Chapter 471 Enemies Meet on a Narrow Road
Lin Yuesha helped Qingxing jump off the carriage first. Although landing on her toes hurt her feet, it was better than being thrown off in a undignified manner.
"Young master, what are all these people doing here?"
Luo Wang recognized Lin Yuesha at a glance. Even though the little girl was dressed as a man, her eyes were still clear, bright, and a little innocent and naive.
"In reply to you, sir, we are a theatrical troupe, and we are preparing to go to the inner city to set up a stage at your home."
Lin Yuesha suspected that the Prince of Luo had recognized her. She first lowered her head, but then thought that she felt guilty looking down, so she might as well be open and honest.
"Oh, it's a theatrical troupe?"
Luo Wang curled the corners of his mouth and glanced at Lin Yuesha with a half-smile, saying, "Today, I went to the city gate to set up a stall to write letters. I was earning twenty coins per letter, and I had just made some copper coins when I was called back."
Xu Da, who was standing to the side, did not understand the King of Luo's coded message at all. What did he mean by setting up a stall at the city gate to write letters?
Lin Yuesha's lips were stiff. Qingxing comforted her, but she said that she had been recognized and ridiculed by the vengeful Prince Luo. She wondered if he would cause trouble for Qiuyue Class.
The pregnant woman went missing in the city, but there wasn't one in Qiuyue's class. Apart from two old women who helped with cooking, laundry, and mending, almost everyone there was a man.
Have you seen anyone suspicious today?
A few years ago, there was a case in Beijing where a woman in red had her heart ripped out, which made the people of Beijing live in fear for several years. Now that the past has finally passed, another case has occurred: a pregnant woman went missing, and seven or eight people have gone missing at once.
These past few days, the Jingzhao Yin's office has been overflowing with people, all waiting for news.
These women left without a word, heavily pregnant, without even leaving a message.
Xu Da and Xiao Qiuyue discussed the case, and Lin Yuesha took the opportunity to apologize to Luo Wang.
"Your Highness, I was blind and prone to talking nonsense. I absolutely did not mean to insult you."
When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Besides, being exposed by the person involved herself, Lin Yuesha was afraid that this Prince Luo was a petty person and would hold a grudge.
In the Great Qi Dynasty, imperial power is supreme. Killing her is as simple as crushing an ant, requiring no reason. What nonsense about gentlemen being subject to the same laws as commoners? Bah! Even if she had lost her mind, she wouldn't believe it.
Luo Wang looked at Lin Yuesha with great interest and asked, "Are you from an opera troupe?"
"Yes and no."
Lin Yuesha answered cautiously, "The Qiuyue Troupe is short-staffed, so I'm here to play a very important role."
Without her, this show simply couldn't go on.
"Oh, is that so?"
Prince Luo glanced at Lin Yuesha with a smile. She was quite interesting. He would go too, and it would be a good opportunity to hear this little girl sing. If she sang well, he would bring her to the palace. His mother was very worried these past few days because her cousin had gone missing. Listening to the opera troupe would help her relax.
The Prince of Luo wrote down Qiuyue's name and then fell silent.
Xu Da thought that the Prince of Luo had discovered some clues, so he ordered his men to search even more carefully.
The group of more than a dozen people were all obese, but he made a new discovery.
"Deputy Commander Xu, this is it! I found it in the carriage in the back!"
A man carrying a white, blood-stained sheet handed it to Xu Da, saying sorrowfully, "Look, these people might have killed someone but hid the body!"
The white bed sheet was stained with dark red blood, which was very conspicuous.
Seeing that she had made a mistake, Xiao Qiuyue quickly explained, "No, no, sir, you've misunderstood. The bloodstains on this are chicken blood, which are props used by our opera troupe to cover corpses."
Logically, Lin Yuesha's character was supposed to die by hanging, simply covered with a sheet. However, before hanging herself, Yue Niang's younger sister vomited blood due to an illness, which landed on the sheet she had prepared for herself.
The Akizuki Class did such meticulous work on these kinds of details that it was impossible to find a single flaw.
"If you don't believe me, you can send someone with me to the Yu residence. This whole thing was planned and I was informed of the steward of the Yu residence beforehand."
Xiao Qiuyue explained for a long time, but the people from the Five Cities Garrison couldn't find any other clues. He planned to send someone to follow them, but was stopped by the Prince of Luo.
"Your Highness, do you really believe what they say?"
The opera troupe was from out of town and not from the northern part of Beijing, so there was a possibility that they would commit crimes while traveling around.
Moreover, there has been no news of those pregnant women, and their chances of survival are slim.
"You could explain it all with just one question. Would you tell such a lie, especially one that involves the Yu family?"
Prince Luo patted Xu Da on the shoulder and said, "Tomorrow night, Madam Yu will be performing at the theater, and Lord Yu will be treating my mother. His skill is truly remarkable, so I should send a small gift to express my gratitude."
The little girl said there was an important character involved, so Prince Luo was going to watch the spectacle. If Qiu Yueban was lying, it would all fall apart on its own.
Back in the carriage, Lin Yuesha was dejected. She and Prince Luo were destined to be enemies, and it was not pleasant to be exposed to his face.
However, since the King of Luo doesn't intend to hold it against her, she can be a little more shameless.
"Qingxing, the character setting of the Five Cities Military Command, it seems this matter is quite significant."
People can go missing anywhere, but it's unusual for pregnant women to disappear so frequently over a period of time.
"The security situation in the capital is not as good as you think, Miss."
Especially in the northern part of the city, where people used to live, a group of refugees who had fled famine stayed in the capital to do hard labor. Some of them did petty theft, and the old ways of not picking up lost items and leaving doors unlocked at night were no longer acceptable in the capital.
“Miss, I’ve heard that Prince Luo is a man of impeccable character and the kindest of men, and that Master Yu treats royalty. If you could get in touch with Prince Luo, perhaps…”
Qingxing offered a terrible idea, but Luo Wang, seeing the amused look in his young mistress's eyes, thought he might be able to make something of it.
"Qingxing, are you dreaming?"
Lin Yuesha touched Qingxing's forehead; it wasn't hot and she didn't have a fever, so why was she starting to talk nonsense?
What is the status of the Prince of Luo? What is her status? The Prince of Luo is not someone she can climb up to. Moreover, the Prince of Luo is not someone who can be fooled with a little food.
Lin Yuesha couldn't afford the price to please the Prince of Luo; she couldn't even afford a house in the inner city right now.
"But Miss, you are also the daughter of Lord Lin, the Prefect of the Capital?"
Qingxing emphasized again that her young mistress must never forget her identity.
"Lin Shusheng is only a third-rank official. If he angers the Prince of Luo, he can be dismissed without hesitation. What about a girl who has been abandoned in a remote and impoverished area for more than ten years?"
Lin Yuesha pouted. If there were an opportunity to use Lin Shusheng to rise in rank, Lin Yuesha would never miss it, but it's not realistic right now.
The more polite someone like Luo Wang is to everyone, the more he actually keeps people at arm's length, isolating himself from others. He is polite to people, and no one can find fault with him; they can only say "good" to him.
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