After a series of crackling sounds, the lights came on, and everyone could finally see what was happening inside the room.
Wan Yuechi had only raised the stick halfway when Cao Chengye's face was already covered in colorful bruises.
"How could it be you?" Wan Yuechi's movements froze in mid-air, his eyes filled with surprise and confusion.
"Brother Xiao!" Wanwan leaped down from the window and ran into Xiao Qi's arms. Xiao Qi instinctively reached out and pulled her into his embrace.
After not seeing each other for many days, Wanwan's heart was overflowing with longing. She hugged Xiao Qi's waist and refused to let go. Like a cat, she rubbed her face against his chest and used some force to hold Xiao Qi's thin waist as if she was measuring him. Then she raised her little face and said, "Brother Xiao has lost a lot of weight."
Their eyes met, both shining with the same doting affection. In the dim light, their faces were outlined with smooth orange lines.
Xiao Qi, dressed in a white robe with wide sleeves, embraced her bent back, his sleeves almost completely covering her.
Wan Yuechi tightened his grip on the wooden stick again. Even with his eyebrows pressed against the ground, he didn't want to see his younger sister holding a young man who was about to turn twenty.
However, upon seeing his innocently injured deputy, Wan Yuechi put down the stick in his hand and turned to look for medicine for bruises and sprains.
After a short while, the four of them sat around a small wooden table. Wan Yuechi spread out the files in his hands, and Wanwan handed him a calligraphy brush. Cao Chengye was still holding the medicine packet on his face, and half of his handsome face was already swollen.
“My brother and I discovered that the biggest suspicious point in the case of Prince Sui’an is Marquis Xining.” As Wanwan spoke, she rolled up her sleeves, picked up a brush, and drew a flat circle around the three characters of Marquis Xining on the copied dossier. “Marquis Xining is meticulous in his words and deeds, and he is vicious. If we go against him head-on, we will definitely suffer.”
Wanwan continued her analysis with a serious expression. The candlelight reflected in her dark eyes shone brightly. Cao Chengye and Wan Yuechi were drawn into the atmosphere by her seriousness. One held a book in his hand and the other held a medicine bag. They looked solemnly at the words on the file and listened quietly to Wanwan's analysis.
Xiao Qi had already understood all this information. His gaze remained fixed on Wanwan's face, following her every move.
The little dumpling who used to dislike copying books has such a commanding and inspiring side. Her eyes seem to hold jewels, and her delicate hands holding the brush are tinged with a soft orange.
"The wife of the Marquis of Xi Ning loves treasures, so my brother and I plan to start with her."
After Wanwan finished her analysis, she looked up at Xiao Qi with a joyful expression. Her eyes, like autumn water sprinkled with pearls, were half excited and half expectant, as if she was waiting for this always serious and unsmiling older brother to praise her.
Xiao Qi patted Wan Yuechi's head encouragingly, while Wan Yuechi rolled his eyes inwardly with a tight-lipped expression.
"As far as I know, the key evidence is still hidden in the Marquis's mansion. Now the mansion is heavily guarded, so we can only get the chance to find the evidence by luring the snake out of its hole."
"I have a way!" Her curved eyes shone even brighter, as if they had ignited stars.
The next day, news that Wanjiapuzi was preparing to hold a jewelry auction spread throughout the capital, and many noble ladies dressed up and left home before the appointed time.
It is said that Wan Family Shop is a place where rare treasures gather. The wives and daughters of the Wan family always manage to obtain batches of extremely rare and high-quality treasures through some unknown channels. Therefore, whenever news of an auction is released, Wan Family Shop is always surrounded by crowds.
In the past, the Marquis's wife disdained to participate in the auctions of Wanjiapu, but this time she couldn't resist the publicity and dragged the Marquis of Xining to grab a VIP seat early in the morning.
When Wanwan saw the Marquis's wife with a happy face and the reluctant Marquis Xining backstage, she was overjoyed. She made a gesture to Cao Chengye and Xiao Qi at the gate, and the two of them secretly slipped out through the back door and went to the Marquis's mansion.
The Marquis of Xining, completely unaware that he had fallen for the diversionary tactic, was only dozing off while bidding against his excited wife.
The Marquis's wife thought there was nothing to see, but she was surprised to find that the first treasure to appear captivated her.
It was a jade hairpin made of green jade, with a pure and clear color. It was carved from a single piece of jade, and the hairpin was smooth and lustrous, as gentle as a young girl's eyes. The hollowed-out green phoenix was lifelike and had a lovely and charming expression, which instantly captured the heart of the Marquis's wife.
Wanwan discovered the excited Lady Hou and took the opportunity to make up a story her brother had told her when she was a child, saying that it was a love token left by a fairy in heaven in search of true love.
The Marquis's wife became even more impulsive and immediately started bidding.
Unexpectedly, just as she made her offer, another girl in the crowd loudly announced an even higher price.
The lady disagreed and immediately snapped a photo.
The man, however, seemed to be deliberately trying to antagonize her, and quoted her a price that was twice as high.
Who exactly is opposing me? Don't they know she's the Marquis's wife?
A small surge of anger rose in her heart, and she insisted that Marquis Xi Ning help her find out who was so blind, but she didn't expect that in the short moment of distraction, the jade hairpin would be snatched away by someone else.
The Marquis's wife stomped her foot in anger.
Wanwan brought out even more exquisite jewelry and jewels, which attracted the Marquis's wife once again, but someone else snatched them away first.
Today's auction got off to a bad start. The auction lasted all morning, and the Marquis's wife managed to snag only one item despite her best efforts.
As the people at the scene left one by one, the Marquis's wife felt increasingly distressed. She was used to being pampered and always expected others to give way to her. She could never bear to watch someone take away her precious treasure.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She didn't want to go home. After everyone had left, she grabbed Xi Ninghou and pulled Wanwan back from leaving.
Wanwan naturally knew what her purpose was, but still pretended to be clueless. "What urgent matter does Madam have? Today's treasures have all been auctioned off."
The Marquis's wife was still a little flustered, embarrassed to directly say that she had only won one treasure. Her eyes darted around. "Today's treasures are truly eye-opening. I remember Miss Wanwan mentioned last time that there are other collections in the South Courtyard, and I haven't had my fill of them yet, so could you..."
A meaningful look flashed in the eyes of the Marquis's wife, and the suspicion in the eyes of the Marquis of Xining deepened. He had long suspected that today's auction was deliberately orchestrated by the Wan family. If Wanwan was about to take his wife to some Nanshan Courtyard, then it was most likely that they had fallen into a trap.
Wanwan caught a glimpse of the Marquis of Xining's gaze, pondered for a moment, and then feigned a look of sudden realization. "Madam wants to visit the courtyard in Nanshan, right? Unfortunately, the shop is currently undergoing renovations, and we don't have time to take you there. Perhaps we should do it another time."
A hint of melancholy flashed in the lady's eyes, and the suspicion on Marquis Xi Ning's face lessened considerably, his expression gradually warming. "Let's go, Madam. Miss Wanwan has already said it's inconvenient for her. I'll bring you again next time."
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