Chapter 9: Seeking Favor "I can't sleep well alone, and the room is cold."...
"What criminals?" He Jiuyue glanced at Wen Zheliu, not counting the criminal slaves right in front of him. "Haven't they all been dealt with?"
Chen Jin tacitly did not mention Wen Zheliu's current status as a slave, saying only, "This humble official doesn't know either."
"She's still working on her office work so late at night. She's a real hard worker."
Seeing He Jiuyue turn over and pile the quilt on him, as if he was going out immediately, Wen Zheliu's heart was pounding and he spoke timidly through gritted teeth.
"County...wife."
It was rare for him to call her "wife" on his own initiative. The string of tenderness and sweetness in He Jiuyue's heart was inexplicably touched. She tilted her head and paused with the hand that was covering her outer robe.
"What's wrong?" Her voice softened unconsciously.
Wen Zheliu twisted her fingers, her voice as light as the wind.
"I am alone, and I can't sleep well. The room is also cold."
What a clumsy way to curry favor. His colleague Xiaoqing had just tried this mistake last night.
Even Chen Jin, who had never touched a man's hand, could see it. She thought He Jiuyue would respond to Wen Zheliu the same way she rejected Xiaoqing. She was about to open the door to welcome He Jiuyue out, but she heard He Jiuyue's instructions.
"Chen Jin, bring me my armor."
Chen Jin was puzzled, but did as he was told.
He Jiuyue took the armor, which was worn but still shining in the candlelight, and hung it carefully on the head of the bed.
"This precious armor has been with me on the battlefield and is stained with a lot of blood. It has the effect of exorcising evil spirits." He Jiuyue put the armor in place and tucked the thick blanket that Wen Zheliu had fallen on his legs. He blew out the candle with a "whoosh" and said, "Don't wait for me tonight. Go to sleep."
Only after Chen Jin closed the door with a "creak" did Wen Zheliu break away from the faint smile on He Jiuyue's lips.
Oops, he was so busy admiring her heroic figure that he forgot to keep her! If the person caught was his eldest brother Wen Liuqing, wouldn't he be pushing his eldest brother into the fire pit with his own hands?
Perhaps He Jiuyue's words "sleep well" worked, Wen Zheliu was about to get up and chase after him, but his head felt dizzy again.
He Jiuyue closed the window before leaving. Although the room was a bit stuffy, it was indeed warm. Wen Zheliu put on He Jiuyue's robe, which still retained some warmth, and felt warm, and couldn't help feeling lazy.
He leaned against the headboard to rest for a while, but fell into a deep sleep as soon as he closed his eyes.
There was no snow today. The snow that had accumulated on the road a few days ago had been cleared. He Jiuyue whipped his horse and arrived at the Dali Temple in a moment.
She raised her hand to stop the waiter at the door from announcing the incident, knocked twice on the door, and then opened the Dali Temple study: "Guan Ze, why are you calling me here so urgently? Who did you arrest?"
Guan Ze is a patient person and always handles things slowly and leisurely. He must have something important to tell her that he is in such a hurry to call her.
Noticing He Jiuyue's entry, the woman in official uniform, who was resting with her arms folded and eyes closed, suddenly opened her eyes. She put on the glass mirror on the table and said, "There have been rumors in the capital lately that the princess has married another handsome man. I thought the princess really didn't care about government affairs anymore."
Knowing that Guan Ze was slow-talking but sharp-tongued, He Jiuyue didn't pay attention to her sarcasm.
"There are people watching me everywhere. You know who I'm acting like that for... Guan Qing, I'm lucky I'm willing to take the risk of being exposed. What exactly did you call me here for?"
"Don't worry, Princess. Please take a look at this letter first."
He Jiuyue flipped through it twice and found that it was actually a handwritten letter between Prime Minister Wen and the royal family of Xiyue.
"When the Wen family was imprisoned, didn't you search the Prime Minister's residence thoroughly? All the relevant evidence was sent to the Dali Temple, but you couldn't find any evidence of their correspondence. Where did you find this letter?"
"Strangely enough, this letter was sent by Wen Zheliu, saying he wanted to make amends for his crime."
"Hear the sound of willows being cut?" He Jiuyue frowned.
"It's him." Guan Ze paused. "Wen Zheliu currently resides in the Princess's Mansion. He asked the servants there to deliver this information. I thought you knew about it, but it turns out you don't? That makes it even more strange."
