The Crown Prince refused to stay in the carriage alone. Instead, he squeezed into a tent with Yu Pinyan, took out some dried food wrapped in oil paper, and slowly ate it.
"When Fang Wei comes back, we'll continue on our way. If I let them lie in the rain for a night, who knows how many people will complain about me. "The Crown Prince narrowed his eyes and joked.
Yu Pinyan nodded and said, "Caution is the parent of safety. With eight million taels of silver, you have to keep one eye open when you sleep at night, let alone on the road. This is your first time doing such an important task, so you can't be careless. "
"At the end of the month, Second Brother, Third Brother, and Fourth Brother will also enter the court to participate in politics. If I make a mistake this time, who knows how many people are waiting to take advantage of me. Don't worry, I know. "The Crown Prince patted Yu Pinyan's shoulder, and the two looked at each other and smiled.
As they ate their dried food and talked, more than an hour passed unknowingly. They heard the sound of galloping horses approaching. Before the Crown Prince could lift the curtain, he heard Fang Wei shout, "Crown Prince, not good, the mountain ahead is collapsing!"
The Crown Prince was frightened and hurriedly went out to ask for details.
The dried food in Yu Wentao's hand fell into the muddy water with a plop.
Everyone else was so scared that their faces turned ashen, and cold sweat dripped down their bodies. Only Yu Pinyan felt relieved.
"Mountain collapse? What's the situation? "The Crown Prince braved the heavy rain and hurried forward.
"This subordinate had just walked for a quarter of an hour when I heard a loud rumbling sound from the mountain. Rain and mud rushed down from the top of the mountain, washing away the road and flowing directly into the river. Fortunately, this subordinate was on guard and retreated quickly, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to return. "Fang Wei patted his chest with lingering fear.
As he spoke, there was another loud sound in front of them. Earlier, everyone thought it was thunder, but now they realized it was a landslide. If the Crown Prince didn't ask them to stop and instead rushed forward, there was a 100% chance that they would hit the landslide and end up without a corpse. Moreover, they lost eight million taels of relief funds and implicated hundreds of thousands of people in the disaster area. Even if they died, they wouldn't have any good reputation.
The more Yu Wentao thought about it, the more flustered he became. He repeatedly cupped his hands and said with a trembling voice, "The Crown Prince is indeed of the true dragon's bloodline, blessed by the heavens! The crown prince is wise, the crown prince is wise! "
Only then did the crowd come back to their senses, and they began to shout as well. Their eyes were filled with reverence.
The Crown Prince was also terrified, but he didn't show it on his face. He said calmly, "It's not safe here. Break camp and retreat to an open field. When the rain stops, we'll take the long route to Sanmen Gorge. Hurry up. "
This time, no one dared to raise any objections.
The Crown Prince breathed a sigh of relief after finally subduing the old fox, Yu Pinyan. Unable to suppress his excitement and fear, he patted Yu Pinyan's shoulder vigorously and said in a low voice, "Pinyan, thank goodness you stopped me in time. Otherwise, I would have died!" Not only did he not have a corpse, but he had also lost the relief funds. Many people were going to smear his reputation after his death. Just the thought of that scene made one's heart turn cold.
"Crown Prince, you're being too serious. It's only because you know what you're doing. Otherwise, what's the point of me trying to persuade you? "Yu Pinyan didn't claim credit for himself. He didn't mention the dream his sister had. The members of the royal family were naturally suspicious. If they thought too deeply, it would be a disaster rather than a blessing for Xiang'er.
"I know what I'm doing. Pinyan, thank you very much! "The Crown Prince squeezed Yu Pinyan's shoulder. His gratitude was self-evident.
The two of them shook hands tightly, then mounted their horses and rushed back. Because they had taken a long detour, they were delayed by at least two days. The Crown Prince sent a letter to the emperor to explain the reason.
The next morning, Marquis Yongle also received Yu Pinyan's letter. After reading it, the matriarch's face turned pale and she repeatedly cried out, "God bless you."
