noffsinger Chapter 107 Blame
Chapter 107 Blame
She kept telling herself that these were fake and had nothing to do with her.
She couldn't save these people. Her pity for them seemed meaningless to her now. She had no ability to save them and she could do nothing.
Mu Qingchen led Qiao Shinian in silence. Perhaps because he could see from the corner of his eye that her face was gloomy, Mu Qingchen spoke out, "It's okay. Wen Jiu will be fine. There are many people in the palace. He is with Yu'an today, so he will be fine."
"Of course I know he'll be fine, because it's always been like this." Qiao Shinian also wanted to liven up the previously stiff atmosphere, so she forced a smile: "After all, he has the aura of a protagonist."
After saying this, Qiao Shinian came to her senses. She had not told Mu Qingchen about Wen Jiu's schedule for today, so Mu Qingchen must have many spies in the palace. This meant that as long as he wanted, her and Wen Jiu's actions could be directly monitored and reported to him.
At this moment, Qiao Shinian suddenly felt guilty and scared. The image of the man in front of her had always been too gentle, making her almost forget that he was an ancient prince. How could he live to his current age without some tricks?
"They will bring the horses soon." Mu Qingchen tried to say something to ease Qiao Shinian's uneasiness.
Qiao Shinian did not speak, but just regarded himself as a passerby and placed himself in the modern world, which was just a tragedy seen on each other's screens.
"Damn, damn!" The buildings that collapsed or were collapsing around seemed so fragile in the aftershocks.
"Mom, I don't want you to be pressed in there, come out now!"
The girl's voice was so childish. She sat on the ground for a long time before she stood up and stumbled towards the half-collapsed building.
Qiao Shinian took a deep breath and continued walking forward.
Mu Qingchen looked at these people who were confused and deeply sad, and felt extremely depressed.
Today is his birthday.
"Don't you understand what I'm saying, little brat? I told you to stay away from these buildings. Can't you see they're going to collapse?" While Mu Qingchen was still thinking about things dejectedly, Qiao Shinian turned around and ran towards the little girl who was about to touch the half-collapsed building. She picked up the girl and stepped back.
The little girl cried and beat Qiao Shinian's legs: "I want my mother, you are a bad person! I want my mother!"
"Just wait here! Otherwise I'll sell you off!" Qiao Shinian glared at the girl and said viciously, then pointed at the half-collapsed building and said, "If you come any closer, I'll sell you to a man and make sure you never see your mother again! Now just stand here until your family comes looking for you, or until they find your mother from inside."
The little girl was frightened by Qiao Shinian's voice. She pursed her lips and dared not move.
"Ouch~!"
"Ah~"
"It hurts~"
"Someone come and save me, I'm still alive."
"God damn it, all my belongings are here!"
"Sin!"
"We're not all going to die, are we?"
"The turning over of the earth dragon is definitely a sign of something big happening."
"Wait, I'll pull you out right away."
"Woo woo~ I almost got buried in it, luckily I came out quickly."
At this moment, Qiao Shinian could not avoid being deeply exposed to all the sounds, the relief of surviving the disaster, the wailing and cries for help of those who were still alive, and the desperate efforts to rescue his relatives and friends.
Mu Qingchen walked behind Qiao Shinian. The aftershocks shook the building slightly, and the half-collapsed building could no longer hold on and fell down.
"Your Majesty, the emperor is calling you urgently!" Qingyu rode on a horse, leading Mu Qingchen's horse and moving forward with difficulty among the crowd.
There are too many people gathered on this road, and it is difficult to walk now.
"Make way." When Qingyu came over, Mu Qingchen picked up Qiao Shinian and put him on the horse without saying a word, shouting in a cold voice.
So, with Qingyu and several other secret guards leading the way, Mu Qingchen rode his horse all the way to the palace.
After entering the palace, he threw the reins to the person behind him and said to Qiao Shinian: "Go back by yourself, I will come to find you another day."
"Okay." Qiao Shinian didn't delay, she lifted her skirt and hurried to the secluded path where she had lived for a long time.
After glancing at Qiao Shinian's back, Mu Qingchen looked at the eunuch standing not far away, frowned, and strode away.
·
"Is Wen Jiu back?" As Qiao Shinian stepped into the yard, he saw that the kitchen was a mess.
"My lady, His Highness hasn't come back yet." Yue Yu walked out from the group of trembling people and stood in front of Qiao Shinian, looking at the kitchen with a worried look on her face: "The seasonings that my lady likes to eat can no longer be saved."
"It's okay, as long as you're all okay." Qiao Shinian nodded, looking at the palace maids and eunuchs squatting on the ground and shivering, and said, "Two of you go check the situation inside the house and see if you can move out all the things that can be used. The house is temporarily uninhabitable. We can deal with the rest after Wen Jiu comes back."
the other side
Princess Yu'an, still in shock, tightly grasped Wen Jiu's arm. She asked in panic, "What happened? Why is the earth shaking?"
