Chapter 55 Chapter 55 "Because I love you."...

As the figure outside the door was pulled into the house, the wooden door was immediately closed.

Inside the door, Shangguan Xu was hugged by Xu Qing'an, her face pressed against his chest, and she closed her eyes in the elegant orchid fragrance.

"A Zheng...is dead."

The weak trembling sound in his arms reached his ears, and Xu Qing'an's eyelashes trembled.

The body temperature was transferred at the point of contact. Xu Qing'an's palms became warm, and the area in front of his chest also became warmer. However, in addition to the change in temperature, he also felt a burning wetness.

She came late at night, and from the first moment he saw her, he knew that what happened to A Zheng today had dealt her a heavy blow.

Shangguan Xu let herself nestle in his arms for a moment. The wisps of orchid fragrance at this moment gave her a sense of reliance.

"I have heard about A Zheng's situation. Your Majesty, please accept my condolences."

His voice was very faint. Although Shangguan Xu could hear some regret and relief in it, it was ultimately just a passing remark, like a casual sigh to an unrelated person.

As soon as she heard his voice, she came to her senses. She gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with her fingers, then stood up from his arms and looked up at him.

Her eyes were still a little red. Xu Qing'an looked at her and felt pity in his heart, and frowned unconsciously.

"Do you understand everything that happened in Jingzhao Prefecture today?"

Her cold voice suppressed the hand he was about to raise to comfort her.

"Almost, A Zheng..." He paused, then changed his tone. "The man who tried to assassinate Prime Minister Su on the street today had called on him to spare her master's life. She cursed the current Prime Minister for his ruthless behavior. After her master had worked tirelessly to find a job for him, he ruthlessly murdered her master. Her master was the Jiangnan ship merchant who was found with her in the forest today."

Shangguan Xu lowered his eyes. "She knew she couldn't kill Su Wang. She also knew that Su Xingzheng was about to be acquitted due to insufficient evidence. So she didn't kill Su Wang in the name of her parents. She just wanted to expose the story of the ship merchant to the world."

"I think she has been leaving the palace frequently these past few days. It's not because she told me before that she wanted to come to you to have Doctor Xun give her acupuncture and moxa treatment, but because she wants to find the whereabouts of the ship merchant. Once she finds him, it will be her chance to assassinate Su Wang."

Xu Qing'an nodded. "That's right. Jingzhao Prefecture had the coroner examine the merchant's body and deduced that he died around the time A Zheng was attacked. It seems likely that Prime Minister Su had murdered the merchant the moment he heard he was an old friend of A Zheng's."

He sighed softly, "What kind of secret is this? No one who has even the slightest connection with it will be spared."

Shangguan Xu said calmly, "Since he's hiding so deeply, we can only dig deeper and dig deeper. The most urgent matter is Su Xingzheng's matter. After what happened today, it will be much easier to prove Su Xingzheng's guilt."

Xu Qing'an was stunned.

Shangguan Xu noticed the change in his expression and looked up at him. "What's wrong? What did I say wrong? After Su Wang was accused in the street today, could it be that he would still ignore the public's opinion and try his best to suppress the matter of the major ship merchants in Jiangnan? As long as you hand over the evidence you originally prepared, the Jiangnan incident will be a done deal. Someone from his Su family will have to be held responsible. Su Xingzheng has already been accused. If Su Wang wants to remove himself from the Jiangnan incident, then he will definitely push Su Xingzheng out."

Xu Qing'an paused again, as if trying hard to digest her words, and suddenly smiled.

The previous moment she was crying over what happened to A Zheng, and the next moment she was eager to use today's events to implement her plan.

Xu Qing'an lowered his eyes, shook his head, and said with a smile, "Your Majesty is certainly right. Not only is she right, but she also analyzed the subsequent events clearly, making the situation instantly clear. It's just that I saw Your Majesty was sad before, so I didn't react to it for a while."