"The Old Lady, what happened to you? But Little Master Hou … "Mama Ma didn't dare to continue.
"Yan'er is fine." The matriarch stood up shakily and kowtowed three times to the Buddha statue in the hall. Then, she handed the letter to Mama Ma so that she could read it herself. She said with lingering fear, "It was really very dangerous! I just read the letter and I broke out in a cold sweat! "
Mama Ma quickly read it and her heart suddenly trembled. She whispered in the matriarch's ear, "The Old Lady, do you still remember what Second Miss shouted before Little Master Hou left? Cui Xi said that Second Miss dreamed that Little Master Hou was washed away by mud and rocks. Therefore, she didn't let Little Master Hou go out yesterday. Look, didn't it match this letter? "
'Brother, if it's raining heavily, stop immediately. Don't be in a hurry! Remember, don't be in a hurry! ' The matriarch's eyes widened as these words echoed in her mind.
"Hiss." She sucked in a cold breath and walked away, "Go find Xiang'er and ask her what she dreamed of last night!"
-----
Yu Xiang didn't sleep at all last night. She was afraid that she would dream of Yu Pinyan's death. She repeatedly thought about how she would live if Yu Pinyan was gone. She felt bitterly disappointed no matter how she thought about it. The pillar of the Marquis Yongle was' dead 'because of her. The Lin Clan and the matriarch definitely couldn't tolerate her. In this era, women who were abandoned by their families had no way to survive. Moreover, she was a cripple. She would probably starve to death on the streets within two days after leaving the Marquis Household.
When the matriarch arrived, she saw her sickly half-leaning on the couch. Her face was sallow, her hair was messy, and her eyes were bloodshot. Her eye sockets were deeply sunken. It was obvious that she hadn't slept all night. When she heard footsteps, she stiffly turned her neck and asked hoarsely, "How is Brother? Did you receive any news? "
Although she wasn't of the marquis's bloodline, she had grown up with Yan 'er after all. Her feelings for him were sincere and not fake at all. Why couldn't she risk her life to save him? Why would she be so worried?
When she thought of this, the matriarch's prejudice and estrangement towards Yu Xiang instantly disappeared by fifty to sixty percent.
"Yan'er is fine," she said softly. "You had a nightmare yesterday, so you wouldn't let Yan'er go out no matter what. What did you see in your dream? Tell Grandmother."
Yu Xiang's anxious heart finally settled down. Seeing the matriarch continue to ask, she began to narrate in detail. Yu Pinyan was sixteen this year. He had just started his official career. He was ruthless and had many enemies. The person he was loyal to was the current crown prince. Who knew how many disasters he would encounter in the future? If the Family Yu didn't take her words seriously and thought that she was being unreasonable, then Yu Pinyan wouldn't be so lucky next time.
The matriarch thought for a while after listening, then asked in a low voice, "You really saw a lot of silver ingots fall into the river?"
Yu Xiang nodded with certainty.
The matriarch continued to stare blankly for a full fifteen minutes before she recovered. She touched Yu Xiang's red eyes and said softly, "Good child, you didn't sleep the whole night because you were worried about your brother, right? Did you drink your medicine? Have you eaten any food? "
Yu Xiang shook her head. "I don't know about Brother's safety. I don't want to drink medicine, and I can't eat."
"Good child, good child …" The matriarch was very moved. She repeatedly patted Yu Xiang's head. "Drink your medicine, eat your food, and quickly go to sleep. You're tired. "
Mama Ma personally went to the kitchen to brew medicine and cook for the second miss.
After the matriarch finished eating with Yu Xiang, she got up to leave when she saw her yawn frequently. When she reached the door, she suddenly turned back and said seriously, "Xiang'er, if you have similar dreams in the future, you must tell Grandmother. Don't keep it to yourself."
Yu Xiang nodded in agreement. Naturally, she wouldn't keep it to herself. Yu Pinyan was her only protective talisman.
