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Zheng Jun had tried to test her several times in ambiguous ways. Naturally, she didn't like him very much, but she would never look at him with prejudice and ignorance, and instead let the real murderer go.
After she said this, Lu Shiqing did not comment, as if he was thinking about something else.
Yuan Cixian said that he had doubts about Zheng Yun, staring at him and explaining: "Minister Lu, it can't be Shao He. First, you also saw the methods of those people last time. With such regulations, they can be called death squads. How can a princess like her have the ability and courage to train such subordinates under the nose of the saint? If this is true, it means that she is not a simple character. But if she is not a simple character, how can she be so stupid as to take such a big risk for such a trivial matter? Once the saint finds out the truth and suspects her intention of raising death squads, she is afraid that she will even lose her life."
"Secondly, if Shaohe is really hostile to me, it is only because of her love affair with you. If that is the case, she should wish that I would disappear. But the purpose of these assassins is clearly to capture me alive. How do you explain this? Thirdly, as you said, unless these people are mentally ill, how could they escape to the capital? The same goes for Liu Shaoyin. I would rather believe that he had his toes broken by a huge rock falling from the sky when he went out than that he could 'accidentally' discover their whereabouts."
"Fourthly, you also said you suspected they were from outside the region." She seemed to find this very funny. "That's even more strange. Can the love between a man and a woman be used to make a living? Who would commit treason for a rival who is not sure if he is worth it? Could it be that Princess Shaohe is really crazy in love with you?"
She had a solid reason and her words were convincing, but Lu Shiqing just sat quietly at the opposite side of the long table, looking at her indifferently. He didn't know how Shao and the princess were doing, nor did he want to know, but he knew that Yuan Cixian was not crazy.
When he was inexplicably unable to control his emotions of sadness and joy because of her casual words, she was still as calm and composed as she was now.
She didn't need to think too much to analyze it so well because she was outside the situation, calm and sober. Shao and the princess couldn't stir up any ripples in her heart, and neither could he.
Of course, what she said was right. It was obvious that this matter had nothing to do with Zheng Yun.
After a long while, Lu Shiqing pulled the corner of his mouth and said, "I know it's not her."
Yuan Cixian looked at him strangely. If he already knew it, why did he still look so bitter and resentful, thinking about it for so long
Before she could figure it out, Lu Shiqing suddenly dismissed Cao An and Shi Cui. When she was the only one left in the room, he slowly said, "Yuan Cixian, answer me a question."
He looked solemn. Yuan Cixian was confused and said, "You say."
"Since the crown prince was deposed, there have been no legitimate princes in the court. The second and third princes, who are slightly older, have always been highly expected by the court officials to be the next crown princes. Among them, the third prince is the only prince with a real title in the Great Zhou Dynasty. He acts as the acting governor of Huainan. The people under his rule are prosperous and the country has been peaceful for many years, except for the recent flood disaster."
"The second prince had made great military achievements. In his early years, he joined forces with the Uighurs to defeat the Turks, which relieved the Saint of his worries for many years. However, a few days ago, he privately manufactured and smuggled arrowheads and had close contacts with the Uighurs. His ulterior motives disappointed the Saint, and the unknown sixth prince was promoted instead."
These are all well-known facts. Yuan Cixian listened carefully, but the more he listened, the more confused he became. Finally, he couldn't help asking, "Minister Lu, what exactly do you want to ask?"
Lu Shiqing smiled and said, "I want to ask, Second, Third, and Sixth Brothers, what is your Yuan family's attitude towards these three people. In other words, among the three of them, is there anyone who has a closer relationship with your Yuan family?"
Yuan Cixian didn't know if she had seen it wrong, but she felt that when Lu Shiqing asked this question, there was a strange... expectation in his eyes.
But she didn't care what he expected. Now the most trusted minister of the saint had asked her a fatal question. Once she opened her mouth, she didn't know whose ears would be reached by the answer.
She hurriedly said firmly: "My Yuan family has never participated in these intrigues. No matter who becomes the crown prince, as long as the Great Zhou is good and the people of the Great Zhou are good, it's all good." After saying this, she raised her palm as if swearing.
Lu Shiqing glanced at her snow-white palms, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly. She seemed to be addicted to swearing in front of him. Perhaps every time before, it was as fake as this time.
He was silent for a moment, looked into her eyes, and continued calmly: "If you trust me, tell the truth."
Yuan Cixian felt guilty when he looked at her, and her mind raced.
What was going on? Could it be that her brother in Chang'an had caused some trouble, causing Lu Shiqing to become suspicious of the relationship between the Yuan family and Zheng Zhuo? Or was he simply deceiving her
She couldn't figure it out, so after thinking it over for a while, she said affirmatively: "Minister Lu, of course I believe you, but I have already told the truth."
Lu Shiqing blinked twice, stood up from the desk, walked to the window, and said with his hands behind his back for a long time, "I know."
After all, in Yuan Cixian's dream, Lu Shiqing eventually assisted the Thirteenth Prince, so she was afraid that he would know something and then have a political conflict with the Yuan family. Just as she was about to test him, she heard him turn his back to her and say, "Don't worry about the assassin for now. I have something to discuss with the county magistrate, you can go back."
