Chapter 153 Xiaohong
The little maid went away and came back, but she brought back no news of anyone else being near the guqin.

Everyone was in an uproar. The "Guan Shang Yue" was finished, and the person who played the piano disappeared. No one knew who he was. This seemed like a very interesting mystery. Someone said, "It's possible that he was some master. This is how it is usually written in operas. These masters have their own habits and don't want people to discover their true identity."

"So so, elegant and graceful!"

As people said this, Xiao Deyin's palms became more sweaty.

That person is missing? How could it be? It's just a top scholar's mansion, such a small place, where can he hide? Since you didn't plan to meet from the beginning, why did you play it? Xiao Deyin felt that the sound of the piano was clearly played for her, and no one else could hear the familiar sound of the piano except her. Of course, no one else except her had heard Xue Fangfei play "Guanshan Yue".

Could it be Xue Fangfei's ghost, coming out to warn her? Xiao Deyin felt a little dizzy. In fact, she had never set foot in the Shen family since Xue Fangfei's accident, and today was the first time. After such a long time, Xiao Deyin thought that she had already forgotten about it and could treat it as if it had never happened.

But she didn't expect that everything was not over, and it even tortured her more severely.

Her face was extremely pale. The lady next to her saw it and asked, "How is Mr. Xiao? Why are you sweating so much?"

"Nothing." Xiao Deyin waved his hand reluctantly, "I just feel a little dizzy."

"Did you catch a cold?" An enthusiastic lady quickly pulled her inside to sit down. "Don't sit outside, or you'll catch a cold."

There was a warm fireplace in front of them and lively voices around them. The piano sound that appeared and disappeared inexplicably was soon forgotten by the crowd and was just a trivial matter.

But for Xiao Deyin, it was more than just a small matter.

……

Jiang Li had already left the room.

When the emperor first granted this mansion, the Shen family moved in with infinite joy. She was the same, her joy at that time was always pure, she sometimes walked through every corner of the mansion, every bit of it was full of pride, she just felt proud of her husband's ability.

Thinking about it now, it all seemed like a joke. But her understanding of the mansion had never changed. She knew how to get around every road, and also knew where there were no servants.

Liu Xu hadn't come back yet, so Jiang Li went to the edge of the garden to wait for her. The Shen family's garden was not as lively as the Duke's Mansion's garden. It seemed that since Xue Fangfei's death, the people in the mansion had no intention of tending to the flowers and plants. For Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun, tending to flowers and plants was not as good as looking at jewelry, and Shen Yurong had no free time to do these things. Therefore, in winter, the flower garden was bleak and deserted.

At this moment, someone suddenly called out "Fang Fei"!
Jiang Li was startled. The voice was strange and familiar, and very close to her. She was sure that the person was calling her. Jiang Li turned around quickly, but there was no one in sight.

The flower garden was empty, not even a servant, so how could someone come and call her name?

Jiang Li calmed down. Although the fact that she became the second Miss Jiang was bizarre enough, for some reason, she did not believe in ghosts and gods. Therefore, she did not believe that this was the result of supernatural powers, and just thought that someone wanted to test her. Just as she stood still, the voice rang again: "Fang Fei Fang Fei!" This time, it was clearer, mixed with some fluttering sounds.

She heard it clearly. The sound came from the pillar under the eaves. Jiang Li paused, without thinking, and walked towards that end.

When she walked in, she saw a copper bird cage. Inside, a black starling tilted its head to look at her. Suddenly, its black bean-like eyes blinked and it shouted, "Fang Fei Fang Fei!"

"You!" Jiang Li was speechless.

One winter day when she first arrived in Yanjing, she woke up one morning and found a starling lying frozen in front of her window. It looked like someone had kept it but didn't close the cage properly, so it escaped. Yanjing was cold in winter, so it froze when it flew here.

She asked someone to pick up the mynah bird and put it in a box covered with a handkerchief, and then placed it next to the stove. The mynah bird woke up due to the warmth. Later, when Shen Yurong came back, she simply found a copper birdcage for her and kept the mynah bird in it.

The mynah bird stayed in the Shen residence for several years, from a small shabby house to the imperial mansion. After several years, it learned a few words and was very psychic. Whenever it saw Xue Fangfei, it would call "Fangfei Fangfei", but it would not call like this when other people approached. Shen Yurong once joked that the mynah bird could also recognize people.

