Chapter 92 Traveling Together
The next morning, Jiang Li got up early and put on her makeup.

She was going back to Xiangyang, and now the whole Jiang Mansion knew about it. Ji Shuran opposed it in front of Ye Mingxuan at first, but somehow she changed her mind later. She acted like a loving mother and asked Jiang Li if she needed anything.

Jiang Jingrui, on the other hand, sat in Fangfei Garden for a long time after learning that Jiang Li was going back to Xiangyang. He simply said that Jiang Li was not kind enough to take him with her when she went to Xiangyang. He actually wanted to go to Xiangyang with Jiang Li.

Jiang Li was both angry and amused. Jiang Jingrui didn't even know what Xiangyang was, but he really thought it was a fun place. Besides, she didn't go to Xiangyang for fun, and the Ye family didn't know whether they would welcome her. Her granddaughter didn't live in a natural place, and Jiang Jingrui, a nominal relative, had the nerve to go.

The most important thing is that even if all this is resolved, Jiang Jingrui's mother, Lu, will definitely not allow Jiang Jingrui to act recklessly.

After much persuasion, Jiang Jingrui finally gave up the idea. Jiang Li sighed in her heart. It seemed that everyone in the Jiang Mansion thought that she would have a good life after returning to the Ye family. Little did they know that the road ahead was long and might not be as carefree as they thought.

It was still sunny yesterday, but today it is raining lightly.

The autumn in Yanjing City seemed very short, as if the summer heat was still before our eyes, and in the blink of an eye, the cold wind was blowing. Looking at the withered branches and fallen leaves on the ground, it was hard to imagine the prosperity and bustle of yesterday.

Tong'er stretched out her hand to test it outside, then turned back to Jiang Li and said, "Miss, it's raining hard, why don't you not go out and go another day."

"Nothing." Jiang Li was tying her cloak and said, "We are all in the carriage. We can't go far."

Tong'er had no choice but to give up.

Jiang Li agreed with them that she would go out for a walk today and buy some gifts for the Ye family. After Mrs. Jiang knew about this, she asked Zhenzhu to bring some money so that Jiang Li could choose by herself.

I didn't expect it to rain today. Tong'er thought there was no need to rush. Anyway, Ye Mingxuan would stay in Yanjing City for about ten days, so it would be nice to go there on a good day. Who knew that Jiang Li, who was always easy to talk to, would be so stubborn today.

Jiang Li tied her cloak and stood in front of the mirror.

Miss Jiang Er's appearance was not as outstanding as Xue Fangfei's. But her foundation was not bad, she was too beautiful. These days, Jiang Li was raised in the Jiang family, and she ate much better than in Qingcheng Mountain. The haggardness and weakness were completely gone, and at first glance, she looked fresh and pretty.

"The girl is so pretty." Bai Xue stood aside and admired sincerely, "She looks like she walked out of a painting."

"That's right," Tong'er nodded. "When we were in Qingcheng Mountain, we could only wear black clothes, which didn't show our girl's beauty. Now, looking at Yanjing City, I think no one is as beautiful as our girl. If the nuns in Qingcheng Mountain saw this, they would definitely not recognize her."

Jiang Li looked at herself in the mirror. The expression on her face was familiar, but her facial features were so unfamiliar. When she was in front of Xue Zhao, would Xue Zhao still recognize her?

Father...I don't recognize him anymore.

A wave of sadness surged in her heart. She turned her head away from the mirror and said, "Let's go."

"Okay." Tong'er pushed the door open.

……

Because of the rain, not many people were walking outside in Yanjing City. Even the vendors selling candied haws on the street were not seen today. Jiang Li and Tong'er Baixue could only go shopping in jewelry or cloth shops. The vendors who usually came with their poles to sell small items probably didn't go out today.

However, I heard that the Ye family has three sons but not many grandchildren. Apart from Ye Shijie, only Ye Mingxuan has a son and a daughter. The fourth son of the Ye family is not married yet, let alone having children. So it is not that difficult to buy things for the younger generations.

Soon, Jiang Li also picked out the gifts they wanted to give.

Returning gifts is not a simple matter. Many mothers in wealthy families even teach their daughters how to return gifts. If a daughter marries an official in the future, her husband will have to return gifts when entertaining her. If she returns an expensive gift, it will seem serious, but if she returns an insignificant gift, it will seem disrespectful. It is really difficult.

