if they lead troops in the future, wouldn't they kneel and surrender as soon as they encounter a strong enemy."

Listening to the words of the Cao family's Zhi-jie'er, Zhao Fang nodded repeatedly, and then said: "I see, it's better for this kind of character to honestly stay at home and have fun, so as not to enter the army and lose their heads for violating military law."

"This is also for the Tan family's own good."

After Zhao Fang finished speaking,

The Emperor sitting not far away nodded with a smile.

Seeing this scene, the titled ladies had a count in their hearts.

The people on the big dragon boat had already disembarked and returned to the Water-Facing Hall.

The big dragon boat was pulled back to the boathouse on the north bank.

Just past noon,

After lunch,

Xu Zaijing stood at the entrance of his own tent with Qingyun, looking at the somewhat gloomy sky in the north.

"Whoosh~"

A gust of north wind blew, bringing a feeling of coldness.

The north wind blew the willow branches on the bank, making them shake endlessly, and also made the ripples on the surface of Jinming Pond become intense.

"Swish swish swish~"

The water waves pushed to the shore slapped against the side of the pond from time to time, making sounds.

Gu Tingye walked to Xu Zaijing's side and said: "Tsk! Jing-ge'er, it looks like the weather is going to change!"

"Hmm! In this kind of weather, we won't be able to fish this afternoon!" Xu Zaijing replied.

"Then we'll come back when the weather is good," Gu Tingye smiled.

When the two were talking, Xu Zaijing looked toward the side of Jinming Pond in the distance.

The background of the distant sky was gray, but near the Water-Facing Hall by the pond, there were many bright flags of various colors inserted.

At this time, under the blowing of the north wind, the flags were fluttering in the wind.

It was not just the flags of the Water-Facing Hall by the pond,

The flags on the Baojin Tower, which was as tall as the palace gate tower south of the Water-Facing Hall, were also fluttering in the wind.

When the two were talking, movement came from near the Water-Facing Hall.

The two looked over, only to see the Emperor's procession, under the protection of the imperial guard, moving out of the pond garden, seemingly preparing to return to the palace.

"Tsk!"

Xu Zaijing spat out the sand in his mouth, looked at the gray sky in the north again, and said: "This is a sandstorm!"

Gu Tingye just wanted to speak,

"Whoosh~"

Another gust of north wind blew, making Gu Tingye hurriedly turn his back and close his mouth.

The wind was quite strong,

Xu Zaijing also turned his back to hide from the wind. He squinted and saw that the tent curtains of several tents distributed along the shore were being blown up by the north wind, making rustling sounds.

"Ding-a-ling ding-a-ling~"

The jade wind chimes hanging at the entrance of the tents were blown into a chaotic mess.

The maids and servants standing at the entrance also had their clothes and the hairpins and ribbons on their heads blown into a chaotic mess. With dust blowing into their faces, the maids and servants turned their backs to the north one after another, covering their mouths and noses.

"Clang~"

I don't know whose copper pot or utensil wasn't fixed properly, but it was blown to the ground by the wind, making a sound.

Xu Zaijing lifted his wide spring shirt sleeves to block the north wind and said to Gu Tingye: "Yuan Erlang, get ready to return to the city!"

Gu Tingye imitated Xu Zaijing's action of lifting his arms and nodded repeatedly: "Let's go!"

When the two were talking,

The entire area around Jinming Pond had already begun to get busy.

First, the maids and servants of each family quickly packed up various things, and then the official family members, titled ladies, noble young ladies, and young masters all braved the north wind and sandstorm, either taking carriages or riding horses.

When leaving Jinming Pond, because there were many people walking, congestion occurred at the entrance.

Xu Zaijing and Gu Tingye, both wearing veils to block the wind and sand, rode horses side by side, looking at the crowded pond garden entrance. Gu Tingye said: "Jing-ge'er, we taught those two rascals from the Han and Tan families a lesson, I didn't expect them to return to the city early and not have to suffer this crime!"

Xu Zaijing nodded with a smile, then patted the dust on the mane of his little horse.

"Young Master, come into the carriage!"

In a carriage at the end of the Xu family's team to the side, Yunxiang lifted the carriage curtain and shouted.

