Chapter 374: Miao Chu Chapter 375: The Box

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Song Miao did not rush directly home.

The situation's development, in the end, still involved imperial relatives.

She naturally could not drag ordinary Taixue students into this, and even less did she want to cause Cao Yushi to stick his neck out and intervene, only to end up demoted and punished.

However, upon learning that the Capital Prefecture Office released the steward from Wu Yuanwai's household who was involved in the case because the Lu Wang Fu Chang Shi stepped in to negotiate, she instead felt a few points more confidence in her heart.

Ice three feet thick does not freeze in a single day.

With Lu Wang acting like this, how could the palace possibly not know?

Because of the Tingjiao Hang, Song Dalang, the gambling den opposite, and other matters, Song Miao had long since inquired about Lu Wang behind Wu Yuanwai. She knew this brother of the late emperor was not only arrogant and domineering, occupying streets and bullying markets, but also privately befriended civil and military ministers. Even in the marketplace there had long been rumors; ask casually and enthusiastic neighbors would tell her "Lu Wang's secret affairs."

Some said the streets in the City West blocked by his houses, the fields in the Jingji Two Roads seized by his retainers and runners; some said he was privately violent, often beating people for no reason, and had even beaten many bookboys and maids to death.

Some said the current Emperor was nearly thirty yet had no heirs, all because Lu Wang secretly recruited heterodox methods, used witchcraft and gu poison, and bribed palace servants to secretly drug the Emperor and Empress.

Some said he had long since connected with civil and military officials and imperial clansmen, just waiting a few more years to use the excuse that the Emperor cannot be without an heir, to send his own grandson into the palace to be adopted by the current Emperor, convinced this throne originally belonged to him, calling it "returning to the original owner."

This one speaker imitated the tone and cadence of Lu Wang saying "returning to the original owner," even deliberately making a gesture of tilting his head back and huffing through his nose, emphasizing: "That Second Prince back then spoke exactly like this. My maternal cousin's mother-in-law has a cousin who acknowledged a godmother, that godmother's disciple happens to be on kitchen duty at Lu Wang Fu. He saw it and heard it with his own eyes and ears! He came out and deliberately imitated it for us!"

Regardless of whether these "some say" are true or false, and how many parts true, how many parts false, could the Emperor like hearing them?

Even if the Emperor's personality is indecisive and gentle, the Empress Dowager has always been explosive-tempered — formerly when presiding behind the curtain, she disliked how a certain minister always liked to cite classics when memorializing, and always cited obscure, strange classics, extremely convoluted and hard to pronounce.

Empress Dowager Yang got a headache listening, repeatedly requested change to no avail. One day the other was at it again with a long discourse; she could not stop him by scolding, so she simply picked up the inkstone on the table and threw it at him.

— His face was smashed swollen on the spot.

Thereafter, when ministers submitted memorials, they no longer dared randomly cite classics. As for face-to-face memorializing, they even learned to speak human language overnight.

With Empress Dowager Yang's personality, normally she might still barely manage to feign deafness and muteness, but when things are shoved right in her face, could she endure it?

Previously the other party had asked about this. At that time she declined tactfully with: "If commoners see and hear, they'll think everything requires the Imperial Household to speak before it can be resolved, yet that may not be good," and "I think with His Majesty's ability, he would not let the wicked go free and the good suffer."

But right now the wicked have gone free, and the good have suffered.

Although she had only interacted with Empress Dowager Yang twice, Song Miao felt the other's previous inquiry and offer to help her seek justice were not empty words.

Compared to Taixue students and Cao Yushi, this is now the Imperial Household's matter. If possible, it is naturally best for the Imperial Household to resolve it themselves.

It is just a matter of finding a suitable opportunity, a suitable pretext.

Song Miao calculated the hour, then thought about the date, asked the driver to detour to the pharmacy, bought Wide Dong Hua, Bai He, Mai Dong, Chuan Bei Mu, then went to the fresh fruit shop and picked a basket of beautiful autumn pears.

She returned home, boiled all the medicinal materials into a thick juice, then peeled and cored the autumn pears, cut them into small pieces, simmered them over a low fire, carefully simmered several porcelain bottles of autumn pear paste, and finally blended in honey and Chuan Bei Mu powder.

This stuff takes a long time to become paste. When it was finally seven or eight parts done, Song Miao returned to her room, ground ink, took up brush, and began writing the prescription.

Just as she finished writing, a short-term hire woman hurried in to report: "Young Lady, that Shen Niangzi outside has come, saying she has business to find..."

Song Miao tidied the tabletop, and as soon as she exited the second gate, she saw Shen Xingniang standing behind the door, a huge box cage placed beside her.

Seeing her come out, Shen Xingniang's face immediately showed delight. She pointed at the box cage and said: "This is what my master left behind — the rest were burned or buried, only these remain. I remembered you asked urgently last time. Today I got word the things had entered the Capital, so I went to the dock to receive them and brought them along directly."

She also asked: "Where to put it? Why not find an empty space? I'll open it for you to see inside? Actually they're just ordinary things..."

This news came truly suddenly, making Song Miao both startled and delighted. Although she knew it was best not to hold too great expectations, her heart still pounded hard, a rare occurrence.

The front hall was still doing business, so naturally it was not good to look at these in front of the guests.

The two returned to the back courtyard, found a corner spot, and set down the box.

Shen Xingniang shook out a cloth, took out the things inside one by one, and arranged them on the cloth.

The box was large, the contents miscellaneous. Besides several large wooden boxes, there were also many daily-use implements. They all looked quite old — among them a fairly large oil lamp, several hats and headwear, some brushes and ink, several kinds of embroidery samples. The embroidery samples' patterns were very exquisite, but the colors had already faded somewhat. The rest were all embroidery tools: finger guards, needles and thread, stretching frames, etc.

Song Miao looked carefully all around; not a single thing looked familiar.

Rather, Shen Xingniang was very familiar with these things, incessantly introducing them to Song Miao, explaining what this was used for, where that came from, and so on.

Song Miao listened to the end, quite disappointed.

Except for the oil lamp, the rest were all bought later. But that oil lamp, she picked it up, only glanced at it slightly, and discovered the workmanship was excessively ordinary, not a trace of mountain things about it.

Seemingly seeing Song Miao's expression, Shen Xingniang hurriedly went to open the wooden boxes.

She opened the first one first, saying: "This is the jewelry my master accumulated over the years — take a look, do you recognize any?"

Inside the box, jewelry, pearls, jadeite, gold and silver were all present. Not to mention workmanship, just the materials were very valuable.

Alas, Song Miao did not recognize a single one.

Shen Xingniang opened them one by one. When she reached the last box, she had just lifted it up when she suddenly exclaimed "Huh?" and said: "This box is so heavy!"

Song Miao reached out to take it. Indeed it felt heavy. Looking closely, it was not a wooden box, but a copper-made box.

On the outside of the box, faint burn marks could still be seen. A lock was hung on it. The lock head was very simple, very crude. But Song Miao only glanced at it once, and her heart, which had already gradually calmed down, suddenly began jumping even more fiercely.

Shen Xingniang took the key, but no matter how she inserted or turned it against the keyhole, the lock head had absolutely no reaction at all. It simply would not open.

She stared blankly, feeling it strange. She lowered her head to study it further, but Song Miao took the key from her, saying: "Let me try."

?? Only this much, got off work too late, sorry QAQ