After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

"Then Cui Cui's wife should have received the message by now."

call.

The prince consort, lying on the bed, closed his eyes, exhaled deeply, and suddenly felt a pang of heart palpitation.

"The newspaper will publish tomorrow: The Southern Kingdom's Deputy Envoy was assassinated by Rakshasa and died from his injuries... Hmm, Bai Xuan, you're dead..."

The other person's words echoed in his mind. Ning Nan's eyelids twitched violently a few times, and he covered his face with his hands.

I'm not dead... I need to find a way to tell my pregnant wife... I'm not dead...

…………

The days passed by.

The young girl Xixue took care of his daily life.

After resting for three or four days, the bruises on my abdomen had mostly healed, and the knife wound on my left leg had also improved significantly after two dressing changes.

At least I can get out of bed and walk around a bit.

The princess consort surnamed Tang would visit him at least three times a day. Worried that he would be bored, she would cook different dishes for him and bring him many books, some serious and some for leisure. She would also ask him if he liked to watch plays, suggesting that she could invite a few opera troupes over.

Ning Nan shook his head and only asked her to send over a set of "A Compendium of Historical Geography".

This is a set of geography books, which Ningnan carefully studied to learn the geography of the North.

Tang Caifeng sat at the desk, watching him read, and smiled as she patted his back.

I only wish you peace and safety.

Faced with the older woman's sentiments, Ning Nan remained noncommittal and didn't say anything more.

Hongchang told him, "Back then, your sister was only fourteen years old. She was captured along with me. They forced her to reveal the whereabouts of some people, severed her Achilles tendons, and cut off her fingers. ... After my father and mother recognized me, I killed all those people and avenged them."

Ning Nan's eyes darkened, but she didn't say anything more. She just pursed her lips and continued to calmly recuperate and read.

On March 2nd, Hongchang said to him:

"Father's patience with you has reached its limit. If you still refuse to reveal the whereabouts of Prince Jing and the others, even if you are willing to serve as Ning Jiexiao in the Northern Dynasty, you will only be able to stay here for the rest of your life, imprisoned."

Ning Nan sat at his desk, smiling as he ground the ink:

"I trouble Prince Duan to formally inform Your Majesty that I am Ning Nan, the Deputy Envoy of the Great Liang Mission and a sixth-rank Hanlin Compiler. Your country invited our dynasty to serve as an envoy, and now you have imprisoned me. This is utterly shameless and disrespectful! History will bear witness to this, and the world will judge in the future."

…………

On March 3rd, the weather was nice, and the view outside the window was bathed in golden light.

From the morning onwards, the sounds of salutes and firecrackers could be heard outside.

A grand banquet was held at the mansion.

The Third Prince's residence has been officially upgraded to the Duan Prince's residence.

In an instant, a cacophony of noise, the sounds of carriages and horses, and congratulatory greetings from afar filled the air.

Ning Nan smiled and asked Xi Xue, who brought him the food:

"Who are the guests?"

"Master, so many guests have arrived! I almost bumped my head on the ground just now."

"Oh, so the Fourth Prince has arrived?"

"Of course they came! The Fourth Prince sent the Prince a lot of things, enough to fill several carts."

"What did you send?"

"You can't see them there; they're all written on the gift list."

"Where is the Eighth Prince?"

"They're here, they're all here... all the princes are here. After all, the Prince was the first prince the Emperor ever bestowed the title of Prince."

"And... what about the other households?"

"They've come too. Prince Yi's Beile, Prince Yu, and the Beile and two Beizi from Prince Yu's residence, Prince Chun, Prince Chun's wife and princesses, and several princesses from the palace, oh, and many high-ranking officials too. Lord Nalan Wenzong has also come. The banner chiefs of the Eight Banners all sent gifts. Either the banner chiefs came in person, or if the banner chiefs weren't in the capital, they sent their young masters..."

"Our family are proper bondservants of the Prince, and we've really made a name for ourselves today. Father said that even the stewards of Prince Yu's mansion now bow to my father first, thanks to Steward Dong... There's also a grand opera performance at the mansion tonight..."

The little maidservant, with her nose upturned, spoke her mind without hesitation.

Ning Nan picked up his pen and said calmly, "Prince Hongfeng has come too?"

"They're here!"

Ning Nan smiled and said, "Prince Hongfeng and I have been friends for many years... Later, Xixue, could you please take a letter to send my regards to Prince Hongfeng?"

Xixue's already fair complexion turned even paler.

"Master!" Her eyes widened in fear, and she waved her hands in front of her chest, her voice urgent, "This servant...this servant...how could I dare!"

She pointed out the window and whispered:

"The old women outside are very fierce... We can bring books, writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones in for the master. But what the master gives us, we can't take out."

The maid blushed and said, "The nanny searched everywhere."

Ning Nan was silent for a moment, then smiled at the somewhat frightened maid and said, "I had forgotten about that."

After the meal, the maid patiently wrung out a hot towel and wiped Ning Nan's mouth and hands.

Ning Nan felt somewhat helpless and wanted to do it himself.

The young maidservant replied matter-of-factly, "This is a servant's duty."

The hustle and bustle outside lasted from Chenshi (7-9 AM) to Shenshi (3-5 PM), finally reaching its climax.

Dong dong dong qiang qiang qiang.

Even in this secluded courtyard, Ning Nan could hear the sounds of the opera troupe playing.

into the night.