The matriarch left with satisfaction. She caught a glimpse of Cui Ping and Cui Xi who were following behind her. She cautiously said, "Take good care of Miss in the future. If you need anything, just ask Mama Ma. If Miss refuses to drink medicine and eat, you have to persuade her. If you leave her alone like today, you don't have to stay in the Marquis Household anymore. "
Cui Ping and Cui Xi whispered in agreement. When the group of people walked far away, they wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads and looked at each other. What happened to The Old Lady? Why did her attitude change so much overnight?
The matriarch returned to the main courtyard. She knelt in front of the shrine and chanted for a while. Only then did she relax.
Mama Ma helped her up and brought her a cup of hot tea. When she sat down, she asked, "The Old Lady, what happened to Miss' dream?"
"This was a warning from Bodhisattva to Xiang'er." The matriarch used the lid of the cup to slowly remove the foam from the tea. She looked absent-minded, "If Yan'er didn't stop and directly rushed over, the scene in the dream would have become reality. Those silver ingots should be the relief funds brought by the Crown Prince. It should be at least this amount … "She stretched out her hand.
"Fifty thousand taels?" Mama Ma bared her teeth.
"Five million taels, maybe more." At this point, the matriarch's forehead was covered in cold sweat again. She sighed and said, "Fortunately, Xiang 'er gave him a warning, so Yan' er didn't rush over. Otherwise, not only would he have lost his life, the entire marquis's estate would have to suffer as well. Five million taels, even if the Marquis Household was wiped out, it still wouldn't be enough to pay for it! "
Yu Xiang was a little girl who didn't know much about the world. How could she know what Yan'er was doing when he left? How could she know that the Crown Prince was carrying relief funds? But she had dreamed about it and described it in detail. It was as if she was there. At this moment, the matriarch no longer had any doubts about her words.
Mama Ma sucked in a breath of cold air and shouted in horror, "Five, five million taels? Oh my God! Thank you for Bodhisattva's blessing, thank you for Bodhisattva's blessing! "Master Hou was dead, and the Marquis Household was raided. They, the servants, had no way to live! This was really a blessing from heaven, a blessing from heaven!
Mama Ma bowed to the shrine and whispered, "Master Hou was right. Miss isn't a jinx, she's clearly his lucky star. Matriarch, look, in just a month, Miss helped Master Hou avoid death twice. This is too mysterious. If it wasn't a person with great fortune, why would Bodhisattva be willing to warn him in his dreams … "
The matriarch was silent for a long time. Finally, she waved her hand and said, "Send the two bolts of shark gauze and the hundred-year-old ginseng from my storeroom to Xiang'er. She's a good person. "Her intentions were good, but this matter was strange. Whether it was a blessing or a curse, they would have to wait and see.
"Yes, this old servant will go now!" Mama Ma did not let others do it and went to do it herself. These two things were bestowed by the emperor and were priceless. The matriarch was reluctant to use them herself and instead gave them to Miss. It could be seen that she was really frightened this time.
Cui Ping Cui saw that the matriarch suddenly paid attention to Yu Xiang. Although she was angry, she did not dare to be as presumptuous as before.
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The original track of history: The Crown Prince went to Sanmen Gorge for disaster relief. Halfway there, he encountered a landslide. Although he was lucky to not die, he lost eight million taels of relief money and returned in a sorry state. The imperial censor accused the Crown Prince of being heartless and angered the heavens, resulting in the punishment of tens of thousands of disaster victims. The emperor was furious and ordered the Crown Prince to repent in the imperial mausoleum and not to enter the court for three years. He also ordered the Fourth Prince to raise money and go to Sanmen Gorge. The Fourth Prince was calm and capable. He handled the disaster relief perfectly without any mistakes. At the end of the ninth month, he returned to the capital with the Wanmin Umbrella. His reputation was greatly boosted, while the Crown Prince gradually fell silent.