Song Xingzhi a vécu sous le règne de l'empereur Huizong

Chapitre 45

In truth, what truly made him mask his panic with rage was another letter. Xuan'er, who delivered the letter, claimed it was left by her master before he left. Little did she know, it was Yuan Niang who had lied to her!

Besides explaining why he was under house arrest, the letter contained another chilling message: she was also under house arrest... the woman to whom he had poured out his heart and soul... was also under house arrest!

Zhao Guangyi clenched his fists, suppressing the urge to burst out the door. He didn't know how his elder brother would treat her; all he wanted to know was how Zhao Dezhao knew about this—it was him who told his brother…it was him!

"Your Highness?"

Zhao Guangyi looked up abruptly and saw Chief Steward Pei appear at the door. The anger on his face instantly disappeared. "Close the door and sit down. I have something to tell you."

As soon as Steward Pei sat down, he heard Zhao Guangyi ask in a low voice, "What is your plan regarding Princess Deqing's disappearance?"

Chief Steward Pei was taken aback. He hadn't expected that the Prince of Jin would still care about his wife while being unjustly placed under house arrest. He then briefly recounted Xuan'er and Lan Wen's itinerary.

"Are you so sure this was done by the Prince of Yan again?" Zhao Guangyi frowned, feeling that this incident was too strange. Princess Deqing was originally going to Junzhou to find Zhao Dezhao, so Zhao Dezhao should have no reason to kidnap her on the way. Moreover, this kind of thing had happened once before, and he felt that the other party would not repeat the same trick.

But if it wasn't Zhao Dezhao, then who could it be?

Chief Steward Pei was taken aback by his question. "Does Your Highness mean that the Madam's disappearance this time has little to do with the Prince of Yan?"

“I don’t know…” Zhao Guangyi sighed deeply. “On the surface, it seems that everyone will naturally focus their attention on the Prince of Yan, but the other party cannot ignore the series of repercussions that will follow this matter… Moreover, he was placed under house arrest by his elder brother because of this matter. He was merely a little too assertive in this matter, yet his elder brother punished him like this. Although there was a reason for it, that “reason” is a secret that no one knows. His elder brother cannot use that “reason” to punish him. So… is his elder brother using the matter of Princess Deqing as a high-sounding reason to imprison him?”

His pupils contracted rapidly as he pondered, and Zhao Guangyi suddenly stood up, his expression changing drastically.

"Your Highness?" Steward Pei was startled and quickly stood up as well.

Zhao Guangyi pursed his lips and looked at the closed door, then slowly raised his voice, "Chief Steward Pei, could you please do me a favor?"

He hoped his gut feeling this time was wrong...

I sincerely hope so.

Chapter 53, Where to Go Amidst the Vast Mountains and Rivers (1)

Junzhou, located in the middle and upper reaches of the Han River, borders Xiangfan to the east, Shiyan to the west, Qianlifang to the south, and Nanyang to the north. The renowned Wudang Mountain is situated within its borders. When Xuan'er arrived in Junzhou from Luoyang via Nanyang and found Xue Weiji and Lan Wu, Xue Suxin had already entered the Junzhou Prefecture, where the Prince of Yan resided.

After several days of investigation, both overt and covert, they found no trace of Jiao Wanlan. It seemed the Prince of Yan was deliberately misleading them, or rather, making things difficult for them. Xue Weiji and Xuan'er spent half a month in Junzhou without any results. Meanwhile, Bianjing remained as calm as a still lake, without a ripple. The Prince of Yan was still confined to the capital, and the Prince of Jin was still under house arrest, forbidden from receiving guests. Of the three most influential figures in the court—the Prince of Jin, the Prince of Yan, and the Prince of Qin—only the Prince of Qin, Zhao Defang, seemed to be holding firm in the current situation. However, the missing Princess Deqing was the Prince of Qin's wife. Under these circumstances, would he simply sit back and wait for things to unfold? Everyone was speculating, wondering if he would abandon his wife.

At the end of July, the King of Qin finally appeared in Junzhou.

Guizhou and Junzhou are separated by more than a thousand miles. In addition, considering the time it would take for Lan Wen to return to Guizhou from the capital, Zhao Defang did not actually enter Junzhou City until a full month after Wanlan disappeared.

How many changes can occur in a month is something those who haven't experienced it will never know.

Xue Weiji waited near Junzhou Prefecture for a month, but never saw Xue Suxin again. The day she stepped into that mansion, it was as if she had stepped into a bottomless abyss, and she never returned. Meanwhile, Xuan'er and Lan Wu, who were trying to find Jiao Wanlan, also made no progress. Their adversary, the Prince of Yan, seemed to have hidden himself away in an instant.

The arrival of the King of Qin calmed the increasingly agitated emotions of the group somewhat, and Lan Wen's actions upon seeing Lan Wu instantly eased the tension that had lasted for a month. This usually cheerful and carefree young man, upon seeing his younger brother standing safely before him, actually rushed to his brother's arms and burst into tears. This outburst completely erased Zhao Defang's initial astonishment upon seeing Lan Wu, and he stood aside with a helpless smile, just like the others.

