I appreciate it more and more

Changfeng and Huanying immediately looked at Gu Jinghong with anxious eyes.

Murong Xiao raised an eyebrow, then lazily took a step back, half-hiding himself in the flickering shadows of the candlelight.

Gu Jinghong's gaze quickly swept over the chaotic scene—the shattered crossbow, scattered parts, and marks left on the ground from the collision of internal forces… Finally, her gaze settled back on Xiao Chengyan.

Why would Gongsun Lie choose this time? Could it be that he's been watching him from the beginning?

She lowered her voice and spoke very quickly: "Changfeng, Huanying, take the Prince to the underground chamber, quickly! Your Majesty, please..."

Bang bang bang—

The knocking on the door continued.

"Jinghong, are you alright? Are we in?"

Murong Xiao glanced at Gu Jinghong and immediately understood. He used his toe to pick up a piece of oilcloth scattered on the ground and covered his conspicuous black sable fur coat. Leaning against the pile of wooden boxes, he really looked like a disheveled craftsman at first glance.

Almost the instant the figures disappeared, the workshop door creaked open.

Outside the door, besides Gongsun Lie, there were several servants and guards carrying torches. The flickering torchlight illuminated Gongsun Lie's face, which was gleaming with a sharp light in his eyes.

"Father?" Gu Jinghong suppressed his nausea, his tone tinged with surprise. "It's so late, what are you doing here..."

Gongsun Lie's gaze had already passed over her and swept into the interior of the workshop.

Before Gu Jinghong could offer him any way out, he strode into the workshop. "What... what's going on?! Jinghong! Was your workshop robbed, or...?"

"Or what?"

Gongsun Lie paused, his gaze already locked on Murong Xiao, whose face was obscured by oil stains, standing beside the giant crossbow.

The candlelight flickered, illuminating the scene rather unclearly.

But this figure, and the vaguely discernible features, do indeed bear some resemblance to Xiao Chengyan.

Gongsun Lie walked towards "Xiao Chengyan" with barely concealed excitement in his heart.

Today, my subordinates reported that Xiao Chengyan seems to be showing signs of "going mad." If we can really seize on this, then Xiao Chengming's rise to power will be a sure thing.

And now, "Xiao Chengyan" is right in front of us, it's like finding a needle in a haystack.

While he was pondering, Gongsun Lie had already appeared in front of "Xiao Chengyan". He suddenly reached out with lightning speed and pulled back the oilcloth. "Is there some 'expert' here sparring?"

The moment the tarpaulin fell, Gongsun Lie's expression shifted rapidly from joy to shock, followed by a lingering sense of astonishment—

The person in front of me does resemble Xiao Chengyan in appearance by three or four points, but he is definitely not Xiao Chengyan.

This person's brow bone is higher than Xiao Chengyan's, and he has a full beard on his chin.

Moreover, his demeanor is outwardly flamboyant and can be felt when you get close, while Xiao Chengyan's demeanor is inwardly restrained and can only be felt when he wants to release it.

This is not him!

"And this is...?"

Gu Jinghong looked at Gongsun Lie: "This is the Hu merchant that Imperial Censor Li mentioned when he questioned me the other day."

She deliberately mentioned Imperial Censor Li in front of Gongsun Lie, and kept a close eye on Gongsun Lie's expression.

Sure enough, Gongsun Lie's eyelashes trembled very slightly, and then he seemed to suddenly realize something: "I did hear about the palace banquet in the manor. Jinghong, you are now a royal merchant, with a much more noble status. Before doing business with anyone, you must find out the details clearly. And don't let the workshop become like this..."

Gongsun Lie looked around again: "This place is such a mess...it needs to be cleaned up."

The words were well-spoken, but Gu Jinghong quickly realized that he was actually searching for people.

He was so certain that Xiao Chengyan was there that he was even willing to capture him immediately.

The reason was simply that he received a message that Xiao Chengyan's condition was abnormal.

Interesting, they found out so quickly? In terms of their information network, they're almost on par with the Hidden Abyss Pavilion.

Gu Jinghong smiled slightly: "Father, please allow me to explain. All the mechanisms were made by Jinghong. Before they were tested, it was indeed easy for uncontrollable things to happen, and they could be interconnected. One would affect another, and another would affect another... As a result, this place has become like this. The loud noise just now was the sound of the spare torsion cable of that crossbow snapping."

Her statement was a mixture of truth and falsehood. While the workshop and its affiliated organizations did indeed work together, the reasons given were entirely fabricated.

Gongsun Lie was a shrewd and experienced man; he would not easily believe such a thing.

His face remained concerned, but his eyes turned cold: "I see. Then we can't let Jinghong handle things there herself. I've brought enough people with me today. We absolutely cannot let the Crown Princess of our Duke's Mansion do such a dangerous thing herself."

Gu Jinghong sneered inwardly, but his face remained calm. He even stepped aside and said, "Please go ahead. Just be careful, though. The mechanisms here are complicated, and there might be some that haven't been triggered yet. There are also many sharp metal objects, so please be careful."

Gongsun Lie smiled, waved his hand, and shouted, "Be careful! Don't miss any corner, make sure the Crown Princess's workshop is safe and sound!"

Upon receiving the order, everyone began to examine the items on site.

They were initially cautious, but seeing nothing amiss, they gradually became bolder.

Gu Jinghong appeared completely unaffected, and even walked towards the long desk where he worked, pressing a button on it.

