Yue'er was neither young nor old now.
The implication of a lone man and woman sharing a carriage in the dead of night would be detrimental to both their reputations.
Yu Mingyue looked at Cui Shi with a puzzled expression. "My relationship with Jia Yan Gege has always been good, Mother knows this. My studies have been progressing by leaps and bounds, and it's all thanks to Jia Yan Gege."
Cui Shi almost laughed at her daughter but managed to restrain herself. This girl was a block of wood, utterly oblivious to matters of the heart. Fine, she wouldn't ask anymore. She would deal with her properly later.
Xie Hanlin, usually such a proper child, was completely implicated by her daughter.
Xie Jia Yan had promised Yu Mingyue to escort Li Fu home. Cui Shi had also intended to go, but thinking that dawn would break in two hours, her going would only cause more trouble.
Tomorrow, she would have Qin Momo make a personal trip, and then give Ding Momo a month's leave to take good care of her son. This was all trouble caused by her daughter.
Shopkeeper Li’s mood instantly shifted from wanting to beat his useless son to "What happened to my good son?" upon seeing him carried in, still unconscious.
Although Shopkeeper Li was heartbroken for his son, as the head shopkeeper, he was also discerning. Lord Xie personally escorting his son back meant something major had happened.
"Shopkeeper Li, please don't worry. I will perform acupuncture to clear the blood stasis shortly, and he will wake up soon," Xie Jia Yan reassured him.
Shopkeeper Li nodded repeatedly. If Lord Xie said he could save him, he certainly could.
Xie Jia Yan had already protected his heart meridian. If the blood flow had reversed, even an immortal would have been unable to save him if there had been further delay.
Xie Jia Yan inserted several needles, and Li Fu vomited a large mass of black blood. About the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he woke up.
As soon as Li Fu woke, he grabbed Xie Jia Yan's arm, struggling to speak.
"You've just woken up. We can talk later," Xie Jia Yan comforted him.
His meridians had been reversed. Although he had vomited the clotted blood, he still needed proper recuperation.
Li Fu shook his head and said urgently, "Gunpowder... in the city."
"Gunpowder?" Although Li Fu's voice was low, Xie Jia Yan keenly caught the words.
Li Fu nodded. "Qian Ji... the fireworks shop, there are assassins."
He had discovered it by chance and followed them. Unexpectedly, he was discovered when he was leaving. He encountered people from the Li Jing Sect halfway, and they seemed to be watching Qian Ji as well.
Xie Jia Yan had a general idea. He left after Li Fu had drunk his medicine and his pulse had stabilized.
"Shopkeeper Li, just now..."
"My lord, rest assured, this old servant heard nothing," Shopkeeper Li bowed his hands, reassuring Xie Jia Yan.
Since Sixth Lady placed such importance on Li Fu, her family must also be trustworthy. Xie Jia Yan nodded.
Taiji Hall
"You left the capital to search for iron ore for years with no news, yet you found it as soon as you returned. Chang Jin, it seems the capital is your lucky place," the Sage said with a light laugh.
The person kneeling below dared not relax in the slightest. "I dare not deceive Your Sage. This iron ore map was a gift from Xie Hanlin."
The Sage's gaze suddenly became sharp. "He knows you?"
"This subordinate was away from the capital for many years, so he does not recognize me. This matter was actually brought up by a servant from the Yu family..."
The Sage's expression revealed no hint of joy or anger, and it was unclear whether he believed his words.
"Did he discover Qian Ji's secret?"
"Not at all. He likely only discovered there was gunpowder in the city. That boy is very tight-lipped. No matter how we tortured him, he wouldn't speak. Lord Xie exchanged the iron ore map for him, so I agreed."
"After all, it is the Duke's mansion. Even the servants are trained exceptionally. You must visit the Duke's mansion upon your return to the capital, for it is your home, is it not?"