The next day, Tian Yu packed her things and returned to Qinyuan under the pretext of the autumn harvest. She hadn't seen Lvliu's child for several months, and the child had already started crawling. The child was chubby and very cute.
The rice harvest was similar to last year's, and the newly cultivated varieties also yielded a considerable harvest. Prince Wu specially arranged for people to help with the harvest, and the Crown Prince was also busy, ostensibly because he was worried about Tian Yu, but in reality he just sent people to keep an eye on Tian Yu.
Tian Yu summarized everything she had seen and heard during her time in the palace. The matter was quite complicated, but she finally understood why the Zhao family had been wiped out. At that time, the war in the northern frontier was intense, and Zhao Moyan's father, Zhao Zhongyi, and his two eldest sons, Mo Moqing and Zhao Mowu, were in charge of escorting supplies in the rear army. The Che Kingdom, which had always been on good terms with the Zhao family, turned against them and attacked the Wu Kingdom. The situation suddenly changed, and at that moment, the supplies that the Zhao family was escorting also ran into trouble. They were ambushed halfway, and everyone except the three members of the Zhao family survived. The supplies were also burned to ashes. Zhao Zhongyi was unable to defend himself. At this time, the soldiers found letters in the Zhao family's house that were secretly communicating with the Che Kingdom. In an instant, the Zhao family became traitors. The Wu Kingdom also suffered heavy losses because of this war, which led to the later incident of sending the crown prince as a hostage. What Tian Yu didn't understand was why, even though the grain and fodder were burned, the northern frontier was also defeated, and even the general who led the army that year was beheaded. The defeat was complete. If it weren't for the Chen Kingdom's military assistance, the Meng Kingdom would probably have wiped out the Wu Kingdom back then.
On the surface, it seems normal, but upon closer examination, four of the five countries seem to be involved, while only the Qiu Kingdom has no connection. According to the records in the book, Tian Yu deduced that the Qiu Kingdom was in the midst of internal strife at the time, and it is still unknown whether it was involved.
However, this conspiracy was only for the Zhao family, which doesn't seem plausible on the surface, because the Zhao family's power had already waned. Even though he was a veteran of three dynasties, Zhao Zhongyi had gradually weakened the Zhao family's influence in the court, maintained neutrality, and was known for his low profile and integrity.
Tian Yu used a logic diagram to display all the main clues to the mission. To prevent others from understanding it, she used letters instead of words, so only Tian Yu could understand the diagram. The person with the best relationship with the Zhao family at the time was Li Linfeng. According to records, it was Li Linfeng who led the search that found the evidence. Li Linfeng was also a close friend of Zhao Moyan's father; the two families had been friends for generations. So why was Li Linfeng the first to report the Zhao family after their incident? Tian Yu found this very strange. Also, regarding the group that came to the capital to assassinate them, Zhao Moyan and Prince Wu had never been able to find the mastermind. Although they suspected the Li family at the time, there was no evidence to prove it was them. Now, thinking about it, it was very likely not. The only clue was the complex diagram Tian Yu had seen, which she painstakingly recalled and roughly drew.
To clear up these doubts, Tian Yu took the song she had written to Yu Niang, hoping to get some information from her. She also handed Yu Niang the pattern she had drawn and said, "Have you ever seen this pattern before?"
"This? Didn't you ask me about this before?"
"I?!"
“Yes! You forgot, you wrote to me asking me to help you look it up.” Yu Niang got up, found the letter, and handed it to Tian Yu.
Tian Yu took the letter and saw that it was indeed her own handwriting, but the drawing was much better than hers. Yu Niang asked, "Do you remember now?"
Tian Yu found it strange, but still smiled and said, "I'm pregnant, so there are some things I can't remember. I think I wrote them down, but I can't recall them."
"I researched this pattern for a long time before I realized it was a totem from the Che Kingdom, which seems to be used in sacrificial rites, but the patterns inside don't quite match."
"During the sacrificial ceremony?"
"I'm not entirely sure about the specifics. I looked around again later, but I couldn't find any clues. However, a group of people recently came here, and I happened to see that they seemed to have this kind of tattoo as well."
When did this happen? How many people were involved?
"If I remember correctly, it was about two weeks ago when three people came. Because they were quite unusual, I paid more attention to them, and their behavior was definitely not like that of people from our area."
"Half a month ago?"
"Yes. That's right!"
"Alright, Yu Niang, don't inquire about this pattern for now. Remember, don't ask about it, and don't tell anyone, understand?"
"Don't worry, I understand!"
"That's good. If you ever find something is wrong, run away as soon as possible. You can also ask Prince Wu for help, understand?"
"I understand. It's impossible for things to always go smoothly in our line of work. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
After briefly instructing Yu Niang to keep an eye on the movements of officials in the court, Tian Yu left the brothel. Now heavily pregnant, she could no longer disguise herself, and she didn't want to hide. Knowing that someone was following her made her feel much safer, so she swaggered into the Yue Lai Restaurant. Huang Xuan happened to be there as well, and he pulled Tian Yu towards the kitchen. Qiu Ju stopped her angrily, saying, "Boss Huang, my wife is pregnant! Can you take responsibility if something happens to her?"
"Right, right, look at me, I almost forgot. Let's go upstairs to the private room and I'll ask the kitchen to prepare something delicious."
Supported by Qiuju, Tianyu went upstairs and sat down in a room by the window with a view of the street outside. Qiuju poured Tianyu a cup of tea, which Tianyu took a sip absentmindedly, her mind preoccupied with Yu Niang's words. She was pregnant, but she hadn't lost her memory. The letter looked like her handwriting, but she remembered never writing it. The person who wrote to Yu Niang was probably either Zhao Moyan or Prince Wu, but neither of them would imitate her handwriting; after all, she was a woman, and their handwriting was strong and powerful, something they couldn't possibly replicate. So who could it be?
"Tian Yu!" Prince Wu called out as he approached the room.
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