Chapter 321: Not just an informant, but also a surveillance agent
Beneath the palm of my hand, there is a soft and warm touch.
"Feeling what?" he asked softly, with a hint of confusion in his tone.
Chu Ruohan smiled slightly, with a hint of surprise and anticipation in her eyes, "Feel it carefully."
Gu Junze held his breath and concentrated, quietly feeling the warmth under his palm.
At first, there was nothing unusual.
However, just when his patience ran out.
Suddenly, a slight but clear beating sound came from under the palm of my hand.
It's like a little fish blowing bubbles in the water, or like a gentle peck of a baby bird before it breaks out of its shell.
Again and again.
Gu Junze's body froze instantly, and his originally calm eyes suddenly widened, filled with an incredible look.
He lowered his head and looked at Chu Ruohan's abdomen in disbelief, his voice trembling with surprise.
“This…this is…”
Chu Ruohan looked at his shocked expression, and the smile in the corner of her eyes deepened.
She gently held Gu Junze's hand and said affirmatively: "It's the baby moving, it's fetal movement."
"I just felt it today too. I was reading a book just now and it suddenly moved. I thought it was an illusion, but I didn't expect it to move several times."
Gu Junze seemed to be under a spell of immobilization, remaining in this position motionless.
His palm was pressed tightly against Chu Ruohan's abdomen, afraid of missing any slight movement.
My breathing became a little rapid, and an indescribable wonderful feeling came over me.
It is the joy of being a father, the thrill of being connected by blood, and the anticipation for a better life in the future.
He never thought that a small life could bring such great shock and emotion.
“It’s really moving…”
He carefully rubbed Chu Ruohan's belly.
"Han'er, he... he is responding to me."
Chu Ruohan looked at his childish appearance, reached out, gently held Gu Junze's hand on her abdomen, and interlocked her fingers with his.
The flickering candlelight illuminated the figures of the two people leaning against each other...
"Who is sneaking around like that? What are they doing?"
It was Song Ruyan's voice.
Chu Ruohan and Gu Junze paused at the same time and looked at each other. They saw the helplessness of being interrupted and a hint of alertness in each other's eyes.
Gu Junze released his arms around her and helped her up.
"Go out and take a look."
The two of them straightened their clothes and opened the door.
Song Ruyan was standing with her hands on her hips, blocking a gray-haired old woman wearing coarse clothes.
The old woman lowered her head, her body hunched, and looked terrified.
"Young Madam, General."
"I just came out to get some water when I saw this old woman peeking outside our courtyard wall. She looked very suspicious!"
The woman called Mrs. Kong quickly raised her head, her face full of wrinkles, and waved her hands hurriedly.
"Misunderstanding, girl, you misunderstood!"
"I didn't mean to do that. I just... I just couldn't sleep at night, so I went out for a walk. I saw the light was still on over here, so I just... took a second look. I had no ill intentions at all!"
Her voice was a little hoarse, her tone was humble, and her eyes were flickering.
Chu Ruohan's gaze fell calmly on Mrs. Kong, and she didn't speak immediately.
This mansion was gifted by the emperor.
It was originally the residence of a powerful official in the previous dynasty, but was later confiscated by the government.
The emperor bestowed it upon Gu Junze, saying that since his mansion was newly established and short of staff, he had deliberately left behind some elderly people who were "used to the job" in the mansion.
Not only that, he also transferred several palace maids from the palace, under the pretext of "helping".
Chu Ruohan and Gu Junze both knew everything clearly.
The old people left behind are spies.
The palace maids were sent to monitor him.
This Mrs. Kong was one of the elderly people who "stayed behind".
She usually looks quite well behaved, but her behavior today is unusual.
Chu Ruohan suppressed the thought in his eyes and softened his tone.
"It's Granny Kong. It's late at night and cold outside. You should go back and rest early."
She didn't ask any further questions, nor did she scold him, but just gently turned it over.
"Yes... yes, thank you for your consideration, Madam."
Mrs. Kong felt as if she had been pardoned. She nodded and bowed repeatedly. A hint of relief flashed across her cloudy eyes. She turned around and walked away hurriedly.
Looking at Mrs. Kong's back as she disappeared around the corner, Song Ruyan felt a little unwilling.
"Young Madam, are you just going to let her go? The way she was just now, it was clearly..."
"Okay, Ruyan."
Chu Ruohan interrupted her, her tone still calm.
"Maybe it's just as she said, and we're just being overly suspicious."
Gu Junze stood aside, frowning slightly, obviously realizing that something was wrong, but he chose to trust Chu Ruohan's handling of the matter.
He returned to the room, dismissed the servants, and only Yuling was left to serve him.
Yuling couldn't help but worry.
"Young Madam, these people...are always a hidden danger."
"It's easy to dodge an open attack, but it's hard to guard against a hidden arrow. They were sent by the Emperor. We can't chase them away, nor can we scold them. If they stay in the mansion, something bad will happen sooner or later."
Gu Junze's face darkened, and a cold look flashed in his eyes.
"I'll find a reason to get rid of them all tomorrow."
Chu Ruohan shook her head slightly.
"no."
"Send them all away. It's too noisy, and the palace will definitely notice."
"By then, not only will it arouse unnecessary suspicion, but I'm afraid they'll send even more difficult people."
She looked at Gu Junze, her eyes clear and firm.
"We can't do that."
Gu Junze frowned: "What should we do then?"
Chu Ruohan pondered for a moment and had a plan in mind.
"Tomorrow, I will go back to the Chu family."
"Let's just say I'm getting heavier now. Although the elders in the mansion and the people from the palace have been taking good care of me, I still feel they're not as caring as my own family. I want to transfer some experienced people from my mother's family to take care of me."
"This reason is reasonable and logical, and the palace can't say anything."
"When the Chu family arrives, let them keep a close eye on them."
"There's no need to alert them. Just carefully observe their words and actions to see who's contacting the outside world and who's asking about things they shouldn't."
"If you really find something unusual, find a fault and send one or two away quietly."
"That way, the nails can be removed slowly and without being too noticeable."
As Gu Junze listened to her plan, the coldness in his eyes gradually dissipated, turning into approval and a hint of heartache.
He held her hand: "Thank you for your hard work."
Chu Ruohan held his hand back and smiled slightly: "For us, for the sake of the child, it's not hard."
The next morning
Gu Junze has already become a general appointed by the emperor himself, but he cannot avoid attending the morning court.
At the pilgrimage temple.
The emperor sat upright on the dragon throne, his expression showing no emotion.
The emperor verbally commended Gu Junze for his contribution in pacifying the border, and the reward was quite generous.
However, there was always a hint of criticism and dissatisfaction in the words.
In particular, when mentioning the conditions that Gu Junze and Duan Qingye discussed privately, the emperor neither explicitly agreed nor directly opposed it.
He just spoke vaguely and played Tai Chi.
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