Snow Lotus

The garden is full of fragrance of flowers.

After directly lifting the veil, the surrounding refreshing fragrance turned cold, sharp and pungent.

Meng Zheng's eyes and brows were slightly cold, and it was obvious that he had the same idea as Xiao Yingzhu.

But even though he knew that Xiao Yingzhu had received the information he had revealed intentionally or unintentionally, he still maintained his original posture of appreciating the flowers and stood still.

“…”

The flower garden was silent for a moment. Meng Zheng restrained the almost imperceptible trace of arrogance, his facial expression became calm and sharp, and then he raised his eyelids and looked directly at Xiao Yingzhu.

"So, what does Duke Xiao think?"

Apart from Jiang Nian's identity, Xiao Yingzhu's true position and attitude in this court.

These are what Meng Zheng wants to find out.

It is the red line for cooperation in words and deeds, and the bottom line for peaceful dialogue.

He used this opportunity to let Xiao Yingzhu see Xuehe, thereby leading to the eldest princess, and then connecting it to Shouzan. He was simply asking in a roundabout way why a person with such an uncertain destiny like Jiang Nian would appear here.

How to treat Jiang Nian and what method to choose to treat Jiang Nian are what Meng Zheng wants to know from Xiao Yingzhu. He wants to confirm the extent of Xiao Yingzhu's "treatment".

Although he had met Xiao Yingzhu several times at banquets over the years, the one that left an indelible impression on Meng Zheng was still Xiao Yingzhu's performance in front of his father.

Those feelings of resentment and sorrow, after nine years, have remained buried deep in my heart, allowed to germinate and grow, never to disappear. Or have they been released through some feeling or method?

It is true that when he went out to recuperate and returned to the capital, he sent people to inquire about information and news about Xiao Yingzhu, but from those extremely fragmented pieces of information, whether it was knowing Xiao Yingzhu's erratic decisions or Xiao Yingzhu's decisive style of killing, it was difficult for him to grasp.

Meng Zheng is very insightful about people's minds and has lived outside the palace for most of the year, which makes him different from the people who used to live in the palace.

Therefore, those who gave him advice had different experiences and observations from Meng Zheng, and their suggestions often failed to meet the requirements of Meng Zheng's thinking and ideas.

Because of this, since no one else can provide help, he can only make the decision on his own without any reference from beginning to end.

Now is the last moment for Meng Zheng to confirm his thoughts.

What would Xiao Yingzhu think?

Meng Zheng's experience was completely different from his, so naturally he couldn't understand it deeply.

But he can make decisions based on the bottom line.

—

"So Xiao Yingzhu hasn't come yet?"

After learning that Meng Zheng asked Jiang Nian to come to this reception room, Qin Lan walked around the room inside and out, and finally returned to the bookshelf where he had just read the Princess's Diary.

"Um."

Jiang Nian turned his eyes away from the diaries he had already read, was silent for a moment, and asked Qin Lan:

"Mr. Qin, do you know the sect's leader?"

"metropolitan?"

Qin Lan turned his head, confused.

"What does Miss Jiang want to know?"

Jiang Nian had some idea about Meng Zheng's test, but now he needed to know some additional things to complete his ideas.

"I want to know... did the sect leader have the ability to save people from the very beginning?"

"There was a way to save it from the beginning?"

Afraid that Qin Lan would have other doubts, Jiang Nian simply expressed his thoughts.

"Wasn't there an epidemic during the Qiming period?"

"Back then, the sect was not the first to respond. I wonder why they didn't provide assistance immediately."

She only said half of her words. There was no point in saying more, so she left the blank for Qin Lan to complete according to his own thoughts.

“…”

Qin Lan turned around and looked at her thoughtfully.

"The question Miss Jiang is asking is about the sect's internal affairs. Although I have a relationship with Tao Yu, I don't really know the internal situation."

"But as far as I know, Tao Yu's parents were not originally members of the sect. They were selected through various rounds of selection. That's why Tao Yu was able to grow up in the sect since childhood."

He smiled and stopped talking there.

"Miss Jiang, now that things have come to this, it is inconvenient to continue."

A key thought flashed through his mind, exactly matching what he was thinking. Jiang Nian's eyes paused for a moment, then he came back to his senses.

"Thank you, Master Qin, for telling me. I'm aware of it now."

Qin Lan shook his head and said nothing more. When he heard the sound from the distant corridor, he narrowed his eyes slightly.

"They are coming."

—

After hearing the result he wanted to hear from Xiao Yingzhu, Meng Zheng no longer continued to test Xiao Yingzhu, but there was a more complicated look in his eyes.

"Duke Xiao and the Princess shouldn't be familiar with each other, so why would they both think of him because of Xue He?"

It was not convenient to mention the name Shouzan at this moment, so Xiao Yingzhu skipped it tacitly.

"I saw Xuehe at Princess Qingping's place earlier, and it just happened to come to mind."

Recalling the relationship between Xiao Yingzhu and Princess Qingping, Meng Zheng narrowed his eyes slightly, and his usual casual expression reappeared.

"Are you in touch with her?"

I remember that after the battle of Shenjiang, Xiao Yingzhu's views on the court changed a lot, and Princess Qingping should have been blocked together.

Xiao Yingzhu calmly changed the subject of Meng Zheng's question and replied nonchalantly:

"We met once at a birthday party, so we're not that familiar with each other."

