novelden Chapter 124 Investigation
Chapter 124 Investigation
As Feng Qing ate her rice, she fell into deep thought, a faint sadness welling up in her heart.
This meal felt like a death sentence. If the truth wasn't uncovered before tomorrow's morning court session, even if the Empress didn't kill me, I probably wouldn't fare well...
As she thought about it, Feng Qing's eyes welled up with tears. With tears in her eyes, she silently picked up her bowl and quickly ate her rice.
Qin Shi was greatly shocked. He had never known that a woman could be so heartbroken and shed tears. After all, women were not known for shedding tears easily! Moreover, he had never shed a single tear since he was old enough to understand things.
"Hey! Stop crying!" Qin Shi said stiffly, momentarily forgetting to lower his voice.
After finishing her meal, Feng Qing put down her chopsticks, gazed at the man, and said sincerely, "Thank you, Qin Shi!"
"I'm leaving now!" Qin Shi's eyes flickered, he snorted softly, and then quickly said, "Don't worry, you'll be fine. My mother said she'll save you no matter what."
After saying that, he got up and left in a hurry, even forgetting the food box on the spot.
Over here, Feng Zhao watched Qin Shi's hurried departure and teased, "It's true that enemies are destined to meet. It seems that this young master Qin cares quite a bit about my third sister!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Shu glanced at Feng Zhao and casually said, "There are rumors that the Third Princess and the Crown Princess are at odds, but I have seen that Your Highness is quite concerned about the Third Princess."
She hadn't expected a response, but after a moment, Feng Zhao seemed lost in thought, muttering to herself:
"When the Third Princess was young, she was pampered by Consort Xu and was raised to be more like a boy than Xiao Qi. She spoke softly and followed me around all day like Xiao Qi, tugging at my sleeve and calling me 'Sister, Sister.'"
As she grew older, the eldest princess repeatedly complained to the Empress Dowager that she was being bullied by the third princess. I reprimanded her a few times for this, and afterwards she became angry and stopped playing with me, and started to fight with me for things.
At first, I gave in to her, but then I gradually realized that the more I gave in, the angrier she became...
Although the Third Princess is a bit slow-witted, she is actually not a bad person at heart…
Upon hearing this, Lin Shu thought to herself: No wonder she doesn't want to play with you. If she says someone is stupid, then even if it were someone else, they wouldn't want to play with you either.
After speaking, Feng Zhao smiled slightly, then turned and walked towards the door: "I will go first, and I entrust the matter of my third sister to you!"
Lin Shu watched Feng Zhao's retreating figure, gently shook her head, and then continued to familiarize herself with the Ministry of Justice's case files over the years.
When she looked up again, she was surprised to find that it was already completely dark, and it must be late at night. Lin Shu rubbed her temples, put the case file into a cloth bag marked with the year, tidied it up a bit, and then stepped out of the Ministry of Justice.
When they returned to the Lin residence, Li Huanzhi was still awake. Su Mu and An Si had already gone to bed, and Song Yun was pregnant and should not stay up late, so it was understandable that Li Huanzhi was waiting for her.
When Li Huanzhi saw Lin Shu return, he hurriedly went forward to greet her. Lin Shu took his hand and said, "Rest early in the future, there's no need to wait for me."
“My lady must be hungry. I’ve cooked some porridge for you. Just heat it up.” Li Huanzhi didn’t directly respond to Lin Shu’s words. After saying that, he got up and walked towards the kitchen.
Lin Shu glanced at Li Huanzhi's retreating figure, heard Zi Yi's secret signal, and then turned and went to the study.
In the study, Lin Shu saw Zi Yi, who had been waiting for a long time, and asked directly, "How's the investigation I asked you to do?"
The servant replied solemnly, "Master, there's a result. But..."
"Just what?" Lin Shu frowned, her voice sharp and stern.
"My investigation revealed that the last place these thirty-six people were seen was at Xiangyun Teahouse. So I infiltrated the teahouse to investigate and found that the front yard was a teahouse, but the back yard was actually a small casino."
Those people vanished without a trace after leaving the teahouse, and their families were also taken away by messengers, with no further news of them. The neighbors all assumed they had gone with their master's wife to take up her new post…
This teahouse belongs to Miss Li Yun'er!
After Zi finished speaking, she hesitated for a moment before looking up at Lin Shu. She knew that Li Yun'er and Lin Shu were close friends, so Wushuanglou had never thought of investigating Li Yun'er and her business.
Lin Shu was filled with mixed feelings at this moment, feeling bitterness, anger, and disbelief. Her emotions were complex and hard to describe.
