0p0 Chapter 326 The Cannon Fodder Who Suffered the Massacre of His Family (33)
Chapter 326 The Cannon Fodder Who Suffered the Massacre of His Family (33)
Gao Yan added, "Didn't Father Emperor go to Consort Xian's palace tonight? He probably won't come to Minghua Palace to look for you."
Qi Ning smiled slightly and said, "Okay."
Soon, Qi Ning and Ying Liu changed their clothes and followed Gao Yan into a carriage.
The carriage drove openly towards the outside of the palace, and the guards at the palace gate, seeing the carriage, stopped it as usual.
“It’s the Fifth Prince’s carriage,” said Cao Dong, the driver of the carriage.
These guards certainly recognized Cao Dong, knowing he was the Fifth Prince's personal bodyguard, and naturally also knew that this was Gao Yan's carriage.
It wasn't strange that Gao Yan went out late at night; he had done so before, and they were just conducting routine checks.
The guard bowed towards the carriage: "Your Highness, may I peek through the curtain?"
After the guard finished speaking, there was no response from inside the carriage.
Without Gao Yan's permission, he certainly didn't dare to lift the carriage curtain on his own.
Just as the guard was wondering what to do, the front curtain of the carriage remained still, but the small curtain on the side window was lifted from the inside.
Gao Yan revealed half of his face, his brows and eyes showing obvious impatience.
He said coldly, "I have urgent business to attend to. If you're going to investigate, then investigate quickly. If you delay my important business, you will be held responsible."
Upon hearing this, the guard shuddered.
He was afraid of displeasing Gao Yan, so he didn't dare to lift the curtain. He just glanced through the small window and didn't see anyone else besides Gao Yan.
He quickly smiled apologetically and said, "Fifth Prince, there's no problem. Please take care."
Upon hearing this, Gao Yan responded expressionlessly and then abruptly pulled down the curtain on the car window.
"Cao Dong, let's go."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Cao Dong pulled the reins of the carriage, gave a shout, and the carriage sped out of the palace.
"Alright, we've left the palace," Gao Yan said to Qi Ning.
Qi Ning had been hiding behind the carriage window, and the guard couldn't see her through the window unless he lifted the curtain.
Of course, it wouldn't matter if she were seen, since Qi Ning was dressed as a palace maid at the moment. It would just mean less trouble and questioning if she wasn't seen.
Qi Ning lifted the curtain and looked outside; sure enough, they had already left the palace.
"Is the Fifth Prince's residence far from the imperial palace?" Qi Ning asked.
"It's not far, don't worry, it won't take long."
Gao Yan was right; in less than half an hour, they arrived at his private residence.
The two got off the carriage and entered the mansion.
Gao Yan took Qi Ning to a secluded courtyard and instructed the servants to prepare some incense, candles, and paper money for the sacrificial ceremony.
"We don't have many sacrificial items in the manor. See if these will do. If there's any shortage, I'll have someone go outside and buy some immediately."
Qi Ning glanced at the incense, candles, and paper money: "No need for that, this is enough."
At this moment, she was dressed in a simple palace maid's outfit, her expression carrying a hint of sorrow, completely different from her usual appearance.
After she finished speaking, she began to worship, lighting incense and paper money. Holding the incense and candles in her hand, she closed her eyes and muttered something to herself.
Logically speaking, Gao Yan should have avoided this scene, but he forgot about it and stood quietly to the side watching Qi Ning.
After an unknown amount of time, Qi Ning finished her prayers and stood up.
She didn't shed a tear, but Gao Yan saw her slightly reddened eyes and the glistening tears within them.
"All done?" he asked in a low voice.
"Ah."
Qi Ning responded and walked to Gao Yan's side, whispering, "Thank you."
Gao Yan looked at Qi Ning for a while, wanting to say something to comfort her, but ultimately didn't say it.
He put his hands behind his back and simply said, "Let's go, I'll take you home."
He led Qi Ning outside and got into the carriage.
Actually, they came out quite early, and the worship ceremony didn't take long. At this moment, the carriage drove onto the street, which was still bustling with activity.
As for Gao Yan's statement about sending Qi Ning back before dawn, that was just a more prudent way of putting it. In reality, if they went back now, they wouldn't arrive at the palace too late at all.
Qi Ning peeked through the curtains at the bustling street outside.
She turned to look at Gao Yan and tentatively asked, "Could we return to the palace a little later?"
Gao Yan was somewhat surprised: "You mean?"
