Chapter 206 The Prince Only Feels Disgust for Her

A rosewood desk, a root-carved shelf, a fine Yellow River inkstone, and handmade ink sticks inlaid with gold leaf.

Beside the desk, Jin Shu, who had been bombarded with several questions, had a fascinating expression on her face.

She stammered for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a sentence: "This is probably not something you should be curious about."

Li Jin placed her hands on the desk, raised an eyebrow, and chuckled, "Why?"

Jin Shu pursed her lips, looking at the ambiguous smile on Li Jin's face.

She clicked her tongue and countered, "We're all brothers, it's only natural to help each other out! Besides, the Prince and Lord Zhou have such a deep friendship, and no one has ever questioned it!"

She smirked, striking a pose of righteous indignation: "So this subordinate isn't curious at all!"

These words, perfectly crafted, came from Li Jin's mouth some time ago, and are perfectly fitting here.

Li Jin was amused by her quick wit and improvisation, his eyes narrowing into crescent moons: "Well done, Mr. Jin, you've really mastered it!"

His eyes twitched as he glanced at Jin Shu's evasive gaze, then took out three pieces of silver from his pocket: "Then I'll trouble you, sir, to personally go to the Grand Tutor's residence and deliver a gift for me."

Jin Shu was stunned.

Before she could react, Li Jin added, "Go to the East Market and buy some pastries to send to that cousin."

She raised her hand, making a "stop" gesture.

The logical threads in her mind were abruptly broken by Li Jin, leaving her momentarily confused.

How did it suddenly become "then"? Are these two events related?

“No, Your Highness…” she frowned.

"The rest of the silver is yours," Li Jin said casually.

Looking at the pile of silver, Jin Shu pursed his lips and nodded. He didn't care about logic or anything like that; whatever he said was law. He was "Li Zhengkuo" (the correct answer).

What kind of pastries do you want? Which shop are you looking for?

Li Jin waved his hand: "You decide what to do."

She grabbed the silver, chuckled, and said, "I'll go right away!" She even forgot to bow and happily walked out.

Watching her leave, Li Jin looked disgusted.

After a while, he looked away and raised his hand to rub his forehead.

Just a little bit more, just a little bit more...

He wanted to see how many more times this woman, who was pretending to be stupid, could outwit him.

Li Jin was determined to keep Jin Shu by his side, even if it meant being labeled as homosexual.

His eyes narrowed slightly; he knew that his time was running out.

The Crown Prince was extremely nervous after the case of the body hidden in the box last time. The current calm in the capital is just a facade.

Soon, this ruthless man will surely launch a furious counterattack.

Li Jin found it increasingly difficult to allow Jin Shu to continue living alone in that small courtyard.

He needed a reason, a reason that Jin Shu couldn't refuse, a reason that would force him to move to his Prince Jing's residence.

Thinking of this, his expression darkened.

On the other side, Jin Shu couldn't figure out what Li Jin's intention was in sending snacks to Tan Qin.

If it were a gift for the second young lady of the Su family, a return gift for the jujube blossom pastries she gave her the other day, that would be understandable, but Tan Qin…

She emphasized several times at the entrance of the Grand Tutor's residence that it was given to her cousin by Prince Jing. Only after the steward nodded repeatedly did she turn and leave.

This back-and-forth took half an hour. Jin Shu had just stepped into the Six Doors when she heard the sound of a carriage.

Looking back, Jin Shu saw a woman in red lift the carriage curtain and gently jump down, and she looked somewhat surprised.

This was the first time she had ever met a young lady from a prominent family in the Six Doors.

As if noticing Jin Shu's gaze, the woman stepped forward with her maid and looked Jin Shu up and down: "Is the prince here?"

Jin Shu was taken aback, then cupped her hands in greeting: "May I ask who you are, young lady?"

"I am Su Wanying." She frowned, slightly annoyed that there were still people in the Six Doors who didn't recognize her.

Looking at the completely unfamiliar face in front of her, Su Wanying's gaze shifted to her waist and noticed the unique fish-shaped waist pendant.

She narrowed her eyes slightly: "You're Shadow?"

As she said this, she glanced at Jin Shu again: "Heh, that's quite rare."

Then, she changed the subject: "Your Highness has always been good at recognizing and utilizing talent, so I suppose you..." She frowned, "...this little brat who is hard to describe must have some extraordinary abilities."

Little brat.

Jin Shu's lips twitched twice.

Then, under her gaze, Su Wanying brushed past her, lifted her dress, and walked straight inside without saying a word.

Jin Shu was left alone, watching her fiery red figure from behind, and chuckled dryly twice.

Li Jin originally intended to use that snack to provoke Su Wanying, so that she would send someone to identify which shovel was the murder weapon that Tan Qin had given her.

He never expected that Su Wanying would come to him in person.

Inside the sect leader's courtyard, Li Jin, unusually with a dark expression, sat by the stone table, watching Su Wanying bring out a plate of jujube blossom pastries, brew two cups of tea, and push one cup in front of him.

"I've come here today for no other reason than to chat with Your Highness about my distant cousin," she said. "She and Young Master Lin are in love, and Your Highness's snacks cannot comfort her."

Li Jin glanced at her face, crossed his arms, and didn't want to say a word.

"Actually, later that day, I saw her leave the yard." Seeing Li Jin remain silent, Su Wanying smiled gently. "Shortly after dark, I was taking a night walk and saw her carrying a shovel, wiping away tears as she walked back."

“I went to ask her, but she didn’t say much, only that the shovel was broken.” She paused, “So I kindly exchanged one with her.”

Li Jin narrowed his eyes and sneered, "Miss Su is truly kind-hearted."

Su Wanying wasn't angry at these words: "Your Highness can just call me Wanying."

She didn't stop and continued, "When I asked Qin'er to bring the shovel to her, Qin'er saw with her own eyes that Tan Qin's maid was soaking wet from head to toe, and she sneaked past the small door furtively."

"I didn't think much of it at first, but when I heard that Young Master Lin had drowned, I remembered that incident that happened that day. I thought it might be helpful for Your Highness to solve the case, so I came to tell Your Highness in person, hoping it might come in handy."

Outside the courtyard, Yunfei and Jinshu strained their ears to listen.

Although Su Wanying's visit was unexpected by Li Jin, she did bring the most crucial clue.

The shovel was intercepted by Su Wanying before Tan Qin returned to the yard.

"It should be the one with hair and a few threads mixed in," Yunfei said. "The murderer obviously didn't have time to clean it. The other one was clean, so it definitely wasn't the one."

Seeing that he had made up his mind, Jin Shu withdrew her head and looked at Yun Fei with suspicion, asking, "Could it be that Miss Su washed herself to protect Miss Biao?"

Yunfei shook his head: "She won't." He said firmly, "She knows that if she washes the evidence, she will never have the chance to see the prince again in this lifetime."

Jin Shu was surprised.

Before he could speak, Yunfei added in a serious tone, "Mr. Jin, there's no need to worry."

Worry?

“The second young lady of the Su family is directly related to the case six years ago. The prince only feels disgust towards her,” he said. “She was the first person in the palace to testify that the former crown prince intended to rebel.”