Chapter 222 Extra 3 [Extra]

Oh.

Shen Xu let out a sneer through his teeth.

Gu Zhizhu waved his hand dismissively: "That's not important. We can talk about it when we get back. It's windy today, and you're afraid of the cold, young master."

Xie Yingchen coughed a few times in a cooperative manner.

You'd be a fool to believe you! You just felt the wind was strong? What were you doing just now?

He was too lazy to argue and followed them into the palace gate.

After Xie Yingchen ascended the throne, he did not use the Hanzhang Palace, which had been used by the deposed emperor, but instead reopened the Zichen Palace. The Zichen Palace was originally the residence of the late emperor. After the deposed emperor ascended the throne, perhaps out of guilt or for some other reason, he used the Hanzhang Palace instead, and the Zichen Palace was closed for seven years.

Gu Zhizhuo also lived with him in the Zichen Palace.

The three went to the warm pavilion in the east wing. Xie Yingchen raised his hand and said, "Sit down. Pour your own tea."

His attitude was quite casual.

Shen Xu stared directly at him.

Gu Zhizhuo moved a round stool, and standing on it, she happily hung the lantern she had just won from the street stall on the wall.

"Help me check if it's crooked."

Xie Yingchen stood behind her, holding the round stool for her, and looked at it very carefully: "It's not crooked, it's perfectly straight."

Gu Zhizhuo was satisfied. She clapped her hands, jumped off the round stool, and asked triumphantly, "Does it look good?"

"nice."

His gaze remained fixed on her.

Shen Xu held back for a long time, his eyes twitching with suppressed anger. He stopped beating around the bush and said directly, "The Eastern Depot has nothing to do with cheating."

"I know."

Xie Yingchen did not use any self-reference; they sat there not as ruler and subject, but as friends.

He sat back down on the heated kang, handed him the silk paper, and briefly explained what had happened.

Xie Yingchen was not surprised that Shen Xu had discovered the matter. With their blatant selling of exam questions, how could they possibly hide it from the eyes and ears of the Imperial Guards throughout the capital?

Xie Yingchen poured himself and Gu Zhizhuo a glass of water. It was already this late, and Gu Zhizhuo wouldn't let him drink tea; they were both only drinking warm water.

"Now that the Supervisor is here, let him handle this matter." He finished speaking and smiled gently, "Is there anything else?"

No. Is that right? The Eastern Depot is already involved, yet he still entrusted this task to me. Xie Yingchen is not the kind of person the deposed emperor could easily fool.

Shen Xu looked at him with a slightly scrutinizing gaze from afar.

Xie Yingchen's gaze was calm.

After a pause, he laughed and said, "Given my relationship with the Grand Supervisor, why would I trust some random student if I don't trust you?" He then changed the subject, "Don't you want some tea? There's some flower tea that Yaoyao made herself."

Shen Xu: "..."

His long eyelashes were slightly drawn up, and he did not respond.

Gu Zhizhuo placed the pair of clay dolls on the coffee table, glanced back at the two of them, and tossed a roly-poly toy over to them.

"This is for Shenmao to play with."

This was also won by Xie Yingchen by guessing riddles. The roly-poly toy is decorated with very beautiful pheasant feathers and is shaped like a peacock. It wobbles on the table, and Shen Mao will definitely like it.

Shen Xuyang took it.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard had spies all over the capital region, and he had been informed a day earlier that someone was openly selling exam questions.

The other party was so ostentatious, as if they were afraid that others wouldn't notice them.

It was as if they were deliberately trying to expose the "crimes" of the Eastern Depot to the public.

In the two years since Xie Yingchen ascended the throne, the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard have remained under his control.

However, he was well aware that memorials impeaching him never ceased.

He wields too much power.

If it were like the deposed emperor, where the Eastern Depot was required to do some shady, clandestine things, that would be one thing.

However, Xie Yingchen merely used the Eastern Depot as it was, and didn't care at all about Xie Yingchen continuing to control the inner court—in fact, there wasn't much to control, as it was just the two of them in the palace. The deposed emperor's entire family was exiled, and not even an empress dowager or imperial concubine was left for Xie Yingchen.

When he first heard about this, he wondered if Xie Yingchen was finally about to make a move.

This thought only lasted for a fleeting moment.

