Facing Chang Suining, the official showed his badge and stated his purpose.
The granddaughter of Lord Xie disappeared on the eve of her wedding, and her whereabouts remain unknown. Over the past few days, the Beijing government has found suspicious traces on the way from Feng's house to Xingningfang.
Hearing this, Chang Ren secretly thanked his lucky stars that the girl had foresight and did not allow General Dian to follow. Otherwise, after hearing this, General Dian would definitely retort immediately, "Impossible, you are talking nonsense," and "I clearly wiped it clean."
What the officer said was indeed nonsense. There was no way they could have left any suspicious traces that night. His words were just a cover.
Moreover, the cover was very complete, and it was claimed that a night watchman had personally seen a suspicious figure moving mysteriously at the back door of Chang's mansion that night.
After the officer finished speaking, he said, "We are here under orders to search for the whereabouts of the lady from the Feng family. We hope that your family will cooperate and not obstruct us."
Chang Suining not only nodded in cooperation, he even instructed Manager Bai to arrange for servants to lead the way.
When the officers went to search, Chang Suining whispered to Chang Ren, "Keep a close eye on them. Make sure they don't do anything behind the scenes or try to frame us."
Outside of Chang Mansion, everything was controlled by the Empress. She would never allow any mistakes to happen within Chang Mansion.
Those aggressive officials went in and out of the courtyards of the Chang Mansion, leaving no corner untouched; even the firewood pile in the kitchen was overturned and opened for inspection.
Some retired veterans saw this and tried to suppress their anger.
Their great general had made so many contributions to Dasheng, but their husband was wrongly imprisoned first, and now these officials used a fabricated statement to treat their Chang family as a den of thieves! Where is justice?
“Get lost!”
The old soldier saw an officer kicking a yellow dog guarding outside the kitchen. The dog ran away screaming with its tail between its legs. The old soldier was so angry that he was about to step forward but was stopped by his companions.
"The girl said...it's important to keep a close eye on them and don't let them provoke you into finding fault with you." The companion reminded in a low voice, but his brows were furrowed.
Little Duan and Xiaowu squatted down and hugged the frightened yellow dog, hiding aside and watching the ferocious officials, their eyes full of anxiety.
The officers searched like this for more than half a day, and the scene outside Chang's mansion attracted a lot of attention and discussion.
"Has something happened at General Chang's Mansion again?"
"...Could it be that the young master of the Chang family has also betrayed the young lady of the Chang family? Was it really the young lady Chang who instigated the murder of the eldest grandson, the seventh lady?"
"But those officials don't look like they are from the Dali Temple, but rather from the Beijing government?"
Some people discussed it, some explored it, and some couldn't help but sigh: "General Chang is now fighting outside, and it's a pity that these two children are in Beijing and can't get any help from heaven or earth..."
"You make it sound as if the young master of the Chang family has been wrongly accused... Now there is evidence!"
"Where is the witness?"
"You may not know this yet, but last night, a monk in Dayun Temple committed suicide!"
This is true.
Last night, a monk from Dayun Temple hanged himself in the maple forest on the back mountain, and left a blood letter, saying that he had personally witnessed Chang Sui'an committing the crime in the forest that day, but because he was afraid of bringing disaster upon himself, and was afraid that Changsun would hold him accountable for not saving him, he had not dared to come forward to testify.
These days, I have been repenting day and night and feel uneasy. I believe that I am no longer worthy of being a Buddhist disciple. The only way I can atone for my sins is to die and seek liberation.
This morning, the monk's body and the letter written in blood were sent to the Dali Temple.
Because Wu Jue secretly passed the message, Chang Suining knew about this matter earlier than the Dali Temple.
First, Prince Rong was silenced, and then, in the name of protecting Yao Yi's official reputation, the case was handed over to Han Shaoqing, the empress's confidant, to handle.
Then they forged witnesses, and the "witness" died after leaving a note, making it impossible to testify against the witnesses.
Now, under the pretext of investigating a missing persons case, they came to search for Feng Min's whereabouts...
Compared with what Chang had done before, all these actions now controlled by the Holy Will were like a tight net that was tightening rapidly, leaving no room for the creatures in the net to struggle and escape.
The feeling of being trapped also tightly enveloped Chang Suining's body.
She stood in the hallway, watching the officials coming back, and asked Xier, "How many days are left until the first day of the new year?"
Although Xi'er didn't know why the girl asked this, she still answered immediately: "My dear, the day after tomorrow is the first day of the new year."
The day after tomorrow.
Chang Suining repeated it in his mind.
The officials were already there.
"What have you found out?" Chang Suining asked.
"I am sorry to bother you today." The leading officer who returned empty-handed looked a little embarrassed, but still said, "But the Feng family girl has a special identity. She is the future concubine of the prince of Yingguo. Before we find her, we need to leave a few people to guard outside your house temporarily. I hope you can understand."
