The wood carving was taken away by Qiu Che, and Li Qingwu did not ask her to return it.
When he woke up the next day, Qiu Che saw an exquisitely wrapped gift box at the bedside. Inside was a carving knife that was exactly the same as the one he remembered in his previous life.
This knife is sharp, delicate and small, retractable, and has a very novel shape. It is ideal for wood carving.
Because it is cleverly made, it is also very good for self-defense.
Thinking of Yaotai's head full of new ideas, Qiu Che probably knew whose advice Li Qingwu had taken to design the gift in his previous life.
None of them mentioned what happened last night, and Li Qingwu seemed to have finally given up on pursuing an answer.
The two returned to the state of mutual respect they had at the beginning.
Li Qingwu's shop was renovated and officially opened for more than a month. He started with clothes, and because of its novel styles, it was gradually passed on by word of mouth among the ladies and young ladies in the capital.
After a month, the income was already quite considerable, and those clothes with bright colors and novel styles were slowly becoming a trend in the city.
The good thing is that Li Qingwu has to count the money every day until his hands are tired. The bad thing is that because "Zhu Yan" has become too famous recently, it is inevitable that he has to share other people's cake. Some people are unwilling to accept this and start spreading rumors around the capital.
It was said that the owner of the shop was a woman, who did not take good care of her husband and children after getting married, but instead came out to cheat people out of their money.
Secondly, the materials of these clothes are not solid, the styles are a mess, and some of them even show arms and legs, which are only worn by prostitutes in brothels. Yet they dare to put them on display and sell them to girls from decent families... and so on and so forth, which is simply immoral.
This kind of talk quickly spread throughout the city, and Li Qingwu's business suddenly slowed down.
Even though some of the ladies knew clearly that Zhu Yan was being targeted, they were still inevitably affected by the rumors and did not dare to step into the shop again.
What's more, they didn't know that the one they called "Madam Zhu Yan" was actually the eldest princess of the current dynasty.
Qiu Che couldn't give her any help in these matters, but when he heard the so-called rumors, he couldn't help but frown again.
There are many people who don't like them, but
Prime Minister Wu, like her, is now in the spotlight and receiving much attention from the emperor. He should not dare to spread such rumors that do not cause any substantial harm.
Qiu Che could only think of one person - the one who knew that the owner of those shops was Li Qingwu and was able to spread rumors on such a large scale... could only be the emperor himself.
Although he favored Qiu Che on the surface, while he was satisfied with Qiu Che, he couldn't help but be wary of her.
However, Li Qingwu, the only "bargaining chip" in his hand that he thinks can give him some leverage over the other party, has recently shown signs of separating from the competition and working on his own.
Qiu Che suspected that the emperor was afraid that if he let them do what they wanted for too long, he would no longer be able to control them.
It would be better to suppress Li Qingwu's momentum first and let her know that it is because of my kindness that she can live such a comfortable life now.
Qiu Che told Li Qingwu about his guess, but the other party didn't look too surprised. He must have guessed it a long time ago.
The two sides looked at each other in silence.
It seems that I have to go on this autumn hunting trip.
September 1st, autumn hunting day, sunny.
Records of the Grand Historian: The Emperor and Two Empresses
He and his sons, ministers, and their families followed in a large and long procession to the Nanyuan hunting ground in Jinzhou.
At that time, Qiu Xiang, who was still the Minister of Dali Temple, and his wife Le He were also on the list.
The night before departure, Yaotai found the two and asked them, "Do you really have to go?"
There was a hint of worry between her eyebrows, Qiu Che saw it, and looked at Li Qingwu. Li Qingwu nodded: "...What's wrong?"
"I'm observing the celestial phenomena at night. I'm afraid your trip is likely to be dangerous," Yaotai said jokingly, "If you want to go, you might as well take me with you."
Qiu Che looked her over and over: "...you?"
Although Yaotai's head is full of wonderful ideas, and she can always bring them some surprises that break through the limitations of their thinking, she herself is powerless and cannot protect herself.
He is not even as good as Li Qingwu, who is now being taught well by Qiu Che.
Otherwise, she would not have been completely powerless to resist and would not have been forced by Yuan Fu.
Yaotai understood the implication of her words, but was not annoyed. He just laughed and scolded: "I don't need you to protect me, just take care of yourself."
Li Qingwu understood Qiu Che's meaning and said tactfully, "If you go, and something goes wrong, you have to protect them."
None of them were the kind to abandon their allies and escape alone.
Yaotai raised his eyebrows: "...Do you think that my conversation with Young Master Yang during this period was in vain?"
"His father is the famous Prince Zhao. Although he is a scholar, he is not too bad in martial arts. It is enough for him to protect me."
Li Qingwu understood.
She looked at Qiu Che, her expression vaguely helpless.
Qiu Che's eyes swept over her expression, which was rarely lively these days, and he thought for a moment and said, "It's up to you."
So Yaotai set out early and arrived near the hunting ground in Jinzhou the day before.
The Nanyuan Hunting Ground is very large, slightly larger than the Imperial City. It is a new hunting ground built when the previous emperor was alive.
Qiu Che had come here several times with Li Shi in his previous life, but that was several years later than the present timeline.
As far as I can remember, nothing major happened during the autumn hunt that year.
But Yaotai's inexplicably worried look kept appearing in Qiu Che's mind on the way here.
She always felt that Yaotai was a mysterious person, as if she knew something in advance, but sometimes her predictions seemed inaccurate.
