Chapter 42 Chapter 42 "My Queen is waiting for me?"...

Xu Qing'an walked out of the cell and outside the prison. In the distance, Su Shang was coming towards him.

He took one look and went straight ahead as usual.

"Master Xu."

"Lord Su."

When their paths intersected, Su Shang was the first to speak, but Xu Qing'an still raised his hand to perform the salute of a subordinate.

Su Shang: "Master Xu, did you just meet Brother Shangguan?"

Lord Xu smiled and said, "I spoke to Lord Shangguan a few words. Lord Su is here to see him too?"

Su Shang said without disguising anything, "Yes, although I work in the Ministry of Rites and cannot take care of the case, Brother Shangguan is my brother-in-law, so naturally I should be concerned about him. Fortunately, I hold the position of Minister, so it is convenient for me to come here."

Su Shang was appointed as the fourth-rank assistant minister, and Xu Qing'an was appointed as the sixth-rank deputy minister.

Xu Qing'an nodded. "Yes, Lord Shangguan is imprisoned, and inevitably he's feeling down. Having Lord Su around to chat with him will likely help him feel better. As for helping Lord Shangguan escape, I'll leave it to someone like you, a dedicated official." He emphasized, "The prison is damp and cold, unsuitable for habitation. I will ensure that Lord Su and Lord Shangguan are reunited at home."

What's the use of having a high official rank? You still have to be able to help.

Su Shang's mouth twitched slightly, and he forced a smile, "Okay, then I'll wait for Master Xu's good news."

——

Xu Qing'an rode the same horse he had when he came. On the way back to the mansion, he was not as jumpy as he was with Su Shang just now. Instead, he sat on the horse's back, lost in thought.

Shangguan Li said that since he retired from the center, he no longer got involved in the affairs of the previous dynasty. Even the people who followed him in the past gradually transferred to Shangguan Xu's subordinates. This means that Shangguan Li was not aware of the military forces under Shangguan Xu that Chen Heng had discovered in Jiangnan before.

So where did this power come from? Moreover, the Anbei Protectorate was already a border army. Even when Shangguan Shi was alive, the Shangguan family had no dealings with it. How did she get to know it?

And that night when he was looking for her, he clearly saw her writing a letter at the desk, but after she noticed him, she immediately stopped writing and blew out the light, obviously not wanting him to know what she was doing.

He once asked her how to deal with local affairs in Luozhou, but she pretended not to understand what he meant and evaded the question vaguely. Now that I think about it, perhaps her real plan was in the letter she didn't finish writing.

While strolling on the street, I suddenly noticed a tall building in the distance coming into my peripheral vision.

Xu Qing'an raised his eyes and looked at it intently.

That is the tower of Da'an Temple.

——

Inside the Da'an Temple, Shangguan Xugang helped A Zheng lie down.

A Zheng had just been on the verge of life and death, and even though she was out of danger, she still felt a little tired. After what she said just now, Shangguan Xu didn't want to bother her anymore after asking two questions, so he let her rest first.

A Zheng still couldn't recall the past. She said that she was called Yao Zheng because the ship merchant had called her that before. She told Shangguan Xu that the ship merchant not only knew her, but also her parents.

Including the injuries on her body were caused by him.

That night she was surrounded by more than ten people. If it weren't for the poor lighting at night and the many trees outside the city, she might have died at the hands of those people.

Although there is still not much information available, knowing her last name will narrow the scope of her background search from this perspective.

Shangguan Xu returned to her temporary room and thought carefully about what had happened in recent days.

Axiong and Azheng received death threats one after another, and those hidden arrows were shot at them at the same time. But when they thought about it carefully, those hidden arrows seemed to be related to the same person - Su Wang.

But what made him suddenly take such drastic action?

Is it because of the water transportation in Jiangnan?

However, she had clearly covered it up before. Even if Su Wang went to investigate the clues in the Jiangnan water transportation, he would only be led to Xue Hong's old subordinates by the clues she deliberately hid. If he wanted to take revenge, he should think of those people first.

Shangguan Xu couldn't figure out what went wrong.

Could it be that it was really as Xu Qing'an mentioned, no matter who wanted to deal with him, when the interests of the Su family were damaged, his first thought was not revenge, but to drag her, the biggest threat, down with him?

With his mind in a mess, Shangguan Xu closed his eyes and took a deep breath. What Su Wang was thinking was not the most important thing at the moment. The most important thing was the matter between his brother and Zheng.

At night, Shangguan Xu did not leave a maid waiting outside the room. He just blew out the lights and sat quietly at the table in the room.

"My lady, are you waiting for me?"

Finally, a familiar voice came from outside the window.

Shangguan Xu knew he was coming tonight.

She stood up and looked out the window. This time he didn't hide behind the wall, but stood in front of the window, his hands on the window bars, talking to her directly.