Shangguan Xu knew what he meant, but she also knew his character and knew that he could not empathize with her feelings, so she did not want to have too much entanglement with him on these emotions. Even the loss of a close person was not the first time she had experienced this.

Of course she wanted to cry, of course she wanted revenge, but these things could not be realized by just thinking about them. Just like four years ago, she cried in her bedroom for a whole month, crying so hard that she couldn't see. But what could she do?

The deceased is gone, but the enemy is still alive in the world. The evildoer will not feel pity because of her tears and change his ways, nor will he admit his guilt because of her tears and bring the deceased back to life!

This opportunity to severely injure Su Wang and defeat Su Ran in one fell swoop was bought with A Zheng's life. A Zheng has high hopes for her, so she cannot let A Zheng's efforts go to waste because of those painful things.

So what if you were crying the last moment? Things will always move on.

She said, "It's already happened. Self-pity will only slow down the subsequent process and delay the opportunity. Xu Qing should also understand this, right?"

Xu Qing'an still smiled and nodded, "I understand, Your Majesty is right." He leaned over and raised his hand to invite her, "It's getting late and the dew is heavy. Since Your Majesty has plans, why don't you go to the study to discuss it?"

——

Shangguan Xu had been to the Xu Mansion several times and was already familiar with the layout of the mansion. She walked in front all the way, while Xu Qing'an lagged behind her, his eyes dim and his fists clenched.

Why did he always have unrealistic expectations of her? He clearly already knew what kind of person she was, but he still hoped that she could turn back from her wrong path, be less scheming and more sincere.

That day, he brought Xun Yang into the palace to treat A Zheng. What he said was not a lie - she valued and loved the close ones, so of course he would help her take good care of them, because he felt that she also had good intentions. However, after hearing what she said tonight, his expectations were once again thrown to the bottom of the icy lake.

When they reached the study, Shangguan Xu simply opened the door and went in. Xu Qing'an followed behind her and saw her slowly stop and stand in the room, but she did not turn around to face him.

Shangguan Xu turned his back and asked, "How much do you know about Jingzhao Prefecture?"

Xu Qing'an's eyes remained fixed on her. "Because today's case is related to the previous assassination, I'm basically following all the news from Jingzhao Prefecture."

"When do you plan to hand over the evidence in your hands?"

"It will probably take another day or two. I originally planned to hand it over in person, but this case is new, and collecting evidence takes time. If I, an unrelated person, hand over the evidence, I'm afraid it will attract criticism, so I found someone to hand it over."

"who?"

"The servant of the ship merchant who was found today."

After that, the room was silent for a moment.

Seeing her back rise and fall slightly for a moment, accompanied by a soft sigh, Xu Qing'an heard her say, "This is indeed safer. Let's do as you say."

He could tell there was a stuffy nose in her voice, so he slowly took a few steps forward, then stood one step behind her, wanting to see her expression and said, "Does your Majesty have any other ideas?"

After a snort, Shangguan Xu said hoarsely, "No, as long as we can ensure that Su Xingzheng has no chance of escaping this time, that's all that matters."

"I came here to get something from you." She finally turned to face him, but when she raised her eyes, Xu Qing'an's eyes flashed.

Because compared to before, the redness in her eyes not only did not decrease but became more intense, even the tip of her nose was red.

It turns out she was still crying...

She still couldn't let go of A Zheng's matter.

Xu Qing'an's eyes showed a hint of bewilderment. He raised his hand slightly and couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty..."

"I want you to give me the dagger you found in the shipowner's house."

Before he could utter any words of concern, she interrupted him.

Xu Qing'an paused, a look of confusion between his brows: "Dagger? What does the Queen want with that dagger?"

Shangguan Xu said bluntly, "The dagger seems odd for a ship merchant like that, and Ah Zheng happens to have a martial arts background. I think the dagger might be related to Ah Zheng. Now that Ah Zheng has passed away, I should collect her things. Besides, her life story is still unclear, and I have to continue investigating Su Wang's secret. So I think the dagger might be of some use."

