Jiangshan Fengwuzhi

Chapter 327 Tracking
Wei Chan was a very clean person. When she arrived at the Liang family's villa outside the city, the first thing she did was take a bath and change her clothes.

Considering that this trip was to capture Gu Jingnian, and since there was a possibility of seeing him, she specially washed her hair and changed into a particularly beautiful red dress.

Her hair was long, and washing it was quite a hassle. Today, it wasn't to seduce Gu Jingnian, but subconsciously she wanted to be in the best possible condition to deal with that guy.

After she finished bathing, a maidservant dried her hair.

I put on my robe, walked around the screen, and saw that some fruits and pastries were already laid out on the table.

Wei Chan was indeed hungry, so she didn't have to do it herself; the maidservant used a bamboo skewer to pick up small pieces of fruit and feed them to her.

"Ok?"

The fruit chunks were quite crisp in the mouth, with a slightly sweet and sour taste. Wei Chan hadn't tasted this flavor in a long time, so she couldn't help but ask, "What is this?"

"In response to Your Highness's question, this is Zui Qingluo."

I asked what the ingredients were.

"This slave doesn't know."

"Try a bite."

"Yes... Princess, this seems to be, a radish."

"I don't want to eat radishes!"

Before the maid could finish speaking, Wei Chan spat out the piece of radish in her mouth. The two people who were wiping her hair quickly let go, afraid of hurting her scalp.

"Princess, please forgive me."

"Didn't I tell you? This princess doesn't eat a single radish!"

"Yes, these dishes were prepared by the Liang family's villa. We servants were negligent."

"Humph!"

Wei Chan frowned, looking displeased.

Ever since she farted in front of Gu Jingnian, she has stopped eating any food that might cause her to fart, including radishes and beans.

Just as she was getting angry over this trivial matter, a maidservant rushed over, bowed, and said, "Princess, Liang Caixing has taken Miss Shen out of the manor."

"I'll go check it out, hurry up."

Wei Chan urged her to have the maids put on soft-soled deerskin boots for her and tie her hair into a light and simple bun.

Finally, she took a cloak and held it in her hands.

Before leaving, she glanced at herself in the bronze mirror and was quite pleased with her appearance.

Passing through the courtyard, two tall, thin eunuchs stood outside, dressed in rather luxurious clothes, yet draped in black cloaks, exuding an aura of mystery.

"Princess."

“Follow me,” Wei Chan said. “I’m going to track Ling Shu without being discovered by anyone.”

"Yes."

Wei Chan draped the cloak over herself and quickened her pace. The two eunuchs followed her. After walking for more than ten steps, the three figures gradually became blurred.

"what."

As Wei Chan walked past Shen Lingshu's courtyard, she suddenly stopped.

Looking ahead, she saw a furtive figure emerging from Shen Lingshu's room, cautiously glancing around before tiptoeing away.

--------

There is a small path leading from Liang Family Villa to Shuangfeng Mountain, with dense forests on both sides.

The path was paved by two Liang family members when they were studying at Chongjing Academy. It wasn't too far, about a half-hour walk.

Ah-Wan was a little nervous the whole way, glancing back every now and then.

Finally, a stone staircase came into view, winding up the mountainside to the main road leading to Frost Maple Mountain.

Ah-Wan lifted her skirt and quickened her pace.

Instead of going up the mountain, she explored the area and found a path hidden by waist-high grass and trees. She followed the path and found a small house hidden behind a bamboo grove.

The door wasn't locked. She hesitated for a moment, then pushed it open.

"Squeak."

Sunlight streamed through the bamboo grove into the house, which was simply furnished with a small couch that was not folded. Several pieces of clothing hung on a shelf next to it, including the one that Gu Jingnian had worn when she dressed as a maid last time.

This is probably Gu Jingnian's hiding place; it's quite tidy.

"Where are you?"

Ah-Wan looked around but saw no one. A little scared, she asked.

"I've brought what you wanted, why aren't you showing yourself?"

Gu Jingnian doesn't seem to be there.

Ah-Wan then approached the bed, reached under the pillow, and rummaged around to see if she could find any secrets.

"What are you doing?"

A voice suddenly sounded behind her. A-Wan was startled and cried out, stumbling backward and bumping into Gu Jingnian.

The impact terrified her even more, causing her to fall forward and land on the couch, covering her face with her hands in fear.

"No, no, don't kill me..."

