vrcanaries Chapter 460 Gao Qiyuan (Bonus Chapter)
Chapter 460 Gao Qiyuan (Bonus Chapter)
The next day.
The Duke of Zheng and his family were escorted by officials to the residence of the Prefect of Jingzhao. They looked disheveled, and their former arrogance had vanished without a trace.
The streets were packed with onlookers.
"Is this the Duke of Zheng? I heard he seized fertile land and even killed people!"
"He deserved it! He deserved it! Well done, Prince Xie!"
Cheers and applause rose and fell from the crowd.
At the back of the crowd, Xie Jingchun and Chu Yi stood side by side, dressed in casual clothes, watching from afar the spectacle of the downfall of powerful figures in the imperial court.
Chu Yi held a string of candied hawthorns in his hand and took a bite casually. "I heard that this time, Prince Xie saved the couple who were bullied by the Duke of Zheng. Are they living in your Marquis's residence now?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Jingchun's heart tightened, and he almost blurted out his agreement.
He opened his mouth but immediately bit his tongue, swallowing the words back down.
His eyes darted away slightly, but he quickly regained his composure and nodded, saying, "Yes, he's temporarily staying at our residence. He hasn't fully recovered yet."
Xie Jingchun turned to look at the gate of the Jingzhao Yin Mansion and breathed a sigh of relief.
The father's background was extraordinary.
Even with your most trusted friends, you shouldn't easily reveal secrets.
He gritted his teeth, his tone as relaxed as ever, "Let's go, we've seen enough of the excitement."
Chu Yi glanced sideways at Xie Jingchun's awkward reaction, his eyes narrowing slightly.
He didn't ask any more questions, but a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips.
Xie Yanli already knows about his background.
Then he glanced at Xie Jingchun's unnatural sideways posture and couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
They've finally become a bit smarter and know what they can and cannot say.
As the wind blew across the street corner, the noise of the people gradually faded away.
Chu Yi's eyes grew cold. He casually handed the remaining candied hawthorns to a child by the roadside, then turned and walked away slowly.
Next, he needed to investigate Meng Ze's true identity.
The Marquis's Residence, Qinglan Courtyard.
Inside, Meng Ze sat alone at his desk, with old volumes of documents and copied notes spread out in front of him, all handwritten by Meng Chen.
He lowered his head and turned the pages slowly, examining each page very carefully.
Gao Qiyuan, the eldest son of the late emperor, was exceptionally talented. He entered the court at the age of seventeen to attend to state affairs and at the age of eighteen, he joined the army to quell the rebellion in Nanling.
At the age of nineteen, he entered the Confucian Temple to preside over the lectures at the Imperial Academy, and his essay "On the Way of a Wise Minister" spread among the students.
He married at the age of twenty, taking the place of Cheng Nianchu, the eldest daughter of the Cheng family. The wedding was a grand affair.
He was appointed to an inspection tour at the age of twenty-four, but was unexpectedly assassinated.
Meng Ze read through the pages, but the name "Gao Qiyuan" between the lines was completely unfamiliar to him.
Gao Qiyuan.
He silently recited it once, then looked up at the courtyard, his eyes showing no emotion.
Still blank.
Footsteps sounded outside the door, and Qin Jiuwei and Xie Yanli pushed the door open and entered, followed by Physician Lin.
The doctor from the prefectural hospital examined them yesterday, but they are still not entirely reassured.
More concerned about his recovery of his memory, they invited Physician Lin again today.
Upon hearing the sound, Meng Ze closed the scroll and raised his eyes indifferently.
Physician Lin bowed, and Meng Ze nodded and gestured, "Please."
Physician Lin placed his medicine box aside, took out a pulse pillow from his sleeve, closed his eyes and examined the wound for a moment, then checked the bandage on his shoulder and carefully changed the dressing.
"The pulse is stable, and the breathing is not erratic." Physician Lin put down his hand and breathed a sigh of relief. "Although the sword wound is not shallow, thanks to timely care, the stagnant toxins have entered the meridians. After a few more days of rest, it will be fine."
