Daily life in the academy

Ye Yanliang, who had been waiting at the entrance of the academy for a long time, saw Bai Zhi limping over and hurriedly went to meet her. He asked with concern, "Brother Bai, what's wrong with your leg?"

"It's nothing. I was in a hurry and fell down. I'll be fine after a while."

Bai Zhi waved her hand to signal him not to worry, and seeing that he insisted on supporting her, she felt at ease and leaned most of her weight on him.

Because of her knee injury, Bai Zhi just cleaned up in a tavern that night and worked as an ordinary waiter. She did not solicit customers like last time. Ye Sanniang also learned from Ye Yanliang that she had a leg injury. She showed her sincere concern and said that if she really felt uncomfortable, she could go to the backyard to rest, and her wages for today would be calculated.

Bai Zhi naturally wouldn't really go to the backyard to rest. She waited until closing time and returned to the house before she carried Ye Yanliang to check the condition of her two knees. Fortunately, the skin was not broken, but it was bruised. It would just hurt for a few days, but it was not a big problem.

The pain in her knees made Bai Zhi sleep very uneasily. In a daze, she seemed to be back in Shunyimen. A cold knife pierced her chest and abdomen. She felt her body slowly getting colder and her consciousness gradually blurred. The fear of death violently tugged at her heart. Her breathing was about to stop. She couldn't help but scream, "Ah——" and grabbed the quilt and sat up on the couch.

Ye Yanliang was awakened by her scream and asked hurriedly: "Brother Bai, what's wrong with you?"

Bai Zhi felt her heartbeat slowly slowing down. She raised her hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead and said in a hoarse voice, "It's okay. I just bumped into the wound when I turned over."

"Oh." Ye Yanliang glanced out the window. It was still pitch black. He yawned and muttered, "It's still early, Brother Bai. You should get some more sleep."

"Ah."

Bai Zhi responded softly, but did not go back to sleep. Her back was already soaked.

I had that nightmare of being killed again, and this time it felt even more real than the last time.

The temperature was still very low, and Bai Zhi did not bring any change of clothes. However, she was not sleepy either, so she leaned against the wall and lost in thought.

Perhaps this dream is a warning?

Both times happened after she came into contact with An Ziqian. Even if she was stupid, she could understand that there must be a connection between the two. As for what kind of connection it was and why this dream became more and more real, Bai Zhi had no idea.

Unable to figure out the problem, she dozed off for a while in a daze. When it was dawn, the crowing of a rooster woke Baizhi up. She stretched her legs and the pain in her knees was much relieved, and she felt better.

After filling their stomachs and strolling around the street, the pub opened for business. Because Baizhi had a leg injury, she was not as diligent as last time in soliciting customers at the door, and just entertained and welcomed guests as usual.

There weren't many people on the street at noon, and those who came in to eat and drink were in groups of three or four. There were only two or three tables occupied in the restaurant.

Bai Zhi had been standing for a long time and her legs were no longer able to bear it, so she pulled Ye Yanliang to sit at the table at the door, ready to welcome guests at any time.

There happened to be three men sitting at the table behind them. From what they were talking about, they were talking about where they were working as long-term laborers and complaining about their employer being stingy.

Bai Zhi thought that there are people complaining about the boss everywhere, and was about to withdraw her attention when she heard them change the subject and move on to the incident of Yan Qingchen and Xiao Qingyu's downfall.

"Don't tell the master, if someone hears it, you might lose your job."

"Yes, come, drink."

"However, when I was working in the courtyard that day, I heard the masters talking about something. Do you know the Prince of Ning and Master Xiao from Princess Zhaoyue's mansion?"

"Hey, who doesn't know this? They're notorious bullies and playboys. If you want to talk about what happened to them in Tianxiang Pavilion half a year ago, just stop. That story would have spread a long time ago."

"No, no, it was just a few days ago on the Li Mountain behind the Yunlu Academy. The two of them made a bet on horse racing. Prince Ning was fine, but Master Xiao broke his leg. Both families went to the Emperor, each insisting that the other had framed them."

"Both sides are royal relatives, so the emperor must be in a dilemma."

"You're talking about this matter. I heard about it a few days ago. It is said that two people who committed the crime were arrested and taken to the Ministry of Justice prison by Master Wen of the Ministry of Justice's family."

"Now that the culprit has been caught, shouldn't the case be resolved quickly? Looking at you like this, what else is going on?"

"Who says it isn't true? But those two were fine when they went in, and within two hours, they died in prison."

"He was forced to confess?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Minister Wen is famous for his fairness and never makes false judgments. How could he have been forced into confessing?"

"Then why do you think people died in prison for unknown reasons?"

"That's not important. What's important is the dispute between Prince Ning and Young Master Xiao. Then the Emperor issued a decree, ordering the most formidable physician in the palace, Imperial Physician Chen, to heal Young Master Xiao's leg. However, because he had made a bet and needed to calm down during the healing period, he ended up confining Young Master Xiao for another six months."

"Those with broken legs are grounded for six months, so Prince Ning will be grounded for a year, right? That's great. I won't have to worry about getting beaten up for no reason in the future."

"No, Prince Ning was only confined for five days."

"I was saying that the rumor in Sheng'an City was that the Emperor favored Prince Ning over his own son. Now it seems to be true. Everyone is suspecting that Prince Ning is the Emperor's illegitimate son."

"Hush, keep your voice down. Aren't you afraid of losing your head? How dare you spread such nonsense? You don't even know that the Prince of Ning clearly looks so much like the previous Crown Prince. Rumor has it that the Emperor and the previous Crown Prince had a very good relationship. But... hey, it's better not to spread these things nonsense, or you'll lose your head. I only heard bits and pieces from the master's family."

"Your master...should know a lot more. Hey, let's stop talking about these horrific things. Let's drink quickly. We'll be back to work this afternoon."

Although the three of them lowered their voices later, Bai Zhi was sitting at the table next to them. There were not many guests in the room, so she heard everything. She didn't expect the follow-up of the downfall incident to be like this. Yan Qingchen's favor involved the secrets of the palace. The former prince had a very good relationship with the emperor... It was obviously referring to the time when the previous emperor was still a prince.

If the emperor knew that An Ziqian was his eldest brother's posthumous son, wouldn't he dote on him even more?

After thinking about it, Bai Zhi felt that it was impossible. The emperor's love for Yan Qingchen was obviously out of a self-righteous compensation for a debt, and everyone knew it tacitly. But once the window paper was broken, after knowing An Ziqian's true identity, the emperor would definitely want to get rid of him as soon as possible. After all, feeling guilty and giving up the throne are two different things.

As for Yan Qingchen's favor, it was not only because of his appearance, but also because he would not pose any threat to the throne. Just imagine, who would be more convincing, the Prince of Ning who was full of bad reputation in Sheng'an City or a prince who was both virtuous and talented?