Chapter 419: Steady and prudent
Bai Chengren's words were full of temptations.
Sang Zhixia's answers were all full of disdain.
After a few exchanges, Bai Chengren's already ugly face turned completely pale.
Sang Zhixia was clearly sitting on the territory controlled by others, but she had the arrogance of a latecomer. Anyone who was not blind could see that she did not take the Governor of Shu seriously at all.
Chen Xiu, who originally wanted to explain, was completely speechless.
Sang Zhixia, however, began to take the initiative and refused to give in: "It's strange to say."
"I was just wandering around the woods with my guards, but the Governor's subordinates, upon seeing me, became furious and accused me of collusion with a wanted criminal. They insisted on my confession and execution, and demanded that I reveal the criminal's whereabouts."
"I'm just an ordinary, humble commoner. I only regret that I don't have the ability to predict the future. I was left speechless and unable to say a single word. I was forced to be taken here."
Sang Zhixia spoke with a hint of anger. The teacup lid she had been playing with for a while suddenly slammed to the ground, shattering porcelain all over the floor with a sound like ice hitting ice. "I came here to ask for details, so I can get the truth."
"There's no reason. How did I end up colluding with the wanted criminal? How did I become the suspect? Otherwise, I'm really uneasy."
Bai Chengren glanced at Chen Xiu, whose face was pale.
Chen Xiu quickly mustered up the courage to walk over and talked about this for a long time.
After Chen Xiu finished speaking, as if to encourage himself, he glared at Sang Zhixia and said through gritted teeth, "You only claim to be innocent, but why did you appear there with people for no reason?"
"You are clearly..."
"Oh, so it's a sin to appear?"
Sang Zhixia tutted her tongue comically and challenged, "Are there some unbreakable rules in Shu that could be considered a grave sin just by casually breaking them?"
Chen Xiu was furious: "You...you are just making excuses!"
"So you took it?"
Sang Zhixia sneered disdainfully and said slowly, "Forgive my poor eyesight, but I can't see where it is at the moment."
"You...I..."
"alright."
Bai Chengren interrupted Chen Xiu's shouting and squinted his eyes and asked, "Where's the seal?"
Before Sang Zhixia could reveal her identity, Bai Chengren said sinisterly, "This is Shu. Do you know the consequences of shielding a criminal and deceiving me?"
Sang Zhixia casually took off the thing hanging around her neck and threw it at Bai Chengren: "Governor, please look carefully."
Seeing Bai Chengren grabbing the private seal and examining it, Sang Zhixia said subtly, "I don't know what the consequences are for offending the Governor-General in Shu, but I know that the general who holds this seal is not someone you can easily get along with."
"Right and wrong depends entirely on how you, the adults, think about it."
Sang Zhixia was right about the first thing she said when she entered the room.
Chen Nianhe and Bai Chengren are not familiar with each other and have a very bad relationship.
To be precise, Chen Nianhe holds a large number of troops and is someone that all parties want to win over, but he is also a person with thorns in his eyes. He is a thorn in the side and dislikes most people he meets. He has a bad relationship with everyone.
But almost no one in the court, whether it was the Beijing officials or the local officials, dared to offend him.
Chen Nianhe is really troublesome and difficult to deal with.
Bai Chengren looked at the genuine seal in his hand and was silent for a while. There was a look of consideration in his eyes. He stared at Sang Zhixia and said solemnly, "Who are you to Chen Nianhe?"
"What are you doing in Shu?"
Sang Zhixia held out her hand and waited for Bai Chengren to return the seal to her, then answered casually, "Sir, is this important?"
"We've never met before, and this is the first time we've met. Why should I describe it in such detail?"
"If you don't tell me, I can't determine your relationship with the wanted criminal."
Bai Chengren shook his head in feigned helplessness and sighed, "Even if you have a close relationship with Chen Nianhe, I can't risk letting a wanted criminal go and let you go."
"Who said I was leaving?"
Sang Zhixia raised the corner of her lips, half smiling, and said lazily, "I have no intention of leaving until I get the justice I deserve."
"I came here today not just because I was falsely accused."
"Lingchu, you say."
Ling Chu, who had been following quietly, understood and stood up. He saluted without being too respectful and said meaningfully, "My master had just arrived in Shu and was here to buy land deeds and provide porridge for disaster relief. He was originally trying to do good deeds and accumulate virtue for the people. Who would have thought that he would be robbed here in broad daylight and was taken abducted to Huwei Mountain."
Bai Chengren's heart skipped a beat when he heard the words "Huweishan".
The sarcasm on Sang Zhixia's lips gradually deepened. She waved her hand to signal Ling Chu to step back and said slowly, "It's just my luck."
"After the robbers succeeded, they didn't realize I was awake. They took me into the city and up the mountain at night, and along the way they said a lot of gossip that I shouldn't have heard."
Sang Zhixia paused deliberately, then slowly spoke as Bai Chengren's expression changed suddenly, "There's quite a bit of unpleasant talk in there, seemingly about the Governor-General's close relationship with the Tiger Power Stronghold's leader."
"Even hearing such obscene words and gossip like these makes my heart tremble. I mistakenly think I've misheard something, and I'm afraid that a careless word will bring disgrace to your reputation."
"What do you think, Governor?"
The moment Bai Chengren heard about Hu Weishan, he knew something was wrong. He paused for a moment and said with a dark face, "How can we take these robbers' nonsense seriously?"
"You say that because you suspect that I have any dealings with the robbers?"
Sang Zhixia shrugged irresponsibly and scoffed, "How could that be?"
"Slandering an official of the imperial court is a serious crime. Without solid evidence, I dare not speak such specious and half-truthful words."
"It's just that bandits are rampant in Shu. I can't rest in broad daylight. I was robbed inside the city and was said to be a wanted criminal outside the city. When I think about what happened, I feel really anxious and scared."
"How about asking Your Excellency to grant me some protection? Until the truth is fully understood, I can stay with Your Excellency for a while, so that I won't be disturbed again. What do you think?"
When Bai Chengren interrogated him as he had expected, there was no trace of Sang Zhixia's panic.
On the contrary, Sang Zhixia was steady and cautious, and every word he said was aimed at Bai Chengren's heart, and each sentence was more cruel than the last.
Every word is carefully crafted.
Bai Chengren went from being indifferent at the beginning to being extremely anxious now. The look he gave Sang Zhixia on the face made him wish he could turn it into a knife and peel off Sang Zhixia's skin and bones.
"He's cunning and articulate, and despite his young age, he's gifted with a deft tongue."
Sang Zhixia smiled calmly, and noticed the ruthlessness that flashed across Bai Chengren's eyes, and her eyebrows raised slightly.
Are you planning to silence me now?
Xu Yu was right. This person is indeed brainless and only knows how to be simple and crude.
Bai Chengren suppressed his anger and acted understanding. He ignored the anxiety in Chen Xiu's eyes and said with a smile, "If that's the case, then it's mostly misunderstandings."
"However, your concerns are not without reason. A girl traveling alone with a few guards is indeed vulnerable to the influence of the salt rioters. It is appropriate for her to stay here."
Sang Zhixia just smiled and said nothing.
Bai Chengren said to himself, "I'm here to arrest the wanted criminal. Why don't you stay here for a while and have some peace and quiet?"
"Once the whole story is clear, I will slowly explain to you the bandit incident you mentioned, so that you can be cleared of all charges. What do you think?"
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