Chapter 97
When Xue Jin'an had almost finished his breakfast, he overheard Fu Lu and Ling Zhi's conversation.
Fu Lu asked, "What time is it today?"
“It must be three-quarters past Chen Shi (7:45 AM).” After Lingzhi finished speaking, she looked at Fu Lu with a surprised and doubtful expression and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong?”
“Usually, Young Master Cui should arrive around the time Master finishes his morning exercise. While Master is having breakfast, he'll be warming up by himself, preparing for the archery practice later.” Fu Lu frowned, somewhat worried. “He hasn’t arrived yet at this hour. Could something have happened?”
Since deciding to pursue martial arts, Cui Zui has been spending more and more time on it. Even when busy with the Jiu Tian Yi business, he has never neglected his martial arts training.
He would get up at cockcrow every day to do his morning exercise, and at the beginning of the morning, he would go to Jiutianyi to open his shop. If nothing unexpected happened, he would wait until the time for his shift to go to work and then enter the palace gate to go to Zhaoyang Palace. At this time, he could usually catch up with the end of Xue Jin'an's morning exercise.
Xue Jin'an's daily routine was always very fixed. The content of his military training with the Northwest Army was also relatively fixed every day. This instilled a habit in Fu Lu and the others. As soon as they saw Xue Jin'an make the starting move of the final move, they would immediately prepare the meal or set up the shooting range. Then, after Cui Zui arrived, they would tell him whether he arrived earlier or later than yesterday. When the error was not too big, Lingzhi could even accurately predict the number.
Under Xue Jin'an's unconscious influence, Zhaoyang Palace has almost become a paradise for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Even the Imperial Guards at the gate are like that, with their shift changes time being extremely precise.
Almost everyone thought that the Seventh Prince Xue Jin'an was a person with a strong sense of rules, and everyone tried to keep up with him. Under Cui Zui's leadership, the people of Zhaoyang Palace even played a game of timing themselves. Everyone was responsible for different things and had different tasks. So they listed the things they had to do every day and wrote down the approximate time they would take to do them. They then competed to see who could time their tasks with the smallest error.
Something unusual must be going on, and Lingzhi frowned upon hearing this.
Xue Jin'an finished the last bite, put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and said, "There's a 92% chance he's been scammed."
"Huh?" Lingzhi was still a little confused, but Fulu suddenly realized something and exclaimed, "Could it be that palace maid who's been loitering around Zhaoyang Palace lately? What's her name again? I think it's... Xiyun? That should be her name."
When Fu Lu mentioned the name "Xi Yun," he subconsciously pursed his lips, unable to hide his displeasure and disgust.
“Xi Yun? This seems to be from Yihe Palace?” Lingzhi only came to Xue Jin’an’s side after Chu Wenwan’s death. She didn’t know these people, but Lingzhi was quick-witted. Seeing Fu Lu’s expression and thinking about the naming styles of the various palace masters, she tentatively guessed and actually guessed correctly.
"What bad luck." Fu Lu made no attempt to hide his dislike for Chu Wenwan and the people around her, but he still explained to Lingzhi, "Xi Yun used to be that person's first-class palace maid. After that person died, she was transferred to work in the dyeing room."
To be honest, Fu Lu hadn't paid much attention to Xi Yun before. After all, Chu Wenwan was dead, and although Xi Yun was her head maid, she hadn't actually been in office for very long. Fu Lu only inquired about her whereabouts just in case, and seeing that she was doing her job dutifully, he didn't pay much attention to her. But unexpectedly, several months later, he heard news of her again, only to learn that she had recently been seen near Zhaoyang Palace.
Fu Lu's heart immediately went on high alert, fearing that there might be some plan to reduce the number of people. He immediately ordered people to investigate, but there was no news yet.
"So you mean that since she couldn't find an opportunity with us, she simply sought in through Cui Zui's connections?" Lingzhi thought calmly. "Then what is her purpose? To avenge her former master?"
"Who knows?" Fulu pouted and said, "Anyway, I won't let her get close to the master."
The former master they were referring to was naturally Chu Wenwan. Xue Jin'an interjected at the right moment to correct him: "There is a 70% probability that Xi Yun is Chu Wenjing's man."
Chu Wenjing's rapid ascent to the position of Minister of Justice was undoubtedly due to a combination of luck and cunning. However, the time was too short; he only managed to plant a spy next to Chu Wenwan when the emperor took his entourage to the summer palace last year. Before he could do anything, Chu Wenwan was swiftly and decisively eliminated by Xue Jin'an.
Xue Jin'an didn't tell them that Chu Wenjing's persona might be Zhou Yushu's. First, it was all just speculation at the moment, and the conclusion wasn't 100% certain. Second, the fewer people knew about Zhou Yushu, the better, since walls have ears, and there really was Xuan Shiyi as an informant in Zhaoyang Palace.
Although Xue Jin'an did not know what Zhou Yushu was thinking, when he learned from Fu Lu that Xi Yun was lingering near Zhaoyang Palace, he roughly analyzed some clues and figured out the motive behind Zhou Yushu's behavior. It was nothing more than wanting to make contact with him through a secret network.