Meng Zheng lowered his eyes, recalled the scene at that time, and after a moment raised his lips indifferently.

"Yeah, I was overthinking it."

There is only one character difference between snow lotus and lotus, but they are two completely different flowers.

Fortunately, Princess Qingping and the eldest princess have somewhat similar preferences, and Xuehe has also been cultivated, so Xiao Yingzhu took advantage of this opportunity.

Meng Zheng and Qingping were not very familiar with each other. They had only met a few times by chance when they were still in the palace. They had different personalities and did not have a delicate relationship like Xiao Yingzhu had with them, so naturally they had nothing to say to each other.

When she returned to the palace from the countryside, Princess Qingping's attitude towards others became increasingly difficult to approach, and she often treated people with aloofness. It was impossible for her to have much interaction with Meng Zheng.

After walking a few more steps, they arrived at the reception room where Jiang Nian was. The relationship between the two was not very harmonious, and after the temptations and suspicions over the chess game, they had nothing to talk about. They simply stayed silent together, thinking about their own things, and went into the house.

—

There were no servants waiting in the reception room. All those who had nothing to do with the core military events of Cang County were screened out, and Yu He's guards were hidden in the dark around them.

Not long after Qin Lan and Jiang Nian finished talking, Xiao Yingzhu and Meng Zheng arrived in the hall one after another.

Hearing the sound of the door being opened, Jiang Nian concealed the complicated expression that was about to be revealed, and calmly greeted the two people who finally came into the hall.

Xizhen came with Yu He, so he sat between the two of them, not far from where Meng Zheng was sitting.

He looked up at Meng Zheng's expression, and a hint of doubt flashed across his eyes. While there was still some time to be certain, he lowered his eyes and glanced at the cups on the table, then asked:

"Before we have a heart-to-heart talk, I would like to ask Your Highness to allow me to speak a few words."

Facing Xi Zhen's ambiguous eyes, Meng Zheng was silent for a moment. He glanced at Qin Lan who was sitting upright, tapped the table, looked back at him, and said with a smile:

"Your humble servant has nothing to say."

Seeing Meng Zheng's agreement, Xi Zhen put aside his thoughts and said frankly, "Just now, I arrived with the Chief Secretary and encountered a servant with a frightened look on his face. I wonder if there is any unrest in the mansion?"

The matter to be discussed was very confidential. Since Xizhen and Yuhe had come, it seemed that there was nothing wrong with him asking this question.

But if you look beyond the surface, the underlying purpose is nothing more than exploring whether Meng Zheng is suspecting them.

If Xizhen's prediction was correct, Meng Zheng would definitely not sit here so openly and cooperate with all the unfamiliar people except Yu He. He must find something that could be used as a guarantee.

If what he thought was correct, this servant could confirm what he thought.

Meng Zheng obviously heard the hidden meaning in Xizhen's words. Seeing that everyone was guessing what was on their mind, he smiled knowingly and lightly retorted.

"The mansion is well guarded by our own personal army, so it's impregnable. Is Chief Xi worrying too much?"

During the short reply, Xizhen quickly glanced at Xiao Yingzhu's face, and seeing that he was meaningless, the smile in his eyes deepened.

"Your Highness is quite right. I was indeed overly worried."

The little episode passed by in a flash, and the few people casually skipped over the mutual testing and got down to business.

"The previous commander was a remnant of the bishop's faction, and he deliberately left behind this revised verification seal."

"Then he was instructed by the Wumi believers to delay time."

Yu He briefly recounted the two cases in a calm voice.

"After death, one loses control of what they wished to control. If we want the current, unwise commander to unintentionally accomplish this, we'll need the assistance of others."

Yu He was the first to propose cooperation, so he did not hide the clues.

"I think you all share the same concerns as me, so I ordered the names and faces of these officials to be drawn."

Yu He spread the portable portrait on the table.

"These are the people who, after investigation, I have confirmed are secretly colluding with the Wumi believers."

Although the information about these officials was slightly different from that of Xiao Yingzhu, the two people were investigating in different directions, so it was normal that the people involved would change to a greater or lesser extent.

"Except for these few officials." Yu He pointed at a few minor officials, "The others are all observing secretly and have not alerted the enemy."

After a brief pause, he continued, "And the boatman, we've found some clues."

"The one who killed him was a Wumi cultist, similar to an assassin. I have already found his whereabouts."

These words made people feel very anxious, but Yu He stopped talking at this point.

He deliberately kept the information here and made a "please" gesture.

"I will leave this for now. I still need Duke Xiao's guidance on the rest."

Yu He's tone was neither humble nor arrogant, and there wasn't even much emotion. He was calm as a still pond, waiting as usual before a certain moment came, quietly lying dormant in an inconspicuous place, as if nothing that made him anxious could disturb or interrupt him.

Just seeing him sitting there calmly, holding a cup in one hand, with his eyes lowered very quietly.

The black hair that was tied up high was clearly spread out behind the shoulders and disappeared under the table, contrasting with the blue and white sleeves, as elegant as ink, like a spread of ink scroll.

Who would have thought that this pure man is the current decisive and ruthless commander of the imperial army?

Jiang Nian's thoughts followed the topic, and he couldn't help holding his breath at the critical moment. He glanced at Yu He quickly and even felt the sound of the piano.

She secretly sighed that one cannot judge a person by his appearance. Her thoughts moved when she heard Xiao Yingzhu in front of her continue his words and speak slowly.

"Well, that's right."