In this situation, the starling suddenly said this, which scared Jiang Li, and she realized that it was a false alarm. She was angry and amused, and said, "Stop shouting!"

The starling still tilted its head to look at her, and suddenly flew to the side next to Jiang Li, grabbed the cage door tightly with both claws, and called out loudly "Fang Fei Fang Fei!"
This is incredible. Jiang Li looked at it in surprise. Logically speaking, she had already changed her appearance. Even if she stood in front of Shen Yurong or Xue Huaiyuan, no one would recognize her as Xue Fangfei. How could this myna recognize her and keep calling her "Fangfei"? Could it be that animals can recognize people better than humans? Or maybe her appearance changed, but her aura did not change, so this myna still recognized her?

No matter what, she couldn't stay here for long. If someone saw her standing here, and this starling kept calling "Fang Fei" to her, although it was a little unbelievable, it would inevitably make people think too much. If Shen Yurong knew about it, she might find something.

Jiang Li never underestimates Shen Yurong.

Just as she was about to leave, a voice suddenly sounded behind her, saying, "When encountering something like this, of course you should kill the witness. Why are you still standing there?"

Jiang Li looked back and saw Ji Heng in red, looking at her and smiling faintly, a few steps away.

"My Lord?" she asked, "Why are you here?"

"I was passing by here and saw that it was bustling, so I came in to take a look." He said very happily, "The Shen family welcomes you very much."

This was similar to what Princess Yongning said when she came in. Jiang Li didn't know what to say for a moment.

"This bird seems to know a lot," he said casually.

Jiang Li's heart skipped a beat, but she smiled and said, "I don't know. It suddenly called itself Fangfei. I heard that the number one scholar's wife is named Fangfei. Maybe it missed its master." She was explaining, but this explanation seemed a little forced in front of Ji Heng.

Ji Heng also laughed, walked to the bird cage, and stretched out a finger to tease the starling. The starling tried to peck his finger, but Ji Heng dodged and tapped its head.

"No matter what...if it shows you that it misses its master, it will cause misunderstanding." Ji Heng raised an eyebrow, "Didn't I teach you not to leave it alive?"

Jiang Li: "..."

She knew, of course, but it was just a bird. There were other ways, just avoid it. Why did he have to take its life? Ji Heng's fingers scratched the starling's feathers. The starling seemed very comfortable. It didn't avoid him, but tilted its head slightly to look at him. I don't know if it was mesmerized by the seductive beauty, but it was very well-behaved.

But Jiang Li knew that that beautiful finger could take the bird's life at any time.

Sure enough, Ji Heng opened the birdcage with a smile and caught the mynah bird in his hands.

The myna had been raised in the Shen residence for several years and had long been very friendly to people. When Ji Heng suddenly took it out, it did not move much, and just lay in Ji Heng's palm and became quiet.

Jiang Li watched Ji Heng slowly clench his palms.

Her heart tightened, and she couldn't help but say, "No!"

Ji Heng raised his eyes to look at her and said slowly: "Why not?"

Jiang Li was speechless. After all, she had raised this myna for three years. She was the one who picked it up. After her death, everything in the Shen Mansion had nothing to do with her, and there was no one who treated him sincerely. The myna was just a bird, but it might be the only thing left in the Shen Mansion that had no intentions towards her.

Even if it's just a bird.

Ji Heng was still smiling, but his eyes were cold.

Jiang Li slowed down and said, "Maybe Miss Jiuyue has some mute medicine."

"Poisoned a bird to silence it, Jiang Li." He rarely called her by her full name, but when he did, there was a funny indifference. He said, "Are you okay?"

Jiang Li also knew that her idea was a bit too much. For someone as "moody" as Ji Heng, how could he spend so much time on a bird? How could it be possible? He didn't have such patience for people. If he wanted to kill someone to silence him, he would just kill him. What nonsense are you talking about?

Before Jiang Li had time to say anything, she saw Ji Heng's palms close quickly, and the starling disappeared from his palms.

He glanced at Jiang Li and said, "Don't be silly."

Jiang Li sighed silently in her heart, looked at the empty birdcage, and said nothing more.

