Chapter 37: Shocking the past. How can Miss Qiao not tell me about my situation?
Su Guanqing fumbled under the bed for a long time but couldn't find the thimble, so he called Xie Mancang to help him look for it.
Boss Xie Mancang came over reluctantly and saw the thimble rolled under the red table. He picked it up and played with it in his hand, muttering in a sarcastic tone:
"Young Master is a noble man, yet he needs to be served even when he picks up something. Speaking of which, we are all lowly people, but how come Young Master is so lucky that he doesn't have to serve anyone, doesn't have to work, and is always supported by someone."
He glanced at Su Guanqing and said, "It's true, you are indeed very handsome. If I were half as good-looking as you, I don't know how many rich ladies would rush to marry me."
Su Guanqing hadn't cared about his sarcasm at first, but when he brought it to Jiang Tong, his face darkened and he sternly said, "How could you possibly orchestrate the affairs of the master's eldest daughter? You were only asked to do one thing, yet you've said so much more. If you don't wish to stay here, then return to the Jiang residence. I don't need you to look after me here."
Xie Mancang originally thought that Su Guanqing was a weak and easy-to-bully person, but he didn't expect that he could also be tough sometimes. He wanted to say a few harsh words to retaliate, but he was afraid of really angering Su Guanqing and losing the job. His face changed for a while, and in the end he just put the thimble in Su Guanqing's hand, said a few soft words, and walked away with a hateful look on his face.
Su Guanqing ignored Xie Mancang's thoughts and continued to sew his clothes. When he finished the last stitch and cut off the thread, he heard a surprised female voice.
"Why are you still living in the study when there's an empty room?"
"Miss Qiao?" Su Guanqing looked up in surprise. "Are you here to look for Tongtong? She's moved away. Tongtong said that if Miss Qiao comes looking for you, she'll tell me that she's reserved a room for you in the new courtyard and hopes you'll go soon."
Ah Qiao said, "I know. I came here today to look for you."
"Looking for me? What's the matter?" Su Guanqing said as he fumbled to poke the needle into a small piece of cloth and put it away in case he couldn't find it next time.
"I recently heard something," A Qiao sat down on the empty chair. "Someone told me that Lord Su was convicted not because of the anti-government poem he wrote that satirized the Zhengtong Emperor for killing his brother and seizing the throne, but because he wanted to rebel."
Su Guanqing's expression froze for a moment, but soon returned to normal. He said calmly, "Sorry, I don't know what you are talking about."
Ah Qiao approached him and said, "The Jiang and Su families have always been on good terms. Did the Jiang family have any part in the rebellion?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Ah Qiao pinched his wrist joints, making a crackling sound. The study was relatively empty now, and the sound actually echoed, which was particularly terrifying.
"You really don't plan to tell me?" There was a dangerous tone in Aqiao's voice.
"I really don't know what you are talking about." Su Guanqing sat upright on the couch, as still as a mountain.
"Forget it. Ah Tong said that you were the one who carried me back from the river that day. You are my lifesaver, and I can't repay you with evil. If you don't want to talk about it, then don't talk about it."
Her eyes fell on the clothes that Su Guanqing had just mended. The white thread was particularly eye-catching on the aqua blue clothes.
She guessed what had happened at first sight.
"...your servant is bullying his master?"
"He is not employed by me." Su Guanqing put away the sewing box and began to fold clothes.
"Ah Tong ordered him to take care of you. If he can't do it, go tell Ah Tong! How can she bear to see you suffer?"
Su Guanqing shook his head: "It's just a trivial matter, there's no need to bother her."
If Tongtong came to help him, he was afraid that he would start to have bad thoughts again, so why bother?
A Qiao shrugged helplessly: "I don't know what you two are arguing about. I'm leaving."
Just as she turned around, Su Guanqing put down his clothes and called her, "Miss Qiao."
"Have you changed your mind?" A Qiao turned and looked at him.
"No, I just want to ask, Miss Qiao, can you not tell Tongtong about my situation here?"
"If she doesn't ask, I won't tell."
…
When A Qiao went to find Jiang Tong, he did not take the initiative to mention Su Guanqing.
When she arrived, Jiang Tong had just directed Zhao Quesheng to remove the old mounting of "Double Immortals Picture".
The painting itself was relatively young, and the paper hadn't aged or become brittle yet, making the peeling process much easier. Jiang Tong let Zhao Quesheng try.
Just as he was about to take the next step, Aqiao's voice rang out from outside the door.
"Ah Tong! Are you still busy?"
Zhao Quesheng was startled, thinking to herself, "How dare this guy come and argue with the teacher at this time!" She thought Jiang Tong would be angry, and the hand holding the tweezers couldn't help but tremble.
"Hold steady, don't get startled by the slightest movement," Jiang Tong said in a deep voice, "Always remember, you hold the life and death of a painting in your hands. If you lose your composure, the painting will be ruined."
"Yes, disciple, I remember it."
"Go on." Jiang Tong said, opened the door and walked out, pulling A Qiao to his room.
