Zi'an continued, "The second doubt is why the Empress Dowager wanted to arrange a marriage for them. According to what Zhuangzhuang said before, the Empress Dowager loved her sister-in-law Zhuangzhuang very much. When she found out that Xiao Xiao had betrayed Zhuangzhuang and was going to marry Zhuangzhuang's maid, she was not angry but arranged a marriage for them. Isn't this weird?"
Murong Jie hummed, "Based on these two questions, what do you suspect? Or, what do you guess?"
Zi'an stopped talking and looked at Murong Jie, not knowing whether to say it or not.
Murong Jie saw her concerns and said, "We are the only two here, just speak frankly."
Zi'an said, "Okay, if that's the case, I'll just say it straight. I suspect that the emperor would not agree when Xiao Xiao proposed to him for the first time."
"But don't forget that it was the emperor who cancelled the marriage between Zhuangzhuang and the Prince of Daliang. If he didn't agree, there was no need to do this. He could just let Zhuangzhuang marry the Prince of Liang. You know, the two countries had a very tense relationship for a while because of the broken engagement." Murong Jie objected.
Zi'an thought for a moment, "That's right. If the emperor doesn't agree, there's really no need to break off the engagement with Liang Guo."
She looked at him, "Could it be the Queen Mother?"
Murong Jie said: "If it was the Empress Dowager, she would not have needed to read out the Emperor Hui's will in front of the court officials."
Zi'an also thought it made sense, and thought hard about it, but he couldn't come up with an answer, which made him feel very upset.
"It seems that if we want to know the truth of the matter, we have to ask Xiao Xiao." Zi'an said dejectedly.
"Obviously Xiao Xiao won't tell it. If he had, he wouldn't have had to hide for so many years." Murong Jie said.
Zi'an spread his hands, "So this knot will have to be tied forever? There will be no way to untie it until the day Zhuangzhuang dies? Considering Zhuangzhuang's current pain, Han Qingqiu's trick may really succeed. Forcing her to marry someone she doesn't like is more painful than killing her, isn't it?"
Murong Jie suddenly raised his head and looked at her with bright eyes, "What did you say? Say it again!"
Zi'an looked at him in confusion, "Is this knot going to keep getting tied? It won't be solved until the day Zhuangzhuang dies?"
"Not this one." Murong Jie said.
Zi'an thought about it and almost forgot what he had just said.
"You said that Han Qingqiu's scheme might succeed. You said that forcing Zhuangzhuang to marry someone she doesn't like would be more painful than killing her. Is that what you think?" Murong Jie asked her with a frown.
Zi'an thought that he was questioning his words, so he raised his voice and said, "Isn't it? How uncomfortable would Zhuangzhuang be? He would have to face someone he doesn't like for the rest of his life."
Murong Jie suddenly smiled, "Oh, I see."
Zian looked at him in confusion, "What do you understand?"
"You like me!" Murong Jie said firmly.
Zi'an almost vomited blood, "When did I say that? And weren't we just talking about Zhuangzhuang's matter? How did it involve you and me?"
"Zhuangzhuang never said that marrying someone you don't like would be worse than death. Obviously, this is what you think. You think it would be very uncomfortable to marry someone you don't like. This means that you like me, so you married me." Murong Jie said proudly.
Zian rolled his eyes, "I feel really bad right now."
"It's useless, Xia Zian, I know you like me." Murong Jie smiled strangely, his mouth almost stretching behind his ears.
Zi'an said unhappily, "I'm too lazy to tell you. By the way, what do you think about this matter between Zhuangzhuang and Xiaoxiao? I know you have some ideas, so why not share them with us for your reference."
"I suspect the emperor!" Murong Jie said directly.
Zi'an was stunned. "But, isn't this not true? As you said, if the emperor wanted to object, why did he cancel the marriage with the prince of Liang? After canceling it, why did he oppose Zhuang Zhuang and Xiao Xiao? Why bother?"
Murong Jie played with the jade ring in his hand, and the light in his eyes gradually dimmed. "There is one thing you overlooked, that is, the will of Emperor Hui was read out by the Queen Mother in front of the court officials. Can the emperor not follow the will of Emperor Hui? The will of Emperor Hui clearly stated that no one can force Zhuangzhuang to do something she doesn't want to do. Zhuangzhuang doesn't want to marry the prince of Liang, so this marriage must be cancelled so that he can be a filial descendant. However, this does not mean that he will marry Zhuangzhuang to Xiao Xiao."
"Why? Since he can cancel the engagement, why can't he let Zhuangzhuang marry Xiao Xiao?" Zi'an was very surprised. She knew that Murong Jie must have a reason for saying this, and she also knew that he had a strong ability to analyze things.
Murong Jie looked at her. "The emperor at that time had just ascended the throne and his foundation was unstable, while the Marquis of Jingguo was at the peak of his power. The Xiao family was a military marquis with military power. If Xiao Xiao married Zhuangzhuang again, what would that mean?"
"You mean, the emperor doesn't want Zhuangzhuang to marry Xiao Xiao because he's afraid that the Xiao family will directly threaten his throne if they get help from Zhuangzhuang, the eldest princess?"
"I am not sure. When this happened, I was only fourteen years old. I don't know much about the court. But after it happened, Xiao Xiao kept silent. I thought about it for many years before I came up with this."
Zi'an remembered that he had said before that he didn't care much about their relationship, and didn't want to get involved. He even said that he didn't know much, but in fact, it was all false. He cared, otherwise he wouldn't have kept thinking about this matter.
Indeed, if there is anyone who can make Xiao Xiao surrender, it would probably be the Emperor.
"But why is Han Qingqiu involved? And how did Yao Zhi die?"
Murong Jie said: "I don't know. Yao Zhi died in the moat. No one saw how she died."
Zi'an didn't understand. "The moat is not a secret place. Someone should have seen it when the crime happened. Who investigated this case?"
"The emperor directly ordered the Ministry of Justice to investigate. It was Zhuangzhuang's request that the Minister of Justice personally preside over the case."
"Is he the current Minister of Justice?"
"No, it was the predecessor. He is dead. He died of illness." Murong Jie thought about it for a while, but couldn't think of any doubts. "I was still young at that time, so I don't know these things very clearly."
Zi'an felt dejected. After analyzing it over and over again, he still had no clear clue and was completely confused.
The emperor was the most suspicious, but what about Han Qingqiu? The emperor wouldn't help Han Qingqiu, would he
"Is this secret really going to be taken to the coffin by Xiao Xiao? It's so annoying." Zi'an said angrily.
Murong Jie looked at her, "Do you want to help them get back together or do you simply want to understand this matter?"
Zi'an said: "I hope Zhuangzhuang is happy."
Murong Jie nodded. "In that case, you can start with Han Qingqiu. Han Qingqiu must also know what Xiao Xiao knows. Don't forget that this deal was made between her and Xiao Xiao."
Zi'an said unhappily, "But do you think Han Qingqiu will tell you?"
There was a sly flash in Murong Jie's eyes, "She won't tell you, but she will tell someone."
"Who!" Zi'an widened his eyes.
"Yaozhi!"
Zi'an was shocked, "Is Yaozhi still alive?"
(End of this chapter)