After dismounting and leading them into the government office, Song Qiming began asking questions the moment he sat down.
"The memorial was just sent off yesterday, and you're already here. Did Lord Gu have some important instructions?"
"Huh?" The aunt and nephew looked bewildered.
What memorial?
Realizing what he meant, Gu Baozhu quickly explained, "Jinghong and I have been traveling leisurely from Songzhou City for the past few days, enjoying the scenery. We don't know anything about a memorial."
Song Qiming replied, "I see. I thought you had traveled day and night to get here."
It seemed Gu Zhongxun's reply to the memorial would likely arrive in a few days.
As the food was set on the table, Gu Jinghong slowly chewed his rice and pressed Song Qiming with a question.
"How severe is Yang Cenan's brain injury? Yang Ruiping values this son the most; he is the next patriarch of the Yang clan of Panzhou."
A meatball dropped onto the table as Song Jinzhao raised her eyes to stare at Gu Jinghong.
"Is that confirmed, or just a rumor?"
Gu Jinghong hesitated for a long moment before answering, "It's not officially confirmed yet, but compared to his other two sons, Yang Cenan is highly regarded by Yang Ruiping."
The sister and brother both fell silent.
No wonder Huo Chong targeted Yang Cenan. It turned out he was the next heir.
Seeing the two remain silent for so long, Gu Jinghong's curiosity was thoroughly piqued.
He slapped his knee and urged Song Qiming, "Lord Song, just how badly is he injured? Can he be cured?"
Song Qiming turned his gaze toward Song Jinzhao.
To what extent he could be cured still depended on his older sister.
Song Jinzhao slowly and methodically picked up a piece of cabbage heart with her chopsticks and placed it in her bowl.
"The superficial wounds will heal in a month, but the chances of completely curing the lingering effects of his brain injury are very slim. It will definitely affect him to some degree in the future."
Stiff facial muscles could be passed off as a cold, stoic expression, but a sluggish reaction time wouldn't be so easy to cover up.
Setting aside whether Yang Ruiping would mind, his other two brothers would certainly seize upon this flaw and make a huge deal out of it.
As rumors spread, even the smallest issue would be exaggerated into a massive problem.
His position as the heir would be in jeopardy.
A flurry of hurried footsteps came from outside. Shi Simian unfortunately tripped over the threshold and fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
Grimacing in pain, he scrambled up, hurried over to Song Qiming, and cupped his hands to report.
"My Lord, the guards at the city gate have reported that Zeng Boyan, a Flying Cavalry Commandant under the Pacification Commissioner of Panzhou, has arrived outside the city with thirty armored cavalrymen. He says he wants to enter the city to find Yang Cenan."
Song Qiming abruptly stood up, his brows furrowed tightly.
"Have they been let in?"
Shi Simian shook his head. "Not yet. They are all carrying weapons, so the guards didn't dare let them through and stopped them."
Song Qiming took a deep breath. "Have Yang Zhong go over to identify them, and dispatch another fifty guards from the government office to the gate."
Before his words could even fade, Song Qiming suddenly moved to stand again.
"No, I need to go see for myself."
Song Jinzhao said, "Have Lanxi go guard the clinic. Don't let Shixue be in any danger."
Song Qiming nodded and walked briskly outside. The aunt and nephew sitting opposite them quickly got up and followed.
"County Princess, we will go take a look too."
Their voices trailed off and drifted away with the wind. Song Jinzhao also lost her appetite.
"Is Zeng Qing's son named Zeng Boyan?"
Qingshuang nodded and answered, "I believe that is his name."
Leaning back against her chair, Song Jinzhao narrowed her eyes and asked, "Have Qu Ya and Guan Nianshan been behaving themselves lately?"
A faint smile appeared on Qingshuang's lips.
"Qu Ya works quietly and rarely interacts with others. Guan Nianshan has a more active personality, and his son has been performing very well at the academy. This servant feels we can put him to use first."
Song Jinzhao picked up her chopsticks again.
"There are Panzhou troops in the city. Take two extra guards with you when you go out tomorrow, and have Guan Nianshan follow along."
Whether he could be useful or not, they had to try. Now that Huo Chong was in Suining City, it was about time they met.
