Chapter 199 Father and Son

Xue Han asked the waiter a few more questions, but to no avail.

"Thank you for your hard work." Xue Han gestured to the shop assistant to put away the silver ingots.

The shopkeeper dared not accept it and hurriedly refused.

Hu Si put his hand on the waiter's shoulder: "Just accept this as a reward from our superiors, and keep your mouth shut."

The man finally accepted the money, practically swearing to the heavens, "Don't worry, sir, I will keep my mouth shut and never say a word to anyone."

Asking him questions behind closed doors, where no one else could see, and receiving such a large ingot of silver—he must be out of his mind to tell anyone else.

"Get out." Hu Si withdrew his hand.

The waiter pocketed the silver and left, considerately closing the door behind him.

Xue Han drank his tea without saying a word.

Hu Si asked curiously, "Sir, with both Granny Su and Fang Rui involved, is there any further development in the Fang family's affairs?"

"Other things."

Something else? Could it be related to red bean cake?

Hu Si subconsciously thought that, seeing that Xue Han didn't intend to say anything more, he wisely didn't ask any more questions.

"Keep an eye on Vice Minister Cheng's whereabouts and report back to me."

"yes."

...

As the year draws to a close, Vice Minister Cheng has more social engagements. Every day after leaving his post, he would have a small gathering with colleagues and relatives, and would not return home until dark.

One day, I was having drinks with friends at Fengweilou Restaurant. After a few drinks, I needed to relieve myself and went to the bathroom.

The private rooms for guests on the second floor are located in the backyard. You can find them by going down the stairs leading to the backyard and walking through a short corridor.

Minister Cheng didn't drink much, and the wind made him even more sober after he went downstairs.

It's so cold. Luckily, I drank some wine to warm myself up. Just as this thought flashed through my mind, a hand reached out from somewhere, covered Cheng Shilang's mouth, and dragged him to the outside of the corridor behind the strange rocks.

“Waaah—” Minister Cheng struggled and screamed in terror, but found that his voice was blocked in his throat.

The restaurant was brightly lit, filled with the sounds of customers chatting and laughing, waiters serving dishes, and the aroma of wine and food mingling with the lively atmosphere. It seemed so bustling and normal, with even the washroom at the end of the corridor thoughtfully decorated with two orange lanterns. Yet, Minister Cheng felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

Oh no, oh no, we've run into robbers in a restaurant!

Cheng Shilang's eyes were not covered, and after his eyes adjusted to the dim light, he quickly saw the people who had kidnapped him.

A man whose eyes are visible.

He felt something move in his chest, and Cheng Shilang quickly realized that it was a dagger pressed against him. He couldn't help but tremble all over.

He wanted to ask if you wanted money, and how much, promising not to scream as long as you didn't hurt him, but the hand covering his mouth didn't let go.

The villain remained silent and made no demands, which made Minister Cheng tremble even more violently.

Xue Han waited quietly for a moment before withdrawing his hand.

With his mouth finally free, Vice Minister Cheng let out a sigh of relief and asked in a low voice, "What... what are you going to do?"

"I'll ask you a question. Answer truthfully, and you can go back to drinking."

The voice sounded colder than the weather outside, and Minister Cheng said in a trembling voice, "Please ask, please ask..."

"Who did you invite for tea on the nineteenth?"

Cheng Shilang's eyes narrowed, and his whole body tensed up involuntarily.

"Don't want to talk about it?"

The voice was chilling, and immediately the Vice Minister felt a sharp pain in his back, blurting out a name: "Eunuch Xue!"

The sudden silence behind him intensified Cheng Shilang's fear, and he dared not turn around.

He feared that the dagger would pierce his body at any moment.

After a suffocating silence, the man's voice rang out again: "Who does Eunuch Xue wish to see?"

“Yes—” Vice Minister Cheng hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, “It’s a new maid I bought for my daughter, Fang Rui, the granddaughter of the disgraced official Fang Yuanzhi…”

Why did you see her?

