Chapter 27

When Xu Xuan arrived at Jiangnan Hutong with his men, coincidentally, a group from the Eastern Depot also arrived, and the two sides collided at the narrow intersection. The leader of the Eastern Depot was Hu Mazi, Chen Zhen's adopted son, who had been ordered to come here to search for the Crown Prince with the eunuchs from the Eastern Palace.

He spurred his horse and quickly rode to Xu Xuan's side, laughing, "Isn't this Manager Xu? What a coincidence!"

What was supposed to be a casual greeting sounded utterly repulsive to Xu Xuan. Hu Mazi was greedy and lecherous, a notorious figure in the capital, known for his numerous misdeeds. Despite being impeached multiple times, he was always managed to escape punishment, which only fueled his hatred.

Xu Xuan felt it was an eyesore to even glance at such a person, but out of consideration for the Directorate of Ceremonial, he forced a smile and replied, "I didn't expect to meet the Grand Eunuch here."

He nodded slightly as a greeting.

Hu Mazi asked, "What brings Steward Xu here?"

"Investigating the case of the demonic book, where is the Grand Supervisor?" Xu Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly, pondering the purpose of the other party's visit.

"Like Master Xu, we both work for the Emperor."

He chuckled, his narrow eyes darting around. He was afraid that Xu Xuan would interfere with his search for someone, and even more afraid that he would discover his secret meeting with the eunuch from the Eastern Palace. Therefore, he wanted to prevent Xu Xuan from entering the alley.

“My people from the Eastern Depot are searching here. If you want to investigate someone, Master Xu, you should go somewhere else.”

After he finished speaking, he gave one of his men a look, and the entrance to Jiangnan Hutong was immediately taken over by the imperial guards, preventing Xu Xuan from even getting in.

"..."

Xu Xuan's anger flared instantly. He gripped his riding whip tightly and gritted his teeth, saying, "If the Eastern Depot can investigate, then my Ministry of Justice and the Embroidered Uniform Guard can also investigate. What does Grand Eunuch Hu mean by this?"

"Master Xu, as I said, the Eastern Depot will be conducting an investigation here today."

With an arrogant expression, Hu Mazi pointed at the group of Imperial Guards and said, "Your Commander Wang is my friend. Today I will take charge for him. You don't need to investigate here anymore. Go back."

Xu Xuan's face turned ugly, and Hu Mazi dropped all pretense, tearing off the mask directly, "Anyone who disobeys will be dismissed and investigated. Go home and take care of your children."

His arrogant behavior was naturally due to the protection of his superiors. Xu Xuan was only a sixth-rank official, and his reliance on Consort Shen was to curry favor with the Directorate of Ceremonial. Therefore, Hu Mazi was very impolite to Xu Xuan.

"you……"

Xu Xuan's face turned almost green with anger. He had seen arrogant people before, but this was the first time he had seen someone so shameless, bypassing him and directly issuing orders, threatening his future.

After he finished speaking, which of these Imperial Guards dared to go inside to look for someone?

Xu Xuan's brows furrowed as he suppressed his anger. He followed Hu Mazi's instructions, telling the Imperial Guards to wait outside while he led his horse and replied, "You can control the Imperial Guards, but you can't control a civil official like me. Let's meet inside."

After saying that, he turned his horse around and headed towards another entrance to Jiangnan Hutong.

Hu Mazi also realized that if Xu Xuan went inside, he would most likely encounter people from the Eastern Palace. Without wasting any time, he immediately urged his horse inside.

...

Near He's Clothing Store, Liu Heng, the eunuch of the Eastern Palace, was anxiously waiting for someone.

The Crown Prince had been missing for several days after leaving the palace, so he waited here for those days, day and night, without even a moment's rest, but there was still no news.

Even though the sun was high in the sky, the temperature was still very low, and the white breaths from their breath were clearly visible. Liu Heng stomped his feet to keep warm, and he was extremely anxious.

A young eunuch ran quickly to Liu Heng's side and said happily, "Grand Eunuch Hu is here."

