Chapter 223: Surprise

A sealed urgent edict of five hundred li arrival threw all plans into disarray.

Zhang Zhuo lowered his head, looking at the 'Patrol Hunting Tooth Card' from the secret police in his hand. Engraved on it were the words, "On behalf of heaven, patrol and hunt. Report major matters for decision, decide on minor matters on the spot."

He naturally knew this ivory card could only be worn by the Hai Dongqing. Above that were the "Attend Court Tooth Cards" of the Twelve Zodiacs, which allowed entry and exit to the Forbidden City and the six Eastern and Western Palaces. It was said the top three Zodiacs had separate tooth cards, which outsiders had yet to see.

Seeing that there were no outsiders present, Zhang Zhuo weighed the tooth card in his hand and let out a light sigh. "Chen Ji," he said, "I just told Advisor Chen, don't speak recklessly after drinking."

Chen Ji asked in a low voice, "Is Advisor Zhang worried about the succession issue?"

Zhang Zhuo shook his head. "Involving the Jin Party and the border army, it's no longer as simple as just the succession. It's the court and the border towns, the various conflicts between the Jin Party and the Donglin Party interwoven. If you're not in it, you'll never see it clearly. Matters you can't see clearly, try not to touch."

Zhang Zhuo continued in a lower voice, "I haven't dealt with the Crown Prince and don't know his character. But everyone says he has a benevolent heart and is praised by great scholars. In this world, having a benevolent heart is a weakness. Such a person wanting to investigate the border army's killing of talents will only harm the people around him."

Chen Ji lowered his head and pondered for a long time before finally saying softly, "I understand everything Advisor Zhang said, but I have reasons to go."

"Very well," Zhang Zhuo advised, "I have an old acquaintance in Gu Yuan. I'll write a letter for you. If you encounter anything you can't solve, go find him. He should be able to get you out of Gu Yuan."

Chen Ji bowed solemnly with cupped hands. "Thank you, Advisor Zhang."

Zhang Zheng suddenly said from the side, "Father, I also want to follow Chen Ji..."

Zhang Zhuo said calmly, "Get lost."

Zhang Zheng said, "Oh."

Zhang Xia, pulling Zhang Zheng along, headed towards the post station. "Brother, don't make trouble for Father. We still have to hurry back to the capital for New Year's Eve."

Chen Ji asked, "Second Miss Zhang is leaving tomorrow, so Zao Zao will return to you, right?"

Zhang Xia waved her hand without looking back. "No need, no need. I'll lend her to you for now."

Zhang Zhuo looked at his children's backs and sighed. "If only this boy were half as sensible as A Xia... Go back. Get some rest."

Back in the room, he saw Xiao Man sitting at the Eight Immortals table, propping her chin with her hand and dozing.

Hearing the door open, she drowsily got up. "Young master, you're finally back. I'll go tell the post station attendant to bring some hot water for you to wash your face."

Chen Ji smiled and said, "Don't bother. I can do it myself. Where's Su Zhou? Has she eaten?"

Xiao Man rubbed her eyes. "She's still hiding in the box in the carriage. She said there are still secret police people in this post station and doesn't want to come out and take risks. She's eaten. I took advantage of no one being around to send her some pastries."

Chen Ji hummed in acknowledgment. "Tomorrow, I'm going to Gu Yuan with the Chen family. You'll go to the capital with the Zhang family then. Listen to Second Miss Zhang's arrangements on the road and don't make decisions on your own."

Xiao Man suddenly widened her eyes. "Young master, are you trying to get rid of me?"

Chen Ji explained, "I'm not getting rid of you. Advisor Zhang said Gu Yuan is a chaotic place, not peaceful. Not letting you go is also for your own good."

Xiao Man's eyes shifted slightly. "Then you should take me with you. It's better to have someone to look after you, isn't it?"

Chen Ji said casually, "You're just a little maid. What can you take care of? If you were an official, I'd take you, but you're not."

Xiao Man was tongue-tied. "I... anyway, someone has to take care of you."

Chen Ji said without allowing any doubt, "You go with the Zhang family, take good care of Su Zhou, and escort her to the capital. That's all."