Just like in her previous life, none of the several future predictions Yaotai made for her were correct.
Maybe it is true as Yaotai herself said, she is just a half-baked fortune teller.
Thinking of this, Qiu Che shook his head and looked forward.
The royal flag fluttered in the air, and the entire team was heavily protected by the Jinwu Guards.
There was no possibility of any danger.
It took half a day to reach the Jinzhou hunting ground. Everyone settled down in the hunting camp for a while. Soon, the emperor changed into the armor specially used by the emperor for hunting.
As a representative, Li Shi was the first to mount his horse, holding a bow and arrow, and under the heavy protection of the Jinwu Guards, he took several trusted young ministers and went deep into the forest.
He originally wanted to call Qiu Che, but because female members of the family were not allowed to enter, Qiu Che was afraid that something might happen to Li Qingwu if he was left alone, so after a short hesitation, he declined the emperor's request on the grounds of feeling unwell.
Li Shi looked at her meaningfully, but didn't say anything.
He rode away.
On the surface, the two of them didn't say much (), but as soon as they entered the door? ()_[()]? "Come []. Read the latest chapter. Full chapter" (), Li Qingwu sighed and said: "You don't have to be so cautious... I have the ability to protect myself now. If you are really afraid that something will really happen to me, I can also go to Yaotai."
Most of the Nanyuan Hunting Ground is on the mountain, and there happens to be a Taoist temple on the mountain. Yaotai arrived a day in advance and rested in the Taoist temple.
"You rejected my father in person like this," Li Qingwu paused and said softly, "I'm afraid he will have a grudge against you because of me."
Qiu Che wanted to say: But Iâm worried.
But if you think about it carefully, what Li Qingwu said is actually not wrong.
She was too concerned about the so-called "crisis" in Yaotai's words, but now that everyone was watching, she couldn't always stay with Li Qingwu.
It was a rare opportunity for the other party to go out for fun during this period of time, so it might not be convenient for her to follow him all the time.
So the worry in Qiu Che's heart was quickly overwhelmed by reason.
She thought that she had been confused by Li Qingwu's confession of love to her recently, and when it was time to think about serious matters, she was unable to think straight.
Both parties were silent for a while, and finally Qiu Che sighed and compromised: "Then I will go to talk to His Majesty later... You must be careful."
Li Qingwu nodded: "Okay."
Three days before the autumn hunt, the weather was calm.
The emperor summoned Li Qingwu to have a private talk. The Jinyiwei were heavily guarding outside and no one knew what they talked about.
However, it was obvious that the conversation was not pleasant and the father and daughter ended up parting on bad terms.
Li Qingwu looked normal when he came out, but the emperor had a sullen face. He glanced in Qiu Che's direction, and no one knew what he was thinking.
Soon he turned his sleeves and went back to the house.
That night, the two still slept together - yes, even after what happened before, neither of them suggested sleeping in separate rooms.
During the autumn hunting these days, they all slept with their feet touching.
Qiu Che asked her what she had told the emperor.
Li Qingwu was silent for a long time.
Just when Qiu Che thought she would not answer again, the other party's next sentence instantly woke her drowsy head.
"He asked me to poison you."
Qiu Che found it somewhat amusing, even though he knew that Li Qingwu was not someone so foolish as to directly obey orders, and since the other party had said it, he must have already refused.
But I was still inexplicably nervous: "How did you reply?"
Li Qingwu smiled softly: "I said I like you, but I can't do it."
But Qiu Che couldn't laugh now.
Her back was turned to Li Qingwu, so she couldn't see the expression on his face when he said this.
But listening to it, I feel much calmer than when I first said it.
Qiu Che thought hesitantly, is it too late for her to pretend to be asleep now?
But Li Qingwu still had no intention of waiting for her reply. After saying this, he became quiet again.
Only Qiu Che was left in the darkness, listening to his own heartbeat, which was getting louder and louder.
There was no more conversation that night.
On the fourth day of the autumn hunt, something unexpected happened.
The emperor went out hunting today and only brought two princes with him. Qiu Che stayed in the hunting camp.
But it happened that Li Qingwu stayed in the camp for three days, just embroidering with those young ladies and gossiping about the backyard.
Because he was afraid that she would be bored, Qiu Che sent a message yesterday, asking Yaotai to take her for a walk around the Taoist temple.
Today, Qiu Che and Wu Yiqi had some free time, so they went to an open space at the foot of the mountain to practice martial arts.
When she heard the news that Li Qingwu was in trouble, she was unable to retract her dagger and almost scratched Wu Yiqi's face.
Wu Yiqi jumped up with lingering fear, but he had no intention of complaining about her ruthlessness.
He turned his head and saw an unfamiliar guard, his black clothes mostly soaked with blood on his chest.
His face was pale, and he could barely support himself to walk. When he saw Qiu Che, he knelt on the ground and said anxiously, "My Lord Prince Consort."
"Your Highness has been held hostage. The other party wants you to go there in person before they will release him."
Qiu Che put away the dagger that Li Qingwu had just given her but that she used very easily, and scanned the wound on his chest with a cold face: "...Do you recognize who it is?"
Fu Feng moved his lips, his face full of dejection and resentment: "Former Jinwu Guard Commander, Yuan Fu."
If it weren't for this person, he would never have allowed someone to kidnap His Highness from him.
No matter how much Yuan Fu's prestige was destroyed, he was still the commander of the Jinwu Guard, and his martial arts attainments were one level higher than his.
Wu Yiqi exclaimed: "He is not dead?!"!