Chang Suining: "Please do as you please."
Watching the officers leave, Xier felt extremely uneasy: "Girl, they are clearly using this as an excuse to monitor us..."
It's called guarding, but it's no different from surveillance and house arrest! Chang Suining: "Surveillance is just one of them."
The surveillance was real, and it was also true that she wanted to search out Feng Min, the witness, and take him away - even though Chang Ren and his men did not leave any traces that night, it did not affect her conclusion that Feng Min was in her hands tomorrow.
It would be best if we could find Feng Min in the Chang family, and we could also frame her with a crime so that she couldn't escape.
Even if they can't find her, they won't return empty-handed. After all this trouble by these officials, I believe everyone will soon hear the rumor that the reason why the Ming family's concubine who was about to marry into the family disappeared was because of her connection with the Chang family.
In the eyes of outsiders, this matter may seem unrelated to her brother's affairs at first glance, but with this "previous cause", if she "doesn't know the consequences" and insists on taking Feng Min to the government office to identify Ming Jin, then the government office can easily interpret this as that she had kidnapped Feng Min first and forced Feng Min to frame Ming Jin -
Therefore, the officials' high-profile search was equivalent to completely destroying the usefulness of Feng Min as a witness in her hands. Even without the government's rebuttal, people in the streets would not even believe Feng Min's testimony.
The emperor's methods are always more comprehensive and thorough. He is better at eliminating threats fundamentally and knows how to calm and reduce "criticism" among the people.
In other words, after this trip, Feng Min was no longer of any value to Chang Suining.
Chang Suining came out from the corridor.
She doesn't have it, but she may have it in others.
At the edge of the sky, the cold wind tore at the dark clouds, and raindrops fell as the two struggled.
The rain came suddenly, and people on the long street walked in a hurry.
Two carriages met head-on, one of which was driving particularly fast. Seeing this, the driver of the other carriage hurriedly dodged, but still could not completely avoid the other's reckless collision. One side of the carriage was scratched and almost overturned.
The young boy in the car hit his forehead and angrily lifted the car curtain.
The drivers and attendants of both sides had already started arguing.
A person also walked over from the opposite car, but he looked leisurely and nonchalant.
Chang Sun Ji recognized the other person: "... Cui Liulang?"
“My head is broken. I’m so sorry.” Cui Lang hissed softly and said, “But you also broke Brother Sui’an’s head that day, so the two can be considered offset!”
Chang Sun Ji was originally respectful to the other party because he was from the Cui family, but his face immediately darkened when he heard this: "You bumped into me on purpose!"
"So what?" Cui Lang approached Changsun Ji provocatively, holding a pot with an umbrella. He became more arrogant because he was a few years older and half a head taller than Changsun Ji. "If I bump into you and heal your brain, you might even come to thank me later."
Chang Sun Ji wanted to retort, but Cui Lang didn't even give him a chance to speak: "Speaking of the brain... we have to go and take a look."
Cui Lang looked at the wound on the boy's forehead, then took off the purse from his waist and stuffed it into his hand. He then held his hand and patted it twice: "Here is some silver, which will be my compensation."
Having said that, regardless of Changsun Ji's extremely annoyed expression, she instructed the Changsun family's servants, "The Huichun Pavilion is just ahead, take your husband there quickly to have a look. If we go too late and delay the treatment, it will be bad!"
This statement was clearly an insult! "Cui Liulang is going too far!" Chang Sun Ji tightly grasped the purse and was about to throw it away, but when he met Cui Lang's eyes that did not have much malice, he realized that something was wrong with the purse in his hand.
"Lord Changsun has only just realized today that I, Cui Lang, like to bully people." Cui Lang shook off his sleeves that were soaked by the rain. "Let's go, it's raining heavily today, not suitable for quarreling."
Seeing Cui Lang return to his carriage, the servants of the Changsun family were extremely angry: "Sir, how can you let them go like this!"
"Today I have my grandfather's instructions to deal with, so I have no time to get involved with him. We'll settle this account another day!" Chang Sun Ji said with an unpleasant expression, "Let's go!"
The boy sat back in the carriage and immediately opened the purse.
Sure enough, there was no silver in it, only a small bamboo tube about the length and thickness of a thumb.
He had just noticed something strange when he held it in his hand, so he didn't throw it away immediately.
When he opened the bamboo tube, he saw a rolled-up note hidden inside.
Chang Sun Ji quickly unfolded it and saw only two lines of small characters on it - the truth is hidden behind the Guanyin Temple in the west of the city. It will be known at first sight. Be careful and don't alert the enemy.
The signature is just one common character.
The young man's still childish brows frowned. Although he thought of many things, he did not act on his own. Instead, he returned home and handed the note to his grandfather, Chang Sun Yuan.
After seeing this, Chang Sun Yuan thought for a moment, then sent someone secretly to the place indicated on the note, and repeatedly told them to avoid all sight.
