Lure the snake out of its hole
With the arrival of the twelfth lunar month, the end of the year was fast approaching. Xuan Gui's trade negotiations with the Western Regions went surprisingly smoothly, without the slightest setback. Now, only the task of finding the traitor within the army remained.
Inside the main tent, Lin Kong pushed a file in front of Ling Yuan: "Yuan'er, the investigation is complete. Wang Chong is the person in charge of purchasing seeds for military farmland."
Ling Yuan frowned; the name was completely unfamiliar.
“It was only brought up in the last two years,” Lin Kong explained. “The key isn’t him, but that there must be bigger fish in the military.” He paused. “However, now that we have the ledger, there are definitely people who are more anxious than us.”
Just then, the guards brought Wang Chong in. As soon as he saw Ling Yuan and Xuan Gui, his legs went weak and he knelt down, kowtowing repeatedly.
Ling Yuan didn't beat around the bush: "Tell me, who's up there?"
Wang Chong, tears streaming down his face, cried out, "Your Highness, please understand! I only paid Chen Li; I truly had no idea who was in charge! Chen Li never mentioned this!"
Ling Yuan asked him to meet Chen Li, so the news of the stolen ledgers probably hadn't leaked out yet.
He ordered Wang Chong to tell Chen Li that the account book matter had been discovered, and that the person in charge had been traced back to him. He had concrete evidence and wanted to hand it over to Chen Li personally.
“If you don’t do as I say,” Ling Yuan’s voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling coldness, “your youngest son, who was born late in life, can forget about living.”
Wang Chong's face turned ashen, and he had no choice but to agree.
The Cui family mansion, a thousand miles away.
Cui Chong placed the secret letter on the table, his face ashen: "As expected, Prince Duan's purpose in going to the northern border was impure!" He turned to the Crown Prince, his tone reproachful, "Your Highness is foolish! How dare you use a fool like Chen Li?"
The Crown Prince's expression was also unpleasant: "He is a distant relative of the Crown Princess, who came to apply for a job. I assumed he was family..."
"One of our own?" Cui Chong sneered. "Now he's become our death warrant! If Prince Duan follows the trail and finds that person in the army, once he speaks up, embezzling military funds is a serious crime, and neither of us will escape responsibility!"
“Grandfather, don’t worry,” the Crown Prince hurriedly said, “The accounts do not specify where the money went. As long as Chen Li and that man in the army don’t speak, there is no evidence.”
“The northern border is far from the emperor's reach, and news takes twenty days to travel back and forth,” Cui Chong said. “The only solution now is to send people over there…”
In the courtyard, Yan Shu and A Yun were busy preparing for the New Year. A Yun's wedding was set for after New Year's Eve, and she insisted on making the phoenix crown herself, meticulously polishing each of the metal wires, velvet flowers, and tassels. She also wanted to embroider the wedding dress herself. The two of them were engrossed in needlework and fabric all day long, which gave Ling Yuan time to do his work.
Ling Ying secretly reported that Wang Chong had arranged to meet Chen Li the following afternoon.
The next day
Inside the carriage, Ling Yuan gave Wang Chong, who was trembling uncontrollably, his final instructions: "Once inside, you know what you should and shouldn't say. If there's no one inside, get out immediately. If that person shows up... be sure to stall them for half an hour."
Wang Chong nodded repeatedly, his face pale.
He alighted from the carriage and walked into the agreed-upon place. Half an hour later, Ling Yuan led his men straight in.
Chen Li initially tried to remain calm and shouted, "Who are you? How dare you trespass!" Ling Ying stepped forward and pinned him to the ground.
Upon seeing Lingyuan and Xuangui, the soldier turned to flee, but Qingfeng grabbed him and pulled him back. Lingyuan recognized the man's face; it was none other than Deputy General Qiao Ling.
Upon seeing the two, Qiao Ling instantly understood: "You two princes, I acknowledge you."
"Tell me who's behind this?" Ling Yuan pressed.
Qiao Ling whispered, "Your Highness, come closer. I want to speak only to you."
Just as Ling Yuan leaned closer, a fierce glint flashed in Qiao Ling's eyes, and she suddenly drew a dagger from her waist and charged directly at Ling Yuan!
"Your Highness, be careful!" Qingfeng instinctively stepped aside to block.
The dagger pierced Qingfeng's shoulder with a "thud." Lingyuan raised his foot and kicked Qiaoling hard in the chest, sending him flying.
"Seize them!" he shouted sternly. "Put these three in jail and keep them under strict guard! Once the capital sends back a reply, escort them back to the capital immediately!"
Qingfeng was seriously injured, so the group had no choice but to take him back to the courtyard.
Yan Shu was shocked to see Qingfeng with a knife stuck in his shoulder and a pale face. While hurriedly helping him get settled, she asked Ling Yuan, "What happened? How did you get hurt?"