It's hard to tell whether she's bold or timid.

Gu Jingnian stood there for a while, then asked, "Did you bring the wooden plaque?"

"Bring it."

Ah Wan then realized what was happening, shrank back, and protected the wooden plaque hidden in her bosom with both hands, saying, "But tell me first, how did the young lady get taken hostage, and what should we do?"

If Gu Jingnian wanted to snatch it, Ah Wan's thin arms obviously couldn't protect it.

Gu Jingnian, however, was quite patient and said, "I went to the Shen family on the behalf of Shen Jichi to deliver a jade pendant and a handwritten letter to Xue Juju. As for the wooden plaque, it was promised to me by Shen Jichi. Give it to me."

After saying that, he took two steps forward and reached out to remove Ah Wan's hand.

"no!"

Ah-Wan, protecting the wooden sign, exclaimed, "You still haven't told me how to help the girl!"

Unfortunately, this maidservant made a foolish mistake; how could she possibly stop Gu Jingnian now?

Soon, her arm was pulled away, and Gu Jingnian took out the wooden plaque she had hidden and held it in his hand.

"fake."

The moment Gu Jingnian got his hands on the wooden plaque, he made a judgment.

He weighed the wooden plaque in his hand, tossed it aside, released Ah Wan, and said, "You look honest, but you're actually quite cunning."

"I...I didn't!"

Ah-Wan retorted, "I stole the wooden plaque from the girl, how could it be fake?"

It was no use for her to say anything more. Gu Jingnian was very certain that the wooden plaque was fake, because at this moment he was also fake, he was a shadow, and the real wooden plaque could not be held by the shadow; it could only be held by the real body.

Seeing that Gu Jingnian remained silent, Awan felt very guilty and couldn't help but say, "Then... I'm just a maid, and it wasn't easy for me to steal this."

As he was speaking, Gu Jingnian suddenly turned his head.

The door was swaying slightly.

The weeds outside the door showed signs of being trampled and then springing back up.

"Who's there?!"

Gu Jingnian gave a soft rebuke, and soon a female voice spoke up with a mocking tone.

"Gu Jingnian, you can't escape now."

It was Wei Chan who spoke, but Gu Jingnian and Awan could not see where she was.

It wasn't until Wei Chan lifted the cloak from her head that her figure appeared in the small house.

As a princess, she personally came to capture a villain like Gu Jingnian. Knowing the danger, the first thing she did upon showing herself was to threaten him: "I advise you not to act rashly. The Kaiping Division has already laid a net. If you use your supernatural powers and alert them, see what you will do."

Gu Jingnian didn't take it seriously, and his figure gradually became blurry.

"Hey!"

Wei Chan immediately cried out.

She made a lot of threats, but when Gu Jingnian actually tried to escape, all she could do was shout a few words.

"If you leave, this little maid will have committed the heinous crime of treason. Don't even think about using her to get what you want!"

As Wei Chan spoke, she turned to look at the wooden plaque that Gu Jingnian had thrown away on the ground, and suddenly realized what was going on.

"Oh, so this is what you wanted... Now that you're gone, you'll never get it again!"

To be honest, this threat was rather weak for Gu Jingnian.

Strangely enough, he actually didn't leave.

The figure, which had become dim, became vivid again.

Gu Jingnian turned to look at Wei Chan and asked, "It seems you're quite interested in what I'm looking for?"

Those sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes always reminded Wei Chan of the day in the library. At that time, Gu Jingnian was clearly disguised as Wei Qi, but in Wei Chan's memory, she could clearly see Gu Jingnian's eyebrows and eyes.

The last time they met, Gu Jingnian was looking for "The Records of Local Customs". After many years, when they met again, Gu Jingnian's strength had increased many times over, and Wei Chan was indeed very interested in how he had done it.

She knew the Kaiping Division too well; she knew they wouldn't easily lay an ambush on someone so carefully. This time, it must be because Gu Jingnian had some special value, possibly related to the alchemy she had always wanted to pursue.

“Yes,” Wei Chan readily admitted, “I’m very curious to know what you’re looking for. Why don’t you tell me what the wooden plaque is for?”

Gu Jingnian asked, "Why should I tell you?"

"I have no hostility."

Wei Chan was clearly hostile and determined to kill Gu Jingnian, yet at this moment she showed a cooperative attitude.

"Perhaps I can help you get that wooden plaque?"

(End of this chapter)