The situation had developed so rapidly that there was no time for the group to reminisce. Zhao Defang hadn't even sat down to rest before heading straight for Junzhou Prefecture. Neither Xue Weiji nor Xuan'er could enter Junzhou Prefecture, but he could. A whole month had passed since the Wanlan incident, and he wasn't actually worried about Wanlan's safety these days. If Wanlan had indeed been kidnapped by his elder brother again, her safety wasn't a concern. What he was worried about was that Wanlan's mysterious identity would be discovered, and then things would probably be very difficult to handle.

"Who goes there? How dare they force their way into Junzhou Prefecture!"

Zhao Defang glanced indifferently at the blue-clad guard who rushed forward to intercept them, then turned slightly to the side to avoid the guard's broadsword. Immediately afterward, a "clang" was heard as Lan Wu drew his sword, deflecting the guard's blade. He stood expressionless in front of Zhao Defang and said coldly, "Are you blind?! You dare to block His Highness Prince Qin's path!"

Startled, the blue-clad guard widened his eyes and looked intently at Zhao Defang. His legs went weak, and he knelt down. "I deserve to die! I didn't know Your Highness was here. Please spare my life!"

Zhao Defang slightly raised his hand, signaling Lan Wu to step back, then turned his gaze to the interior of the mansion and asked calmly, "Has the Prince of Yan ever been to the mansion?"

"Your Highness, the master is not in Junzhou Prefecture, but in the capital."

"Then Miss Xue should be here, right?"

The blue-clad guard gripped his broadsword tightly in a panic, remaining silent for a long time.

Lan Wen stepped forward and shouted, "Didn't you hear the prince asking you a question?"

The guard trembled and prostrated himself on the ground, "Please...please spare my life, Your Highness..." He had been ordered to guard this place, not allowing anyone inside to leave or anyone outside to enter, but the person in front of him was a prince, and whatever he did was a dead end.

Zhao Defang nodded to indicate that she understood, and stepped inside, calmly instructing, "Lan Wu, do as he wishes." As she stepped across the threshold, she heard a soft call behind her, but Zhao Defang did not stop and went straight into the hall.

The servants in the mansion probably didn't expect a group of people to suddenly barge in. They were all too frightened to move until someone quietly found the person who was temporarily in charge here. Only then did the servants realize that the people who had barged in were of great importance.

Zhao Defang, seated in the main seat, looked at the young man who had just stepped into the hall and asked, "Who are you?"

"Your Highness, I am but a minor official. During the time that my master is away from Junzhou, I have been handling the minor matters in the manor."

Zhao Defang paused, her hand about to pick up the teacup, and stared at him in astonishment. "You're Xiao Luzi? The little eunuch who kidnapped the princess last time?" How dare he appear so blatantly in front of her? Did he really think she couldn't do anything to him?

Xiao Luzi knelt on the ground with his head half-lowered, appearing unusually calm, which surprised the others present. "Your Highness, I am indeed Xiao Luzi. If Your Highness wishes to find the master, I fear you will have to return to the capital, as the master is not currently in the residence."

"It's alright." With amusement, Zhao Defang looked at the composed eunuch in front of her and pushed the teacup away, examining him closely. "I'm not looking for your master; I'm looking for Miss Xue. She should be in the manor."

Xiao Luzi, who was kneeling, did not move an inch and kept his eyes half-closed. "Miss Xue did stay in the manor for a few days a few days ago, but she left three days ago. She must have returned to the capital. I heard that she said she was going back to the capital to find my master."

"Impossible!" Xue Weiji, who had been quietly by his side, exclaimed in surprise. "I've been guarding Junzhou Prefecture for the past month and haven't seen my little sister come out once. How could she have left?"

Xiao Luzi didn't even look up. "Miss Xue has indeed left. If Young Master Xue doesn't believe me, you can search the manor. If I'm lying, you can take my life."

This little eunuch is no ordinary person!

Zhao Defang looked thoughtfully at Xiao Luzi, who remained unmoved, and suddenly thought of a question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time. "Xiao Luzi, let me ask you, where did my token that you used to enter and leave Anfu Palace come from?" He had thought that Su Li had obtained the token from Wanlan and then given it to Xiao Luzi, but then he rejected this hypothesis. If Su Li really had obtained the token, she would never have been trapped in the Qin Prince's Mansion. She should have used that token to leave the mansion to deliver a message to her elder brother long ago.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Luzi's lips curled up almost imperceptibly before returning to their original shape, and he replied, "Your Highness, that token was given to me by the Princess Consort."

Zhao Defang was taken aback. "You mean Wanlan?"

Xiao Luzi, who had been keeping her head down, slowly raised her head and looked directly into his suspicious eyes. She nodded firmly and said, "Yes, Your Highness. If you don't believe me, you can ask the Princess. She gave me that token at the end of last year."

A single word can cause a great stir.