After Ji Heng and her took two steps away from the empty birdcage, Jiang Li said, "Duke, I have to wait for my friend Liu Xu here, so I'm afraid I can't go with you. Besides..." Besides, if she went with Ji Heng in the Shen family, she would probably attract surprised looks from others.

Ji Heng looked at her, his eyes seemed to see through Jiang Li, and suddenly asked: "How do you plan to deal with Xiao Deyin?"

Jiang Li was stunned. Ji Heng said, "The song "Guanshanyue" you played just now made Xiao Deyin confused. Although I don't know why," he stroked the handle of the folding fan, "you played it towards her."

He even knew this, when did he come here? Jiang Li looked at his inquiring eyes, thought for a moment, and said, "This is a long story. The song was indeed played for Xiao Deyin. What I want to do next is also very simple. I want Princess Yongning to feel that Xiao Deyin's existence is a hidden danger, and she must silence Xiao Deyin."

"You can't stop Yongning from silencing Xiao Deyin." Ji Heng hit the nail on the head, "She won't give you a chance to save Xiao Deyin. And you have no reason to save her."

Ji Heng could always see the problem at a glance. Jiang Li smiled and said, "So I didn't plan to really let Princess Yongning silence her, because if Xiao Deyin really died, there would be one less witness in Xue Fangfei's case. I won't let that happen." She said, "I just want Xiao Deyin to believe that the person who killed her was sent by Princess Yongning."

"You want to sow discord?" Ji Heng raised the corner of her lips, as if praising the little animal she raised for finally learning how to bite people, "Smart girl."

"I guess so. I have to make Xiao Deyin believe that Yongning will do something to her. And make Yongning believe that Xiao Deyin is unreliable. Of course, I will find a way to keep Xiao Deyin alive. She should be punished while alive, instead of causing trouble for others after death."

She rarely had such indifferent moments. Most of the time, she always had a gentle smile, as if she could accept all the suffering and injustice. But at this moment, the flash of hatred in her eyes was still caught by Ji Heng.

He looked at Jiang Li thoughtfully for a while, and said, "Since you have a plan in mind, who do you plan to let do it?"

"Do you mean the one who pretended to kill the witness?" Jiang Li smiled. "I don't have to hide it from you. My uncle is a man of the underworld and has many friends. It won't be difficult to hire someone to act out the show with some money."

"Are you planning to take action against Yongning and Lord Xiao Shen now?" Ji Heng asked.

"it's time."

"Then, I won't care about you anymore." Ji Heng looked at her with his hands behind his back, "I wish you good luck." After saying this, he turned around and left without any sign of lingering. This also surprised Jiang Li. She thought Ji Heng would say more. But after thinking about it, she felt relieved. Originally, the matter of Princess Yongning had nothing to do with Ji Heng. He always liked to be a spectator, not to take the initiative to participate in the play. She pulled him down step by step, but it didn't mean that it was a matter of course.

Since he can stay away, then let him stay away. After all, this is her battle alone.

After a while, the catkins came out, and when they saw her, they came over and asked, "How did you get here? I just came out and saw that you were not on the corridor. I looked for you for a long time and finally found you. I thought you had gone home. Hey," she looked at the empty bird cage hanging by the pillar under the eaves and said, "Why is there an empty bird cage here? Is there no bird in it?"

Jiang Li looked at the empty birdcage and shook her head: "I don't know." But she sighed secretly in her heart. This last Shen family item that was related to her past was finally lost.

After all, there is a trace of melancholy.

It was quite a while before they arrived at the pavilion. Many young ladies who had been visiting the garden had already returned. Jiang Li noticed that Xiao Deyin was gone. She walked over to Lu and asked, "Why isn't Mr. Xiao here?"

"He said he was not feeling well, maybe caught a cold. His face was as white as paper, and he has already gone back." Mrs. Lu thought Jiang Li was concerned about the teacher in the school, so she explained.

Jiang Li sneered in her heart. She had thought that since Xiao Deyin could collude with Princess Yongning to murder Xue Fangfei, she must be a brave person. But now it seems that she is as timid as a mouse. She was exposed after being frightened. It would not be difficult to use her to deal with Princess Yongning.