“I want to go out for a stroll,” Qi Ning said. “Since I came to the capital from Jiangnan, I’ve only been to the Ministry of Revenue’s residence and then to the imperial palace. I haven’t really explored the capital yet.”
She looked bitter and resentful: "It won't be long before we have to go back to the palace from the temporary palace."
That's right, the imperial carriage will be returning to the palace soon, and after returning, it will be even less likely for the emperor to leave the palace easily.
According to Gao Yan's original plan, it was already inappropriate for him to secretly bring his father's concubine out to worship. He should have sent her back as soon as possible while no one was watching.
Seeing Qi Ning's vaguely expectant gaze, Gao Yan tapped his fingers on his knees.
“Okay,” he agreed.
Actually, Qi Ning didn't want to go shopping. She just wanted to take the opportunity to spend more time with Gao Yan and work on her strategy missions. You know, it won't be so easy to meet her again after returning to the palace.
Gao Yan asked Cao Dong to find a place to park the carriage.
"You stay here and guard the carriage; you don't need to follow it," he said to Cao Dong.
Bringing servants along will inevitably attract attention, so it's better to keep a low profile.
Cao Dong hesitated before replying, "Yes."
After giving Cao Dong his instructions, Gao Yan and Qi Ning left together.
Cao Dong looked at his Fifth Prince and Consort Qi walking beside him, his expression filled with complex emotions.
He knew that the Fifth Prince and Consort Qi were getting closer because they were going to deal with the Fourth Prince together, but no matter how he looked at it, he felt that the Fifth Prince and Consort Qi were getting too close.
Cao Dong had served the Fifth Prince for many years and knew that he would never spend so much time on women. It was quite strange that he was bringing her out to worship and accompanying her shopping.
If it were only because of their shared responsibility in dealing with the Fourth Prince, things wouldn't have come to this.
Of course, Cao Dong dared not voice these thoughts.
Gao Yan had no idea what Cao Dong was thinking, so he took Qi Ning out onto the street.
Although Qi Ning was dressed as a palace maid, the palace maids' attire in the imperial palace was simple and not very luxurious. In addition, ordinary people had never been to the imperial palace and might not recognize the palace maids' attire. So she did not stand out on the street.
The two walked side by side on the road, and at first glance, anyone who didn't know them would think they were a young couple.
They walked for a while and then saw that the area ahead was becoming increasingly lively, with a large crowd gathered.
"What's going on up ahead?" Qi Ning asked curiously.
Gao Yan didn't know either. He glanced in that direction and, seeing Qi Ning's curiosity, said, "Let's go take a look."
Upon closer inspection, they saw a platform surrounded by cheering and jeers, while on the platform stood people uniformly dressed in capes and wearing masks.
"What are you doing?" Qi Ning asked again.
This question stumped Gao Yan, who rarely strolled around this street and had no idea what was going on.
"You don't know?" Gao Yan asked rhetorically.
"Didn't I already say that I used to live in the south and am not familiar with these things in the capital? I've never seen anything like this in the south. Even if I did, I would be in a theatrical troupe. How could I easily go out and wander around?"
After Qi Ning finished speaking, she looked at Gao Yan expectantly.
If it were the original owner, it might really be as Qi Ning said, not knowing what was being done for those reasons. But Qi Ning herself had seen a lot, so she understood it all too well.
On this platform are couples, usually married couples or engaged couples, all wearing the same cloaks and masks.
If they can find their other half among the many people hiding their masks, it means they are destined to be together and they can receive a corresponding bonus. If they fail to find their other half, their deposit will not be refunded.
Gao Yan did not doubt Qi Ning's words. He thought it made sense. Before, when she was in the opera troupe, she was probably either going out to perform or rehearsing in the troupe. She was strictly controlled and could not go out casually, otherwise they might run away.
"If you're interested, just ask."
As he spoke, Gao Yan turned his gaze and saw a man in front of him soliciting customers and collecting money.
Gao Yan patted the man on the shoulder, about to ask what was going on, but when the man turned around and saw Gao Yan and Qi Ning, he thought they were a couple who were going to participate, and directly pulled them towards the backstage.
"Go, go, go to the back to pay the money. After you pay, put on the cape and mask and you can go on stage."
Gao Yan was completely bewildered. He had never seen such a scene before. Seeing that the man was about to push Qi Ning, he quickly pulled Qi Ning over and followed him backstage.
When the two arrived backstage, they were urged to pay money, and someone came over to drape them in cloaks that reached up to their shoes and put masks on them.
