Chapter 14
The other side.
Liu Ling put away his smile and looked serious.
The maid whispered, "What should we do now?"
Liu Lingyan said, "We've blocked all the exits. He must still be inside the building. Let's find him."
The maid looked at the door of the wing where Liu Ju was staying with embarrassment.
Liu Ling curled his lips and said, "Don't worry, he's not in there. I won't give him the opportunity to let the two sides meet. But we need to pay attention to much more than just this. Why do you think Lei Bei took the risk to come to Shengping Tower?"
The maid's expression was stern. "The palace is not easy to enter. Lei Bei couldn't enter the palace on his own, so he needed help. The person who could help him must be powerful and of high status. There are many nobles in Changling, and Shengping Tower is even more so today."
Liu Ling sneered, "Then do you think that even if I persuade Lord Xiucheng, Marquis Gai, and Marquis Longli to cooperate in opening Shengping Tower, they are truly my allies?"
The maid's face paled. Of course not. If Lei Bei had come to them and explained his intentions, they would have been happy to help him gain an audience with the emperor, earning him a chance to demonstrate his merits before him.
This was especially true of Xiucheng Jun, whose daughter was the Crown Princess of Liu Qian, and they had a very unhappy relationship.
Now they say on the surface that they want to part ways and live happily on their own, and that none of this has anything to do with Liu Ling. They say that even if they can't be sisters-in-law, they can still be sisters, and they call each other "sister" affectionately.
Everyone knew that this was simply because the princess could bring them benefits. They wanted to use this relationship to make money with Shengping Tower. In their hearts, they cursed Huainan and Liu Qian for bad luck soon.
If the opportunity arose, Xiucheng Jun and her daughter would be the first to step forward and stab him. After all, if money was lost, it could be found again, but opportunities for revenge like this were rare. Furthermore, stabbing him might even curry favor with His Majesty.
The more the maid thought about it, the uglier her expression became.
"We should be thankful that they only want money and are not bothered to manage things, so Shengping Building is still under our control."
Just as Liu Ling finished speaking, a subordinate knocked on the door and came in hurriedly, handing him a silk letter. When Liu Ling opened it, his face instantly sank and his eyes were cold and vicious.
The maid's heart skipped a beat: "My lady, what's wrong?"
Liu Ling remained silent and handed the silk over. The maid was shocked.
The silk was a message from Huainan. It said that when Lei Bei escaped from Huainan, Huainan King Liu An wrote a letter to Hengshan King Liu Ci, ordering a confidant to deliver it to Liu Ci, and ordered the confidant to stay in Hengshan to assist Liu Ci in better cooperating with Huainan to achieve great things.
Because the confidant did not need to come back to report, Liu An always thought that the letter had been delivered. It was not until the two parties contacted each other again a while ago that they learned that Liu Ci had not received the letter. After layers of investigation, they finally discovered that the confidant was dead and the secret letter he carried was missing.
"This...this...may not be..."
The maid bit her lip, wanting to say that it might not be Lei Bei, but the timing was too coincidental, and when the words came to her lips, she really couldn't say them.
Liu Ling's expression flickered: "I would rather it be him than anyone else."
The maid paused, then understood. If it was a thunderstorm, at least they would know where the letter was. If it wasn't, they would have no clue who had it, which would be even worse.
"Lei Bei can't die." Liu Ling's face was stern, and he made a quick decision, "Catch him alive. Have people search carefully, and don't let any of the rooms go untouched.
"Remember to avoid making any noise that would arouse suspicion. Let them pretend to be servants and go in under the pretext of serving or delivering gambling cards. Then observe quietly.
"Once you find any trace, try to lure the guests away from the wing. If you can't make a decision, have someone come find me. I'll go."
The maid bowed: "Yes."
********
Inside the wing.
Liu Ju gritted his teeth and cursed in his heart for a long time. He disagreed with the "rebellion" mentioned in the barrage.
After all, as far as he knew, King Huainan Liu An was fond of literature and obsessed with compiling books. He had never shown any dissatisfaction with the court and often sent books and gifts to his father, who liked them very much.
Although Liu Ling acted flamboyantly in Beijing, he was also sensible and did not violate the criminal law.
However, considering that this was a vassal state, his status was sensitive, and there had been endless incidents of things like the Liang Wang Rebellion and the Seven Kingdoms Rebellion, and the barrage had at least mentioned the titles of Huo Qubing and Zhang Qian. Liu Ju reluctantly took note of this and decided to follow the old rules and wait and see.
Since we are just waiting and watching, it means that the matter is not urgent, so the more important thing right now is of course: the game has begun!
Liu Ju immediately decided to take care of the present, so he and Shi Yi gathered in front of the railing and shouted loudly as if they were injected with chicken blood.
Liu Ju: "Number one, number one!"
Shi Yi: "Number two, number two!"
The two exchanged glances, their eyes meeting in a flash of lightning, and then both turned to shout again, each louder than the last, neither refusing to fall behind the other.
Huo Qubing & Wei Chang & Zhuyi: ...
The game ended with number one defeating number two. Liu Ju jumped up happily: "Oh, I won!"
Shi Yi was dissatisfied and pulled Cai Qin over: "Go again, this time buy..."
She glanced at the stage and saw that the next ones to come on were number three and four. She glanced at them and said confidently, "Number three!"
Liu Ju shrugged: "Then I'll buy number four."
Shi Yi curled his lips: "I will definitely beat you this time."
Unfortunately, things went against expectations and Shiyi lost again.
