At Su Qinghe's instigation, the ministers joined forces to put pressure on the emperor. The emperor had no choice but to change his tune and said, "What you said is all correct. It is indeed inappropriate to entrust this matter to the Ninth Prince. Then let the Seventh Prince investigate the cause of Lord Cao's death."
"Your Majesty, I will certainly live up to your expectations." Su Qinghe smiled triumphantly, nodded in gratitude, and didn't forget to give Su Qingcai a mocking look.
Su Qingcai was furious, but he couldn't vent his anger in court. He suppressed his raging rage and remained silent. Even after the court session ended, he stood there blankly, his face full of resentment.
Su Qinghe lingered a little longer, then leaned close to Su Qingcai and asked, feigning concern, "What is Ninth Prince doing here? Do you still think there's any way to salvage this matter? The Emperor has already issued a decree; it won't do you any good even if you stand here until the end of time!"
"The Emperor has left, you don't need to put on this act in front of me," Su Qingcai said bluntly, feeling his blood boil at the sight of Su Qinghe's smug face.
He stared coldly at Su Qinghe and asked in a chilling voice, "Was Lord Cao's death orchestrated by you?"
"Why would the Ninth Prince ask such a question? How am I supposed to answer that?" Su Qinghe raised an eyebrow, but did not deny it.
"You just need to say yes or no."
"What difference does it make whether it is or isn't? Do you think you can still turn things around? Even if this matter is indeed related to me, what can you do to me?"
Su Qinghe laughed heartily, making no attempt to hide the mockery on his face: "Su Qingcai, don't be naive! You will never be able to defeat me!"
He turned around and strode away, leaving behind only a confident look in his eyes.
Su Qingcai clenched his fists tightly, lowered his head, and a sense of powerlessness spread through his heart.
...
Su Qingcai returned to the Prince's mansion in a sullen mood. He looked dejected and didn't say a word. His once bright eyes were now filled with confusion.
Seeing him like this, Su Xiaoning felt a pang of heartache. She stepped forward and gently hugged Su Qingcai, saying softly, "It's alright. Seventh Prince only won this time. We still have a chance."
“Xiuyifang is gone. Now that Lord Cao is dead, things have reached a stalemate. Where should I begin?” Su Qingcai’s face was pale. He buried his head deeply in Su Xiaoning’s neck, his voice muffled.
He only showed this vulnerable side of himself to Su Xiaoning, which made her feel heartbroken.
Su Xiaoning and Su Qingcai shared the same information; she knew about both the disappearance of Xiuyifang for days and the death of the Minister of Justice. Faced with this predicament, she was somewhat at a loss, and after much thought, one name came to mind.
Fenglin...
Su Xiaoning gently patted Su Qingcai's back and whispered, "Don't worry, once the children's arrangements are settled in a couple of days, I'll go see Miss Feng. She should know something."
"Embroidery Workshop is gone, how can you still see Miss Feng?" Su Qingcai asked in surprise.
Su Xiaoning nodded slightly, but did not offer any explanation.
Because Feng Lin had made a promise to bring Jiang Lin to see her, Feng Lin took the initiative to write a letter to Su Xiaoning, telling her that she could find her by sending a message using that carrier pigeon, but she did not want this matter to be exposed.
Seeing that Su Xiaoning was unwilling to talk, Su Qingcai didn't ask any more questions. He hugged Su Xiaoning tightly and whispered, "Thank you."
...
The children's return home proceeded smoothly, and after two more days, the house that was originally used to temporarily house the children was already more than half empty.
Although Xiao Dao was taken home by his parents, he still remembered Su Xiao Ning's kindness and would come back to visit her whenever he had time. However, he always had a gloomy look on his face that lingered for a long time.
Su Xiaoning was a little worried, so she took the opportunity to ask, "You're home now, you should be happy, why do you still seem to have something on your mind like before?"
When Su Xiaoning rescued Xiaodao earlier, he was acting coy and seemed to have something on his mind. At that time, Su Xiaoning thought he was just not used to the new environment, but now it seems that there was another reason behind it.
Xiao Dao opened his mouth, then lowered his head, not daring to look directly at Su Xiaoning, and stammered, unable to speak.
Su Xiaoning gently stroked his soft hair, her voice becoming even softer: "Have you forgotten that you said you wouldn't hide anything from your sister? How come you've forgotten now?"
"Sister, I didn't mean it..." Xiao Dao looked a little dejected. "I've troubled you too much, and there are some things I can't say anymore."
"Silly child, if you have any trouble, just tell me, and I'll take care of it for you." Su Xiaoning smiled gently and hugged the small knife to her chest.
In the warm embrace, Xiao Dao's heart softened. After hesitating for a long time, he finally spoke.
"Sister, it's like this..."
It turns out that when Xiao Dao was being held captive in Xiuyifang, there was a girl named Wenwen in his cell. Wenwen was a kind-hearted girl. Because Xiao Dao was sick, she gave up all her meager food and took good care of him. Xiao Dao and she were best friends.
Later, Xiaodao got ashore, but Wenwen wasn't sold to beg with him. She disappeared, as if she had vanished into thin air. Xiaodao always remembered this incident, his face always clouded with worry because of it.
Upon hearing this, Su Xiaoning felt heartbroken and immediately promised, "I promise you, I will definitely help you find Wenwen."
"Sister, really?" Xiao Dao looked up at Su Xiaoning, a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
"Yes, sister, you mean what you say." Su Xiaoning nodded firmly, having made up her mind.
"Sister, you're so kind..." Xiao Dao was deeply moved and threw himself into Su Xiaoning's arms, bursting into tears.
Su Xiaoning gently comforted him. After calming Xiaodao down, she thought it over and over again, then went back to her room and took out her brush and ink.
She definitely couldn't do this alone; she needed to find a helper. Wenwen and Xiaodao were kept together at Xiuyi Workshop, and it seemed that only Fenglin knew Xiuyi Workshop well. In addition, Su Xiaoning had promised Su Qingcai that she would help inquire with Fenglin, so it was time to arrange a meeting with Fenglin.
Su Xiaoning thought for a moment and simply wrote on the letter that she wanted to meet him. She did not mention asking about Xiuyifang, but at the end she specifically wrote that she would bring Jiang Lin to see her.
There was no other way but to make use of Jiang Lin.
After writing the letter, Su Xiaoning summoned a carrier pigeon and had it carry her letter away. That evening, Feng Lin's reply arrived quickly.
On the small piece of paper, there was a simple "good" written on it, along with a short note that Fenglin had invited her to meet at Mirror Lake the next day.
Su Xiaoning breathed a sigh of relief. She held the letter in her hand and a light smile appeared on her face.
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