In an instant, Jiang Segu felt something sweep across her heart, and that strange feeling she had experienced before returned, making her feel dizzy and lightheaded.

Fortunately, she is now sitting on the couch, otherwise she would have really embarrassed herself!

Seeing her stunned silence, Gu Songhan knew he couldn't rush her and explained why he had returned.

"I suspect there are three possible reasons for this search of the yard!"

When the matter was brought up, Jiang Segu straightened his posture. "Could it be that Madam Xiao's visit wasn't solely for those two servants?"

In Jiang Segu's view, Xiao Mama wanted to take advantage of the search of the courtyard to find the two servants and preferably kill them, so that she would not be able to find any evidence against her aunt!

However, the actions of Xiao's mother during Zijin's interrogation just now gave her other ideas.

If Auntie really sent Xiao Mama, she wouldn't be so blatantly protecting Auntie!

In her view, it wasn't protecting someone, but rather shifting the blame!

However, she couldn't figure out who wanted to instigate a conflict between her and her aunt, nor could she have imagined that Xiao's mother had other motives for this trip!

"What you said is only one aspect. Secondly, there's probably someone in your courtyard who knows I'm here and wants to catch me red-handed, to frame you for..." He paused, "..."

Jiang Segu blushed with embarrassment, lowered her head, and whispered, "I just cleaned this courtyard during the day, and I didn't expect there to be any stragglers. But even if you give me a proper burial..."

She bit her lower lip lightly, her voice weakening further, "So what if I'm accused of such a crime? I'm almost of marriageable age, and you're of a high status. Not only will my grandmother love me and not pursue this matter, but my grandfather, considering your official position, won't object to my closeness with you."

“You’re oversimplifying things! If someone insists on using this as an excuse to confine you to the courtyard to reflect on your actions, even your grandmother might not be able to exonerate you! At that time, you won’t be able to fight back, and your mother’s situation will be in danger!”

Yes!

If it weren't for me today, my mother would have no way to defend herself!

At that time, Peony easily grabbed her mother with the help of her grandmother.

Jiang Segu asked with lingering fear, "What was the other purpose?"

Gu Songhan answered irrelevantly: "I heard from people in the Military Command that the ladies in the palace are all ruthless in their quest for the emperor's favor. They use all sorts of schemes to achieve their goals, and they are better at lying low than others. They also plan ahead for every step they take."

Jiang Segu was a little confused by what he said. "Why are you bringing up noble people in the palace?"

"I only heard that the late Consort Qi was also searched in her palace for the same reason. At that time, nothing was found. But not long after, thieves appeared in the palace, and the palace guards tracked them all the way to Consort Qi's palace."

Consort Qi had nothing to hide, so she allowed herself to be searched.

She hadn't expected that the guards would find witchcraft and sorcery items in her palace, and that the Empress's birth date and time were written on them.

Jiang Segu frowned, pondered for a moment, and, combining what he had heard in his previous life, asked, "Is it Consort Min who is searching Consort Qi's palace?"

Gu Songhan shook his head, "It wasn't her, but she was the one who orchestrated it behind the scenes! The cursed object was also placed in Consort Qi's bedroom by her during the chaos."

"How did you know about such a secret? Did Aunt Lan tell you?"

Gu Songhan replied, "At that time, Consort Min was just a beauty, residing in Consort Qi's Yueheng Palace. Consort Qi was not easy to get along with and often bullied her. Consort Min also discovered that she was pregnant. In order to protect her child, she devised this plan to get rid of Consort Qi and, by virtue of her son, took her place as the head consort of Yueheng Palace."

"You mean to say that Madam Xiao may have left something in my yard tonight?"

"It doesn't necessarily mean they left something there; it could also mean they took something!"

Jiang Segu suddenly felt his brain wasn't working properly. "What should I do now? Should I order someone to search the yard? Or should I take inventory of the items?"

"Search your room thoroughly first; there's no rush to find the other rooms!"

Jiang Segu's mind was in a mess at this point, so he listened to Gu Songhan's words and wanted to call someone to come and search.

Gu Songhan stopped him, "Right now, apart from Qiaohe, none of the people in your courtyard can be trusted!"

"Then what should we do?"

"Your dorm room isn't very big, let's find another room together!"

Thus, the two of them gradually filled Jiang Segu's bedroom.

A dormitory room is nothing more than a bed, a wardrobe, and other similar items.

The bed was fine; it wasn't difficult to find.

But when it came to the wardrobe… Gu Songhan looked at the wardrobe full of clothes and the dressing table overflowing with jewelry, and for a moment he felt a little unsure where to start!

"Why don't you go check the bathroom?"

Jiang Segu had her own personal clothing in the wardrobe, and she was too embarrassed to let Gu Songhan touch it.

At dawn, the two of them finally searched Jiang Segu's bedroom and main hall.

Only the west room, where Jiang Segu usually writes and embroiders, remains unchecked!

At that time, Jiang Segu was so sleepy that his eyelids could barely stay open.

It's not that she can't stay up late, it's just that so much happened today that it drained all her energy.

Gu Songhan was a veteran of many battles, and it was common for him to go for days and nights without sleep. Seeing this, he advised him to go to sleep first, saying, "I will check the west room."

Jiang Segu propped his eyes up with his fingers, shaking his head in refusal, "I know my own things best..."

But after saying that, she felt a little guilty.

Actually, she doesn't know much about her own things anymore!

"Why don't you go back first? This is the only room left. I'll have Qiaohe come over after dawn..."

She was so sleepy that she forgot Qiaohe had been injured during the day.

Jiang Segu simply lay down on the cot beside the bed. "Searching like this isn't going to solve anything! After all, we don't know whether Xiao's mother left something or took something. After dawn, I'll try to find out what Xiao's mother has to say... Maybe we can find some clues..."

As she continued speaking, her voice became increasingly indistinct, until finally it went completely silent.

Gu Songhan, who was searching for the treasure cabinet, turned around and saw that Jiang Segu had already fallen asleep on the couch.

In the candlelight, her fair face glowed with a soft light, and the beauty mark under her eye added a touch of allure. Her small lips were slightly pouting, making her look even more beautiful and delicate than in the daytime. A wisp of hair fell around her mouth because of her lying position.

Gu Songhan stepped forward and gently tucked the stray hair behind her ear.

When his hand touched Jiang Segu's soft earlobe, a surge of heat welled up inside him. He hastily withdrew his hand, put it behind his back, and his Adam's apple bobbed unnaturally.

Afterwards, Gu Songhan went to Jiang Segu's dormitory, took a quilt and covered her with it, then continued searching...