In the third and fourth chapters, the two fought against each other all the way, but Shi Yi lost every time, not only in wrestling matches, but also in cockfighting. He lost more than ten times in a row and was so angry that he stamped his feet repeatedly.
Huo Qubing was also a little surprised: "You have extraordinary luck."
Liu Ju beamed with joy: "I have carefully observed and selected them. I have a good eye."
Huo Qubing nodded, it was indeed related to eyesight.
He saw it. While Shi Yi preferred wrestlers with large builds, Liu Ju paid more attention to their strength, endurance, and composure during pre-match preparations. While Shi Yi preferred cockfighting cocks with attractive fur, Liu Ju was more concerned with which ones were energetic, crowing effectively, and strode with a certain aura.
Shi Yi: ...Aren’t you just saying that I have no vision and that I can’t hear it?
While she was feeling depressed, Liu Ju was already celebrating, distributing the money he won to the servants around him. Some was given to Yu Sui, some to the maids of Wei Chang and Zhuyi, and some to Caiqin.
The others were fine, but Caiqin hesitated a bit. Seeing Shiyi's gaze sweeping over, Liu Ju was the first to shout, "No way, no way, you can't be so petty that you can't afford to lose."
Shi Yi was extremely angry: "Who is so petty that he can't afford to lose!"
She snatched the silver from Liu Ju's hand and stuffed it into Caiqin's arms: "Just take it if I tell you to. This princess is not so magnanimous as to be so small."
She snorted coldly, and when she turned around, her big movement knocked over the wine and juice on the table, spilling them all over her dress.
Everyone: ...This is a bit embarrassing.
Shi Yi was stunned for a moment, his expression embarrassed, ashamed and annoyed. Liu Ju chuckled. Shi Yi glanced at him and helplessly ordered Cai Qin: "The dress is in this state, it's uncomfortable to wear. Didn't we bring a spare one before we left? Go get it from the carriage."
After Caiqin brought her clothes to change, Shiyi also cleverly changed his tactics and finally won a game at the end, which relieved some of his depression.
Liu Ju didn't care at all. It was just one win, which was nothing compared to the dozen or so times he had won. He was still very happy and proud, humming a cheerful tune as he left.
"I'll raise a few majestic roosters tomorrow, and let them take to the stage to wreak havoc during the competition."
Shi Yi rolled his eyes at him and said, "If you come to a place like this once or twice, your father will just think you're curious and want to join in the fun, so he'll naturally indulge you. But if you want to come more often and become addicted to it, why don't you try?"
Liu Ju paused. "Yes, my father would definitely not allow it, let alone raising fighting cocks."
Seeing him dejected, Huo Qubing raised an eyebrow and said, "Raising a pet for fun doesn't necessarily mean you're addicted to it. It's okay, I'll let you raise it. I'll keep it here with you. We'll keep it outside the palace. You can come and see it anytime you want."
Shi Yi glanced sideways: "Cousin, do you think your uncle will know that you are supporting him? Even if your aunt can't control you, what do you think your uncle will do?"
Huo Qubing: ...
Liu Ju: ...
They both looked at Shi Yi at the same time, their expressions subtle. "Dear, you'll have no friends if you keep doing this. Please mind your mouth. It's true that your mouth is for talking, but you don't have to say everything. Sometimes you can just keep it shut!"
Liu Ju turned around and strode forward, with an expression that said, "I don't want to talk to someone without tact." He quickly walked to the door. The driver had already taken the carriage and was waiting by the side. Liu Ju was about to get on when Yu Sui reached out and stopped him: "Master, wait a minute."
Liu Ju froze for a moment, and before he could react, Huo Qubing had already taken action, removing the weapon from his waist, leaping onto the shaft of the carriage, and clattering open the curtain. The space inside the carriage was limited, and he could see everything at a glance, finding nothing unusual.
Seeing Yu Sui's serious expression, Huo Qubing thought there was something wrong with the carriage, fearing there might be thieves inside. However, he found it empty. Puzzled, Huo Qubing turned to Yu Sui and asked, "What did you just find?"
"I smell something wrong. There's a faint herbal aroma in the carriage, mixed with a hint of blood."
The aroma of herbs and the smell of blood, the two together easily make people think of someone who took medicine because of an injury.
Liu Ju shrugged his nose and said, "No. What herbal smell or bloody smell? Why don't I smell anything at all?"
He turned to look at the crowd again, and they all shook their heads: "We didn't smell it either."
Liu Ju looked at Yu Sui suspiciously: "Did you smell it wrongly?"
Yu Sui frowned. Something was indeed fishy, but she did not doubt her ability. "My nose is very sensitive. I can smell many subtle smells that ordinary people cannot smell. I have never made a mistake over the years."
Yu Sui was a gift from Emperor Wu of Han, though Liu Ju might not have known about it, but Huo Qubing did. She was one of the men and women who were secretly trained. They were both men and women, and their skills were quite good, with many also possessing special skills.
Since she believed it so firmly, Huo Qubing would not doubt it.
His eyes darkened and his expression suddenly became serious.
Liu Ju was very surprised.
Hey, do you have a dog nose? No, according to your description, you are more powerful than a dog nose.
Liu Ju became curious and was about to ask a few more questions to test it out.
Huo Qubing lifted his robe and jumped back into the carriage. He searched the carriage thoroughly, leaving no corner untouched. Then he jumped out and checked every inch of the windows and shafts. Finally, he stopped at the bottom of the carriage and said, "There's blood here."
Liu Ju:!!!
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