However, when Jiang Li started socializing with Shen Yurong, she had already learned how to return gifts. In Tongxiang, Xue Huaiyuan was honest and would not accept gifts. But in Yanjing City, it was different. Sometimes the return gift could not be too simple. If the return gift was too expensive, Shen's mother would complain, so she had to secretly take out part of her dowry to supplement it.

I think Shen Yurong doesn't have this trouble now. Princess Yongning has no shortage of money, so no matter how expensive the gifts are, she won't be stretched to the limit. Naturally, she doesn't have to sacrifice her own dowry.

Jiang Li prepared different things for her three uncles, two aunts, Old Madam Ye, and her cousins. For this purpose, she also asked Ye Mingxuan about their personalities and was satisfied with the things she bought.

In the afternoon, they ate something at a restaurant in Yanjing City. Seeing that the rain had not stopped, Tong'er said, "It seems that the rain will not stop for a while. Girl, let's go back after dinner. There is nothing fun outside."

Jiang Li thought for a moment and said, "Let's not go back. Let's go to Yanyu Pavilion."

"Yanyu Pavilion?" Tong'er and Baixue were both surprised and asked, "What is that place?"

"It's a pavilion near Bailu Bay. I heard that it's very beautiful to watch the rain there. I've been back to Yanjing City for so long, but I've only heard of it and never been there. It's raining well today, so we can have a good look at it. It's better to do it today than to wait for a day. Let's go there later."

Bai Xue always listened to Jiang Li and had no objection. Seeing this, Tong Er had no choice but to agree, but she looked at Jiang Li and said, "Where did you hear about the Misty Rain Pavilion? I have never heard of it."

"I just happened to hear others talking about it." Jiang Li said calmly, "It's not a famous place, so few people know about it. Isn't there a saying that the most beautiful scenery is often hidden in deserted corners?"

Tong'er nodded thoughtfully.

Jiang Li drank the tea in front of her, her thoughts flying far away.

At that time, she had a miscarriage due to her birthday, and was seriously injured and ill in bed. When she learned of Xue Zhao's death, she struggled to get up. But Tongxiang was too far away from Yanjing, and she couldn't drag her seriously ill body to transport Xue Zhao's body back to Tongxiang. Shen's mother would not allow her to do so. She was regarded as a disgrace to the Shen family and could not go out to embarrass herself. Even collecting Xue Zhao's body was Shen Yurong's tolerance.

Shen Yurong told her that Yanyu Pavilion had beautiful scenery and was rarely visited by people. It was a good place. It would be good if Xue Zhao was buried there. If there was a chance in the future, she would let Xue Zhao return to his hometown after she got better.

At that time, she was extremely worried, vulnerable and helpless, and she was filled with gratitude towards Shen Yurong. It was really great that Shen Yurong still thought of her for the sake of their past friendship even though she had made a fool of herself.

But later, he found out that Shen Yurong had caused his own troubles. How could Shen Yurong not know that Princess Yongning had colluded with corrupt officials to kill Xue Zhao? They were the murderers, but they still pretended to be sad and sympathetic, which was disgusting.

Thinking of this, Jiang Li frowned, thinking that no matter how beautiful the Misty Rain Pavilion was, it was Shen Yurong's idea, and Princess Yongning might have had some thoughts. She didn't want to be manipulated by these two people after Xue Zhao's death. There was nothing she could do now, but one day, the sooner the better, she would take Xue Zhao away from the Misty Rain Pavilion and leave Yanjing City.

Jiang Li put down the teacup and said, "I'm done eating, let's go."

Tong'er and Baixue vaguely felt that Jiang Li seemed a little depressed. They looked at each other, both confused, and had to follow Jiang Li away.

Bailu Bay is located by a lake near the city of Yanjing. In the previous dynasty, a scholar lived there and raised a group of egrets. Later, the scholar died and the egrets flew away, but the name Bailu Bay was retained. Yanyu Pavilion is located not far from Bailu Bay.

Xue Zhao's tomb is under a peach tree behind Yanyu Pavilion.

