As Tao Rong poured tea for Qin Su, she smiled wryly, "Princess Consort Chen is too kind. I am just an ordinary citizen. How could His Majesty value me so much?"
Qin Su held her teacup, her friendly smile fading, and said in a nonchalant tone, "Does Miss Tao mean that I have another purpose for coming here?"
Tao Rong remained silent, but she was indeed trying to figure out why Qin Su had come to see her.
If Xue Huai'an told her more about Kyoto, perhaps she could understand something from it, but right now she is completely clueless.
Although he has some intelligence, he simply doesn't know enough information.
Qin Su put down her teacup and no longer concealed her purpose, directly asking, "You didn't wander into the hunting grounds by mistake."
Tao Rong immediately lowered her head to hide the panic in her eyes.
"I truly entered this place by mistake..."
Qin Su continued, "Someone has made things very convenient for you. Not only that, I also know that your father was beaten to death in the street by the prefect's son, and your mother also died in the street while trying to seek justice for your father."
As Qin Su finished speaking, Tao Rong became increasingly alarmed.
She actually found out so much.
She clenched her fists tightly, using the pain to calm herself down.
In this situation, remaining calm and panicking will do her no good.
"Without someone's help, you can't get to the West Mountain Hunting Grounds. Your plan is indeed very good, but any plan can be uncovered."
"No matter how powerful your people are, they can't surpass the imperial family. Tell me, if I, the princess, hand the evidence over to His Majesty, what will your fate be? For the crime of deceiving the emperor, not only will you not be able to avenge your parents, but even your nephew, your brother, and your sister-in-law will die."
The pain in her palms only prevented her from speaking recklessly out of helplessness; Tao Rong still felt terrified.
She said, "Princess Consort Chen will not hand over the evidence to His Majesty."
Her body trembled uncontrollably; it was fear.
Tao Rong has someone she cares about, and that's her weakness.
“If Princess Consort Chen wanted to hand over the evidence to His Majesty, she wouldn’t have come to me.” She took a deep breath, stood up, walked to Qin Su, knelt down, placed her hands on the ground, and kowtowed to Qin Su. “Please enlighten me, Princess Consort.”
She had thought the person who helped her was powerful enough, but now it seemed she was merely caught up in the power center of Kyoto—no, she was just a pawn.
The pieces can be used or removed at will.
Her life or death is not important; what matters is that she cannot implicate her family. She has already lost her parents, and she cannot let her brother and sister-in-law be put in danger as well.
They must have had other motives for coming to her.
I am still useful.
"You're very smart," Qin Su praised.
"Your Highness is too kind; I am but a blade of grass."
"I want you to play along and become my spy. As for the revenge for your parents, I can help you." She paused, her eyes softening considerably again. "Xue Huai'an is the one who's helping you; he probably only promised to avenge you after you enter the palace, but hasn't actually taken any action, right?"
Tao Rong nodded.
If she had a choice, she really wouldn't want to trust that man, but she really didn't have any other choice.
"His promises are meaningless. The prefect of Xishan is not a completely wicked person. He is a troublesome person to deal with, and he does not have that much power."
"Would you be willing to become my person?" Qin Su asked her solemnly.
Tao Rong smiled bitterly. What choice did she have? The Princess Consort of Chen had the upper hand. Forget about revenge; if she handed over the charge of deceiving the Emperor to His Majesty, her whole family would die.
After receiving Tao Rong's agreement, Qin Su left her some silver and instructed her to proceed according to the original plan, but to remember who her master was.
Tao Rong readily agreed to all of them.
Qin Su and Yu Shuo left, and Tao Rong looked at the two unused teacups, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
Plans really can't keep up with changes.
On the street.
"Where are we going now?" Yu Shuo stepped forward and took Qin Su's hand. Qin Su did not refuse him and squeezed her slender fingers between his fingers.
Her sleeves are always narrower, which is related to her usual style of dress.
Unlike Yu Shuo, whose outer robe always had wide sleeves, the two of them could make small movements without being noticed by others.
Qin Su pondered for a moment and said, "Then let's go see the prefect?"
Yu Shuo naturally obeyed her.
Yu Shuo was always very quiet when he was with others, but as long as he was there, he had a commanding presence.
If you want to find the prefect, you can't go to his residence; you have to go to the yamen (government office).
Upon arriving at the government office, Qin Su gestured for Chongyang to beat the drum.
Lian Tao immediately volunteered. She didn't understand why Qin Su didn't ask her to go but instead ordered Chongyang, even though she was the only one who knew Qin Su.
"Don't go. With your strength, you'd have to replace the drum every time you knock on the yamen." Chongyang stepped forward and pushed her aside.
Lian Tao touched her nose and then realized what Qin Su meant.
She said the girl wouldn't look down on her.
Accompanied by the "dong dong dong" of the drum, a yamen runner dressed in a light blue robe and carrying a large knife at his waist soon came out of the yamen. This was the uniform of the yamen runners of Da'an.
Who is beating this drum?
Chongyang stopped what he was doing and looked at Qin Su, mainly because he didn't know what Qin Su's intentions were.
"We have been wronged," Qin Su said loudly.
The bailiff didn't chase him away, but directly asked Qin Su, "Where's the complaint?"
He sized up the group. The woman in the lead was dressed as a married woman, with her hair tied up and adorned with jade hairpins and swaying ornaments. Although her attire was simple, her outstanding temperament was evident.
The man beside her was even more extraordinary; he was practically a god among men.
The people accompanying them were also quite good-looking, and the clothes they wore were things that ordinary people couldn't afford.
Is such a person wronged?
Qin Su had completely forgotten to ask Tao Rong for the complaint.
"I didn't have time to write it." Qin Su was a little embarrassed; it really was... a miscalculation.
Yu Shuo's hand tightened slightly, attracting Qin Su's attention.
Qin Su gently exhaled a breath of stale air.
The bailiffs said, "You can't beat the drum without a written complaint, don't you know? According to the Da'an Law, beating the drum without a written complaint is considered disorderly conduct and will result in twenty strokes of the cane."
If it weren't for the fact that their clothes indicated they weren't ordinary people, he would have actually ordered someone to enforce the law.
Qin Su was speechless.
"Although there is no written complaint, the injustice is genuine."
The bailiff was getting impatient, but he still patiently said, "Go write a complaint and come back later."
Qin Su touched her nose. She really had no experience. If it were her old personality, why would she need a complaint? If things went wrong, she would just bring people to their door. She didn't need this thing.
Having no other choice, Qin Su had to lead his men to find Tao Rong again, get the petition, and then return to beat the drum, only to be met by the same yamen runner as before.
He noticed the group was becoming increasingly impatient. "Do you really want to be beaten?"
Chongyang handed over the petition, saying, "We have a petition."
The bailiff quickly descended the steps and took the petition from Chongyang's hand. After reading it, his expression turned even uglier.
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