At this thought, Yun Xi's face changed. She anxiously grabbed Hong Luo's hand tightly and asked, "Hong Luo, have you told anyone else about this?"
Startled by the seriousness in Yun Xi's eyes, Hong Luo shook her head honestly. "No. I've only told you, Miss."
Hearing this, Yun Xi let out a slight sigh of relief. However, thinking of another problem, she couldn't help frowning and asking, "Have you ever confirmed Yingying's identity with her in person?"
Before knowing Yingying's identity, she really thought Yingying was just one of Qi Rong's women. But now, she couldn't help suspecting that Qi Rong deliberately concealed Yingying's real identity and gave her a false one.
If Hong Luo showed that she recognized Yingying, it might bring about a fatal disaster for Hong Luo. She must prevent this from happening!
"Never. It happened so long ago. I thought Yingying should have forgotten about it."
Hong Luo didn't think much about it, but it made Yun Xi's tightly - clenched heart finally settle down.
Looking at Hong Luo, who looked confused, Yun Xi said sternly with a sharp look in her eyes, "Hong Luo, this is a matter of great importance. Only you and I know about it. You mustn't tell a third person. Remember?"
Yun Xi's solemn exhortation shocked Hong Luo. She immediately nodded. "I remember, Miss!"
Being silent and reserved was the way to survive she had learned in the palace. Since her miss had given such an order, she would surely keep her mouth shut!
After learning Yingying's identity, although Yun Xi was shocked, she also felt a bit relieved.
Did this mean that Wushuang's identity might also have some hidden secrets? Just as Qi Rong had once said, was Wushuang just acting...
Realizing that her thoughts had circled back to Qi Rong again, Yun Xi blushed slightly and felt a bit annoyed.
Now, because of her father's matter, she had been forcibly kept in Lingchuan by this man. He said it was for her to recover from her injuries, but she didn't know what he was really up to.
If she continued to be influenced by him like this, she would surely be led around by him in the future!
So, since she was in Lingchuan, she should also find something to do. It was much better than constantly revolving around him.
After making up her mind, Yun Xi calmly settled down. In her leisure time, she would take a stroll around to learn about the local customs.
As for Qi Rong, he had become very busy these days. He was hardly seen during the day. Only at night would he shamelessly climb through the window into Yun Xi's bedroom.
Even though Yun Xi had set up all kinds of obstacles and traps to stop this lecher, he always managed to avoid them skillfully. He even had the leisure to give her suggestions on how to improve them.
This made Yun Xi so angry that she was fuming, but in the end, she couldn't escape the fate of being used as a pillow by him. Eventually, she gave up resisting.
Time quickly passed to three days later, the annual ceremony to offer sacrifices and invite the Dragon God in Lingchuan.
In previous years, the ceremony to invite the Dragon God was led by the clan elders of each village. They would invite Buddhist monks or Taoist priests to conduct religious ceremonies and rituals in the ancestral halls. They would choose an auspicious day to distribute food, perform exorcisms, and pray to heaven and earth to show their respect for the Dragon God.
But this year, since the imperial court was going to build dams and bridges in Lingchuan, the local officials attached great importance to it. From the prefect down to the local county magistrate, all of them participated in the ceremony. So, this year's ceremony was held in an especially grand manner.
The ceremony was divided into three parts:
First, candles, pastries and other various sacrificial offerings were placed on the altar in the local Dragon King Temple. Buddhist monks or Taoist priests were invited to chant scriptures and invite the Dragon God. Then, the vessels for inviting the god were prepared, covered with red cloth and placed on a chair. Four men would carry the dragon - steamer out of the Dragon King Temple while people blew musical instruments and set off firecrackers all the way. They would parade in the fields for several hours. Finally, they would carry the dragon - steamer back to the Dragon King Temple and wait for the rain to fall. Then the ceremony would be completed.
If it didn't rain, this ceremony would be held once a day until it rained.
So, the ceremony to invite the Dragon God might last for two or three days or even half a month, depending entirely on the weather.
The reason why the ceremony in Lingchuan was held at this time was that, on the one hand, the spring plowing season needed the moisture of rain, so people invited the Dragon God to pray for good weather throughout the year. On the other hand, since it rained frequently at this time, it was easier to complete the ceremony.
Li An, who had been sent by Qi Rong to carry the dragon - steamer, had no idea about these rules at all. After three days of seclusion, fasting and purifying himself, he had lost a lot of weight.
Standing beside Qi Rong, Yun Xi hardly recognized Li An, who looked pale and staggered when walking.
"What did you do to him?"
Yun Xi knew that it must be Qi Rong who deliberately punished this man. She didn't expect that in just three days, he had tortured Li An like this.
Li An looked resentful, but he didn't dare to complain about Qi Rong!
Qi Rong was sitting in the main seat. Below him were the prefect, the local county magistrate and some local gentry. But he casually grabbed Yun Xi's hand and played with it as if there was no one else around.
"Of course, I just made him do what he should do. You know, I've always been upright and aboveboard."
Qi Rong looked at Yun Xi playfully, blinking his obsidian - like eyes, which sparkled with charm.
Hearing his words, Yun Xi twitched the corner of her mouth slightly and almost rolled her eyes to the sky.
"You're upright and aboveboard? If so, there would be no one in this world who abused their power for personal gain!"
His words might deceive others, but his brazenness was just a joke to her.
Seeing Yun Xi's evaluation of him, Qi Rong didn't get angry but laughed instead. He held Yun Xi's face and kneaded it randomly. His extremely handsome face was full of a charming smile, which almost made all the women present lose their minds.
Yun Xi gritted her teeth in anger. She didn't want to have an ambiguous entanglement with Qi Rong in front of everyone, but this man tried his best to go against her. He was either being overly familiar or blatantly provoking her.
He trapped her firmly beside him so that she couldn't go anywhere!
Here, Li An looked like he was about to faint even before he carried the dragon - steamer. Even the sacrificial official couldn't help worrying and suggested replacing him.
But when the prefect told Qi Rong about the sacrificial official's idea, Qi Rong waved his hand and said confidently, "Lord Li will surely complete the task of carrying the dragon - steamer excellently!"
Since Qi Rong had said so, others didn't dare to say anything more. They had to let Li An continue to carry the dragon - steamer.
The moment Li An lifted the dragon - steamer, he lost his balance and almost fell. He knelt on one knee!
Just as everyone was in an uproar, thinking that he couldn't hold on any longer, Qi Rong suddenly said coolly, "Lord Li, be careful not to damage the dragon's aura."
Just this one sentence scared Li An. He gritted his teeth tightly and forced himself to stand up. After walking with the others for several hours, he finally let out the breath he had been holding and fainted.
However, this was not the end.
Since it didn't rain all the time, people silently blamed Li An, thinking that maybe his lack of sincerity and listless appearance had offended the Dragon God. So, he was made to carry the dragon - steamer for another seven days before it finally started to drizzle.
The ceremony was completed, and Li An fell seriously ill because of this.
From then on, Li An hated Qi Rong for seven parts and feared him for three parts. He never dared to act like a bully in front of Qi Rong again.