"It's just a dragon turning over. It's fine now. Can you let me go?" Wen Jiu pulled Princess Yu'an's hand away expressionlessly. "You're not hurt, are you?"
"No." Princess Yu'an shook her head blankly, then looked at Wen Jiu with more gratitude and tenderness in her eyes. It was Wen Jiu who protected her from coming out of the attic and blocked a falling lantern for her.
Wen Jiu protected her first thing, so were the explanations he gave her just now true?
Letting that maid get close to that disgusting guy was to help her vent her anger and to make that guy's reputation stink!
After all, if he hangs out with a maid, he would be ridiculed by the people of the entire Zhou Kingdom. If a prince lowers his status and hangs out with a maid of unknown origin, people will definitely doubt his judgment as a prince.
After Wen Jiu rescued her, Princess Yu'an's trust in Wen Jiu reached its peak. She looked at Wen Jiu, her tone revealing a girl's pride and immaturity: "Okay, that's all for today. I'll go back and tell my mother and ask her to reward you handsomely."
"Well, I'll go back if everything is fine." Wen Jiu nodded. He was worried about Qiao Shinian, who he didn't know whether she had left the palace. He was worried that something had happened to her.
"Just tell me if you need anything, I'll help you."
"You need to apologize to me." Wen Jiu turned his head to glance at Princess Yu'an's expression, then walked away.
Staring at Wen Jiu's decisive departure, Princess Yu'an pouted and took a while to walk back.
Wen Jiu was wondering all the way whether Qiao Shinian was safe, wondering if she was still sitting there foolishly waiting for the wise king.
Or maybe she was taking a nap and didn't notice the sound of the earth dragon turning over.
The more Wen Jiu thought about it, the more anxious he became, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
His pace was so fast that Haruyuki had to jog to keep up with him.
Right at the gate of the yard, Wen Jiu could hear Qiao Shinian's command from inside. Only then did he feel relieved, wiped the sweat from his forehead, adjusted his breathing, and walked in.
"Sister, I'm back!"
Looking at the collapsed kitchen, and then watching Qiao Shinian directing the palace servants to move things out, Wen Jiu asked, "You didn't go out!"
"I'm back." Qiao Shinian looked at the busy palace servants and said, "We can't even build a thatched shed in our yard, so how are we going to get by these few days?"
Qiao Shinian looked at Wen Jiu and explained in a low voice, "Until we are sure there will be no more earthquakes or aftershocks, for safety reasons, we have to live outside. After we have confirmation in a few days, we will see whether we should move in."
Wen Jiu nodded obediently, completely different from his previous cold and aloof demeanor in front of Princess Yu'an.
Qiao Shinian pulled Wen Jiu to sit on the stone bench outside and whispered, "Today is actually the Xianwang's birthday, and I feel that my gift is too insignificant. By the way, he also bought me a lot of jewelry, but I didn't want any of it. I told him to keep it with him first, and I only took this one."
As Qiao Shinian spoke, he took out something from his arms and showed it to Wen Jiu: "This is solid gold, and there are two small gems."
Wen Jiu nodded, "Well, that's great. When we go back, I will buy you all kinds of gold and silver jewelry and jewels that you like." Wen Jiu imagined the future.
The plan was going almost smoothly, both on Qiao Shinian's side and on his side.
He didn't want to sit and wait for death, so he chose this method.
However, looking at Qiao Shinian's expression, Wen Jiu was a little worried. Qiao Shinian seemed to have integrated too quickly recently.
He was very worried that Qiao Shinian was forcing himself and that something bad would happen unexpectedly.
Qiao Shinian explained to Wen Jiu in detail what happened outside. Wen Jiu nodded and patted Qiao Shinian on the back gently. Finally, Qiao Shinian could not hold back any longer and sobbed on Wen Jiu's shoulder.
She regretted and blamed herself for using such vicious words to scare the little girl who might have lost her mother. She was scared when she heard the crying.
For three consecutive days, there were no more earthquakes or aftershocks, so Qiao Shinian and Wen Jiu moved back.
This palace, which seemed to be of very poor quality, actually withstood the earthquake and was completely fine.
Half a month later, the collapsed buildings and casualties outside the palace had been counted and handed over to Emperor Zhou. For a while, people in the city who were holding funerals gathered together.
The homeless and those who became refugees overnight each lamented their own misfortune.
During this period, after Qiao Shinian and Wen Jiu were sure that the house was habitable, they no longer had any worries. The two of them lay down for a few days. Qiao Shinian was cultivating her ruthlessness, and she was cultivating her hesitation in encountering problems.
Wen Jiu followed Princess Yu'an every day as before, which made many people despise his behavior.
