Chapter 3338: Nip This Trend
Chen Zixiao said, "As for the burning of the small building—I did it too obviously. I took the risk because the war was imminent and the Emperor couldn't punish the generals. But as for the theft of the medicine, it's been so long. How could Her Majesty have thought it was me?"
Nan Yan said calmly, "It was because you burned down the Xue family's small building so obviously and took such a risk that I was certain that you must have stolen the medicine."
Chen Zixiao frowned.
Nan Yan chuckled and said, "Do you know that the Emperor was testing you by asking you to come to the Xue family to retrieve Xue Yun's letter?"
"What?!"
Chen Zixiao was startled and looked at her with eyes wide open in disbelief: "How——"
"How is that possible, is it?"
Nan Yan smiled and said, "You must think that the emperor trusts you, so he asked you to come and get Xue Yun's letter. If he didn't trust you, he would definitely not give you such an important task, right?"
Chen Zixiao didn't say anything, but his expression showed his agreement.
Nan Yan smiled and said, "Actually, you made a wrong judgment on this matter from the very beginning."
“…”
"This errand is not an important one at all."
Chen Zixiao frowned again: "Your Majesty, don't you really want to get Xue Yun's letter?"
Nan Yan said, "That being said, before the emperor gave you this task, he had already determined that there was no way that the notebook could remain in the Xue family, in this small building."
Chen Zixiao looked at Nan Yan in surprise: "Why?"
Nan Yan smiled faintly and said, "Back then, Xue Yun left the Xue family and followed the emperor back to the capital with the goal of helping him detoxify. Her notebook contained her years of medical experience, and the most important part of it was how to detoxify the marrow-cleansing flower. How could she not have it with her?"
“…”
"So, although Xue Ling told the emperor that Xue Yun once had such a notebook, the emperor concluded that it could not still be in the Xue family."
Chen Zixiao's expression changed several times, and he looked at Nan Yan again: "Then why did the emperor——"
"Why did the Emperor still let you go, right?"
"good."
Nan Yan smiled and said, "Master Chen, do you know where in this small building the note that Xue Ling told the Emperor is hidden?"
Chen Zixiao thought for a moment and said, "The Emperor told me that it was only in this small building and asked me to come and find it myself."
Nan Yan smiled and said, "Actually, Xue Ling told the emperor that the notebook had been hidden on the second floor of this small building, in the partition behind the bookcase."
Chen Zixiao was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously said: "Then why -"
Nan Yan asked, "Why didn't the Emperor tell you the exact location, but only told you it was in this small building? Because I said that the note couldn't possibly still be here, so the Emperor asked you to come here just to test you through this matter."
“…”
"If I had told you the exact location, and if the notebook wasn't there, then there wouldn't have been any trouble. But if it really was still there—if my guess is correct—you would have destroyed it and returned to report to the Emperor that it hadn't been found, wouldn't you?"
Chen Zixiao gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement.
Nan Yan said: "So, I must not tell you the exact location."
“…”
"And if I tell you a general idea, it will be easy to test your actions."
“…”
"If you had simply returned to report that you couldn't find the notes, you wouldn't have had any problems. Unfortunately—in your own words—you acted too obviously, taking a risk that exposed your actions."
“…”
"You know, there are so many places a notebook could be hidden in this little building. Even though you couldn't find it, I imagine you couldn't rest easy. You were even more worried that someone else might find it, and in that case, the emperor would still recover his memory. So, to completely eliminate any future trouble, you set fire to the little building."
“…”
"It was precisely because of this fire that the Emperor and I concluded completely that you did not want the Emperor to recover his memory."
“…”
"It must have been you who stole the medicine!"
Hearing these words, Chen Zixiao was completely impressed.
He let out a long breath, glanced at Nan Yan with a wry smile, and then said, "Your Majesty and His Majesty...are extremely perceptive and have foreseen every detail. I, your humble servant, bow down to them."
Although he was discovered, he felt as if a heavy stone had been lifted from his heart, and he relaxed completely. Nan Yan, on the other hand, looked at him solemnly and said slowly, "So, when you three brothers came to the emperor, besides wanting to make a career, you also came with this purpose, right?"
Chen Zixiao did not refute.
He just smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty has guessed even this?"
Nan Yan said, "I just recalled that my uncle had been a monk for so many years, always living a peaceful and detached life, with no dealings with the court. I hadn't even heard of him, and yet, all of a sudden, he sent you three here. And of you three, except for Chen Xuan, you and Chen Yilu are both quite old. Normally, you should have completed your studies long ago, and if you were to send you here, you should have been sent here much earlier. But, of course, after the Neng Kingdom had sent envoys to visit several times, and after they had made me into a fake 'Nanming County Princess', my uncle suddenly sent you here."
“…”
"This doesn't seem to be planned for you. It seems like I came here specifically to do something."
“…”
"If I'm not mistaken, although he has no dealings with the imperial court, he must have been secretly keeping an eye on the developments here. At that time, he must have known that Arslan and his men had been visiting as envoys one after another, and he was worried that something might be noticed by His Majesty the Emperor, so he sent you to the Emperor's side. Firstly, it was a way out for you three brothers, and secondly, it allowed you to monitor the Emperor's actions at any time. If there was ever a chance that he might regain his memory, you would immediately nip it in the bud, right?"
Chen Zixiao smiled bitterly and said, "Father was extremely worried, but he never expected that with the Empress by His Majesty's side, all those worries were unnecessary."
After saying that, he let out another long sigh.
Then he looked up at Nan Yan and said with a somewhat calm smile, "I do these things, but I know that truth will come out eventually. Now that the emperor has already suspected me and the queen knows everything, then, how to deal with me is up to you, I will do it without hesitation."
After saying this, he knelt quietly on the ground, closed his eyes and said nothing.
He actually had an expression as if he was waiting to be killed.
Nan Yan looked down at him for a moment and said, "You three brothers are now considered successful and famous. Don't you regret this?"
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