Chapter 463: Chapter 432, A Blessing in Disguise_1
Wu Jingyi quickly received a reply from the Emperor, and upon seeing the contents of the letter, his first thought was the same as Steward An and Wei Qi’s—that Daohua’s dream of becoming a county princess was shattered.
However, a setback may turn out to be a blessing in disguise.
He understood the Emperor’s intention. The Jiang Family, being the most powerful external relative of the current dynasty, and Prince Duan, the favorite prince of the late Emperor, both had significant influence at court. The Emperor wanted to use the gold mine incident to pit them against each other, wearing each other down.
In this way, the young girl had indirectly helped the Emperor, and with her connections to the two people from Taohua Temple, her merit would surely be remembered by the Emperor.
In this world, what could be more precious than owing a favor to the Emperor?
After pondering for a while, Wu Jingyi summoned his trusted aide and asked, “Has the Little Prince been searching for medicinal herbs nearby these days?”
The trusted aide nodded: “He has, and a few days ago he seemed to have found a century-old Polygonum multiflorum. Because of this, he has been wandering around even more diligently recently.”
Wu Jingyi laughed, “That’s some good luck, meds over a hundred years old are treasures.” Saying this, he stroked his chin, deep in thought.
The old master from Taohua Temple was a master at using herbs, so his skills in gathering and finding herbs must be commendable. Since Miss Yan was his disciple, she certainly must have received his true teachings.
It was said Jing Cao was also a herb; could the girl have mistaken it for a medicinal herb?
And indeed, it was quite possible.
To tell the truth, he felt somewhat uncomfortable about Daohua finding Jing Cao, after all, so many of them had searched for so long without success, and here the young lady just took a stroll and found it, which made them seem particularly incompetent in comparison.
However, with the old master’s skill in herb-gathering from Taohua Temple, everything made sense.
Source: NovelFull.com, updated on ƝοѵǤօ.сօ
Although he believed in the concept of luck, he was even more convinced that only the skilled could accomplish what ordinary people could not.
“Let’s go, lead the way, I have something to discuss with the Little Prince.”
Unfortunately, after wandering around, he couldn’t find Xiao Yeyang and his party.
With no other option, Wu Jingyi could only go back and wait for them at the mouth of the River Valley.
Meanwhile, in a secret valley about ten miles away from the River Valley, Xiao Yeyang and Daohua, looking curious, were examining the rather secluded cave entrance in front of them.
The entrance of the cave was covered with dense thistles of Jing Cao.
Yan Wenkai’s eyes widened as he asked in a hushed voice, “Could there be gold mines here too?”
Daohua looked at her fourth brother with some speechlessness: “Fourth Brother, there are no outsiders here; you don’t need to speak so softly.”
Yan Wenkai gave a sheepish smile, touching his nose and saying, “It’s just habit.”
Yan Wentao looked at Daohua, then at Xiao Yeyang, finally understanding why they were willing to endure the cold to wander around in the mountains these days.
From behind the Hidden Guard, Sun Changze frowned as he watched the cave. After a long moment, he took a deep breath, stepped forward, and said to Xiao Yeyang, “Little Prince, we don’t know if there are dangers inside the cave. We four brothers are willing to explore it first.”
Xiao Yeyang raised an eyebrow at him and after pondering for a moment agreed, “Alright, then you go ahead and scout it out.”
He had many bodyguards by his side, but most of them were either assigned by his imperial uncle, or given by his uncle, or from someone at Meilin Villa. There weren’t many who truly followed his orders alone.
This time in search of the gold mine, he had brought only his men. Loyal guards are hard to cultivate, and he didn’t want to lose a single one. Since the Sun Family brothers wanted to scout ahead, he was naturally willing to give them the opportunity.
The time he spent with the Sun Family brothers was partly because he couldn’t bear to lock them directly in the military prison cells. If news of the gold mine leaked, it could implicate his uncle;
Secondly, Sun Changze was somewhat intelligent and bold, wanting to secure a way out for his three brothers. Xiao Yeyang was also willing to give them that chance. Such dangerous tasks as scouting were just the thing to set them to.
Seeing Xiao Yeyang’s agreement, Sun Changze felt relieved, glanced at his three brothers, and gestured for them to enter the cave.
“Wait!”
Daohua suddenly called out to the four men, pulling out a bottle of medicine from her pouch and handing it to Sun Changze: “There are bound to be snakes and insects in the cave. Apply this to your body, and the snakes and insects won’t dare to approach.”