Then, Gongsun Lie and Murong Xiao, who had been keeping their eyes on Gu Jinghong, witnessed a miraculous scene.

Suddenly, water appeared in a wooden post next to the long table, and the water fell right onto a cup below, brewing a cup of tea without any effort, filling the air with fragrance.

Gongsun Lie was startled by this strange thing, but he still maintained the demeanor befitting a Duke of Zhenguo and slowly walked over.

Gu Jinghong said softly, "Please have some tea."

Her smug expression made it seem as if she didn't care at all about Gongsun Lie having someone "clean up" the scene.

But Murong Xiao was not having it. Just as Gongsun Lie was about to take the tea, he snatched it away and returned the greeting to Gu Jinghong with great seriousness.

"Thank you, Master Gu."

Then, as if he hadn't noticed at all that he had taken Gongsun Lie's tea, he drank it on his own.

Gongsun Lie was still in shock – everyone said that Gu Jinghong was good at improving agricultural tools and military equipment, but he never expected that his mechanical skills could have such interesting and ingenious uses.

Gu Jinghong is truly amazing—no wonder Xiao Chengyan protects her so much!

Suddenly, a guard stepped forward and began to rummage through a pile of loose wooden crates.

"call out!"

A crossbow bolt pierced his arm!

"Ah!" The guard screamed and retreated.

Gongsun Lie's expression changed: "Gu Jinghong! You..."

Gu Jinghong looked innocent and annoyed: "Father, I told you before that the mechanism was not checked. This brother triggered the linkage mechanism of the defensive crossbow in the corner."

Gongsun Lie's face turned ashen, his heart filled with doubt and unease.

Who knows if there's a real mechanism or if she's just making things complicated?

He thought for a moment, then decided not to let his men take any more risks. He personally took his sword and carefully cleared away some debris, scanning the marks on the ground and walls.

Having seen his share of storms, he quickly noticed extremely subtle friction marks on the ground, unlike ordinary drag marks. These marks, intermittent, pointed to a seemingly solid wall deep inside the workshop, partially obscured by several large shelves.

Gu Jinghong's heart leaped into her throat. That was the direction of the secret chamber's entrance! She couldn't let him get any closer.

“Father,” she warned, “the area ahead is the core testing zone, where the facilities are more densely packed and dangerous. Please stop.”

Gongsun Lie seemed not to hear him, instead quickening his pace with a cold smile that said, "Just as I thought": "Since it's a core area, I, as your father, must thoroughly investigate it for you!"

Just as he reached out to touch the secret mechanism disguised as a wall lamp switch—

call out--!

The second crossbow bolt whizzed past his ear, the wind whipping across his face!

Gongsun Lie froze, cold sweat beading on his skin.

But in an instant, he suppressed his fear. He was convinced that Gu Jinghong wouldn't actually kill him, and he suddenly reached out and grabbed the wall lamp switch!

At this critical moment!

Click—Buzz!

The two floor tiles beneath his feet suddenly sank! Several barbed iron chains instantly sprang out from the shelves on both sides, wrapping around his legs! At the same time, the sound of a mechanism turning came from above, and a heavy panel covered with sharp iron spikes crashed down, hitting him directly on the head!

Gongsun Lie was terrified and leaped backward, falling to the ground in a sorry state, barely avoiding being entangled by iron chains and impaled by iron spikes. The heavy iron spike shield slammed down on the spot where he had just stood, shaking the ground.

He slumped to the ground, his face deathly pale, panting heavily, staring in terror at the dangerous trap so close at hand, then at the expressionless Gu Jinghong.

Gu Jinghong stood in the shadows, her eyes as cold as frost.

"Father, I'm saying this one last time."

"This area is off-limits."

"Next time, the target might not be the ear, nor the ground."

There was not a trace of jest in her words, and for a moment, Gongsun Lie had to take her words seriously.

At this moment, Gongsun Lie finally understood that Gu Jinghong was not bluffing; she really dared to do it!

If he stayed any longer, not only would he not be able to find any fault with Xiao Chengyan, but he might actually die here.

"Good...good! Gu Jinghong, you're really something!" Gongsun Lie squeezed out these words through gritted teeth, stood up with the help of his men, and patted his robes with a fierce but weak expression. "I had good intentions, and you...humph! Let's go!"

He glared at Gu Jinghong fiercely, filled with resentment and lingering fear, and led his men out of the workshop in a hasty retreat, as if afraid that if they were a step too slow, some deadly trap would be triggered.

Sure enough, people value their lives.

Only when the footsteps completely disappeared did Gu Jinghong's tense nerves suddenly relax, her body almost collapsing, her back already covered in cold sweat.

Murong Xiao then slowly approached Gu Jinghong while sipping his tea.

He looked at the deadly traps triggered on the ground and chuckled softly, his laughter filled with amazement and a deeper interest.

“Master Gu, I now feel that you owe me more than just one favor. To be so ruthless to your own ‘father,’ I truly admire you more and more.”

Gu Jinghong looked at Murong Xiao expressionlessly: "Then, I must thank Your Majesty Murong for the compliment."

Murong Xiao laughed a few times, then looked back at Gu Jinghong: "No need for thanks, but it seems the man you like is nearing his end, so perhaps in the future..."

The words "Come with me" were still stuck in his throat when Murong Xiao felt a gust of wind rush past him.