Chapter 75
"Bang!" The sudden sound from the main seat attracted everyone's attention, including Lin Xing and Fu Chou. They saw the prime minister standing up, with a conspicuous dark spot on his light-colored clothes. At his feet was a fallen wine jug and a trembling dancer.
Even so, the music in the room did not stop. It was unknown what the prime minister and the dancer said to each other. The two walked out side by side. Lin Xing's sight lost focus as their figures disappeared.
Fuchou suddenly held up the wine glass and fed it to her mouth. Lin Xing was unable to react for a moment and drank it obediently. As the wine in the glass decreased, Fuchou moved closer and closer to her until the glass was empty. A fragrant breeze hit Lin Xing's ears, "My lord, although this is the Prime Minister's Mansion, you can fall into a trap if you are not careful."
Lin Xing's first reaction was that she didn't understand what she was saying. Before she could ask in detail, Fu Chou had already walked away from her and looked at her with a smile.
Naturally, the Prime Minister's sudden departure was also noticed by Shen Ling and Yu Hang, but they were surrounded by dancers at the moment. Yu Hang wanted to push them away, but his revealing clothes made it difficult for him to do so. Shen Ling, on the other hand, was like a fish in water, and continued to drink one cup after another.
The dancer who came from nowhere walked up to Lin Xing, bowed to her and said, "My lord, the Prime Minister wants to talk to you alone."
The sudden words startled Lin Xing, and she took this opportunity to hide in the crowd with her silk, and disappeared. After adjusting her state, she smiled and said, "It's been a long time since I last saw the Prime Minister. Lead the way, young lady."
Then she stood up and patted her dress to smooth out the wrinkles. Just as she was about to leave, a pair of hands held her back. Lin Xing gently pressed her down, "Yun Duo, I'll be back soon. Go tell Lord Yu and Lord Shen about this, so they won't worry about me."
Yun Duo couldn't continue to stop them, so she lowered her head and agreed. Until the two of them walked out of the door, no dancer cast a curious look at them. She thought of Xun Huan's words just now, as if they were the only ones in the banquet hall who didn't know what was being performed.
After Lin Xing walked some distance away, the door was closed silently and the sound of drums became deafening.
They walked a long way, and Lin Xing looked at the changing scenery around her and asked, "Sister, how far do we need to go?"
The dancer in front of her didn't even turn her head and said in a businesslike tone: "The backyard is indeed a little far away, but it's almost there, not far ahead."
"Sister, what's your name? How long have you been in the Prime Minister's Mansion?" Lin Xing trotted a few steps to catch up with the dancer. The dancers in the mansion were all tall, and she could only look up to stare into the dancer's eyes.
"This..." The dancer hesitated for a moment, then came up with a vague answer, "Qingchou, it's been a while."
A leaf brushed against the back of Lin Xing's hand. She didn't argue and asked, "Then do you know what kind of flowers are planted in the mansion?"
The dancer didn't expect the topic to change so quickly. After a moment of silence, she said, "Mostly chrysanthemums, but I'm not sure about the details."
This is the Xishi chrysanthemum, Lin Xing added silently in her heart. She had been sitting in Yu's house to appreciate the flowers every day during the past two days when it rained. Speaking of the rain, she was suddenly surprised to find that the backyard did not feel like it had just rained. All the paths that could be walked on were paved with pebbles, and the rest of the open space was planted with chrysanthemums.
Just as Qingchou said, they were almost there. They were so close that before Lin Xing could continue to inquire about the information, they had already stopped and said, "Sir, the Prime Minister is in the house."
As if to prove that she was not lying, the Prime Minister's voice came from behind the locked door, "Since Lord Lin has been brought here, Qingchou, you can go back first. Remember to serve the remaining two Lords well."
This was like a spell to Qingchou. She left in a panic and even forgot to respond to the prime minister in the house. Lin Xing stared at her back thoughtfully, then turned around and knocked on the door, "Is it convenient to enter the house?"
He asked even though he knew the answer, and his voice was not as cheerful as before. It was a subtle and sarcastic tone directed at the Prime Minister. He seemed not to have heard it, and laughed, "If it's Miss Lin, any time is convenient for you, please come in quickly, Miss Lin."
The words were so polite that he was reluctant to even open the door. Lin Xing snorted coldly and pushed the door open heavily. She stood outside the door without entering. The Prime Minister still said with a smile: "Miss Lin, what do you mean? Close the door and have some tea."
He still looks a little confused, as if he knows nothing. He is truly a natural actor.
Following his words, Lin Xing sat down in her seat, with her hands on her knees, "Just now the dancer said that the Prime Minister wanted to see me to reminisce about the past. I wonder what he wants to miss about Nan Ru?"
Prime Minister Song ignored her thorny words and said, "Miss Lin, you guessed wrong. I want to hear what you have to say about Quyang."
"Quyang? As far as I know, the Prime Minister did not go there recently."
The Prime Minister restrained his smile, tapped the table with his fingers, and said meaningfully: "I thought Lord Lin was a smart man. Now I see that he is indeed a smart man, but he is too stubborn. An official in the court should still know how to adapt."