However, Xue Jin'an felt that now was not a good time, and he preferred to talk to Zhou Yushu himself, especially about the Gu worms, rather than to see Xi Yun.
The emperor suspected that the Gu worms in the palace were the work of Zhou Yushu. After the true cause of the late crown prince's death was confirmed, it seemed that Zhou Yushu's suspicions had been cleared. However, Xue Jin'an could tell that the emperor had not given up his idea. Otherwise, Xuan Shiyi would have killed Xia Zi long ago.
Xue Jin'an distrusted the emperor's mind. The more the emperor stared at Zhou Yushu, the lower the latter's suspicion became, even though in his opinion, Zhou Yushu was not suspicious at all.
Admittedly, the death of the original owner's mother would have fueled Zhou Yushu's desire for revenge, making him want everyone involved to be buried with his sister. Given his already extreme nature and his expertise in using Gu poison, it's understandable that he would resort to such insidious methods. —The emperor separated the Gu poison from Xue Zhang's era from the more recent ones, leading to this speculation.
It's true that Xiao Shu can concoct medicine that drives Gu worms mad, but she doesn't know how to raise Gu. The emperor must have pried some dubious information out of Xiao Shu, but Xiao Shu also knows very well what she can and cannot say. She certainly won't reveal where the Gu in the Fifth Prince's body came from.
The emperor didn't mind spreading his "benevolence" everywhere. Even though Xiao Shu had "sorry" to him, he would still prepare a simple coffin for her burial after her death out of consideration for their years of friendship. However, Xiao Shu's funeral arrangements were very hasty. She was simply wrapped in a straw mat and thrown into a mass grave. The emperor never mentioned her again afterward, which clearly showed that he was dissatisfied with the results of Xiao Shu's interrogation.
It's hard to say whether the Emperor was involved in the Fifth Prince's visit to Xiao Shu. Perhaps it was because he saw through the Emperor's true nature that the Fifth Prince chose to "seek another wise ruler."
That doesn't matter. In Xue Jin'an's data analysis, the Fifth Prince is not an easy person to tame. He is inherently rebellious, and once he gets hold of someone above him, he will not hesitate to turn against them.
The emperor's suspicions and conjectures about Zhou Yushu were not without reason, but Zhou Yushu would do all this on the premise that he had really identified the murderer, had enough power to establish himself, and had a way to get in touch with the imperial concubines in the palace.
To reiterate, Zhou Yushu had already exerted tremendous effort to climb to the position of Minister of Justice in such a short time, and even if he really wanted to do these things, he was powerless to do so.
Zhou Yushu's main arena was the imperial court. He had limited opportunities to plant spies in the harem, and in the original text, he chose to target the princes.
What Xue Jin'an wanted to learn from Zhou Yushu was about the Gu worm masters in the martial arts world. Prince An and Consort Min were the most suspicious people in his case. The former had gathered many martial arts masters under his command, while the latter would have a more convenient way to do whatever she wanted in the harem. Since the evidence was insufficient to pinpoint them, it would be better to use the process of elimination.
Xue Jin'an kept all these thoughts to himself, which made Fu Lu and Ling Zhi, who only had a vague understanding, even more worried.
Around the end of Chenshi (7-9 AM), Cui Zui arrived late. His carriage stopped at the entrance of Zhaoyang Palace. He got off the carriage more slowly than usual. His expression showed no abnormality, but he gripped his bow and arrows even tighter.
Lingzhi, who came out to check the situation, immediately noticed something was wrong. She opened her mouth alertly and silently asked, "Is someone inside?"
Cui Zui pretended not to see anything, neither nodding nor making a sound, but he visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
Cui Zui was genuinely annoyed. When he saw the palace maid who suddenly ran out and fell to the ground, he assumed he was being scammed. He didn't want to get involved and was about to pull the reins over to pass by when he happened to glance at the palace maid.
The palace maid looked quite ordinary, but she had a pair of very beautiful peach blossom eyes, which were so beautiful and pitiful that Cui Zui couldn't help but stare at her in a daze and subconsciously stopped the carriage.
However, he wasn't captivated by those eyes; he simply felt they looked strangely familiar, as if he'd seen them somewhere before. The more he examined the man's face, the more eerily familiar he felt.
Cui Zui knew, of course, that this was likely a conspiracy, but he was never one to run away from difficulties; he would face them head-on. He sat in the carriage and questioned the palace maid, who only managed to utter "ah ah," pointing to her throat and shaking her head, seemingly a mute. Upon seeing the whip in Cui Zui's hand, she cowered in fear. Seeing his frown, she knelt on the ground and began kowtowing, her forehead turning red with each thud—a very convincing performance.
"Alright, stop kowtowing." Cui Zui looked at her thoughtfully, thinking that regardless of whether it was true or false, having gone this far, he might as well take a step forward.
