Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 1568: Chapter 1568: Lingchi Execution, Part 1

It took a good while to calm down the little furball, and as daylight broke through the window, Bai Ruozhu had no choice but to soak in the hot spring within her space to relieve the fatigue. Then she emerged, quickly freshened up, hastily ate her breakfast, and left home.

Little Dengdeng was still not fully awake when she left. She gently kissed her son’s forehead, suddenly feeling a wave of emotion.

Thankfully, her son wasn’t born into the royal family. To think of the young Prince Xi, so small and already struck by a curse, how pitiful. And who knows how many dangers lay ahead on his path to adulthood.

Since she left early, there weren’t many people on the road. Halfway through her journey, a figure in moonlight-white suddenly flashed out, blocking Bai Ruozhu’s horse carriage.

”Ruozhu, girl, haven’t seen you for several days,” Gao Zhou said with a chuckle, casually opening his folding fan and giving it a few swishes.

Bai Ruozhu hurriedly got down from the carriage, bowed to him, and asked, ”What brings the elder to seek me out?”

Gao Zhou, fanning himself, said with a grin, ”Nothing urgent, just that I am returning to my country and wanted to bid you farewell before leaving.”

How do you know I would be entering the palace at this time? Bai Ruozhu almost blurted out the question but restrained herself, considering the handsome man before her as a friend, and such a question would seem to show a lack of trust.

Gao Zhou seemed to have guessed her thoughts, and said somewhat sheepishly, ”You always take this route going in and out of the palace. Actually, I was waiting on this road for you yesterday, but unfortunately missed you. So I thought I must come earlier today, or I really would have left without saying goodbye.”

”Ah, elder, why didn’t you send someone to deliver a message to my residence? It wasn’t right to make you look for me for two days,” Bai Ruozhu said with some embarrassment.

Gao Zhou dismissed her concern with a wave of his hand, ”No matter, no matter, I shall be visiting Danliang again in the future. It won’t be many months before we see each other again, and then you must treat me to a drink.”

”Of course, we won’t return until we’re drunk!” Bai Ruozhu responded with a bit of reluctance in her heart. Gao Zhou was like a relative or an elder to her, but could he be a Jiuli?

With this in mind, Bai Ruozhu plucked up the courage to ask, ”Uncle, you’re not from Chengshui Country, are you?”

Gao Zhou’s complexion changed slightly, ”Why do you say that? Do I not resemble a person from Chengshui?”

Having met so few people from Chengshui Country, Bai Ruozhu’s most profound impression was naturally of that pervert, Zhou Jue. But clearly, Zhou Jue was not the norm.

”No, not at all, but do you know anyone from Jiuli?” As she mentioned ”Jiuli,” Bai Ruozhu’s voice became much quieter.

Gao Zhou stared at her in surprise, his gaze uncertain whether it was the mention of ”Jiuli” or Bai Ruozhu’s guess that surprised him.

”Why do you bring up Jiuli? Who mentioned it to you?” Gao Zhou’s expression turned serious, gone was his formerly careless demeanor.

Bai Ruozhu did not expect such a strong reaction and hurriedly explained, ”I heard others mention it while I was out on an errand. With your extraordinary skills, uncle, I couldn’t help but speculate.”

”I am not a person of Jiuli. The people of Jiuli despise others pretending to be one of theirs, and I dare not falsely claim so. You should also avoid mentioning it carelessly,” said Gao Zhou with gravitas.

Bai Ruozhu nodded, ”I understand.”

She still hadn’t figured out where he was from. Could it really be that he wasn’t a Jiuli?

”All right, you go about your business. I am leaving, and we shall meet again if the opportunity arises!” Gao Zhou reverted back to his carefree self, flinging his sleeve and striding away.

As his figure grew distant, he suddenly started humming a tune, ”My friend, you’re going far away today, drink up this cup. Forget the sorrows of a lonely journey to the ends of the earth, get drunk to where the sky ends...”

Bai Ruozhu trembled all over, standing in a daze, Gao Zhou, Gao Zhou was actually...

Looking towards the distance again, there was no sign of Gao Zhou. He and she were actually ”fellow townspeople”; was it also because of this that she felt a sense of closeness and familiarity?

Did Gao Zhou know she was a transmigrator? Was that why he wanted to be friends with her?

The song was originally very heroic, but Gao Zhou hummed it in a lazy, scattered way. If it weren’t for Bai Ruozhu’s exceptional hearing, she wouldn’t have caught it at all.

Gao Zhou didn’t intentionally let her hear it, did he? Was he just used to it and hummed it out carelessly?

She didn’t know where to look for Gao Zhou, and after standing there in a daze for a long time, it was Jianqi who reminded her to come back to her senses.

Speaking of which, Gao Zhou was already the second ”fellow townsman” she had encountered, and there was another, Tang Feng, whose whereabouts were unknown to her at the moment.

Tang Feng had been sent out a month ago to inspect the taxes of Jiangnan; she had no idea when he might return.

Bai Ruozhu withdrew her thoughts, headed back to the horse carriage, and set off toward the direction of the Imperial Palace.

Along the way, Bai Ruozhu felt the air was shrouded with a low pressure. She spotted a little eunuch she knew and hurriedly inquired in a low voice.

”Lady Bai, please don’t ask. The Emperor has decreed that those spies be executed at noon today, and the gang leader Lady Xu be subjected to death by lingchi to be carried out in public. He also ordered us servants to watch the execution. My legs are still trembling,” the little eunuch said with a grimace.

”Death by lingchi?” Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help exclaiming.

”Oh dear, Lady Bai, you must not watch it, or you’ll have trouble sleeping tonight.” After saying this, the little eunuch bowed to Bai Ruozhu and left in a hurry.

In ancient times, to say ”death by lingchi” was not an empty phrase; it truly meant inflicting a punishment of a thousand slices upon the criminal.

It was said that there would be executioners skilled with the blade who would slowly carve off pieces of the criminal’s flesh, causing indescribable agony. The criminal couldn’t die quickly; even in death, they were not granted a quick end, a practice of extreme cruelty.

”How much must the Emperor hate Lady Xu to choose a thousand slices...” Bai Ruozhu murmured to herself. Thinking of the beautiful and modest Lady Xu, her heart began to ache with sorrow.

She did not consider herself a saint, nor was she in the habit of sympathizing with others over nothing, but something about this case made her feel terribly uneasy. She couldn’t explain why, nor could she prove Lady Xu’s innocence; she just felt so suffocated that breathing became difficult.

Before she reached Cining Palace, Jiang Yichun appeared and abruptly took her hand.

”Stay at Cining Palace today; do not go to the execution ground,” he said with an urgent and somewhat domineering tone. He did not know she was not the kind of girl who would faint at the sight of blood, but he couldn’t stop worrying about her. He always felt that ever since the day she inquired about Lady Xu, a knot had formed in her heart.

”Why must she be put to death by lingchi? Can’t you ask the Emperor to grant her a swift death?” Bai Ruozhu suddenly looked up, and Jiang Yichun noticed her cheeks were wet with tears.

He reached out to wipe her tears. Only then did Bai Ruozhu realize she had been crying. She sniffled and reached up to wipe her own tears, muttering, ”I’ve interacted with Lady Xu, and I can’t believe she would do such a thing. Though I have no evidence and can’t change anything, can’t the execution be done without lingchi?”

Jiang Yichun sighed. ”The Emperor intends to make an example, as those people have become far too impudent lately, directly attempting to assassinate him and harming the heir. If we were faced with the person who attacked Dengdeng, would we be lenient?”

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What do you all think, did Lady Xu really do it?