Xiao Man reluctantly said, "Oh." Then she added, "When young master goes to Gu Yuan, remember to go to Aunt's grave and have a look, pull out some weeds for her. If possible, you might want to see for yourself whether what Li Momo said is true or not."

Chen Ji was startled. Lu Shi's grave was in Gu Yuan?

His mind raced. This Gu Yuan was a chaotic place during both the Ning and Jing dynasties. Since there was a family that could send people to an inn in the Jing dynasty, presumably there were also means to send people from the Jing dynasty into the Ning dynasty.

Perhaps Lu Jin and Lu Shi, the siblings, originally entered the Ning dynasty from here, forged household registers, and became people from Gu Yuan. The Ning dynasty emphasized returning to one's roots after death, so after Lu Shi's death, Chen Li Qin would send her back to Gu Yuan for burial.

Connecting this to the earlier saying about an 'empty coffin,' Chen Ji's heart was filled with doubt. Could it be that Lu Shi was originally not dead but escaped using the opportunity in Gu Yuan and returned to the Jing dynasty?

But if so, why wouldn't Si Cao Gui know the news that she was still alive?

Chen Ji wanted to ask for the specific location of the grave but couldn't bring himself to open his mouth. This was something he should already know, and asking might immediately arouse suspicion in Xiao Man's heart.

Chen Ji said as if nothing was amiss, "It's a pity she entrusted the wrong person. Even after she left, she couldn't be buried in the Chen family."

Xiao Man sighed. "Who said she wasn't? But according to Aunt's character, she probably wouldn't want to be buried with those pedantic scholars of the Chen family anyway. If they were buried together, it might be lively. Aunt could point at their Chen family ancestors' noses and scold them every day underground..."

Wu Yun solemnly chimed in with respect, "Fierce, fierce!"

The next morning, the guest room in the post station was warm. Xiao Man was sitting on a small stool, dozing, with saliva flowing onto her knee.

Chen Ji quietly got up, not waking her.

He went directly to the stable in the backyard and led out Zao Zao. He used a coarse-toothed comb to groom its fur. Zao Zao felt comfortable and nudged Chen Ji's shoulder with its head.

Not far away, a voice transmitted, "Third brother, you're up really early."

Chen Ji turned his head and saw Chen Wen Zong wearing a white fox fur coat, standing on the steps of the post station, like a noble young master who had stepped out of a storyteller's tale.

Chen Ji bowed with cupped hands. "Elder brother."

Chen Wen Zong had a hint of a smile in his eyebrows and eyes. "You call Father Advisor Chen, yet you're still willing to call me elder brother."

Chen Ji smiled. "Elder brother has noble character, deserving of being called elder brother."

Chen Wen Zong hesitated for a moment. "Father actually..."

Before he finished speaking, Chen Ji had already led Zao Zao to the front door of the post station.

At the front of the post station, the escort masters were already awake before dawn. One person held a bowl of mutton soup, squatting by the door, with a hot steamed bun. They ate a mouthful of steamed bun and a mouthful of soup, drinking until their whole bodies were warm, then got up to put reins on the cows and horses, and pull the cow carts and horse carts out of the yard.

The post station clerk pointed at the ground and scolded, "Pick up all the cow dung and horse dung on the ground for me, or next time you come, there won't even be a place in the cow shed!"

Escort Liang quickly smiled and said, "Yes, we'll pick it up!"

Chen Wen Zong looked at the backs of the escort masters and sighed. "The escort masters squatting together in the early morning to drink a mouthful of hot soup and eat a mouthful of steamed bun, this kind of market life scene, it has a good sense of vitality. Watching them eat suddenly makes me feel very hungry. Before, at home, with fine clothes and rich food, I didn't feel much appetite. Third brother, do you want a bowl of mutton soup too?"

Chen Ji, while grooming Zao Zao's fur, teased, "Elder brother, the escort masters have nested in the cow shed all night. If they don't drink some hot soup in the morning, their toes will be ice cold. The soup base of that mutton soup only has two thin slices of mutton. If they heard you say this, I'm afraid they'd wish to exchange with you, eating the fine clothes and rich food you mentioned under carved beams and painted rafters."

