Having made a significant contribution, Li Xue immediately went to Lord Yao's residence after leaving.
After listening to Li Xue's story, Lord Yao pondered for a long time.
"In the capital, there are countless officials of the sixth rank, and most of them are young people."
The fact that this person was able to establish such a teahouse and offer it free of charge to officials demonstrates that the official was financially well-off, while younger officials simply lacked the capability.
Based on this, the official should not be too young, after all, this teahouse has been established for quite some time.
"I've almost fully recovered. Tomorrow I'll go to court and request a list of sixth-rank officials from the Ministry of Personnel."
Li Xue nodded and said:
"Then I'll trouble you, Lord Yao. I'll go to the teahouse again tomorrow to see if I can get more detailed information."
The following afternoon, Li Xue arrived at the teahouse on time.
Upon seeing Li Xue, Andor was very excited and said:
"I have already found out that the sixth-rank official's surname is Ma, and he is an official of the Court of State Ceremonial, specifically in charge of diplomatic affairs."
I also heard that this person's ancestral home is in Yuanxi, and he is a fellow townsman of yours, sir.
"That's great, Duo'er, you've worked hard. How old is this official?"
"He was over forty years old and had not been promoted for more than ten years, remaining at the sixth rank."
"Alright, thank you, Duo'er. This person is not young, and I am not familiar with him. Since he is from the Western Regions, my father should know him."
Having clarified the matter, Li Xue could no longer sit still and prepared to return home.
Andor was very surprised that the adults were leaving so soon after they arrived.
Li Xue smiled and said:
"In order to be with Duo'er forever, I am eager to go back and find out about this official."
I'll get to know him first, and then bring up this matter later.
Although my official rank is higher than his, it still feels inappropriate to bring this up as soon as we meet.
"So that's how it is," Andor nodded.
After Li Xue left, she did not go to Lord Yao's residence first, but went directly back to the Prince's residence.
My task is complete; I can now return to my daughter's outfit.
Just as she had changed back into her daughter's clothes, a servant came to inform her that the eldest prince's men had arrived and wanted to see the princess.
Upon hearing this, Li Xue immediately understood what was going on and couldn't help but laugh.
"Please come in."
Soon, the person was brought in.
"Greetings, Princess. I am the Crown Prince's personal guard, and I have come to ask you for a favor."
"Since you are the Crown Prince's personal guard, please speak freely."
"Lord Yao attended court today. I heard that his illness was cured by the princess."
According to the court officials, when Lord Yao was on his deathbed, many imperial physicians were helpless and thought he would not live more than two days. Unexpectedly, the princess cured him.
Some time ago, the eldest prince went to the countryside to observe the people's conditions and encountered mountain bees, leaving many scars on his body from being stung.
Since the princess was able to cure Lord Yao's illness, healing the eldest prince's scars shouldn't be a problem."
Upon hearing this, Li Xue laughed.
“Go back and tell the Crown Prince that I don’t know anything about medicine. Some time ago, I met an old Taoist priest when I went out.”
He was eating at a restaurant and had no money to pay, so I paid for his meal.
To express his gratitude, the old Taoist priest gave me a packet of tea, saying that this kind of tea could cure all diseases.
Whether it can cure all diseases, I don't know. After returning, I heard that Lord Yao was ill, so I remembered the tea that the old Taoist had given me and gave it to Lord Yao.
Later I heard that Lord Yao recovered from his illness, but I don't know if it was because he drank this tea.
I wonder if Lord Yao has finished this tea yet? Why don't you go to Lord Yao's residence and check?
If this tea really cured Lord Yao's illness, he would definitely give it to the Crown Prince.
"Alright, thank you, Princess. I'll take my leave now." The guard said and then left.
Seeing the guards leave, Li Xue couldn't help but smile. She planned to rest for a while before going to the Yao residence.
More than an hour later, seeing that it was about time, Li Xue had a servant drive her to the Yao residence.
Lord Yao had been waiting for Li Xue for some time. Upon seeing her arrive, he spoke:
"After the morning court session, I went to the Ministry of Personnel and obtained a list of sixth-rank officials of the imperial court."
After excluding the younger officials, there are still more than ten older officials left. We estimate that the person we're looking for is among these people.
“Lord Yao, Andor has already found out the official’s name. I wonder if Lord Yao knows him?” Li Xue said.
"The princess has already found out who that person is," Lord Yao said with delight.
"This person's surname is Ma, and he is over forty years old. I don't know if he is on the list."
Lord Yao immediately searched the list and soon found a middle-aged man named Ma Sibei, whose ancestral home was Yuanxi, and who was an official of the Court of State Ceremonies.
As a court official, a sixth-rank official could only be a regular clerk. Ma Sibei had been working in the Court of State Ceremonial for more than ten years without being promoted, which was quite pitiful.
"Princess, please look at the list. There is only one official named Ma Sibei, a sixth-rank official. Please check if this is the person on the list."
Li Xue took the list, glanced at Ma Sibei's resume, and couldn't help but laugh.
"That's right, it's him."
"I never expected there really was a spy in the imperial court. He had been lurking in the court for so many years without being discovered."
Fortunately, he was not a high-ranking official and had no opportunity to attend court. He was not involved in some important affairs of the Northern Dynasty.
Therefore, he had no choice but to resort to this method: extracting information from other court officials.
For so many years, he has kept a low profile and attracted no attention. He is a malignant tumor in the Great Northern Dynasty, and he is terrifying.”
“Lord Yao is right. What do you think we should do about this?” Li Xue asked.
"This matter is of great importance and we must see the Emperor immediately, but it is already late and we can no longer enter the palace."
It seems we need to find the Fourth Prince and have him take us to the palace to meet the Emperor.
"It seems that this is the only way. Let's go see Father first."
As the two were about to leave, Li Xue suddenly remembered something and asked:
"Lord Yao, did the First Prince's men come this afternoon?"
Lord Yao nodded and said:
“One of the Crown Prince’s guards has arrived. Fortunately, we had considered this matter beforehand.”
The old man told him that the princess had given him a packet of tea that could cure his illness, and that his condition had improved after drinking the tea.
The guard believed the old man's words without a doubt and took away the remaining half packet of tea.
During this time, only when I savor this tea did I think of the young prince. It's truly a pity that it was taken away.
Li Xue sighed and said:
"Tea can't cure diseases at all. It seems that the Crown Prince is grasping at straws in his desperation. This tea can only give the Crown Prince some psychological comfort, and has no other effect."
The Crown Prince's misfortune is entirely Heaven's punishment for him; it is retribution.
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