Xie Lin would never have thought that Su Rong had such great capabilities. He constantly remembered when he first saw her, standing next to Zhou Gu, radiantly beautiful, with a soft smile, portraying a delicate young lady who seemed so frail and delicate at a glance.
Her generous offering of clothes surprised him, but that was all.
Who would have thought that upon her arrival in the Capital City, her slender hands would possess the power to stir up the Imperial Court’s political structure, leading to the current chaotic state in the Capital City?
Thinking to himself, Xie Lin realized that his father was right. Had he not been learning after all?
So, the following day, when Su Rong visited, Xie Lin kept following her. Whether she was interrogating the Crown Prince’s consort, questioning Ning Ze, or visiting the dungeon of the Ministry of Justice to question the Hall Master and several other masters of the Buddha Temple, he was always at her side.
After a busy day, Su Rong noticed that Xie Lin seemed to be persistently following her. She asked quizzically, "Why are you following me everywhere?"
Xie Lin immediately replied, "My father asked me to learn from you."
Su Rong raised an eyebrow, "Learn what?"
Xie Lin replied, "Abilities."
"What abilities?"
Xie Lin softly said, "The ability to manipulate the world."
Su Rong understood and laughed at him, "The Prince is too modest. You, who have been trained by the Prince, are certainly not incompetent. Otherwise, how could you have initially pried information about the Crown Prince’s consort from Wang Su’s mouth? Young Master, why don’t you tell me what prompted you to do so?"
Xie Lin was immediately embarrassed, "I promised Wang Su...this..." he scratched his head, "one must keep one’s word, right?"
"Indeed, one must keep one’s promises," Su Rong nodded, not pressing him further, "So, you mean that I have to go see Wang Su at the Duke Residence again?"
Currently, Wang Su was still locked up in the Duke Residence’s dungeon.
Xie Lin nodded, "I guess so?"
So, Su Rong went to the Duke Residence once again.
Upon hearing of Su Rong’s arrival, the Duke Residence’s occupants were both surprised and delighted. The Duchess personally came out to greet them. Upon seeing Su Rong and Xie Lin beside her, she hesitated for a moment, "Little Qi, young Prince Xie, have both of you come to see Zhou Gu together?"
Xie Lin looked at Su Rong, letting her answer.
With a smile, Su Rong said, "We’ve come to interrogate Wang Su. I heard from my elder brother that Zhou Gu’s injuries are healing quite well?"
The Duchess finally understood. She had heard about the King of Rui’an requesting the Emperor to send someone to aid him in his investigation. The Emperor had not only assigned Su Rong but also gave her a token indicating his own presence. Now, with Wang Su locked up in the Duke Residence, her visit wasn’t surprising.
However, in her excitement, she’d forgotten why Su Rong would come to the Duke Residence without any reason, let alone to visit Zhou Gu.
Suppressing her emotions, the Duchess laughed and took Su Rong’s hand, "Zhou Gu is so disobedient. He’s always studying, staying up late into the night even after completing his examination. Interrogating Wang Su is the priority. After you’re done, could you please talk some sense into him for me, his Aunt?"
Su Rong nodded, "Very well."
Thus, while still conversing, the Duchess accompanied Su Rong to the dungeon where Wang Su was being held.
Of course, the Duchess didn’t enter; she led Su Rong to the entrance and left.
Su Rong asked Xie Lin, "Young Prince, will you accompany me inside, or wait out here?"
Xie Lin was very tempted to accompany Su Rong, but he wanted to know whether she could obtain any information from Wang Su without his presence. After some indecision, he finally said, "Lady Qi, please enter yourself! I’m afraid that if I accompany you, it might affect your performance."
Su Rong nodded and entered the dungeon on her own.
Xie Lin waited anxiously outside the dungeon.
Upon hearing of Su Rong’s arrival, Zhou Gu immediately called for assistants to help him dress properly before exiting his room.
Ziye followed him, advising, "Young Master, your injury hasn’t fully healed yet. The Princess and Madam have instructed you not to leave your room. Now look, with such cold weather outside and heavy snowfall, you should be careful not to catch a cold."
Zhou Gu glanced back at him, "I’m not made of paper or clay, am I that weak? My injuries have almost fully healed."
Ziye exhaled deeply, quickly held up an umbrella for him, and warned, "Then please wrap your cloak tighter."
Zhou Gu responded with a grunt of agreement.
Soon the two of them arrived at the dungeon. Seeing Xie Lin waiting outside, Zhou Gu approached him and asked, "Where is Rong?"
Looking at Zhou Gu’s appearance, Xie Lin marveled at how quickly he had arrived – he must care deeply to have come so quickly. Pointing at the interior of the dungeon, he asked Zhou Gu, "Are your injuries healing well?"
Considering his brisk steps, it seemed his recovery was going quite well.
Zhou Gu glanced at the closed dungeon doors and then nodded, asking him, "Why didn’t you go in with her?"
Xie Lin shrugged, "Lady Su Qi is very capable, she doesn’t need me."
Zhou Gu glanced at him without responding.
Rubbing his hands together for warmth, Xie Lin said, "It’s so cold. I wonder when Lady Su Qi will come out. Why don’t we find a nearby place and chat by the stove?"
Zhou Gu nodded in agreement, leading Xie Lin to a pavilion not far away.
The pavilion was specifically designed for admiring the snow in winter. It was surrounded by bead curtains, and whenever someone sat inside to enjoy the snow, the servants would immediately bring a heater and some snacks. Regardless of how blustery and snowy it was outside, the pavilion always felt warm and cozy. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚
Xie Lin’s family also had such a pavilion.
Once inside the pavilion, Xie Lin finally felt a bit warmer. Sitting near the heater, he said, "It’s so cold today. This winter appears to be a harsh one. Considering the heavy snowfall for the first snow of the year, we’d better not have a snow disaster. Otherwise, with all the difficulties the Imperial Court is facing, the Minister of Housing will probably break down in tears and return to his hometown."
Zhou Gu scoffed, "If he could leave whilst shedding tears, that would be his blessing. What he should probably fear more is that he can’t return home even if he burst into tears."
Everyone knew that the Ministry of Housing had been made bankrupt over the years by the Emperor himself.
Sighing, Xie Lin said, "Ah, the real victims are the common people. If their taxes increase next year, and they’ve suffered from the disaster but can’t pay their taxes, what will they do?"
This time Zhou Gu took a serious look at Xie Lin, "Not bad, you’ve improved significantly."
The old Xie Lin would never have considered the common people, their suffering due to disasters, and the impact of increased taxes on them.
Xie Lin gave Zhou Gu an annoyed look, "Everyone’s got to grow up, right? My father now has high expectations for me, he’s stricter than before. I have no choice but to improve. If I don’t improve soon, my father’s health will suffer."
He leaned closer to Zhou Gu, sharing, "You know, right? The Emperor currently relies heavily on my father. My father is now overworked and fell ill last night from catching a chill. He was running a high fever and we had to call in the Imperial Doctor. The doctor said it was due to overwork, resulting in a weakened state that allowed the sickness to take hold. He needs to rest for several days, otherwise his health might start to decline."
He sighed again, "On it goes. Today, Lady Su Qi took on the case when she realized that my father had fallen ill and was no longer capable. My father ordered me to accompany her and learn as much as I could."
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