Tang Dynasty Hidden Guards

In the morning, Xue Wei arrived at the imperial city as usual. As soon as he reached Xingjin Bridge, he saw Zuo Qingling.

"I went to your house to look for you, but you weren't there. The bedroom doors and windows were smashed, and there was blood all over the floor. What happened?"

"Is it Yuan Min looking for me?"

"Yes! I reported it to her. She's in a hurry to see you and asked me to wait for you here."

Xue Wei nodded. "I'll go with you!"

Zuo Qingling mounted her horse, and the two quickly arrived at the main branch of Qingfeng Restaurant in Nanshi.

As soon as he arrived at Mingyue Tower, he saw Yuan Min waiting at the entrance. Upon seeing Xue Wei, she immediately ran up and asked, "Old Xue, what happened?"

Xue Wei asked with a smile, "You used to call me Old Xue?"

Yuan Min glared at him. "This isn't the time to talk about this. Come upstairs with me!"

The two went up to the fourth floor and entered the room. Yuan Min suddenly turned around and hugged him, which happened to tighten around his wound. Xue Wei's face changed color in pain.

Yuan Min was shocked. "You... what's wrong with you?"

"I got a minor injury!"

"Where are you hurt? Let me see."

Xue Wei took off his robe, revealing his upper body. Yuan Min blushed slightly, but she didn't care about being shy and quickly checked her wound. She was stunned.

"How did you get this wound?"

"I found a blacksmith shop and had him brand the wound with a red-hot iron, which stopped the bleeding."

"Red-hot iron!"

Yuan Min was so heartbroken that tears streamed down her face. "Are you crazy? This is a scar for life."

She turned around and called out, "Qingling!"

Zuo Qingling strode in, and Yuan Min pointed to the burn, "Quickly help him treat the wound."

Zuo Qingling was also startled. She quickly found a medicine box and skillfully applied medicine and bandaged Xue Wei.

Yuan Min, who had been watching from the side, suddenly whispered, "You actually wanted to get rid of that rabbit?"

Xue Wei looked at her and nodded.

Zuo Qingling stepped back, and Yuan Min stepped forward and hugged him, whispering, "You fool!"

Xue Wei smiled, then felt a wave of dizziness. Yuan Min brought him a bowl of bird's nest porridge.

"Tell me the truth, has someone tried to assassinate you?"

Xue Wei nodded. "I killed five of the six assassins. The sixth one shot me with an arrow and escaped."

"How can you possibly defeat him? You don't know any martial arts!"

Xue Wei paused for a moment and said, "It was trained in the water dungeon. Don't ask about the details."

"Alright! I won't ask. Just tell me, who sent the assassin? Do you have any clues?"

Xue Wei then recounted the assassination attempt from the previous night in detail. Yuan Min frowned slightly, "Those five men were bounty hunters!"

"What bounty hunter?"

"They are a group of professional assassins, without wives or children, with no fixed abode, who specialize in killing for money. They are usually approached by brokers, and they themselves do not know who their employers are. Only by finding the broker can they find their employers. However, if the assassination fails, the broker will leave immediately."

Xue Wei shook his head. "No need to find the middleman, I know who did it!"

"You mean Wu Liankun?"

"It can only be him!"

Yuan Min witnessed Xue Wei defeat Wu Liankun at the casino. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Perhaps it was Wu Sansi. Since you didn't die in the water dungeon, he was afraid of your revenge, so he struck first."

Xue Wei smiled faintly, "Wu Sansi would send the Plum Blossom Guards, not low-level assassins like bounty hunters. It can only be Wu Liankun. However, the sixth assassin must have been sent by Wu Chongxun. Using Wu Liankun as a scapegoat, he will hide behind the scenes to deliver the final blow. It is very much in line with his style. He can relieve his father's burden and also get rid of his love rival. It can be described as killing two birds with one stone."

Yuan Min curled her lip. "What rival in love? Who does he even count for?"

Yuan Min suddenly remembered something, "How did they know where you live?"

"It was Manager Liu from the wine shop. He was threatened and had no choice but to tell the truth. He doesn't even know who the other person is. I've let him go. Can you find me a new manager?"

"No problem, I'll arrange a manager for you."

Yuan Min poured him a cup of tea, then took his hand and led him to sit down. "Let's put the assassin matter aside for now. Tell me, what did you say to Princess Taiping when you saw her yesterday afternoon?"

"It was indeed the Emperor who wanted to see me and see my other works. So I mentioned the Double Ninth Festival poem, and my mother said she would make arrangements for me to present the poem to the Emperor on the second day of the third lunar month."

"That's great. When the Emperor bestows his rewards, you should bring up the matter of pardoning your crime. She will definitely agree. Once the Emperor speaks up, Zhang Changzong will not dare to touch you again."

"Besides the poem for the Double Ninth Festival, should I prepare another poem?"

Yuan Min nodded. "It is indeed necessary. We need to prepare a few more poems so I can think carefully about which one best suits the Emperor's mood."

Xue Wei then asked with a smile, "Did you really call me Old Xue before?"

"Old Xue is what I called you when I was thirteen, and I've never changed it. Don't you like it?"

"No, I think it sounds quite nice, but you should call me Xue Lang or Wei Lang!"

