After Xue Mu left the lotus pond, he walked towards the small courtyard next to the pond. Nuo Yan has been following behind him, keeping a close distance.
"Did you find Hong'er?" Xue Mu asked suddenly, without turning his head, and his voice didn't seem to have any ups and downs. Nuo Yan glanced at his back, and replied: "I haven't found it yet, but I already know that she hasn't left Chang'an City."
Xue Mu seemed to laugh, and after a moment of silence, he said, "Add more people."
"yes."
The short conversation is over, and the lotus bank is in front of you. The courtyard was filled with the faint fragrance of magnolia flowers. Xue Mu walked through the small courtyard and pushed open the half-hidden door.
There was a person sitting in the room, wearing a dark blue round-neck gown, holding a white-faced folding fan in his hand, and looking like a book. Seeing Xue Mu coming in from the door, he smiled and waved at him.
This person is none other than Dacheng's youngest Jinshi ever, Cao Jingren.
"Finished with the housework?" He smiled a bit like a fool, as if he was the same as when he was at Zhou Jinjin's banquet. Xue Mu walked to the side of the sitting bed and sat down opposite him: "Where are the paintings?"
Cao Jingren slowly took out a rolled scroll from his arms and put it on the desk: "I took it from Aies."
Xue Mu glanced at the picture scroll wrapped in fine brocade, and slightly raised his eyebrows: "Little Miaoshan with a thousand hands really lives up to his reputation."
Cao Jingren's face darkened immediately: "I told you the 493rd time, don't call me this nickname."
Before Cao Jingren, the Jinshi, was born in the Cao family in Jing'an, there was always a little-known family stunt called stealing chickens and dogs. Cao Jingren is talented and intelligent. He not only reads well, but also masters the Cao family's unique skills to the fullest.
However, few people can link Qianshou Xiao Miaoshan with the famous young talent in Chang'an.
Xue Mu didn't make fun of him anymore, but carefully opened the brocade case and took out the painting scroll. After unfolding, he stared at the magnolia branch for a while, then frowned: "It's fake."
"How is it possible!" Cao Jingren quickly retorted as if being provoked, "I personally checked it at the banquet, and it is indeed the authentic work of Ding Maoxue." He pulled the painting in Xue Mu's hand and took a few glances After that, his complexion gradually sank, it was really a fake.
Xue Mu could tell from his expression that there was indeed something strange about this painting. He took another look at the white magnolia on the painting and asked, "Where did this painting come from?"
Cao Jingren pursed his lips, looking very unwilling: "I got it from Aies." He couldn't figure out, what link went wrong? Or did it mean that Aies kept something behind his back
Xue Mu lowered his eyes and thought for a while, "Tell me about the situation at the banquet."
Cao Jingren took a deep breath, and said in a dry voice, "First, Tang Zibo's maid in the Zhou Mansion replaced the real "Magnolia", and then Aes followed her out of the main hall." He stopped here When he got down, his eyes fell on Nuo Yan who had been standing beside Xue Mu. Seeing him looking over, Nuo Yan said knowingly: "I saw that maid gave the painting to Tang Zibo's subordinates, and then Aies exchanged the painting from him."
"That's right, that's why it was really painted on Aies' hands." Cao Jingren nodded as if affirming something, and continued, "I received a hint and took away the tableware from the seat when the scene was out of control. That fake painting, then intentionally bumped into Aies, and dropped the two paintings."
The whole thing was like this, the real painting went around and around, and it should have fallen into his hands in the end, but why...
He looked at the fake painting on the table again, and frowned slightly. The emperor personally entrusted them to do this matter, is it necessary to use a fake painting to communicate with the emperor now
The three people in the room were silent, each thinking about something. Xue Mu lowered his head and pondered for a while, then suddenly said: "That maid is fake."
Cao Jingren raised his head and looked at him in surprise and suspicion. Xue Mu's eyes moved, and he continued to analyze: "Someone pretended to be Tang Zibo's maid in the Zhou Mansion, and after she dropped the real painting, she gave Tang Zibo another fake painting."
Cao Jingren was taken aback for a moment, then as if he had found a thread, his train of thought became clear: "She gave Tang Zibo a fake painting, and then Aes exchanged this fake painting with another fake painting, In the end, I stole the fake painting back from Aies."
They worked hard for a long time, but in the end, everyone's busy work was in vain.
Cao Jingren was so angry that he laughed instead: "If it's true what Hou Ye said, who has the ability to fool Hou Ye, Tang Zibo, and Aes all around?"
Xue Mu's eyes moved, and then a barely visible smile appeared: "Du Juan."
"Ah!" Liu Qinghuan sneezed suddenly, turned her head and glanced at Nian Tang who was following her, "Did you speak ill of me in your heart?"
Nian Tang glanced at her, and smiled disdainfully: "If I want to speak ill of you, I must say it in front of you, why bother to slander and wrong myself like this in my heart."
Liu Qinghuan nodded and said: "It makes sense, if you want to praise me in the future, you must praise me in front of my face, don't hold back."
