Chapter 214 Tang Ning: She was blinded by her brother’s beauty
Xiao Yan's face was stern. "If Empress Lu has something to hide, she will definitely do everything she can to prove that Prince Cheng is secretly having an affair with other members of the Lu family. However, ordinary women in the Lu family, or other female members of the Lu family, simply don't have the ability to avoid Lu Chongyuan and others and secretly manipulate Hou Rui into her own hands."
"There are only a few people in the Lu family who can do this. They want to live in the Lu family for a long time, have the opportunity to touch the real power, and make the Lu family, even if they know they are being plotted, have no choice but to grit their teeth and sacrifice that person. They want to save the reputation of the Queen and her son and the entire Lu family by cutting off their own arm. Who do you think it is?"
Canglang and Jinyun both widened their eyes. In order to preserve the reputation of the Lu family, this person must be an "outsider" of the Lu family and must not be a girl with the surname Lu. However, this "outsider" must have sufficient status, or even a very high position in the Lu family, in order to gain the trust of others.
A person appeared in their minds almost at the same time.
"Guan?"
Guan is the wife of the eldest wife of the Lu family. Her status is noble enough, but her current situation in the Lu family is extremely embarrassing.
The whereabouts of her son Lu Zhinian are unknown, and her husband Lu Zhao is in prison for a crime. He is very likely to have been abandoned by the Lu family. Now there is only one seven or eight-year-old child left in the entire main house, who is Lu Zhinian's younger brother.
Even if Guan really took the blame for the Queen, no one in the main house would stand up for her, and no one in the Lu family would break up with Queen Lu for her and drag everyone down with her.
Since she is an "outsider" who married into the Lu family, and her status is "noble" enough, there is no better choice than other female members of the Lu family.
Jinyun lowered his voice: "Does the Governor want them to fight each other?"
Xiao Yan said indifferently, "Lu Zhao refused to say a word since he was imprisoned, as if he wanted to take the blame for the grain embezzlement alone. He only cares about the family. I am very curious, if he knew that he would be used thoroughly and his wife and children would suffer humiliation and die, would he still die for the Lu family as he is now?"
Canglang understood what he meant: "I understand. I will make Hou Rui and the others' confessions consistent with those of Prince Cheng."
Xiao Yan said, "After the interrogation is complete, keep it a secret. If anyone asks, just say that Prince Cheng hasn't confessed yet."
Queen Lu had to make her even more anxious.
"Three days later, spread the word that the trial results have been released."
Canglang nodded: "Yes."
Xiao Yan looked back at Tang Ning and suddenly thought of the Song family: "Has Song Jinxiu been to the Imperial Prison these days?"
The Song family members were not imprisoned on the death row. They were imprisoned on the east and west sides of the imperial prison, separated from the places where the nobles such as Prince Cheng were imprisoned. There was a great distance between them. There were always people watching over them, but Jinyun shook his head: "No, no one from the Song family has ever visited."
"What is Song Jinxiu doing?"
"Going in and out of the government office and the Qian family, gathering information from some people and investigating the grain tax."
Xiao Yan sneered: "It seems that I underestimated him."
I thought he would be unable to sit still.
Jinyun hesitated. "Master, the Song family's case has been closed, and the Ministry of Justice has determined their guilt. Song Hong and his men will be exiled soon. Do you still want me to find a way to keep them in the capital?"
Xiao Yan said coldly, "No need. Escort him out of the capital in the next few days. Tell Song Jinxiu and the others the news, and then send someone to secretly monitor him along the way."
"The journey from the capital to the wild land is nearly three thousand miles. If Song Jinxiu hasn't sent anyone to the destination before halfway through the journey, we can let Song Hong and his mother die in an accident and secretly bring them back to the capital."
He hired Song Jinxiu because he thought he was capable and he also felt a sense of "guilt" towards his little Haitang. He thought he could be useful and might become Tang Ning's retreat in the future.
But if he knew that Tang Ning's amnesia was not an accident, and he did not question the cause of death of Song Xi and Mrs. Rong, even his "guilt" towards Tang Ning was fake.
Then there is no need to leave such trouble behind.
The affairs of the Song family do not have to be investigated by Song Jinxiu alone. If he can pry open Prince Cheng's mouth, he can naturally pry open the mouths of the Song family's elders and younger ones as well.
Jinyun heard the murderous intent in his commander's words, lowered his head and whispered, "I will pass on the instructions."
After Xiao Yan had explained everything he needed to, he waved his hand and told Canglang and the others to go about their business. He turned and walked towards Tang Ning.