Instantly, the two of them were dressed like everyone else.
An old woman pulled Qi Ning along, saying, "Come here, young lady, let's go on stage separately for men and women."
Gao Yan reacted quickly and grabbed Qi Ning's arm.
Qi Ning turned to look at him: "What's wrong?"
Gao Yan could only see Qi Ning's eyes, and he felt that this was somewhat unsafe.
"Hurry up, what are you dawdling for?" the old woman urged again.
Qi Ning's eyes also urged Gao Yan on.
Gao Yan quickly said, "Call me if you need anything."
"understood."
Qi Ning responded and followed the old woman.
After she left, Gao Yan was taken to another side.
The man and woman came onto the stage from opposite sides. At first glance, they were all dressed the same, so it was not easy to tell who was who.
Gao Yan's gaze quickly swept across the crowd around the woman, and finally, he spotted a pair of familiar eyes.
Just as he calmed down, he heard the old woman on the stage say, "Alright, now the man can go to the woman's side and find your person. If you find them, it means you are destined to meet, and you can receive our reward money."
Gao Yan finally understood what was going on.
This was clearly a trick played between husband and wife. If he had known what was going on, he would never have gone on stage with Qi Ning to play this game.
Just then, the men beside him were able to walk across to the other side to start looking for someone, and once they identified them, they could directly hold the other person's hand.
Gao Yan was only stunned for a moment before he saw a man walking towards Qi Ning and reaching out to take her hand.
He frowned slightly beneath his mask, then strode towards Qi Ning, grabbing her hand before anyone else could reach her and pulling her to his side.
"let's go."
As he spoke, he tried to pull Qi Ning down with him.
But they were stopped: "Hey, if you've found the person, take off the mask first and see if you've found the right one. Besides, you can't take the mask and cloak with you."
Gao Yan paused, removed the mask from his own face, and then reached out and removed the mask from Qi Ning's face.
The moment the two removed their masks, their eyes met, and they froze on the spot, momentarily stunned.
At this point, the others on stage also took off their masks. Those who found the correct mask cheered with joy, while those who found the wrong one found it in a rather awkward atmosphere.
The old woman recognized that Qi Ning and Gao Yan had come together, after all, the two were outstanding in appearance and very conspicuous, it would be hard not to remember them.
She smiled and said, "Congratulations to you both! You've found the right person. It's truly fate. I wish you both a long and happy marriage..."
The crowd watching below the stage erupted in cheers and jeers.
Qi Ning seemed to realize what was happening and lowered her head in embarrassment.
Gao Yan also realized that this scene was very inappropriate, and if someone he knew saw it, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"let's go."
After saying those three words, he pulled Qi Ning away.
The old woman called out from behind, "Hey, young master and madam, don't you want the prize money you won?"
Gao Yan had no need for the money; he simply took Qi Ning and left.
The two stepped off the stage and disappeared into the crowd on the street, continuing to walk forward.
Until Qi Ning called out to him, "Gao Yan!"
Gao Yan stopped and turned to look at her: "What's wrong?"
Qi Ning struggled to free her hands: "Can...can you let go of me now?"
Gao Yan then realized that he was still holding Qi Ning's hand.
He quickly let go of Qi Ning's hand: "I'm sorry, I..."
The street was bustling with people, but the two of them stood there silently, the atmosphere between them seemingly ambiguous.
Just then, the system suddenly issued an alarm: "Host, something bad has happened!"
"Don't turn around! Jiang Weilan and Gao Yun are not far behind you, whatever you do, don't turn around!"
Qi Ning froze. She asked the system, "Did they see that just now?"
"That's not true."
If Jiang Weilan and the others had appeared while Qi Ning and Gao Yan were on stage, the system would definitely have detected and alerted them beforehand.
They didn't see what happened on stage just now. It wasn't until Gao Yan pulled Qi Ning over that the system detected Jiang Weilan and the other person in the crowd.
Qi Ning secretly breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the system say that.
It's good that they didn't see what happened on stage just now.
She didn't expect it to be such a coincidence that she would run into Jiang Weilan and Gao Yun outside. It seems that this part was not in the original plot, so the plot has probably been changed.
However, Jiang Weilan and Gao Yun are engaged and will be getting married soon, so it's normal for them to come out together.
The system then said, "Host, hurry up and leave before they see you. It's not too late to leave now."
Qi Ning thought the same thing. She kept her back to Jiang Weilan and the others and called out to Gao Yan.
"Gao Zhen."
"Ok?"
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