NCCnovel Chapter 421 Attracting bees and butterflies
Chapter 421 Attracting bees and butterflies
Xie Jingyao's eyes shone brightly, his gaze fixed on Yu Wan, full of anticipation.
Like an enthusiastic little dog.
Yu Wan couldn't refuse Xie Jingyao at all, so she could only nod in agreement.
Xie Jingyao's friends are all like-minded people like him, and Yu Wan has grown quite fond of them after spending time with them.
These young men all served as officials in the imperial court, but their positions were not high, and like Xie Jingyao, they were extremely disgusted by the power-grabbing and inaction of aristocratic families.
During the hunt, the boys weren't idle either. They would occasionally discuss people's livelihoods, offering their own suggestions. The more they talked, the more excited they became. However, at the height of their excitement, they would complain as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over their heads:
“We are of lowly status and have little influence. What use are our countless policies for governing the country? Those powerful families who control the government are inactive and unwilling to give us a chance to rise to prominence.”
These people are in the most difficult situation.
One cannot remain inactive, otherwise one will be seen as incompetent and can be replaced at any time;
However, if one is too proactive and displays outstanding talent, one will be suppressed by powerful families.
Only by striking the right balance can one survive in officialdom.
They were constantly on guard, and their passion was almost completely worn away.
The person closest to Yu Wan was a young man named Gu Jing. He was handsome with a heroic air about him. At this moment, his face was full of helplessness and indignation: "Take the memorial I submitted last time, which concerned the people's water conservancy and livelihood, for example. It was just casually shelved by those aristocratic officials without even a response."
"The frequent droughts, floods, and locust plagues in the past two years are, in my opinion, warnings from Heaven, reminding us that if we continue to let these scourges poison the Great Zhao, the Great Zhao will perish sooner or later."
Upon hearing this, Yu Wan raised an eyebrow and looked at him with great interest, "You believe in these things?"
Gu Jing felt a sense of connection with Shang Yuwan when he saw her looking at him with interest. He rode his horse closer and whispered, "I believe you, but my father and the elders in my family forbid me from saying these things."
"But I believe that all things have a spirit. We are all part of this world, and human life should not be divided into high and low, noble and lowly. But nowadays, powerful families do not value the lives of ordinary people at all, so Heaven must be dissatisfied."
"That's why he sent down divine punishment as a warning to these aristocratic families."
Yu Wan never expected to hear the words "human life is not divided into high and low, noble and lowly" from a fictional character.
She realized once again that the world was not just about the characters depicted in the original work, but that there were many more real people in the world.
They are not controlled by the plot; they are real people who exist in this era.
Yu Wan couldn't bear to tell him that the frequent droughts, floods, and locust plagues in recent years were all set up by the original author to give the male protagonist merits and promotions.
However, Gu Jing's understanding is roughly the same.
For them, the storyline is equivalent to the will of Heaven.
Yu Wan thought for a moment and then praised him directly, "You're so smart, what you said makes a lot of sense."
Gu Jingxu had never been praised so directly by a woman before, and her face flushed instantly. Her voice became even softer, "I... I'm not that smart..."
He glanced at Yu Wan cautiously, his eyes shining, and said softly, "I admire Miss Yu even more... I've heard about your story. If it were an ordinary woman, she would have been completely devastated by what she's experienced, but Miss Yu is still so vibrant and full of life..."
Gu Jing couldn't help but recall the scene of Yu Wan riding a horse at full speed just now.
The girl had a bright and cheerful smile on her face, with lush green trees and a dazzling sun behind her; she seemed to be walking on light.
Yu Wan watched as Gu Jing's face grew redder and redder as he spoke.
Yu Wan: Could it be what she's thinking?
Not far away, Xie Jingyao watched the two chatting happily, a kind smile like that of an old mother on her face.
Previously, he had occasionally mentioned his cousin Wan to Gu Jing, and Gu Jing would often praise her without reservation.
Seeing how well the two got along, Xie Jingyao was secretly pleased.
It's unexpected that the two of them would have such a connection.
Although the Gu family is not among the top-ranking nobles in the court, they still have some wealth. If my cousin Wan could marry Gu Jing, it would be a good match.
He knew Gu Jing's character very well; he would never mind that his cousin was a second-time bride.
Xie Jingyao pondered to himself, his smile growing even wider.
……
Yu Wan was completely unaware of Xie Jingyao's ulterior motives.
Xie Jingyao's promise to help relieved her a little, but she was worried that Li Zhuoyue would send people to harass her again, so she sent a few more guards to the Yun residence to keep an eye on things.
The afternoon hunt was quite strenuous, and after washing up, Yu Wan fell into a deep sleep as soon as she touched the bed.
Xizhu slept in the outer room. She had been on edge all day while riding the horse, and was now fast asleep.
She was completely unaware that a wisp of clothing had gently swayed past her.
Yu Wan didn't like to turn off all the lights when she slept alone, so an oil lamp was lit by her bedside. The dim, yellowish light cast a faint, blurry shadow on the floor.
The figure moved slowly toward the bed like a ghost, its footsteps so light they made no sound.
Yu Wan was sleeping so soundly that she didn't notice that there was another person in the room.
Perhaps because the blanket was a bit thick, she didn't sleep very well. After a while, she kicked the blanket off completely, hugged it tightly with both hands and feet, lay sprawled on the bed without any regard for her image, and even snored softly.
Yun Shang frowned slightly.
His gaze swept lightly over the girl's snow-white neck, and he reached out and gently pushed her arm.
Unaware of anything, Yu Wan was pushed and rolled over to the side, curling up like a lazy cat and continuing to sleep soundly, completely oblivious to everything around her.
Yun Shang: ...
She was sleeping so soundly that she didn't even know she'd been kidnapped.
He sat helplessly on the edge of the bed and covered her with the blanket.
But Yu Wan didn't seem to appreciate it, and soon turned over and kicked off the blanket.
Yun Shang simply let her have her way.
The candlelight flickered dimly, and Yun Shang gazed at her quietly for a while, his cool eyes filled with tenderness.
He couldn't resist reaching out his fingertip and gently rubbing it against her pink lips.
Yu Wan wrinkled her nose and unconsciously hummed twice, as if in protest, before falling silent again.
Yun Shang: ...
He refused to believe it and simply lowered his head, pressing his lips to hers.
A gust of wind seemed to be blowing outside the window, making a rustling sound.
Yun Shang thought Yu Wan should be awake by now, but to her surprise, the person still showed no reaction.
He was somewhat annoyed, and a strange emotion flashed in his eyes.
He opened his mouth directly and gently bit down on those bright red lips. The force wasn't strong, but it was enough to make Yu Wan feel pain.
Yu Wan was indeed jolted awake by the pain, and her eyes snapped open.
She was still half asleep when she saw someone in front of her, and her eyes widened instantly.
Before the brain could even react, the body instinctively wanted to lift its foot and kick down to the groin!