Although his face was not clear, his general outline could still be seen in the dim light. Shangguan Xu found that apart from his posture, he was also very different tonight -

Judging from the reflection of the silk threads on his clothes, he was not wearing night clothes tonight, but his usual daytime clothes.

The cloud-blue robe with water patterns was exactly the one he wore when he went to see Shangguan Li in prison during the day.

Besides, he did not bring an incense burner tonight.

Except for the last time, every time he came to Da'an Guo Temple, he would bring an incense burner filled with the peony fragrance he made.

Shangguan Xu originally thought that he didn't bring it last time because Shangguan Li's matter was too urgent. However, when he saw that he still didn't bring it this time, he guessed that he might have changed this habit.

Shangguan Xu took a few steps towards the window. Seeing that she did not answer him, he stopped waiting and pushed himself into the house with his hands.

The movement created a gust of wind, which brushed past people's noses with its scent.

Shangguan Xu's eyebrows raised slightly, and then she understood why he didn't bring the incense burner - he burned incense, but it was the orchid fragrance she gave him.

The outline drawn in the dim light, coupled with the familiar fragrance of orchids, made Shangguan Xu a little dazed for a moment.

She was so dazed that she didn't even realize he had leaned close to her and was talking to her face to face.

"Why are you distracted again, Your Majesty?" The person in front of her spoke with a hint of anger.

Shangguan Xu finally came back to his senses, but he seemed as if he had not yet fully woken up from the dream. There was a hint of melancholy in his eyes, and he sighed again.

Xu Qing'an carefully observed her expression, and said, as if teasing but also complaining to someone concerned about her disobedience, "Your Majesty always seems to be in poor spirits at night. If that's the case, why not go to bed early and avoid such mental and physical distress?"

Shangguan Xu was completely brought back to her senses by his words, but she also found his words funny. Regardless of who was the one who often came late at night, even the things she was experiencing at the moment did not allow her to relax and rest.

However, what made her laugh even more was the other party's tone, which was a bit concerned and a bit critical, and really sounded like the kind of conversation between close relatives.

Xu Qing'an noticed the teasing in her eyes and lips, his eyes darkened, and he asked dissatisfiedly, "What are you laughing at, Madam?"

Now that he had noticed, Shangguan Xu no longer tried to hide her feelings. Instead, she laughed even more wildly, and put her arm around his neck, saying half-seriously, "I was laughing at what you just said. Don't you know why I didn't go to bed early tonight?" She smiled and replied, "Of course I was waiting for you. If I had gone to bed, how could I have waited for you? Wouldn't that have made you come here for nothing?"

As expected, she was waiting for him, a foreign minister. Xu Qing'an felt a surge of anger upon hearing this. He hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her towards him, saying pointedly, "Your Majesty, that's not entirely true. It's not like I haven't been here before when you were resting."

Yes, he came once. That time she was troubled by a nightmare, and he happened to bring calming incense to help her concentrate.

However, Shangguan Xu felt no ripples in his heart when he recalled what happened that night. Instead, he secretly spat at the smug look on his face when he talked about these things, calling him shameless.

Shangguan Xu stopped talking to him about these trivial matters and only asked, "Did you go to see my brother today?"

Since he came to see her tonight, there must have been progress in her brother's matter.

Seeing that she no longer flirted with him, his anger subsided a little, but he still sighed and said, "Your Majesty, you're talking about other things so soon. You don't even want to spend a moment with me?"

Shangguan Xu tilted his head and gave him a smile: "Isn't this position of ours tender enough?"

In the dim light, a single man and a single woman hugged each other and talked to each other, one holding the other's neck, the other hooking the other's waist, their eyes moving up and down, the outline of their posture alone was full of infinite charm.

Xu Qing'an's expression remained unchanged as he pondered for a moment.

He suddenly loosened his hand, gently pulled her arm down, and took a step back.

Shangguan Xu was slightly surprised. She didn't expect him to do such a thing.

Xu Qing'an said in a gentle and considerate voice, "Since Your Majesty wishes to discuss serious matters, then let's discuss them properly. It just so happens that after meeting Lord Shangguan this time, I also have much to say to Your Majesty."

Upon hearing Shangguan Li, Shangguan Xu no longer cared about Xu Qing'an's unexpected actions and only asked, "Is my brother okay in prison?"

——

Shangguan Xu and Xu Qing sat quietly on the futon in the room.

Xu Qing'an recounted his conversation with Shangguan Li in prison: "Shangguan's situation is relatively good in prison right now. While it certainly can't compare to life outside, he's able to get by with food and clothing, and he's not feeling depressed. He asked me to tell Your Majesty that he's doing well in prison, and to ask Your Majesty not to worry too much about him and harm your health. He's looking forward to being reunited with you."

"It's just... he also said that he is now imprisoned and feels that it is difficult for him to help the queen, and he feels guilty."