Chen Wen Zong was startled, then sincerely said, "A valuable lesson... Third brother, you've endured many hardships these past two years outside, haven't you? It's good to be home."

Chen Ji looked at him and said, "Actually, not really."

Just at this moment, Chen Li Qin and Liang Shi had already squeezed into the horse cart with Chen Wen Xiao, avoiding meeting Zhang Zhuo again.

Chen Ji stood at the door and called Zao Zao over, grabbed a handful of yellow beans from the saddlebag and fed them to its mouth. Wu Yun drilled out of Chen Ji's embrace and nestled on Zao Zao's head, and Zao Zao didn't seem angry.

After the Chen family convoy was already on the road, Chen Ji didn't rush to mount his horse and set off.

He said in a low voice to Zao Zao, "We'll wait a little longer, wait for your mistress to say goodbye to you before we go, otherwise she'll definitely be reluctant if she doesn't see you for a month."

Chen Ji knew that Second Miss Zhang treated Zao Zao as a friend, so she would definitely come to say goodbye.

But he waited and waited, watching the Chen family convoy go far into the distance, yet the person he was waiting for never came.

"Not good!" Chen Ji seemed to realize something, flipped onto his horse, and urged it to chase after the Chen family convoy.

Arriving beside the Chen family convoy, he rode Zao Zao back and forth to check, but there was no sign of Zhang Xia or Zhang Zheng in any of the more than ten carriages.

Chen Ji shouted to the maid named 'Han Lu' on the ox cart, "Open the box, see if anyone is hidden inside."

Han Lu was completely confused. "What is Third Young Master saying? The boxes contain our belongings. How could they hide people?"

Chen Ji insisted, "Open it and take a look."

Han Lu did as she was told, but she had just barely lifted a crack in the box when a hand stretched out from inside and closed the lid again...

Chen Ji: "..."

Han Lu screamed, "What was that!"

But before they could open the box to check again, they heard the sound of horse hooves coming from a small alley by the road.

Chen Ji turned his head and saw Zhang Xia and Zhang Zheng urging their horses to chase after them.

He said in bewilderment, "You two are..."

Zhang Zheng said nonchalantly, "We've been in Luo City for two years, and Mother doesn't allow us siblings to travel far. We were almost about to burst. She usually doesn't manage Big Brother or Big Sister, so why does she always manage the two of us? So, I secretly brought my sister out, got two good horses from the post station, and will follow you to Gu Yuan to have a look."

Chen Ji frowned. "That won't do."

Zhang Zheng laughed heartily. "You're not my mother, so you can't manage us siblings!"

Chen Ji knew what Zhang Zheng said was reasonable. He indeed had no reason to restrain the other party, so he had to give up. "Second Miss Zhang, since you've come out, let's exchange horses. I'll return Zao Zao to you."

Zhang Xia said generously, "No need. I think Zao Zao also likes you quite a bit, so I'll lend her to you for now. You need her more than I do."

Chen Ji thanked her. Immediately after, he suddenly thought of the hand in the box...

Since Zhang Zheng and Zhang Xia were here, then who was in the box?

Chen Ji said calmly to the box, "Come out yourself!"

The box slowly opened, and Xiao Man, propping the lid with her right hand, squatted inside, smiling brightly. "Young master, surprise?"

Chen Ji said without a good spirit, "Why didn't you listen to my instructions?"

Xiao Man saw his face was wrong and explained in a panic, "But you really need someone to take care of you on the road. Which family's young master doesn't bring a maid? Is a young master who doesn't bring a maid still a young master?"

Chen Ji's heart sank. It was a done deal that Xiao Man had secretly followed. But what about Su Zhou? Su Zhou insisted on hiding in the Chen family's team because she wanted to see if I was someone who would betray Jing Wang Fu, but now I and Xiao Man have both left...

Isn't Su Zhou the only one left in that horse cart?

At this moment, the cart driver was just driving Chen Ji's horse cart, following behind the Zhang family convoy.

Amidst the shaking and bumping, a faint voice transmitted from the wooden box inside the cart, inquiring, "Can I come out? It's very stuffy inside."

"Can I come out?"

"Say something!"

"Speak, dead girl!"