I became the God Brother of the Regent King after Transmigration!-Chapter 59: The Results of Investigating Yuan
"Old Madam, the Zhou Family has arrived." Just as the evening meal was cleared, a young servant ran in to report.
Old Madam glanced at the time and said curiously, "At this hour, what are they here for?"
The Zhou Family was Madam Zhou’s maternal family, and due to their merchant status, apart from sending money to Zhou Wanqing, they typically had little interaction with the Marquis Mansion.
Madam Zhou hurried out to greet them and found that the person leading them was Steward Sun of the Zhou Family.
Steward Sun was a trusted confidant of the Zhou Family Head and was in his prime before Madam Zhou got married.
The two hadn’t seen each other in several years, and now Steward Sun’s temples were gray, his body soaked, appearing rather disheveled.
Upon seeing Madam Zhou, Steward Sun quickly bowed in greeting, "I... I pay my respects to the Marchioness and to Old Madam Gu."
Old Madam Gu, supported by the servants, walked out, followed by Gu Lan, who saw tears welling up in Madam Zhou’s eyes.
It was late, and the flooding had suddenly dropped the temperature in the Capital City. Wearing a thin robe was already quite chilly, so Zijin quickly draped a silver-white cloak over Gu Lan.
The young man’s pale cheeks flushed with a warm red; his slightly thin, handsome face was hidden in the cloak’s shadow, with strands of black hair escaping the edge of his hairband, making his red lips and white teeth appear even more striking, elegant, and graceful.
Steward Sun immediately recognized Gu Lan’s identity, his spirits lifted, excitedly greeting Young Master Gu, then handed her a carved white jade brocade box.
"Young Master, this is a gift for you from the Family Head."
The Zhou Family Head, who was Zhou Wanqing’s father, was also Gu Lan’s grandfather.
Unexpectedly, someone was more enthusiastic than the Dingyuan Marquis Mansion.
Gu Lan accepted the brocade box, smiled at the shivering Steward Sun, then took off Zipei’s clothes and tossed them to him.
Steward Sun was moved to tears.
Zipei cried from the cold.
"I report to Old Madam, Marchioness; the Family Head speculated that in such a disaster, the Marquis Mansion would definitely provide porridge to the people. Thus, he instructed me to mobilize grain from nearby storage overnight to be delivered promptly. The account is here; please, Old Madam and Marchioness, have a look."
Steward Sun sneezed and then explained the situation in detail, presenting a booklet.
Old Madam Gu was stunned, and after a long pause, her deliberately stern face revealed a joyful smile.
She patted Gu Lan’s head affectionately and looked at Madam Zhou with deep satisfaction.
She had once been dissatisfied with her daughter-in-law’s familial background, but the Zhou Family had proven that even a merchant family could possess a clear sense of right and wrong in such moments.
Gu Lan opened the brocade box, finding inside a pair of exquisite gloves studded with rivets and a pair of dark gold wrist guards. The wrist guards were small and lightweight, adorned with intricately carved bamboo motifs, indicating they were crafted with extremely meticulous workmanship.
She put on the gloves, clenching her fists; they fit perfectly.
This was the glove design Gu Lan had described to Zijin last month, which Zijin had conveyed to Madam Zhou. She hadn’t expected the Zhou Family to produce them so quickly, and so beautifully.
Her eyebrows curved with satisfaction.
Second Young Master Gu stepped outside, looked at the row of carts carrying grain, and asked in shock, "Did you come overnight?"
"The Family Head said that arriving in the Capital City one moment earlier might allow the people to have an earlier meal."
Second Young Master Gu bowed again, first to Steward Sun and then to his sister-in-law.
Gu Lan watched this scene, clenching her fists, an indescribable sense of pride surging within her heart.
She stepped out of the Marquis Mansion gates and raised her eyes, seeing the Zhou Family servants who transported the grain, each covered in mud and exhaustion. The green horses pulling the carts were foaming at the mouth, panting heavily, indicating how urgently they had rushed.
They galloped day and night to deliver the grain; upon noticing the gaze of Young Master Gu, they each held themselves upright with pride, showing expressions of determination.
Before Gu Lan’s eyes appeared the face of the little eunuch in the Imperial Palace who thanked her, the appearance of Rong Miaoyan declaring herself as the Princess of Dayan, and the faces of Qin Zhenghu and those officials and craftsmen of the Ministry of Industry...
They are not characters in books,
but real people.
*
At this time, in a corner of the Capital City, Rong Heng slipped out of the Imperial Palace once more.
The last time was to catch a glimpse of Prince Rui, but this time it was to save a life.
Jiu remained in the palace, disguising himself as Rong Heng, continuing to be watched by Zhang Fu.
Rong Heng raided several pharmacies, collecting many herbs as the Ghost Doctor, only leaving when satisfied.
