After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 872 Emergency Call
Haitang's doubts did not last long. In less than half an hour, Jin Jiashu ran from the inn to the post station.

However, he did not come to find Haitang, but went to see his teacher Xie Wenzai first, and then sent someone to invite Hai Xiya over.

The three of them talked for a long time in the room, and no sound could be heard because the door was closed. Haitang sat in her grandmother Ma's room and couldn't help but stick her head out to look in several times, but she couldn't get the point.

Fortunately, before she could speak, her grandmother Ma lost her temper and said, "What happened to Xiao Jin? Why did he come here so late at night? The master was only busy talking to him and didn't even come to tell us."

Haitang immediately took the opportunity to ask, "Grandma, can I go ask around for you?"

Ma hesitated for a moment before shaking her head and saying, "Forget it, the master will tell me later. It would be bad if we go there now and disturb them."

Her own grandmother was so caring and considerate that Haitang just wanted to sigh and advise her that she didn't need to be so petty.

Without her grandmother, Haitang was too embarrassed to ask the person directly, so she had to go around and find the two elders, Cao Gengyun and Lu Bainian. In order to find a reasonable excuse, she even went to the kitchen to make a pot of hot noodle soup, served three bowls, and personally delivered them to the elders.

Cao and Lu happily accepted the midnight snack she brought. As for the remaining bowl, Cao Gengyun said, "Take it back. If you can't eat this noodle soup while it's hot, it will get clumpy and inedible. Old Xie is busy right now, and it's a waste to leave the noodles here. You might as well take it back and eat it yourself."

Haitang said, "There's more in the pot. Let's leave this bowl for my cousin." Then she asked, "What is my cousin busy with right now? He seems to have invited my grandfather over. Are they discussing something?"

Cao and Lu didn't know that Jin Jiashu wanted to propose to Haitang, and they still regarded him as a student, so they replied: "Jiashu came here, and it seems that he encountered some difficulties, and wanted to ask Lao Xie for help. Lao Xie felt that he couldn't make the decision, so he invited your grandfather to come over to talk."

Haitang blinked, "Did Brother Jin run into any trouble? I didn't hear him mention it during the day. But just now, it seemed like someone came to the entrance of the post station from outside, asking if Scholar Jin from Chang'an was staying here. He heard that Brother Jin was staying at the inn in the east, so he rushed over. Could it be that this person brought some troublesome news, which made Brother Jin anxious and ran to the post station at night to discuss countermeasures with my grandfather and Uncle Xie?"

"That should be it?" Cao Gengyun was not very worried. "That person seems to be from Beijing. It's probably the empress in the palace who wrote a letter to Jiashu. Nothing serious will happen, just rest assured. We elders are here to take care of everything." Lu Bainian also smiled and nodded.

Neither of the two old men thought that Jin Jiashu would encounter any big trouble. His biological aunt was a queen in the palace, and her son had been appointed as the crown prince, so her position was very stable. The emperor also valued Jin Jiashu, his adopted nephew, very much, and specially sent a large group of people to escort him back to Chang'an to rebury his deceased family members. The situation in the capital was relatively stable, and if there was any major change, the old students of Wumen would not fail to inform the Hai family. Therefore, Cao and Lu both felt that even if Jin Jiashu encountered any difficulties, it would not be a major problem that could not be solved.

Haitang had no way of getting any information from the two elders, so she had to pretend nothing had happened and waited for them to finish their midnight snack. She left a bowl for her cousin Xie Wenzai, sent the rest of the utensils back to the kitchen, and sent two more bowls to her grandparents. Meanwhile, her little cousin Xiao Shitou smelled the aroma, came to the kitchen, and asked for a big bowl of noodle soup.

Little Shitou is now at an age of being lively and outgoing. He likes to walk around at night. He felt hungry while walking. He ate a big bowl of noodle soup in the kitchen. While eating, he chattered with Haitang: "Brother Jin has a messenger from the capital. He is not the person we usually see, but he looks like he has a background. Although he is wearing casual clothes, he is riding a military horse. I suspect he is from the imperial guards."

Haitang suddenly perked up: "Why would the Imperial Guards come here to look for Brother Jin?"

"I don't know about that." Little Stone ate without even raising his head. "I heard him talking to the clerk at the inn. He said he came from Beijing after a day and a night, and changed two horses on the way. He must have changed horses at the post station, which means he is an official. Why would he pretend to be an ordinary person and stay at the inn tonight instead of staying at the post station? The fodder at the inn is naturally not as good as that at the post station. He even complained to the clerk, saying that they were wronging his good horse." Haitang raised her eyebrows. "He doesn't sound like someone who travels often. He can't even lie."

Little Stone drank the soup at the bottom of the bowl in one breath, let out a long breath, and then smiled and said, "The imperial guards will only leave the capital when they are ordered to go out on business. This person doesn't know that there are rules for ordinary inns, so he must be from a high family. But who cares? The imperial guards sent by the capital to deliver a letter to Brother Jin, who knows whose orders they followed? I won't go and ask around!"

Haitang reminded him: "Since you've had supper, remember to rinse your mouth before going to bed."

Xiao Shitou left as he was told. Haitang had the dishes cleared away, was silent for a moment, and then went back to her grandmother, Ma.

After a while, Grandfather Hai Xiya came back and told Ma some bad news: "Someone came from the palace. Madam Xu urged Xiao Jin to return to Beijing. Xiao Jin must leave early tomorrow morning."

Ma and Haitang were both surprised. Ma asked hurriedly, "What happened? It's only a few days away from here to Beijing, and you guys are not dragging your feet, so why can't you go together? He's just a child, and although he has many guards, how can he take care of so much luggage and a coffin without someone to take care of him?"

Hai Xiya said, "Although Xiao Jin never said it explicitly, my cousin has asked him questions, and he probably..." He paused, "Maybe the person in the palace is not well, and Madam Xu is worried that something bad might happen, so she hopes that her relatives can accompany her and the crown prince."

When Haitang first heard that it was "the illness of someone in the palace", she was worried that Imperial Concubine Xu was not well. After listening to her grandfather's words, she realized that the one who was ill should be Emperor Deguang.

Emperor Deguang had been ill for several years, and since this year, we have always heard that his condition has worsened. However, in the narrations of Haijiao and Jin Jiashu, he always existed as a tool for the concubines in the harem to fight overtly and covertly, running from one palace to another all day long, so people thought he was still moving around as usual. Haitang forgot for a moment that he actually had to be carried by others wherever he went, and he could not walk far on his own. But he has lived longer now than in his previous life, so it would not be surprising if he died at any time.

Jin Jiashu was still counting on this cheap uncle to help him arrange an engagement with Haitang as soon as possible. If something happened to him now, the Eighth Prince would soon ascend the throne, and Noble Consort Xu would soon become the Empress Dowager, and things would be really troublesome.

Haitang remained silent and just listened to the conversation between her grandparents.

Due to the urgent summons from Imperial Concubine Xu, Jin Jiashu could no longer lead his large group of people to the capital slowly, and had to rush back quickly. So the luggage he brought and the coffins of his family members had to be entrusted to reliable people.

Now, among the people traveling with him, besides his mentor Xie Wenzai, there was also the newly appointed Grandfather-in-law Hai Xiya. Where could he find a more reliable person to ask for help? So he rushed to the post station overnight to beg.

Hai Xiya agreed to Jin Jiashu's request without consulting his wife. Since they were a family, how could he not lend a helping hand when the younger generation encountered difficulties?

(End of this chapter)