Chapter 438 Not as expected
A secret order was issued, ordering Fu Yan to get rid of Fan Renlai, which was not a big deal in the emperor's ruling methods. However, to the emperor's surprise, Fan Renlai escaped the clutches of death and still survived.
The emperor's brows wrinkled slightly, obviously dissatisfied and confused about the result. He pondered, was there a problem in any link, or was Fu Yan not doing his best?
Although he had doubts in his heart, the emperor did not show it. It was just that this matter left a seed of doubt in his heart, and it was brought up again at this time. Things were almost arranged, and the emperor waved his hand, indicating Qin Qixuan and Fu Yan to leave first. He left Pei Xuanyi alone, as if there was something important to discuss with him.
Pei Xuanyi stood in the hall, his expression as calm as water, as if everything was within his expectations. However, his heart was not as calm as it seemed. He was secretly guessing the emperor's intentions. Was he doubting his loyalty? Or did he want to test his position?
The emperor smiled, but Pei Xuanyi could feel the deep meaning behind that smile. He understood that the emperor's suspicion had come back again, and this time he kept him, probably for ulterior motives.
"The Qin family's affairs... Qin Qixuan did a good job this time..."
Sure enough, the emperor began to mention the Qin family's affairs and affirmed Qin Qixuan's performance. However, his words revealed a test of Pei Xuanyi's position. The emperor obviously noticed the close relationship between Pei Xuanyi and Qin Xixi, and wanted to confirm whether he would stand on the side of the Qin family in this way, so he began to ask Pei Xuanyi intentionally or unintentionally which side he would stand on.
...
Pei Xuanyi was still having a silent contest with the emperor in the magnificent palace. Their conversation seemed like a chess game between masters, and every move required careful and delicate. At this moment, Qin Xixi was already waiting quietly outside the palace, with golden sunlight shining on her, casting mottled shadows.
She stood there, and time seemed to slow down. Bored, her thoughts began to drift to Fan Renlai's affairs. That conspirator, his target was the emperor and the supreme imperial power. Fan Renlai sent his assassins to assassinate the emperor, which was not surprising to Qin Xixi, but his conspiracy also included Fu Yan, which made her think deeply.
Qin Xixi frowned, and she guessed that the reason why Fan Renlai targeted Fu Yan might be because the emperor had previously sent Fu Yan to suppress bandits, which made him a thorn in Fan Renlai's side. She thought that Fan Renlai originally planned to push the blame for the assassination of the emperor to Fu Yan, thereby killing two birds with one stone - both to weaken the emperor's power and to alienate the relationship between the emperor and Fu Yan.
However, this action accidentally exposed Fan Renlai's identity, so that his conspiracy failed.
These speculations gradually became clear in Qin Xixi's mind, and it seemed that everything made sense. However, she always felt that something was wrong, as if some important details had been overlooked by her. She tried hard to recall and analyze, trying to find the point that confused her.
At this moment, Zhao Shuoer came over. She looked at Qin Xixi's tightly locked brows and the little face that became a little "wrinkled" because of thinking, and couldn't help but feel a little funny.
And at this moment, Qin Xixi suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and she remembered an important detail that she had overlooked before.
Qin Xixi carefully reviewed the files she had read in her mind. She clearly remembered that Fu Yan was not explicitly involved in the previous cases. The suspected murderers were all dead men whose martial arts styles were very similar to Fu Yan, which made it easy for people to associate it with someone deliberately imitating and intending to frame him. However, the situation this time was completely different. The murderer used someone taught by Ren Lai, which was significantly different from the previous pattern.
This change confused Qin Xixi. If Fan Renlai really wanted to push the blame on Fu Yan, why would there be such an obvious omission in this action? This is not in line with the style of a conspirator. She thought that there must be a hidden secret that she has not yet grasped.
Just as Qin Xixi was lost in thought, two figures suddenly appeared at the corner of the corridor in the distance. She looked closely and found that it was An Yuesheng and Anyueya. It can't be a coincidence that they appeared at this time, right? Qin Xixi was suspicious and alert at the same time.
Seeing these two people, Qin Xixi's eyes lit up instantly. Her intuition told her that these two people might be related to Fan Renlai's affairs, and Xixi immediately became alert.
At the same time, An Yuesheng and Anyueya also discovered Qin Xixi and Zhao Shuoer standing there. An Yuesheng's gaze lingered on Zhao Shuoer for a moment, with a hint of a sinister smile on his face.
He had let Zhao Shuoer escape last time, and he had been brooding over it ever since. This time, they met by chance, and although he could not attack her directly, he planned to humiliate her to relieve his hatred.
So, he strode towards Qin Xixi and Zhao Shuoer, with a provocative smile on his face, ready to start his prank.
"Hey, Miss Zhao is here alone." An Yuesheng said in a joking tone, looking Zhao Shuoer up and down.
Qin Xixi stood aside, secretly complaining in her heart.
[Brother, are you blind? I'm obviously here.]
But she did not say anything, just quietly observing the development of the situation.
When Zhao Shuo'er heard what An Yuesheng said, a flash of anger flashed across her beautiful eyes. She had long been fed up with An Yuesheng, who was always finding fault, but she was unwilling to lower herself to argue with him.
Therefore, she just snorted coldly, turned her head away, and ignored An Yuesheng.
However, An Yuesheng did not intend to let her go. He walked up and continued.
"Haha, Miss Zhao looks a little unhappy. Why didn't Qin Qixuan find the murderer for you? Ah, it shouldn't be like this. Others can find clues in such a big case, why is your case so slow?"
An Yuesheng had a nonchalant attitude on his face. He seemed to be very confident in his words and acted fearlessly. His words were full of provocation and ridicule, and he was obviously trying to alienate the relationship between Zhao Shuoer and Qin Qixuan.
Qin Xixi couldn't help but frowned when she heard what he said. Although she was young, she was meticulous and immediately understood Anyuesheng's intention. She was dissatisfied. Although her elder brother Qin Qixuan had no feelings for Zhao Shuoer, she couldn't let Anyuesheng so blatantly provoke discord!
Seeing that Zhao Shuoer's face was getting uglier, Anyuesheng thought that what he said had worked, and he felt even more proud. He continued to talk incessantly, trying to further deepen Zhao Shuoer's misunderstanding of Qin Qixuan. However, he did not
notice that Qin Xixi had secretly clenched her fists, ready to stand up and vent her anger for her elder brother and Zhao Shuoer at any time.