Ling Feng nearly popped his eyes out, "What?"
Mu Houchu’s cold eyes swept over him, "Do you have a problem?"
"No, no, no! I do not dare, I will get it ready right now!" Ling Feng felt the chill run up his spine, he quickly agreed.
——
In the mansion of Le Yuanhou.
When Xin He returned, a little maid had been waiting at the door, exclaiming anxiously, "Miss, you are finally back. Lord Marquis has been waiting for you."
Xin He felt a moment of apprehension in her heart, and quickly hurried inside.
In the hall, Le Yuanhou sat at the head of the table, his face somewhat dark.
Upon entering, Xin He paid her respects, "Greetings, father."
Le Yuanhou spoke in a low voice, "You stayed with Mu Houchu all night, do you know how much this can damage your reputation?"
Xin He maintained a calm expression, very slightly lowering her head, "Daughter knows, but his life was hanging by a thread, and I couldn’t feel at ease."
Le Yuanhou responded helplessly, "Why do you fancy a man like him?"
Xin He raised her head, "He got injured yesterday because of me. If I ignore his circumstances, wouldn’t that make me an unkind and unjust person? Father, wouldn’t want me to act like that, would he?"
Her reply left Le Yuanhou speechless, he waved his sleeve, "You!"
Xin He suddenly knelt on the ground, "Daughter does not wish to resist Father’s wishes, but I also don’t want to give up what I believe in. In fact, Mu Houchu and I knew each other from Lian’an Town, at that time..."
Xin He hesitated for a moment, then said, "We should have been married long ago."
Le Yuanhou’s eyes widened, "What?"
"Because Gongsun Yi suddenly rebelled, our wedding did not take place. I understand what kind of person he is. Since I have already decided on him, I don’t want to change, nor can I change." Xin He said decisively.
Le Yuanhou finally sighed helplessly, "Alright, in the past sixteen years, I knew nothing about you, how could I interfere more in your affairs?"
Only then did Xin He smile, "Thank you, father."
Le Yuanhou helped her up, then asked, "Were you injured last night?"
"No."
"Dali Temple has already sent someone to question the circumstances. It seems that the Emperor wants to investigate the matter." Le Yuanhou expressed his doubts. How did the black bear ignore everyone else and only target Xin He?
Xin He pursed her lips, then said, "I understand, I will handle it."
"Hmm, this matter must be thoroughly investigated! Otherwise, doesn’t it make Le Yuanhou Mansion a soft persimmon in the eyes of others?" Le Yuanhou said.
When Xin He returned to her courtyard, she told Shulan to take the clothes she wore yesterday to Dali Temple as well as information about the little palace maid she bumped into, waiting to see what Dali Temple would discover.
Even though she had already changed her skirt by the time of the bear’s frenzied attack, and the cause of the bear’s mania was unknown, she was still unwilling to give up on any potential clues. She had to know what kind of game was going on behind the scenes.
——
In a hidden room, the shadowy figure swallowed by the dim light was invisible. His face was obscured by a large cloak.
The door was abruptly opened, and a man walked in briskly, bowing and saying, "Master."
The cloaked figure suddenly kicked the man’s chest. The man grunted, knocked over by the kick but unable to utter any words of protest, and bowed again, "My mistake, please punish me, Master."
"What is your life worth compared to Mu Houchu’s? And yet he is still safe and sound. Is this your result?"
The man lowered his head in defeat, "I did not expect that Mu Houchu could know a thing or two about that secret technique. The last shot hit the black bear right between the eyebrows. Otherwise, he would most likely have died under the bear’s bite already."
"I want results, not your excuses."
The man gritted his teeth, speechless. All he could do was kneel and kowtow deeply, "Please punish me, Master!"
"Useless! You failed to kill him this time and instead alerted the snake. Mu Houchu, being as wise as he is, wouldn’t not investigate thoroughly this time, would he? Do you think your death will serve any purpose? Dali Temple has already started to thoroughly investigate this matter. There must be an explanation for this."
"Rest assured, Master. Isn’t there still Princess Chaoyang that can be used as a scapegoat?"
"Go and handle it. As long as the investigation leads to Princess Chaoyang, that is enough. If there is any leak in this matter, use the lives of your entire family to atone!"
The man shivered all over and bowed, "Yes!"
——
The sudden rampage of the black bear and its violent attack provoked the Emperor’s wrath. The court and people were on edge, and the personnel of Dali Temple were being extremely careful and thorough in their investigation.
Three days later, Liu Shaoqing, the junior officer of Dali Temple, suddenly reported that a substance called "make-up powder" was found on Xin He’s clothing. This substance induces rage in black bears.
The Emperor immediately issued an order to thoroughly investigate who owns this substance. Not only the palace, but also outside the palace must be searched.
Everyone felt threatened as whoever was found with the substance would be considered the murderer. Although many people came to the palace to congratulate the Imperial Concubine on her birthday that day, they were all registered. Nobody could escape. Furthermore, the make-up powder was rare. It would not be difficult to trace it if a thorough investigation was undertaken.
Only then did Princess Chaoyang become anxious, "It won’t really trace back to me, will it?"
"Don’t panic, princess. I have gotten rid of that substance. There will be no traces left. This matter will definitely not trace back to you!"
Chaoyang finally felt slightly reassured. But, she could still not curb the trembling in her voice, "Go bring some incense sticks. I’m worried that there’s a residual scent in the room."
"Yes."
——
Prime Minister’s Mansion.
After a few days of rest, Mu Houchu was already able to get out of bed. Looking at the process of Dali Temple’s investigation as reported by Ling Feng, an icy chill unconsciously spread across his face. "So, Dali Temple is investigating based on the make-up powder found on the dress?"
"That’s right."
Mu Houchu scoffed, "I knew the investigation on Dali Temple’s side would not reveal anything."
Completely deviating from the correct path for investigation, how could the real truth be uncovered?
However, was it an unintentional deviation or an intentional one? This was unknown.
"I have secretly started an investigation from Old Man Chen."
"Keep investigating!" Mu Houchu tossed the booklet onto the table, his expression becoming cold. Whoever dared to harm him, was bold indeed.
"Yes."
While they were still talking, a young maid’s voice came from outside, "Minister, Lady Li is here."
Mu Houchu’s face stiffened. He turned around and went back to the bed again, "Why haven’t you invited her in?"
Ling Feng’s mouth twitched involuntarily. You’re already able to get out of bed, but you’re still pretending to be frail to win sympathy?
Mu Houchu’s cold eyes swept over Ling Feng.
Ling Feng quickly retreated.
When Xin He came in holding a tray, she said, "How could I hear that you haven’t taken your medicine yet? It’s already noon, any procrastination could worsen your injury."
Mu Houchu lay on the bed, "Hmm, I forgot."
He was waiting for her to come and feed him the medicine.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