His sister, who had dined with him, smiled and said, "Would you like to see a play? There are a few troupes that aren't currently performing. I'll go get the script and have them set up a stage outside in the courtyard."

Ning Nan shook his head.

The night grew even deeper.

Ning Nan escorted the other party to the door.

Shortly after their return, the courtyard welcomed its third guest, in addition to the male and female owners of the Prince's Mansion.

The seventeenth princess of the Northern Dynasties.

"snort."

The princess, dressed in a pinkish-white silk robe with a fox fur collar around her neck and several dazzling gold ornaments and jade hairpins adorning her hair, snorted coldly:

"How did you end up like this after only a few days?"

His voice and expression were gloating, but his eyes were filled with doubt and worry as he looked at him.

Ning Nan shrugged, showing his disheveled appearance: "Your father locked me up."

Princess said, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do. You should call him 'Ama'."

Ning Nan rolled her eyes.

"Hmm?" Seemingly realizing she had misspoke, Gege's eyes widened in surprise, her face flushing slightly. Unrepentantly, she raised her chin, revealing her fair neck, and added in a serious tone:

"You should call him 'your mother,' not 'your father.'"

Ning Nan smiled, glanced at Gege, pursed his lips, hesitated for a moment, and finally asked:

"Could I do you a favor?"

The Seventeenth Princess said sarcastically:

"What? Do you want me to deliver a letter for you, or bring in a knife?"

She pointed to the gold hairpin in her hair.

"Why don't you just hold this hairpin to my neck and take me hostage to break out?"

Ning Nan glanced at the gold hairpin on the other person's head; the gold jewelry shimmered brilliantly in the dimly lit room.

He let out a sigh of relief, his gaze softening as he smiled gently at the woman opposite him:

"Thank you for coming to see me."

The princess said to him earnestly, "My surname is Aisin Gioro."

His surname is not Zhu.

Ning Nan hummed in agreement.

The two chatted for a while, and the princess told him about her interesting experiences in Tianjin, saying that she had returned three days ago.

Ning Nan listened attentively, occasionally smiling.

"They've reached a dead end."

Even someone like him has to face a cruel reality at this moment.

I seem to be... at my wit's end.

Before leaving the room, the seventeenth princess, whose Han name was Zhu Qingmian, glanced back and looked around, saying with disdain:

"Your room is empty and there's hardly any furniture. I'll send my new maid to you. She'll serve you during the day, and you can tell her if you need anything."

Ning Nan was about to refuse when the other party pushed open the door and beckoned her.

A woman dressed in plain clothes, with her hair in a bun and a slender, boneless waist, hurriedly entered the room.

"This servant, Susu, greets the young master," she said in a voice as melodious as a nightingale's song.

……

……

In a hutong on the east side of Anmen Street in eastern Beijing, there is a small blacksmith shop.

There was a chef named Zhao Yunji in the shop.

Master Zhao is very skilled. He is adept at making scissors, knives, and horseshoes. His prices are fair, and he is meticulous in his work. He will not cheat customers out of even a penny or two of their iron. He is quite famous in Dong'an Street.

Clang, clang, clang.

Master Zhao swung his arms and hammered away at a pair of scissors, while a fifteen or sixteen-year-old apprentice pumped the bellows in the furnace. In the cold spring, the blacksmith shop was ablaze with fire.

However, the white cloth wrapped around Master Zhao's body in several places made it look somewhat unsightly.

The people in the alley told Master Zhao that he had been robbed on his way back to his hometown to visit relatives a few days ago, and had been stabbed several times, which is why he looked like this, but it did not affect his skills.

I said it wouldn't affect anything, but I still spent a few days recovering from my injury, and the shop only reopened yesterday.

At this moment, a man wearing a mink coat and a melon-shaped hat with a fur trim arrived at the blacksmith's shop leading a donkey.

The man's face showed signs of hardship, with slightly graying temples, but he was broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with a short beard under his chin and a pair of imposing eyes. He appeared to be in his early fifties.

When Zhao Yunji glanced at this man, his pupils contracted slightly, but he quickly turned his head away and continued forging.

"What do you want to fight?" he asked.

The man walked up to him, glanced at Zhao Yunji, then at his son who was working the bellows for Zhao Yunji, and chuckled softly:

"I am Lu Zhong, former commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. I am here to travel north to the old capital on the orders of our Empress."

Zhao Yunji suddenly stopped what he was doing.

The man took a knife from his waist.

"I've solved three of your ideas. We have about fifteen minutes before they're discovered."

"I'll ask you two questions. If you answer them well, you and your son will live. Don't tell anyone this is your apprentice. I know this is your son."

"First one," the man held up one finger, "which side are you on now?"

"The second one,"

He placed his right hand on the hilt of the knife.

"Where is Prince Jing? Where is our imperial delegation? Where is our Grand Prince Consort...?"

Seven or eight days after the mission left Nanjing, Her Majesty the Empress, who was also her disciple, Zhu Cuiwei, suddenly experienced palpitations.

Yan Yuqing was sent to drag him out of the brothel and then sent north to join the mission to protect his disciple's husband... who was none other than the Grand Prince Consort Ning, whom he hadn't even served tea to yet.

This former commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard hadn't entered any buildings much along the way, and was seething with anger. Now, looking at the Embroidered Uniform Guard's bodyguards before him, he said softly:

"That's only one problem."