Liu Heng was taken aback, and then saw that Hu Mazi looked anxious and seemed to be cursing something. As soon as he arrived, he quickly pulled him into the shop.

Have you seen Xu Xuan?

Liu Heng shook his head and asked, "What happened?"

Hu Mazi was a little angry. He put his hands on his hips and said, "That Xu Xuan is so arrogant. I told him not to come, but he just wanted to mess with me and insisted on coming in all by himself. It really makes me furious."

Liu Heng was shocked and hurriedly asked, "Why are the Consort's people here? Have they discovered something?"

"I don't know if he's found it or not, but he's here to investigate the demon book. He'll be here soon, so let's leave quickly and avoid being discovered by him."

The two quickly discussed the meeting place and the search route on the map. The Eastern Palace had dozens of people, and the Eastern Depot brought twenty. They planned to search the capital city inch by inch using the map.

"Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find His Highness." Liu Heng made up his mind.

"I can only stop them for a while, but who knows when the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Ministry of Justice will come again? Since the Crown Prince hasn't come for several days, he probably won't come here again."

Liu Heng agreed with Hu Mazi's suggestion.

After discussing it, the two decided to evacuate everyone from Jiangnan Hutong, so when Xu Xuan came in, he found no one there.

The fact that Hu Mazi was guarding this place so fiercely must mean something was amiss. Xu Xuan had his doubts, so he asked a roadside vendor. The vendor was very kind and told him everything in detail, "I just saw those factory guards leave. They all seemed to be in a hurry."

"Left?" Xu Xuan was even more surprised. "Are you sure you didn't see wrong?"

The vendor thought about it carefully for a while and said with certainty, "There's no mistake, they left in a large group, leaving no one behind."

Thank you.

They just desperately tried to stop the Imperial Guards from entering, but now the Imperial Guards have all left. Their movements are suspicious. Could they be moving someone or something?

Xu Xuan didn't think too long about it. Once the Imperial Guards left, he took the opportunity to bring in the Embroidered Uniform Guards. Objects are inanimate, but people are alive. He would find out exactly what the Imperial Guards were doing here.

Xu Xuan divided his men into three groups to search for beggars in the area. When they saw someone wearing a new cotton coat, they arrested them on the spot and brought them to a stall.

The noodle shop where Deng Yan had eaten was now filled with beggars.

It was noon, and everyone was hungry. Xu Xuan asked the shop owner to make a lot of noodles and distribute them to the beggars.

After they finished eating their noodles, Xu Xuan said, "I am Xu Xuan, the chief clerk of the Ministry of Justice. I invited you all here today because I have some questions I would like to ask you."

He took out a demonic book from his hand, and sure enough, the people's expressions changed drastically. He knew that he had come to the right place this time. "I know that the demonic book is not your fault. I am not here today to pursue any responsibility."

In front of the beggar, he personally tore up the demon book, threw the scraps into the air, and a gust of cold wind swept by, scattering the scraps everywhere.

"Then, sir, what would you like to ask?" an older beggar asked.

Where did you get your new cotton-padded coat?

...

Licun.

After lunch, the doctor came again to perform acupuncture. After two days of rest, Wei Luo's knee injury had improved significantly. The doctor said that acupuncture could be discontinued, but moxibustion should continue for some time. He left behind many moxa sticks and entrusted this task to Shen Yao.

I'm thirsty.

Shen Yao poured a cup of hot tea and brought it to Wei Luo. Wei Luo took it and noticed that she had a furrowed brow and a worried look on her face. He couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

"Oh? It's nothing."

Shen Yao turned around, but she was secretly anxious.

Tomorrow is the day Han Yu is supposed to meet the masked man. According to the original plan, she and her brother Shen Fan were supposed to ambush at Ciyun Temple. But now, she can't leave. Tomorrow, Shen Fan will be alone, and she doesn't know if they can catch the man.

Worried, she became increasingly anxious. When she took the teacup from Wei Luo, her hand slipped, and the teacup shattered on the ground with a "bang."

They stared at each other, a little awkward.

Wei Luo put down her book, her tone somewhat displeased, "What's wrong with you?"