Xie Yingchen was not such a despicable person. Even when he was seizing the throne, he mostly used open and aboveboard schemes.

Upright and honest.

But upon further investigation...

Shen Xu played with the roly-poly toy in his hand, the candlelight making the cinnabar mole at the corner of his eye appear exceptionally red.

He suddenly opened his mouth and said with a faint smile, "Your Majesty, I request that you investigate this matter with me."

Gu Zhizhuo's eyes lit up: "Okay." After saying that, she looked at Xie Yingchen.

Imagining her sharpening her knife in the carriage, Xie Yingchen dared not say "no" and nodded in agreement.

Xie Yingchen admitted that she has been quite free lately, and can do whatever she wants.

"I told you you had too good a temper. They've been going on and on, never stopping. Just wait and see how I deal with them!"

Xie Yingchen's eyes seemed to shine: "I feel at ease with you here."

Shen Xu interrupted them: "The Empress and I are going to the same place."

Okay!

Gu Zhizhuo didn't ask where they were going, nor did she ask Xie Yingchen. She took off her mask and gave it to him, telling him to put it away and go to sleep early. She then casually followed Shen Xu out the door, taking only Qingmei with her.

Shen Xu's black lacquered carriage was parked outside the palace gate.

Sheng Jiang, the dignified Left Commander of the Five Armies Commandery, was sitting on the carriage as usual. When he saw Gu Zhizhuo coming out with his master, his jaw almost dropped in astonishment.

He quickly stood up to greet them.

Before she could even utter the word "Empress," Gu Zhizhuo said first, "Just call me Miss Gu." She said it with a cheerful smile.

Sheng Jiang: "..."

Does the Emperor know that you prefer to be addressed as "Miss"?

Gu Zhizhu lagged behind, letting Shen Xu board the carriage first. She had climbed the mountain that day, and her shoes were covered in mud, which she hadn't changed since returning. After he sat down first, she lifted her skirt and lightly leaped onto the carriage.

Qingmei also sat on the carriage saddle. Sheng Jiang looked at her and asked what was wrong. Qingmei shrugged.

"Walk."

Shen Xu's voice came from inside the carriage, and Sheng Jiang responded in agreement.

The crowd in front of the Meridian Gate had dispersed, but the entire capital city remained brightly lit, with red lanterns hanging throughout the streets, making the city appear as if it were daytime.

Sheng Jiang lowered his head and drove the carriage, remaining silent for a long time.

Where are we going?

Qingmei casually asked, "This carriage is going a little in the wrong direction. The road ahead seems to lead to the red-light district."

"Rouge Tower." Sheng Jiang's voice was even lower than hers.

What?! What?!

Qingmei's face turned pale with fright.

"You, you, you..."

The word "crazy" was forced back down Qingmei's throat.

Rouge Tower was one of the strongholds set up by the Western Liang people in the capital. After the Liang people were captured, it fell into the hands of the Eastern Depot, but no one outside knew about it.

After verifying that the prostitutes inside had no connection with Liang Ren, Gu Zhizhuo took it upon himself to return their indentures.

Some people had nowhere to go and were filled with anxiety.

Yin Xiyan said that most of the prostitutes were sold by their families. They could not go home, and even if they did, they would be sold again. If they were to marry any man or become concubines, they would mostly meet a tragic end after their youth had passed.

Prostitutes were considered of low social status and were not allowed to establish their own households according to the law.

After the Eastern Depot took over, Shen Xu kept the people on board. —However, they didn't know who their new master was.

Nowadays, the Rouge Pavilion is full of courtesans who play the zither, sing songs, and compose poems; they sell their art but not their bodies.

But in the end, it's still a red-light district! Qingmei was about to cry.

Sheng Jiang glared at him.

Would it be of any use talking to him? The master is in the carriage; he can't be the one making the decisions.

Qingmei was on the verge of tears, watching helplessly as the carriage smoothly came to a stop at the side gate of Rouge Pavilion.

Gu Zhizhuo drew back the curtains.

Liang Ren has been running this Rouge Pavilion for nearly ten years, occupying half of the street. In addition to the three-story building facing the street, the back consists of three three-courtyard buildings that have been combined together.

The lights were on full display.

The red lanterns illuminated the entire street as if it were daytime, and one could faintly hear the sounds of singing.

As soon as I stepped off the carriage, the servant was already waiting there.