From the news that Tian Tianwen brought back, Qiao Shinian learned that the virtuous king was not in a good situation. After Mu Qingchen brought her back that day, he was sent by Emperor Zhou to provide disaster relief and settle the victims.
The capital city was not the worst hit area. The worst hit areas were the villages and towns a hundred miles away from the capital city, where almost all the people were killed in the earthquake.
Regarding this disaster, many people learned that it was Mu Qingchen that day and had been cursing him ever since, putting all the blame on him and calling him a disaster.
The rumors during this period became more and more serious. Mu Qingchen had been busy with disaster relief, without stopping for a moment or resting for a moment.
Since returning from a hundred miles away, he has been helping maintain public order in the capital or providing relief to the homeless.
In this disaster, this seems to be the only outlet everyone can find.
Only by treating Mu Qingchen as a sinner can they feel a little relieved.
Qiao Shinian was silently making tangerine peel candy. She learned this method on the Internet. She often failed in the beginning. Although her results now are not very good, they are still acceptable.
"Sister, what are you thinking about?" Wen Jiu hated to see Qiao Shinian silent. Every time at this time, Qiao Shinian always thought about something that he felt was not quite right.
Qiao Shinian stopped what he was doing, looked at Wen Jiu, and said softly: "I think there is a saying that is right, most people are always willing to choose the easy way.
So, I am one of the majority, and that is why I chose Mu Qingchen. And you think Princess Yu'an is easy for you, so you choose Princess Yu'an.
The victims thought that hating and loathing Mu Qingchen was the only way to cover up their seemingly extremely unlucky luck, so they chose to believe the rumors. This way they had an outlet to vent their anger and didn’t have to think about anything.
Wen Jiu didn't say anything, but just looked at Qiao Shinian quietly.
Qiao Shinian looked down at the icing sugar in his hand. “I want to blend in with you, but I’m also afraid to blend in with you. But I know that I can only blend in with you if I want to survive. In fact, I simulate various things happening in my mind every day, and how I should deal with them. In the end, I came up with two conclusions.
When facing superiors, they kneel down to admit their mistakes and beg for forgiveness; when facing subordinates, they criticize them harshly to establish their authority.”
"Sister." Wen Jiu's voice was a little low, "What are you thinking about?"
"I was thinking, if Mu Qingchen doesn't come to see me, can't I be bold enough to go back and find him? This is a gift for him. I want to comfort him and tell him that this has nothing to do with him. It's a pity that such a regrettable thing happened on his birthday." Qiao Shinian turned around and looked at Wen Jiu. She suddenly realized that she had been with Wen Jiu for too long, and Wen Jiu had grown to her shoulders.
All the civil and military officials were well aware of the rumor that Mu Qingchen was a disaster star, and even knew all the contents of the rumor, but no one tried to stop it. Some officials even pretended to be ignorant about the matter and wrote a letter to Emperor Zhou, saying that what happened on Mu Qingchen's birthday was really hard to explain, and if nothing was done to quell the people's resentment, something strange might happen.
In the court, there were many people who blatantly provoked and disgusted Mu Qingchen. Emperor Zhou remained silent and just waited for everyone to finish arguing and said lightly, "Dismiss the court."
When Qiao Shinian arrived at Prince Xian's mansion in a carriage, there was no one at the door and the gate was closed.
She paid the taxi fare and knocked on the palace gate, then followed the butler through the front yard and into the back yard.
The lotus leaves in the pond have turned yellow, the people sitting in the pavilion have the demeanor of pine trees and cypresses, and the gauze curtains sway gently in the wind.
Qiao Shinian just thought that this was a freehand painting, and for a moment he didn't want to go forward to destroy this beautiful picture.
The butler didn't look old or kind like in movies and TV shows. He looked very young, probably in his early forties.
Seeing Qiao Shinian standing still, he did not urge him and stood aside with Qiao Shinian.
On the rooftop in the distance, Qingyu and Huiwu sat side by side and looked at the scene. He asked in confusion, "Why didn't Miss Qiao go over there?"
Gray Mist thought about it and answered uncertainly: "Are you shy?"
"Miss Qiao is not that shy, and I always feel that she doesn't like our prince. Maybe she just wants to rely on him for stability."
"Yeah, that makes sense." Gray Mist nodded.
When Qiao Shinian walked up to Mu Qingchen, he found that the chessboard was almost full of black and white chess pieces.
"Why were you standing there just now?" Mu Qingchen put down the chess piece in his hand and began to divide the chess pieces.
Qiao Shinian looked at his fingers, which were white and slender, with distinct joints, but there were obviously a few red marks, probably because he had suffered some minor injuries that had not yet fully healed.
"I'm looking at the beautiful scenery." Qiao Shinian walked up to Mu Qingchen and put down the small porcelain jar in his hand.