Putting aside other things, just the fact that the girl from the Chang family used Cui Liulang, the dandy boy, to convey the message in this way shows that there must be many spies watching in secret.
And the number of eyes staring at his eldest grandson's family has always been even greater.
When it was dark, a seriously injured and unconscious girl was put in a sack and was quietly brought back to Changsun Mansion.
Although the person was unconscious, a letter was also brought back, which was the girl's confession to be exact.
Looking at the entire process of the crime written in the confession, Chang Sun Yuan's face changed slightly.
Ming Family...Ming Jin?!
"Father..." After reading it, Chang Sunyan was still furious, but he still had doubts: "...Could it be that the Chang family girl is trying to exonerate her brother? How do we know it's not fabricated?"
Chang Sunyuan looked at the unconscious girl with her eyes closed and said, "Wake her up first."
Feng Min did not wake up until late at night. She recognized at a glance that the thin and stern face was that of the left prime minister Chang Sun Yuan, who was also the father of Chang Sun Qiniang, whom she indirectly killed.
The old man, who gave people a sense of oppression, looked at them with a sharp look in his eyes: "Tell us again what happened to you two that day, word for word."
Feng Min was extremely frightened, but he dared not disobey.
Her voice was faint and trembling as she explained what had happened.
Seeing the tears of fear and regret on the girl's face, Chang Sun Yuan felt as if his heart was being cut by a knife. He asked word by word, "What was Xuan'er's last sentence?"
This was to test the other party's sincerity, and also a father wanted to hear the last voice of his daughter who died unjustly in this world.
"Mrs. Chang Sun Qi said to the maid, said..." At that time, Chang Sun Xuan was strangled by Ming Jin, and her voice was weak and fearful. Feng Min repeated it with tears in her eyes, her voice trembling: "Shu Xin, hurry up, go find Xiao Zao..."
Shu Xin was the name of Chang Sun Xuan's maid.
Xiao Zao is the unique name that Chang Sun Xuan calls her nephew Chang Sun Ji, and outsiders cannot know it.
After hearing this, Chang Sun Ji, with his fists clenched tightly and red eyes, was stunned for a moment. Then, he could no longer bear it, turned around abruptly, opened the door, and ran to the corridor.
The young man didn't care about his image and manners, he stood in the corridor and cried along with the sound of rain.
When his aunt got into trouble, he was also picking chrysanthemums in the back mountain. He hadn't seen his aunt for a while and wanted to go look for her, but was stopped by several friends on the way. They agreed to play Cuju together after returning to the city. They talked more and more, so he forgot about going to look for his aunt.
It's all his fault!
The boy cried even louder, feeling grief-stricken, self-blaming and remorseful.
Feng Min has been taken away.
Inside the room, Chang Sunyan's eyes were filled with suppressed anger and sorrow: "In my father's opinion, is this credible..."
Although Feng Min's words sounded flawless, since the family on the other side was the Ming family, this matter had to be handled with extreme caution, and one had to be wary of the possibility of being provoked and used by others.
Chang Sunyuan held the armrest of the armchair tightly and said, "Immediately, have someone investigate the actions of the Ming family mother and son in detail these days...quickly."
Without knowing anything, it is difficult to find out the truth that has been hidden. But if you get the "answer" first and then trace it back, you can often find the flaws easily. Even if you can't find substantial evidence, it is enough to distinguish the truth from the false.
After Chang Sunyan agreed, he asked his father: "If it was really Mingjin who did it..."
Chang Sunyuan: "Pay with your life."
…
Chang Suining was naturally not afraid of the Changsun family checking to determine the authenticity. Since it was true, he was not afraid of the investigation.
She chose to send Feng Min to the Changsun family in order to borrow the power of the Changsun family and also to preserve the value of Feng Min as a witness.
The Changsun family has their own means, and I believe they will be able to confirm this matter soon, and will take action when the time comes.
The Changsun family can use Feng Min as a witness to put pressure on the Queen in the court, but this alone is not enough.
At least the Ming family still has room for excuses. This confrontation is destined to take a long time for both sides, but her brother can't afford it.
The Changsun family plays a role in the court and in the balance of power. For both profit and emotion, they will insist on seeking justice for Zhangsun Qi Niangzi, but the justice that Changsun seeks will not be precise to saving her brother's life.
Everyone has different desires, and the facts and interests are like this. Even if her brother dies unjustly in prison, it will not affect the justice that Changsun will seek later.
Therefore, Changsun was just a relationship of borrowing strength for her, rather than a partner who could advance and retreat together with her and whom she could entrust all her hopes to.
She has to save the sons of the Chang family herself.
The rain continued all night.
The next morning, Chang Suining put on her robe, tied her cloak, and took the short knife that Cui Jing gave her at the apprenticeship banquet, which could cut jade like mud.
Good night~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