Tong'er and Baixue came to Bailu Bay for the first time. They saw the turquoise water of the lake. The Misty Rain Pavilion had six floors. Standing on the attic and looking down, the entire pavilion was surrounded by misty rain. The lake was covered with fine ripples, and the water and sky met, forming a unique color.

Tong'er was very excited and said, "It's really beautiful. Girl, the mist and rain in the Misty Rain Pavilion is really beautiful!"

Jiang Li smiled and said, "You guys sit down for a while, I'll go take a look at the peach tree."

Bai Xue said quickly, "I will go too."

"No need." Jiang Li stopped her, "There's no one here, I'll go check it out and come back soon. It's nothing."

Without saying anything, she left the attic first.

Not far away, the peach tree stood quietly as it had in the past. The flowers on the tree had already faded completely, and without the embellishment of peach blossoms, the tree looked desolate and bleak.

Beneath the tree, there sits a small grave.

Jiang Li stood in front of the grave holding an umbrella.

Xue Zhao was killed by bandits on his way to the capital, and his body was thrown into the river. That's what people said at the time, so when she saw Xue Zhao for the last time, Xue Zhao had already changed beyond recognition. If it weren't for the birthmark on Xue Zhao's body, Jiang Li couldn't believe that the high-spirited young man was just such a cold corpse.

He had been tortured before his death, and the knife marks on his body still frightened Jiang Li when she thought about it now. She had no doubts at that time, until she died, she knew that everything was caused by Princess Yongning. So those knife marks were not caused by robbers, but by Princess Yongning's people.

I thought I had found an official who could help me, but I didn't expect to fall into another trap. Jiang Li couldn't imagine the despair and grief in Xue Zhao's heart at the last moment.

After his death, there was only this deserted place. When it rained, there was no place to hide from the rain.

Jiang Li gently put down her umbrella and covered the grave. It seemed that this could shield Xue Zhao from the wind and rain. It seemed that the grave in front of her was a young man who was smiling happily.

She closed her eyes and silently said in her heart: "A Zhao, my sister is here."

"Azhao, I'm my elder sister. You probably don't recognize me anymore. I'm now the daughter of the Jiang family, the daughter of Jiang Yuanbai. You must also think it's incredible. I was the same way back then, but now that I think about it, it may not be God who gave me the gift another chance."

"In ten days or so, I will go to Xiangyang. I will try to find out what happened to my father. It was I who caused you to be implicated. I know who killed you, and I know who to look for Revenge. Shen Yurong is now promoted step by step, and Princess Yongning has a king behind her, so I have nothing to do for the time being, but it is not helpless."

"In the name of Miss Jiang Er, I will find a way to redress the grievances of the Xue family, uncover the true colors of Princess Yongning and Shen Yurong, and redress your injustice."

"Ah Zhao," she said silently in her heart: "Forgive me for taking so long to come and see you. You must be blaming your sister. But I have never forgotten the blood feud of the Xue family. Please be patient and watch me maintain it for you step by step." "Ah Zhao... I'm sorry..."

She silently thought in her heart, as if she could see the young man wielding a sword and a gun again, looking at her with a silly smile. It was unknown how long it took before Jiang Li opened her eyes.

The rain seemed to have subsided, and the grave in front of her was still quiet. A red cardinal flew in from somewhere, squatted on a branch, and tilted its head to look at her. There were many water droplets on its feathers, so it flapped its wings violently to shake off the water droplets on its wings. It saw the umbrella that Jiang Li had placed on the grave, and immediately swooped down, stood on the grave, and chirped non-stop under the cover of the umbrella.

Jiang Li smiled slightly and whispered, "You heard it too."

She turned around and slowly walked towards Yanyu Pavilion.

When they returned to the Misty Rain Pavilion, Tong'er and Baixue were shocked to see her soaking wet. Tong'er asked, "Miss, where is your umbrella? How come your clothes are all wet?"

"I saw a red linnet getting wet in the rain. I felt sorry for it, so I used my umbrella to shade it for a while and then put it under the peach tree behind."

Tong'er heard this and said, "Miss, I know you have good intentions, but you can tell us that there are other umbrellas here and we can just take them. Why get yourself wet? What if you catch a cold?"

Jiang Li smiled apologetically and said, "I didn't think so much at the moment."

"The girl is good in every way," Bai Xue whispered, "but she's a little soft-hearted."

