Chapter 855: Chapter 855: Buying Firecrackers to Celebrate
After Zhang Qing tidied himself up, he conveyed the matters concerning the old ministers with an excited but cautious heart.
The Emperor pondered for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, "Very well, it is Heaven’s will. Help me change my clothes, I will go see them myself."
His Little Concubine had awoken, and what he had promised before would soon be fulfilled. This was Heaven’s will, and luck favored them this time; the pardon would be granted.
Zhang Qing was overjoyed, repeatedly praising the Emperor’s wisdom.
After changing his clothes, the Emperor glanced at the East Side Hall, murmured a few words, then strode towards the Star Palace.
His heart was filled with anticipation, knowing that from this moment on, there would be someone waiting for him here, someone whose every frown and smile he could always see whenever he returned.
Not long after, a burst of joyous noise erupted from the Lian Family’s house in the Capital City, voices of celebration echoing throughout.
"I just knew Xiao Hua would be fine. That old man in the morning didn’t explain it clearly, made us worry for nothing." A thin, skinny old man, with the scant remaining flesh on his face quivering, was so excited that he kept muttering to himself.
Another old man who appeared a bit younger than him was pacing around the courtyard, sometimes laughing out loud in excitement, and other times lamenting that he wasn’t a daughter, unable to enter the palace.
"Hahaha, soon we will see Nannan. Once our injustice is cleared, we can see Nannan with honor, hahahaha..."
As he paced, Lian Changhe spied the happily grinning Lian Wanzhen and suddenly remembered something, giving a swift smack: "You fool, hurry, call Wang San, Rash Ge and the others. You lads, go buy firecrackers! How can there be no firecrackers for such a big joyful event!"
Lian Wanzhen shuddered with a start, shouting: "Dad, great idea! How did I not think of it?"
Lian Changhe scolded: "Who else would be your father? Hurry up!"
"Alright, I’m on it!" Lian Wanzhen responded swiftly, eagerly heading off to get Silver, then calling out: "Qian Chen, come along. Where’s Wind Chaser? Rash Ge, Skinny Monkey, let’s go buy firecrackers! We’ll cleanse the Capital of every firecracker, and set them off for a day and night!"
Their voices were so loud that you could hear them across an alley.
Wind Chaser was Wang San’s nickname, something that came up during a drinking chat, and Lian Wanzhen took to calling him that ever since, with his approval.
Qian Chen glanced at Lih Qingshu, who was quietly embroidering with a smile, sensing something and nodded, then happily went along.
Quickly, a rapid response followed, with a boisterous crowd discussing where to buy firecrackers as they walked, debating what to eat and drink tonight, and planning a grand feast as well.
"Luckily, Uncle Ma has recovered well and can have some drinks. I saw him sneaking sips of cooking wine recently, complaining it didn’t taste right..."
Wang San worriedly interrupted: "Could he have been hurt somewhere and can’t taste the wine anymore?"
"Hey, Wind Chaser." Lian Wanzhen gave a hearty slap on his shoulder: "That matter is over, it wasn’t your fault. Your devotion to Uncle Ma scared him into hiding from you. Take it easy, Uncle Ma is fine."
"But..." Wang San felt deeply guilty about the incident when Uncle Ma was captured, recently finding out it was caused by his careless act of relieving himself, inadvertently revealing their whereabouts, which only compounded his guilt.
Uncle Ma was gravely injured after being captured, and if it wasn’t for Lian Bao’s careful arrangements, they would have been caught altogether.
Since that incident, Wang San had become much more cautious.
"Oh, it’s fine, Uncle Ma’s stronger than a bull now, with a stick he hits pretty hard, only acts weak around Aunt Ying..." The crowd started comforting him.
Finally, someone said: "As for the tasteless cooking wine that Uncle Ma sneaked, was it the bottle with the chipped mouth?"
"Yes."
"Well, Wang, then I can assure you Uncle Ma is fine. Little Master had me pour half a jug of water into that cooking wine in case Uncle Ma sneaked some, of course, it’s tasteless."
The crowd burst into laughter, lifting Wang San’s spirits.
The boisterous crowd reached the alley’s end, only to hear the distant sound of horses approaching. Looking up they saw: "Hey, a big figure from the Internal Guard Bureau is coming."
Skinny Monkey’s eyes lit up, then dimmed in disappointment, lamenting: "Oh, if only the Internal Guard Bureau would take me." Sadly, he had no particular skills.
Rash Ge joined in the lament: "Yeah, it’d be so prestigious to join the Internal Guard Bureau. I wonder if we could get in as extras if the Young Master joins..."
Lian Wanzhen was arm in arm with Qian Chen, more accurately, he had his arm around Qian Chen’s shoulder while talking, and although Qian Chen showed no expression, he didn’t brush it off.
Upon hearing the hoofbeats, he looked up and recognized Cao De at the lead.
He thought to himself, that pretty boy is here again, clearly aiming for Sister Lih, scheming to rope Little Bao into working for him.
That night their whole family was waiting for Hu Miaomiao, who arrived late with a grave expression, clearly indicating something serious had occurred, but gave no details, only saying there was an urgent matter for Madam Lian to be summoned to the palace.
His mother immediately rode off to the palace, leaving them in anxious suspense, sleepless through the night, until word came from the palace that she was to stay there for a time.
They hadn’t yet seen their younger sister, and now their mother was also taken away, which worried them sick, leading them to protest to see that big fellow.
Soon after, Hu Miaomiao came again, having brought Little Bao and Uncle Ma back from the Internal Guard Bureau, along with a letter from their mother saying she’d seen their younger sister, whose health was not well, and she was staying to care for her, asking them not to worry.
They could only wait anxiously at home, restless and helpless.
Days later, this pretty boy showed up, and since he’d previously helped them by inviting Divine Doctor Huang to treat their mother, their family was very grateful to him, unexpectedly discovering he knew Little Bao, meeting with him privately.
That’s when they learned this pretty boy was actually the Ancestral Master of the Internal Guard Bureau, named Cao De.
So young and yet with an old man’s title, Lian Wanzhen was baffled.
As for whether Little Bao would join the Internal Guard Bureau, as long as Little Bao was happy, any decision would do.
Before long, a group on horseback approached.
Lian Wanzhen greeted them with a straightforward smile, energetically waving: "Brother Cao, you’ve come? Have you eaten yet? Sister Lih is here."
The others also greeted them.
Cao De pulled the reins, nodding towards Qian Chen, his gentle face displaying a harmless smile, responding: "Not yet. Where are you all going?"
As he observed, Little Beauty’s brothers were a delightful lot, each talented in their own right, each possessing distinct strengths.