"Humph," Lin Xing sneered and put a hand on the table, "The Prime Minister is talking about the flexibility of Sun Banfo and Lord Sun?"
For a moment, no one spoke in the room. Lin Xing was waiting for the prime minister, but the prime minister didn't know how to respond because he couldn't figure out her attitude. After all, this time he wanted to win Lin Xing over to join the group, and he had prepared various excuses, but she was so direct that it was beyond the prime minister's expectation.
"Haha, what's wrong with Prime Minister? Am I too serious?" Unlike his tone just now, this time he sounded like he was laughing sincerely.
"Miss Lin really knows how to joke. You are so young, do you think I would be scared by you?" The prime minister took a sip of the tea in front of him.
Lin Xing skipped the topic and asked, "What does the Prime Minister want to hear about Qu Yang?"
"I heard that there was a county magistrate in Quyang who worked hard but died a violent death. I wonder if Miss Lin knows the inside story of this matter?" Facing Lin Xing's offer, the prime minister smiled happily. In his mind, Lin Xing's question meant that she was willing to stand on his side.
"This is unfortunate. We were the ones who assisted the county magistrate in handling this matter, and we know the inside story very well. County Magistrate Zhao has done everything personally during his ten years in office, and the people loved him very much. Regarding his death..." Every time Lin Xing said a word in praise of County Magistrate Zhao, the prime minister smiled more deeply. The emperor had made a mistake. Even if he got rid of his men, there would always be a steady stream of people falling into the abyss of desire, and things would only get more prosperous in the future.
"I think he really deserves to die."
The spark of fantasy was extinguished, and he looked up in disbelief, meeting Lin Xing's smiling eyes.
"Lord Lin, are you confused? Do you know what you are saying?" His smile disappeared, his tone became flat, and his eyes were full of confusion. How could someone be so stupid?
"Of course I know that compared to me, the Prime Minister is the one who is not sober."
The unyielding but firm tone and provocative words made the prime minister go from puzzled to angry. He put the teacup back on the table, trying to make Lin Xing show a hint of fear. "I will give Lord Lin another chance. Do you think County Magistrate Zhao really deserves to die?"
“Damn it.”
Lin Xing slowly shook her head, "No matter how many times or when the Prime Minister asks, my answer will not change."
Obviously, these words would make people more angry, but Song Cheng calmed down instead. He no longer had the anger he had just shown. He said coldly, "Master Lin, you know that if I want, I can always replace the position of Shu Suan."
"Of course the Prime Minister has the ability to do this, but if it were as easy as you say, I wouldn't be sitting here."
Prime Minister Song chuckled twice and said, "But I can let you stay in the Prime Minister's Mansion forever." His casual tone showed that he regarded human life as worthless.
This sentence touched Lin Xing, and she became excited. She was so weak that she could only suppress the trembling of her voice. "I am now a female official invited to the capital by the emperor himself. The prime minister doesn't take me seriously, so I can start a big fire outside the city without any problem."
"Why ask questions when you already have the answer, Lord Lin? People shouldn't be too obsessed with the past." If Lin Xing hadn't mentioned this old story, he would have almost forgotten it.
It was less than a month before the fire was put out.
Thinking of the innocent people who died tragically, tears welled up in Lin Xing's eyes. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her eyes had regained their previous sharpness. "But some people stay in the past. It seems that the Prime Minister and I are destined to be different people. If I stand with you, your ruthlessness towards others will one day happen to me. Young Master Sun is still in Quyang, not knowing whether he is alive or dead."
"My kindness is as great as a mountain. Lord Lin, you must know that, right?" His expression did not show any reluctance, but only took it for granted. "But I promise Miss Lin that if you agree, I will never do this to you."
Lin Xing's eyes flickered. She picked up the tea on the table and poured it in front of the Prime Minister under his expectant eyes. She was too close to the Prime Minister and some water stains splashed on his clothes. Finally, Lin Xing did not forget to raise her eyebrows and smile at him, completely expressing her attitude.
She thought the Prime Minister would be furious, but no, the Prime Minister sat calmly, with no expression on his face, "Lord Lin, it's not too late to give me an answer after you know everything about the person you trust."
Lin Xing said coldly: "To sow discord."
"That's not the case. Take Lord Shen for example. Do you know why Lord Yu hasn't caught up with him yet?" He looked sincere. If Lin Xing hadn't already seen what kind of person the Prime Minister was, she would have been shaken by him.
Prime Minister Song continued to add, "Lord Lin thinks I am ruthless, but do you know that Lord Yu, whom you trust, is also like this? Not only him, but which person in a high position is not like this? The emperor is no exception."
"you…"
"I know you don't believe me and think I'm making it up." The prime minister pushed the bamboo slips that had been forgotten on the table forward. Lin Xing did not move, and even turned her head away from him. The prime minister simply threw it directly in front of her table.
It seems that no one has been in this room for a long time. The bamboo slips fell on the table, stirring up the accumulated dust, causing Lin Xing to frown. She didn't want to look at the bamboo slips, but an unintentional glance made her notice a line of large characters on it, "On the eighth day of the ninth month, Yu Hang, the inspector, assassinated the magistrate of Pingshan County under the order of the emperor."
She glanced down and saw the same words everywhere.
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