Seeing that the little girl seemed bored and was playing with the sachet he had given her earlier, he approached her and asked, "Have you been waiting for a long time?"
Tang Ning paused, pressed his eyelashes and muttered, "I'm a little sleepy."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan said, "I didn't sleep well last night, it would be strange if I wasn't sleepy. Let's go, finish our business and then go back."
Tang Ning said "hmm".
After getting on the carriage, someone else took over as driver, and the carriage went all the way to the City God Temple in the north of the city.
After Xiao Yan asked Tang Ning, he handed the deceased child over to the people in the temple and asked them to bury the child next to the Huang Ning tree in the temple. He also left some incense money for them to offer sacrifices during festivals.
After leaving the City God Temple, Xiao Yan said, "That child wasn't wanted by anyone, and since his father died, he'd probably be a wandering ghost somewhere else. Putting him here will at least give him some respect."
Tang Ning said "hmm".
"If Princess Cheng doesn't mention this, you shouldn't mention it either. Just assume that he has been buried a long time ago. If she asks, you can tell her about it. I think she will feel more comforted knowing that he has a good place to go." Xiao Yan whispered.
Tang Ning nodded: "Okay."
The carriage swayed towards Jiyun Lane. Xiao Yan spoke to Tang Ning from time to time, and she responded from time to time, and her voice gradually became lower.
"In a few days I will go to the palace to meet Queen Lu. There may be changes in the Lu family by then. You..."
When Xiao Yan was about to talk to Tang Ning about Queen Lu, he looked up and saw the girl leaning against the wall of the car with her eyes closed, as if she was asleep, with her hands hanging by her sides and her head slightly lowered.
"Tang Ning?" Xiao Yan called softly.
Seeing that she didn't respond, he laughed a little: "You are really sleepy. You can fall asleep at this time."
As the carriage moved forward, the girl's head swayed slightly back and forth. Xiao Yan approached and put his hand on the wall of the carriage to prevent her from accidentally hitting her head. He then covered the girl with a cloak that was placed nearby and whispered to the outside, "Go slower."
The person outside responded softly, and the carriage stabilized.
Seeing that she had fallen asleep leaning against the wall of the car, Xiao Yan was afraid that she would get a headache if she rested her head on something hard, so he reached out and fiddled with the little girl, then put her head on his shoulder.
He sat up straight, let her lean back more comfortably, and straightened her cloak for her. Then he took out the information that the people below had collected during this period from his arms and looked through it.
The carriage was extremely quiet for a moment, and the only sound was the sound of the wheels rolling over the ground outside.
When they arrived at Tang Mansion and the carriage stopped, Xiao Yan was about to wake up Tang Ning, but the "sleeping" little girl's eyelids twitched slightly, and she woke up in a daze.
"Awake? Just in time to get home."
The corners of Xiao Yan's eyes lifted slightly, as if he was smiling, and the sound that should have been as cold as the sound of jade breaking against stone was now full of tolerance.
Tang Ning couldn't help but avert his eyes, rubbing his eyes and pretending to be confused as he stepped back: "Brother, I want to spend the next few days with my aunt at home."
Xiao Yan didn't think much of it: "I should spend more time with the princess. The affairs of Prince Cheng's mansion have come to an end. It's time to think about the princess and Prince Cheng's marriage."
"If Prince Cheng is convicted and the truth is revealed, this marriage, even if it's royal, can be dissolved. Find a chance to ask her what she wants to do, and take this opportunity to rest for a few days."
Seeing that he was always thinking about her and her aunt, Tang Ning couldn't help but tighten her grip on the sachet: "I understand. Thank you, brother."
"I've never seen you so polite before."
Xiao Yan joked with her, then said with a smile, "Alright, you're as sleepy as a cat, go back and rest."
Both of them got off the carriage, and Xiao Yan turned and walked towards the Xiao Mansion next door.
Tang Ning saw the tassel hanging from his waist swaying back and forth as he walked. Suddenly, she thought of the deep, horrific wound on his waist that was so deep that the bone was visible. She couldn't help but say, "Brother."
"Hmm?" Xiao Yan turned around.
"Your waist injury hasn't healed yet, so you need to rest more."
Xiao Yan's face paused slightly, and the next moment, ripples appeared in his dark eyes, like ripples spreading across the surface of a lake. Suddenly, he smiled: "I know, let's go in."
Tang Ning was dazzled by the smile on his face. After returning to the mansion and recovering, she couldn't help but cover her face with her hands and groaned in frustration.
"Xiao Haitang, what are you doing?!"
She is absolutely crazy.
Just now, for a moment, she was actually dazzled by her brother's beauty.
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