She also noticed that Princess Yongning was not in the crowd. However, no one here dared to ask about Yongning's whereabouts, and as for where she went, they had no control over it. Jiang Li knew that Princess Yongning was probably with Shen Yurong at the moment. It was not easy to find such an opportunity, so naturally she wanted to express her feelings. However, based on Jiang Li's understanding of Shen Yurong, she was afraid that she would be more angry than happy, and more disgusted than happy when she saw Princess Yongning.

Speaking of which, Ji Heng and Shen Yurong, one likes to watch plays, the other is good at acting, they are two completely different people. It seems that the former is too cold and the latter is too sentimental, but Jiang Li thinks that she would rather stay out of the drama than be deceived by the actors.

I have no control over my joys and sorrows, and I have become a laughing stock for others to see. Thinking of this, I can't help but feel sad.

Liu Xu beside her pushed her and frowned, "Why does Shen Ruyun always look at you?"

Jiang Li was startled, and looked at Shen Ruyun, just in time to see Shen Ruyun's disgusted look, she understood, and said: "It's probably because of the fifth sister."

Shen Ruyun was about to marry Zhou Yanbang, but before that, Jiang Yu'e had already entered the Zhou family. Shen Ruyun was a person who could not tolerate any sand in her eyes, so she would definitely want to punish Jiang Yu'e. When she saw Jiang Li, she thought that Jiang Li was also a lady of the Jiang family, so she hated Jiang Li as well. Of course, it might also be because before that, Jiang Li had also been engaged to Zhou Yanbang.

"What a lunatic," Liu Xu said, "What does Jiang Yu'e's matter have to do with you? Everyone in Mingyi Hall knows that Jiang Yu'e is not on good terms with you. She is really good at making connections."

"It's okay, I don't care, just ignore it." Jiang Li comforted Liu Xu. In fact, she was not optimistic about Shen Ruyun's life after marrying into the Zhou family. Although it seemed that Shen Ruyun got what she wanted and married her sweetheart, and the Zhou family would treat her well because of Shen Yurong, at least on the surface they were very kind to Shen Ruyun, but Jiang Li now saw clearly what kind of person Zhou Yanbang was. Zhou Yanbang was basically a villain and didn't really love Shen Yurong, and Jiang Yu'e was not a good person. It was a headache to think about these three people together, and it would be a mess every day.

The headaches were left to others to deal with, and she would not worry about them. Although she did not find any remaining evidence when she came to the Shen family today, it was because Shen Yurong had cleaned up everything, and there was almost no evidence of her existence in the entire Shen Mansion. However, she knew what to do next.

This is also a considerable gain.

The Shen family's banquet ended in the evening. On the way back home, Mrs. Jiang closed her eyes tiredly to rest, and Mrs. Lu did not dare to speak to disturb her, and sat quietly. Jiang Li had a rare opportunity to be quiet, and sat thinking about her own things.

After returning to Jiang Mansion and Fangfei Garden, Tong'er and Baixue saw her coming back, so they boiled water and served her hot tea. Tong'er told her everything that happened in the mansion during the day, picking up the things she thought were useful. Jiang Youyao's whereabouts were still unknown, and now the whole city was almost turned upside down. Now the government suspected that Jiang Youyao had used some method to sneak out of the city, but Jiang Yuanbai didn't believe it. Jiang Youyao had never left Yanjing City and didn't have such courage. She must still be in Yanjing City, but no one knew where she was.

So the search had to continue.

Tong'er asked, "Miss, how did you feel about going to the Shen Mansion today? Is the Shen Mansion big? I heard that it was a house bestowed by the emperor. Is it more beautiful than our house? It's a pity that I couldn't go, otherwise I should have broadened my horizons."

"Bai Xue, go close the door." Jiang Li interrupted Tong'er. Bai Xue closed the door and walked to Jiang Li with Tong'er, knowing that Jiang Li had something to say.

Jiang Li took out a box from under the table and opened it. Inside was a neat stack of banknotes. She was not short of money now. In order to compensate her, the Jiang family had more than doubled her monthly salary. When she came back from Xiangyang, Old Madam Ye secretly stuffed a large purse into her bag, which was full of banknotes. It was not very useful on weekdays, so Jiang Li counted them and counted out five.

"I'm giving you these five hundred taels of silver to do something." She put the banknote in Tong'er's hand.

Tong'er held the banknote and looked at Jiang Li's face. She became nervous for no reason and said, "I will do whatever the young lady asks me to do. What is it?"