It was only at this time that he felt he was a qualified number one Divine Doctor of the world.
In the past, the previous Ghost Doctor was outwardly designated by the Emperor, enjoying the salary of an Imperial Physician. He could travel the world under the guise of seeking immortality and would demand exorbitant prices for saving even a single life, truly living up to the Ghost Doctor’s name.
But for himself, he couldn’t even afford to buy medicine.
After a great disaster, there is always an epidemic. After the flood in the Capital City, an epidemic prevention effort is indispensable.
Having prepared the medicinal ingredients, Rong Heng began to investigate the water sources in the Capital City one by one.
As long as the water sources remain clean, everything in the city will be fine.
As he was thinking, a grey shadow appeared behind him.
Rong Heng put away the Crow Order in his hand, having predicted the appearance of the grey shadow, and handed over the prepared medicine, instructing, "Spread these medicines and this prescription, no need for secrecy. Especially make sure the people of Magpie Workshop disperse, be cautious, and prevent an epidemic from occurring."
"Yes, I will inform the Market Master to pay attention to this matter."
Rong Heng nodded and was about to continue his investigation.
The grey shadow recalled something and opened his mouth in a naïve manner:
"Master, you previously instructed Lin He to find someone named Yuan in Zhongcui Palace. Lin He asked me to tell you that there are thirteen guards with ’Yuan’ in their names in the palace, and two eunuchs. Even after excluding those of shorter stature, seven remain, and he’s not certain who exactly is the guard you are looking for..."
Rong Heng looked at the grey shadow, with a hint of disdain in his eyes: "Lin He is stupid, and you are stupid too."
Grey shadow: ....
Rong Heng said, "From these seven, exclude those who were on duty the night Consort Qian’s incident happened, then pick those who were absent for several days thereafter."
He remembered that person being trapped in the auspicious jar by Gu Lan’s design, seemed to have gotten injured, and was eventually caught by Consort Qian’s people—if Yuan were an ordinary guard, he would have to rest for a few days.
The grey shadow pondered for a while, then finally replied, "In that case, there are two who match A Yuan.
One is Zhen Yuan, a rotating guard at Qianyuan Hall. Another is Wei Chengyuan, a guard at the Wenyuan Pavilion."
"Crash—!"
A sound of falling came from the corner.
The grey shadow instantly hid, while Rong Heng looked over with a deep gaze.
Only to see a little girl, around six or seven years old, stepping on the puddle, with big watery eyes timidly looking at Rong Heng.
Female, alive.
In an instant, Rong Heng’s face became cold as an iceberg.
The little girl’s clothing was ordinary. Her cheeks were flushed, her breath weak, clearly having a fever, yet she seemed spirited.
Who knows where the child came from.
The little girl looked up, seeing Rong Heng’s handsome young face, she forgot what she had just heard, opened her eyes wide, and shyly yet familiarly began to introduce herself:
"Brother, you look so good, even better than my brother! My name is Wei Lan, you can call me Nannan."
Rong Heng’s face was icy: "I’m not your brother."
The little girl started to cry, and upon realizing Rong Heng was still calmly looking at her, with no emotion in his eyes,
She tilted her head and fainted.
Rong Heng let out a cold snort, he’s not someone who can be easily swayed by a child’s compliment or tears.
The grey shadow hiding in the corner saw that the eavesdropper was just a child, awkwardly came out and asked, "Master, should we save her?"
Rong Heng glanced disdainfully at the fainted little girl, initially intending to say it wasn’t his concern. Somehow, Gu Lan’s flushed, feverish face came to mind.
He tossed a pill to the grey shadow, saying, "When she wakes up, feed her the medicine and send her home."
With that, Rong Heng picked up his small bag full of medicinal ingredients, hesitating whether to make a detour to the vicinity of Dingyuan Marquis Mansion... to check the water source. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮
The grey shadow promptly said, "Master, I don’t know how to give medicine to a child."
Rong Heng irritably stopped, saying, "What do you know? You’re not only stupid but also incompetent?"
Grey shadow: ... Haven’t seen the master for days, why has he become so irritable.
Rong Heng didn’t want to engage with the grey shadow, but couldn’t just let a child on the roadside die. In the end, he had to wake the little girl and ask her where her home was.
Having just sent the little girl back home, the grey shadow hurriedly reappeared, holding a booklet.
"Master, I just went back to Magpie Workshop to get the records of those two men. Take a look and see who might be A Yuan." The grey shadow, not shy about the little girl beside them, said excitedly.
Rong Heng took the booklet, flipped through it casually, and suddenly frowned, "Wei Chengyuan has a younger sister named... Wei Lan."
He silently looked at the little girl who just had her fever reduced by medicine, showing an excited face upon hearing her name.
Not knowing who is A Yuan, maybe they should kill this child as well?
Wei Lan: ...