As soon as she shouted, Yunxiang was blown by the wind and squinted her eyes, tsking several times, seemingly having eaten sand while talking.

"No need! I'm riding the little horse, it's not that restless."

Xu Zaijing shouted.

"Understood, Young Master!"

After Yunxiang finished speaking, she immediately pulled the carriage curtain shut.

Slowly leaving the Jinming Pond garden, the sky became increasingly gloomy.

Xu Zaijing rode on his horse, looking out through the thin veil of his hat.

Outside the city,

Some families crossed the Hulong River directly and drove toward the Xinzheng Gate to enter the city. At this time, there were many people, and the congestion was no less than at the Jinming Pond gate.

Other families did not cross the Hulong River and drove straight south or north, seemingly wanting to take a detour and enter the city through other gates.

The Xu family's carriage team in front stopped. A servant beside Zaihang walked to the little horse and said: "Fifth Young Master, Zhang-ge'er asked me to ask, are we going north or south."

Xu Zaijing thought for a while and said: "Go north! Although a section of the road is against the wind, it will be fine once we enter the city."

"Yes, Fifth Young Master!"

The Xu family's carriage team turned north, the Gu family's carriages naturally followed, and several other families' carriages followed behind.

At this time, the north wind was blowing vigorously, and the sandstorm it brought not only blocked the view, making it impossible to see far, but people couldn't keep their eyes open for a long time, otherwise, it was very easy for sand to get into their eyes!

Taking a breath, one could feel a lot of sand in their mouth and nose.

Therefore, the carriage drivers of each family were all using their clothes to block their mouths, noses, and eyes, looking once and walking one step, and having to stop slightly when the wind was strong.

After much difficulty, braving the north wind and sandstorm,

The group arrived at the Wansheng Gate north of the Xinzheng Gate.

After entering the city gate, it was the Wansheng Gate Inner Main Street, not far from Xu Zaijing's maternal grandfather's Sun family.

Xu Zaijing rode his little horse, walking slowly behind his own carriage, squinting his eyes and looking at the sky full of sand through the thin veil.

Following behind, the carriage could help him block some wind and sand.

Suddenly,

Xu Zaijing felt something was wrong. After looking to the side, Xu Zaijing hurriedly shouted: "Passed! Walked past!"

"Tsk tsk tsk!"

Xu Zaijing spat out the sand in his mouth.

Qingyun, who was following behind Xu Zaijing, hurriedly spurred his horse to catch up.

"Whoa~"

The Xu family's carriage was reined in. After turning around, it returned to the fork in the road leading to the Wansheng Gate.

While the carriage carrying Xie and Hualan walked toward the Wansheng Gate, Qingyun shouted beside Xu Zaijing, who was standing still to avoid the wind: "Young Master? Are we not going?"

Xu Zaijing nodded and said: "The wind and dust are too big, let's stand here for a while, don't let others be like our family's carriage driver and walk past."

"Yes!"

Qingyun replied.

Soon,

The Gu family's carriages walked over.

Looking at Xu Zaijing standing still to the side, Gu Tingye waved his hand to say hello.

When he wanted to speak, seeing Xu Zaijing's waving action, Gu Tingye, braving the north wind, could only give up.

Subsequently, several more families' carriages passed by. Seeing Xu Zaijing standing still to the side, those who were quick-witted knew that Xu Zaijing was pointing the way and would mostly bow in acknowledgment.

Those who didn't know what Xu Zaijing was doing would mostly take a curious look, wondering why Xu Zaijing was standing still in the wind and sand.

The Chai family's carriage was exquisitely crafted,

The sandstorm weather in the Hejian Prefecture in the north was more frequent than in Bianjing, and the craftsmen had long considered the impact of such sandstorm weather.

Therefore, the carriage curtains and door curtains of the Chai family's carriage were double-layered, and there were leather curtains on the inside of the windows, which had a very good sealing effect after being lowered.

Although the wind and dust were everywhere outside, the inside of the carriage was unaffected and very clean, only the light was a bit dim.

Listening to the rustling sound of sand and dust rubbing against the carriage outside, Chai Zhengzheng whispered: "Mother, why don't we light a candle."