Shangguan Xu lowered his eyes. "I knew he would think this, but actually, why would siblings have to talk about this? And if it weren't for me, he wouldn't be in this situation now."

Xu Qing'an said, "I have also heard about what Lord Shangguan did for Your Majesty in the past. Lord Shangguan cherished Your Majesty, and Your Majesty is also taking great pains to plan for Lord Shangguan now. The brotherly love between Your Majesty and Lord Shangguan is truly enviable. But Your Majesty, have you ever thought carefully about who is responsible for the current situation that Lord Shangguan is in?"

Shangguan Xu turned around to look. It wasn't that she hadn't thought about it, but she just hadn't figured out the reason yet. So she asked first, "Who do you think it's because of?"

Xu Qing'an was silent for a moment, his eyes were deep and cold, and his hands, which were naturally placed on his knees, slowly clenched, and his flat and bright robe was pinched into layers of wrinkles that could not be spread out.

He wanted to say, of course it’s because of you!

If it weren't for what you did back then, how could you be in this situation now! Wouldn't it be good to be his queen? What's the big difference between an empress and an empress dowager? Even though the empress has the emperor's constraints, how can you now control everything? Isn't it still this passive situation, forced to retreat step by step, and to resolve these things, you didn't hesitate to compromise with him, an outsider. If you have such awareness now, then why did you...!

Why was she unwilling to do so, still pretending to be submissive and loving? Even if she was pretending to be nice to him, even if she was feigning affection, it would still be much better than this, right? He had believed in her so much, loved her so much, if she had just been acting like she was full of love for him, he would have given her everything, right?

And the so-called emperor and empress are just empty titles...

In the dead of night, the unlit room was illuminated by only a little moonlight, casting a cold, dark white light.

Shangguan Xu faced Xu Qing'an and saw that he had not responded for a long time, but there was a faint light flickering in his eye sockets.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Haven't you thought it through?"

Xu Qing'an felt pain in his eyes. He turned his head away and closed his eyes fiercely. Then he opened them again and chuckled softly, "In fact, the answer is already guessed, but the intention behind it is not yet fully understood."

He asked, "Your Majesty, what do you think the reason behind the crisis that Lord Shangguan is facing is that the people behind it are doing this to him? It's definitely not a matter of chance. Your Majesty, think about it. The Jiangnan water transport incident happened not long ago, and Lord Shangguan has already suffered a disaster. So, is it aimed at Lord Shangguan, or is it aimed at Your Majesty?"

Shangguan Xu pondered, "I've considered your point, but Jiangnan Water Transport had already made preparations to prevent that man's retaliation. Even if 'diverting the blame' failed, he wouldn't have traced it back to me so quickly. The only other reason I can think of is 'common downfall,' but I know full well that's not his style. That's why I'm perplexed as to why he would suddenly act so cruelly."

Xu Qing'an pondered for a moment and suddenly said, "The room your Majesty stayed in this time at Da'an Temple was not the main house in the courtyard, but a side room. Is it because of the injured maidservant beside your Majesty?"

Shangguan Xu looked at him, nodded slightly and said "hmm".

Xu Qing'an sighed, "What a coincidence! He's your brother, and also your attendant. So many terrible things have happened to you all at once. Has your Majesty ever thought about the connection? And who is that maid of yours?"

A Zheng came to Shangguan Xu after the young emperor ascended the throne, and Xu Qing'an had never seen her before.

Shangguan Xu didn't know much about A Zheng's affairs, but there was indeed a connection.

Now the safety of A Zheng and her brother is more important, so Shangguan Xu does not hide what happened in the past. She also thinks that there is nothing strange about what A Zheng did in the past, and many people know about it.

Shangguan Xu: "A Zheng is an orphan my brother brought back from Luozhou four years ago when he went there to provide disaster relief. I remember he met her by the river while surveying a bridge site. She was ragged, extremely thin, and had a high fever and was unconscious. That's why my brother didn't send her to live with the refugees. Instead, he brought her home to care for her."

"Perhaps because of the persistent high fever, when she woke up, she had lost all her memories and only knew her name as Ah Zheng. However, perhaps because of her years of martial arts training, she had developed many reflexes, so her martial arts skills fully recovered in no time. That's why my brother brought her back and placed her by my side, hoping that we could look after each other."

"It's just that in the past few years, she hasn't recalled much of her past. Even though I've had people investigate in Luozhou for a few years, there's so little information, so there hasn't been any substantial progress. To this day, I still don't know who she is."

Xu Qing'an pondered, "So it seems your maid has been involved with Lord Shangguan from the beginning. But if they want to take action, Lord Shangguan alone is enough to serve as a warning. Why would they touch others... Madam, is there anything else you haven't told me?"

His searching eyes suddenly turned to her, and he leaned forward, leaning on her side: "This time, you must not lie to me."