Is that all? But how much can a dagger do?

Xu Qing'an watched her carefully.

"Also," Shangguan Xu continued, "A Zheng's body can't just be left in Jingzhao Prefecture. After this incident, I'm going to bring her out and bury her properly. So, for the next few days, when you're dealing with them in Jingzhao Prefecture, you must protect A Zheng's body and don't let anyone humiliate her."

Xu Qing'an looked at her eyes, which were red and moist, making them look fragile, and said softly, "Your Majesty and A Zheng have a deep friendship. Have you experienced a lot together in the past four years?"

Shangguan Xu didn't want to say more, only saying, "After all, we've been together day and night for four years, and she died because of me, so I have to take care of her funeral affairs for her."

"But the Queen's expression now is not as calm as your tone." He exposed it.

Shangguan Xu slowly raised her eyelids and looked at him, her tone remaining the same as before: "Then what do you want to hear, what do you want to see? Listen to me swear? Watch me scream at the top of my lungs? However, as I said just now, the person is already dead, no matter how much I swear or cry, it's meaningless." Her eyes were sore again.

However, in Xu Qing'an's eyes, she appeared far too calm, yet he could see her quietly sobbing. He was worried that she would become overwhelmed, that the mental pressure would exceed her tolerance, triggering a rebound and leading to completely uncontrollable behavior.

"If I say..." Xu Qing'an started to speak, but halfway through his words, his lips moved a few times, but he still didn't say the next words.

Shangguan Xu had been looking at him quietly. Seeing that he seemed to be hesitant to speak for a long time, he asked, "What did you say?"

Xu Qing'an opened his lips again, but finally suppressed what he was about to say. Instead, he smiled and said, "It's nothing. I just admire Your Majesty. However, I don't think Your Majesty wants to hear those respectful words right now, so I won't say anything."

Shangguan Xu really didn't feel like talking to him about irrelevant things, so he just said, "Go get the dagger."

Xu Qingan nodded and said yes softly.

——

A Zheng's original intention in assassinating Su Wang was not to take his life. She just wanted to make the matter of the ship merchant a big deal and plant a seed of suspicion in the minds of the people. She also wanted to lead the people of Jingzhao Prefecture to the foot of the cliff where the ship merchant's body was, and let them get the evidence on the ship merchant in full view of everyone.

In addition, the servants of the ship merchants later came forward and handed over evidence of their private and obscure transactions with Su Ran. As a result, Su Ran was undoubtedly pushed to the forefront again, and he had basically no way to escape the charges against him.

As for the Su family, Su Wang devoted his life to seeking the title of the most virtuous prime minister in ancient and modern times, so of course he cared more about his own reputation than Su Ran's experience.

The night before Su Ran was imprisoned, the candles in the meeting room of the Su Mansion remained lit all night, but only Su Wang and his nephew Su Ran were having a secret conversation in the room. The next day, Su Ran admitted to all the charges, including the murder of a Jiangnan ship merchant, and was taken to prison.

The court was not in a hurry to hear Su Ran's trial by the three judges, because everyone knew that Su Ran would not die on the execution ground, or even after the case was decided. Instead, from the moment he stepped into the prison, others knew that his life was over.

But it's just another Su Silang.

When Su Ran died, of course no one from the Su family would be present, because Su Ran must die willingly and with regret, and there must not be any element of being forced by the family.

In the rest area in the middle of the cell, Shangguan Xu dismissed everyone and stood with Xu Qing'an.

Looking towards the depths of the prison, where Su Ran was being held, Xu Qing'an stared intently and said, "Things have developed to this point, and this is what the Empress originally wanted. After tonight, the fifth son of the Su family will, like the fourth son, commit suicide to pay for his crimes and disappear from the world."

Shangguan Xu gave an almost inaudible laugh. "It seems Xu Qing is also satisfied with this result." She turned to look at him. "Can I ask Xu Qing a question?"