Sun Changze looked at Daohua, sincerely thankful, and said, “Thank you.” After he finished speaking, he reached out to take the bottle of medicine, then quickly entered the cave with his three brothers.
After the four men entered the cave, Xiao Yeyang glanced at Daohua: “Such good medicine, and yet you’re willing to part with it.”
Daohua smiled, “If people help us, we’ve got to ensure their safety.”
Xiao Yeyang chuckled, “Don’t underestimate those four, they’re much more familiar with the mountain forest than we are.”
Yan Wenkai nodded, “Sun Changze’s martial arts are truly impressive.”
Yan Wentao took up the conversation, “And he’s got guts.” He had seen Sun Changze and the Guard Captain lock eyes in defiance several times. If their strengths hadn’t been so mismatched, he believed this man would definitely have led his people against the guards.
Now, although they feared the Little Prince’s power, in both overt and covert ways, they were looking for opportunities to distinguish themselves, hoping to earn their release.
After a while, the sound of stones being struck echoed from the cave, which was the safety signal agreed upon by Sun Changze. Xiao Yeyang looked to the Guard Captain, “Take some men and check it out, be careful.”
Obviously, he didn’t fully trust Sun Changze and his group.
The Guard Captain nodded and quickly led his men inside.
About half an hour later, an excited guard ran out, “Master, you have to come and see this, it’s a gold mine!”
At these words, everyone’s spirits lifted.
Xiao Yeyang pulled back Daohua, who was following Yan Wenkai and Yan Wentao and about to rush into the cave, “Easy there, it’s pitch-black inside. Don’t hurt yourself, I’ll hold your hand.”
Daohua was a bit reluctant, but seeing Xiao Yeyang’s insistent demeanor, she swallowed her refusal and urged, “Then hurry up!”
Xiao Yeyang then led Daohua into the cave, with Defu and Wang Manman walking at their sides, holding torches.
The cave was extremely rugged and unevenly surfaced. Not long into their exploration, they came across an underground river. In the flickering torchlight, everyone could occasionally spot glints of gold.
The light was dim, and even though Daohua was walking very cautiously, she still stepped on something soft and slippery. Glancing down, she almost instantly let out a scream, clung to Xiao Yeyang’s neck, and jumped onto him, “A snake, there’s a snake!”
She had always been terrified of these soft-bodied creatures, breaking out in goosebumps and cold sweats at the sight of one.
Xiao Yeyang, startled by Daohua’s scream, quickly carried her to the side.
Yan Wenkai and Yan Wentao hurried over and, seeing it was just a dead snake, breathed a sigh of relief.
“Big sister, don’t be afraid, it’s a dead snake. Looks like it was killed by the people ahead of us.”
Daohua quickly said, “Then get it out of my sight, I don’t want to see it.”
Yan Wenkai kicked the snake into the underground river, “It’s quite a big one, almost too heavy to kick.”
On the other side, Xiao Yeyang, seeing Daohua still clinging to him, patted her back and said with a smile, “It’s okay, the snake’s gone now.”
Daohua slowly got down from Xiao Yeyang and glanced at the spot where the snake had been, and only after seeing nothing did she relax.
Xiao Yeyang, noticing the fine sweat on her forehead, quickly pulled out a handkerchief to wipe it for her, while saying, “You’re usually so brave, how could a dead snake scare you like this?”
Daohua, still looking spooked, glared at him, “I’m just afraid of snakes, that’s all!”
Yan Wentao, seeing how intimately Xiao Yeyang was wiping the sweat from Daohua’s brow, immediately came over, “Big sister, let me carry you.”
Xiao Yeyang’s gaze shot over sharply, and before Daohua could respond, he said, “The cave is dark and hard to navigate, don’t drop Daohua.”
Daohua also said, “Third brother, you don’t need to carry me, I’ll be more careful from now on.”
Xiao Yeyang, cutting off Yan Wentao before he could speak again, said, “Let’s leave it at that. If you really want to help Daohua, lead the way well with the torch, and scout the path.”
Then, turning to Daohua, he said, “Stay close behind me from now on and don’t run ahead again, let’s go.”
As Xiao Yeyang took Daohua away, Yan Wentao was left feeling somewhat helpless. He glared at the carefree Yan Wenkai beside him and huffed, “You could have helped me!”
Yan Wenkai was somewhat puzzled, “Help with what?”
Yan Wentao got even more annoyed, “Just leave it, you wouldn’t even notice if you lost a sister!” With that, he walked off without looking back.
Yan Wenkai was left speechless, “A sister is bound by blood, how could she be lost?”