Jiang Li asked her to come closer and whispered a few words in her ear. Tong'er looked puzzled, but still said, "Don't worry, young lady. I will do it later."

"This matter must be kept secret." Jiang Li said, "It must not be known to others."

"That's for my use." Tong'er nodded firmly.

"Bai Xue, I also have something for you to do." She whispered a few words into Bai Xue's ear. Bai Xue looked as surprised as Tong Er and nodded, "I understand."

"I'll leave this matter to you." Jiang Li sighed, "You are the only ones I can truly trust."

Although Ji Heng's people are useful, it's embarrassing to use them again and again. Jiang Li believes that he owes Ji Heng a lot, so if he can do it himself, he should try not to involve him. He is different from Shen Yurong. He doesn't owe her anything, so there is no need to pay.

The chirping of birds could be faintly heard on the branches outside the window, but at this time of year, where would the birds come from? The Jiang family didn't raise birds on purpose. It was probably my illusion.

Jiang Li couldn't help but think of the starling that was buried in Ji Heng's hands, and her eyes dimmed.

What a pity.

……

In the Duke's Mansion, lights were on in the study.

Lu Ji had been waiting in the room for a long time. When he saw Ji Heng coming in, he immediately stood up and said, "Sir, there is news from King Cheng. The troops in Yuzhou are gathering in large numbers. I'm afraid..."

"At least we have to celebrate the New Year." Ji Heng said slowly. He took something out of his sleeve and put it in his palm. Lu Ji was startled and saw a furry black ball lying in Ji Heng's palm.

Suddenly free, the black ball fluttered, spread its wings and flew to the hilt of the long sword hanging on the wall, and looked at them with its head tilted.

Lu Ji studied it for a while and said, "Is this a crow?"

As soon as the words fell, the black bird shouted at Ji Heng: "Beauty! Beauty!"

Lu Ji: “…” It’s over, this bird is finished, he actually flirted with Ji Heng in front of her, I don’t know who trained him to be such a jerk.

But to his surprise, Ji Heng was not angry, but seemed to be amused. He said, "You have a sweet mouth."

There wasn't even a hint of persistence.

Lu Ji was puzzled. Did Ji Heng want to raise this crow-like myna? Birds were not raised in the Duke's Mansion. General Ji used to be a bird lover and raised many interesting birds, but General Ji's birds were all mean-spirited. When they were not in cages, they would peck at the flowers in the flowerbed. The flowers in the Duke's Mansion were not ordinary flowers. If a person tasted a little, he would die on the spot, let alone birds? So all the general's birds were poisoned to death by the flowers in the flowerbed. The general suffered greatly, but he could not pull out all the seedlings, so he simply stopped raising birds from then on. In fact, except for humans, there was no animal in the Duke's Mansion. You know, there is such a large poisonous creature in the mansion. If one accidentally loses his life, it is also a sin.

Of course, Ji Heng herself doesn't have the love or patience to take care of an animal.

But for now, it looks like he's treating this starling pretty well.

"Sir, do you want to keep a bird?" Lu Ji said, "You have to put it in a cage and don't let it fly around."

"Raise?" Ji Heng turned his head to look at the starling. The starling looked at him for a while and opened his mouth: "Beauty, beauty!"

Lu Ji thought, why is this bird acting like a pervert? Then Ji Heng started laughing, and he asked the starling, "What's your name?"

Although this mynah bird looks smart, it cannot answer every question, so it just keeps shouting "beauty" and can't say anything else.

Ji Heng said: "Since you don't have a name, you can be called Xiaohong."

Lu Ji: "...Sir, is this mynah bird black?"

"Well," Ji Heng said, "but its name is Xiaohong."

Lu Ji was speechless. He changed his mind and thought, this bird is not his, why should he worry about it? He left the starling aside, told Ji Heng the purpose of his visit today, discussed the next plan with Ji Heng for a while, and then left.

Before leaving, he glanced at Xiaohong, who seemed very puzzled, and then walked out.

After Lu Ji left, Ji Heng walked to the long sword where Xiao Hong was standing and reached out to grab it. Xiao Hong turned her head to look at him and grumbled. Ji Heng put it on the table, took out a handkerchief from his sleeve, and put the handkerchief on the table. Xiao Hong stood on it, so he picked up the handkerchief, wrapped the bird tightly, and placed it on the small table next to the stove.

