Gu An'an could be said to have returned home in glory, after all, the treatment of being greeted by Magistrate Du at the city gate is not something everyone can enjoy.

Seeing the returning carriage in the distance, Magistrate Du's face broke into a smile.

Seeing this, Master Liang couldn't help but tease, "Sir, you've really been waiting with bated breath. Manager Gu will be very touched when he finds out."

This remark earned him a glare from Magistrate Du. "What do you know?"

"Yes, yes, I don't understand, I don't understand anything, I'm just talking nonsense." He may not understand, but he has eyes.

Master Liang believed he had uncovered the secrets of heaven, but he smiled and remained silent.

Magistrate Du had no time to waste on his nonsense. Seeing the carriage approaching, he went to greet it and started talking to Gu An'an about the recent events in the county government.

It's nothing more than raising pigs at the pig farm and processing and manufacturing dolls at the doll shop.

Actually, nothing serious happened, but these things still need to be explained clearly.

"It's really been hard work, Lord Du. Fortunately, I can have some peace and quiet now that I'm back. I won't have to be involved in delivering goods to various places."

Magistrate Du felt that this arrangement was quite appropriate.

However, he brought up another matter, "I don't know who it was, but they went to the county government office quite often a while ago to inquire about me."

Gu An'an asked, somewhat puzzled, "How did the adults find out?"

"To be honest, I, Du, have practiced martial arts for a few days to strengthen my body, so I can sense something."

However, that person was even more cunning, seemingly realizing that he knew the other's whereabouts, and thus became even more secretive.

Gu An'an thought for a moment, "Is it just about inquiring about the adults?"

"It should be, but I'm not sure about the others."

These words made Gu An'an feel somewhat uneasy.

Jiang Yong'an has already dealt with the troublesome Fourth Prince, but his appearance at the villa at that time may have aroused Emperor Longqing's suspicion.

It is very likely that they were sent by the Longqing Emperor.

If that's the case, the investigation will likely extend beyond just Magistrate Du; Jiang Mingyi and his sister Zhu'er will also be implicated.

This made Gu An'an a little nervous, "I'll be away for a long time this time, I don't know what's going on at home..."

"Don't worry, Madam Gu, everything is fine at home, there's nothing wrong."

These words reassured Gu An'an somewhat. "That's good."

She went to the capital this time, leaving Xiao You here. This girl should be able to protect those children, right?

You'll find out when you ask her.

Xiao You was deeply moved that her boss came to see her first thing after returning home. "I knew you were good to me, boss." Her senior brother had excellent taste.

Gu An'an looked at the person who was crying and sniffling, "Alright, have you noticed anything unusual lately?"

abnormal?

Yes, my senior brother sent people over here to secretly protect his children.

However, this wasn't unusual, and Xiao You didn't intend to say, "Is there something wrong? I don't notice anything."

People who grow up on the frontier are born little liars, and they cleverly conceal their past. "By the way, I heard something strange. It is said that the young lady of the prefectural governor of Anzhou is getting engaged."

Is it Chen Shu?

Gu An'an asked, "Is anyone with any young master?"

"It seems to be a young master from the Fang family. I heard that young master Fang abandoned his studies to join the army and is serving under General Chen, the elder brother of Miss Chen."

Were they Chen Yuan's subordinates?

However, this is a safer approach.

"what else?"

"I heard that the prefect's wife is also thinking of arranging a marriage for their eldest son."

"General Chen rose to fame at a young age and is now of age; it is quite appropriate for him to start a family."

Xiao You blinked. "But General Chen said he doesn't want to get married for the time being, and I heard that he angered the prefect's wife."

Did Chen Yuan refuse his mother's arranged marriage?

Surely you can't be thinking of exchanging your marriage for Chen Shu's marriage, right?

But as a general, he shouldn't be involved in marriage alliances.

"How do you know so much? Did you eavesdrop under the bed?"

Xiao You was a little embarrassed. "How could you say that, Master? But I've heard that General Chen doesn't not want to get married, it's just that Madam Xie isn't quite satisfied with the person he wants to marry."

"That's their business, it has nothing to do with us."

There's nothing wrong at home, so it seems that Emperor Longqing has no leads for the time being and hasn't extended his reach to Anping County.

But if it wasn't the Longqing Emperor, then who was secretly spying on Magistrate Du?

Suspicion exists regarding Anping County...

Gu An'an quickly thought of a candidate—

Lin Zixing.

It's a bit of a shame that we couldn't find Lin Zixing himself to confront him.

Lin Zixing's attitude was ambiguous.

Gu An'an couldn't figure it out for a moment, and stopped thinking about it. "Thank you all for your hard work lately..."

"Master, there's something else I'm not sure if I should say."

After being glanced at by Gu An'an, Xiao You quickly said, "It's Jiu Niang. It seems she has someone she likes."

These words made Gu An'an chuckle. "Isn't this a good thing? What's wrong? Does that person have a family?" Liu Jiuniang wouldn't do something so foolish.

"No, it's just that the person's identity is completely different from Jiu Niang's."

"Which prince or nobleman's grandson?"

"Not really," Xiao You said softly. "Actually, you know that man's employer too; it's Magistrate Du."

This left Gu An'an somewhat bewildered; she never expected it to be Magistrate Du.

Do you know what Magistrate Du meant?

"He didn't seem to notice much, thinking that Ninth Sister was just concerned about the pigs in the pigsty."

Gu An'an: "..." What a straight man.

"Alright, adults can handle their own affairs, don't worry about it. I plan to go to Anzhou Prefecture in a while, and you can come with me then."

Xiao You immediately agreed, "Okay, I'll do as my master says."

She's actually a restless person. If it weren't for her senior brother's orders, how could she have stayed in this small county town? She would have gone sightseeing long ago, okay?

That's a huge sacrifice.

Not seeing Liu Jiuniang in the shop, Gu An'an wandered around the puppet shop next door, feeling somewhat tired when she returned home.

This was practically a long business trip; the bumpy carriage ride was exhausting.

However, this worry vanished instantly when Bao'er pounced on him.

Nothing relieves fatigue better than a cute and cuddly child.

Especially when the child is particularly well-behaved.

"Why didn't you go to study with the teacher? Did you skip school?"

Bao'er gave her mother a sweet kiss, "My older brother and sister said that Mother is coming back today. We'll be waiting for Mother at home."

This time, Gu An'an noticed that the two older ones were busy in the kitchen.

One is a descendant of a great general, and the other is the orphan of a princess from the previous dynasty.

As the two people helped her wash her hands and cook, Gu An'an felt her value had increased dramatically.

Although it's of no use.

However, her scrutiny aroused Jiang Mingzhu's curiosity. "What's wrong, Mother? Is something wrong?"

Why does she look at me like that? It's weird.