Nian Tang twitched the corners of her mouth, how could this woman be so thick-skinned. She glanced at the clothes on Liu Qinghuan, and snorted coldly: "As the mistress of the Hou's mansion, you should also pay attention to your words and deeds, and don't always cause trouble for the Hou."
Liu Qinghuan glanced at her sideways: "Niantang, even if you want to be a mother, I'm not your daughter."
Nian Tang: "..."
She didn't want to say another word to this woman.
After Liu Qinghuan returned to the room, she didn't see the two girls Chi Tao and Qing Zhi. It seemed that they were also troubled by her. When they come back, they must give them a monthly increase.
Seeing Liu Qinghuan entered the house, Nian Tang dutifully guarded the yard. Liu Qinghuan closed the door, and pulled out a scroll wrapped in a brocade sleeve from her wide cuff. She smiled and unfolded the scroll in her hand, it was the "Magnolia Spring" in Zhou Jinjin's mansion.
The real "Magnolia Spring".
Whether it's Xue Mu, Tang Zibo or Aies, they are all numerous and powerful, but who stipulated that Du Juan can only go it alone? Using pomegranates as a signal to communicate, they successfully performed a feat at the banquet.
I just don't know if my last foot would be too hard. If I really hurt her, maybe I won't have a chance to cooperate next time.
Liu Qinghuan hid the painting in a good mood. Just as she sat down and poured herself a glass of wine, the door was knocked twice, followed by Chi Tao and Qing Zhi.
"lady."
The two maids bowed to Liu Qinghuan, and when Liu Qinghuan saw them coming back, she hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Master Hou didn't make things difficult for you, did he?" Seeing that they were not injured, Xue Mu probably didn't rough them up, right
The two servant girls shook their heads with red eyes, stopped talking for a while and knelt down on the ground: "Ma'am, Master Hou said that if this kind of thing happens again next time, we can only apologize with death. "
Liu Qinghuan helped them up from the ground, and comforted them: "Don't worry, there will be no next time." Next time she will never let Xue Mu find out.
With her assurance, the two maids were relieved a lot. Qingzhi wiped the teardrops from the corners of her eyes, and asked Liu Qinghuan: "Madam hasn't eaten dinner yet?"
She didn't say that Liu Qinghuan didn't feel it, but she was really hungry after saying that: "Yeah, I only ate a few pomegranates."
Hearing this, Qing Zhi hurriedly went down to prepare dinner, and Chi Tao stayed behind to help her change her clothes and comb her hair.
Not long after, Qing Zhi not only brought a hot dinner, but also a small bowl of crystal clear pomegranate seeds. Liu Qinghuan ate one, it was sweeter than the one at Zhou Jinjin's house. She blinked and looked at Qingzhi suspiciously: "This is...?"
Qing Zhi smiled and said: "Master Hou specially ordered the servants to bring it."
Liu Qinghuan couldn't help smiling when he thought of what he said casually in the Lotus Pavilion.
After serving Liu Qinghuan for dinner, after Qing Zhi cleaned up the empty dishes, she saw Xue Mu standing in the yard. She was stunned for a moment, and hurriedly stepped forward to say hello: "Master Hou."
Xue Mu nodded slightly, and said to her, "Did Qingqing have a good meal?"
Qingzhi's eyes rolled, Master Hou was worried that his wife would be locked up, did she not eat when she was in a mood? The corners of her mouth curled up, and she replied respectfully: "Back to Lord Hou, Madam just had dinner and there is nothing left."
Xue Mu couldn't help laughing lowly after hearing Qing Zhi's words. He remembered that when he ate with her before, he also saw that she ate all the food, not a single grain of rice was left. She also said to herself solemnly that wasting food will go to hell.
If the emperor heard this, he would probably die of anger.
Qing Zhi didn't know what Xue Mu was thinking of, but thought Hou Ye looked really good when he smiled. She thought for a while and asked boldly, "Won't Lord Hou go in and see Madam?"
Xue Mu paused and said, "No, you take good care of her."
"Yes." Qing Zhi bowed and saw Xue Mu walking out.
But Nian Tang still insisted on staying in the yard.
Qingzhi glanced at her, thinking that Master Hou should be locked up, maybe it won't last long.
When Xue Mu returned to the lotus pond, Peng Peng was still counting lotus flowers in the lotus pond. Seeing Xue Mu approaching from the pontoon, Peng Peng shouted excitedly: "Master! I'm done counting!"
"Oh?" Xue Mu stopped and looked at him leisurely, "How much?"
"Fifty-one red lotuses, twenty-seven blue lotuses, thirty-three white lotuses, and eighteen yellow lotuses!"
Xue Mudao: "The number is wrong, repeat the number."
Pengpeng: "..."
He opened and closed his mouth several times, and finally he could only say: "Master Hou, it's getting late now, can we count again tomorrow?"
Xue Mu nodded and said, "Yes, but you can only spend the night here tonight."
Pengpeng: "..."
Lord Hou, can we change the game? There were two lines of clear tears on Peng Peng's face.