Even though it was freezing cold, it was always warmer inside the house than outside, so Xiaohong wouldn't freeze to death.

The black bird seemed to be very comfortable in this warm place, and soon it squinted its eyes, as if it was about to fall asleep. Ji Heng looked at it for a while, shook his head, and walked to the other side.

The bird shouldn't have been alive, but he couldn't do what Jiang Li said and feed a bird with mute medicine. It would be better to bring it back. The Shen family just lost a starling. It seemed that this starling was so noisy and unpopular.

For some reason I have the illusion that there is a beautiful girl hidden in a golden house.

……

In the first few days after the New Year, every day is very lively. Children playing and playing can be seen everywhere on the streets, wearing new clothes, shoes and hats, holding candied haws in their hands, making a lot of noise and full of joy.

During the New Year in Mingyi Hall, students did not have to go to school, so the gates were closed. The teachers also had a rare moment of leisure, either gathering with a few friends or doing their own things, which was always very leisurely.

But Xiao Deyin was not like that.

She lived alone in a mansion, not with her family. People said it was because she had a tenacity that was not inferior to that of men. She did not plan to marry in her life. Although she was born gentle and beautiful, and there were many sons of officials who admired her, she was determined to be a zither player and serve the guqin for life. The Xiao family had persuaded her before, but later, they stopped persuading her.

People did not understand her at first, but gradually began to admire her. After all, a beautiful woman who did not seek fame and fortune, nor did she want to be a good musician, was not something that ordinary people could do. People respected her, her students respected her, and she was not a strict teacher, so her reputation in Yanjing City was very good.

Although Fairy Jinghong is also an outstanding musician, she had a past in a brothel and was not as innocent as Xiao Deyin. Moreover, Fairy Jinghong is married now, so the title of the best musician in Beiyan falls to Xiao Deyin.

In previous New Years, Xiao Deyin would have visited his friends who played the qin and composed poems together. But this year, Xiao Deyin politely declined all invitations, saying that he had caught a cold and was not suitable to go out.

To be precise, it was after the Shen family dinner that day that Xiao Deyin caught a cold.

In the courtyard, the maid asked Xiao Deyin, "Sir, are you not going out today?"

Xiao Deyin looked at the weather. It was a rare good day. It wasn't snowing, but the sun was out. The sun was warm, as if it could penetrate into her bones, and it seemed to have cleared up the gloom she had been feeling for days.

She hesitated for a moment and said, "In that case, let's go out and take a look."

Staying in the house all the time without seeing anyone is bound to arouse suspicion. In this case, you might as well go out for a walk and come back early.

Thinking of this, Xiao Deyin asked her maid to comb her hair, put on some powder, and picked out a dress that made her look better.

There were many traces of firecrackers left by children at the gate of the mansion, which was quite lively. For the sake of peace and quiet, Xiao Deyin lived in a mansion in an alley. There were few people coming and going in the alley on weekdays, so it seemed particularly quiet. Xiao Deyin was about to go out for a walk when he suddenly heard a familiar sound of piano music coming from not far away.

It’s “Guanshan Yue”!
Her hands trembled, her heart shuddered, she grabbed the maid beside her and asked, "Did you hear it?"

The maid was startled and asked, "What did you say, sir?"

"The sound of a zither! It's the sound of a zither! "Guanshan Yue"!"

The maid suddenly realized: "There is indeed the sound of a zither, not far away."

Xiao Deyin was relieved. She was not the only one who heard it, so it was not a ghost. She listened carefully again. The sound of the piano did not sound like Xue Fangfei's. It sounded much more ordinary.

Before she could breathe a sigh of relief, two passers-by walked into the alley. After hearing what she said, they turned around and said, "This girl also knows "Guanshan Yue". Today, a mysterious zither player appeared in Yanjing City. He played "Guanshan Yue" to perfection. People who heard him followed suit. He has been everywhere these days."

One of them even laughed and said, "Come to think of it, some people say that this mysterious man's zither skills are much better than Xiao Deyin, the number one zither player in Beiyan. I don't know if it's true or not."

Xiao Deyin’s eyes went dark.

　The Duke is a bad name...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)