Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

Chapter 254 Let's go back to Yangzhou directly

In the dark night, there is a road that winds into the distance. Six horses can ride side by side, and there are farmlands on both sides.

There is no village in front and no shop behind.

There was no other light except the lanterns and torches in the hands of the pedestrians.

Only the sky full of stars and a cold moon, bringing the gradually growing chill of the winter night, indifferently illuminate the world, especially those humans who love to make trouble.

In that huge puddle, Prince Beijing and Liao Changshi both rolled into mud monkeys.

The carriage was also stuck inside.

The driver and the guards were so frightened that they tried to help Prince Beijing out, while warning Cao Yu who was still in the carriage: "Master Cao, don't move!"

Unfortunately, before he could finish his words, Lord Cao had already rolled out of the carriage and fell into the puddle with a splash!

Now, except for the guards and the coachman, none of the other three were spared and were all covered in mud and looked messy.

Taking the towel handed to him by a guard, Cao Yu first spat out the dirty mud in his mouth and then wiped his eyes.

He asked anxiously, "Is the prince injured?"

Prince Beijing's cold and gloomy voice came: "No."

"Your Highness, I think the Qinpu Temple is quite nice. How about we stay there for the night?" Cao Yu asked.

"Yeah." Prince Beijing hummed.

Without saying anything else, the guards lifted the carriage out first, then turned silently and returned to the Qinpu Zen Temple by the Chen Lake, knocked on the door and asked for accommodation.

Seeing them dripping wet, the abbot was shocked and ordered the monks to boil hot water and get dry monk robes. He also told the kitchen to make ginger soup for them to keep warm.

Prince Beijing said nothing. He washed, ate, and went to sleep.

Seeing that there was no movement in his room, Cao Yu and Liao Changshi gathered together with worried faces to discuss countermeasures for the next day.

"Tomorrow we must first teach the monks that the pit has been there for a long time!" The first thing Cao Yu did was to tell Liao Changshi about the culprit.

Liao Changshi was stunned: "Could it be that Kuang Ru suspected that the pit was newly dug by Princess Lin?"

Cao Yu smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "I just said that you underestimated this woman before, but now it seems that I am the same.

"She left an hour ago. An hour later, we fell into that pit.

"She was driving two carriages. The pit was right in the middle of the road. How did she get through it?"

Liao Changshi was shocked: "Yes!"

Cao Yu sighed, "Isn't this just adding fuel to the fire? We are just afraid that the prince and her will have a bad fight and it will affect the prince's reputation.

“When they first said she was out of town the day before, I thought it might be a coincidence.

"But then she actually let a fangirl say such things to the prince. Wasn't she doing it on purpose?"

Liao Changshi frowned, twirled his beard, pursed his lips, and nodded slightly.

"She traveled from Yangcheng Lake to Chen Lake almost without stopping. She just bought a few worthless antique jars in the temple and left!

"Isn't she just trying to lure the prince to a place not too far from Suzhou and then keep him there?

"If the prince had not listened to my advice and returned to the temple, he would have returned to Suzhou City covered in mud.

"The city gate must be closed! If you want to go in, you must show the prince's seal, and you may even have to verify your identity."

As he spoke, Cao Yu smiled bitterly and pointed in the direction of Prince Beijing's room.

"Let the soldiers and civilians of Suzhou see the prince in that state?!

"What kind of reputation does the prince have in Jiangnan?!"

Liao Changshi frowned deeply.

Cao Yu sighed again and shook his head: "Maybe she wants the prince to give up.

“But the prince’s temper, after suffering such a great injustice, even if there was a possibility of letting go before;

"Now, I'm afraid it's going to be a fight to the death!"

Liao Changshi waved his hands hurriedly: "It would be serious if the fight lasted until death. She is just a little orphan, she is not qualified to let our prince sacrifice herself."

Cao Yu clapped his hands and said, "That's what I wanted to say!

“I don’t care if she is stupid or if someone is behind her instructing her or backing her up.

"She can die however she wants, but we can't get the prince involved!"

He raised his thumb and pointed in the direction of the road outside the door, "We can't let the prince react to that matter. It might be her doing!"

Liao Changshi nodded in agreement: "Not bad!"

"What do you think, if the horoscope doesn't match?" Cao Yu racked his brains.

Liao Changshi shook his head repeatedly: "We didn't get Princess Lin's horoscope.

"Neither the eldest or second master of the Jia family knows about it. And the old lady is determined not to give it to him."

Cao Yu frowned, hugged his knees and stared at the candle in deep thought.

Liao Changshi was misled by him and tried to ask: "Otherwise, is it said that the local atmosphere of Suzhou is not in harmony with the prince?"

Cao Yu turned his worry into joy: "This is good!"

The two of them made up a story, and finally said angrily: "This Princess Lin is simply the evil star in the prince's life! Why is she so difficult to deal with!"

What they didn't know was that Prince Beijing was standing outside the door in monk's robes and heard everything clearly.

After hearing the two people say goodbye to each other, Prince Beijing withdrew and walked away.

Walk slowly and leisurely in the temple.

Just as he was about to enter the main hall, the old abbot caught up with him and said with a smile, "So the prince is here."

"I can't lie down. I want to walk around." Prince Beijing curled the corners of his mouth.

The old abbot thought for a moment and said with a smile, "I just got a cake of good tea the other day, but it has not been opened yet.

"Everyone praises my tea-making skills. Why don't you let Your Majesty taste it?"

Prince Beijing could not refuse his kindness, so he had to follow him.

The two of them chatted about everything under the sun, and before they knew it, it was already the second watch.

When Prince Beijing came out from the abbot's room, he saw Liao Changshi and Cao Yu standing in the yard, shivering with cold and waiting eagerly.

Feeling a little warm in his heart, Prince Beijing said in a relaxed voice, "Go back to sleep. After breakfast tomorrow morning, we will go back to the boat and return to Yangzhou."

The two were stunned at first, then surprised and delighted: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Prince Beijing waved his hand listlessly and went back to his room. He lay on the bed in a daze for a while and then fell asleep.

Cao Yu stood outside his room and heard the snoring inside, and finally felt relieved.

He sighed, wiped the invisible sweat from his forehead, turned around and smiled at Liao Changshi: "Go back to your room! Go to sleep!"

Liao Changshi felt so sleepy that he couldn't open his eyes, so he quickly agreed and went back to his room to sleep.

Only Cao Yu.

Standing in the middle of the empty yard, looking up at the moon that was becoming increasingly clear and dazzling under the frost in the sky, I didn't feel like sleeping.

With my hands behind my back, I slowly walked out of the temple and went to the lakeside, where I looked at the clear water and bright moon, which was extremely pleasant.

Cao Yu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and indulged in the slightly sweet water vapor.

"Amitabha, is the donor's surname Cao?" An old voice sounded behind him.

Cao Yu was startled, turned around suddenly, frowned and looked, only to see a skinny old monk!

"Is the monk from the temple?" Cao Yu narrowed his eyes.

The old monk put his hands together and smiled: "I have been staying here for three days."

"The third day? This temple is not very famous, why did you come here to stay?" Cao Yu took two steps to the side without saying a word.

The old monk squinted his eyes at him, nodded with satisfaction, and said with a smile:

"Because three days ago, Princess Zhaoqing was in Suzhou City asking about Chen Hu."

Cao Yu's expression changed: "Who are you?"

"My old monk, Zhitong."