The aunt and niece watched the small boat sail away, and in the distance, they could see specks of light on the lake.
“Auntie, look at the lanterns on the water in the distance. That little boat must be going to extort money from Mother and Father.”
Chang Le looked in the direction Sui Sui was pointing, and sure enough, there was a bright light on the water in the distance.
Sui Sui reached out to observe the wind direction again, and after a moment, he lowered his voice and said, "Put the powder down from this side, and it will definitely work."
"How should we place them? How many people are below? In front or behind? We don't know anything about it." Chang Le was worried that if they alerted the bad guys, they would be killed to silence them.
Sui Sui's phoenix eyes darted around, and he looked at the gauze curtains on both sides of the bed, and an idea immediately came to him.
The aunt and niece whispered to each other and then started working quickly.
...
The news that Song Yunzhi had kidnapped Princess Chang Le spread like wildfire, shocking all the officials in the capital.
When Wu Taiwei heard the news, he broke out in a cold sweat and immediately sent his servants out to help search.
Kidnapping the princess of the reigning dynasty is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family. Old Madam Wu was so anxious that bubbles appeared at the corners of her mouth.
She hurriedly urged her son, "Don't just stand there! Our family is related to that dead Empress Dowager by blood. Go to the palace quickly and apologize to the Emperor. Make sure to explain that we have long since severed ties with the Song family."
Wu Taiwei panicked at this moment, dropped the half-eaten mooncake and ran outside.
"Come back and change into your official robes." His wife, Madam Huo, hurriedly followed after him.
When Grand Commandant Wu arrived at the palace gate, a large crowd of people was already gathered there.
"Oh dear! Grand Commandant, you're late. The Emperor has issued an edict forbidding everyone from entering the palace."
Upon seeing Grand Commandant Wu, everyone turned to tell him about their current situation.
What no one knew was that it was Xiangyang who ordered them not to enter the palace. He was afraid that the news would reach Cining Palace, so he had no choice but to resort to this drastic measure to block the news.
One official said with great concern, "Lord Wu, what do you think we should do about this? We civil officials can't help."
Wu Taiwei suddenly had a bright idea. He looked into the crowd and asked, "Has the Imperial Censor arrived?"
"This humble official is here. What instructions does Lord Wu have?" A man slowly stepped out from behind the crowd.
Upon seeing the censor emerge, Grand Commandant Wu declared righteously, "His Majesty was kind to the princess of the previous dynasty, yet she has turned around and kidnapped Princess Chang Le. Tomorrow morning at court, I request that the censor lead the way and that everyone submit a memorial impeaching her, and that Song Yunzhi must be severely punished."
As soon as Wu Taiwei spoke, others immediately echoed his words.
"Extremely despicable, they must be severely punished."
"Submitting a memorial is a must, but let's all think about what we can do tonight?"
The Imperial Censor spoke slowly and deliberately, always getting to the point.
"Where are the Left and Right Chancellors?" Someone suddenly noticed that the two heads of all officials were not in the crowd.
"Let's go to the Prefect of the Capital and see if Lord Lu has found out anything," someone suggested.
"Yes, yes, I just saw the Imperial Guards and constables searching that street ahead. Lord Lu will definitely be the first to get the news."
The crowd rushed toward the Prefect of the Capital.
Everyone only knew that Princess Chang Le and her maid had gone missing, but they didn't know that Sui Sui, the little nobody, was with her.
Upon receiving the news, Du Zhong, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, went straight to the Prefect of the Capital.
Du Yutong was prevented from leaving the mansion by her elder brother today.
Upon hearing the news, she stood in the courtyard, facing the bright moon with her hands clasped together, and murmured, "May the Goddess Chang'e bless the princess with a safe return."
She had met Chang Le once before. The girl was intelligent and beautiful, easy-going and unpretentious, and looked like Sui Sui. Du Yutong had a good impression of Chang Le.
As Du Yutong was praying, her maid said, "Miss, Song Yunzhi is incredibly audacious; she actually dared to enter the palace and kidnap someone."