Guan Ze said this, pointing his finger at the area on the letter where the ink had smudged.
"The ink was originally blurred here, so I had it restored. Look, this is the Xiyue dialect for 'son is still safe'. Logically, the Prime Minister Wen and the Xiyue royal family only have a cooperative relationship. What does Xiyue mean by asking about her son's condition?"
"It's strange indeed."
He Jiyue thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps the people from Xiyue are using Wen Liuqing and Wen Zheliu to threaten Prime Minister Wen."
Guan Ze didn't quite agree.
"But Wen Liuqing studied under the same master as you. If there was anything unusual about him, you should be so alert and aware of it. Wen Zheliu...he was surrounded by attendants before and after he left the house. The only one who could get close to him was you, Princess. There was no reason for you to be caught."
He Jiuyue sat down on the wooden chair with a big horse and golden sword.
"Didn't they arrest someone? Where is he?"
Guan Ze nodded and ordered the servant waiting at the door: "Go to the prison and bring the prisoner up."
While He Jiuyue was drinking half a cup of tea, the criminal was brought up. He had small eyes and a pointed chin, and was actually a familiar face.
This person was Wen Zheliu's personal servant, Xiaoshun.
"I know everything, sir. If you're willing to let me go, I'll tell you everything!"
Xiao Shun recognized He Jiuyue's face. He used to call her "Master" outside, but when he saw her, he immediately changed his tone: "Princess, please spare my life, Princess, please save me!"
He Jiuyue slowly kicked away Xiao Shun's hand that was grabbing her boots like a mad dog.
"How much do you know about the Wen family's treason case?"
Xiao Shun's arm was held by the jailer, and there was a gleam of dishonesty in his eyes: "I guarantee you know more than you, Princess!"
He Jiyue felt uncomfortable listening to this flattering and stepping on her head, but in order to pry Xiao Shun open his mouth, she pursed her lips and said nothing, only saying: "Tell me."
"That Wen Zheliu is not the son of Prime Minister Wen!"
He Jiyue's fingertips tightened around the teacup: "What do you mean?"
Xiao Shun didn't notice her sudden chill in expression, and was only focused on talking about the gossip that had finally had a chance to see the light of day, with a lot of white saliva spurting out of his thick lips.
"I was raised in the Prime Minister's residence twenty years ago. At that time, there was no Wen Zheliu or his father in the residence. There were only Wen Liuqing, the Prime Minister, and Master Chen. Master Chen was frail and passed away a few years later.
"While escorting the coffin out of the capital for the funeral, I met a man who looked exactly like Master Chen!
"Hey, isn't that a coincidence? They're exactly the same!"
He Jiuyue didn't have the patience to listen to him go on.
"So what does this have to do with Wen Zheliu?"
"That's exactly what I was going to say! The man was holding a baby in his arms, and in front of him was a piece of cloth with four words clearly written on it: 'Selling Myself to Raise a Son'!"
After finishing the most exciting part, Xiao Shun glanced at He Jiuyue's cold expression and swallowed his saliva: "This child is the future Wen Zheliu. His father and Wen Xiang only met once at that time. Of course, he is not Wen Xiang's biological son!"
He Jiuyue spoke slowly.
"If what you say is true, and Wen Zheliu and his biological father were born later, why is it rumored that she only had one husband?"
"This... this little one doesn't know." Xiao Shun hesitated, "But I have told you everything I know, you can let me go... Uh!"
A cold light flashed in He Jiuyue's hand, and the dagger flew to Xiao Shun's throat in the blink of an eye, and blood spurted all over the ground.
"Princess, why did you kill him?" Guan Ze was directing people to record Xiao Shun's confession in court. Suddenly, he heard no sound from the other end. He looked up and found that Xiao Shun had twitched twice and died.
He Jiuyue raised her hand and asked Chen Jin to clean up the mess, and said in a cold voice.
"Nothing, he knows too much."
"More"? Guan Ze still felt that Xiao Shun's information was too little.
"Don't you usually not touch men? Why did you kill them so cruelly today? In my opinion, you are really acting abnormally. Are you trying to... silence him and cover up Wen Zheliu's past?"
He Jiuyue said nothing.
Guan Ze rolled his eyes: "He's just a man with a criminal record. You can't be in trouble..."
He Jiyue stood up suddenly: "This matter ends here."
"Princess, this can't end here, it's just the beginning!" Guan Ze shook her head like a rattle, and she counted on her fingers to argue with He Jiuyue.