"I really don't know, they met alone..." Minister Cheng's voice trembled as he feared the villain wouldn't believe him.

The feeling of something sharp pressing against his back disappeared. Before Minister Cheng could even breathe a sigh of relief, the person behind him said calmly, "Have you forgotten what happened tonight?"

Vice Minister Cheng was taken aback, then nodded vigorously: "I can forget it, I can forget it!"

After a long silence, Minister Cheng mustered his courage and slowly turned around. There was no one behind him, only bare branches swaying in the wind, like ghosts in the night.

Cheng Shilang's legs went weak, and he staggered backward, leaning on the strange rock. The joy of surviving the ordeal was quickly replaced by fear.

Who is holding him hostage?

What was the purpose of Eunuch Xue's meeting with Fang Rui?

Ask Fang Rui – No, if Xue Quan finds out he's been investigating this, he'll definitely face retaliation.

And what about the thugs who interrogated him? If they find out he couldn't keep his mouth shut, they'll come after him again, right?

With such unpredictable and elusive movements, how could he possibly evade it?

The chill rushed from the soles of my feet to my forehead, turning into cold sweat that soaked through my undergarments, and I no longer felt anything when I first relieved myself.

It's all because of that brat Su Su who insisted on buying Fang Rui, causing all this trouble!

Cheng Shilang was filled with regret and made up his mind to keep these matters to himself and maintain the status quo.

After resting for a while and regaining his strength, Vice Minister Cheng tidied himself up and returned to the private room.

"Brother Cheng has been out for quite a while, you should be punished with a drink."

Another person noticed that Vice Minister Cheng looked unwell and asked with concern, "Brother Cheng, what's wrong?"

Knowing that the fright he had just received had left a mark, Vice Minister Cheng smiled wryly and said, "Going out into the cold wind is not pleasant, so I'll head back now. I've spoiled everyone's fun today, but I'll host a dinner another day to make amends."

Hearing him say that, the others felt it inappropriate to insist that he stay, and they all got up to see him off.

As Vice Minister Cheng boarded the carriage to return home, he breathed a sigh of relief, still shaken by the experience.

The night wind was biting cold, and Xue Han returned to his residence, bringing with him a chill.

Stripped of his disguise, he sat quietly by the window, letting the candlelight illuminate half of his face, the answer given by Minister Cheng echoing in his ears: Eunuch Xue!

It turned out that the person who met Fang Rui was her adoptive father.

Was the person who killed Granny Su also her adoptive father?

The boy lowered his eyes for a long time, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

Who else could it be but his adoptive father?

He tried to deceive himself, but he couldn't.

What will the adoptive father do next? Will he treat Aheng the same way he treated Granny Su? Is he afraid that Aheng will disobey him and insist on being with Aheng?

Xue Han raised his hand and pressed it to his chest to suppress the pain.

The next day, when Xue Han saw Xue Quan, he greeted him as usual.

Xue Quan inquired about the investigation into the spies.

"We caught a few small fry, but we couldn't find out where their superiors were hiding."

“That’s not surprising. Northern Qi has been lying in wait for so many years, it’s not so easy to find out.” Xue Quan patted Xue Han on the shoulder. “Just do your best.”

At this point, Xue Quan smiled: "Those three people you caught earlier, weren't they? You've caught a big fish. An envoy from Northern Qi has come to exchange them. His Majesty is in a very good mood about this, and his impression of you has improved even more..."

Xue Han listened silently.

"Han'er," Xue Quan looked at him with suspicion, "Why are you so distracted?"

"The child is still thinking about those spies."

"Don't even think about it. Unless all the Qi people are wiped out, they'll keep popping up. How can we possibly catch them all?" Xue Quan said gently. "The New Year is almost here, let's have a good time. You'll be nineteen after this year, time flies. When I first met you, you were only this tall..."

(End of this chapter)