"You're too kind, Commander. It is my duty to share your burdens."
The enthusiasm of the Luoshui Town officials was almost overwhelming for Su Yan; who would have thought that Zhao He would make such a big fuss?
After thinking it over, Su Yan pulled Zhao He aside and whispered, "Lord Zhao, aren't you making a bit too much of a fuss?"
"How can this be considered a large-scale operation? If Commander Su were to go to Suizhou Prefecture, wouldn't he be terrified?"
Su Yan looked at Zhao He with a forced smile, thinking to herself, "That old man is deliberately playing me..."
Li Qingming's case was already a thorny one, and now that it's become the talk of the town, it's not a good thing for the investigation. Who knows what kind of trouble it will cause next?
"I've heard that the people of Suizhou are known for their fierce and unruly nature, but on my journey I've seen them living in peace and contentment. This must be due to Lord Zhao's effective governance."
Zhao He smiled and was very humble. "Commander Su, you flatter me. I have been an official in Suizhou for thirty years and can be considered a local. It is entirely thanks to His Majesty's good fortune that the people can live and work in peace."
Upon hearing this, Su Yan was speechless. He wanted to flatter her without even asking beforehand.
To outsiders, Su Yan was considered to belong to the Crown Prince's faction.
Zhao He deliberately brought up the Emperor in order to suppress her power.
Su Yan smiled calmly and said, "Let's not just stand here. I've been traveling for half a day and I'm tired. Lord Zhao, let's talk about it tomorrow."
After saying this, Su Yan prepared to take her leave.
But Zhao He stopped him, "Your Excellency has prepared a banquet to welcome Commander Su and wash away the dust of his journey. Commander, please follow me..."
Su Yan and Shen Yao exchanged a glance. Neither of them knew what would happen next, but they still followed Zhao He.
As the saying goes, when soldiers come, generals will block them; when water comes, earth will dam it.
Soon, Zhao He led the two to an elegant little restaurant called "Spring Breeze Comes".
Suizhou is located in a remote area, so it is very poor economically.
The name is quite nice, but it's really just a restaurant with slightly nicer decor.
It's not even as good as any random restaurant in Chang'an.
Moreover, Su Yan also noticed that the officials who came to welcome them were all dressed very simply, with their clothes patched up in many places, making her and Shen Yao look like cranes among chickens.
Su Yan couldn't understand what Zhao He was trying to do.
However, Su Yan happened to be hungry, so she didn't stand on ceremony and started eating.
Zhao He and the other officials kept toasting Su Yan.
Because Shen Yao was disguised as a guard, he did not sit at the same table as Su Yan, and was instead taken away by someone.
With Zhao He constantly urging her to drink, Su Yan couldn't refuse and ended up drinking until she was dizzy.
Soon, Su Yan lost consciousness and collapsed on the dining table.
When Zhao He saw that Su Yan was drunk, he smiled smugly.
The county magistrate beside him chimed in, "Lord Zhao, isn't it inappropriate for us to make our move so soon after the commander's arrival?"
Zhao He glared at the person next to him and cursed, "You don't know anything! Strike first! If clues are found, be careful what happens to our lives."
Upon hearing this, the county magistrate immediately shut up.
Soon, Zhao He called out to the door, "Chunniang, come in!"
A woman, still charming and attractive, walked in through the door. Her figure and appearance were in no way inferior to those of a courtesan.
Zhao He leered at Chunniang as she walked in, and said with a sly smile, "Chunniang, you know what to do next, right?"
Chunniang's eyes were full of stubbornness, and her eyes made no attempt to hide her disgust for Zhao He. "You corrupt official, release my son at once."
"Don't worry, Chunniang. As long as you get things done, I will release your son. Remember, I will come to 'Spring Breeze' to take him away first thing tomorrow morning. If you mess things up, be careful your son may not come back."
After saying that, Zhao He gave the others a wink.
Everyone got up and left, leaving only Su Yan and Chun Niang in the room.
As soon as Zhao He left, Chunniang's eyes were filled with tears, but she tried her best to hold back her sobs. After closing the doors and windows, she walked towards Su Yan.
He supported Su Yan's entire body weight on his shoulders and carried her to the house in the backyard.
Although Su Yan is a woman, she is quite tall, while Chun Niang is petite.
It took a tremendous amount of effort to drag Su Yan into the house and throw her onto the bed.
Chunniang looked at Su Yan, who was sleeping soundly on the bed, her face full of helplessness. She sighed and said, "I heard you came from Chang'an. Don't blame me. Zhao He is trying to get you. If I don't do as he says, my son will lose his life."
After saying that, Chunniang slowly took off her clothes, revealing her fair skin and smooth back.
After doing all this, Chunniang took off her shoes, got into bed, straddled Su Yan, and reached out to unbutton her clothes.
In fact, Su Yan was not drunk at all.
She knew Zhao He's enthusiasm meant he had ulterior motives, so she secretly took hangover medicine while drinking.
After she had drunk enough, she secretly pretended to be drunk.
As expected, Zhao He got drunk and couldn't be bothered to keep up the act. After being dragged into the house by Chunniang...
Su Yan roughly guessed what Zhao He wanted to do.
According to the laws of the Great Liang Dynasty, any man who commits adultery with a married woman shall be punished with twenty strokes of the cane.
Moreover, Su Yan is an official, which would aggravate her crime, and she might not even be able to keep her official position.
Just as Chunniang unbuttoned the third button on her clothes, Su Yan suddenly opened her eyes and stared straight at her.
"what are you up to?"
Chunniang was clearly startled by Su Yan's sudden awakening. "You...you...you're not drunk..."
Su Yan pushed Chunniang, who was straddling her, away and straightened her clothes. "Of course I'm not drunk, otherwise how would I know how you plotted against me..."
Upon seeing this, Chunniang immediately knelt down and pleaded with Su Yan, "My lord, I didn't mean to frame you. Please spare my life!"
"Put your clothes on first! I've heard what you said, Chunniang. I know you're innocent, and I won't blame you."
When Chunniang heard that Su Yan did not intend to punish her, she was overjoyed and put her clothes back on.
At this moment, Shen Yao suddenly jumped in through the window, startling Chun Niang so much that she turned pale.
Seeing that Su Yan was safe and sound, Shen Yao breathed a sigh of relief, "It's good that you're alright..."
"Shen Yao, what's wrong with you? How come you just disappeared halfway through drinking?"
Shen Yao patiently told Su Yan what had happened.
While Shen Yao was keeping an eye on the others during the meal, his gaze suddenly fell on the outside of the inn, where someone was bullying an elderly couple and a child.
Shen Yao thought that he was just leaving for a while and there shouldn't be any problems.
After rescuing the elderly couple and child from the bully, Shen Yao originally planned to return as soon as possible.
But the child pestered him, begging him to save her mother.
Shen Yao felt a little soft-hearted, so he took the child to the clinic to find a doctor, but unfortunately it was already late and most of the pharmacies were closed.
The child became even more obsessed, clinging to him and refusing to let him leave.
Shen Yao realized something was wrong, but he was also afraid that the child wasn't lying.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com