As soon as the door was closed, A Qiao said:
"Remember the fire at the dock? That wasn't an accident. We were just laborers at the dock, but in reality, we were hired assassins. Someone wanted to kill us all that day."
Jiang Tong nodded, picked up the kettle on the table and poured a glass of water for Aqiao.
Seeing her expression unchanged, A Qiao asked in confusion, "Aren't you surprised?"
Jiang Tong couldn't say that this was the story you told me in my past life, so he could only say:
"With your skills, how could you be an ordinary laborer? Besides, I saw those workers burned to death at the fire scene that day. No one could lie still while being burned. They were obviously drugged like you. Have you found out who drugged them?"
A Qiao took a sip of water and said in a deep voice, "It's the Jinyiwei."
Jiang Tong finally showed a hint of surprise: "What did you do to offend the Jinyiwei?"
"That's the weird thing. We didn't do anything. Even though we were death warriors, the people who supported us didn't assign us any tasks."
"The capital is raising assassins. This person must be extraordinary. Do you know who he is?"
A Qiao's expression was solemn:
"I'm just a small-time figure in this organization. The person in charge was burned to death. I've been investigating for days and thought I'd run out of clues. But that day, someone suddenly contacted those of us who had escaped and told us to stay put. I followed the clues and found out that the person behind this was Jiang Huaiyan."
Jiang Tong's expression froze.
A Qiao continued, "I sent people to follow Jiang Huaiyan and found that he had other assassins under his command."
"In this peaceful world, he is a commoner, but he keeps assassins. His intentions must be great." Jiang Tong had a bad feeling in his heart.
"There's another thing. When Jiang Xuan died, your father went to collect his body. He didn't go alone."
Jiang Tong nodded:
"I've always found it strange. My father wasn't well at the time, and it was hard enough for him to walk to the mass grave. Asking him to dig a grave to bury someone must have been difficult. But I'm afraid he didn't have much money at the time. Could he have afforded to hire someone?"
"It wasn't someone I invited. I didn't tell you at the time because I hadn't yet found out the person's identity."
A Qiao paused and lowered his voice: "That man is Jiang Huaiyan's man."
"My dad...what kind of evidence does Jiang Huaiyan have on him?" Jiang Tong felt a bad feeling in his heart becoming stronger, and his hand unconsciously tightened the handle of the kettle.
A Qiao said, "I haven't found out yet. But there's one more thing I think I should tell you."
"What is it?"
"After the fire at the dock, the Jinyiwei didn't give up and kept searching. I initially thought they were looking for a few of us who had slipped through the net, but later I found out they were looking for Jiang Huaiyan and his group. And the Jinyiwei were also targeting Master Su."
"Is it because of the case of Lord Su? My father said that the Zhengtong Emperor kept Guan Qing around in order to dig out some secrets. But Lord Su was convicted for his words back then. Could it be that the Zhengtong Emperor wants to dig out more anti-government poems?"
"It's not an anti-poem. Lord Su was planning a rebellion that day. However, it seems that no evidence was found in the end. I think Lord Su and his accomplices are just hiding for a while after the Su case."
"Is this true?" Jiang Tong was greatly surprised. "I don't know if Guan Qing knows about this. He has never told me about this before."
Ah Qiao said, "I asked Master Su, but he kept his mouth shut and refused to say anything. If you ask him, maybe he would tell you..."
Before Aqiao could finish her words, Jiang Tong suddenly grabbed her wrist, his expression extremely serious: "This matter is getting bigger and bigger. Aqiao, don't investigate it anymore. You have already escaped, don't let yourself get dragged into it again."
Perhaps back then, Chief Qiao could have shaken the country with just a stomp of his foot, but Qiao was still not mature enough, so she had to worry.
Ah Qiao smiled bitterly and shook his head: "I also want to stay out of this, but I can't help but investigate. Hundreds of my brothers died tragically for no reason. I have to find out why they died, right? And your father is also involved. I have to help you find out what secrets Jiang Huaiyan is holding on to him."
"Aqiao..."
Jiang Tong wanted to persuade her again, but was interrupted by A Qiao.
"Don't worry, I have people on my side now, I'm not fighting alone. I'll be careful, nothing will happen."
Jiang Tong's tone grew stern. "But they are the Jinyiwei after all. As the saying goes, the people should not fight against the officials. If we really mess with them, how will it end in the future?"
"He's just a Jinyiwei, what's so special about him? They even want to follow me, but they can just let me slip away in circles." A Qiao waved his hand with an arrogant tone.
In a trance, Jiang Tong felt that Aqiao's posture was a little familiar.
Jiang Tong suddenly realized something and looked at A Qiao intently.
The A-Qiao sitting in front of her looked arrogant and high-spirited. She was no longer the A-Qiao girl who had to be cautious temporarily to survive in the cracks.
Jiang Tong met her eyes, which were a pair of eyes that had experienced many vicissitudes of life but were sharp.
They belong to Chief Leader Qiao's eyes.
Jiang Tong's frown suddenly relaxed.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
