eve

In the past, she thought Xiao Yingzhu was a companion who seemed difficult to approach but was actually a good companion to get along with.

But in recent days, she saw another side of Xiao Yingzhu that he showed her casually.

That side of her made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

It was as if her actions and her choices were all within his expectations, and he was a spectator and chess player of this world, who only needed to sit beside the table and watch with interest.

You don’t have to do anything, just keep your eyes down like a god in this world.

It's as familiar as looking at the animals you loved as a child, or the things you improvised as a teenager, and you can already predict how things will develop.

It's boring, but it can add some unnecessary interest to his boring and poor life.

Jiang Nian and Xiao Yingzhu have been together for almost two months.

She could clearly feel that Xiao Yingzhu treated her differently.

This difference was not spontaneous, but planned, as if he had defined himself to treat her differently from others.

It wasn't out of preference, nor for any other reason, it was simply because he wanted to treat her differently. There was no reason, he just did it.

Jiang Nian initially thought that the reason Xiao Yingzhu treated her specially was because she was a key player in the game.

But now it doesn't look like that.

Late at night, it started to rain heavily in Cang County again. Feeling drowsy, Jiang Nian got up and closed the half-open window.

She glanced down inadvertently, and the pavilion that night was hazy in the mist and rain, and could not be seen clearly.

What happened last night was still vivid in her mind. Now she was in a new room and looking through the window frames with different decorations. The changes in the surrounding environment made her feel as if a long time had passed.

The side of Xiao Yingzhu that others see is moody, capricious and cruel.

He appears to his friends as careless and spontaneous, yet actually very planned.

When it comes to treating friends, although Xiao Yingzhu is not a lenient person, he knows his limits. He will not do everything on his own as rumored by the outside world. On the contrary, he will be tolerant to others and will not force others to do things.

I will even answer questions for friends who have them when I'm interested.

…

Jiang Nian had seen both the familiar and unfamiliar sides of Xiao Yingzhu, and had a certain degree of understanding of him.

But now Xiao Yingzhu's behavior towards her, or the way he treated others, was no longer within the scope of ordinary communication, and had clearly transcended both.

She now couldn't figure out how to face him or talk to him.

According to the current development of the situation in Cang County, it would be difficult to leave Xiao Yingzhu, let alone return to Pingzhou.

She really had nowhere to go here. If she went somewhere else just because she would feel embarrassed facing Xiao Yingzhu, it would be strange if she didn't become a burden to others. She didn't want to cause trouble to others.

Fine and dense raindrops fell obliquely on the window paper, leaving shallow water marks.

Jiang Nian stared at the slowly falling water mark for a few seconds, sighed softly, and walked back to the edge of the bed to sit.

When he passed by the window just after closing it, he was blown by the cold wind. He caught a glimpse of the pavilion and thought of Xiao Yingzhu again. His originally hazy mind suddenly became clear.

These scattered thoughts always bothered her, entangled her, and floated in her mind.

It's already late at night.

It completely disrupted my regular routine.

Jiang Nian couldn't help but laugh and sigh, pulled the quilt over himself, and stared at the ceiling in a daze.

This first room was also booked for her by Xiao Yingzhu.

Of course, he had no choice. From his point of view, it was not polite to let her go back to her original room alone in the middle of the night. As a single man and a single woman, his status here was sensitive. If he went back to send her back, it would be troublesome if others saw them.

He seemed to have anticipated that there would be strange changes in their relationship the next day, so the room the servant sent her to was not opposite the door, nor was it separated by a wall.

It's in a non-awkward position.

If she opened the door at the same time as he did, they wouldn't feel uncomfortable looking at each other.

One of them just had to turn around, close the door, and walk down the stairs.

The person in front can only see the stairs, and the people behind don’t have to look at the people in front.

...It was late at night, and she was thinking about something.

This situation has already begun to be considered as overthinking. She has been keeping this insignificant yet unavoidable thing hanging in the air all day. How anxious is she about the change in the way she gets along with Xiao Yingzhu?

Jiang Nian tossed and turned, feeling unbearable when he thought that the result of the Tongzhi examination would come out tomorrow morning and he would have to meet Xiao Yingzhu again.

Even if we take a step back, couldn't she just go with Ai?

Unfortunately, Ai also has important things to do, and it’s not good to always trouble others.

It would be great if I knew some self-defense skills.

As his thoughts grew heavier, Jiang Nian closed his eyes and fell into the silent and boundless darkness.

—

The next day, news came from the Ministry of Personnel about the results.

When the newly appointed commander heard the news, he was so moved that he burst into tears. He felt that he could wear his official hat safely for a while and sit in this chair for a while longer.

The person who changed the seal was the previous Tongzhi who had passed away due to illness.

The relationship involved is not complicated. To put it simply, the ancestors had some connection with the bishop, and the bishop gradually cooperated with the Wu Mi people. Therefore, there was this belief identity passed down from generation to generation, which made it much easier for the Wu Mi people to intervene.

In order to prevent unnecessary incidents, the leader of the Wu Mi people locked in on the people in Cangjun City who might have had contact with Xiao Yingzhu, selected the most certain one, replaced the seal, and used this method to delay the transmission of the message.

"I'm not surprised that the Wu Mi people are behind this, but what's their purpose in keeping this secret?"