"Wen Zheliu isn't the son of the former Prime Minister Wen Yu, so who is his biological mother? Is she related to Xiyue? Furthermore, it was only after Wen Zheliu's biological father, Chen Yi, appeared that the letters of treason began to appear. Chen Yi and Wen Yu's treason must be related!"
It's rare for Guan Ze to say so many words in one breath.
"My Lady, you are most familiar with the people of Western Yue. Wen Zheliu's biological father's body is still in the morgue. The coroner hasn't performed an autopsy yet, and the relevant evidence is well preserved. You will know if he is from Western Yue once you examine him!"
He Jiuyue did know a lot about the people of Western Yue, especially the royal family of Western Yue.
The Xiyue people have a special bloodline and have a lotus-shaped mark on their heads. However, the Xiyue people have thick hair, so the mark is usually covered by their hair and cannot be seen by ordinary people.
The royal family of Xiyue is even more secretive, and their lotus needs to be splashed with blood before it can be revealed.
There were often spies in the army. She had ordered Chen Jin to shave his head and test the soldiers, and she would even torture the soldiers who had their scalps gouged out.
But this time, she didn't want to know the answer at all.
"So what if it is? So what if it isn't? Could it be that Wen Zheliu's biological father was from Western Yue, and you still want to whip his corpse?"
He Jiuyue said coldly, "Guan Ze, we've concluded our investigation to this point. Wen Yu's collaborating with the enemy is a fact, and she was beheaded. Wen Zheliu's biological father, Chen Yi, was a suspect, but he's also dead. This matter ends here."
Guan Ze became ruthless and forgot about feelings when he was solving a case, and even dared to contradict He Jiuyue who was angry.
"Although Wen Yu and Chen Yi are dead, Wen Zheliu is still alive. If Wen Zheliu has the blood of Xiyue, we must be on guard! If you don't want to, then tell me how to verify it. I'm here!"
He Jiuyue pushed open the door and was greeted by a biting cold wind.
She hated the traitors, but all the members of the Wen family were dead, and the only living one was locked up in her house.
Even if Wen Zheliu's biological father is related to Xiyue, even if Wen Zheliu is related to Xiyue, what kind of trouble can he stir up under He Jiuyue's nose?
Wen Zheliu is the only one left. If anything is really found out, he will be the one to be punished.
But he was raised in the Central Plains since he was a child, spoke the Central Plains dialect, ate Central Plains food, and made friends with people from the Central Plains. He might not even know his own life experience. Just because his biological father was related to Xiyue, he was to be killed. How innocent was he?
"I heard that Yu was collaborating with the enemy, and his master was also suspected. His entire family was executed. I took pity on his young son, who was innocent, and rescued him to my mansion. That's the end of the matter."
Without waiting for Guan Ze to argue, He Jiuyue had already left.
She always loved to get to the bottom of things. When she was young, whenever she came across a concise and expressive poem, she would chase Wen Zheliu and ask the author why he didn't add a few more words. Wen Zheliu couldn't answer, and would pout and tell her to ask the deceased poet.
She ran to the library to look for books about the poet and read all her other works.
But this was the only matter she didn't want to investigate further.
Her childhood sweetheart of over ten years was the very person from Western Yue whom she hated the most? And he pretended to be so flawless that even she, who had been at war with Western Yue for years, couldn't see through it?
It's impossible. I don't even dare to write a storybook.
Feeling upset, He Jiuyue did not ride back home directly, but ran to the imperial mausoleum outside the capital and stayed outside to guard the late princess for a night.
Mother, should she thoroughly investigate Wen Zheliu?
The cold moonlight poured down like water. He Jiuyue wanted to compose poems, but he could only think of the sick beauty in the mansion who was as cold as the moon.
Could it be that she really fell for a man as Guan Ze said?
Chen Jin looked at He Jiuyue from afar, feeling sad and wanting to slap himself a few times.
If she had not conveyed Guan Ze's order, the princess would have been cuddling with Wen Zheliu at this moment, instead of running to the eldest princess to be exposed to the cold wind. It was she who forcibly dragged the princess out of the house, which made her sad.
Chen Jin was thinking about how to apologize so that He Jiuyue would punish her less severely, when she suddenly saw a carrier pigeon flying towards her house.
When she opened the letter and took a look, she was horrified.
"Princess, something happened in the mansion!"
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