Soft-hearted? Jiang Li laughed inwardly.

Maybe, Xue Fangfei is soft-hearted, but Jiang Li is now as hard as iron.

……

In the Wangxian Tower in Yanjing City, Lu Ji was talking to Ji Heng.

Not long after, Wen Ji, who was beside Ji Heng, came over.

Wen Ji showed some hesitation on his face: "Sir..."

Ji Heng glanced at his expression and said, "Speak."

"Yes." Wen Ji replied immediately: "Ms. Jiang Er went out with two maids today. She first bought some things in various shops in Yanjing City. After dinner, she went to the Misty Rain Pavilion in Bailu Bay."

"Yanyu Pavilion?" Ji Heng raised her eyelids and laughed, "She knows all the remote places."

"What's going on?" Wen Ji on the side noticed something, stroked his beard, and said, "Did the master send someone to monitor Miss Jiang Er?"

Ji Heng waved his hand: "It's not surveillance, her behavior is strange, it's hard not to notice her." He casually asked Wen Ji: "What did she go to Yanyu Pavilion to see?"

"I heard that Yanyu Pavilion is the most beautiful place to see Yanyu." Lu Ji suddenly remembered something, and said with a smile, "Could it be that Miss Jiang went to see Yanyu, she is really elegant."

"No." Wen Ji said, "Miss Jiang sat in the Misty Rain Pavilion with two maids first, and then went to the peach tree behind the Misty Rain Pavilion. There was a grave there, and Miss Jiang left her umbrella on the grave to protect it from the rain."

Ji Heng and Lu Ji paused at the same time.

Ji Heng raised his eyebrows, his beautiful eyes showing some interest. He asked, "Oh? Is she going to worship?"

"She didn't bring any offerings, but Miss Jiang looked like she knew the deceased. She stood in front of the grave for a long time and looked very sad." Wen Ji's answer was very detailed.

"That's worship." Ji Heng said.

Lu Ji asked: "Why do you say that, sir?"

"This Second Miss Jiang has always been very careful in her work and is always good at covering up for herself." Ji Heng said with a half-smile, "She went out to buy things today and went to the Misty Rain Pavilion to watch the misty rain. These were all pretexts. Her purpose was to stand in front of this tomb for a while."

"The people in the grave must be the ones she values ​​most." He came to a conclusion on his own.

If Jiang Li did things perfectly and covered up everything very carefully, Ji Heng could easily get to the heart of things and see the truth at a glance.

"Who is in the tomb?" Ji Heng asked.

"It was a man named Xue Zhao." Wen Ji replied, "He was robbed and killed by bandits a year ago and his body was dumped in the river. However, our people have found out that there may be something behind it. Xue Zhao's death may have something to do with the current Jingzhao Yin."

There are always places that cannot be illuminated in the bright and clear world. In the emperor's city of Yanjing, many people die inexplicably every day. It's okay for those who have a family, but those who have no power and influence are mostly like grass entering the sea, without even a wave, they sink and are never seen again.

"Who is this Xue Zhao?" Lu Ji was puzzled. "I have never heard of such a name among the officials in Yanjing City."

Wen Ji paused, then said, "To be honest, Xue Zhao is not from Yanjing City. He is the current Zhongshu Shelang and the brother-in-law of Shen Yurong. Shen Yurong's late wife is Xue Fangfei's younger brother. When Xue Fangfei got into trouble, Xue Zhao probably heard about it and went to Beijing. He didn't expect to lose his life right after arriving in Beijing."

"Xue Fangfei's brother?" Lu Ji was startled, then shook his head: "I didn't expect that."

Speaking of Xue Fangfei, everyone in Yanjing City knew her. But few people knew about Xue Fangfei's brother. It seemed that the matter was handled quickly and did not cause any disturbance.

"But what is the relationship between Xue Zhao and Jiang Li?" Lu Ji was even more confused. "The Xue family and the Jiang family are not related at all. Jiang Li stayed in Qingcheng Mountain for eight years. During this period, she should not have had any relationship with Xue Zhao. Moreover, Xue Zhao died last year, and Jiang Li only came back this year. He could not be someone Jiang Li met after she came back." He hesitated for a moment and asked, "Has Xue Zhao ever been to Yanjing? Or Qingcheng Mountain?"