I have read the two letters of intelligence obtained from the sect several times and can remember every detail clearly.

Ai also took it to Xuangui and Yan to check and confirm that it was correct.

On the way to Meng Zheng's current residence, Qin Lan's gaze wandered between Xiao Yingzhu and Jiang Nian for a moment, and he smiled meaningfully.

"You two..." He put aside the previous question for the time being and continued, "Didn't you get enough rest last night?"

Qin Lan's pause in the middle made Jiang Nian's heart tighten, and when he heard the second half of the sentence, his heart was relieved again.

I thought Young Master Qin would mention something else.

It seems that the fact that she and Xiao Yingzhu are not on good terms is already known to everyone.

Although only one day had passed, I didn't see many people during that day.

But Jiang Nian just had this feeling inexplicably.

When I came to the Ministry of Personnel just now, Xizhen and the commander-in-chief also came.

The commander was concerned about his position, so he came early, and Xizhen also arrived early for some reason.

When he saw Xiao Yingzhu coming with her, the look in his eyes was similar to the one Qin Lan gave him before he said something, which was meaningful and had a hint of "I understand".

Mingming and Xizhen have only met a few times, but why does it feel like he knows her as well as Qin Lan who followed her all the way from Pingzhou?

Is it really that obvious?

If they could tell after just a few days of getting along, then wouldn't it have been in vain for them to pretend to be unfamiliar with each other when they were in Akamon?

Then there is Yu He.

Although Yu He didn't see her today, he did glance at her when the banquet was over last night.

Although it was very light and faint, it just swept past her and did not stay there for long, but Jiang Nian also noticed it, perhaps because she cared too much or was too sensitive.

In theory, everyone's personality should not be gossipy.

At least for now, their personalities should be the same as hers, putting their careers first, right?

Even Young Master Qin, who seemed out of tune at ordinary times, was extremely focused at work. She had seen him handling the affairs of his intelligence bureau several times while in the sect.

Even through the window and the road, you can feel that kind of concentration at a glance.

...Then why is it here, making her feel gossipy?

That's not right. It's wrong that when the word "gossip" is used to describe them, it doesn't seem ooc, right?

Jiang Nian admitted that she shouldn't have used modern terms in ancient times, but given the somewhat outrageous situation now, it was difficult for her not to complain.

Feeling the other party's gossipy gazes, Jiang Nian put on a soft smile, seemingly unaware of their reactions.

After secretly suppressing her complaints, she turned her face away calmly, avoiding Qin Lan's inquiry.

"The purpose of keeping a hand is related to the time of our visit."

Xiao Yingzhu's words interrupted Qin Lan's persistent gossip about Jiang Nianqi.

Qin Lan was very disappointed that he didn't see the change in her expression, but he couldn't get gossip information directly from Xiao Yingzhu, so he had to put the gossip aside and focus on serious matters.

"When did you arrive?" He frowned. "When did you come to Cang County?"

"Um."

Xiao Yingzhu tapped the table lightly, his eyes thoughtful.

"They are waiting for an opportunity."

A faint light shone through the porcelain enamel, and his voice was light, just like usual.

"If the information had been received earlier in Pingzhou, we would have set off for Cang County earlier, and it wouldn't have taken five days."

"By then," he paused, his eyes expressionless, his voice softening. "The clue to the boatman will remain."

Boatman?

The boatman who brought them to Cang County was killed on the same day.

The mastermind behind this is obviously the Wu Mi people.

The Wu Mi people are connected with Meng Jian.

Including this Tongzhi incident, it is very likely that Meng Jian ordered the Wu Mi people to do it.

After all, he is staying in Cang County.

Qin Lan paused for half a second following Xiao Yingzhu's words, frowning as he pondered: "Are you saying that the boatman was killed simply because the deadline had arrived?"

"So if we could have received the intelligence earlier and set off earlier, then the boatman might not have been dead by the time we discovered it?"

"Um."

Xiao Yingzhu raised her eyes and looked through the window calmly at the beautiful scenery outside Cang County.

Even after being washed by the blood of plague and evil cults, the scenery here remains the same as before, always showing its original appearance indifferently.

Even people in dangerous situations, when they see the grandeur and beauty of nature and its boundless and broad tolerance, will involuntarily stop their pace of walking or running and stare into the distance for a moment.

The soul will be taken away by it.

I want to run towards the vast sea with my whole body and soul.

The somewhat dark carriage suddenly became bright due to the light. Jiang Nian also tilted his head and looked towards the carriage next to Xiao Yingzhu.

After a whole night of heavy rain, the reflection of the vast and bright sky became the same color as the river and lake, so magnificent that it was enough to bring tears to one's eyes.

It was as if a thousand years of time had overlapped. Jiang Nian's pupils shrank for a moment, and he was afraid that the fluctuation on his face would be noticed by the other two, so he temporarily withdrew his gaze.

Qin Lan took a quick look at the scenery outside the window, and seeing that Xiao Yingzhu stopped talking, he asked another question.

"Is this the moment they're waiting for?"

Xiao Yingzhu withdrew her gaze and responded as if nothing had happened.

"Yeah. They should have noticed it too."

That's why Xizhen showed up at the commanding officer's place early in the morning. He was calculating the time and waiting for everyone to be sure before telling them what was on his mind.