The two people looked in Jiang Mian's direction. Under the effect of the rune, they only thought the young lady in front of them looked ordinary and had a very amiable smile.
"If you ask about the signature dishes of Baihui Tower, the top ones are the exquisite chicken, the fresh hui fish, and the fluffy cake," the woman said very amicably. "We usually come here to indulge our taste buds and always order one of them."
Jiang Mian then said to the waiter, "Then order all three of these dishes."
"Sure thing, two guests. Please wait a moment. You can listen to the storytelling in our building to pass the time. If you don't like this show, you can pay thirty wen to ask the storyteller to change the script." The waiter noted down the dishes the two had ordered and very considerately reminded them, then stepped back.
After starting the conversation, the two people opposite naturally struck up a conversation with Jiang Mian and Mo Zhizhang.
"Where are you two from? Why did you come to our Guangdu Town?" the woman asked.
Jiang Mian said, "My elder brother had a head injury and has been in a coma. Our whole family has been taking him around to seek medical treatment. Unfortunately, we've seen all the doctors in Guangdu Town, but none of them can do anything for him. We'll leave tomorrow and continue to look for a doctor for him."
After saying that, she let out a soft sigh. The two people opposite clearly showed a bit of pity on their faces.
"I've heard that there's a doctor surnamed Mo in Cangzhou City who is very skilled in medicine. You can go there," the man said.
Jiang Mian frowned, looking hesitant. "But... the world is so chaotic now. It seems like a war is about to break out. Cangzhou City may not be peaceful now. We've also heard that they're conscripting able - bodied men to expand the army outside. My elder brother and second brother are both gentle scholars. If they go to the battlefield, aren't they just going to their deaths?"
After saying that, she glanced at Mo Zhizhang beside her and sighed, shaking her head.
When it came to this matter, the two people opposite also sighed. The woman lowered her voice and echoed, "Who says it isn't? I'm also afraid that my husband will be conscripted. We just got married not long ago. I really can't bear to be separated from him."
Jiang Mian chatted with the woman for a few more sentences and casually said, "By the way, when we entered the city, the guards at the city gate were checking and arresting a woman named Jiang Mian. Do you know about this?"
When it came to this matter, the two of them had a lot to say.
"Of course we know. This matter has spread all over the city by now," the woman said. "I've heard that this woman is a quack doctor. The prescription she prescribed made the Crown Princess of the Southern Emperor suffer from abdominal pain, so she was wanted by the Crown Prince."
The storyteller on the stage slapped the gavel and was vividly telling the story of a scholar and a rich young lady.
The woman curled her lips and said, "However, I think this Doctor Jiang did a good thing."
Jiang Mian secretly exchanged a glance with Mo Zhizhang and casually said, "Oh? Why do you say so? Do you know this young Doctor Jiang or the Crown Princess?"
The woman moved closer to Jiang Mian, got together with her, and said mysteriously, "Speaking of the Crown Princess, there's a rumor recently that's really shocking. Do you know who this Crown Princess is? She's the legitimate daughter of Lord Ye, the Chief Secretary of the Southern Sheng Dynasty!"
"This Lord Ye was once the prefect of Cangzhou City eighteen years ago. Eighteen years ago, there was a flood in Cangzhou. Lady Ye, who was pregnant, took refuge in Ling'an Temple..."
The woman secretly told Jiang Mian the story of Lady Ye stealing and swapping the baby in Ling'an Temple.
"This Crown Princess is the child Lady Ye gave birth to in Ling'an Temple back then. According to reason, she should have died prematurely long ago. But the Ye family is so immoral that they let her take someone else's good fortune. Now she's living well. She deserves to suffer a bit."
Jiang Mian's eyes flickered.
Her mother's guess was actually right.
Xiao Yixuan had people post wanted notices about her everywhere. He was really after her good fortune!
"Since it's a secret from eighteen years ago, how do you know about it?" Jiang Mian deliberately asked. "This matter involves the reputation of the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess. Aren't you afraid that he'll pursue it?"
The woman scoffed. "This news was personally told by Master Huaihai of Ling'an Temple. He knew he had committed a serious sin. After exposing the true face of the Ye family, he took poison and committed suicide to atone for his sins. Although the Crown Prince has ordered others not to talk about this matter, paper can't wrap up fire after all. The Ye family has lost all their conscience. How can we let them have a good time?"
Hearing that Master Huaihai had committed suicide, Jiang Mian was surprised for a moment, then calmed down.
The words she left before leaving Ling'an Temple that day were indeed intended to make Master Huaihai make the truth public and let the world know what the Ye family and Lady Ye had done.
If it weren't for Master Huaihai's interference back then, Lady Ye wouldn't have been determined to take her away from her mother.
The sins Master Huaihai committed could never be washed away. Committing suicide after making the truth public was his own choice, not forced by her.
"But the matter of stealing the child was done by Lady Ye. The Crown Princess was just a baby at that time. She had no way to stop or interfere in this matter. She should be considered innocent, right?" the woman's husband interrupted. "Why have so much malice towards a woman?"
"You men don't understand anything," the woman couldn't help but pinch him. "She didn't know eighteen years ago, but doesn't she know now? If she were really innocent, why didn't she say this matter earlier? Instead, she married the Crown Prince. If it weren't for Master Huaihai, who would have known that the Ye family had such thoughts?"
These words made Jiang Mian feel happy and relaxed her eyebrows.
That's right. Ye Wanxing didn't know eighteen years ago, but what about now?
Ye Wanxing had taken away her good fortune and even wanted to kill her mother. She was not innocent at all.
She really wished that what she had put in the medicine back then was not coptis but arsenic, so that she could poison Ye Wanxing earlier.
To prevent the two of them from talking too much, Jiang Mian timely changed the topic and asked them about the current situation outside. Hearing that Emperor Guiyuan had never responded to the war, Jiang Mian also roughly had a judgment in her heart.
The wanted notices in the city were only aimed at her and didn't mention Xiao Jingcheng or Xiao Wuchen. It seemed that Dongli Town was still safe.
And now the tense situation between the north and the south was mostly created by Emperor Nansheng alone. In the eyes of Emperor Beisheng, Emperor Nansheng was not a threat at all.
Well, if Xiao Jingcheng's father were really capable, how could he have been so easily deprived of the throne by Emperor Guiyuan, forced to abandon his wife, and flee from the capital with Concubine Feng?
Moreover, he didn't care about his wife and legitimate son at all. After proclaiming himself emperor in Cangzhou, he made Xiao Yixuan the Crown Prince. Did he think that Xiao Jingcheng was already dead, or did he not take Xiao Jingcheng seriously at all?
With such a father, she really felt sorry for Xiao Jingcheng.