Fu Zhen glanced at the sky and said, "Okay," then took the small knife from his hand: "I’ll hold onto this for now. I’ve instructed your guard to take care of those sent by Mrs. Zhang, it’s up to you now."
If He Qunying is Xu Yin’s person, then today’s matter can be said to kill three birds with one stone, not only removing Zhe Yu, but also pushing Princess Rong and Mrs. Zhang into an irreconcilable situation, while over here, He Qunying rises to power, and the punishment for his crime of killing his wife is likely to be pardoned as a meritorious act.
But regardless of whether He Qunying has any connection with Xu Yin, at this moment, the position of City Gate Commander cannot be replaced.
Since Mrs. Zhang and Xu Yin both have weaknesses in her hands, why rush? It’s necessary to stir the waters up before taking action.
Pei Zhan saw her walk out of the alley without saying a word and followed, saying, "The wedding is about to take place, why have you come out today?"
Fu Zhen glanced at him, "Aren’t you also out here on duty?"
Pei Zhan said, "I have no choice." He continued, "Our family is almost ready. Do you want to come by sometime to take a look and give your opinion on the new house? Otherwise, it might be too late to change things later."
"I have no time! I have to stay home and embroider the wedding dress, otherwise, it won’t be ready to wear."
Pei Zhan looked at her, "Anyway, this is just a marriage of convenience. Whether the wedding dress has a few more stitches or fewer doesn’t matter, because it’s only worn for half a day, and no one will pay close attention. But the new house is lived in every day; if it’s not arranged to your liking, it will be a problem and make me look unreliable."
Fu Zhen eyed him, "I’m not that hard to please. I can live in a thatched hut like a commoner."
Pei Zhan asked, "Have you lived in one?"
Pei Zhan added, "I will not let you have the chance to live in one."
Fu Zhen stared at him, "Why are you so serious over a joke?"
Pei Zhan lowered his head and walked.
Then mumbled in his throat, "Even if hard to please, it doesn’t matter, it’s not like I cannot afford to please..."
"What?" Fu Zhen leaned toward him.
Pei Zhan stopped, "Nothing."
Fu Zhen looked up, seeing his lips tightly pressed, as if incredibly serious, she laughed and stood straight, "If I remember correctly, you’re on duty. Don’t dawdle, or you’ll get impeached."
Pei Zhan peered at her, "Don’t worry, even if impeached again, the title of the General’s wife will surely be kept for you."
Xu Yin left the palace and went straight back to the Ritual Affairs Office, just taking off his hat when Lian Rong hurriedly came in.
"Master, the task is done! He Qunying replaces Zhe Yu, becoming the City Gate Defense Commander."
Xu Yin stood behind the desk, "So things went smoothly."
"It went smoothly with He Qunying, but we didn’t catch the person appointed by the Princely Heir’s wife."
"Didn’t catch them?" Xu Yin frowned and paused, "They got away?"
Lian Rong’s expression was not relaxed at all, "After Zhe Yu fell, the Princely Heir’s person’s suspicion was aroused and they started to flee from the scene, and our people immediately followed. But we discovered someone got ahead of us!"
"Not sure! They acted quickly and blended into the crowd, making it hard to catch sight of them."
Xu Yin took large strides out from behind the desk, brow furrowed deeply, "Not a single clue?"
Lian Rong shook his head, "This group was completely unexpected, no idea how they appeared first."
"Could it be the Princely Heir’s wife’s people?"
"It shouldn’t be. If they were the Princely Heir’s wife’s people, they wouldn’t be so roundabout; besides, if they were together, then the one who carried out the wife’s orders wouldn’t have fled."
Xu Yin’s hand rested on the edge of the table and said softly, "Have you arranged for people to keep looking?"
"We’ve never given up, currently expanding the search outside the Donghua Gate. But there have been no results."
Xu Yin took a deep breath, paced two circles, then said, "What about Zhe Yu?"
"Princess took him away, now he’s at his own home, reportedly an Imperial Physician has been called to treat him."
Xu Yin looked over, "Will his life be endangered?"
Lian Rong hesitated, "The sleeve crossbow hit a critical area, according to reports he was already unconscious shortly after being carried out, likely in grave danger."
Xu Yin slowly inhaled, "In grave danger, but there is still some hope."
Lian Rong acknowledged. "Although the person appointed by the Princely Heir’s wife has escaped, the good news is, the Prince Manor is in an uproar. After returning from the Zhe Family to the manor, the Princess went directly to the Princely Heir’s wife, causing a commotion, then took people to the Zhang Family. Reportedly, she had the Zhang Family smashed. Zhang Shicheng is still being held."
"What is the prince’s attitude?"
"The prince has not spoken."
Xu Yin exhaled, "At this point, he has nothing to say unless Zhe Yu really dies."
He suddenly asked, "What about the Commandery Princess?"
"The Commandery Princess earlier accompanied the Princess to the Zhe Family, waited until the Imperial Physician finished the diagnosis, but by now she must have returned to the manor."
In Xu Yin’s eyes flashed a hint of cold light, he picked up the black gauze hat, "Back to the manor!"
Yongping had just sat down when the door was pushed open, and Xu Yin strode in.
Yongping stood up again, before she could speak, Xu Yin was already in front of her, sitting down on the edge of the couch, his phoenix eyes slanting toward her, "Did you go see Zhe Yu?"
Yongping took a deep breath, "I went at Consort’s behest. I happened to be at the Prince Manor earlier, when news came that Zhe Yu was injured, Consort called me to go with her."
She reached out and offered him tea.
Xu Yin took it, drank a sip, and said, "You two grew up together, deeply affectionate, I heard he’s about to die, it was only right for you to see him."
Yongping frowned, "He is merely my cousin, how could there be such deep affection?"
"I know he’s your cousin," Xu Yin lifted his eyes, "But he has been inseparable from you since childhood, treating you differently, wasn’t that deep affection? I said it was right for you to visit him, that shouldn’t be wrong."
Yongping blushed, "What do you mean by this?!"
Xu Yin leaned back against the pillow, legs crossed, eyes looking at her, "What could I mean?"
After speaking, he softly closed his eyes, ignoring her further.
Yongping stood biting her teeth for a moment, then suddenly stepped forward, sat beside him, lightly shook his arm, "Are you angry?"
Yongping softened her voice a bit, "Are you jealous of him?"
Xu Yin turned over, his back facing her.
Yongping bit her lower lip, sat for a while, then stood up and walked out the door.
After leaving the courtyard gate, she stood under the corridor, turned, and said, "Go tell the Princess Zhe Yu is not seriously injured, he’s nowhere near dying, not worth calling an Imperial Physician!" Fresh chapters posted on NoveI★Fire.net
The maid was startled, "Commandery Princess!"
Yongping glared at her, "The lord is the legitimate Prince Consort, never called an Imperial Physician for illness, what kind of injury is Zhe Yu’s to call for one?"
"He’s not going to die, I know!
"When we were little, he fell from the top of a four-story pagoda helping me catch a cat and didn’t die! Now he has just a minor external injury, how could he easily die?..."
(Monthly tickets are hard to come by, let’s continue on the 1st.)