Meng Ze raised his hand to straighten his cuffs and said in a low voice, "Then when can I get out of bed and move around?"
"It is fine today, but avoid running around and overworking. Proceed gradually, do not get angry, and do not overthink."
Meng Ze nodded slightly, and after a moment asked, "Imperial Physician, I have suffered from amnesia for many years. Is there any way to help me remember?"
Physician Lin took his pulse again and asked him a few more questions, but finally shook his head.
"My medical skills are limited. Such long-term amnesia is mostly caused by old injuries damaging the brain, coupled with emotional trauma. Unless there is an extremely strong emotional impact or some extremely crucial trigger, I'm afraid it will be difficult to recover."
"Even medicine is of no use?"
"It's no use." Physician Lin gave a bitter smile. "I can prescribe some remedies to nourish the spirit and calm the mind, but that can only strengthen the body and regulate the spirit, helping to soothe the mind."
Meng Ze lowered his eyes and didn't speak again.
Qin Jiuwei and Xie Yanli exchanged a glance, both looking disappointed and sad.
In the afternoon, the warm sunlight streamed into Qinglan Courtyard.
Meng Ze was the only one left in the room, sitting on the soft couch with a bowl of unfinished warm medicine beside him.
Suddenly, a series of small footsteps came from the doorway, along with two soft "thump-thump" sounds.
Meng Ze looked up and saw the curtain being gently parted by a small hand, revealing Xie Jue's fair and tender face.
He had just stepped one foot inside when he immediately stepped back, as if mustering a great deal of courage, before tentatively asking, "Um, Master Liu, are you... are you still in pain?"
"Um... should I call you Master Liu or Master Meng?"
"It doesn't hurt anymore." Meng Ze looked at that familiar little face and smiled, "You can call me whatever you want."
Xie Jue looked down at his toes, then at the room, glanced around, and cautiously walked in.
He was wearing a moon-white robe, with a picture book tucked into his arms. He approached the bed slowly, taking one step at a time.
"You...you're really not a bad person, are you?" Xie Jue asked softly, her eyes wide.
"Do I look like a bad guy?" he asked rhetorically.
Xie Jue tilted her head and carefully examined his angular but scarred face, muttering to herself, "At first... he looked a little bit like him."
After saying that, he quickly added, "But it's not like that now."
Finally, he mustered up the courage to sit next to Meng Ze, looked up and asked, "Will you still teach me math?"
Looking at the bright, expectant look in his eyes, Meng Ze said, "If you're willing, I'll naturally teach you."
Xie Jue immediately beamed with joy, took the picture book out of his pocket, and carefully placed it on the table.
"I drew this, do you think it looks like you!"
On the drawing paper, the handwriting was childish, yet a face was drawn with care.
With a pointed chin, big eyes, and a thoughtfully drawn exaggerated "scar".
Looking at the crooked drawing, Meng Ze laughed out loud for the first time.
It wasn't a polite, shallow smile, but a warm, bittersweet smile that came from the bottom of my heart.
“This painting,” he said, “is better than mine.”
Upon hearing this, Xie Jue immediately shook her head, "No, no! You're beautiful too!"
Meng Ze was stunned for a moment, then looked down at his bright, sparkling eyes, which were half serious and half childlike innocence. Suddenly, something touched his heart.
"Really!" Xie Jue added earnestly, "Your smile is the most beautiful, even more beautiful than my paintings!"
After he finished speaking, he leaned forward again and lowered his voice as if he were sharing a big secret, "I used to be a little afraid of you because you never smiled and your face was very serious. But now that you smile, I'm not afraid at all."
Meng Ze stared at him blankly for a long time before slowly curving his lips into a smile.
The smile was no longer bitter, but rather warm.
He reached out and gently placed his hand on Xie Jue's head, his voice low and gentle: "From now on, I will smile more."