Chapter 48: A Night Passes

After appealing to their emotions and reasoning, Wei Jiao stopped keeping his relatives confined and sent them back home.

Wei Jiao had come to the capital to study at the age of thirteen, and Wei Cui had purchased a residence for him.

However, looking at the ancient, simple cyan-colored mansion before him at this moment, Master Wei Seventh looked astonished.

"This was our Wei clan's residence back then!" he said.

By "back then," he meant the era of the late Emperor Ai of the previous dynasty.

Zhao Tan had summoned the Wei clan to the capital, and the three brothers were bestowed with high offices and generous stipends, causing the Wei clan's reputation to soar from Longxi to the capital.

But it wasn't long before Zhao Tan grew wary of the Wei clan. He killed Wei Second and Wei Third, while Wei the Eldest managed to escape by luck. This created an irreconcilable enmity between the Wei clan and Zhao Tan; the clan raised troops to revolt, and Zhao Tan, in turn, harbored an intense hatred for them.

"I thought the mansion had been destroyed," Master Wei Seventh remarked with emotion.

"How could that be?" Wei Jiao said with a beaming smile from the side. "Zhao Tan hated my father, but he loved my mother."

Master Wei Seventh nearly burst out with a curse.

The faces of the others nearby turned various shades of color, and Wei Xu, who had been beaten and was now being supported as he regained consciousness, nearly fainted again.

What—what kind of talk is this!

How could he—how could he say such a thing!

They were outside, on the street!

Does he have no respect for his father, his mother, or even basic decency!!

Master Wei Seventh wanted to scold and reprimand him, but given Wei Jiao's madness, he feared the man might say something even more insane...

For a moment, everyone became as silent as mutes, leaving only Wei Jiao smiling brightly.

"Let's... let's go in," Master Wei Seventh finally said through gritted teeth.

"Let's go in. Seventh Uncle didn't even have the status to enter our main Wei residence before," Wei Jiao said warmly, gesturing for them to enter. "Second Uncle and Third Uncle are dead, and my father has lost his right and left hands. The main residence has fallen into decline, so we have no choice but to rely heavily on you all."

This time, Wei Xu truly held his breath until he fainted, being held up firmly by two servants.

Master Wei Seventh closed his eyes, cursing inwardly, telling himself to ignore it, and walked straight inside with his head down.

Wei Jiao, however, turned around and walked outward.

"Eh?" Master Wei Seventh turned to look at him.

"I'm not staying here," Wei Jiao smiled. Having said that, he took the horse offered by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and mounted it. "It's a haunted house after all; I'm scared."

With a wave of his hand, he spurred the horse into a gallop. Surrounded by the guards, he vanished from the sight of Master Wei Seventh and the others in the blink of an eye.

"That little brat—!" one follower could no longer restrain himself and cursed aloud.

Master Wei Seventh let out a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. "Enough, stop cursing. We've seen his behavior at home long ago."

"Didn't the letter say his illness was cured?" another follower said, looking toward the direction where Wei Jiao had disappeared. "This looks clearly like it has become even more severe."

Another follower whispered, "I think he's intentionally preventing us from seeing His Majesty."

Master Wei Seventh sighed again and waved his hand. "If he won't let us see His Majesty, then we won't. The Grand General is his father; if His Majesty is wary of the Grand General, he won't have a good outcome either."

He paused here and lowered his voice.

"Besides, we have other matters to attend to here."

With a wave of his hand, he said, "Let's go in."

Wei Jiao had already unlocked the door. The two followers stepped forward to push, and the heavy doors slowly creaked open...

Dust from the lintel immediately cascaded down.

The group stepping through the door was instantly choked by the dust, hurriedly waving their sleeves to cover their noses and mouths.

"This, damn it—"

Peering through the swirling dust, the group saw a courtyard that was desolate and overgrown with weeds.