Wen Ji shook his head: "Probably not. Xue Zhao grew up in Tongxiang, Xiangyang, and never left Tongxiang. The first time he came to Yanjing City was last year, and he died before he even met Xue Fangfei."

Lu Ji looked at Ji Heng and said, "This is strange."

How can two people who have nothing to do with each other have a relationship? According to Wen Ji, Jiang Li would be sad for mourning Xue Zhao. Wen Ji is not a person who exaggerates. When he said that Jiang Li looked a little sad, Jiang Li really was a little sad.

No matter how kind-hearted Miss Jiang is, she would not show a sad look for an unrelated person. Not to mention what Ji Heng said, Jiang Li went through such a long way today just to see Xue Zhao's grave. If they were not familiar with each other, would it be necessary?
But no matter how hard Lu Ji racked his brains, he couldn't think of any other reason.

"Perhaps..." Wen Ji pondered for a while and carefully proposed a guess: "This Xue Zhao and Miss Jiang Er had something in the past. Did Miss Jiang Er favor Xue Zhao?"

"Didn't you say that it's impossible for them to have met before?" Lu Ji asked, "Whether they have met or not, how can they show favor to each other?"

That’s true. Wen Ji stopped talking.

Ji Heng narrowed his eyes and suddenly asked, "Is Xue Zhao from Tongxiang, Xiangyang?"

Wen Ji: “Exactly.”

"Jiang Li's biological mother Ye Zhenzhen is from Xiangyang, and Xue Zhao is also from Xiangyang..." Ji Heng said, "There's no need to investigate the relationship between Jiang Li and Xue Zhao, start with the Xue family."

"The Xue family?" Lu Ji was puzzled. "Mrs. No. 1 Scholar Xue Fangfei, her father seems to be just a minor official, and her family is small and nothing special."

Xue Fangfei was the most beautiful woman in the capital at that time, but it was a pity. Some people said that if Xue Fangfei had a better family background, she would be more than qualified to be a princess with her appearance and talent, and it would be a great honor to enter the palace to be a queen. Unfortunately, her father was just a minor official, so she could only marry a scholar with a white body. Although Shen Yurong later won the first place in the imperial examination and became an official, because of this, some people would say that Xue Fangfei was not worthy of Shen Yurong.

Just imagine, if Xue Fangfei was the daughter of an official, as long as her official position was not too low, how could she be said to be unworthy?

Why would such an ordinary Xue family be worth paying special attention to? Lu Ji didn't understand. Even if Miss Jiang's behavior was suspicious and she had repeatedly ruined Ji Heng's plans, it was understandable that Ji Heng would pay attention to her, but he really couldn't think of any need to pay attention to the Xue family.

"Don't forget, Jiang Li is going back to Xiangyang with Ye Mingxuan. Don't you think it's strange?" Ji Heng smiled, but his eyes were very clear. He said, "With the character of the second Miss Jiang, how could she abandon the city where the Jiang family won and suddenly move to another place? It's nothing more important than Xiangyang has more important things."

"Didn't she go back to reconcile with the Ye family?" Lu Ji asked.

"Miss Jiang Er doesn't seem like a person of loyalty and righteousness." Ji Heng said lazily, "I didn't understand why she wanted to go back to Xiangyang before, but now I understand."

"She has a relationship with the Xue family, or in other words, the Xue family has what she wants."

After hearing this, Wen Ji and Lu Ji were both confused and didn't know what to say. If someone else said this, they would just say that this person was talking nonsense. What kind of relationship could Miss Jiang have with the Xue family from a small county in Xiangyang? But Ji Heng never spoke nonsense. He rarely admitted the facts he had determined.

"Wen Ji, you should also look into the cause of Xue Zhao's death." Ji Heng played with her folding fan and said, "Perhaps our Second Miss Jiang knows a lot about the strange cause of Xue Zhao's death."

Lu Ji was shocked: "She even knows this?"

"She has a lot of secrets, one or two won't make a difference." Ji Heng brushed off the wrinkles on her robe without much concern, and said calmly, "It just so happens that I also have to go back to Xiangyang, so it seems that I won't be lonely on this journey."

　Duke: This Second Miss Jiang has strong anti-reconnaissance capabilities [smile]

　　It's Monday again, how happy/(ㄒoㄒ)/~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)