Gu Changzhi left behind only three letters after his death, one for the family, one for his honored teacher.
And one more...was for the Empress.
And had Aluer just said that the Empress was one of the people who knew Gu Changzhi best?
Gu Shen fell silent for a brief moment, subconsciously beginning to speak, wanting to ask about the old affairs of the past.
He had only uttered two words when he stopped.
Aluer was only a few years older than himself... How could she know these things?
"Her Majesty the Empress, during her ascension to the throne, faced great difficulties,"
Aluer knew what Gu Shen wanted to ask.
She said, "No one knows what those difficulties truly meant, but everyone in Central City knows... Mr. Gu Changzhi, he gave her tremendous support. Though they differed by twenty years in age, they once fought side by side as comrades-in-arms."
"And after pacifying the turmoil in the North Continent, Her Majesty the Empress erected a grand monument in Central City in Mr. Gu Changzhi’s honor. Besides that, she also collected some paintings and images that recorded the battles they fought together,"
As she spoke, her voice grew hoarse; she paused for a long while before slowly continuing, "Upon hearing the news of Mr. Gu Changzhi’s death... I saw Her Majesty the Empress open the past images, and she sat in silence for quite a while."
Gu Shen said nothing more...
The description by Aluer was very vivid and deeply moving.
Gu Shen took a deep breath, looked at Aluer, and said, "Even so, I must insist on personally delivering this letter to Her Majesty the Empress."
"Actually, my visit to Changye today... was not to take that letter from you."
Her gaze was gentle as she spoke, "The letter, and about you, were but guesses by Her Majesty the Empress. I came to Changye today to verify some of Her Majesty’s guesses...If Mr. Gu Changzhi left that letter, then he surely had his arrangements. I shall not intervene."
Upon hearing this, Gu Shen understood Aluer’s purpose.
All of this was "guesswork" by Her Majesty the Empress. Gu Changzhi had left a letter, and that letter was with him...How had she guessed it?
"Gu Nanfeng will be the future Family Head of the Gu family..."
Gu Shen rubbed his temples.
With a wry smile, he said, "If Her Majesty wishes to find the letter, she should look for him."
Aluer softly uttered the name by which Gu Nanfeng was more commonly known in the North Continent.
"Her Majesty understands him, he is not one to keep secrets." She smiled softly at Gu Shen, "Therefore, the probability for CN021 can be basically excluded... besides, he was not present at the mausoleum, was he?"
Hearing this, Gu Shen narrowed his eyes.
What Aluer was implying with those words... had a deeper meaning.
That was, the items left by Gu Changzhi were more than just a letter.
What belonged to the Beizhou Empress was just one of them.
Thus, Gu Changzhi was looking for not just a "messenger," but also someone trustworthy and capable of keeping the "secret."
"You needn’t be anxious."
Aluer spoke earnestly, "I have no intention to probe... but as long as the ’letter’ exists, the existence of ’secrets’ is surely established."
"The existence of these ’secrets’ is no real ’secret’ at all."
Gu Shen lifted his tea cup, glanced down with a smile, and whispered, "Moreover... with Her Majesty the Empress’s wisdom, surely she can guess some of the so-called secrets, right?"
The conversation between the two came to this point.
Gu Shen vaguely felt... the spiritual constraint on his brow gradually dispersed.
Gu Shen nearly immediately understood.
Bai Shu had lifted the restriction on his spiritual power, which meant that the conversation had enough information to be probed, information that even Bai Shu was interested in.
Gu Shen’s Chi Huo silently ignited.
For her previous remarks... Aluer merely smiled, neither confirming nor denying them.
Gu Shen, however, detected a clear wave of spiritual fluctuation.
Clearly, Aluer had limited information.
It was also possible that Her Majesty the Empress had not shared much... but even the Beizhou Empress, no matter how ’intelligent,’ couldn’t possibly foresee every twist of fate in the world, could she?
Gu Shen adjusted his seating position and asked, "Your Excellency has traveled a long distance to reach Changye; it can’t just be for this single matter, can it?"
Simply to confirm Gu Changzhi had left a letter did not justify such a "grand mobilization."
This is the Angel Envoy, the hand and foot of God!
If the Empress was so certain... she could well afford to wait.
Aluer also took a sip of her tea.
She spoke gravely, and her demeanor became more solemn as she said word by word, "Mr. Xiao Gu, you must have received some news about the Investigation Corps north of Gu Castle, haven’t you?"
"...Yes." Gu Shen nodded slowly.
"This matter is not that simple,"
Aluer said seriously, "Her Majesty the Empress hopes you can go to the North Continent in person... to unravel this enigma."
Right from the start, Gu Shen had felt it was strange.
The "request" from the North Continent Army seemed deliberately made to initiate contact with him.
And now, even the Angel Envoy had come to seek him out, hoping he would travel north to the Fortress.
"Due to some ’unspeakable’ reasons, Her Majesty’s current state... is not very good,"
Aluer clenched her teeth; she looked up at the Skytop then around her.
Eventually, with a sense of helplessness, she uttered these words...