The two were startled and quickly followed his gaze, only to find that a large crowd had gathered around the delegation's ship at the dock, with Sun Xun, who had left earlier, at the head of the crowd.
"Does he still want to cause trouble in the delegation?" Pei You sneered. They weren't afraid at Xiaoyao Tower just now, let alone now that they're back on their home turf.
People from powerful families in the capital naturally have an air of arrogance when looking down on people from the provinces. Moreover, since they are carrying out an imperial decree as imperial envoys, they can act with impunity.
Gao Ying was more composed and said in a deep voice, "Let's board the ship from another direction first and see what's going on."
Going to a place like Xiaoyao Tower wasn't exactly a respectable thing for them, and they were worried that Sun Xun might use it against them. Anyway, they hadn't shown their faces in the tower, so if they were questioned later, they could simply deny it.
A group of people secretly boarded the large ship, changed their clothes, and then left.
Sang Hong was already receiving the other party. Although Sang Hong's official rank and cultivation level were lower than the other party's, Sun Xun could only deal with him cautiously because of his current status as an imperial envoy.
"Lord Sang, what's going on?" The group walked over and asked.
Sang Hong said, "Let me introduce you. This is Lord Sun, the Prime Minister of Yan. These are Zu An, the Junior Tutor of the Crown Prince and the General of the Imperial Guards..."
After the introductions, the group formally bowed and greeted Sun Xun. Sun Xun glanced at them and said with a half-smile, "So it's Lord Zu. I've heard so much about you. I've come here specifically for you."
Gao Yingpei's heart skipped a beat, wondering if he had figured out their identities?
Only Zu An remained calm: "Oh, I didn't expect to have this honor. May I ask what brings you here, Prime Minister Sun?"
Sun Xun said, "I have long heard that Lord Zu has solved many strange cases in the capital. This time, I happen to have a tricky case that I need Lord Zu's help with."
At this moment, Sang Hong frowned: "I hope Prime Minister Sun will understand. We are here on imperial orders and will only be staying for a short time. I'm afraid we won't have time to help the local authorities solve the case."
He was even a little angry, thinking that Sun Xun was too ignorant of the rules. Were we here specifically to solve cases for you?
Unexpectedly, Sun Xun calmly replied, "Originally, we wouldn't have troubled you imperial envoys, but we were about to catch the suspect when we encountered some men claiming to be Imperial Guards who released some suspects, causing our investigation to stall. That's why we had no choice but to ask for your help, Your Excellency."
The three from Zuan exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves, "They've come, just as I expected."
Sang Hong had already roughly guessed that it was Zu An and his group who had caused this trouble, since they had just gone out. However, he was very shrewd and did not even glance at the three of them. Instead, he said indifferently, "Oh, is that so? Lord Sun, have you checked the other party's identity? You know, there are many audacious people in the world these days who dare to impersonate anyone."
Having spent a long time in officialdom, he was already a seasoned veteran. Without thinking twice, he simply pushed things away.
Sun Xun sighed: "We locals are short-sighted and don't know how to distinguish whether someone is a true Imperial Guard. Moreover, impersonating an imperial envoy seems to be a serious crime. I suppose Lord Sang has an obligation to help investigate this matter?"
“This…” Sang Hong was at a loss. If such a thing happened, he was indeed obligated to cooperate with the investigation, because the first step was to investigate whether it was true that the people in the group had gone out.
Just as he was struggling with this, Zu'an said, "It's just investigating a case, it shouldn't take much work, just leave it to me."
He naturally didn't want things to escalate, as it would be quite troublesome. As for investigating the case, he already knew who the real culprit was, so it wouldn't take much effort at all.
Sang Hong had always trusted his abilities, and seeing that he agreed, he knew that he had a plan, so he nodded and agreed, saying, "That's fine then. You go and help Lord Sun investigate, but our mission is urgent, so we can only stay here for one more day at most. After that, whether we find out the answer or not, we will need to leave. Do you understand?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Zu'an secretly gave a thumbs up. Old ginger is indeed spicier.
Sun Xun cursed under his breath, calling him an old fox. This guy was talking to Zu An without consulting him at all, clearly leaving him a way out.
It doesn't matter, as long as they participate, the goal has been achieved.
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Lord Zu." Sun Xun cupped his hands in greeting to the other party.
"You're too kind, Lord Sun." Zu An frowned slightly, sensing something else in the other man's eyes, so he silently reminded himself to be careful. "May I ask what case it is?"
"Let's go to the crime scene and take a look. We can discuss the details of the case on the way," Sun Xun said, standing up.
“Okay.” Zu An wasn’t worried that the other party would actually do anything. With so many people watching him come here to ask him to handle the case, if anything happened, he definitely wouldn’t be able to escape.
Sang Hong frowned and gestured to Gao Ying and Pei You to bring a few guards to accompany him. Zu An was now an ally of his, and because of his daughter, he treated him as a junior and naturally didn't want anything to happen to him.
Gao Ying and Pei You were thinking the same thing, so they immediately led their men to follow along.
Zuan didn't refuse. If you have the right to enjoy it, why take risks out of personal heroism?
Sun Xun didn't say anything and led the group towards the outskirts of the city.
In fact, he had already recognized Gao Ying and Pei You from the fluctuations of their Yuan Qi. As for Zu An, he was a little unsure. The other party was clearly only at the sixth rank, but the fluctuations of his Yuan Qi gave him an unfathomable feeling, which was quite different from the previous No. 333.
However, judging from Gao Ying and Pei You's reactions, he should be that person.
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