"It was a slip of the hand." Shen Yao bent down to pick it up, and after picking up the fragments, she opened the door and handed them out.

A man wearing a mink cloak walked into the courtyard. He looked young, tall and thin, with fair skin and a scholarly appearance.

It was Zhao Liang's younger brother, Zhao Xian, who came specifically to find Shen Yao and the other person.

"Second Brother Zhao," Shen Yao greeted him with a smile.

"I've come to tell you that the snow on the main road in the village has been cleared, and I'm driving back to Beijing. Are you coming with me?"

"Go back!" Shen Yao was so happy she almost jumped for joy. "We're going back!"

Shen Yao rushed into the house and told Wei Luo the news. Wei Luo was also overjoyed. The two of them immediately packed up, even bringing the moxa sticks.

Zhao Niangzi handed over a large bag of walnuts, telling the two of them to eat them on the road, and also reminded Zhao Ershu that the roads were slippery in the snow and that he should drive carefully.

As the car drove away from the village, the number of pedestrians and vehicles on the road gradually increased, and various shouts filled the air. Zhao Xian drove the car with peace of mind, Wei Luo leaned against the wall and pretended to doze off, while only Shen Yao was bored and restless, so she started peeling walnuts to eat.

Zhao Niangzi gave her a big bag of walnuts. Shen Yao took one out and cracked it open with a "snap." Just as she was about to eat it, Wei Luo opened his eyes and looked at her. He must have heard the sound of the walnut cracking.

Shen Yao reached out and offered it to him, "Do you want some?"

Wei Luo's eyes were deep, like an unfathomable pool, and he said softly, "I'm not hungry."

Shen Yao then stuffed the fruit pulp into her mouth.

He lifted the carriage curtain and saw that the sun was already setting in the west, dusk was falling, the cold wind was swirling up withered leaves, and the sky in the distance was turning gloomy. He then asked Zhao Xian ahead, "How much longer until we reach the capital?"

"Where do you plan to get off in half an hour?"

Shen Yao also looked up at Wei Luo and asked, "How about we go to Jiangnan Hutong again?"

"Hurry up and hand this Buddha statue over to Liu Heng, and Shen Yao will be all set."

Wei Luo lowered his eyes, his expression calm, and his silence was tacit agreement, which delighted Shen Yao.

"You seem very happy?"

After a long while, Wei Luo suddenly looked up at Shen Yao, his voice carrying an indescribable strangeness.

Shen Yao looked up blankly, "Of course, I'm happy to be home."

Wei Luo gave a soft "humph" through his nose, reached into his bag and took two walnuts, playing with them in his hand. "That's right, you must miss Xu Xuan a lot since you haven't seen him for so long."

The two walnuts were rotated and rubbed back and forth in my hand, making a piercing cracking sound, as if they were sworn enemies.

"Uh...actually, I don't really want to."

Wei Luo looked up at her with a half-smile.

"You know, Xu Xuan has a wonderful cousin, and the two of them are incredibly loving. How could I possibly be a match for them?" Just thinking about going home and seeing the two of them showing off their affection again made Shen Yao lose all interest in even chewing walnuts.

Wei Luo took in her expression. She was unhappy when Xu Xuan was mentioned, and her marriage was also unhappy. Her tone was like that of a resentful woman in her boudoir. He could hardly suppress the urge to smile.

Wei Luo tossed the cracked walnut in his hand to Shen Yao and laughed, "The key to a successful marriage is compromise. You were so determined to marry Xu Xuan back then, but now it's too late to regret it. So you should think about how to please Xu Xuan."

"No, I don't want to please him. He's ruthless. If I were in his hands, I wouldn't even know how I died."

Shen Yao vividly remembered the historical records, and she had no intention of rushing to her death.

"But you are his lawfully wedded wife, you are already bound together and cannot be separated."

Shen Yao's brow twitched. Since the topic had been brought up, she might as well tell him.

“Your Highness, I’ve done you a favor this time, haven’t I?” Her gaze was intense.

Wei Luo suddenly had a bad feeling. "What do you want to say?"

"I want a divorce from him."