Cai Lian suddenly looked at her with a gossipy expression.
Jian Yang chuckled and said, "How could ordinary people like us possibly know about these royal secrets?"
Cai Lian nodded in agreement, saying, "Miss Wang is right. It is absolutely impossible for us commoners to know the secrets of the palace, but I don't believe this is just a rumor."
Jian Yang raised an eyebrow: "What insightful opinion does Young Master Cai have?"
Cai Lian said, "I believe that someone must have deliberately stirred up trouble behind the scenes."
Jian Yang nodded: "That's what I think too."
She thought about it seriously afterward. Even if the public did know that she had faked her death, most people would at most think it was a rumor.
Even if it sparks discussion, it's at most something people chat about casually over tea or dinner; it's impossible for it to remain so popular after so long.
She absolutely refused to believe that no one was stirring things up behind the scenes.
Cai Lian was deeply moved to see that she agreed with his views, and wished he could immediately consider Jian Yang as a close friend.
"Then who do you think is behind this, Miss Wang?" he asked excitedly.
Jian Yang thought to herself, "If I had known, I would have had my brother arrest the mastermind long ago. Who would be here chatting with you like this?"
She shook her head and smiled slightly, "I don't know. Does Young Master Cai know?"
“Actually, this is just my guess,” Cai Lian said mysteriously. “I think the person who released this information is the current emperor.”
"ha?"
Jian Yang was very surprised.
Cai Lian added, "I had heard that the Emperor and Empress had a very deep relationship. The Empress's sudden faked death must mean that the truth was not as beautiful as it seemed to outsiders. If she hadn't been completely devastated, she certainly wouldn't have made such a choice."
Jian Yang chimed in, "I wouldn't say I'm completely despondent, but I think you're absolutely right about the rest!"
Encouraged, Cai Lian continued his analysis: "Even if she wasn't completely despondent, the Empress must have grown tired of life in the deep palace. But the Emperor couldn't bear to part with her, so after learning that she had faked her death, he deliberately used public opinion to force her to show herself!"
"Excellent, excellent! What the young man said makes a lot of sense!"
"Yes, yes, I think your analysis is the most reliable."
The diners around him all gave Cai Lian a thumbs up.
Cai Lian smiled and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards them.
Jian Yang smiled but remained silent.
If she hadn't discovered that Cai Lian was a fraud, she would most likely have believed him at this point.
However, now that his true colors have been discovered, the credibility of his words has naturally been greatly reduced.
However, she wouldn't have believed him in the first place anyway.
If she were to readily believe someone's speculation, then she would truly have wasted her brain.
But after learning that Cai Lian was working for Zhou Jing'an, Jian Yang couldn't help but analyze the motives behind any of his actions.
For example, right now, she absolutely does not believe that Cai Lian brought her out to eat simply for the sake of eating.
She had initially thought she would need to investigate further to find out his purpose, but now she knew.
Cai Lian went through all this trouble to sow discord and create a rift between her and the emperor.
Strangely, she found that even if the news was indeed released by the emperor, she was not angry at all.
During the rest of the meal, Jian Yang barely spoke, focusing only on eating in silence.
Cai Lian was very satisfied with her absent-minded appearance; this was exactly the effect he wanted.
At this point, the seed of doubt must have already been planted in her heart.
Little did he know, Jian Yang was thinking something completely different.
To be honest, Jian Yang was indeed a little angry, but she wasn't angry that the emperor had spread the news. In fact, she didn't believe at all that the emperor had spread the news.
If he intended to spread it, why wait until now?
What angered her was that the emperor must have known the news was being spread long ago, but instead of stopping it, he let the news spread, and she wondered what kind of evil scheme he was plotting.
Jian Yang grew angrier the more she thought about it, so she unconsciously poked the rice in her bowl hard with her chopsticks.
Seeing this, Cai Lian quickly advised, "Miss Wang, don't get upset and harm your health."
Jian Yang lifted her eyelids to look at him: "Why am I angry?"
Cai Lian quickly shook his head, "Just a wild guess."
As night fell, Jian Yang continued to stake out behind the artificial hill, his intuition telling him that Cai Lian was up to something.
As it turned out, her intuition was indeed correct.
As the moon rose high in the sky, Cai Lian once again donned a cloak, carried a lantern, and headed towards the backyard.
Jian Yang quickly followed.
Without the emperor to hold her back today, she could choose a spot closer and eavesdrop on their plans.
To everyone's surprise, Cai Lian did not stop in the backyard, but went straight out the back door.
Jian Yang hesitated briefly before following.
However, the moment she stepped out the door, a cold iron blade was placed against her neck.
Jian Yang was terrified, but it was too late to escape.
There are no stars or moon tonight, and the backyard is pitch black.
She could only feel the heat of the iron sword against her neck, but she couldn't see who was wielding it.
Jian Yang steadied herself and intended to retreat quickly, but before she could even lift a foot, she heard a familiar voice coming from the darkness.
"If you dare to run, I'll let you see whether your feet are faster or my sword is faster."
It was Cai Lian's voice.
Jian Yang felt that she had not revealed any flaws and couldn't understand why Cai Lian would attack her at this moment.
So she feigned surprise and said, "Young Master Cai, it's me."
“I’m sorry, Miss Wang, I had no choice but to do this,” Cai Lian said.
Hearing him call her Miss Wang, Jian Yang felt a little more at ease, so she said in a trembling voice, "I, I just wanted to see what Young Master Cai was doing out so late, I didn't mean to offend you."
Cai Lian sighed and said, "Oh, Miss Wang, why did you have to come out at this time? Now that you've discovered my secret, I can only send you away first."
No way? They're going to kill him to cover it up?
Jian Yang also began to wonder whether his poison powder was faster or the sword in his hand was faster.
Just then, I suddenly heard the sound of horses' hooves and cart wheels.
Soon, a carriage with a lantern slowly approached from a distance and stopped in front of the two.
Cai Lian held a sword in one hand and considerately helped Jian Yang into the carriage with the other.
"Don't be afraid, Miss Wang, I will definitely not hurt you."
Okay.
Jian Yang gave up on herself.
Anyway, if this person really wanted to kill her, he wouldn't have gone to so much trouble to bring her out; he could have just slit her throat in the backyard and no one would have known.
But it would be a lie to say that they are completely unafraid.
What if this guy is a psychopathic killer who likes to kill people in fixed locations? We're doomed.
Just as she was struggling with this dilemma, the cries of owls echoed through the night sky.
Jian Yang's eyes lit up immediately, her fear vanished, and she even felt more confident.
Jian Hong had previously told her that if she heard an owl hooting, it meant his bodyguards were secretly protecting her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