Madam Chai, who was used to this kind of weather in Hejian Prefecture, closed her eyes and said: "We'll be in the city soon, why light a candle, we aren't looking at anything."

"Alright," Chai Zhengzheng said helplessly.

Madam Chai opened her eyes and pondered for a moment before saying: "Zheng'er, are you a bit afraid of the dark?"

"Hmm! Mother, I was blindfolded after the incident before, although I'm much better now, I'm still a bit afraid of the dark."

"Light a candle, let's light a candle, it was my oversight. Miss Yun Mu, quickly!"

As she spoke, Miss Yun Mu prepared to light the candle with ease.

The carriage was quiet for a moment, with only the sound of sand and dust outside.

Suddenly,

"Jing-ge'er, you are here... to help the pedestrians behind point the way?"

Chai Jin's voice rang out.

Hearing this, Chai Zhengzheng in the carriage was stunned for a whole person.

"Brother Jin, why aren't you sitting in the carriage?" another voice came vaguely.

"This kind of wind and sand is nothing! Jing-ge'er, I've checked the back, no one is following, let's go together!"

After a while, Xu Zaijing seemed to look back and replied: "Good!"

Chai Zhengzheng looked at her own thick, fixed leather carriage window curtain and sighed with some slight depression.

In the carriage, Chai Zhengzheng could feel the carriage turning east, already walking toward the Wansheng Gate.

Walking for a while,

Except for the rustling sound of sand and dust, there was no more talking outside the carriage.

After all, speaking a sentence almost meant eating a mouthful of dust.

At this moment,

A sound of talking came from outside the carriage, but it wasn't Xu Zaijing and Chai Jin's.

"Whoa~ whoa~"

The sound of the driver driving the horse came.

Subsequently, the Chai family's carriage began to move backward.

"What's wrong?" Madam Chai frowned and shouted outside.

"Replying to Madam, there is a carriage in front, the axle is broken! Our family's carriage has to move backward to let them off the bridge."

"Hmm!"

"Woo~ woo~"

Listening to the sound of the wind, one knew that the wind outside the carriage seemed to have suddenly become stronger.

The friction sound between the sand and dust and the carriage compartment also increased quite a bit.

The carriage backed up for a while,

Suddenly,

The speed at which the Chai family's carriage moved became faster.

Chai Zhengzheng, Madam Chai, and others in the carriage were also shaken, and before Madam Chai could speak.

"Clang!"

"Neigh~~~"

With the neighing of the horse,

The Chai family's carriage tilted violently, and the candles, Chai Zhengzheng, Madam Chai, and others in the carriage fell uncontrollably toward the innermost part of the carriage.

"Ah!"

The sudden change made Madam Chai, Chai Zhengzheng, Miss Yun Mu, and the personal mother all scream.

Although frightened, Madam Chai still slapped the candle flying toward Chai Zhengzheng to the side.

"Careful! It's about to fall into the river!"

A loud roar came from outside.

"Neigh~"

The horse's neighing continued, and in the tilted carriage, miscellaneous items fell one after another.

Before Chai Zhengzheng could react to what had happened,

The entire carriage stopped abruptly, and then began to move forward slowly.

"Quick! Quick, go help!" As Chai Jin's shouting approached, after a while,

"Clang!" After a sound, the carriage returned to normal,

The terrified Miss Yun Mu hurriedly climbed to the carriage entrance, pushed open the carriage door directly in front, and looked out.

The situation hadn't been seen clearly yet, and the north wind blowing into the carriage was blowing directly into their faces, making everyone in the carriage cover their mouths and squint their eyes.

"Mother, younger sister, are you alright!"

Chai Jin's anxious voice came.

"Tsk, I'm fine! Brother, Mother and I are fine! What happened!?" Chai Zhengzheng asked, using her sleeves to block the wind and sand.

"When our family's carriage was backing up, the wind and sand became stronger, a wine flag was blown by the wind, covering the eyes of the horse that was backing up! Our family's driver also had his eyes blinded by the sand."

After Chai Jin finished speaking, he continued: "Jing-ge'er, are you alright!? Are you exhausted?"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 595 =====