Chapter 291 Meeting (Two chapters combined into one)
"Where is the scholar who luckily survived now?" Emperor Yongjia asked in a deep voice.
Lu Gan said, "The scholar's name is Lin Xian. From the time of the incident until now, he has been living in a small house near Huiwen Academy. However, he disappeared for a while. I later found out that he was staying at Minister Xu's residence to recuperate during that time. According to the doctor who visited Xu's residence, Lin Xian was so frightened that he not only forgot what happened at the time of the incident and did not know who the murderer was, but also became mentally retarded. It is precisely because of this that the Ministry of Justice cannot convict Yang Shengqiu."
What Lu Gan said was true. If the suspect was just an ordinary citizen, the case would have been solved long ago. However, the suspect was Yang Shengqiu. Even though he was just a new official with no background, he could not be arrested without solid evidence because of his status as the top scholar and Feng Ke's disciple.
"Is Lin Xian still living in the same place as before? Is he still studying in that academy?" Emperor Yongjia asked again. Isn't Lin Xian afraid that Yang Shengqiu will kill him again to silence him?
Lu Gan shook his head. "Although Lin Xian still lives there, he no longer goes to study at Huiwen Academy. It's said that his body is fundamentally damaged, his lifespan has been shortened, and he's become demented and mentally retarded. His path to education is no longer feasible. According to the landlord, he either locks himself up and doesn't see anyone, or wanders off, sometimes disappearing for more than ten days. He's even been brought back by kind people. If he hadn't paid three years' rent before the incident, the landlord would have stopped him from living there long ago. Alas, a promising student has been wasted like this."
Emperor Yongjia understood that it was not that Yang Shengqiu did not want to continue killing people to silence them, but that Lin Xian had become mentally retarded. It was better for such a useless person to be alive than dead.
Because if he died, the Ministry of Justice would still suspect Yang Shengqiu. Yang Shengqiu was a smart man and he had thought this matter through.
Emperor Yongjia asked Lu Gan to leave. Lu Gan did not realize that his inner clothes were soaked until he walked out of the palace.
For the past nine years, he has been walking on thin ice, taking every step with caution.
But today, he was still careless.
He was about to leave, so why did he bring up Yang Shengqiu?
Just mention it. It would be fine if you just said that there was something strange about Yang Shengqiu’s kidnapping, but why mention that scholar?
Lu Gan paused, something was wrong!
When Yang Shengqiu and the scholar were first mentioned, His Majesty did not show any abnormality.
The atmosphere suddenly changed when I talked about Zhuxitang in Qinglu County, the family that was murdered, and the visiting doctor.
Silencing?
kill?
Lu Gan shuddered and wished he could slap himself!
Why didn’t I think of it before?
This method of killing is clearly the usual style of the mountain sect!
The reason why no one had thought of it before was because that family was just a small family, an ordinary family, with no official position or title, and no one had any merit.
Lu Gan subconsciously grasped the hilt of the knife. Since his adoptive father passed away, he became the commander of the Jinyiwei and also took over the mountain gate.
On the surface, the mountain gate is independent and the person in charge of the mountain gate is Shan Ye.
But in fact, the mountain gate is a knife hidden in the dark by His Majesty!
The mountain gate has a new mountain master every five years. As the saying goes, the mountain masters are constantly changing, and each mountain master is a servant serving His Majesty.
Lu Gan closed his eyes and returned to the Jinyiwei Yamen at a brisk pace. The first thing he did when he entered was to find the file of Qinglu County.
The file records the time when the family disappeared, which is also the time when they were killed.
At that time, he just took a quick look and didn't pay attention to the specific date.
Looking back now, Lu Gan took a deep breath!
When this case happened, he was the Jinyiwei Zhenfu, which is the position that Li Qing holds now.
Unlike Li Qing who has no background, he has a adoptive father who is a commander.
Lu Gan's father died to protect his adoptive father, after which his adoptive father adopted him and let him join the Imperial Guard when he grew up.
At this time twelve years ago, what was he doing as a Jinyiwei pacifier?
Oh, right, he remembered that year when the Crown Prince of Wu was murdered by Xiao Wang, the King of Wu came to the capital in person to ask the retired emperor for an explanation. Although the King of Wu was persuaded to leave, the people of the capital were in panic. At this time, Emperor Shoukang, the former Crown Prince, suddenly moved into the Wuji Temple.
The prince went to Wuji Temple first, and he led the Jinyiwei to escort him all the way!
Lu Gan slumped down into the chair.
The former prince never came back alive after he left.
It was not until later that Lu Gan learned that the reason the former prince went to Wuji Temple was because he suffered from an eye disease that the imperial physician could not cure. He was worried that people would know that the prince was about to become blind, so he hid in Wuji Temple and searched for famous doctors.