Seeing the look Zi Yi cast her way, Lin Shu nodded slightly, signaling him to continue.
Zi Yi continued:
"Tonight, I risked my life to sneak into the Li residence to investigate. I found that the courtyard at the end of the corridor was heavily guarded. The guards were not ordinary housekeepers, but rather well-trained secret guards."
The cries of children could be heard intermittently from the courtyard… Furthermore, my subordinates also found this item in a secret compartment in the Li residence's study.”
As he spoke, Zi handed the object in his hand to Lin Shu. Lin Shu took it and saw that it was the sales certificate and contract for the official position issued by the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
At this point, Lin Shu understood everything, and a chill ran through her heart.
"Whoosh..."
Just then, an arrow shot into the window frame like lightning. The incident happened so suddenly that none of the guards had time to stop it.
Zi Yi quickly stepped in front of Lin Shu, ready for action. Only after confirming there was no danger did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Lin Shu noticed a note attached to the arrow, so she gestured for Zi Yi to remove it. She took the note, unfolded it, and read:
[Girl, intercepted at the East Gate, come quickly!]
The handwriting was elegant and graceful, with a free and easy feel to it. I don't know who wrote it, but I don't think they meant any harm. Besides, this is not the time to think. This matter cannot be delayed.
Lin Shu's face was ashen. She turned her head and let out a soft sigh, handing the token representing her identity to Zi Yi, and said in a deep voice:
"Ziyi, you're fast on your feet. Take my token and go to the East Palace to find Her Highness the Crown Princess. I'll go to the East Gate to check the situation first."
Let the Crown Princess handle this matter!
"Master, what about the Li family..." Zi Yi hesitated slightly before speaking again, fearing that the Li family would hide the remaining girl after learning the news, thus leaving no evidence.
Lin Shu closed her eyes tightly, took a deep breath, and then, with a determined look, took out a jade pendant, stroked it for a moment, summoned Yin San, and said solemnly:
"Take this jade pendant and go to the Prince of Dingbei's residence immediately. Borrow half of his personal guards to surround the Li residence. Be quick, and don't let a single fly escape!"
"Yes." Yin San accepted the order, took the jade pendant, and hurriedly left.
After giving her instructions, Lin Shu left the study and headed out of the mansion. She happened to see Li Huanzhi sitting in the front hall, looking uneasy. When he saw her come out, he quickly brought her a bowl of warm porridge.
Lin Shu was in a hurry to get to the East Gate, fearing that things might change if she was late. When she saw Li Huanzhi, she felt a mix of emotions, but she still tried her best to be gentle and said, "Huanzhi, don't eat. I have important business to attend to tonight. You should go and rest."
Looking at his wife's expression, Li Huanzhi sensed that something might happen tonight. He was reluctant to let Lin Shu leave, so he freed one hand and grabbed Lin Shu's sleeve, his tone implying a plea: "Wife, it's late tonight, why don't we go tomorrow?"
Lin Shu paused for a moment, then said without a doubt, "Huanzhi, be obedient."
After saying this, he gently patted Li Huan's head before turning around, leaving the house, and galloping away on his horse.
Li Huanzhi trembled slightly and then sat quietly in the front hall all night.
Lin Shu also did not return home all night. Not long after she arrived at the East Gate, Feng Zhao also arrived with his men.
A carriage was seen at the city gate, seemingly about to leave the city, when it was attacked. There were five or six girls, around eight or nine years old, on the carriage. The driver had already fainted, and the eight guards were all lying on the side, but fortunately, none of them were in mortal danger.
Lin Shu originally intended to hand the person over directly to the Crown Princess, but to her surprise, the Crown Princess ordered the person to be taken back to the Ministry of Justice and interrogated by Lin Shu overnight.
As dawn broke, Lin Shu and Feng Zhao emerged from the prison with dark circles under their eyes. Feng Zhao rubbed her sore eyes and immediately ordered men to capture Li Yun'er.
Meanwhile, Li Yun'er was kneeling in the third-floor room of the painted boat, her face grave as she hurriedly explained that the "goods" had failed to be delivered and that the Li residence had been besieged.
But then her gaze caught something, and she froze on the spot!
Just jolted awake from her reverie, the eldest princess, dressed only in an undergarment, turned grim upon hearing this. She grabbed a teacup and smashed it at Li Yun'er, yelling, "Useless! Useless!"
But Li Yun'er seemed oblivious to the pain, letting the blood flow down her forehead without a care in the world. Her eyes remained fixed on the familiar figure on the canopy bed behind the beaded curtain.
After a long while, she tentatively uttered a hoarse, soft call:
"Ah Yu?"
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