The two were worried and dived to the other side of the lake to discuss their next move.
"Young Master asked us to find someone with the Seventh Prince's tattoo, but it seems we're getting nowhere. What should we do?"
Ding Yi looked troubled and tapped his head in frustration.
Bing Er sighed helplessly and comforted him, "Don't think too much about it. Today was indeed a bit chaotic, otherwise it wouldn't have ended like this. If we report the truth to the young master, he shouldn't punish us."
"I hope so." Ding Yi forced a smile, but his heart was still filled with worry.
The two whispered to each other about what to do, but neither of them noticed that someone was hiding behind a rock not far away.
Xu Huang held his breath and overheard Ding Yi and Bing Er's entire conversation, and was immediately shocked.
Su Qingcai actually knows that there's a traitor among his men, and he's looking for him now! No, I can't let myself be exposed. I have to teach Ding Yi and Bing Er a lesson.
Xu Huang's mind raced, and he immediately came up with an idea.
He sneaked back to where the guards were gathered, beckoned them over, and pretended to be heartbroken.
"There's something you might not believe, but I think all the brothers have the right to know. I just heard Ding Yi and Bing Er say that they suspect there's a traitor among us, and that's why they brought us all here to take a shower—to find out who the traitor is!"
Everyone was shocked by these words.
Thinking about Ding Yi and Bing Er's sneaky behavior just now, everything became clear.
The guards were immediately enraged and shouted, "We've served the young master for so long and have always been loyal to him. Ding Yi and Bing Er are really too distrustful of us!"
"Yeah, we treated them like brothers, but they actually thought we were traitors!" Xu Huang sighed, but inside he was already laughing.
The unsuspecting guards grew increasingly enraged, berating Ding Yi and Bing Er. Just as their anger was reaching its peak, someone shouted, "We are all the most loyal men under the young master's command. How can we tolerate this humiliation! We must seek justice from the young master today!"
"Yes! We must seek justice for ourselves, even if it means dying to prove our innocence!"
The guards were furious and immediately discussed going back that night to have a serious talk with Su Qingcai.
Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Xu Huang revealed a secret smile.
He remained silent, quietly standing to the side, making people forget his existence. No one even noticed that he had been leaning against the rock the whole time, never showing his back.
...
Ding Yi and Bing Er were completely unaware of the guards' decision, but when they returned to the gathering place in the lake, they noticed that everyone's attitude had become much colder.
The two didn't pay much attention and went back with everyone after taking a normal shower. After returning, they told Su Qingcai that they hadn't found the traitor. Su Qingcai didn't say much, only that they would think of another way.
I thought the matter was over, but unexpectedly, something bad happened that night.
What are you trying to do?
Su Qingcai frowned as he looked at the group of guards kneeling before him, not understanding their thoughts.
Xu Huang knelt at the front and kowtowed twice to Su Qingcai, insisting on remaining kneeling even when Su Qingcai tried to help him up.
"Your Highness, it's not that we want to force you, but Ding Yi and Bing Er have really gone too far! We only found out today that Ding Yi and Bing Er suspected there was a traitor among us and even tried to spy on us while we were taking a bath. How ridiculous! We brothers are not that kind of people! If Your Highness suspects us, we will have no choice but to prove our innocence with our lives!"
Blood trickled from Xu Huang's forehead. The guards kneeling behind him exchanged glances and drew their swords.
"Yes, if the prince doesn't believe us, we'll prove our innocence with our lives! We don't want to be suspected!"
The guards held their swords to their necks, creating a tragic and heroic scene.
Ding Yi and Bing Er, who were standing to the side, were dumbfounded. They didn't know how things had developed like this, and without saying a word, they also knelt down before Su Qingcai.
"Young Master, it's all our fault. We wrongly suspected our brothers! We have to protect you, how could we lose our lives because of our mistake? We are willing to accept punishment, we only ask that you and our brothers forgive us!"
Ding Yi and Bing Er knew their place and didn't mention a word that Su Qingcai had sent them to find the traitor.
Seeing that things had come to this point, in order to stabilize morale, Su Qingcai had no choice but to say, "You did make a mistake in this matter. As my subordinates, you should naturally be united. How can you doubt your brothers without reason? Now that we are in the village, there's not much I can do. How about this, from now on, you will do all the work for the brothers. After returning to the capital, you can go to the Ministry of Justice to receive your punishment. Do you have any objections?"
"Your subordinate has no disloyal intentions; whatever you say, young master, is law!"
Ding Yi and Bing Er were quite assertive; they accepted everything without saying much.
Xu Huang remained kneeling on the ground, his head bowed, a slight smile playing on his lips, a sense of triumph rising within him as he reveled in the success of his revenge.
...
After this incident, the search for the traitor reached a stalemate.
Su Qingcai was extremely distressed by this. He lost his appetite, suffered from insomnia for many nights, and his hair kept falling out.
While cleaning, Su Xiaoning found a large clump of hair under Su Qingcai's bed, which surprised her greatly.
"My goodness, you've lost so much hair lately!"
Su Qingcai stared silently at the rather frightening clump of hair on the ground.
"Oh no! You're losing so much hair at such a young age, what will you do when you're older? You'll be bald!" Su Xiaoning said anxiously. "Baldness isn't a disease, but it affects your appearance! No, you shouldn't do anything today. Just rest at home. I'll make you some soup to nourish you!"
With such a handsome appearance, it's unimaginable what Su Qingcai would look like if he lost all his hair!
Su Xiaoning felt a chill run down her spine. She immediately ran out to make a nourishing soup for Su Qingcai.
Su Qingcai was both amused and exasperated, but he didn't take the matter too seriously and still summoned his guards to discuss things. When Su Xiaoning brought in the tonic soup, he was talking with Ding Yi, Bing Er, and Xu Huang.
"I told you to stop working, why can't you stop? Hurry up and drink the soup, forget about all that!" Su Xiaoning complained as she hurriedly ran towards Su Qingcai.
Who knew she was running so fast that she tripped over her own feet and fell to the ground. The soup bowl in her hand flew out and the hot soup splashed all over Xu Huang!
Xu Huang cried out and jumped up from the heat.
Su Xiaoning almost fainted. She hurriedly grabbed Xu Huang's clothes and shouted, "Take off your clothes quickly, or your body will get hotter and hotter!"
Xu Huang was in excruciating pain from the burns, his mind went blank, and without thinking, he took off his clothes.
His upper body was exposed to the public eye, allowing everyone to clearly see the tattoo on his back!
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