Xin He sighed lightly, too lazy to speak more with this man. She tried to pull her hand away, but he unexpectedly tightened his grip, causing her to stumble and lean against his chest.
Steadily, Mu Houchu caught her, the corner of his lips curved in amusement. "What? Have you realized how good I am, and now you’re voluntarily throwing yourself in my arms?"
"You’re shameless!" Xin He pushed him off angrily, then hurriedly looked around to see if anyone had seen them.
Mu Houchu pinched her cheek. "Everyone outside is under my command. There’s no one else here at Mingyuhu today. Just look at how nervous you are. It’s not allowed for me to hold my own fiancée?"
"Is it that casual for the Grand Prime Minister to abuse his power?" Xin He raised her eyebrows.
"More to it, if you don’t let me abuse my power occasionally, what’s the point of being a prime minister? I’d rather be a farmer with you at Yangluo Bay." Mu Houchu laughed.
"Good, I don’t like staying in the capital anyway."
Xin He spoke lightly, but she knew life was not as free as they wished. She had her own compulsions in the capital, and Mu Houchu had his struggles. Now that they were caught in this whirlpool, it was not easy to escape.
She was not the kind of person who liked to escape.
But Mu Houchu suddenly became serious. "When we get married, shall we go back to Yangluo Bay?"
Xin He’s eyes flickered. "What?"
"Have you forgotten what I said before? If I can marry you, I would gladly give up this overwhelming power."
"But that would mean giving up your years of hard work..."
Everyone thought that Mu Houchu was cold and cunning, having worked his way from a commoner to his current status. But she knew that no one was born strong. He had walked all the way from having nothing to what he had now, expending countless efforts.
To give that up now? What a shame.
Mu Houchu squeezed her hand, smiling, "You are more important than that."
A warmth surged in Xin He’s heart, and she couldn’t help laughing. "Then I’m looking forward to it. I received a letter from Xiao Bei yesterday. He can write now. Although his writing is not good, he has made great progress. He mentioned that big brother is married now, and Xiao Cui has managed the house well. Big brother is also managing the shop and the small workshop in the village well. If we could go back one day, it would be perfect."
Mu Houchu softly said, "We will, I will make everything you want come true."
Everything she wants, he will give her. Because she is the treasure in his heart.
——
By the time they returned to the mansion, it was already late.
This time the one waiting at the mansion gate was not Shulan, as Xin He had specifically told her not to make a big deal about her leaving the mansion. Naturally, Shulan did not dare to wait at the mansion gate.
When Xin He saw Xiaoyu waiting anxiously at the mansion gate, her face fell.
If Xiaoyu was waiting here in such a rush, it seemed Lady Sun had made a move.
Xin He got out of the horse carriage, and quickly walked into the mansion, asking in a low voice, "What’s wrong?"
Xiaoyu looked slightly anxious. "This servant has been keeping an eye on Lady Hou’s movements. This morning, an unfamiliar servant was called into Lady Hou’s courtyard. I don’t know what her intentions are."
"Unfamiliar?"
"I’ve been at the Hou Mansion for ten years. Although there are many servants, I recognize all of them. But this man, I’ve really never seen before. Recently, the Hou Mansion has not purchased new servants. But this man was dressed as a servant of the Hou Mansion. I found it suspicious." Xiaoyu explained.
Xin He paused, "Where did the man go afterwards?"
"I recalled that you had mentioned needing to find Li Saner. So I had Shulan go to Qinghe’s shop specifically to find Li Saner, so he could keep an eye on the man’s movements. I was in a hurry to tell you, so I waited for you at the mansion gate." Xiaoyu explained.
Xin He nodded, "You did well. Let’s wait for the news from Li Saner first. There’s no rush."
"Yes."
While they were talking, they had already arrived at the Glazed Tower.
Seeing Xin He returning, Shulan hastily poured her a cup of tea. "Miss, you’re back. Shall we prepare dinner?"
"I had something to eat just now. I’m not very hungry. Let’s wait."
She didn’t know what storm was coming tonight. Preparing for it now might be a waste.
"Where’s Lord Marquis? Was he in the mansion today?" Xin He remembered someone saying that Le Yuanhou was drunk last night. She knew he was heartbroken and couldn’t help but worry about him.
"Lord Marquis left early this morning. I’m not sure if he went to Dali Temple or... the Hanlin Academy." While speaking, Shulan hesitated, as if she was unsure of how to word it.
"What’s he doing at the Hanlin Academy?" Xin He was startled.
Wasn’t he often going to the Dali Temple a few days ago, mainly because of the black bear case? Why did he suddenly go to the Hanlin Academy?
Shulan lowered her voice, "This servant heard that Lord Marquis seems to be planning to impeach Prime Minister Mu."
Xin He’s eyebrows furrowed, "Why?"
Shulan began to stutter, as if not sure if she should speak.
"Speak!"
Only then did Shulan continue, "It seems that he wants to join with a group of critics to impeach Prime Minister Mu, claiming that he’s a rebellious minister and traitor. I heard that they have already obtained some evidence." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
A shadow crossed Xin He’s eyes, "Really?"
If this was true, Mu Houchu should have known. She had seen how widespread his sources in the capital were. If Le Yuanhou was gathering evidence with a group of critics to impeach him, Mu Houchu would have known in advance. But when she met him today, he only mentioned having offended Le Yuanhou.
He didn’t mention this matter at all. Did he want to deliberately hide it from her? There’s no need. Why hide such a thing?
Given his temperament, if he didn’t mention something, it was likely that it wasn’t worth mentioning.
Xin He was pretty confident in Mu Houchu. He had been in the imperial court for so many years and had seen all kinds of big winds and waves. She didn’t care much about this matter.
But what puzzled her was...
"Where did you hear this from?"
Shulan was taken aback before responding, "This servant heard it in the mansion today, from the servants discussing."
"Why haven’t I heard this discussion?" She found it suspicious that even Shulan, who always keeps away from the affairs of the world, knew about it, while she didn’t.
Shulan hurriedly explained, "This servant... This servant heard today that Wei Popo has gotten some new patterns from Liufuxuan. I went there to get a copy to embroider a fragrance pouch for you. That’s when I heard Wei Popo mention it."
"Wei Popo?"
Xiaoyu stepped forward and said, "She’s one of Lady Hou’s servants."
"In this mansion, the only one allowed to freely leave the mansion is Wei Popo. If the servants want to get the new patterns, they can only get them from her. This has always been the rule." Shulan explained obliviously.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