So Cui Zui got off the carriage and walked up to the mute palace maid. Just as he opened his mouth, the palace maid unexpectedly flicked something into his mouth.
Cui Zui coughed twice and, without saying a word, immediately drew her weapon to attack, but it was knocked away by the prepared person. She said in a hoarse, strange voice, "You'd better not move. The Gu worm is in your body. If I have a single thought, you will explode and die."
No matter how you look at it, that voice is definitely a man's.
"Cough, then show me how it goes!" Cui Zui sneered without hesitation, quickly drawing an arrow from his quiver and thrusting it at his vitals without a word.
The man was quick to hide, or perhaps Cui Zui's movements became sluggish. He felt his limbs gradually weakening, and his internal energy stagnating. He heard the hoarse voice say, "If you kill me, you will die too."
Cui Zui felt his body gradually weakening and found it strange. Compared to the Gu worms, he felt more like he had been drugged with a sleeping potion or muscle-relaxing powder. He pretended not to notice and said in a fierce tone, "Then let's die together. One for one is not a loss."
Cui Zui scrutinized the man before him, not missing a single detail, attempting to analyze and reason like his master: the palace maid's clothes he wore were somewhat ill-fitting, his every move exuded a certain refinement, carrying an air of authority, but his fingertips were rough, not from martial arts practice, but more like marks from manual labor. —This was a man who had once lived a life of hardship, yet now held a high position.
This man possessed some martial arts skills, though not exceptionally high; however, his movements were swift and his fingers nimble. —This man didn't enter by scaling walls; he was let in, and he had accomplices in the palace.
Judging from the commotion they made, it wasn't small, yet no one has come to check on them. The place has probably been cleared out, and their accomplices must be of high status.
Cui Zui couldn't see any more, but this was enough to make him sigh. The palace was too chaotic, with all sorts of people, and each one was incredibly cunning. If he had been born here, he probably wouldn't have lived to be three years old.
As Cui Zui observed this man, the other man was also observing him. He seemed stunned by Cui Zui's words, and looked at him from a few steps away with an indescribable gaze for a while before saying, "You still have a bright future ahead of you. Rather than dying here, you might as well live well and do more for the Seventh Prince in the future."
Cui Zuixin's mind stirred, knowing that the other party was willing to reveal some information, and he tactfully asked, "What does my affair with the Seventh Prince have to do with you?"
He only said one thing: "I am Zhou Yushu's man."
"Who is it? Never heard of it." Cui Zui searched his mind for strange and unusual people in the martial arts world, but he couldn't figure out that the name represented any other identity.
“…Zhou Yushu!” The other person emphasized the name once, looking at Cui Zui with eyes that seemed to want to devour him. “The younger brother of Consort Zhen, Zhou Yuting, and the uncle of the Seventh Prince.”
"What? He didn't tell you? Then it seems you and the Seventh Prince don't get along very well. I've come to the wrong person." He said with a sneer.
Cui Zui: "..."
Cui Zui gave an awkward but polite smile.
Cui Zui was skeptical of his identity, but since it involved his master, and he couldn't figure it out himself, he might as well take him back to his master to see. So he changed his attitude and eagerly invited the man onto the carriage, using the stereotype that military generals were brainless to fool him. He said with a carefree and simple smile, "So you're my uncle's man. You should have said so earlier, otherwise we would have fought."
"Uncle?" The man raised an eyebrow, giving him a strange look. "If I remember correctly, the Seventh Prince is only seven years old; he couldn't possibly have a son as old as you."
Cui Zui: "I can't give birth to him, but I can recognize him. A master is like a father, and a disciple is like a son. It's perfectly reasonable for me to call him my great-uncle."
"..." What's there to be proud of? The man rolled his eyes.
Just as Cui Zui didn't believe him, the man didn't believe Cui Zui either. After getting into the carriage, he took out a knife and held it to Cui Zui's waist, telling him not to play any tricks. After arriving at the destination, he hid in the carriage and lingered there, not getting off. No one knew what he was up to.
Ignoring him, Cui Zui immediately issued a warning at this moment.
After spending several months together, everyone had developed a tacit understanding. Lingzhi could tell that Cui Zui was having trouble speaking, so she pretended that nothing had happened. However, the moment she turned to walk towards Zhaoyang Palace, her face turned cold. She quickened her pace without making a sound, and as she entered the palace gate, she made a gesture with her hand, which was placed in front of her.
Fu Lu immediately understood. He and Ling Zhi exchanged a glance, then quietly pushed their way into the hall and quickly reported the situation to Xue Jin'an.
Xue Jin'an seemed to be deep in thought. Suddenly, she looked up and saw Xuan Shiyi, who seemed to be concentrating on sweeping the floor in the courtyard and had not noticed what was happening outside. She got up and walked outside, saying, "I'll go take a look."
"Huh? Isn't this a bad idea?" Fu Lu's eyes widened as he racked his brains to try and dissuade him. "Master, a wise man doesn't stand under a dangerous wall!"
Xue Jin'an said, "It's not a dangerous wall." It's Zhou Yushu.
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