Chapter 852 The Truth - Twenty Years Ago 13

I don't know what's wrong with her seventh brother. He's usually so good-tempered, but today he's being so unreasonable.

With an apologetic smile, the eldest princess was reluctantly dragged away from the inn by the seventh prince.

They thought that after this day, the Seventh Prince would no longer come looking for Bai Xu and his sister, but to their surprise, he came again after only one day, bringing Gu Jin with him.

After returning home, he thought carefully about Miss Su's marriage. Although he disliked the Su family's approach, he had to admit that it was entirely beneficial to the Su family.

Since ancient times, the social hierarchy has been scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Even if the Su family were very wealthy, their status as merchants was still fixed.

If Miss Su could really marry into an official's family, even if she were just a concubine, it would be a great help to the Su family.

If the sons of the Su family were more capable, and with the help of those in the imperial court, wouldn't the Su family be able to quickly shed their identity as merchants?

Looking at the somewhat uneasy Seventh Prince, Crown Prince Bai Xu couldn't help but ask, "Seventh Prince, is there something you wish to say today?"

The Seventh Prince's intentions were too obvious, especially his hesitant expression. Even if Bai Xu didn't want to notice, he couldn't help but!

"Nothing special, just what Brother Su mentioned the other day..."

The Seventh Prince dared not meet Bai Xu's gaze directly as he spoke, for he had just criticized him the day before, and now he was expressing his own thoughts, which was rather difficult to say.

“Brother Su, I have heard about what happened at your residence. I understand your filial piety, but the court in the capital is a complex and dangerous place. One wrong step can lead to disaster. So, after discussing it with the Seventh Young Master, I think it would be better for you to observe the situation for a while. As for your mother’s illness, if you trust us, I am willing to do my best to help.”

Seeing the Seventh Prince's hesitant manner, Gu Jin simply took the initiative to speak for him.

All in all, they hadn't really met many times, so Bai Xu was still very touched to hear the other party say that.

Compared to the other party's honest attitude, Bai Xu's deliberate deception made him feel very uncomfortable.

Pushing himself up, Bai Xu cupped his hands in thanks to the two gentlemen, saying, "I thank you both."

Bai Xu thanked them for their kindness, but naturally could not agree to it.

However, his attitude and words were interpreted by the two as an agreement. For some reason, the Seventh Prince felt a great sense of relief upon seeing Bai Xu's reaction.

With a wave of his hand, Ah Rong, who was following behind him, immediately brought over a box.

"My younger sister asked me to bring this, saying it's for Brother Su to nourish his body."

The Seventh Prince was in a good mood, and his words carried a hint of pleasure.

Bai Xu glanced at the box, and thinking of the girl who had bumped into him, his face softened a little.

"I only suffered minor injuries, thank you for your concern, Miss."

Bai Xu glanced at Zhong Yi as he spoke, and Zhong Yi immediately stepped forward and took the box from him.

Since Bai Xu was still unable to get out of bed, the Seventh Prince and Gu Jin stayed for a while longer before getting up to take their leave.

Not long after the two left, Mu Fan hurriedly walked in from outside. After closing the door, Mu Fan clasped his hands in a fist and reported to Bai Xu: "Your Highness, our people have reported that the Crown Prince of Jin has also entered the capital."

"Oh? So fast?"

Although Bai Xu had long expected that the Crown Prince of Jin would arrive ahead of schedule, he really hadn't anticipated that he would arrive so far in advance.

"Have you found out why the Crown Prince of Jin arrived so early?" Bai Xu asked.

"No, the Crown Prince of Jin seems to have kept a low profile since arriving in the capital; even his residence is very secluded," Mu Fan replied truthfully.

It is said that something unusual must be a sign of trouble. Bai Xu did not believe that the Crown Prince of Jin's trip was just to see what the capital of the Great Zhou looked like.

After a moment's hesitation, Bai Xu waved his hand at Mu Fan and Zhong Yi, "You can both go down now!"

Seeing Bai Xu's weary expression, the two replied "yes" and left together.

Meanwhile, in a farmhouse courtyard.

"Any progress on the matter I asked you to investigate?"

The aloof man stood with his hands behind his back by the window, staring at the large willow tree in the courtyard without blinking.

Upon hearing this, the man behind him quickly clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Your Highness, we have searched all the nobles in the capital these past few days, but we have not found the person Your Highness mentioned."

“Foolish. The previous dynasty has been gone for over a hundred years. Investigating these nobles now is no different from looking for a needle in a haystack. That prince of the previous dynasty lived a life of luxury. He must have been helped by someone to escape back then. Investigate, start with the families that have been around for centuries. I refuse to believe that we won’t find a single clue.”

After Xu Menglong finished speaking, the man immediately clasped his hands in agreement.

Turning to leave, the man suddenly remembered something and spoke again: "Your Highness, the Crown Prince of Wei has also arrived in the capital."

Xu Menglong's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this, but he didn't say anything, only waving his hand at the man.

Seeing this, the man dared not delay and turned back.

Once he was alone, Xu Menglong muttered to himself, "Could it be that the State of Wei also knows?"

Compared to the two crown princes who each had their own agendas, the seventh prince, as a prince of the Great Zhou, seemed quite relaxed.

"Your Highness seems to be in a good mood?"

Gu Jin and the Seventh Prince had been friends since birth. Seeing the Seventh Prince raise his eyebrows slightly, he knew that the prince was in a very good mood.

Upon hearing this, the Seventh Prince looked at Gu Jin and chuckled, "As expected, you understand me best!"

In fact, the Seventh Prince didn't understand why he was in a good mood. Perhaps it was because he felt that he had saved a girl so that she wouldn't have to sacrifice herself for her family's benefit.

"It's been a long time since I've been to the Marquis's residence. How about we go see the old lady today?"

The old lady of the Marquis of Yi'an's mansion, who is also Gu Jin's grandmother, is the same sister as the old lady of the Duke of Zhenguo.

The seventh prince's birth mother was of low status, and she passed away shortly after the prince's birth due to health issues.

At that time, Consort Qin had no children of her own. Seeing that the seventh prince was a pitiful little bundle of joy, the emperor arranged for him to be adopted by Consort Qin. From then on, the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion became the seventh prince's maternal family.

Later, Consort Qin gave birth to a daughter, Princess Zhaohe, and from then on, Consort Qin had both a son and a daughter, becoming the only concubine in the palace with both a son and a daughter.

However, this happy period did not last long. When the princess was four years old, Consort Qin became pregnant again, but died of postpartum hemorrhage due to the large size of the fetus.

From then on, the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion withdrew from the court and no longer concerned itself with matters of state.

However, due to the relationship between the two families, the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion and the Marquis of Yi'an's Mansion had frequent interactions.

After hearing the Seventh Prince's words, Gu Jin immediately smiled and said, "Grandmother mentioned Your Highness to me a few days ago. Grandmother will definitely be happy that Your Highness has gone."

After they finished talking, the two went to the Marquis of Yi'an's residence together. As soon as the old lady of the Marquis of Yi'an's residence received the news that the Seventh Prince had arrived, she couldn't wait to personally come out to greet him.