Apart from the prostitutes and some odd jobs, the entire staff of Xiangxilou, from top to bottom, were people from the Eastern Depot.

The servant respectfully led them to the small building in front, not through the main hall, but up the stairs at the back to a private room on the third floor.

Gu Zhizhuo sat down, and the servant respectfully served tea, reporting, "Master, the person arrived half an hour ago."

people?

Gu Zhizhuo raised an eyebrow.

Sheng Jiang opened a mechanism on the wall, and the melodious singing from next door came through the microphone clearly.

This is one-way communication; they can hear what's happening next door, but the neighbors can't hear them.

Sheng Jiang stepped forward and poured tea for them.

"She can just drink water."

Gu Zhizhuo: ?

Sheng Jiang obediently changed her glass of warm water, stepped aside, and stood with Qingmei.

"good!"

A cheer erupted from next door.

"Although Yue Lan's voice cannot compare with that of Lady Gui back then, it is still one of the best in the capital."

"What a pity."

"Our Emperor is quite tender-hearted towards women."

These ambiguous words were met with a burst of laughter, interspersed with the woman's graceful singing voice, the melody melodious and lingering.

Gu Zhizhuo recognized about three or four people. Two of the voices sounded quite familiar, one of which belonged to Jiang Xuezi. There was another voice that sounded familiar to Gu Zhizhuo, but he couldn't quite place it right away.

"Master Supervisor, do you recognize him?"

Shen Xu poured himself a glass of wine and remained silent.

"...Master Rong, I also encountered a sucker today, who spent a full ten thousand taels!"

Allow?

Rong is not a common surname.

Upon hearing the somewhat familiar voice, Gu Zhizhuo immediately remembered: "Marquis Qingyuan?"

After ascending the throne, the young master posthumously honored the former crown prince and his wife as emperor and empress. The Rong family of the Qingyuan Marquis's residence was the maternal family of the former empress and also the young master's maternal family. Purely based on blood relations, this Qingyuan Marquis Rong Zhi was the young master's maternal uncle.

But it's only a blood relationship!

Gu Zhizhuo and the Marquis of Qingyuan had only met a few times in the previous dynasty and had not spoken much, so she just felt that the name sounded somewhat familiar.

"Is this person involved in the cheating scandal?"

Shen Xu nodded slightly.

The sound of a door opening came from next door, and the courtesans left one after another.

Marquis Qingyuan slammed down his wine cup with a "bang," and said unhappily, somewhat drunk, "What's the use of silver?"

Someone flattered him, saying, "Of course! You are the emperor's brother-in-law, getting money is easy for you. Back then, the Duke of Cheng'en was the most powerful man in the capital, his word was law."

“It’s different. My nephew doesn’t respect me as his uncle at all. Hiccup! He must be upset that I didn’t do anything to help him when he ascended the throne.” Marquis Qingyuan said unwillingly, “How can I mess around with my whole family? He, hiccup, he holds grudges very much. He even posthumously honored my sister as Empress, but he still doesn’t care about me as his uncle.”

"I understand!"

He was quite drunk; his speech was slurred and unclear.

He slammed his hand on the table: "Isn't it because he thinks I haven't done anything good? Hehe, you just wait and see. Once I help him bring down that Shen Xu from the Eastern Depot, he'll know how good his uncle is to him."

"Of course," the person next to him replied with a smile. "As the saying goes, even if the bones are broken, the tendons are still connected."

Got it. No wonder this guy was being sarcastic the whole way.

She has such a peculiar personality.

Gu Zhizhuo rested her chin on her hand, stared at him for a while, then chuckled softly, leaving him completely bewildered.

"It wasn't you, young master."

She stopped smiling and spoke seriously.

Shen Xu stroked the small jade pendant with his fingertips: "I believe you."

His youthful gullibility led to the massacre of the entire Yin family, numbering over a hundred members; the resentment has remained with him ever since.

It's really not easy to hear a "believe" from his mouth. Gu Zhizhuo knew very well that when Shen Xu found out that Qingyuan Marquis was behind it, he probably really thought that the young master would give him a crime and then discard him after he had served his purpose.

Shen Xu clasped his hands together and placed them on the octagonal table, smiling enigmatically, "What does Miss Gu plan to do?"

"Kill him."

Gu Zhizhuo rolled up his sleeves and hummed.

A note from the author: