Chapter 756: Surveillance or Waiting for Someone?
"Since he has accepted the favor, he will naturally protect the Twelfth Prince." Qian Zhenyun walked to her side and looked out the window following her gaze.
"Right now, the two people who are confined to the mansion are probably the most restless."
Humiliated, punished, trapped in the palace, with nowhere to vent their anger, that forged military report was their only chance of turning things around.
Inside the Fifth Prince's Mansion, the atmosphere was so oppressive that it seemed as if it had frozen into ice.
"Bang!"
A fine celadon teacup was thrown hard to the ground and shattered into pieces.
The seventh prince Zhao Rui's chest heaved violently, and his handsome face, which always had a lazy smile, was now filled with sinisterness and irritability.
"What a shame! I, Zhao Rui, have never suffered such humiliation in my life!"
He suddenly turned to the Fifth Prince, Zhao Zhang, who was sitting motionless beside him, his voice filled with resentment: "Fifth Brother! Are you just going to put up with this? A month's house arrest and a six-month salary deduction will make us the laughing stock of the entire capital!"
Zhao Zhang's face was as gloomy as water. He didn't say a word, but his fingers, which were gripping the armrest, turned white at the joints from being so tight.
"Endure?" He finally squeezed out a word from between his teeth, his voice as cold as ice. "So what if I can't endure it? Should I rush out to settle the score with Gu Qingchen? Or should I go to the palace and appeal to my father for justice?"
"There's nothing we can do now!" Zhao Rui paced back and forth angrily, like a caged beast. "Are we just going to sit there and watch the Crown Prince and that little bastard so proud?"
He suddenly stopped, his eyes flashing with greed and madness. He lowered his voice and leaned close to Zhao Zhang's ear: "Fifth brother, we must do that military report!"
Zhao Zhang's pupils suddenly shrank. He turned his head abruptly, staring at Zhao Rui with sharp eyes. "Are you crazy? We just suffered a great loss, and you still dare to trust that dog Lin Jiayou? This is obviously a trap!"
"So what if it's a trap!" Zhao Rui's voice was filled with desperate sternness. "Fortune and honor are sought in danger! I've sent people to investigate, and there's indeed been unrest in the Northern Frontier lately. The demand for rare medicine is genuine!"
"Also, someone from my mother's family also sent me a message saying that if we can gather all the herbs, the profit will be at least this much!"
He held up five fingers, his eyes filled with undisguised enthusiasm.
"Fifth brother, think about it. If we can accomplish this, you'll get military merit and I'll get money. Once we leave this mansion, who will dare to laugh at us? We're making back the face we lost with interest!"
Zhao Zhang's heart was shaken uncontrollably.
Military achievement is his lifelong pursuit.
He was silent for a long time before he asked in a deep voice, "What are you going to do?"
When Zhao Rui saw that he had given in, a calculating smile immediately appeared on his face.
He leaned close to Zhao Zhang's ear, his voice lowered, like a venomous snake spitting out its tongue: "This batch of medicinal herbs is too rare. Even my Qi family would find it difficult to gather them in such a short time. However, my uncle has come up with a way to pass off inferior ones as good ones."
"What did you say?" Zhao Zhang pushed him away violently, his face instantly turning pale, his eyes filled with disbelief and anger.
"Don't worry, Fifth Brother!" Zhao Rui held him back nonchalantly. "We're not using fakes. We're just replacing a few herbs with slightly inferior medicinal properties but very similar in appearance."
"For example, if you use 'Frost Flower Grass' instead of 'Snowland Ice Silkworm Flower', after drying and crushing it, even a god wouldn't be able to tell the difference! And yet the price difference is a world of difference!"
"You're playing with military and national affairs!" Zhao Zhang roared, his rage uncontrollable. "How dare you tamper with the life-saving medicinal materials supplied to the border troops? If discovered, it would be treason, a heinous crime punishable by the extermination of all your clans!"
"Who would investigate?" Zhao Rui sneered, his face full of contempt. "The border is bitterly cold, and the emperor is far away. The medicine has been delivered, the merit has been reported, and the money has been received. Who would offend us for the lives of a few soldiers?"
"Fifth brother, you're just too cautious! If you want to accomplish great things, how can you avoid getting your hands dirty?"
"I absolutely disagree!" Zhao Zhang said firmly, emphasizing each word. "If we're going to do this, we have to do it honestly. Otherwise, I'd rather not take the credit!"
The two brothers, one greedy and reckless, the other cautious and suspicious, completely fell out in the face of huge temptations and risks.
Zhao Rui looked at his stubborn expression and his patience finally ran out.
"Okay, okay, okay!" He uttered the word "okay" three times in a row, but the smile on his face was extremely cold. "Fifth brother, you are so aloof, you want to be a saint! Then I will take on this overwhelming wealth alone! Don't worry, the military merit will still be yours when the time comes, I only want the money. You don't have to worry about anything, just wait for my good news!"
After saying this, he didn't even look at Zhao Zhang and walked away.
A few days later, in a secluded teahouse room.
Lin Jiayou stood respectfully below, and sitting opposite him was the trusted steward of the seventh prince Zhao Rui.
The steward pushed a heavy purse in front of him and ordered expressionlessly, "His Highness said you did a good job on this matter. Here's your next errand. Go to the Qi family's pharmacy in the south of the city and give this prescription to the shopkeeper, Qi San. Tell him to proceed according to plan."
He handed over a folded slip of paper.
Lin Jiayou took the note, and his fingers paused almost imperceptibly the moment they touched the paper.
He lowered his head and replied docilely, "Yes, I will definitely see to it. Your Highness and the steward, please rest assured."
Walking out of the teahouse, Lin Jiayou shuddered at the cold wind outside. He did not go to the south of the city immediately, but turned into a deserted narrow alley.
He slowly unfolded the piece of paper, on which were written the names of several medicinal herbs. Among them, the three words "Frost Flower Grass" were circled in red pen.
This is the evidence.
Lin Jiayou carefully put the note into his arms, raised his head and looked at the tall and majestic gate tower of Jingzhao Prefecture not far away.
There was no trace of humility and submission on his face anymore, only cold determination.
Gu Qingchen, didn't you ask me to make a knife? Then I will make one, the fastest and most ruthless knife!
Lin Jiayou straightened his clothes, took a step forward, and walked towards the yamen gate that could decide the fate of countless people.
He could already clearly see the patterns on the armor of the guards at the gate and the remaining snow gathered in the mouths of the two stone lions.
At this moment, his footsteps paused almost imperceptibly, and his sharp eyes swept towards a tea stall diagonally opposite.
Two men in ordinary shorts were sitting on the tea stall, drinking hot tea with their heads down. They looked no different from the peddlers you could see everywhere on the street.
But Lin Jiayou's eyes fell on the purse worn around the waist of one of them.
The purse was indigo blue, with an inconspicuous cloud pattern embroidered on it with silver thread.
He had seen this pattern before.
At the Fifth Prince's residence, those guards who were respected wore this kind of purse around their waists.
Lin Jiayou's heart sank suddenly.
He didn't stop, but just turned his eyes imperceptibly, pretending to look at the street corner casually.
A half-worn carriage was parked there quietly, and the driver was hunching his neck, drowsy.
But Lin Jiayou recognized the coachman. He was a servant in the Fifth Prince's mansion who was in charge of purchasing.
The fifth prince’s men.
Why are they here?
Is he monitoring or waiting for someone?
A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on Lin Jiayou's back.
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