Chapter 490 - 186: People Look Alike (Part 2)
Chapter 490: Chapter 186: People Look Alike (Part 2)
’But if he was interested, he should have tried to get along with her properly. What on earth was Brother De’an doing?’
’He’d been hovering around Kaiyan the entire way, annoying Miss Sheng so much that she glared at him several times.’
’It was all too much. The romantic entanglements of adults were a complete mystery, enough to make her head spin.’
Two soldiers stood guard before the entrance to the City God Temple.
The soldiers didn’t stop people from ascending the mountain, but they scrutinized everyone who did to ensure they posed no threat.
They naturally recognized Sheng Saya. After greeting her respectfully, one of them said, "The Lord Prefect is in the back hills meeting a junior from the Capital City. If you’re looking for him, you should head back there."
Sheng Saya had no intention of finding her father, much less meeting this junior of his.
She went with Zhang Lingxin, Xiang’er, Wang Zhen, and De’an to the plum grove, while Chen Wanqing and Zhao Jing headed to the main hall to get peace charms.
The main hall was crowded with people burning incense, and countless more were there for peace charms.
Chen Wanqing made a sizable donation of incense money to get served sooner, obtaining a peace charm for each member of her family.
As she was about to leave, she felt an urge to have her fortune told.
Zhao Jing smiled and pulled her back. "It’s better to rely on yourself than on the gods," he said. "If immortals could manage all the affairs of the mortal world, there wouldn’t be so many unresolved sorrows. Besides, you’ve already asked for enough, Wanqing. Asking for more would be greedy."
Chen Wanqing let him lead her away. "I’m not being greedy," she said. "I wasn’t going to ask for anything else. I just wanted to see whether my fortune would be good or ill."
"Still worried about Father?"
"Yes."
"You don’t have to be so worried, Wanqing. Barring any surprises, a fight is unlikely to break out before the new year. No matter how rampant the water bandits get, they know better than to fight the government. With an official order out for their capture, they’re most likely to go into hiding, not run out and cause trouble when they know a trap is being laid for them."
"You can’t be sure about that. The men who become water bandits are all desperate and vicious criminals. They might have some fear of the government, but that fear only goes so far. It’s also possible they’ll deliberately cause trouble just to provoke the authorities—to show off their own power and the government’s incompetence."
"You have a point."
"...Whose side are you on, anyway?"
"I’m not on any side... Wanqing, look. Who’s that?"
Chen Wanqing followed Zhao Jing’s pointing finger and saw an old man of about sixty walking slowly in their direction, accompanied by a young man of about twenty.
The old man’s beard was graying and his back was slightly stooped, but he exuded a natural air of authority that told anyone at a glance that he was a person of great importance.
Looking closely at his face, she felt a flicker of familiarity. Wasn’t there a slight resemblance to Sheng Saya?
Recalling that the Lord Prefect was at the City God Temple, it was obvious who the old man was.
"Is that Mr. Sheng?" Chen Wanqing asked in a low voice.
Zhao Jing nodded slightly. "I didn’t want you to look at Mr. Sheng. Look at the young man beside him."
"What is it? Is something wrong?"
"Just look, and you’ll see."
Chen Wanqing carefully studied the young man walking beside Mr. Sheng.
The young man wore a brocade robe and a purple sable cloak. A golden crown was fastened in his hair, he had on cloud-patterned boots, and a sachet jade pendant hung from his waist. His bearing was elegant, his posture ramrod straight, and his features fine and noble. One look was all it took to know he was a young lord, raised in the lap of luxury.
"That’s a nice golden crown," she murmured. "Once I’ve made my fortune, I’ll buy one for you, too."
Being a modest woman, Chen Wanqing’s gaze only swept over the man for a moment before she looked away.
Her comment drew a stifled laugh from Zhao Jing. He took her hand and reminded her, "Look closely at his face."
"Isn’t that improper?"
"It’s fine. Go on, take a good look."
Reassured, Chen Wanqing took a bold look. And when she did, she froze.
It was for one simple reason: the man’s features were somewhat feminine.
But that wasn’t the crucial part. After all, the world had plenty of men with delicate, womanly features.
What was truly startling was that the more closely Chen Wanqing looked, the more her heart pounded. In the young man’s face, she could faintly see the shadow of her mother, Xu Su Ying.
"There’s at least a fifty-percent resemblance," she murmured.
She herself also bore a fifty-percent resemblance to her mother.
Although she and the young man resembled Xu Su Ying in different ways, if they were to stand side-by-side, anyone with discerning eyes would immediately suspect they were related by blood.
Chen Wanqing’s grip on Zhao Jing’s hand tightened instantly.
"The soldier at the gate said the Lord Prefect was meeting a junior from the Capital City," she whispered. "This man is from the Capital City."
"It would seem so."
"Mother was in the Capital City before, too..."
Chen Wanqing asked no more, but her mind was in utter turmoil.