12 Looking Back
Su Wanting looked at the sweat on Xiao Cixiao's forehead and watched him put out the fire regardless of danger. The icy wall in her heart gradually began to crack.
After an unknown amount of time, help finally arrived. Thanks to everyone's efforts, the fire was finally brought under control. Although part of the granary was burned, most of the grain was saved.
Xiao Cixiao and Su Wanting walked out of the fire, both covered in ash and their faces stained with smoke, looking utterly miserable. But looking at the saved granary, they couldn't help but laugh.
"Are you okay?" Xiao Cixiao looked at Su Wanting and reached out to help her wipe the dust off her face, but stopped, fearing that she would be unhappy.
Su Wanting looked at him, her heart warmed. She nodded gently, "I'm fine. How about you? Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine too." Xiao Cixiao smiled, his eyes full of tenderness.
This was the first time that Su Wanting did not deliberately avoid his gaze or speak coldly to him.
After the fire in the granary was put out, the relationship between Xiao Cixiao and Su Wanting seemed to have eased a little.
Su Wanting no longer deliberately avoided Xiao Cixiao like she used to. Occasionally, when they met on the street, she would nod and say hello to him.
That day, the imperial envoy talked to Xiao Cixiao and said that although Zhang Tao's case was closed, there seemed to be a bigger force supporting him behind the scenes.
In his confession, Zhang Tao mentioned that part of the grain money he withheld was given to a mysterious person, and this mysterious person was most likely related to the relatives of the emperor in the court.
Xiao Cixiao's heart sank.
He knew that the imperial relatives in the court were very powerful, especially the queen's family, which had been colluding with Li Song and had placed many confidants in the court.
If the power behind Zhang Tao is really his in-laws, then this matter will not be so simple.
"Sir Xiao," the imperial envoy said, looking at Xiao Cixiao with a serious tone, "this matter has wide-ranging implications. If not handled properly, it could very well cause unrest in the court. What are your thoughts?"
Xiao Cixiao was silent for a moment, then said, "Sir, I don't think we can alert the enemy.
We should first conduct a secret investigation to find out the identity of that mysterious man and his connection to the imperial relatives. Once we have sufficient evidence, we can report it to the court and bring them down in one fell swoop."
The imperial envoy nodded. "Master Xiao is right. However, a secret investigation requires a reliable person, and this person must not arouse suspicion. Who do you think is suitable?"
The first person that came to Xiao Cixiao's mind was Su Wanting.
Su Wanting helps out in the pharmacy and comes into contact with many people. She is also meticulous and cautious, making her very suitable for this job.
More importantly, she hates corrupt officials and will definitely do her best to help.
But he was also worried that Su Wanting would not agree.
After all, this matter is very dangerous. If it is discovered by her in-laws, not only will her life be in danger, but her family will also be implicated.
"Sir, I thought of someone," Xiao Cixiao hesitated for a moment and finally spoke.
"Her name is Awan, and she helps out at the town's pharmacy. She's thoughtful and cautious, and she's also quite familiar with the local situation, making her a good fit for this job.
But, she is a woman, and her status is quite special, so I am worried that she may not be willing."
The imperial envoy thought for a moment and said, "As long as she's reliable, a woman is fine. You can go talk to her and see what she means. If she's willing, we can provide her with the necessary assistance."
Xiao Cixiao nodded, but he felt a little uneasy. He didn't know whether Su Wanting would agree.
That evening, Xiao Cixiao came to the pharmacy. Su Wanting was tidying up the medicine cabinet. When she saw him come in, she was stunned for a moment and then asked, "Master, do you want to talk to me?"
"Wanting, I have something to discuss with you," Xiao Cixiao walked up to her and said in a serious tone,
"Although Zhang Tao's case has been closed, there is a much greater power behind him. The Imperial Envoy and I want to secretly investigate and find out the truth about this power. We need the help of a reliable person.
I think you are a good fit, would you like to join me?"
Su Wanting paused as she sorted the medicine cabinet, raised her head, and looked at Xiao Cixiao: "This is very dangerous, right?"
Xiao Cixiao nodded: "It is very dangerous. If they find out, your life may be in danger. So, I won't force you, you can decide for yourself."
Su Wanting was silent for a moment. She knew that this matter not only concerned the refugees in the northwest, but also the safety of the imperial court.
If we can bring down those in-laws and corrupt officials, more people can be spared from suffering.
Moreover, she also wanted to avenge the Su family. Li Song was a close confidant of the maternal relative. Overthrowing the maternal relative would also allow Li Song to receive the punishment he deserved.
"I do." Su Wanting raised her head and looked at Xiao Cixiao with a firm gaze, "But I have one condition."
"You tell me, as long as I can do it, I will definitely agree to you." Xiao Cixiao said quickly.
"I don't want others to know my identity," Su Wanting said.
"I just want to help you investigate as Awan. Also, during the investigation, you can't interfere with my actions. I will do it my own way."
Xiao Cixiao nodded: "Okay, I promise you. I will provide you with the necessary assistance, but I will not interfere with your actions."
In this way, Su Wanting and Xiao Cixiao began a secret cooperation.
Su Wanting took advantage of her position helping out in the pharmacy to come into contact with many people, including Zhang Tao's old subordinates, local tyrants, and even some spies sent by in-laws.