These words were like a wake-up call. Du Yutong was stunned for a moment, then lifted her skirt and ran outside.
"Miss, where are you going?" The maid chased after her.
Du Yutong was in no mood to answer the maid's question.
As she ran, she kept repeating to herself, "The princess won't leave the palace, the princess will be alright."
...
After Nangong Zeyue escorted Jiang Shuyue back to the Jiang residence, Xiao Jingzhao arrived shortly afterward.
"I'm sorry, it was my carelessness." Jiang Shuyue saw that Xiao Jingzhao hadn't even had time to change into his casual clothes, so she knew how anxious he was.
Xiao Jingzhao frowned slightly. "This matter has nothing to do with you. It is I who have implicated you. Trust me, Chang Le and Sui Sui will return safely."
He then recounted how Song Yunzhi had managed to escape unscathed, but to avoid worrying Jiang Shuyue too much, he didn't mention Song Yunzhi's collusion with the Qingyi Sect.
Seeing Jiang Shuyue's pale face, as if all her energy had been drained away, he felt a sudden pang of pain in his heart for some reason.
Seeing the tears welling up in Jiang Shuyue's eyes, Xiang Song quickly chimed in, "Don't worry, Miss. The Emperor has even sent out his secret guards, and he has sent trusted confidants to watch over all the city gates. Song Yunzhi has no chance of escaping."
Xiao Jingzhao tightened his grip on his sleeves. He had never seen her vulnerable before and wanted to comfort her. Every day without her coming home, all his efforts were in vain.
He turned to Qiuju and said, "Take good care of your young lady. I will send someone to the Jiang residence immediately if there is any news."
Before Qiuju could answer, Xiao Jingzhao looked at Nangong Zeyue, who was standing behind Jiang Shuyue.
Nangong Zeyue: "..." What kind of look is that?
"I've heard that Young Master Nangong is exceptionally skilled in lightness techniques. Tonight, all my men have been dispatched. Would you be so kind as to accompany me to search for him?"
“This…” Nangong Zeyue looked at Xiang Song and several men in tight-fitting clothes behind Xiao Jingzhao, and thought to herself, “I don’t believe you for a second.”
The longer Sui Sui returned, the greater the danger. Nangong Zeyue had doubts about the Emperor's words, but for Sui Sui's sake, he said without hesitation, "This humble subject will obey Your Majesty's orders."
"Hmm, very good. They say cunning people play tricks on those in the dark. Go with them to search the princess's residence. If you find anything, send someone to inform the Prefect of the Capital."
After Xiao Jingzhao finished speaking, he personally assigned three Imperial Guards to Nangong Zeyue.
Nangong Zeyue said to Jiang Shuyue, "Su Jin went to inform your martial uncle. Don't worry, Sui Sui and the princess will be fine."
After Nangong Zeyue left with her entourage, Xiao Jingzhao gave Jiang Shuyue a deep look before turning and leaving as well.
Xiao Jingzhao had originally planned to wait until Jiang's residence and others came to report on the progress of the matter, but he was worried that the slow progress would make Jiang Shuyue anxious.
Only Qiuju remained in the room, and Jiang Shuyue tried her best to calm herself down.
"Qiuju, the capital is only so big. The Emperor has sent so many people and still hasn't found them. Let's go through this carefully and see if we've missed anything?"
"Miss, please wait a moment. I'll go get some paper and a pen."
Before Qiuju could finish speaking, Su Nan rushed in like a whirlwind.
“Sister, take a look. I’ve drawn a simple map of the capital. Let’s check it from here.”
A map of the capital city is not something that ordinary people have. Su Nan was not familiar with the capital, so this map was drawn by Su Jin from memory, showing Su Nan a few main streets so that he could familiarize himself with the city.
Everyone was busy, so Su Nan went back to the courtyard, took out the map, and filled in the places he was already familiar with. Although it wasn't complete, the street locations were all correct.
"Nan Nan is so smart, let me see it." With a thought, Jiang Shuyue produced a charcoal pencil in her palm.
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