"How can anyone live here—"

"Isn't there a new mansion? Let's go live in the new mansion too—"

Listening to the curses and shouts around him, Master Wei Seventh closed his eyes again. Because of the flying dust, he didn't dare take a deep breath, only exhaling shallowly.

"Stop shouting," he said, waving his hand. Despite the long journey, he showed no signs of exhaustion, yet his face was etched with fatigue after just one day. "Go to the street and hire people to clean it up."

It was clear they wouldn't sleep well tonight.

***

The morning light once again illuminated the earth.

Having had a good night's sleep, Yang Luo walked out of her house feeling energetic.

Mo Zheng had already brought out the carriage from the neighboring braised meat couple's house.

The couple also stood at the door, watching Yang Luo board the carriage.

"Study hard, young lady," the woman said with a smile.

Yang Luo thanked them with a smile but said nothing more, stepping straight into the carriage.

Because she had to borrow their courtyard, Mo Zheng had become familiar with the couple, but as the young lady of the household currently using someone else's identity, it was best to speak little.

As the carriage left the alley, Mo Zheng flicked the whip, driving the horse purposefully through the early morning streets.

The Foreign Academy in the capital became bustling once again.

Today was the first day for the Princess and her companions to attend classes.

The Imperial Guards had once again tightened security at the National Academy.

As the carriage drove into the designated parking area, Yang Luo lifted the curtain and stepped down.

"Class won't end until the afternoon," she said to Mo Zheng. "Don't wait here idly; go home."

Mo Zheng flicked her whip, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. "You don't need to worry about me, Miss. Just focus on your studies."

Yang Luo smiled and said no more. She took out a small mirror to examine her face, confirmed her makeup, and then headed toward the National Academy carrying her book bag.

Leaning against the carriage, Mo Zheng watched Yang Luo walk to the entrance, where the palace matrons were still rigorously verifying identities.

After Yang Luo entered, carriages continued to arrive one after another. The ten selected young ladies entered in succession, followed finally by the carriages of the three princesses, surrounded by imperial escorts.

Accompanying the princesses' carriages was another carriage. Before it had even come to a complete stop, someone jumped down, nearly stumbling, and then rushed toward the princesses' vehicles in a panic.

Seeing this elaborately dressed young lady running, Mo Zheng narrowed her eyes and gave a soft click of her tongue.

Impressive, truly impressive. These young ladies are all quite something.

***

"Yang Hui!"

"Why are you here?"

The place where the princesses and their companions attended class was the same palace where the examinations had been held.

Before the princesses arrived, the ladies entering one after another greeted each other and gathered to chat, making the hall very lively. When the palace matrons announced the arrival of the princesses, everyone fell silent to prepare their salutations, but upon seeing the person following the princesses, the crowd erupted into commotion once again.

Yang Hui stood beside Princess Pingcheng, looking triumphant as she basked in the shocked expressions of the crowd.

Oh, right, there was one more person.

She hurriedly scanned through the crowd and spotted Yang Luo standing at the very back.

What kind of lady was this, coming from some rural academy? Her appearance was still unremarkable, and her face looked wooden...

She wasn't even showing a shocked expression?

She must be scared witless.

Yang Hui snorted inwardly. Although she had no proof, she always felt that this person had stolen her original spot.

But so what if she had? She was still here.

She was a lady of the Duke of Ding'an's manor; she could have whatever she desired. This rural lady could never compare!

***

Seeing Yang Hui appear again and follow closely behind Princess Pingcheng, Yang Luo was naturally shocked, but she felt even more excitement.

In her previous life, she had been confined to her manor, knowing nothing of the outside world. Now, observing through the identity of another, she could indeed see things she couldn't see before.

The Chancellor of the National Academy had personally ruled Yang Hui out, yet she could still enter as a princess's companion. Who could pull such a feat?

Why was Yang Hui so highly valued? Why was the Duke of Ding'an's manor so highly valued?

Was this favoritism related to her being murdered in her previous life?

(End of Chapter)