Yuan Cixian heard his indifferent tone and he didn't seem angry, so she had to put the matter aside for the time being and left the room.
*
This place was the residence of Zhu, the county magistrate of Tanghe County. Because Lu Shiqing had some matters to deal with in the local area, he agreed to stay here for two to three days. Yuan Cixian lived in the courtyard next to him, separated by a low wall.
Coming out of his courtyard and passing through the Moon Gate, she saw Shi Cui standing in front of her, as if she had been waiting for her for a while.
Seeing her coming, Shi Cui looked around and said in a low voice: "Young lady, I have some news to tell you."
Yuan Cixian nodded his chin to signal her to go inside to talk, then returned to the main room, closed the doors and windows, and asked, "What's the matter?"
Shi Cui said, "I'm going back to Chang'an after picking up some branches."
Yuan Cixian paused for a moment, subconsciously pulled her sleeve and asked nervously: "But has Mr. Xu's identity been determined?"
Jianzhi was sent by her to Jiangzhou in early July to visit Mr. Xu, a former master of martial arts. Logically, he should have returned in early August. But a few days ago, she sent back a message saying that something happened and further verification was required, so he has been delayed until now.
Because correspondence was not safe, Yuan Cihan did not rush to ask her blindly what had happened.
Shi Cui nodded and said, "Jianzhi lived up to the trust and met Mr. Xu. After some roundabout probing, we were able to confirm that what Mr. Xu gave you was indeed the chess record of the game he played against Mr. Xu on the bank of Xunyang River. Jianzhi returned home after getting this result, but unexpectedly, he was invited back by the Xu family halfway."
Yuan Cixian frowned: "Why?"
"Do you know Mr. Xu's granddaughter, Xu Sanniang?"
She shook her head: "I haven't heard of it."
"This Xu Sanniang is a famous talented woman in Jiangzhou. She is proficient in all arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry and songs. Of course, she is also very good at chess, just like her grandfather. Xu Sanniang is now 24 years old, but she has never married. She likes to travel around. When she returned from a few months away from home, she heard Mr. Xu talk about the chess manual, so she hurriedly sent someone to ask Jianzhi back to inquire about Mr. Xu's whereabouts."
Yuan Cixian seemed to have guessed something, but did not say anything, motioning her to continue.
"According to Xu Sanniang, she and Mr. Xu had a relationship, but one day three years ago, Mr. Xu suddenly left without saying goodbye and has not been heard from since. She has been looking for him for three years and has searched all over the country but has not found any clues. So she begged Jianzhi to point out the whereabouts of Mr. Xu to her if he knew."
"Without your permission, Jianzhi dared not make a decision. He was afraid of missing this great opportunity to confirm Mr. Xu's identity, and was also afraid that the matter would become a big deal and upset him, so he did not say anything definite. He only told Xu Sanniang that she got the chess record by chance, and she did not know where the so-called Mr. Xu was. But Xu Sanniang insisted on following this clue to investigate, so Jianzhi took her back to Chang'an for the time being and found a house for her to settle down in the city, preparing to keep her stable first and wait for you to return before making a decision. What do you think, what should we do about this matter?"
After Shi Cui finished speaking, she saw Yuan Cixian's eyes were dull, as if she was in a trance. She hesitated for a moment and asked tentatively, "Young lady?"
Yuan Cixian suddenly came back to her senses: "Oh, what did you say? She looked for him for three whole years, and then what?"
Shi Cui was stunned. What happened to the young lady? She missed such a long paragraph. She didn't dare to ask more, so she repeated what she just said.
Yuan Cixian was still a little absent-minded. After listening for a long time, he slowly said, "Since you are an old acquaintance of Mr. Xu, just ask him what he thinks. But it is not appropriate to ask directly, so I have to be roundabout. I am not in Chang'an, and I am worried about you doing this."
"How are you preparing, young lady?"
"I'm going to the next courtyard to look for Minister Lu."
She hesitated for a moment, turned back and went outside the courtyard. When she arrived at the latticed door of Lu Shiqing's study, she knocked three times.
Lu Shiqing was talking to Magistrate Zhu. When he heard the voice, he asked, "Who is it?" After recognizing her voice, he bent over to move the door. When he saw her, he raised his eyebrows and asked, "What's the matter?"
Yuan Cihan still felt that he was weird. He actually opened the door for her personally, and his eyes were so scorching that it seemed to burn through her face. She didn't know if he was still testing her about which side she should stand on.
She hesitated for a moment, then said, "Minister Lu, I just went back to my room and thought about it. Although Chang'an has arrested a group of fake suspects, no matter how fake the suspects are, they have been arrested. It just so happens that I have been out for a long time, and my brother and sister-in-law are particularly concerned about me..." When she said this, she felt that Lu Shiqing's eyes were getting colder and colder, and she felt a little weak for some reason, "Well... So I want to ask for your leave and go back to Chang'an."
Yuan Cixian lowered her eyes and looked up at him, only to find that his face seemed as cold as ice.
She thought about it and quickly said, "I'm not only thinking about my brother and sister-in-law, but also about you. You are so busy, and it's not good for me to bother you all the time!"
Lu Shiqing glared at her for a long time, and when he was sure that her face was hurt enough, he sneered and said, "Yuan Cixian, you wish."
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