Finally, it was time to go home. It had been almost a year. As Song Jinyu recalled the days traveling between Liuzhou City and Tianmen Mountain, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sadness.
She dared not think about Tianmen Mountain. Every time she did, her heart would ache. The scenes of her and her senior brothers enjoying their master's love were all destroyed on the night of her coming - of - age ceremony.
Her familiar senior brother betrayed the sect, her best friend Yan Fei was killed, and her master's cold body lay in the coffin, looking as pale as gold paper.
And she grew up overnight. She was no longer that innocent and young junior sister but had become the young mistress of Tianmen Mountain.
It was a game with no winners.
When her master laid out the plan, he once said that everyone would be a part of this game. No matter the outcome, no one could escape. Now it seemed that this ending was exactly what her master had arranged. Except for Yan Fei's death, which was the thing that Song Jinyu couldn't let go of.
Zhongli Mingye looked at the woman beside him. After much effort, he had finally married her.
On the day when Song Jinyu knelt in front of the emperor with him to plead for mercy, Zhongli Mingye realized that he didn't want to see her kneeling.
On that day, the crown prince intended to humiliate them. Even though Song Jinyu comforted him and endured it for the greater good, Zhongli Mingye didn't want to endure it for a single moment.
Seeing that she was in a bad mood, he reached out and lowered the curtain of the carriage. "In the past, many things were mostly due to some fates."
"Cause and effect are the meaning of the existence of the world."
Song Jinyu smiled. "Just like you and me. If there were no such fates, you would still be playing the piano and painting in the Yuqin Prince's Mansion in the capital, and I would be the sect leader on Tianmen Mountain."
He tightened his grip on her hand. "That won't do. If this king knew that there was you in the world, he would surely meet you, get to know you, fall in love with you, and be with you no matter what." The determination in his words made Song Jinyu feel more at ease.
Those regretful emotions dissipated a lot.
"I just found out that the layout of the Liuzhou Prince's Mansion is actually quite similar to that in the capital!"
Zhongli Mingye laughed. "Look closely. There are some differences."
"The one in the capital is more luxurious, while the one in Liuzhou is like a gentle and delicate girl."
They finally arrived in Liuzhou City before it got dark. Song Chuyu had received the news early and came out of the city to greet them. In the evening, the whole family had dinner in the general's mansion, enjoying themselves happily.
After dinner, Song Qinzhou invited Zhongli Mingye to the study, and Song Chuyu accompanied them.
Mrs. Xiang and Song Jinyu were chatting while teasing Ling Yu. "Sister - in - law, are you pregnant again?"
"It's been more than three months!" Mentioning this, Mrs. Xiang beamed with joy. "Yu'er, you should also hurry up!"
"You've been married into the prince's mansion for more than half a year. Why haven't you shown any signs yet?" Mrs. Xiang was a bit strange. Logically speaking, since Song Jinyu knew medicine, there should be nothing wrong with her body. But she had never heard any news from the prince's mansion.
Song Jinyu blushed. How could she tell Mrs. Xiang? Although they had been married for more than half a year, they had only consummated their marriage not long ago.
Moreover, Zhongli Mingye hoped that she would get pregnant later, so they hadn't really put the matter of having a child on their minds.
Now that Mrs. Xiang had brought it up, Song Jinyu could only nod.
Mrs. Xiang tapped her on the head. "You!"
"The royal family will never tolerate you two not having a child. His mother, the princess, will also mention this matter. Besides..."
"The prince is not young anymore!"
Song Jinyu smiled. Although she didn't really care, she still took Mrs. Xiang's words to heart. When Zhongli Mingye came out of the study, it was already late at night.
He returned to the room and saw that she was still awake. He thought she was waiting for him. "My love, can't you fall asleep without this king now?"
"No. I just came back from sister - in - law's place. She said," Song Jinyu lowered her head shyly. "Mingye, do you want a child?"
Based on her understanding of her own body, Song Jinyu knew that her health had been poor since the incident at Tianmen Mountain last year. She was suffering from cold and dampness. She was afraid that it would take some time for her to have a child.
He stepped forward and hugged her. "Don't be in a hurry. This king is afraid that if you have a child, you won't have room for this king in your eyes." Besides, they had all their lives.
He had always known about Song Jinyu's health problem. The words of the imperial doctor still rang in his ears, "The princess has a cold constitution. It may be difficult for her to conceive."
"If she is properly conditioned, she may be able to get pregnant."
He originally didn't want to tell Song Jinyu for fear that she would overthink. Now that she had brought it up on her own, Zhongli Mingye no longer hid it. "Just focus on taking good care of your body and don't worry about this."
"What if we never have a child?" This was what Song Jinyu was most worried about. "Alas! You've been so anxious lately. Is it because of this?"
"If we don't have one, it's okay. We won't force it." A flicker of amusement flashed across Zhongli Mingye's phoenix eyes. "Besides, this king is not particularly eager for a child. If you have a child, this king is afraid that you won't have this king in your heart anymore!" He was satisfied with their current life and with Song Jinyu's whole - hearted love for him.
So he didn't have a strong obsession with having a child.
Only Song Jinyu was constantly thinking about having a child for him. She even worried that she couldn't give birth. Seeing that he didn't seem to care at all, she had to give up the idea.
Life in the Liuzhou Prince's Mansion was very peaceful. It wasn't as bustling as in the capital, but it was a gentle and long - lasting life. The couple would go out for outings from time to time, and Song Jinyu's mood got better and better.
Recently, she went to the ancestral hall to offer incense to Yan Fei and then went to the temple to offer incense and pray for her master.
It was the third day of the third lunar month again. Song Jinyu dared not think about Yan Fei. On that day, she just silently copied the Diamond Sutra.
"Your Highness, Magistrate Song is here!" Hearing that his father - in - law had come, Zhongli Mingye quickly went out to greet him. "Your Highness, recently I've received many reports of the plague. Now I've arranged people to conduct investigations. I'm afraid the prince's mansion will also be affected, so please conduct a thorough investigation of the whole mansion."
After Song Qinzhou finished speaking, he left in a hurry.
Hearing this news, Song Jinyu quickly put down the pen for copying the scriptures. "The plague?"
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Zhongli Mingye asked Qingfeng and Xingjian to conduct a thorough investigation of the prince's mansion. "Most large - scale outbreaks of the plague come from water source pollution."
"I wonder if my father has investigated the water source situation?" Song Jinyu took Niaoniao to the pharmacy.
But before she could get ready, bad news came!
The young master in the general's mansion suddenly had a high fever that wouldn't subside and cried non - stop. Mrs. Xiang had asked the mansion doctor for treatment but to no avail. She had no choice but to ask the prince's mansion for help.
Song Jinyu rushed over in a hurry. When she saw her little nephew Ling Yu, he was no longer as energetic as before. His whole body was burning hot, and he was listless.
"Sister - in - law, ask someone to quickly take precautions against the plague. Look for these materials and clean the whole mansion." She quickly wrote out a prescription and then listed all the things for preventing and treating the plague.
However, this time it was not just a simple plague.
Because the news brought back by Song Qinzhou and Zhongli Mingye was not optimistic. Countless strange "medicine powders" had been put into the water source of the whole Liuzhou City.
Normally, the medicine powder would quickly dissipate after entering the water. "I'm afraid someone is up to something!"
Zhongli Mingye arranged for people to guard the water source, but it was already too late. Now there were more plague patients in the whole Liuzhou City.
Helplessly, he said, "Close the city gates. No one is allowed to enter or leave!"
For now, this was the only thing they could do.