Yuan Min looked into his eyes and said calmly, "Wei Lang is what Li Guo'er calls him, and Xue Lang is what Zhou Yinfeng calls him. I am not ashamed to associate with them."

Xue Wei was truly embarrassed and lowered his head, saying, "I'm sorry!"

Yuan Min shook her head. "We're already divorced. Let bygones be bygones! You don't need to apologize anymore."

Xue Wei immediately became anxious, "Then what are we now? And what did it mean when you hugged me just now?"

In a moment of impulsiveness, Xue Wei blurted out, "You...you've fallen for that Cui Shi, haven't you?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Xue Wei regretted them. They were hurtful, and he shouldn't have said them.

"I'm sorry, I spoke without thinking!"

Yuan Min glanced at him with a complicated expression, then slowly walked to the window. She leaned against the window railing and gazed out for a long time, her eyes slightly red.

"Are you angry?" Xue Wei stepped forward and asked in a low voice.

"I'm a little angry. You knew perfectly well that I didn't, yet you still said that."

"I was just afraid... afraid of losing you, so when you said, 'Let bygones be bygones! You don't need to say sorry anymore,' my heart sank."

Yuan Min wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, sighed, and said, "Old Xue, there are some things I really need to make clear to you. Although I'm helping you, I have no intention of remarrying you, at least not now. I'm just giving you a chance to prove your repentance. You have to make me believe in you, and that belief needs to be built up with small things, and it needs to be tested by time—six months, a year, or even longer. When I truly believe in you, we can talk about the future properly."

Xue Wei said in a low voice, "I'm willing to change, and I'm willing to give you time, but I'm afraid you'll fall for someone else."

Yuan Min turned around, poked his chest with her finger, and laughed, "Once bitten by a snake, twice shy. I was bitten hard by you, you fickle snake, and the wound hasn't healed yet. I won't fall in love with anyone else so easily again."

Xue Wei's nose suddenly stung with tears, and he hugged her tightly, as if he wanted to meld her into his very bones. He rested his chin on Yuan Min's shoulder and murmured with red eyes, "I'm not a fickle snake, I'm a rogue snake. From now on, I'm entangled with you, and you can't escape even if you want to."

"What a scoundrel!"

Yuan Min laughed and scolded him, patting him on the back, "You rascal brother, let go, I have something to say to you!"

Xue Wei released him, sniffed, and asked, "What did you say?"

Yuan Min's expression turned solemn. "Speaking of assassins, speaking of your safety, from now on you will live here and you are not allowed to leave until the Emperor summons you."

"What should I do if I need to practice polo?"

Yuan Min glared at him. "Why are you still practicing polo now? Besides, the qualifying rounds don't start until the fifth day of the third month. There's plenty of time. With your skills, qualifying will be a piece of cake."

"If the emperor wishes to summon me, how shall he notify me?"

"I'll take care of everything, you don't need to worry about these things."

"What about the spring outing?" Xue Wei asked again in a low voice.

Yuan Min looked apologetic and said softly, "The spring outing has been postponed to March. Besides, it will rain on Qingming Festival, so there's no point in going on a spring outing. I prefer to go out when the sun is shining. March is the best time for a spring outing."

Xue Wei looked around the room. "But this doesn't look like a place to sleep!"

"I won't mistreat you, you shameless snake. Come with me!"

Yuan Min smiled and took his hand as they walked out of the room. Pushing open the door next door, Xue Wei's eyes lit up immediately. It turned out to be a huge bedroom.

"This is my private territory. You are the first man to enter here. Next door there is a study, a washroom, a bathing room, a dining hall, and guards' quarters. The entire fourth floor is mine."

"What is a purification room?" Xue Wei asked curiously.

Yuan Min rolled her eyes at him. "Think for yourself!"

Xue Wei suddenly realized that it was a toilet, specifically the place where the toilet bowl was placed.

"Meals will be brought by maids, and Qingling will take care of your daily needs."

"I don't need her to come with you and protect you. Or, you can stay here tonight and I'll protect you."

Yuan Min sighed, "Your first sentence touched me, but your second sentence..."

"It makes your heart flutter, doesn't it?" Xue Wei replied with a smile.

"What a shameless snake!"

Yuan Min lightly punched his chest and laughed, "We'll see! If I'm in a good mood, I might chat with you tonight. Anyway, there are two bedrooms here, so we can keep to ourselves."

Suddenly, Yuan Min remembered something. She took Xue Wei's hand and said with a smile, "I'll show you something!"

She led Xue Wei to a cabinet on the right side of the bedroom window, opened the cabinet door, and inside was a large box. Yuan Min lifted the lid of the box, and Xue Wei was immediately startled to find a pitch-black hole inside.

"This is an emergency escape route. Jump down and you'll enter a very safe room. After you jump down, if you open the cover a second time, the opening will be gone, and you'll see a box of books. This was designed by Qingling's grandmother, Granny Zuo, who was a very famous mechanical master in Luoyang."

Xue Wei's eyes lit up. "Could you let me meet Granny Zuo? I'd like to learn a few tricks of mechanical arts."

Yuan Min smiled and said, "No need. Qing Ling is a master of mechanisms. I'll have her accompany you when you go out to work in the future."

Xue Wei suddenly remembered Zuo Qingling's white smoke escape technique, so that's where it came from.