Xu Qing'an looked back and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, please speak."

"Logically speaking, the initial conflict between you and the Su family was simply a conflict of interest. Even if there was some rift, they later showed you some goodwill. Why do you always harbor murderous intentions towards them? Where did your murderous intent towards them come from?"

Xu Qing'an lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment.

"Because I am loyal to Your Majesty and I adore You, it's only natural that I should try to help You achieve whatever You want."

It was love again. Shangguan Xu didn't believe this reason, but she also knew that he was determined not to tell her the real reason by giving this reason, and she didn't want to dwell on it now because she had more important things to do.

Xu Qing'an didn't want her to delve into the details of the matter. He looked in the direction of Su Ran and asked, "Your Majesty, did you come to the prison late at night to ask him anything else?"

Shangguan Xu said calmly: "No."

Xu Qing'an raised his eyebrows: "Oh? Then the Queen..."

"I'll personally send him off."

As his words were interrupted, a bright light reflected from the blade shone on his face.

Xu Qing'an reacted immediately, holding down her hand that was pulling out the dagger, and said in astonishment, "You want to kill him yourself?!"

Shangguan Xu slowly raised his head, his eyes calm and cold, but he smiled at him: "Didn't Xu Qing hear clearly? Since I said I would personally send him off, can I really let someone else kill him?"

At this moment, Xu Qing'an finally understood why Shangguan Xu had taken the dagger from him. She wanted to use the belongings of an old friend to kill an old enemy! And the uncontrollable behavior that he was worried about, which had been suppressed since A Zheng's accident and had rebounded, finally broke out at this moment.

He said decisively: "No!"

Shangguan Xu frowned, his tone suddenly turning cold: "Why?"

Xu Qing'an also said firmly: "He is already dying, why does Your Majesty have to do this?"

"It's precisely because he's about to die that I can't miss it!"

"What does it matter?"

"He killed A Zheng, and he still...!" Shangguan Xu swallowed his words and took a deep breath. "In short, he won't be reconciled unless he dies at my hands. I must kill him with my own hands and give an explanation to those he harmed."

Xu Qingan shouted, "So you're just going to get your hands stained with blood?!"

"Why not?!"

Her words and expression did not yield at all. In a trance, Xu Qing'an seemed to hear the sound of flowing water in Qujiang River on that night four years ago.

But this is different from what she wants to do today!

She didn't... she didn't kill him with her own hands...

Seeing his surprise, Shangguan Xu found it amusing. "Hasn't Xu Qing and I already stained our hands with blood? From the Ministry of Rites corruption case you first took over, to Liu Chang and Xue Hong later, which one didn't die as a result of our schemes? Hasn't my hands been stained with blood for a long time?"

"That's what they deserve to die."

"Then Su Xingzheng shouldn't have done that?!"

"That's different..." Xu Qing'an lowered his voice, no longer arguing with her, his expression softening. "They deserved their punishment. They deserved death. This is all stipulated in the law. Even if Your Majesty used a scheme, it was ultimately just a matter of going with the flow and eliminating the evil. Even if you were acting in a conspiracy, so what? It's different from killing someone with your own hands."

He continued to advise: "Your Majesty, your hands should not be stained with the blood of these people. If you want him to die less easily, then let me do this dirty work."

Shangguan Xu's eyes felt sore and he looked up at him.

"Also," Xu Qing'an lowered his eyes to avoid her gaze, "A Zheng is not dead."

This was what he had wanted to tell her the night he saw her crying in the mansion. He ignored her surprise and continued, "The matters involved are too complicated to explain in a few words. I will explain them to you slowly later. But as long as you know that A Zheng is not dead, that's all that matters."

She blinked away the tears in her eyes: "Why are you telling me this?"

Why should he stop her from doing these things? After all, it has nothing to do with him, right?

"The Queen has already asked this question." He placed his hand on her fingers, took the dagger from her hand, turned around and walked deeper into the prison, "Because I love you."