Chapter 113 A Clue Has Been Found... Could it be that he...?
During this period of getting to know each other better, he at least had time to prepare and to better plan their future together.
When he realized he couldn't be rational in front of Zhilan, he tried to make amends by suggesting that they not rush into marriage and wait until everything was settled and the country was prosperous before putting the wedding on the agenda.
After all, both of them are currently in the early stages of their relationship, and there are more important things to do than romance.
After Ke Zhilan revealed her feelings, her first reaction was to ask him to enter the palace and become her phoenix prince, which left him speechless.
If he makes his rejection too obvious, it might make Zhilan mistakenly think that he is not sincere enough, that he doesn't need her, and that he has never considered growing old with her.
Fu Yun was caught in a dilemma, pondering how to communicate with Zhi Lan in a way that would both demonstrate his sincerity and resolve their current predicament.
He couldn't help but inwardly berate himself for his lack of self-control, wondering how he could not maintain any rationality in front of Zhilan.
Now it's all messed up; there's no choice at all, and every choice has a problem.
He took a deep breath, looked directly at Zhilan, his expression solemn, and spoke slowly: "Right now, we both have many things to do. Could you give me some time to consider entering the palace?"
Zhilan frowned slightly, clearly puzzled: "The two are not contradictory. After you marry me, my guards will be at your disposal, and they can do anything for you."
Fu Yun sighed, "No, I meant..."
"My lord, I have something important to report."
Just as Fu Yun was racking his brains about how to accurately express his thoughts to Zhi Lan, a voice suddenly rang out from two meters behind him.
Fu Yun secretly breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look. She saw Ye Lan, dressed in a black outfit, leap down from the roof of a house and stand in front of Zhi Lan in a few steps.
She leaned forward slightly, lowered her eyes, and bowed with her hands clasped in greeting: "Greetings, Master."
Zhilan: "What is it?"
Night Blue: "Reporting to Master, we have found a clue."
Zhilan's gaze lingered on Fu Jun's face for a moment, and seeing that his attention had shifted to Ye Lan, she looked away, her eyes turning slightly cold as she looked at Ye Lan: "Speak."
Ye Lan immediately sensed the unusual atmosphere, secretly glanced at Zhi Lan, then quickly looked at Fu Jun, and belatedly asked, "It seems I've arrived at the wrong time?"
Zhilan gave her a cold glance, as if silently conveying, "What nonsense are you spouting?"
Ye Lan guiltily raised her hand, pointed behind her, and said weakly, "Then I'll go first and come back when you're finished talking?"
Fu Yun touched his nose, trying to appear calm, and said, "The important matter is definitely the priority. We can talk about the rest after we're done!"
Without even looking at Zhilan's expression, he suggested, "Since you have important matters to attend to, I'd like to excuse myself for a moment."
Before Fu Yun could even turn around after speaking, Zhi Lan said, "No need, you already know about this."
She casually pointed to a small stone block in front of a house next to the alley: "Don't go too far, just wait here."
Unable to refuse Zhilan's request, Fu Yun had no choice but to move a few steps to the side of the road and wait.
This alley is very deep and narrow, with houses for people to live in on both sides. There are no shops or stalls, so it is relatively quiet and there is very little foot traffic.
When Zhilan saw Fu Yun waiting obediently to the side, the coldness in her eyes dissipated slightly.
She asked Ye Lan, "Did you catch anyone?"
Ye Lan nodded and truthfully reported: "Reporting to Master, I have secretly investigated and found that the behavior of the people in several houses ahead is rather unusual."
Zhilan made a quick decision: "Let's go, let's go take a look."
Ye Lan quickly replied, "Yes."
She glanced at Fu Yun: "Master, will Young Master Su stay here and wait, or will he come with us?"
Zhilan beckoned to Fu Jun: "Come here."
Fu Yun didn't say anything, but stepped forward to meet him.
The three arrived at the door of one of the houses. Ye Lan raised her hand and gently knocked on the door, then stepped aside to make room for Zhi Lan.
With a creak, the wooden door opened from the inside, revealing Liu Lan's solemn face.
Upon seeing Zhilan outside the door, she was startled and immediately bowed hastily, saying, "Greetings, Master."
Zhilan glanced at Liu Lan, her face expressionless, and asked, "Are the people inside under control?"
Liu Lan nodded hurriedly, replying as she walked, "Reporting to Master, they are all tied up in the courtyard."
Zhilan stepped into the house, and Yelan followed her in.
Fu Yun pondered for a moment, then decided not to go in and waited at the door.
Zhilan glanced back at Fu Jun, gesturing for him to come inside.
Liu Lan stared wide-eyed in astonishment at the sight, her face showing shock.
Her gaze fell on Fu Jun, and the surprise and inquiry in her eyes were self-evident.
Fu Jun was also somewhat taken aback, thinking that Zhi Lan had only asked him to come along because she was worried about leaving him alone in the alley.
After all, Ye Lan had said earlier that it was an important matter, and it wouldn't be appropriate for him to get involved.
Given Zhilan's cautious nature, this situation should not have occurred.
But she never treated him like an outsider, and would say anything directly to his face.
Fu Yun wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that if he wasn't under Zhi Lan's watchful eye, she was afraid he would run away.