While treating patients, she secretly inquired about information and secretly gave the clues she collected to Xiao Cixiao.
Xiao Cixiao secretly investigates based on the clues provided by Su Wanting to verify the authenticity of the news. At the same time, he has to guard against the spies of his in-laws and protect Su Wanting's safety.
Although the two did not meet often, they worked together very well.
The clues collected by Su Wanting always bring new breakthroughs to Xiao Cixiao; and Xiao Cixiao can always provide timely assistance to Su Wanting to help her resolve the crisis.
Once, when Su Wanting was inquiring for information, she was targeted by the spies of her in-laws.
The spy suspected her identity and wanted to take her back for interrogation. After Xiao Cixiao learned the news, he immediately sent people to rescue her and deliberately created a chaos so that Su Wanting could escape.
At the same time, it also made the spies mistakenly believe that she was just an ordinary drugstore girl, thus dispelling their suspicions about her.
After a period of investigation, Su Wanting and Xiao Cixiao finally got some important clues.
They discovered that the mysterious man behind Zhang Tao was the Queen's younger brother, and the uncle of the current emperor.
The king's uncle used Zhang Tao to withhold relief grain funds from the northwest, using part of the money to fill his own deficit and part of it to bribe officials in the court and expand the power of his relatives.
Moreover, they also discovered that there was a close connection between the King's Uncle and Li Song.
Li Song framed the Su family at the behest of his uncle, in order to eliminate the Su family, which was a thorn in his side, and clear the way for the expansion of the power of the foreign relatives.
After learning the truth, Su Wanting and Xiao Cixiao were very angry.
Su Wanting had never expected that the downfall of the Su family was actually a conspiracy planned by the maternal relatives and Li Song; Xiao Cixiao had never expected that the power of the maternal relatives was so great that they dared to withhold relief funds and even frame loyal ministers.
"We must hand this evidence over to the imperial envoy as soon as possible," Xiao Cixiao said firmly, looking at Su Wanting. "We can't let the uncle of the emperor and Li Song continue to do evil."
Su Wanting nodded: "Okay. However, the uncle is the Queen's brother and has great influence. We must be careful and make sure the evidence is foolproof."
"Don't worry," Xiao Cixiao said, "I've already discussed this with the imperial envoy. We will secretly send the evidence to the capital and hand it over to the emperor. As soon as the emperor sees the evidence, he will definitely order a thorough investigation of the emperor's uncle and Li Song."
"Xiao Cixiao," Su Wanting didn't call him "Sir" for the first time, but called him by his name, "Thank you."
Xiao Cixiao looked at her, his eyes full of tenderness: "Wanting, you're welcome. This is what I should do. Besides, I'm very happy to do this with you."
Su Wanting's cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly lowered her head to avoid his gaze.
The cold wind from the northwest rustled the tent canvas. Xiao Cixiao folded the last page of testimony, put it into the oil-paper bag and sealed it tightly. His fingertips accidentally touched the bottom of the bag.
Hidden there was the herbal bag that Su Wanting had secretly slipped to him this morning, still carrying the fresh scent of dried mint.
He recalled the sight of her handing him the herbal medicine bag in the backyard of the pharmacy that morning. She was wearing a gray cloth dress and had a small wild chrysanthemum pinned to her hair, which he had picked for her on the hillside yesterday.
She didn't say what the herb was for, but only whispered, "It's cold when trying cases at night, so boiling it in water and drinking it can warm your body." After saying that, she turned around to dry the medicine, but the tips of her ears were red as if they had been burned by charcoal fire.
Xiao Cixiao opened the herbal bag, which contained dried ginger, brown sugar and mint. These were all common cold-relieving herbs, but she had cut them neatly and divided them into seven small bags with cotton thread, which was just enough for him to drink for a week.
He remembered that she did the same thing in the Xiao Mansion five years ago. She always cooked ginger soup for him when he stayed up late to investigate cases, but he always poured it away with a cold face.
At that time, he just felt that she was annoying and that she was using these little things to "bind" him. Now he understood that the warmth that he had ignored was all from her carefully nurtured heart.
"Sir, the imperial envoy has sent someone to urge us to send the evidence to the capital as soon as possible." The attendant's voice came from outside the tent, interrupting Xiao Cixiao's thoughts.
He put away the herbal bag, picked up the oil-paper bag and walked out of the tent, but saw a familiar figure at the door. Su Wanting was standing under an old locust tree not far away, holding a food box in her hand, as if waiting for him.
"Why are you here?" Xiao Cixiao walked over quickly, his tone unconsciously filled with tenderness.
"I'll bring you something to eat," Su Wanting handed him the lunch box, but her eyes avoided his. "It's hard to try cases, don't go hungry all the time."
Xiao Cixiao opened the lunch box. Inside were two steamed buns made of white flour, a small dish of pickles, and a warm egg at the bottom.
He remembered that five years ago, she did the same thing, always hiding eggs in the porridge before he went to court, fearing that he would refuse to eat it.
His eyes suddenly felt hot. He picked up a steamed bun and took a bite. It was a familiar taste, with the warmth of her palm.
"Thank you." He said softly, his voice a little hoarse.
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