Chen An, that old fox, came from the inner city and has been in charge of affairs at Prince Zhao's residence for so many years. How could he not know what's important?
A steward of the prince's residence led a neatly assembled group of twenty guards out of the palace, each guard impeccably armored.
Such a daring display was clearly intended to alert the Imperial City Guard, so that they could come and witness that the token had not passed through the hands of a third party.
Thinking about it this way, it seems that Prince An originally dug a pit for Prince Zhao's mansion, but the people of Prince Zhao's mansion not only did not intend to fall into the trap, but also planned to turn the tables and push Prince An into the pit.
That's interesting.
“Chief Steward Chen’s concerns are very valid,” Gao Yu, sitting upright on horseback, nodded solemnly. “After all, this token allows free entry and exit from the Prince An’s residence. If something goes wrong and it falls into the hands of villains, the consequences would be unimaginable.”
"Thank you for your understanding, General Gao," Chief Steward Chen said, bowing in gratitude.
****
Steward Chen's commotion was quite significant, and with Gao Yu stopping him to inquire, the matter quickly spread.
Ordinary people who don't understand the intricacies of the situation would only think that the young master of the household was absurd, daring to ask His Highness Prince An to help him run errands and deliver messages, which was really unbecoming.
However, those noble families who lived close to the imperial court easily guessed the hidden tricks behind it, and secretly laughed at Yun Huan for digging his own grave, only to capsize in a small ditch.
However, even though the Shaofu was so busy running errands and delivering messages that everyone was exhausted, no one had the guts to ask Prince An to do it for them.
Therefore, Yun Huan must have taken on this task voluntarily.
Even the Imperial City Guard, which is all-pervasive in the capital, did not immediately notice that Prince An had entered Prince Zhao's residence, which shows that Yun Huan deliberately concealed his whereabouts.
That token allows free entry and exit from the Prince An's residence without prior notice. Yun Huan isn't asking for trouble, so how could he be so careless as to leave it outside without even realizing it?
At this time, Yun Lie was not in the capital. When Yun Huan came to visit, Luo Cuiwei should have received him. Yun Huan secretly came to deliver such an important token to Luo Cuiwei, presumably with the intention of stirring up some rumors.
If an ordinary person encountered such a situation, in order to avoid causing unnecessary speculation and malicious rumors, they would simply hide the token or send someone to return it to Prince An's residence. They would never take the initiative to publicize the matter.
However, in doing so, they would lose the opportunity to prove their innocence. Once the news spreads from the Prince An's residence, they would be unable to clear their names no matter how hard they tried.
Luo Cuiwei is truly a handful, directly having Steward Chen swagger over and deliver the token to the Minister, even attracting the attention of the Imperial City Guard. This is tantamount to announcing it to everyone with fanfare—
Prince An tried to frame me, making people think I had an affair with him, but I didn't fall for it. I didn't get involved at all, and even returned the money to the Prince Consort.
The slap was loud and clear, echoing throughout the capital.
The most infuriating part is that the person who slapped the other person never showed up from beginning to end.
If Prince An makes a scene because he feels ashamed, all the blame will fall squarely on Steward Chen's shoulders, and no matter what happens, it will not be attributed to Luo Cuiwei.
****
The next day, Gao Zhan arrived as promised. As soon as he entered, he gloated and whispered to Luo Cuiwei, "His Highness Prince An really fell flat on his face yesterday. Last night at dinner, my second and third brothers couldn't help but burst into laughter when they talked about it."
"I didn't do anything." Luo Cuiwei spread her hands innocently, concealing her true intentions.
Gao Zhan laughed, clutching his stomach: "Look at you, so capable."
After a few lighthearted exchanges, Luo Cuiwei asked seriously, "Where's the information I asked for?"
Although the young master had begun preparing for her wedding with Yun Lie, which basically indicated that Yun Lie was about to return, she still felt that something was not right.
It's been three whole months, and there's still no news from Linchuan, which seems rather illogical.
Gao Zhan waved his hand with a smile: "Don't worry, according to my second brother, His Majesty received the good news a couple of days ago. The battle in Linchuan ended more than ten days ago, and His Highness Prince Zhao is safe and sound."
"Thank you." Luo Cuiwei nodded, her smile forced.
The unease in her heart grew stronger.
Since the victory was won and the war had ended more than ten days ago, why did he forget to send a message home to let his family know that he was safe when he sent the news of the victory back to the capital?
Either someone wanted to come back and was locked outside the sleeping quarters, or...
What happened?
It's something that can't be made public.
****
In fact, Luo Cuiwei was right; something had indeed happened that couldn't be made public.
At this moment, Yun Lie was lying in a house in a small village fifty miles away from the Linchuan defense zone.
On the day the war ended, he fell into a coma due to his serious injuries.
For the past ten days or so, Xiong Xiaoyi has been handling all the aftermath matters in the defense zone. Only today did he finally have some free time, so he hurriedly rode fifty miles to check on Yun Lie's condition.
Upon seeing that Yun Lie was still unconscious, Xiong Xiaoyi flew into a rage, grabbing the frail-looking man beside him. "Song Jiuyuan, I actually believed your nonsense! You should have told me to report back to the capital and have the imperial physician sent, but you insisted on stopping me... What exactly were you thinking!"
Song Jiuyuan was considered a strategist for the Linchuan army and was highly regarded by Yun Lie.
This time, Yun Lie was seriously injured and unconscious. Amidst the chaos, Song Jiuyuan stepped forward and stopped everyone from reporting the news to the capital in the battle report. He then took Yun Lie to the small village closest to the defense zone and settled him down.
This small village is nestled at the foot of the mountain in the forest. It has a small population, almost entirely composed of families of soldiers from Linchuan, and is therefore safe and secure.
This simple house is now the residence of Song Qiuqi, Song Jiuyuan's younger sister.
Song Jiuyuan was lifted up by Xiong Xiaoyi, with only his toes touching the ground. He didn't seem annoyed or upset. He just sighed and patiently explained again.
“I told you before, if the capital learns that His Highness is injured, they will definitely send someone to take over the aftermath… You know His Highness’s situation. Even when he is full of energy, there are always people keeping a close eye on the military tally of the Linchuan Army in his hand. If someone takes advantage of the situation this time, it will not be so easy for His Highness to get it back in the future.”
Xiong Xiaoyi naturally understood this principle, but more than ten days had passed, and Yun Lie still showed no signs of waking up.