Ling Yuan said, "He was injured while saving me. If it weren't for him, I would probably be in grave danger today."
The doctor who had been summoned carefully pulled out the dagger and cleaned the medicine. Ayun and Lingying were busy decocting the medicine, leaving only Lingyuan, Xuangui, and Yanshu in the room.
Yan Shu stared at Ling Yuan and pressed him again, "What exactly happened? Are you hiding something from me? Ling Yuan! You almost died! And I didn't know anything..."
Xuan Gui was about to speak when Ling Yuan shook his head at him. He sighed and finally confessed, "Our trip to the northern border is on the secret orders of my elder brother, the Emperor, to investigate a case of corruption in the army."
He looked at Yan Shu and continued, "I didn't tell you because I promised to take you away from the court's intrigues. It wasn't that I intended to deceive you, but... I didn't expect things to go wrong and cause Qingfeng to get hurt."
Hearing this, Yan Shu's heart sank. She felt anger, disappointment, and a sense of being fooled. Everyone had kept her in the dark; the peaceful life she thought she had was actually planned from the very beginning, not as simple as she had imagined.
She looked at Ling Yuan, her eyes slightly red, but ultimately said nothing and turned to leave.
Ling Yuan stood there, watching her departing figure, and could only sigh deeply.
For the next few days, Yan Shu refused to speak to Ling Yuan. This was the first time she was truly angry with him, angry that he had taken advantage of her trust, and angry that he had ruined the peaceful life she had carefully maintained.
Seeing that things couldn't continue like this, Ling Yuan cornered Yan Shu in the room and closed the door.
“It’s not about using her.” He pressed her shoulders, forcing her to look at him. “That day, I returned the Tiger Tally and asked my brother for permission to leave the capital. But my brother asked me to investigate this case, which is also related to the military’s land reclamation policy. Only by using our departure from the capital can we lower their guard. Besides, after investigating this case, we don’t need to return to the capital immediately.”
He spoke sincerely: "I chose this place for two reasons. First, my uncle can look after me, and second... I am familiar with it. Shu'er, my original intention remains unchanged. I only want to live a peaceful life with you."
Yan Shu listened to his explanation and gradually calmed down. Yes, he had even handed over his princely status and the tiger tally. Why would he have gone to such lengths if it weren't necessary? Moreover, if it weren't for Qingfeng, it would have been Lingyuan who was injured. The thought of this made her feel terrified.
“From now on…” her voice was muffled, “you can’t lie to me anymore.”
"Okay." Ling Yuan solemnly promised, "I will never lie to you again."
With the misunderstanding cleared up, a weight was finally lifted from my heart. Qingfeng's injuries were also slowly improving.
After the matter was settled, Xuan Gui was supposed to set off back to the capital, but Qing Feng was still injured, and if he left, he would have to spend New Year's Eve on the road.
"Let's just wait until we've had Ling Ying's wedding before we leave!" he laughed. "Let's make it more lively!"
Qingfeng was injured and had to take medicine every day. Ayun would watch the fire and fry it properly, and Lingying would personally bring it to him to feed him.
That day, A-Yun placed the medicine bowl on the table, not leaving immediately as usual. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she softly said to Ling Ying, "Brother Ying, I made two sets of wedding clothes by hand. I'll take your measurements later to see if they fit."
Looking into the gentle light in her eyes, Ling Ying recalled how busy she had been preparing for the wedding these past few days, and her heart warmed. She reached out and pulled her into her arms.
"Okay," he replied, his arms wrapped tightly around himself.
Ayun was taken aback at first, then leaned against his chest with a sweet smile.
The two of them just hugged each other, completely forgetting that there was someone on the bed who needed to take medicine.
Qingfeng watched anxiously as the bowl of medicine went from steaming hot to still, and finally couldn't help but speak up: "Gentlemen... could you please give me the medicine first? If you carry it any further, it will get cold again."
The two, still lost in their tender moment, snapped out of their daze and hastily separated. A-Yun's ears turned bright red, and she hurriedly shoved the medicine bowl into Ling Ying's hands. Ling Ying coughed lightly, took the bowl, sat down by the bedside, and carefully helped Qingfeng sit up.
Seeing them like this, Qingfeng couldn't help but laugh, even though his wounds still hurt. He drank his medicine and said to Lingying, "It's so nice to see you two like this. Don't worry, on your wedding day, I'll definitely prepare a grand gift that you'll never forget!"
Ling Ying held the spoonful of medicine to his lips, a smile in her eyes: "You should focus on healing your injury first, so you can stand up and drink at the wedding banquet later."
The room was filled with the aroma of medicine, but it couldn't mask the warmth of the atmosphere.
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