Famous doctor...
There was a doctor living in the family that was wiped out. It is not known whether he was a famous doctor, but it is very likely that he was related to Yang Shengqiu.
Yang Shengqiu would rather kill someone to silence him than conceal his relationship with the doctor. What does this mean?
The answer is about to come!
Lu Gan raised his hand and slapped himself.
How foolish I was to bring this up before His Majesty!
Who benefited from the death of the late Crown Prince? Your Majesty!
Lu Gan thought of his adoptive father. His adoptive father did not die of old age, he committed suicide!
The late crown prince passed away twelve years ago, but my adoptive father's biological son and his family died in a river accident ten years ago. Nine years ago, my adoptive father's health was getting worse day by day, but he refused to see a doctor. Only after he repeatedly asked the imperial physician did my adoptive father tell him that this was not an illness, but a poison. My adoptive father said that he could not bear the pain of losing his son and grandson and did not want to live anymore.
Not long after, his adoptive father passed away and he became the new commander.
Lu Gan's eyes were blank. Why had he never doubted his adoptive father's death? Was it because his adoptive father admitted that he had taken poison?
My adoptive father has been a strong man all his life, how could he commit suicide so easily?
Unless his adoptive father knew too much and was worried that the disaster would spread to his descendants, so he let his biological son and his family fake their death and flee far away, and he committed suicide to make the emperor completely relieved.
Lu Gan laughed at himself. When his adoptive father was dying, he entrusted him with an important task and asked him to inherit his mantle, but quietly sent his own flesh and blood away.
But he didn't understand until nine years later!
Who can be blamed?
Blame the adoptive father?
It seems that we can’t blame our adoptive father entirely. If he hadn’t been blinded by power, how could he have only realized it today?
Lu Gan locked the file back into the cabinet and went to the next room. Li Qing had been under house arrest here since he returned to Beijing.
And he was grateful to Li Qing for his help.
"Li Qing, have you met Xiao Zhen? How is he different from two years ago? People outside are talking about him as a god, as if he is the biological son of Taishang Laojun."
Li Qing smiled. "Two years ago, I only met Young Master Xiao a few times. With his status, how could a small figure like me get close to him? As for Young Master Xiao now, he still has the demeanor of a nobleman, serious and reserved, but calm and composed. Those playboys in the capital can't be compared with him."
Lu Gan looked at his subordinate again with a serious look.
In just a few months, Li Qing had changed.
If the same question were asked to the old Li Qing, he would definitely tell him everything Xiao Zhen said and did in detail. But the current Li Qing just gave him a vague and perfunctory answer.
Li Qing has second thoughts!
A cold light flashed in Lu Gan's eyes. He smiled, said nothing, and turned to walk out.
Lu Gan thought to himself: I cannot touch Li Qing now. Firstly, Li Qing once helped the retired emperor, so he cannot be touched for the time being; secondly, I brought up the case of family annihilation in front of His Majesty today, and I don’t know if His Majesty will have a grudge against me. Therefore, I cannot act rashly.
Looking at Lu Gan's leaving back, Li Qing felt uncomfortable.
Before he met Lu Gan, he was just a brave and aggressive guy in the Jinyiwei.
Lu Gan was indebted to him, but...
He remembered what Xiao Zhen had said to him before he came.
"When you return to Beijing this time, you may be benched for a while, or even placed under house arrest. You should be mentally prepared."
“My children…”
"I'll help you take care of it for a while, but as I said, you have to raise and care for your child yourself."
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Li Qing's lips. Although he had not known Xiao Zhen for a long time, he had confidence in Xiao Zhen. He was even more convinced that Xiao Zhen was his lucky star!
At this time in the Third Prince's Mansion, the Third Prince was in a very bad mood.
The emperor sent the seventh prince out of the capital to welcome the emperor, but did not send him.
The seventh prince is only seven years old, still a child!
The third prince walked to the window and saw from afar the Divine Bird General eating a rabbit.
He suddenly felt at peace.
He called a counselor over, and the host and guest had a long talk. When he looked again, he found that the Divine Bird General was standing on the windowsill, guarding him like a bodyguard.
The third prince felt relieved. He was really asking for trouble. The Divine Bird General was right beside him. He was a man blessed by God.
Half a day later, the seventh prince and his entourage finally waited for the emperor.
Tired from the journey, the retired emperor took a nap in the official inn before summoning the seventh prince. Also present were Zhao Huixian, the prince of Lu, and Zhao Tingluo, the grandson of the prince of Fu.
Prince Lu is the father of the Sui Dashi brothers. According to seniority, the Seventh Prince and Zhao Tingluo have to call him uncle, and he is also the nephew of the retired emperor.
