"where?"
"It's him. If you don't believe me, arrest him and interrogate him."
The official stared blankly at the misty lake and the man rowing the small boat.
Jiang Shuyue saw the officials watching the small boat dock with a mixture of disbelief and skepticism.
She pointed to the other side of the lake, "Look, the pleasure boats and tourists are over there, so why is he all alone here?"
One of the officers scratched the back of his head. "Something's not right."
"Think about it," Jiang Shuyue said persuasively, "if the criminals rent a pleasure boat and sail to the middle of the lake, you could search the entire capital and still not find them."
These words were like a wake-up call. A sharp-eyed official waved his hand at the group, "Quick! Grab him, don't let him get away."
The man, dressed as an ordinary citizen, had just come ashore. When he saw the officials running towards him, he didn't think twice. He lifted his robe, took a step, and leaped into the air, disappearing into the vast night in a few bounds.
Seeing this, what else could the officials not understand? If they weren't guilty, why would they run away at the sight of them?
The leader shouted, "Go and call for help!"
The officials, lacking exceptional agility, were naturally unable to catch up. The best course of action now was to quickly relay the message back to the yamen.
Seeing the officers running back, Jiang Shuyue said to the remaining officers, "That small boat can seat three people. Who will come with me?"
Before the official could answer, Jiang Shuyue eagerly walked towards the small boat.
"Please wait, young lady! Tonight's villains are no ordinary men." The officer quickly caught up with them.
"Stop talking nonsense. The princess and I are very close friends. Two of you, let's go boating." Jiang Shuyue was anxious and had no time to waste with them.
She stepped onto the small boat, which rocked slightly, and she quickly sat down.
The officers on the shore exchanged glances, and the leader said to another officer, "Quickly find a larger boat; reinforcements will be here soon."
Immediately afterwards, the leading official led another person onto the small boat.
The officers had no experience in rowing, and the small boat started spinning in circles after leaving the shore.
"Use your left hand to draw, and pay attention to your right hand for balance."
Jiang Shuyue had no experience in rowing either. She was someone who had seen pigs run even if she hadn't eaten pork. With her constant reminders, the small boat finally straightened its course.
"Apply force evenly on both sides."
Under Jiang Shuyue's guidance, the small boat slowly rowed towards the center of the lake.
As the officer rowed, he said worriedly, "There's thick fog ahead. The lake is so vast; it'll be difficult for us to find the villains' hiding place on our own."
"If they can get out, we can get in too. Keep your hands steady and keep going straight."
The official also felt that Jiang Shuyue's analysis made sense. He suddenly had a feeling that this beautiful woman was calm and composed, and her aura was like that of the Prefect of the Capital.
The small boat passed through the thick fog. Another officer stared wide-eyed ahead, his large hand gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, as if a thousand troops were about to appear before him.
The lake was so humid that Jiang Shuyue's eyelashes were soon covered with dewdrops.
She wiped her face with her sleeve and continued to stare intently ahead.
Suddenly, a suspicious shadow appeared in the distance.
Jiang Shuyue quickly said, "Try to be as quiet as possible and don't make any noise. It looks like a pleasure boat ahead."
The officers quickly took the oars out of the water and let the small boat move slowly forward.
Just as the small boat was about to stop, a painted barge came into view.
"Huh! Why is it so dark?"
"Afraid of being discovered, of course we dared not light the lamps."
Just as the small boat was about to approach the painted boat, Jiang Shuyue saw figures moving in front of the painted boat.
Estimating that there were at least twenty people on the other side, she suddenly realized that this was like throwing an egg against a rock. She could disappear into thin air and save her life, but the two officials might not be able to.
Even though she was desperate to save her son, she couldn't risk the lives of two innocent people.
At this point, Song Yunzhi would definitely resort to desperate measures to kill and silence witnesses, and her guards are not lacking in skilled fighters.
Jiang Shuyue weighed the options. Even if she successfully threw the poison onto the pleasure boat, she would have enough time before the poison took effect to kill the two men.
She immediately made a decision and said in a low voice, "Stop, turn around quickly."
A wisp of fog drifted by, and the officials were able to make out the figures on the pleasure boat.
He quickly reversed the oar, and just as the boat disappeared into the mist, a low shout came from the pleasure boat: "Who's there!"
“He won’t be back so soon; it must be the fish in the lake jumping around,” another male voice said.
The officer noticed that the sound of the oars hitting the water had startled the people on the pleasure boat, so he quickly and quietly backed away.
The small boat turned around, and the officials rowed more smoothly than they had on the way there.
As soon as the boat docked, figures flashed by one after another in the distance.
The official was overjoyed, "The Emperor has sent the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"
Jiang Shuyue could tell from a glance that those people's lightness skills were no less than Gao Mu's, and that they were not only Jinyiwei, but also Xiao Jingzhao's secret guards.
Judging from the crowd, quite a few people had arrived.
The two officers went ashore, and Jiang Shuyue quickly picked up the oars and rowed hard. The small boat shot off like an arrow toward the center of the lake.
"Hey! Girl, it's dangerous, come back quickly!" By the time the two officers came to their senses, the small boat had already been swallowed up by the thick fog.
"Quickly, hurry up and find Lord Lu ahead. We've discovered the criminal's hiding place."
How could they miss such a rare opportunity to make a contribution? The two officers, disregarding the already departed Jiang Shuyue, hurriedly rushed towards the place where the Imperial Guards were gathered.
...
"Disperse, everyone, we need to carry out official business here." The two officers arrived at the dock where the painted boats were moored and saw their colleagues disembarking from the boats.
"Where is Lord Lu? We have made a major discovery."
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