"Go in! Don't worry your master," Ye Lan whispered a reminder to Fu Jun, who was slightly lost in thought.
Fu Jun quickly replied, "I'm here."
As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he heard Zhilan ask Liu Lan, "Is there anything unusual about this family?"
Fu Yun subconsciously looked up and saw five people kneeling and crawling in the open space in the center of the courtyard: a young couple, an elderly woman, and two little girls around ten years old.
"Reporting to Master, they clearly have a well at home, but they deliberately take a long detour to fetch water from the river."
Upon hearing this, Zhilan frowned, walked to the well, and observed it silently for a moment before saying, "It looks no different from an ordinary well. Have you sent someone down to check?"
Ye Lan stepped forward: "We've checked, and we haven't found anything suspicious."
Zhilan then asked, "Are there any other clues?"
Ye Lan said, "Yes, there are more than ten households in this alley with their own wells, which is quite rare in our Lingzhou City."
“That’s right.” Zhilan agreed: “It’s rare for a village to have two wells, let alone in our Lingzhou City.”
Ye Lan was somewhat discouraged: "We've investigated everything we could, but we just can't find any other suspicious points."
Zhilan fell into a brief silence, her gaze fixed on the well, looking out into the bottomless black hole.
“I have a question,” Fu Yun suddenly said.
Zhilan quickly looked away, raised her eyes to look at Fu Jun, and there was a strange light in her eyes.
Fu Yun asked, "How deep are your wells? Is there any possibility that they are connected to other wells?"
Zhilan raised her eyebrows slightly, clearly considering the deeper meaning of Fu Jun's words. After a moment's thought, she said, "The well is bottomless. If it is done intentionally, the possibility of communication cannot be ruled out."
Fu Yun knew that Zhi Lan should understand the meaning behind his words, so he simply asked directly, "How good are those foreigners at swimming?"
Ye Lan and Liu Lan's expressions changed instantly. Ye Lan's gaze swept over the five people in the courtyard, and when she saw that their shoulders visibly trembled when they heard the question, she immediately understood.
Zhilan said, "They should be good swimmers. The elders in my family have mentioned that the people of the Nu Kingdom are good swimmers and skilled in naval warfare."
As soon as she finished speaking, she glanced at the five people in the courtyard and gestured to Ye Lan: "Grab someone over here and try."
Ye Lan's eyes lit up, and she looked excited: "Yes!"
She brought the young couple over and said to the man with trembling shoulders, "Go down in a bit, and pull the rope when you're exhausted."
Before the man could respond, she warned again, "Don't try anything funny, or I have plenty of ways to torture your wife and child, understand?"
The woman beside the man immediately crawled over on her knees and begged for mercy, saying, "My lord, please let me go! My husband is weak and cannot soak in cold water."
Zhilan said calmly, "As long as you tell the truth, neither you nor your husband will have to go down."
The woman opened her mouth, glanced hesitantly at her husband, and then fell silent.
Zhilan knew this person wouldn't admit defeat until he was faced with a fatal mistake, so she coldly ordered, "Tie him up with a rope and lower him down."
Liu Lan immediately brought over a bundle of rope and tied it around the thin man's waist.
The young man's legs trembled as he looked at his wife pleadingly, only to see her turn her face away and remain silent. Looking at the other family members, all of whom had their heads bowed and dared not utter a sound, he understood that they would no longer plead for him.
His eyes immediately reddened, and tears welled up and slid down his cheeks.
After a moment, he closed his eyes, then opened them again, a hint of self-mockery in his eyes. He sniffed and wiped the moisture from the corner of his eyes.
Fu Yun did not interfere. She believed that Zhilan knew what she was doing. If she wanted the other party to tell the truth, she would have to use some necessary means.
Furthermore, the man is not as fragile as they imagine. It is still early autumn, and the weather is not very cold. A little cold water will not cause him any harm.
The young man eventually went down into the well. It was clear that he was a very good swimmer, as he went down several times and stayed for more than five minutes each time.
It seems that there is a hidden world inside this well.
Fu Yun guessed that it was at the bottom of the well because he associated it with modern sewers and drainage pipes.
I had guessed before that the reason why the entrance to the secret passage could not be found was because it was hidden in an unexpected place.
No one expected that the entrance would be a well, which explains why they were always able to escape unscathed.
Just moments before being discovered, if a suspect is hiding in a well, who could possibly guess?
Perhaps because of the connection to water pipes, Fu Yun suddenly thought of her mother.
I remember once the bathroom pipe burst, and water splashed everywhere in the house. He wanted to call a plumber to fix it, but his mother insisted on fixing it herself. As a result, the more she fixed it, the more ridiculous it became, and the whole bathroom became a mess, like a battlefield where a water fight had taken place.
To prevent the situation from worsening, he had to fix it himself. Fortunately, he managed to fix it and successfully plugged the cracked pipe.
At this moment, he suddenly felt a little sad. If he really chose to stay in the matriarchal country, what would happen to his parents?
Are you suggesting we make them start new accounts at their advanced age?
He knew very well what entering the palace would mean; it meant he had decided to spend his life with Zhilan and had no intention of returning to the modern world where he had loved ones.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com