With Prince Lu as a role model, Prince Lu is even better than his father. When he was young, he was a well-known playboy in the capital. Now that he is middle-aged, he is still the same and has more fun every day.
If the retired emperor's nephew had not been needed to come forward, Emperor Yongjia would not have allowed him to accompany the seventh prince.
There is only one reason: I don’t want him to lead my son astray.
Prince Lu, however, had no self-awareness at all. He burst into tears the moment he saw the retired emperor: "Uncle Emperor, I thought I would never see you again in this lifetime."
He cried so hard that his eyes were wet and the emperor was very annoyed.
Prince Fu and Prince Lu, this pair of talented people, neither of them is capable of showing off.
But it was precisely because they were two useless people that they were able to survive in the hands of Empress Dowager Qi.
The retired emperor was too lazy to pay attention to him and told him to cry aside. He looked at the Seventh Prince in front of him and Zhao Tingluo behind the Seventh Prince.
Xiao Qingqing said that Zhao Tingluo is her little brother. He is a very interesting child and now he has the final say in Prince Fu's Mansion.
As for the Seventh Prince, it was the first time that the Emperor saw him. When he went to Changshou Palace, the Seventh Prince had not yet been born.
Just one glance and the emperor was displeased.
This child also has a hooked nose.
But Zhao Tingluo looks much more pleasing to the eye.
Maybe he was irritated by the hooked nose, so now the emperor looks at people's noses first. For example, Zhao Tingluo's nose is very beautiful, inherited from that old immortal Prince Fu. Although Prince Fu is a waste, he has a good appearance. His biological mother is a dancer, and she is very beautiful. Prince Fu inherited her mother, and even his descendants are all good-looking.
The retired emperor suppressed his disgust for the hooked nose, said a few perfunctory words, and then sent the seventh prince away.
That night, the Seventh Prince and his entourage will also stay at the official inn.
After returning to his room and dismissing his attendants, the Seventh Prince took Zhao Tingluo's hand and said, "Luoluo, do you think the Emperor's grandfather doesn't like me? He doesn't even look at me straight in the eye."
Of course, Zhao Tingluo could also see what the Seventh Prince could notice.
The retired emperor just doesn't like the seventh prince. There's disgust in his eyes when he looks at the seventh prince, even more disgust than when he looks at Prince Lu!
Zhao Tingluo could understand why the emperor disliked Prince Lu.
But what about the seventh prince?
The seventh prince is still just a child. Although the royal family is ruthless, the emperor shouldn't be so disgusted with his grandson whom he meets for the first time.
Zhao Tingluo couldn't figure it out, but fortunately the Seventh Prince had been traveling all day and was very tired, so he went to bed early.
Zhao Tingluo returned to his room but did not sleep.
He knew that the retired emperor was returning to Beijing with his godson and grandson.
Zhao Tingluo doesn’t know who his godson is yet, but this godson must be his sister Qing!
He waited for Zhao Shiqing to come to him.
Zhao Tingluo didn't wait long before he heard a cat's meow.
He opened the window and the little demon rushed in.
Zhao Tingluo stretched out his hand to touch Xiao Yao's head, but Xiao Yao arrogantly avoided him. Xiao Yao did not allow him to touch her, and used her claws to take off a small purse hanging around her neck and threw it in front of Zhao Tingluo.
Zhao Tingluo was overjoyed and took out a note from his purse.
After reading it, he said to Xiao Yao: "I understand. Thank you, Xiao Yao."
The little demon meowed, turned around, jumped out of the window, and disappeared.
Zhao Tingluo closed the window, took a deep breath, and said to the eunuch outside the door: "I ate too much and need to go digest it. You don't need to follow me."
The eunuch hurriedly said, "Grandson, the Emperor Retired also lives here. Please be careful and don't disturb the Emperor."
Zhao Tingluo glared at them and said, "I've been strolling around the palace to digest my food ever since I can remember. When have you ever seen me disturb the emperor?"
The two eunuchs agreed. Besides, this young man was very smart and could escape danger even if he met the retired emperor.
Zhao Tingluo shook off the eunuch and went to the garden after a few turns.
The garden of the official post station was not big, just a small garden. Zhao Tingluo looked around and found the crabapple tree written on the note. He walked over and saw a stone behind the crabapple tree with a person squatting there. If he didn't look for it specifically, he would never have discovered that there was a person hiding there.
"Follow me!" the man said in a deep voice.
As soon as Zhao Tingluo saw the man, he understood that this man was definitely not Zhao Shiqing's bodyguard, but the emperor's man!
Not only Zhao Shiqing but also the emperor wanted to see him!
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