The Concubine's Daughter Travels Through Time and Space and Takes the Road of Confrontation

Chapter 198 Jiang Nu

Ah Da followed him outside, completely bewildered, muttering to himself, "Is this true or not?"

Liuzi threw the purse handed by the master back into his arms and said, "Why ask so many questions? Just listen to what the master says."

At the tea stall on the corner of the street, several old men were drinking tea and chatting.

"Have you heard that the prince's consort has been found?"

"God bless you, can you come back after falling into the Nu River?"

"Of course not. Otherwise, how can she be called the Crown Prince's Consort? She is much more blessed than us peasants."

No one noticed the black-faced man in the corner. He threw down a few copper coins and turned around to disappear around the corner.

In a wild ravine somewhere in the sacred Mount Gongga along the Nujiang River, three small houses are located on the flat ground in the ravine.

The house was surrounded by a wooden fence, with a small door on the west side for people to enter and exit.

In the southwest corner not far from the house, there is a barn. Strangely, the barn is filled with young bamboos cut from the mountains, but there is no sign of any livestock.

There are seven or eight graves of different sizes on the hillside behind the house. Some of them look newer with flat stones stacked in front of them, while others look very old with weeds growing around them.

An old woman wearing a navy blue coarse linen dress and a scarf on her head was waving a scimitar in her hand, and the harvested weeds were neatly piled aside by her.

Seeing that it was almost dark, the old man put the cut weeds into a bamboo basket, carried the basket back to the yard.

A low cough came from the house. The old man calmly put down his backpack, brought out a bowl of medicine from the side room, and went into the north room.

"Baby, drink the medicine quickly."

On a small bamboo bed lay a young girl with a cloth wrapped around her head. She was wearing a linen smock, and through the half-open collar one could see a thick layer of cloth wrapped around her shoulders.

She stared blankly at the old man in front of her, "Grandma, you're back." After finishing a bowl of medicine, the girl's pretty eyebrows frowned, "Grandma, this is really too bitter."

"Bitter medicine tastes good, but how can you get better if you don't take it? What's wrong with you, kid?" the old man complained. "When I saw you, you were soaking in the Nujiang River, not even breathing. I've dug the pit, and you're breathing again. Look, God won't take you. You should cherish your blessings."

The girl raised her hands and looked at it blankly. "Grandma, I can't remember who I am?"

The old man sighed, "It's normal that you can't remember. The Nu River is very strong. You can stay here. If you can't remember, you can stay here with me for the rest of your life. It's comfortable."

The girl nodded and shook her head, "Grandma, I'm hungry."

"Okay, I'll get you some food, please wait a moment." The old man hurriedly picked up the medicine bowl and left.

After a while, he came back with a thick stack of wild vegetable pancakes and a big bowl of wild vegetable soup.

The girl ate four of them in one go. The wild vegetable soup was not enough so the old man went to get another bowl. "Oh, you are so lucky! I have lived in the mountains for so many years, and this is the first time I have seen anyone who can eat more than me."

The girl swallowed the biscuit in her mouth and said, "I'm just hungry. When I get better, I'll go to the mountains to hunt for grandma."

The old man smiled and said, "You are a delicate kid, how can you hunt? I am in good health and can afford to support you."

After realizing she was six-tenths full, the girl refused to eat any more. "Grandma, I don't know what my name is. Please give me a name."

The old man frowned and said, "It's time to give you a name. Since Nujiang doesn't want you to be grateful to him, how about calling you Jiangnu?"

Seeing the expectation in the old man's eyes, the girl smiled and said, "Just call me Jiang Nu. It sounds nice."

The old man laughed a few times and said, "You should sleep a little longer. The grass on the back hill has not been cut yet."

Seeing the old man's back disappear at the door, the girl with a new name endured the discomfort in her body, slowly sat up straight, and looked at the sewing basket opposite.

There was a white undershirt in the sewing basket, and a red rabbit purse the size of a palm was placed next to the clothes.

The girl opened her purse and saw a dagger only the length of a finger inside, with some loose silver coins beside the dagger.

The fabric of the inner garment feels very smooth and delicate, and is of great value.

She covered her head and sat back on the couch. The back of her head was aching. She lay down slowly and closed her eyes but could not fall asleep. As soon as she closed her eyes, she began to hear a "gurgling, gurgling" sound in her ears.

It has been more than a month since she regained consciousness, and this has been the case every day for this month.

What happened to me, and who am I?

On the mountain road leading from the capital to Nanyue, a train of horses galloped forward.

"Master, we'll reach Dali in half a month." Biyu held Huihui in her arms and comforted him, "Nanyue is a thousand miles away from Kyoto. We can't get there. I heard the princess has been found."

Qin Dashou's face was gloomy. "Find my sister and beat up Zhou Boli."

Hong Fei said softly, "Master, Bi Yu is right. The princess is blessed with a long life and will surely be fine."

Qin Dashou lowered his eyes and touched Huihui's head. "Huihui, your sister is missing. Go find her."

Huihui raised his head and said "Oh--" as if responding to his master's words.

The wheels roll forward and time passes in a flash.

Qin Dashou held Huihui's hand and stood by the repaired suspension bridge, silently listening to the people around him talk about what happened that day.

"The princess, dressed in a red dress, fell from the middle of the bridge and vanished in the blink of an eye." The village head's wife still shudders as she recalls the events of a few months ago. "The young prince took many people captive, and one young man was so frightened that he jumped from the bridge."

Hong Fei took out her purse and said with a smile, "Thank you, Auntie."

"Let's go to the Nanyue Palace."

At the end of the three-month period, the white cloth around the necks of the stone lions at the gate of the Nanyue Palace was removed. The shops in Dali City returned to their former prosperity. In the evenings, glamorously dressed girls lined the brothels, waving their handkerchiefs to solicit passersby.

At a corner of the street, a few people sitting in a car gazed from afar at the brightly lit Nanyue Palace, where a large number of guests flocked in. The guests were all ladies and wives in gorgeous attire, and equally gorgeously dressed young ladies.

Biyu whispered, "Master, it's getting late. Why don't we go tomorrow?"

Qin Dashou shook her head stubbornly, her lips tight, "Let's go now, I want to see him." She wanted to ask Zhou Boli what was going on!

The concierge glanced at the visitor with an arrogant look, "Which family are you from?"

Hong Fei was not annoyed, and continued to smile, "My master and the prince of Nanyue are old acquaintances. Please let me know."

The doorman said impatiently, "You have no evidence, only a visiting card. How can I ask for permission? People like your master who claim to be old acquaintances and want to see the prince, I don't know how many people are turned away every day."

As he finished speaking, a bulging purse was stuffed into his hand. "Brother, my master is indeed an old acquaintance of the prince in Kyoto."

After pinching the thing in his hand, the servant's expression became better. "Well, wait here. I'll go ask for you."