The sun was setting in the west, and there was less than an hour left before the north and south gates of Que City would close.
On a small road about ten miles outside the city, a carriage with a gray and white mixed-haired horse was moving at a high speed.
Xiao Nanhui was sitting in the carriage and counting his luggage.
We will go our separate ways when we return to the city soon. Now it is the final moment. However, I don’t know if the man in front of me is pretending to be stupid or testing me. He doesn’t mention what to do with the jade seal at all.
Xiao Nanhui was busy with his men, and he would glance at them from time to time, thinking that he could not delay any longer and had to make things clear no matter what.
“Yeah.”
Xiao Nanhui pretended to sigh.
"Why are you sighing, Brother Yao?"
The man finally looked at her and replied indifferently.
Xiao Nanhui picked up his shrunken purse and shook out the only remaining piece of silver and a few copper coins. "I'm thinking of the thousand taels of gold I lost when I died before I could even accomplish my mission."
Zhongli actually raised his eyebrows slightly: "Gold?"
Xiao Nanhui gave him a listless look, his tone growing sadder. "I kicked down three people from the Pingxiao Tower. They were the three thieves Tiancheng had previously offered a huge reward for. Unfortunately, we were on the Shen family's territory at the time. I was worried about getting into trouble before I could get the reward, so I didn't take the initiative to report to the government to have them arrested. Now that I think about it, it's really heartbreaking."
Xiao Nan glanced back at the other person and continued miserably, "You don't seem to be short of money, but you don't know that the salary for us military men is really meager. Even a silver ingot has to be broken into several pieces to spend..."
"What does Brother Yao want to say?"
A cold voice interrupted her pity. She smacked her lips and scratched the hole on the copper coin with her fingers, not daring to look up at the man: "What I actually want to say is... well, since you are already so rich, you went through so much trouble to get this jade seal, it shouldn't be for money, right? Let's discuss it, what benefits did the Prime Minister promise you when he asked you to do something? Tell me, if I can..."
"I wonder what Brother Yao plans to do with the jade seal?"
Xiao Nanhui didn't expect the other party to ask this question directly without even mentioning the ownership issue. After thinking for a moment, he answered truthfully, "Of course, it will be handed over to the emperor in the end."
"Finally?" Zhongli's sensitivity to words had reached a terrifying level. "It seems you still have something to do before turning it in."
She nodded, and subconsciously wanted to talk about the thorough investigation of the Xiao family's old case, but the words almost stopped at her lips, and she almost broke out in a sweat.
It must be because they have been together for a long time these days, her bad habit of being defenseless towards others has come out, and she even doesn't treat the other person as an outsider.
You have to know that when in Huozhou, this person might still be considered a friend, but after returning to Quecheng, it is possible that he has become the mortal enemy of the Marquis' Mansion.
After adjusting herself, she threw the question back: "What about you? Do you want to compete with me for this treasure?"
"Treasure?" Zhongli actually smiled, but the smile only lasted a moment, dissipating in the blink of an eye. "It's called a treasure, and it's true that we fought hard to get it, and our families were broken up, but in the end, we still don't know where the treasure is. Isn't that stupid? Don't make the same mistake, Master Yao."
The other party's words were a bit sharp. How could Xiao Nanhui not hear the warning in it, but he did not intend to back down.
"I'm not seeking wealth, nor do I do anything that harms the world. I simply want to uncover the truth and have a clear conscience. I certainly don't want to take something that doesn't belong to me. Brother Zhongli, on the other hand, is really nervous about holding onto this thing. How is he any different from Zou Sifang?"
The words were somewhat impolite, but the man didn't show any anger on his face. He just glanced at her calmly and said, "Young Master Yao, why are you so hasty to jump to conclusions? I never said I wanted to take this thing for myself."
She was completely stunned and murmured, "Could it be that... you can still give it to me?"
Zhongli had just poured out a cup of fresh tea and gently placed the warm cup on the small table.
"Master Yao has been riding in the same car with me these past few days. Does that mean I often play around with tea sets?"
Xiao Nanhui nodded in confusion.
They'd been traveling together for a few days, and apart from occasionally whispering to Ding Weixiang, he'd been fiddling with the tea set. Xiao Nanhui didn't know much about tea, but from the aroma, he knew the other person's bottles and jars must be filled with fine tea. However, not a single drop of the fragrant tea reached the man's lips; he poured it all away.
"I often make tea, but I don't drink it. In fact, most of the time I just want to smell the fragrance of the tea. The same is true for the imperial seal incident."
What do you mean? You said you traveled all the way to Huozhou just to see it? Who would believe that?!
There was a voice roaring loudly in Xiao Nanhui's heart.
But that person's every move and every word was so indifferent, as if any doubt about him was slander.
"The things are right there, you can take them away later." As if knowing she didn't believe him, Zhongli added lightly.
In fact, the box had been sitting there all along the way, and apart from checking it daily, Xiao Nanhui had never moved it. She was prepared to do whatever it took to get it, but who knew it would be so easy in the end.
She could hardly control her facial expression. She swallowed her saliva and secretly reached out to the box.
The man caught a glimpse of the little movement from the corner of his eye, and a hint of cunning flashed across his lips.
"Master, there is a small group of people a hundred steps ahead. They look like the Tiancheng army."
Ding Weixiang's voice suddenly came from outside.
When Xiao Nanhui heard the words "Tiancheng Army," he shuddered, and his half-extended hand retracted. He instantly shrank by three inches, and asked hurriedly, "Army? Who's leading it?"
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